The FIFA Weekly Issue #31

ISSUE 31, 23 MAY 2014

ENGLISH EDITION

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE CLASS STRUGGLE IN MADRID BLATTER LOOKING FORWARD TO BRAZIL SOLOMON ISLANDS FROM CHAOS TO WORLD CUP DREAMS

Blue Stars / FIFA Youth Cup

WHERE STARS ARE BORN W W W.FIFA.COM/ THEWEEKLY

CONTENTS

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Sepp Blatter on Brazil, Russia and Qatar As he looks forward to Brazil 2014, the FIFA President also casts a confident glance at Russia and says that the 2022 tournament in Qatar “must be played during the European winter”.

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F IFA: Four accusations – four responses With 20 days to go until the World Cup, football’s governing body is being confronted with accusations every day.

The FIFA Weekly provides clear responses to four of the most common allegations.

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North and Central America 35 members www.concacaf.com

Where stars are born On 28 and 29 May 2014, youth football’s elite will gather in Switzerland for the prestigious Blue Stars / FIFA Youth Cup. The tournament has a long history, with global stars such as George Best, David Beckham and more recently Adnan Januzaj playing in Zurich at the start of their careers.

South America 10 members www.conmebol.com

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Mickael Landreau France’s backup goalkeeper is ready for Brazil and considers his team to be “good outsiders”.

“ I became a pawn” Armenian Artur Petrosyan once had the chance to sign for Arsenal before officials and intermediaries scuppered his plans.

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Back on top Three years after relegation, Ramon Diaz and River Plate are champions once more.

Stars in the making This image from 1968 shows George Best smiling for Swiss photographers in his Manchester United kit.

Getty Images

World Cup 2014: Groups A-C

TO A GREATER GOAL™ 2

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Group A

Group B

Group C

Brazil

Spain

Colombia

Croatia

Netherlands

Greece

Mexico

Chile

Côte d’Ivoire

Cameroon

Australia

Japan

THIS WEEK IN THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL

Europe 54 members www.uefa.com

Africa 54 members www.cafonline.com

Asia 46 members www.the-afc.com

Oceania 11 members www.oceaniafootball.com

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World Cup dreams With their financial difficulties now rectified, football on the Solomon Islands is getting back on the right track.

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Juan Dali, Rachel Anna Skeates, Getty Images (2)

Champions League final After winning La Liga, Atletico Madrid are now aiming to lift European club football’s most illustrious trophy.

World Cup 2014: Groups D-H Group D

Group E

Group F

Group G

Group H

Uruguay

Switzerland

Argentina

Germany

Belgium

Costa Rica

Ecuador

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Por tugal

Algeria

England

France

Iran

Ghana

Russia

Italy

Honduras

Nigeria

USA

Korea Republic

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emirates.com

Tomorrow brings us all closer To new people, new ideas and new states of mind.

Here’s to reaching all the places we’ve never been.

Fly Emirates to 6 continents.

UNCOVERED

Reaching for the stars

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verybody has to start somewhere, a fact that is easy to forget when watching footballers with exceptional athleticism, incredible speed and outrageous skills on television. The first time a budding young sportsman looks on from the stands, it is all too easy to feel like a schoolchild in front of a panel of teachers. Every year, not far from FIFA’s headquarters, Zurich plays host to the best youth football tournament in the world. It is the place where potential stars score goals with the exuberance and abandon of youth, and to mark the occasion Thomas Renggli has turned his attention to the history of the Blue Stars / FIFA Youth Cup, unearthing amusing anecdotes from the early days of the competition. One such story involves an 18-yearold George Best, who graces the cover of this week’s issue, sending a postcard to his parents which read: “The food here isn’t so great, but the girls are fabulous!” The images that accompany the report are just as glamorous, featuring greats such as Bobby Moore, David Beckham and Pep Guardiola. You will be amazed at the number of players who launched their careers in Zurich.

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lsewhere, incredible developments are currently underway on the Solomon Islands, as a new generation that has largely learned football in streets and jungle clearings bids to qualify for the 2015 U-20 World Cup in New Zealand. This ambition is all the more astounding when you consider that the Solomon Islands Football Association is still embroiled in financial chaos. Elio Stamm assesses the tiny nation’s chances and why futsal has already achieved success in the area in a fourpage report. nd of course, we also focus on the 2014 World Cup, which kicks off in Sao Paolo in just 20 days time. FIFA President Blatter says that a little more objectivity would do the tournament’s critics good. “FIFA is taking nothing away from Brazilians. On the contrary, it has provided US$ 2 billion in operating costs.” On a related note, we respond to four common accusations about this summer’s World Cup. One such claim is that only rich Brazilians will be able to attend matches at the tournament, which is incorrect given that tickets in Brazil are available from as little as US$ 15. Å

NASA

Alan Schweingruber

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BLUE S TARS / FIFA YOUTH CUP

Already a star?

Manchester United’s promising young talent Adnan Januzaj 6

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BLUE S TARS/ FIFA YOUTH CUP

Life before global fame and fortune David Beckham with current England coach Gary Neville (left) at the youth tournament in Zurich in the early 1990s.

foto-net / Hans-Rudolf Ottiker

The next generation Shortly before the World Cup gets underway next month, the elite of world youth football will meet in Zurich for the Blue Stars / FIFA World Cup, the tournament that cemented a young George Best’s reputation as a ladies’ man, impressed Bobby Charlton and left one Croatian side breathless.

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B L U E S T A R S / F I F A Y O U T H C U P

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Thomas Renggli

riedrich Schiller once wrote “Tis early practice only makes the master,” and 200 years later almost all of the world’s football clubs, from Arsenal to Zenit St. Petersburg, continue to heed his wisdom when it comes to developing future footballing talent. Three years ago, Real Madrid signed Leonel Angel Coira, then just seven years old, and were swiftly followed by arch-rivals Barcelona, who enlisted nine-year-old Zak Gilsenan from Ireland. Nowadays, it seems that the only prerequisite for new transfers is that the player is potty trained; after all, not even the best-equipped top-flight stadiums have baby changing tables or qualified childminders.

Not even FC Blue Stars can offer such facilities, despite the fact that over the past 75 years, the Zurich club has established the world’s leading youth tournament in the Blue Stars / FIFA Youth Cup. Last year, a 18-year-old Adnan Januzaj swept through this prestigious competition like a hurricane, winning the Golden Ball for the tournament’s best player and continuing a long tradition of eyecatching performances among Manchester United players at the Youth Cup. Almost all of the club’s top players have taken part in the Blue Stars FIFA Youth Cup over the years. In the 1990s, a

The Youth Cup kicks off Tournament founder Fritz Rey greets the competition’s first participants in 1939

rosy-cheeked youngster named David Beckham stopped off in Zurich as a young United prospect en route to becoming a global fashion and lifestyle icon. Beckham went on to become the only Englishman to score a goal in three different World Cups; now Brussels-born Kosovar Albanian Januzaj is preparing to begin his senior international career by travelling to

the World Cup in Brazil with Belgium in two weeks time.

When the tournament was founded in Zurich in 1939, plans for a competition aimed at the highest youth category were met with scepticism and warnings within FC Blue Stars. As the club chronicle recalls, the board only decided to back then-head of youth football Fritz

With some of the biggest names in European football having cut their teeth on the international stage at the Blue Stars / FIFA Youth Cup, the tournament’s motto, ’Where Stars are Born’, is no empty promise. The competition’s history books are filled with names who later became global superstars, with England the primary contributor, although Spain, Germany and Portugal continue to provide their share of extraordinary talents too.

Numerous members of England’s 1966 World Cup winning side and Manchester United’s European champions from 1968 are just some of the players to have started out at the tournament.

You can find a list of the Youth Cup’s most famous alumni at: www.youthcup.ch

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BOBBY CHARLTON

HELMUT HALLER

CLUB: Manchester United PARTICIPATED: 1954–58 A symbol both of Manchester United and the England national team, Charlton survived the Munich air disaster in 1958 and won the World Cup eight years later, before lifting the 1968 European Cup.

CLUB: Augsburg PARTICIPATED: 1956 Blessed with superb technique and dribbling ability, Haller shone at the 1956 tournament and went on to put Germany 1–0 up against England ten years later in the 1966 World Cup Final.

Peter Bischoff / Archiv FC Blue Stars

From promising youngster to household name

B L U E S T A R S / F I F A Y O U T H C U P

Rey’s idea to organise such a tournament after an “emotional and controversial” discussion on 3 December 1938. The minutes of that meeting stated: “The club president and treasurer express their concerns about financial aspects of hosting the event,” and only after Rey agreed to organise the competition at his own risk did the board grant their approval.

English teams shape the early years of the tournament Rey’s visionary proposals paid off: he managed to avoid bankruptcy, and the club did not suffer any sporting losses. In May 1939, 12 Swiss teams gathered at Zurich’s Heiligfeld playing fields, providing welcome relief to numerous spectators at a difficult time in history, with

Grasshoppers ultimately crowned the inaugural winners of the competition.

In 1940, Heiligfeld fell victim to Switzerland’s “Anbauschlacht” food production policy during the Second World War. Despite this setback, the Blue Stars tournament survived and thrived, moving to FC Zurich’s stadium and developing a reputation that quickly transcended both linguistic and geographical barriers. In 1946, FC Mulhouse became the first foreign team to send a team to the competition.

In its early years, the competition benefited from its location in politically neutral Switzerland at a time when hosting sporting events was the last thing on the minds of most countries in war-torn Europe.

World football governing body FIFA has been the Youth Cup’s official partner since 1991, but by that point the tournament had already been reaping the rewards of its excellent network of contacts for many years. The long-term president of the competition’s organising committee, Hermann Gutzler, was a close friend of the general secretary of The Football Association in England (and later FIFA President), Sir Stanley Rous. This connection began a long-standing tradition of English participation in the Youth Cup, beginning with Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1951. Practically all of English football’s biggest clubs have taken at least one opportunity to send their strongest youth teams to Zurich. Back then, the English

BOBBY MOORE

GEORGE BEST

PEP GUARDIOLA

CLUB: West Ham United PARTICIPATED: 1959 Captain, gentleman and World Cup winner, Moore was knighted by the Queen and is considered one of the all-time greats in the English game, having been a pillar of the country’s 1966 World Cup triumph.

CLUB: Manchester United PARTICIPATED: 1964 A genius on the pitch but distracted by a footballer’s lifestyle off it, Best was one of the game’s first true stars. “I spent a lot of money on alcohol, women and cars.

I just squandered the rest,” he once said.

CLUB: Barcelona PARTICIPATED: 1988 As a defensive midfielder Guardiola was part of Barcelona’s trophy-hoarding ’Dream Team’. He has continued his success as a coach, winning – among others – the Champions League with Barcelona.

Getty Images / Keystone

Training Youth player George Best is put through his paces in 1960 (right image)

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football season finished with the FA Cup final on the first Saturday in May, so the timing of the Youth Cup at the end of the month was particularly well suited to English clubs with no further domestic commitments. The Zurich cup has been lifted by English sides 23 times during the history of the competition.

Charlton still impressed Manchester United are an integral part of the history of the event. The Red Devils travelled to Zurich with legendary first-team manager Sir Matt Busby for the first time in 1954, winning the trophy at the first attempt and going on to record 17 further triumphs. Club legend Sir Bobby Charlton, a World Cup and European Cup winner and global footballing icon, took part in the tournament between 1954 and 1958 and considers the event to be extremely important, once explaining: “The Youth Cup is the best youth tournament there is. I always feel particularly proud when I look at the trophies we won in Zurich at our museum at Old Trafford.”

The success of these English sides was all the most impressive given that they struggled to acquire a taste for the food in Zurich and discovered that Swiss cooks were unable to satisfy their typically British requests for fish and chips or eggs and bacon. When Manchester United won the competition in 1954, the club rewarded its players with 100 francs prize money, and the young Englishmen immediately

Showdown Arsenal meet Mantova in the 1963 final

seized the opportunity to treat themselves to a ’real English breakfast’ at Zurich’s main railway station. Ten years later, the local cuisine turned George Best’s stomach, but the Northern Irish heartthrob found that something else turned his head. “The food isn’t great, but the girls are fabulous,” he wrote to his parents at the time.

The Youth Cup’s first Italian competitors, AC Como, had no such culinary difficulties in 1952.

They chose Zurich’s Hotel Italia for their accommodation, where the chef granted their every nutritional wish, from pizza and pasta to wine, meaning the Italians even accepted the fact that there was only one shower per floor. In 1955, football’s most senior official, FIFA President Blatter,

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RYAN GIGGS

DAVID BECKHAM

NANI

CLUB: Manchester United PARTICIPATED: 1991 A one-club man, the Welshman played 963 games for Manchester United and helped shape the record English champions into what they are today.

CLUB: Manchester United PARTICIPATED: 1992–95 Famed as much for his spectacular goals as for his fashion sense, England’s Beckham is peerless among his contemporaries in terms of the reach of his global appeal.

CLUB: Manchester United PARTICIPATED: 2004–05 A technically gifted attacker, Nani has been one of Manchester United’s key first-team players since 2009.

Despite being just 27-years-old, he has already won 11 titles with the club.

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G. Horvath / Uschi Kurmann

From promising youngster to household name

B L U E S T A R S / F I F A Y O U T H C U P

er teams’ tactics and adapt your playing style to fit the situation.”

Zurich native Jakob Kuhn, one of Switzerland’s leading players in the 1960s and 70s and coach of the Swiss national team between 2001 and 2008, experienced this era as a young spectator. “Watching players like Bobby Charlton, Nobby Stiles or Billy Whelan playing on our doorstep made us want to grow up to be like them one day,” he explained.

An Italian lesson in tactics The event gave players an early opportunity to experience different playing cultures that

was rare at the time. Bobby Charlton recalled: “In England, we played against teams like Blackpool, Bolton or Bury. In Zurich we had to face the Italians, who just holed themselves up in their own penalty box and defended. We were perplexed, and ended up losing 1-0. That match proved to be a vital lesson to our coaches in how to react to oth-

The mystery of Duncan Edwards The tournament’s organisers have always tried to include a diverse range of teams, and have invited 230 clubs from 40 countries to participate during the competition’s history. In 1991, Rio de Janeiro’s Botafogo became the first Brazilian team to travel to Zurich for the occasion, but it was 1999 before the trophy returned to the land of football with Sao Paolo FC – the first time the title had been won by a team from another continent. The list of Youth Cup winners includes teams from 14 countries, including all of the World Cup winning nations except Uruguay, as well as emerging footballing countries such as Russia, Serbia and Portugal.

Financial interests have never played a major role in the competition, with organisers only offering to cover the participants’ board and lodging. To mark the event’s 50th anniversary, the organising committee paid teams’ travel expenses for the first time, enabling Bar-

GERARD PIQUÉ

XHERDAN SHAQIRI

ADNAN JANUZAJ

CLUB: Manchester United (Barcelona) PARTICIPATED: 2005 A world and European champion as well as a three-time Champions League winner, the centre-back is the rock at the heart defence for both Barcelona and Spain.

CLUB: Basel (Bayern Munich) PARTICIPATED: 2009 A supersub at Bayern but a crucial figure in the Swiss national team, Shaqiri combines explosive pace with first-rate technique.

CLUB: Manchster United PARTICIPATED: 2013 A supremely talented youngster, Januzaj has the footballing world at his feet and could torment defences at the World Cup this summer after deciding to represent Belgium at international level.

Carnival atmosphere in Zurich Sao Paolo FC celebrate their second successive Youth Cup triumph

Getty Images / foto-net

stayed in the air-raid shelter of a local school when taking part in the competition with FC Siders and later remembered: “That tournament was the start of my international football career.”

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B L U E S T A R S / F I F A Y O U T H C U P

Ru le ex per iments Thomas Renggli

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IFA regularly uses the Youth Cup as a testing ground, as the tournament offers the chance to try out potential rule changes in high-level match conditions.

Here is an overview of the most important experiments to have been carried out at the tournament:

The back-pass rule This regulation is one of the most important amendments to have been made in the modern era and is now an integral part of the Laws of the Game.

Reunited in Zurich Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton and FIFA President Sepp Blatter

Kick-in 76TH BLUE STARS / FIFA YOUTH CUP

With a view to increasing the tempo of matches, an indirect free-kick was awarded instead of a throw-in. The idea failed to take off.

DATE: 28 May (from 15:00 CET) and 29 May (from 09:15 CET).

Teams: Bayern Munich (Germany), Altético Paranaense (Brazil), Benfica (Portugal), Olympiakos (Greece), Asante

In an effort to find a fair way of deciding matches that ended in draws, an ice hockey-style shoot-out – in which a player would start at the halfway line and go one-on-one with the goalkeeper – was proposed in place of the customary penalty shoot-out. It never made it past the experimental stage either.

Pre-match penalty shoot-out In the knockout stages a ’preventative’ penalty shoot-out took place before every game. This idea was also a non-starter.

Multiple matchballs Alongside the introduction of the back-pass rule, this has been one of the most efficient innovations in increasing the intensity and rhythm of matches. Several balls are distributed around the edge of the pitch, meaning a replacement is always at hand if the one in use goes out of play, reducing the opportunity for time wasting. Å

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on vi ulous” B are fab ls en ir m g o e w h “T and’s f Swit zerl virtues o

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celona to make their first Youth Cup appearance for 10,000 francs.

In the absence of financial perks, the hosts entice foreign teams to Switzerland with the promise of taking in the local sights and scenery. In 1968, West Ham United’s players – including eventual England internationals Trevor Brooking and Frank Lampard Sr., father of the current England midfielder – were invited to visit the Grison Alps, as former tournament organiser Werner Staub recalled: “The Englishmen were very enthusiastic about the magnificent views, but halfway up the mountain several of the players found their courage deserting them thanks to the unfamiliar altitude.” Dinamo Zagreb’s youth had an even worse head for heights on their own visit to the Alps. While still in the cable car, they became short of breath and had to lie down.

Meanwhile, other Swiss attractions rendered young English star Duncan Edwards weak at the knees in 1954. Returning from a trip into

Kotoko (Ghana), Villarreal (Spain), Sion, Zurich, Grasshoppers, Blue Stars (all Switzerland).

Location: Buchlern Sports Complex, Zurich.

Entrance fee: free

Zurich’s city centre, Edwards leapt off the tram one stop too soon to the surprise of his team-mates, and failed to turn up at the team’s base that evening. If word-of-mouth accounts from former senior players are to be believed, the Englishman – much like George Best in later years – succumbed to feminine charms in Zurich that evening instead. Å

Uschi Kurmann / Museum Manchester United

Shoot-out

TALK ING POIN T S

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Argentina: Primera División

River are River again Sven Goldmann is a football expert for Tagesspiegel newspaper in Berlin.

The Millionarios danced in jubilation down on the pitch, while the fans sang with delight up in the stands of Buenos Aires’ giant Estadio Monumental, home of River Plate.

Even for a club so accustomed to glory, this was a special night indeed. As many as 60,000 ardent supporters were there to watch their side’s 5-0 win over Quilmes that secured triumph in the Torneo Clausura (the league campaign that rounds off the domestic season). It was River’s first title in six years, which to the country’s most successful club, was a long wait indeed.

I N S I D E

A Fernando Cavenaghi double, plus goals from Gabriel Mercado, Teófilo Gutierrez and one from the outstanding Cristian Ledesma, fired the club to victory and a 35th championship.

After 19 games, River finished with a fivepoint lead over their arch-rivals Boca Juniors, and it could yet get even better. A 36th championship is on the horizon, with River set to compete in the Superfinal against another city rival in San Lorenzo, winners of this season’s Torneo Apertura (the league campaign played in the first half of the season), on Saturday at the Estadio Provinciál von la Punta in the country’s central province of San Luis Before that, however, the Belgrano-based club have some celebrations to catch up on. In the Estadio Monumental, in the streets around the arena and in every quarter of Buenos Aires where people’s hearts beat for the red and white of River Plate and not for Boca, the joy is tangible and unconstrained. “RiverVuelveASerRiver” leaps out from the homepage of the club’s official website: “River are River again!”

Club Atletico River Plate suffered something of an identity crisis in recent years. It was a period in which few remembered that the proud institution with the red diagonal stripe across a white shirt was – and still is – the country’s most decorated club. In 2011, River were relegated from the Primera División for the first time in 80 years. The ultras rioted and the Argentine Football Federation banned the team from playing at their home ground for five domestic matches. River had hit rock bottom. Just a year later, though, they had risen again like a phoenix from the flames to retake their place in the top flight, and, crucially, a club hero then made his return. Ramon Diaz, a man who had represented River as a player with much success, re-entered the fray to become coach of the newly-promoted side, ten years after departing following a well-documented fallout with club president Jose Maria Aguilar, who had refused to extend his contract and instead hired Chilean Manuel Pellegrini as coach.

Diaz, a former striker, won his first of five championship titles with the Millionarios in 1979 at the age of just 20, and after a much-travelled playing career that ended in 1995, he came back to the capital to become River’s most successful coach in their 113-year history, winning almost all there was to win: three Torneo Aperturas and two Torneo Clausuras, as well as the Copa Libertadores in 1996 and the South American Super Cup in 1997. Little wonder, then, that he is considered a saint among the fans, who overwhelmingly welcomed his return in 2012.

After the final whistle on Sunday, Diaz staggered, almost drunk with happiness, across the turf of the Monumental, with his collar undone and sporting a league winners’ medal in place of a tie. “This title is the result of 18 months’ hard work,” beamed the 54-year-old.

Gabriel Rossi / STF

Of course, there is still the Superfinal this weekend, which for Diaz will be another very special occasion, as he also commands similar affection from San Lorenzo supporters. In 2007 he led the club from Buenos Aires’ Almagro district to victory in the Clausura, their last major success before winning this season’s Apertura last December. Å

Ramón Díaz (left) and Fernando Gavenanghi celebrate River Plate’s victory over Quilmes.

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Norway: Tippeligeaen

Molde spurred on by split Nicola Berger is an expert on Norwegian football.

When the Norwegian Tippeligeaen got underway on the last weekend in March, it was poorer for the absence of two of its biggest attractions from the previous season.

One of them is historic club Tromso, who were relegated at the close of the last campaign and now find themselves in the relative obscurity of the second division. Tromso is the most northerly professional football club in the world, situated just 344 kilometres from the Arctic Circle, and so their relegation will have not have been greatly mourned by former top-flight rivals who dreaded the lengthy away trips. Rosenborg had the shortest journey to make, but still had to travel 1,150 kilometres to reach their opponents.

Last season, the league also lost its figurehead, 41-year-old Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The scourge of Bayern and perhaps the most prominent Norwegian football export of all time resigned from his post as Molde coach in January to take the helm at Cardiff City.

Carina Johansen / NTB Scanpix

Molde seem to have been spurred on by the split from their famous boss. The 2000 Champions League participants currently top the table after nine games, playing with efficiency and a tight defence under new coach Tor Ole Skullerud, who led the Norwegian U-21 national side to the semi-finals of the European Championships last summer.

Molde’s stand-out performer so far this season has been 19-year-old playmaker Mohamed Elyonoussi, brought in from Sarpsborg in March, who has already notched up five goals and two assists in nine matches. The sparkling form of last season’s sixth-placed

Molde coach Tor Ole Skullerud ahead of the league match between Sandnes ULF and Molde FK.

team has startled a league in which other sides were tipped as favourites before the season began.

Rosenborg, Norway’s most successful team of all time, were among those early favourites, having conceded the title to rivals Stroemsgodset on the final day of last season. The club have since reorganised their ranks, including bringing 32-year-old former Blackburn winger Morten Gamst Pedersen home from an unhappy spell in Turkey to provide a boost down the left flank. Despite these changes, Rosenborg have lacked consistency so far in this campaign, suffering a heavy 3-1 home defeat to newly-promoted side Stabaek last weekend.

Stroemsgodset, although the reigning champions lack big-name players – with the exception of Ghanaian World Cup goalkeeper Adam Larsen Kwaresey. The “star” of their team is in fact 38-year-old former defender and current head coach Ronny Deila, who has declared that he would rather be relegated playing attractive football than play unappealingly for the sake of results alone. Deila follows a philosophy similar to that of Arsene Wenger at Arsenal, instilling a short passing game and attacking spirit in a relatively young side with an average age of 25.1 years.

Deila’s plan is continuing to pay off this season, with Stroemsgodset currently lurking in second place. Å

So where is Molde’s greatest challenge likely to come from if Rosenborg cannot find their form? The title may yet find its way back to

Stroemsgodset’s “star” is coach Deila, who would rather be relegated playing attractively than play purely for results.

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CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Lisbon’s Madrid derby: Who will prevail?

Jordi Punti, Barcelona

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hen the final whistle blows on Saturday evening’s Champions League final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid at the Estadio da Luz in Lisbon, the victor’s fans will gather at their traditional meeting point in the Spanish capital to celebrate their team’s triumph. Will it be Neptune, the god of the sea, or Cybele, goddess of earth, who provides the backdrop to the festivities? If Real manage to 16

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pick up their tenth European title then Cybele’s Fountain in the Plaza de Cibeles will be the epicentre, but if Atletico are able to secure their maiden continental crown then the Neptune Fountain will turn in to a sea of red and white supporters. Only 500 metres separate the two statues in Madrid, but in footballing terms, the two clubs could not be further apart.

The Madrid derby reflects an historical rivalry that has existed for more than a century.

Initially Real were the more established club, with a larger fan base from the powerful and

well-connected social classes. Atletico, founded by a group of Basque students who modelled the club on Athletic Bilbao, were supported largely by the working classes living in less wellheeled areas of the city. Nowadays however, both clubs have fans the world over. Atletico may still have a less aristocratic following, but they can nevertheless count Prince Felipe of Spain among their more illustrious supporters.

The two clubs’ musical tastes also demonstrate the gulf that separates them. The official version of the anthem commemorating Real

José Manuel Ribeiro / AFP

Real or Atletico? That is the question dominating world football at present, with the two clubs set to joust for Europe’s crown in the 2014 Champions League final.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

­ adrid’s centenary, which is played prior to all M of the team’s matches, is sung by the tenor ­Placido Domingo, whereas the song marking Atletico’s 100th anniversary was composed and performed by the popular singer-songwriter Joaquin Sabina.

Local rivalry, international audience There has only ever been one Madrid derby in European competition, with that fixture coming in the semi-final of the 1958/59 season. A play-off match was needed after the two-­ legged tie in order to determine a winner, with Real eventually booking their ticket to the final. However, the upcoming derby will surpass any that have gone before given what is at stake, with victory extending its reach far beyond that of a normal triumph. It is a local rivalry that will become an international spectacle, played out at a neutral venue in front of millions of spectators.

Jamie McDonald / Getty Images

The Madrid derby reflects an historical rivalry.

While both sides reached the final on the back of outstanding European campaigns that underlined an unbending desire to win, that desire stems from very different sources: ­Atletico want to lift the trophy, Real have to do so. Florentino Perez, president of the latter, has emphasised on several occasions that the most important objective for the club and its expensively-assembled squad of superstars including Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric and Gareth Bale, is to secure a tenth European title. After falling short in ­recent years it has become something of an obsession, as Real last lifted the trophy 12 years ago in the 2001/02 season, when Zinedine Z ­ idane’s sensational volley helped Vicente del Bosque’s ‘Galacticos’ to a 2-1 triumph over Bayer Leverkusen. Such a length of time is an eternity at a club like Real. Now Carlo Ancelotti’s patient style has helped instil a sense of calm in the team that has settled the nerves that come with the weight of the historical burden the side is carrying.

Advantage Atletico?

Atletico’s thirst for success seems to intensify with every passing season. When Diego Simeone took charge in December 2011 the club was teetering on the edge of disaster, with relegation a very real possibility. Yet Simeone’s direct, hard-running, pressing-based playing philosophy transformed the team and the following year he led them to glory in the Europa League, before winning the Copa del Rey 12 months later in a thrilling derby against Real, as well as qualifying for the Champions League.

Now, in the build-up to the final, Simeone’s side secured the Spanish league title with a 1-1 draw in an all-or-nothing encounter with Barcelona at the Nou Camp last Saturday. At the subsequent celebrations at the Neptune Fountain Simeone addressed the fans, turning his attention towards Lisbon: “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s not just about the league. If you believe and if you work hard then you can achieve anything. Come on, let’s do this together!” His conviction, coupled with a tireless work ethic, steadfast courage and emotional intelligence, have turned Atletico into one of Europe’s most formidable teams.

Against that backdrop it is difficult to make any predictions about the outcome of the final, especially in light of the similarities the two shared to get there. While Atletico beat Barcelona to the league title, Real defeated the Catalan outfit 2-1 in the Copa del Rey final in a

ruthless demonstration of their counter-attacking talents that helped provide the foundation of trust Ancelotti now enjoys. Furthermore, the two teams’ performances away from home that paved the way for them to reach Lisbon were hugely impressive. Real crushed Bayern Munich 4-0 and Atletico controlled proceedings at Chelsea to ease to a 3-1 win.

Given the intensity with which both clubs play it is not surprising that there have been some casualties along the way. Real must make do without suspended midfielder Xabi Alonso, while centre-back Pepe and striker Benzema are doubtful with injuries, although Ronaldo has declared himself fit to play. Atletico have lost their main goal threat in Diego Costa to injury but should be able to call upon the services of playmaker Arda Turan, who has been struggling with a pelvic complaint.

Neptune or Cybele?

All of those factors promise to make it a fiercely contested final, where it will be fascinating to see who takes the initiative. It is not something that comes naturally to either side as both are at their best when launching swift counter-attacks after breaking down their opponent’s forward advances. Real have a history of heroic performances in matches that count, while Atletico have learned to push themselves to the limit.

Both Neptune and Cybele await the winners on the Paseo del Prado boulevard in Madrid. Å

The final 24 May 2014 · 20:45 (CET) · Estadio da Luz · Lisbon Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (NL)

Route to the final Atletico AC Milan (Round of 16: 1-0, 4-1) Barcelona (Quarter-final: 1-1, 1-0) Chelsea (Semi-final, 0-0, 3-1) Real Madrid Schalke 04 (Round of 16: 6-1, 3-1) Borussia Dortmund (Quarter-final: 3-0, 0-2) Bayern Munich (Semi-final: 1-0, 4-0) T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Name Mickael Landreau Date and place of birth 14 May 1979, Machecoul (France) Clubs FC Nantes, Paris Saint-Germain, Lille, Bastia French national team 11 caps 2014 World Cup

Agnès Dherbeys

Group matches: Honduras (15 June), Switzerland (20 June), Ecuador (25 June)

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THE INTERVIEW

“I’m available for my country” Mickael Landreau retired from club football last weekend after making a record-breaking 618 appearances in Ligue 1. France’s reserve goalkeeper will now travel to the World Cup in Brazil for one last hurrah before hanging up his boots for good.

Which of the titles you’ve won as a player has meant the most to you?

Mickael Landreau: It’s difficult to pick out one in particular because they’ve all been unique. The first title was obviously an important one and an emotional occasion for me as I won it with Nantes, the club where I came through the ranks. The domestic double with Lille was also great because being able to consistently compete at the top and to win 10 years down the line really is an outstanding achievement.

Nobody has played more games than you in the French league. Which qualities do you need to reach such a milestone?

A lot of hard work and self-evaluation.

You also need humility because we have a very difficult position, and talent because you’re nothing without it at this level. You have to have a bit of everything. A healthy lifestyle and good preparation for competitions and training sessions are crucial too.

Do you remember the moment you first started to close in on Jean-Luc Ettori’s appearances record and the moment you first set your sights on beating it?

People were certainly quick to mention it.

I responded by saying that it was possible in terms of age, though I knew all too well how hard it would be to keep going at such a high level. Over the last few years I’ve told myself that I’d reach his achievement if I continued to do what I needed to on a daily basis and work hard. However, you need to be performing well too because nowadays there are lots of challenges at club level. My position is too important to take my foot off the gas.

Did you know that the Bastia-Nantes match last weekend would be your last?

Absolutely! I was very well prepared for it.

Yes, they were my last minutes as a player in Ligue 1, but all good things come to an end.

The match was symbolic for me as it brought my career full circle. The final result was a

0-0 draw just like my very first outing! It just so happened to finish with the same scoreline 18 years later!

Let’s talk about the French national team now.

How do you rate your side’s chances?

France are real outsiders. Our first game will be vital because there’s always a lot of pressure. Such are the expectations surrounding a World Cup campaign that you need to perform well and know how to cope, especially when you come up against teams in good physical condition. Ideally the first match will take away some of the pressure, but it can also increase it too. Everyone tends to underestimate Honduras, but from my own experience the first match is never easy. Didier Deschamps has emphasised that point time and time again.

The coach was quick to make you the thirdchoice goalkeeper when he arrived in August 2012. Which qualities do you need for this role?

There’s no one correct answer. It depends on the number one and the number two.

However, you definitely need to be competitive, passionate and love training. I certainly possess other qualities that the team needs, as do the two other keepers and Franck Raviot, our goalkeeping coach.

How do you envisage your World Cup in Brazil?

Personally, whenever I go somewhere, I always imagine that things will turn out as well as they possibly can, and that I’ll put in a lot of effort and give it my all. It was exactly the same in 2006 when I went to the World Cup with a real desire to perform my role as well as possible despite what was then a very difficult situation between Fabien Barthez and Gregory Coupet. I adapt to whatever happens.

Which keepers do you think will have a good World Cup? It depends because playing for one of the big teams is different from playing for one of the so-called weaker countries, where the keeper has a larger role to play. I think Vincent Enyeama is capable of achieving great things with Nigeria, having already shown that he is an incredible goalkeeper. In my mind, Manuel Neuer and Thibault Courtois are two of the three best keepers in the world. But the other, Petr Cech, won’t be involved in Brazil. Å Mickael Landreau was talking to Pascal de Miramon

Having made 11 appearances yourself, do you often wish you’d played a bigger role for France?

I was the number one at certain points, mainly during the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign. But I have no regrets at all. International football and club football are completely different things. Even if you get frustrated at times, you always make yourself available for your country, do your best for the team and try to set an example.

You’re there to serve your country and you have to try to accept the choices that are made, even if you think you deserve better.

At club level, everyone wants playing time and you’re free to make choices and to leave if you’re not happy.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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First Love

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Place: Shaqlawa, Iraq Date: 22 April 2005 Time: 4.00 pm

Ed Kashi

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T HE DEBAT E

Global football Asia, Europe, Africa, South America. The World Cup has been to almost every continent since 2002, but Australasia is yet to host the event.

Thomas Renggli

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Thirty-two nations since 1998 The islanders were seemingly unperturbed by such trivial matters though, and even proclaimed themselves to be the “unofficial world champions” following a 3-2 victory over holders Italy in November 1934. However, the official record books tell a very different story: England suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of the USA in their debut World Cup appearance in Brazil.

The World Cup might have been reliant on the interest of potential participants up until 1950 (the Indians refused to travel to Brazil because they were not allowed to play without boots, for example), but the numbers grew to 16 22

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World Cup excitement Brazilian children on the shores of Porto Alegre admire a giant beach ball.

teams in 1954 and subsequently to 24 teams in 1982. Thirty-two countries have taken part since 1998.

FIFA decided to introduce a rotation policy in 2000, meaning that each of the six continental associations would take it in turns to have one of its members host the World Cup finals.

However, FIFA’s Executive Committee reviewed the decision in 2007 and “liberalised” the procedure one again, although consistently alternating between the different continents remains a high priority.

Australia facing a long wait With the continental associations that have hosted the previous two World Cup finals not taken into consideration the next time round, only associations from South America, North and Central America, Africa and Oceania may put forward a bid to host the 2026 finals.

Australia is a special case in this respect.

Having decided to join the Asian Confederation in 2006, the Australian Football Federation must now compete with rivals from Asia on a sporting and political level for the right to host the global showpiece. It may be a while longer before the big sporting nation from down under welcomes the footballing world to its shores. Å

The weekly debate.

Any thing you want to get off your chest? Which topics do you want to discuss? Send your suggestions to: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org

Victor R. Caivano / AP / Keystone

he earth rotates - just like World Cup hosting rights. The decision to stage the 2002 edition in Asia for the first time marked the beginning of a more global era for football’s flagship event, with the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and the “development” of the African continent representing a further milestone in the history of the game.

The evolution of the World Cup finals reflects the economic, technological and societal progress in the modern era. The World Cup was initially hampered by logistical and ideological factors, with only four European teams (Belgium, France, Yugoslavia and Romania) able to muster up the desire and resources to make the three-week boat-trip to the inaugural tournament in Uruguay. However, the South American nation exacted revenge four years later by boycotting the second edition of the tournament in Italy. England were another notable absentee in 1934, with the country having been overlooked as potential hosts and the FA leaving FIFA in 1928.

T HE DEBAT E

PRESIDENTIAL NOTE

On FIFA.com, FIFA Weekly asked: What will make the World Cup in Brazil spectacular?

The atmosphere is going to be awesome because obviously Brazil is a football-­ maniac country! And of course we’ll see perhaps the two best players ever to complete in a World Cup at the same time: Ronaldo and Messi.

Ronaldo-Kake, Finnland

Because it’s Brazil!!! New players, new football, new life, and most importantly Brazil hosting and hopefully will win too! jklnhji, United Arab Emirates

Because there are so many favourites! Sides like Germany, Spain, Argentina, etc. are on top of their game. And some players are bang on form too! Then there are teams like Uruguay, France, Italy, Belgium and Portugal who can cause an upset.

Gabichou12, France

I’m looking forward to some spectacular games! Suspense! Thrills! I hope there will be big teams, but big surprises too! I want to see a World Cup that will make history for being so exciting and groundbreaking! And I want I Portugal to write a new chapter in their history. A big one! (But I wish the same for all the fans of the other teams too!)

Tosama, Portugal

Brazil 2014 will be the best World Cup in the history of football. The artists of the game like Neymar, Messi, Ronaldo will make this world cup much exciting with individual skills. And there will be the most crazy and colorful supporters of the world live in the stadium. Billions will watch the live telecast.

All for Football and Brazil! puskal, Nepal

I think there is no better venue for a World Cup than Brazil, the home of soccer, (and yes I know England invented it). This cup will also have 32 good teams, I know not all of them have a chance to win the trophy, but they can all affect the outcome of the cup. As soon as I heard it was in Brazil I knew it would be the best World Cup, soooo glad that Mexico made it!

0Edgarmex4, USA

“Brazil is a football­maniac country.”

I believe it’s the fact that all countries from all over the world are coming to together to establish diversity and excitement. From the north to the south, we are emphasizing the global community through fellowship of a sport we all enjoy. Our passion for soccer has been developed ever since historical events in FIFA, from the most wondrous penalty shots to the reactions of the side lines and substitutes.

Everything counts.

Afia1234, Canada

“The artists of the game will make this World Cup exciting.”

The Trophy begins its grand tour

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he start of the World Cup in Brazil in 20 days time will herald an exciting new chapter in football history as the Trophy returns to a land of great footballing artistry and passion. Brazil is football and football is Brazil, but this has practically been forgotten in light of the criticism surrounding the event. A little objectivity would do our critics good in this regard. FIFA is taking nothing away from the Brazilians. On the contrary, it has provided $US 2 billion in operating costs for the tournament, money that can ultimately contribute to sustainability. Despite many predictions to the contrary, I am convinced that we will experience a wonderful festival of football from 12 June onwards.

At the closing ceremony at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro, Russian president Vladimir Putin will formally accept responsibility from the Brazilians for organising the 2018 World Cup. I am sure he will undertake this task with great confidence, and I will be visiting Moscow this September to inspect the progress of his country’s preparations in person.

That leaves us with Qatar 2022. Although this tournament is still eight years away, it is already an ever-present issue. Ground-breaking work began at the World Cup stadium construction sites in January, and I promise you that FIFA will do everything in its power to improve working conditions on those sites. When I spoke about making a mistake with regard to the 2022 World Cup, I did not mean that we made an error in awarding the tournament to Qatar. I was referring instead to our initial oversight of the country’s climatic considerations. It is now clear that the 2022 World Cup must be played during the European winter.

Best wishes, Sepp Blatter T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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A FIFA World Cup in Brazil is just like Visa: everyone is welcome.

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TM & © 2014 Lucasfilm Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Used Under Authorization.

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Felipe Dana /AP / Keystone

With less than three weeks to go until the World Cup, FIFA is receiving hundreds of letters and emails from football fans around the world on a daily basis. Some of the correspondence has been of a critical nature, so we’ve issued a response to the main allegations.

Allegation 1: “The World Cup in Brazil has cost US $15 billion so far. The tax payers are paying through the nose and FIFA is contributing nothing.”

FIFA has contributed US $2 billion towards the operational costs of the World Cup. None of that sum is taken from public funds - all the money comes from TV and marketing rights. The investments made by the host nation (on roads, airports, telecommunication systems, etc.) will all be put to good use after the tournament. According to Brazil’s Economic Research Foundation, the country is expecting to pocket US $27.7 billion.

Allegation 2: “The country’s social problems are immense. That money is better spent on education and health systems in Brazil.”

The government’s education budget hasn’t been compromised by the development bank’s loan for the construction of the stadiums. In order to leave a lasting legacy in Brazil, FIFA has launched the World Cup Legacy trust, with US $20 million sanctioned for the initial projects. The aim is to build a footballing infrastructure, develop youth and women’s football and launch football-based health programmes for children. Since being named host nation in 2007, the Brazilian government has invested over US $340 billion in education and healthcare.

Allegation 3: “FIFA wanted twelve stadiums and failed to act when safety procedures were ignored during construction.”

The government’s education budget hasn’t been compromised by the development bank’s loan for the construction of the stadiums. In order to leave a lasting legacy in Brazil, FIFA has launched the World Cup Legacy trust, with US $20 million sanctioned for the initial projects. The aim is to build a footballing infrastructure, develop youth and women’s football and launch football-based health programmes for children. Since being named host nation in 2007, the Brazilian government has invested over US $340 billion in education and healthcare.

Allegation 4: “Because ticket prices are far too high, locals are finding it hard to get excited about the tournament.

There will hardly be any Brazilians in the stadiums.”

Tickets for group matches are available from US $15. In addition, 100,000 free tickets have been given to construction workers at the World Cup stadiums and to those with social needs. At the World Cup Trophy Tour of Brazil’s 27 states, around 300,000 people were queueing up for a glance at the most coveted trophy in world football. Overall, 11 million applications were received for the 2.9 million available tickets (over 70 per cent from Brazilians). Until now, over 2.7 million tickets have been sold, 58 per cent of which have gone to Brazilians.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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SOLOMON ISLANDS

The Solomon Islanders are the biggest football enthusiasts in the South Pacific, but rather than investing in young talent, their Football Federation recently descended into financial meltdown. Now though, the nation is on the up again and dreaming of a place at the U-20 World Cup. Elio Stamm (text) and Rachel Skeates (pictures) in Honiara The Solomon Islands have never taken part in a FIFA World Cup at any level. In 2015, the South Pacific islanders are determined to make up for lost time by qualifying for the U-20 tournament in New Zealand. On a fine spring evening in the capital city of Honiara,

the young, fresh-faced members of the squad are being put through their paces on the national federation’s only training pitch.

On paper at least, the odds would appear to be in their favour. Australia, the biggest of the football nations in the South Pacific, are now part of the Asian Football Confederation, while New Zealand qualified automatically as hosts.

Since the Oceania Football Confederation have

Lack of organised football It does not take a genius to work out where these shortcomings might originate. The team has only been training together since the beginning of March. The Solomon Islands have a

Saving grace Australian Ian Shaw helped steady the ship at the SIFF.

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Rachel Anna Skeates

Silver lining on the Solomon horizon

been allocated two qualifying places for the first time in World Cup history, the winners of the OFC Championship in Fiji at the end of May will earn the right to compete in the tournament in New Zealand. The Bonitos simply have to finish above five other Pacific Island nations to qualify.

Those who have been following the training sessions have their doubts, however. Head coach Commins Menapi, a 37-year-old former professional in Australia and New Zealand and record goal-scorer for the Solomon Islands national team, is forced on several occasions to repeat basic tactical exercises with his players, whose technical ability is undermined by a lack of tactical awareness. After a step-over or two, the pacey wingers often fail to pick out a teammate with the right pass – and they’re not the only ones.

SOLOMON ISLANDS

Photothek

population of just 500,000, and of the 56 players originally named in the U-19 squad, 17 have played in the domestic league, but failed to pass through any youth academy scheme. Aside from the semi-professional Telekom S-League, which is largely made up of teams based in the capital, there is barely any organised football in the Solomon Islands.

Most of the 20 players gathered on the training pitch learned their trade on the streets, in a jungle clearing or, at best, with an amateur club. They were selected for the U-19s during a trial open to the general public – much like a reality TV show – and are all from Honiara, located on the island of Guadalcanal. A scouting system to scour the remaining 300 inhabited islands for available talent is not yet in place.

The former heads of the Solomon Islands Football Federation (SIFF) have to shoulder the majority of the blame for this sorry state of affairs. The association pockets US $250.000 from FIFA every year – a hefty sum for one of the poorest nations in Oceania, in which 80 per cent of the population live self-sufficient lives

without the need for state benefits. Nonetheless, the development of football in the Solomon Islands has ground to a halt in recent years.

An Australian steadies the ship The initial situation was far from unfavourable.

In 2000, the FIFA Goal Project helped finance the renovation of the Lawson Tama stadium in Honiara, which was built under British rule in 1978 to celebrate the Islands’ forthcoming independence. A further Goal Project funded the construction of a youth academy and a training pitch, as well as the headquarters of the SIFF. However, the following years saw the federation plunge deep into chaos. Youth leagues are unheard of in the Solomon Islands, and youth tournaments, too, soon became a thing of the past. Rather than put their new youth

academy to good use, those in charge allowed it to decay. Faint glimmers of hope, such as the successful organisation of the 2012 OFC Nations Cup, could not disguise the problems facing the SIFF. In August 2013, FIFA stepped in. At the behest of football’s world governing body, OFC President David Chung flew to Honiara and personally removed the heads of the SIFF from office “due to mismanagement of FIFA funds”.

FIFA subsequently appointed a normalisation committee to restore the proper administration of the game in the Solomon Islands between now and the end of the year, when new elections will take place.

For the past ten months, the committee was chaired by Australian coach Ian Shaw, until local politician Barnabas Anga took his place two weeks ago. Fifty-four-year-old Shaw, a laid-

“We’ve finally got to realise our huge potential.”

Ian Shaw, former coach

National pride The Solomon Islands national team at the OFC Champions League in 2012.

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SOLOMON ISLANDS

Impressive futsal results Considering their lack of footballing education, the standard achieved by these players is extraordinary. Despite many defeats during their most recent World Cup qualifying campaign, the full national team managed to hold New Zealand, who had been unbeaten since the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, to a draw at the 2012 OFC Nations Cup on home soil, before going on to reach the semi-finals.

The Solomon Warriors, champions of the S-League, only just missed out on qualification for the last four of the OFC Champions League after missing several goal-scoring opportunities in the group stage, while club sides from neighbouring countries have recently begun to

After the flood Having a kick-about among the wreckage.

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strengthen their ranks with players from the Solomon Islands. New Zealand outfit Waitakere United, for example, rely on the pace of striker Benjamin Totori, one of the stand-out performers of the OFC’s premier club competition, who has played professionally in Australia and the USA. Perhaps even more astonishing is the success of the Solomon Islands in futsal and beach soccer. Despite there being just one hall suitable for the game in the entire country and no

bona fide league, the Solomon Islands national futsal team managed to win four consecutive Oceanian Futsal Championships between 2008 and 2011 and triumphed 4-3 over Thailand in their first ever World Cup match in 2012. The national beach soccer team, meanwhile, have qualified for the World Cup on five occasions.

At the most recent tournament in Tahiti, the Bilikiki beat Holland 2-0 and only just missed out on qualification for the quarter-finals after narrowly losing their other two group matches.

Problems in paradise The Solomon Islands are one of the poorest nations in the Pacific. Their infrastructure, destroyed during the ethnic tensions in the late 90s, is proving a particularly big obstacle to their economic revival. The Islands remain a popular destination for divers and fishermen, although a number of devastating tsunamis have resulted in further problems.

More than 90 per cent of the population are Melanesians, with Polynesians and Micronesians, as well as Chinese, Indian, Australian and European immigrants making up the rest. Football and futsal are the two most popular sports in the Solomon Islands. The national football team’s biggest achievement came in 2006, when they managed to beat New Zealand – a country six times its size – during their qualifying campaign for the World Cup in Germany. The low point came in 1994, when they lost to non-FIFA members Nauru. Å

Rachel Anna Skeates (4)

back character by nature, refuses to be drawn on speculation regarding the cause of all the turmoil. Whether the money was squandered on gambling, as is rumoured, or the damage was the result of sheer incompetence, it’s clear that things have gone badly wrong. “It’s time we finally realised the huge potential [of football in the Solomon Islands],” he said.

SOLOMON ISLANDS

World Cup trials Players in Honiara are trying to make the step up to elite level.

Former star, current coach Commins Menapi is forced to work under difficult circumstances.

Players from the Solomon Islands are known as the “Brazilians of Oceania” in the Pacific. Not even the devastating flash floods, which left thousands without a home in Honiara at the beginning of April, can stop the street footballers of the Solomon Islands, who have simply resorted to playing between fallen trees or washed-up wreckage.

Former interim president Shaw waxes lyrical when talking about the enthusiasm for the game and hidden talents in the area. Studies have shown it would take 10,000 hours to reach the technical standard of today’s professionals.

“The majority of the children on the Solomon Islands have already played 4000 hours of football by the age of 12, far more than in my homeland,” enthused the Australian.

FIFA lifts ban on funding Before these youngsters’ talents can be channelled effectively, however, the committee has more clearing up to do. The top priority for Shaw’s successor Anga and Interim Secretary General Neil Poloso is to rid the SIFF of its debts and to re-establish confidence among the institutions, airline companies and hotels that provided services without receiving a penny in return. Last week, the SIFF sought help from the national government to settle its debts.

On the administrative front, the SIFF has already provided a glimpse of light at the end of the financial tunnel by laying out plans for the future. A trust agency is reviewing all payment orders before they are implemented, resulting in FIFA lifting the ban on financial support which it was forced to impose last year.

Slowly but surely, the Solomon Islands are turning a corner. The U-19s are the first youth team to take to the field since the financial crisis and will now get the chance to showcase their talents at this month’s qualifying tournament in Fiji. Doubt had been cast on their participation in the competition in April when the SIFF received just 60 per cent of the US $25,000 promised to the U-19s at a charity evening. The SIFF has since stepped in and is now paying more than originally envisaged. “The team have trained well and have deserved the chance to compete at the U-19 World Championships,” said Secretary General Poloso.

The team certainly appear to learn quickly from their mistakes. After losing 7-0 in a friendly against a select XI from the S-League, the U-19s beat the same side 4-1 the following week. Å

Inconsistent Technical genius and a lack of tactical awareness go hand in hand.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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W E E K LY T O P 11

Memorable Champions League / European Cup finals

Luck is part of the game Sarah Steiner

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ayern Munich’s victory in the 2001 Champions League final was their first triumph since the introduction of the new competition format in 1992, with the 74,500 fans in Milan’s San Siro Stadium captivated by the penalty shootout that followed 120 minutes of football.

It was a final full of penalties, the Dutch referee awarding three in normal time before the Bavarians eventually defeated Valencia on sudden death.

An element of luck is always involved after 120 minutes have elapsed and fatigue has set in. The referee calls the captains to the centre-circle for a coin toss, with the winner able to choose which side steps up first in the shootout. The two teams then take it in turns to place the ball on the spot, taking five penalties each and sometimes more. But just how fair is this rule?

Researchers worldwide have delved into the matter, with economists Ignacio Palacios-Huerta and Jose Apesteguia at the London School of Economics uncovering some interesting results. It is hardly surprising that the research team is based in the English capital either, given the Three Lions’ poor penalty record in recent times. The two researchers analysed 2,820 shootouts and over 9,000 individual spot-kicks, ultimately coming to the conclusion that the first side to take a penalty emerged victorious 60% of the time. 60 per cent! Players might be forgiven for looking relieved if their captain wins the coin toss in the centre-circle.

The researchers believe that alternating this advantage would make the situation fairer, proposing that the first penalty taken by

team A is followed by two spot-kicks from team B. This would mean an A-B-B-A sequence, with the subsequent four penalties taken in reverse order (B-A-A-B). These two patterns would be repeated until a winner is determined. A similar sequence is used in tennis for tie-breaks.

But is that what we want? Is that little bit of luck not what makes the game of football so special? Penalty shootouts ooze emotion, drama and adrenaline. Or as the former French international Christian Karembeu put it in rather dramatic terms: “It’s like loading the chamber of a gun with a bullet and asking everyone to pull the trigger. One unfortunate soul will have to take the hit, we know that.

And it will absolutely destroy him.” Å

The weekly column by our staff writers

1

2005: AC Milan – Liverpool, 3-3 (a.e.t), 2-3 on pens. The game seemed all but over at half-time when Milan led 3-0, but Liverpool went on to stage a memorable comeback.

2

1999: Man Utd – Bayern Munich, 2-1.

United equalised in the 90th minute before netting the winner two minutes later.

3

1960: Real Madrid – Eintracht Frankfurt, 7-3. Real Madrid cruised to victory in front of a record-breaking 134,000 spectators in Glasgow.

4

1994: AC Milan – Barcelona, 4-0. The Blaugrana didn’t stand a chance against the Rossoneri as Savicevic, Desailly, and Massaro (2) grabbed the goals in a comprehensive win.

5

2001: Bayern Munich – Valencia, 1-1 aet, 5-4 on pens. Both sides converted penalties in normal time, before Bayern eventually triumphed in a shoot-out.

6

1973: Ajax – Juventus, 1-0. The Dutch giants won the tournament for a third successive time and were allowed to keep the trophy.

7

1997: Borussia Dortmund – Juventus 3-1.

The Old Lady’s hopes of defending their title were dashed by Borussia Dortmund in Munich.

8

1956: Real Madrid – Stade Reims, 4-3.

Real Madrid won the first-ever final at the Parc des Princes in Paris.

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2006: Barcelona – Arsenal, 2-1. The influential Henrik Larsson set up both Barcelona goals after coming on as a substitute in the 60th minute.

10

2011: Barcelona – Man Utd, 3-1. United were no match for Lionel Messi and Co. as Barca cemented their status as the superpower of world football.

11

1968: Benfica – Man Utd, 1-4. Ten years after the tragic air disaster in which eight first-team players lost their lives, United became the first English side to lift the trophy.

What was your favourite final? feedback-theweekly@fifa.org T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Tottenham Hotspur’s training ground,

1962 Tea time in Tottenham: Spurs take a break from training to enjoy a well-deserved cuppa.

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Bayer’s training pitch, Leverkusen

Christof Koepsel / Getty Images

2014 Water and isotonic drinks all round: Bayer Leverkusen’s players refuel after another tough training session.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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EVERY GASP EVERY SCREAM EVERY ROAR EVERY DIVE EVERY BALL E V E RY PAS S EVERY CHANCE EVERY STRIKE E V E R Y B E AU T I F U L D E TA I L SHALL BE SEEN SHALL BE HEARD S H A L L B E FE LT

Feel the Beauty

BE MOVED

THE NEW 4K LED TV

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FIFA WORLD R ANKING Rank Team

Change in ranking Points

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Spain Germany Portugal Brazil Colombia Uruguay Argentina Switzerland Italy Greece

0 0 0 2 -1 -1 -1 0 0 0

1460 1340 1245 1210 1186 1181 1178 1161 1115 1082

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England Belgium Chile USA Netherlands France Ukraine Russia Mexico Croatia Côte d’Ivoire Scotland Denmark Egypt Bosnia-Herzegovina Sweden Algeria Ecuador Slovenia Serbia Honduras Romania Armenia Costa Rica Panama Czech Republic Iran Ghana Turkey Austria Venezuela Peru Cape Verde Islands Nigeria Hungary Slovakia Japan Wales Tunisia Cameroon Guinea Finland Uzbekistan Montenegro Korea Republic Norway Paraguay Iceland Mali Australia Burkina Faso Libya Senegal Jordan South Africa Republic of Ireland United Arab Emirates Bolivia El Salvador Albania Sierra Leone Poland Bulgaria Trinidad and Tobago Saudi Arabia Morocco Haiti

0 0 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2

1043 1039 1037 1015 967 935 913 903 877 871 830 825 819 798 795 795 795 794 787 759 759 756 750 748 739 731 715 713 711 673 666 665 665 631 623 616 613 613 597 583 580 578 577 555 551 551 551 546 545 545 528 522 511 510 507 504 499 497 488 486 484 479 460 457 455 454 452

Ranking 12 / 2013

01 / 2014

02 / 2014

→ http://www.fifa.com/worldranking/index.html

03 / 2014

04 / 2014

05 / 2014

1 -41 -83 -125 -167 -209

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Top spot

Biggest climber

Israel Zambia FYR Macedonia Jamaica Oman Belarus Northern Ireland Azerbaijan Uganda Gabon Congo DR Togo Cuba Botswana Congo Estonia Angola Qatar China PR Benin Zimbabwe Moldova Iraq Ethiopia Niger Georgia Lithuania Bahrain Kenya Central African Republic Kuwait Latvia Canada New Zealand Luxembourg Equatorial Guinea Mozambique Lebanon Vietnam Sudan Kazakhstan Liberia Namibia Tajikistan Malawi Tanzania Guatemala Burundi Dominican Republic St Vincent and the Grenadines Malta Afghanistan Cyprus Suriname Rwanda St Lucia Gambia Syria Grenada Korea DPR New Caledonia Mauritania Philippines Lesotho Antigua and Barbuda Thailand Belize

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Biggest faller

0 -5 0 1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 12 -1 0 0 0 0 9 -1 -6 -2 -2 -2 8 -3 -3 -2 0 -2 13 3 -3 -3 -3 -1

450 448 443 420 418 404 400 398 395 386 380 374 371 369 367 366 347 338 333 332 327 325 321 319 315 303 293 289 284 284 283 273 272 271 266 261 251 251 242 241 235 234 233 229 227 227 223 215 212 212 204 204 201 197 197 191 190 190 188 175 174 165 161 159 158 156 152

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Malaysia Kyrgyzstan Singapore India Puerto Rico Liechtenstein Guyana Indonesia Maldives St Kitts and Nevis Aruba Turkmenistan Tahiti Hong Kong Pakistan Nepal Barbados Bangladesh Dominica Faroe Islands Chad Palestine São Tomé e Príncipe Nicaragua Bermuda Chinese Taipei Guam Solomon Islands Sri Lanka Laos Myanmar Seychelles Curaçao Swaziland Yemen Mauritius Vanuatu Fiji Samoa Comoros Guinea-Bissau Bahamas Mongolia Montserrat Madagascar Cambodia Brunei Darussalam Timor-Leste Tonga US Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Papua New Guinea British Virgin Islands American Samoa Andorra Eritrea South Sudan Somalia Macau Djibouti Cook Islands Anguilla Bhutan San Marino Turks and Caicos Islands

-3 1 -2 -2 -2 -1 -1 -1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 -3 0 4 -1 -1 -1 -1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 -4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

149 148 144 144 143 139 137 135 124 124 122 119 116 111 102 102 101 98 93 91 88 88 86 84 83 78 77 75 73 73 73 66 65 64 63 55 55 47 45 43 43 40 35 33 32 28 26 26 26 23 21 21 18 18 16 11 10 8 8 6 5 3 0 0 0

35

TURNING POINT

“I became a pawn in somebody else’s game” Artur Petrosyan’s brother was a boxing champion and he himself was a footballing icon in his native Armenia, but the now 42-year-old narrowly missed out on what could have been a shot at global stardom.

Name Artur Petrosyan

36

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Date and place of birth 17 December 1971, Gyumri (Armenia) Clubs 1989–1998 Shirak Gyumri 1998–1999 Maccabi Petach Tikva 1999 Lokomotiv Nizhny Novgorod 1999–2000 Shirak Gyumri 2000–2003 Young Boys 2003–2006 FC Zurich since 2006 youth coach at FC Zurich Armenian national team 69 appearances, 11 goals

had the opportunity to travel a lot - to central Russia, the Baltic States and to Ukraine.

The arrival of Armenian independence gave me the chance to move abroad and my first foreign club was Maccabi Petach Tikva in Israel. It was a strange experience and to this day I still don’t understand what the coach wanted from me. He forced me into a defensive, battling role even though I’d always been more of a creative, attacking player. Still, it was a terrific learning curve for me and I realised that you have to work even harder abroad.

When I was 29 I got my next opportunity to move when Young Boys Bern, a Swiss second division club at the time, made me an offer. As Armenia’s all-time top scorer and most-capped player it wasn’t an easy decision as I had a lot to lose, but it paid off in the end. Young Boys got promoted and I became one of the leaders of the team. In 2003 I transferred to FC Zurich, where I played until 2006. Since then I’ve coached every youth category at the club and next year I’d like to get my UEFA Pro License.

My medium-term objective is to take charge of a professional team. Aside from that I recently

became assistant coach in the Armenian national side. We’ve got a team with great potential, but it’s going to be difficult to qualify for the next European Championship after being drawn in a group with Portugal, Serbia, Albania and Denmark.

I’ve had Swiss citizenship since November last year. To get it I had to take a test on history, politics and the health care system and I got 90.5 points out of a possible 100. It didn’t ask who will win the World Cup, but I think it will be Brazil, Spain or Belgium. Å As told to Thomas Renggli

In Turning Point, personalities reflect on a decisive moment in their lives.

Simon Habegger / Photo 13

I

never have to think for long when I’m asked about the turning point in my career. In 1996 Arsenal invited me for a week’s trial in their first season with Arsene Wenger as manager. In total I trained there for 17 days and I felt I’d done well, so when the club made me an offer it was a dream come true for me. I was ecstatic when I called home to let my family know and everyone was delighted. But I was crushed the next day when they told me they weren’t looking for an attacking midfielder after all, but a defensive one, and that they no longer wanted me. It felt as though someone had pulled the rug from under my feet right when I was at my happiest.

I only discovered later that the people responsible for the deal - an agent and officials from the football association - had raised the asking price from one million Francs to 3.5 million. At the time I only spoke Armenian and Russian so I couldn’t communicate with anyone directly to defend myself and I was powerless to stop myself becoming a pawn in somebody else’s game. The whole experience completely threw me off course. I returned to my parent club Shirak Gyumri but I was in a bad way mentally for an entire year. Instead of signing a lucrative professional contract I stayed on my monthly salary of just a couple of hundred Francs.

Four years earlier I experienced another turning point - a political one - which was a complete culture shock for me and my family.

Life had actually been pretty good for us in the Soviet Union: both of my parents had jobs, my brother was a boxer and I played football. My younger brother Hamlet was a success in the boxing ring and won the IBF and WBA intercontinental titles. As a 16-year-old I was playing in the third division in the Soviet Union and I

THE SOUND OF FOOTBALL

THE OBJEC T

Perikles Monioudis

Franz, almost the new Freddy Hanspeter Kuenzler

Sion Ap Tomos

After initially shooting to stardom at the 1966 World Cup, Franz Beckenbauer also found fame in the charts when his single “Du allein” (You alone) made a surprise appearance in the top 10.

For some unknown reason, the toughest of players on the pitch seem to possess the softest of voices in the recording studio, and Franz Beckenbauer was no exception. But in an era when every young European with access to Radio Luxembourg was listening to The Stones, The Beatles or The Kinks, the German star confessed his admiration for Freddy Quinn.

Freddy’s real name was Franz Eugen Helmut Manfred Nidl and he specialised in singing “sailor songs” in a booming bass voice, with his lyrics often centred on the themes of homesickness, broken hearts and the delights of an all-male crew.

One of his greatest hits was his rendition of the old dreamer song “La Paloma”. It was released 1961 when the

future Kaiser was just sixteen years old, three years before he made his debut for the Bayern Munich team. Beckenbauer would soon become one of the key players in a side that achieved promotion to the new Bundesliga in 1965 and won the German Cup in 1966.

He first became a global star at the World Cup in England after a stellar season in which he was voted the German Footballer of the Year.

Beckenbauer sought to build on this star status in the recording studio at a time when music was becoming a dominant force in society. Together with his manager Robert Schwan - Beckenbauer once said he only knew two sensible people: Robert Schwan in the morning and Robert Schwan in the afternoon - he negotiated a fee of 100,000 marks with the record label Polydor, where Bert Kampfert, James Last and the one and only Freddy Quinn were all under contract. The Kaiser recorded his first hit following a Bundesliga match

against Cologne in a studio located in the West German city.

And lo and behold: “Du allein” sent the young star straight into the top 10.

The polar opposite of Freddy Quinn in almost every respect, lifestyle included, Beckenbauer’s voice was so soft and gentle that listeners could be forgiven for wondering whether its owner was capable of playing the world’s most popular sport with a football made of cotton, let alone hard leather. “I have no intention to trying my luck as a singer in the public domain again,” he announced a couple of years later. It appears as if he had already erased his second, less successful venture into the music industry from memory, having also released “Du bist das Gluck” (You are happiness) with a B-side for football fans entitled “1-0 fur die Liebe” (1-0 to love). Æ

Although a win is a win, victory can often feel hollow, bitter or come at a cost, particularly in the wake of war. The English national anthem pays tribute to its monarch, the Queen, with the lyric “Send her victorious / Happy and glorious”. Here, being ’glorious’ is not enough; you must also be ’happy’ in the face of triumph, and while that might not always be possible, it is often the case in football.

In the beautiful game, victory is still largely celebrated without any pangs of conscience or sadness – for most participants at least. However, there are times in football where a team emerges victorious from a match despite the fact that their superior opponents essentially surrendered the tie. Plain old good fortune, or more likley deliberate spoling tactics allied with relentless resilience and a freak goal, can pay dividends for the underdog, particularly when the stronger opponent fails to find the target. One prime example of this phenomenon came at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, when eventual world champions Spain lost 1-0 to Switzerland.

But how should you feel about defeating a better team? Surely such victories can be almost as unsettling as a defeat, as they undermine the belief that performance brings rewards. If effort does not pay off, what does that mean for your team’s own exertions in the next match?

As Nike, the goddess of victory, places the somewhat dishevelled laurel wreath on their heads, “undeserved” winners are advised to accept victory with humility. There is no place for hubris in such moments. Indeed, the above statuette from the FIFA Collection, produced in England in the Roaring Twenties, is completely free of any such arrogance.

It looks as though the embarrassed “Victor” had a lucky break, even sporting a bandage around his head. Å T H E F I FA W E E K LY

37

The FIFA Weekly Published weekly by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)

FIFA QUIZ CUP

Champions crowned on a Thursday, a celebratory song with a celestial connection and a team without a city. Test your knowledge!

Internet: www.fifa.com/theweekly Publisher: FIFA, FIFA-Strasse 20, PO box, CH-8044 Zurich Tel. +41-(0)43-222 7777 Fax +41-(0)43-222 7878

1

President: Joseph S. Blatter

F Real Madrid and Barcelona L Juventus and AC Milan

Secretary General: Jérôme Valcke Director of Communications and Public Affairs: Walter De Gregorio

Since 2010, the men’s UEFA Champions League has been held on a Saturday, having previously been played on a Wednesday. Which sides lifted European club football’s most prestigious title on a Thursday?

2

Chief Editor: Perikles Monioudis

G Liverpool and Manchester United N Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund

I penned lyrics heard in stadiums across the world more than perhaps any other. Here’s a statue dedicated to me in Switzerland. With which planet do I share my name?

Staff Writers: Thomas Renggli (Author), Alan Schweingruber, Sarah Steiner

A

I

L

O

Art Direction: Catharina Clajus Picture Editor: Peggy Knotz Production: Hans-Peter Frei Layout: Richie Krönert (Lead), Marianne Bolliger-Crittin, Susanne Egli, Mirijam Ziegler

3

Proof Reader: Nena Morf, Kristina Rotach Contributors: Sérgio Xavier Filho, Luigi Garlando, Sven Goldmann, Hanspeter Kuenzler, Jordi Punti, David Winner, Roland Zorn Contributors to this Issue: Nicola Berger, Pascal de Miramon, Doris Ladstaetter, Markus Nowak, Dominik Petermann, Elio Stamm, Andreas Wilhelm Editorial Assistant: Honey Thaljieh Project Management: Bernd Fisa, Christian Schaub Translation: Sportstranslations Limited www.sportstranslations.com

Since 1956, the names of the winners of Europe’s elite club competition have been engraved upon its trophy, such as AFC Ajax (Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax), but only once has there been no mention of the city the winning club calls home.

Which team was it, and when?

R 1956 Real L 1986 Steaua

4

T 1962 Benfica M 1996 Juventus

Which teams celebrate their greatest victories at these two fountains adorned with ancient gods?

A E M P

AC and Inter Milan Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid Boca Juniors and River Plate Flamengo and Fluminense

Printer: Zofinger Tagblatt AG www.ztonline.ch

Getty Images

Contact: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org Reproduction of photos or articles in whole or in part is only permitted with prior editorial approval and if attributed “The FIFA Weekly, © FIFA 2014”.

The editor and staff are not obliged to publish unsolicited manuscripts and photos. FIFA and the FIFA logo are registered trademarks of FIFA. Made and printed in Switzerland.

Any views expressed in The FIFA Weekly do not necessarily reflect those of FIFA.

The answer to last week’s Quiz Cup was DIVE (detailed answers on www.fifa.com/theweekly).

Inspiration and implementation: cus

Please email your answers to feedback-theweekly@fifa.org by 28 May 2014. Correct submissions for all quizzes published since the Ballon d’Or 2013 will go into a draw on 11 June 2014 to win two tickets to the FIFA World Cup Final on 13 July 2014.

Before submitting answers, all participants must read and accept the competition terms and conditions and the rules, which can be found at http://en.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/the-fifa-weekly/rules.pdf T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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A S K T H E W E E K LY

T HIS WEEK’S POLL

How will defending champions Spain fare at the World Cup?

This year’s Champions League final is a Madrid derby. Is Spain the most successful country in this competition?

Ron Gravesen, Copenhagen Spain are among the favourites for this summer's World Cup in Brazil, but no nation has managed to defend its title at the tournament since Brazil in 1962. Email us at: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org

L A S T W E E K’S P O L L R E S U LT S Who will win the Women's Champions League final?

32%

Tyreso Sweden

15

WEEK IN NUMBERS

963

appearances, 13 English championships and two UEFA Champions League titles were the incredible tallies on which Ryan Giggs ended his playing career on Monday. The Manchester United legend, who will continue at the club as assistant-manager to Louis van Gaal, also made 64 appearances for Wales, and scored 180

years and 150 days was the age at which Martin Odegaard became the youngest goalscorer in the history of Norway’s Tippeligaen on Friday.

times for club and

The Stromsgodset

country. His haul of

midfielder rounded off

league titles is particu-

68%

Wolfsburg Germany

the scoring in the 90th

larly impressive, and is

minute of his side’s 4-1 win

superior to that of every

over Sarpsborg, cementing

English club save for

his reputation as one of his

Liverpool and United

country’s most exciting

themselves.

youngsters.

3

domestic trophies, an unprecedented haul in Portugal, have been won by Benfica this season after they lifted the Portuguese Cup on Sunday. The Lisbon giants had not won a double in 27 years, but went one better on this occasion with the first treble since the introduction of the Portuguese League Cup in 2007/08.

Imago (3), Getty Images

Yes and no. The Champions League trophy or European Cup has been awarded to Spanish sides 13 times – more than any other country – with nine wins for Real Madrid and four for Barcelona. Spaniard Francisco Gento also leads the individual statistics, winning the trophy with Real six times in the 1950s and 60s. However, England has the greatest number of different winners: Liverpool, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Chelsea have all been crowned European champions in the past. (thr)