The FIFA Weekly Issue #52

ISSUE 52, 17 OCTOBER 2014

ENGLISH EDITION

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

RACISM A GLOBAL CHARTER ITALY INTER MILAN AT A CROSSROADS MOYA DODD A LIFE DEVOTED TO THE WOMEN’S GAME

Austria

Back on track

W W W.FIFA.COM/ THEWEEKLY

THIS WEEK IN THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL

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North and Central America 35 members www.concacaf.com

Hungry for success After suffering a slump that lasted more than a decade, it seems that Marcel Koller’s team now have a good chance of appearing at a major tournament. Andreas Jaros describes the euphoria surrounding Austria’s EURO 2016 qualifying campaign and looks back to the heady days of the 1930s, when the country’s Wunderteam chalked up one victory after another.

South America 10 members www.conmebol.com

Moya Dodd The Asian Football Confederation president speaks to The FIFA Weekly about her journey through women’s football, gender equality and how Liverpool helped ignite her love for the game.

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S epp Blatter FIFA TV recently picked up two international awards. In his weekly column, FIFA President Blatter congratulates the team responsible, saying: “The outstanding TV coverage of the World Cup in Brazil set entirely new standards.”

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Gunter Netzer “A professional goalkeeper needs to have a special character,” says our regular columnist.

“That’s one of the basic requirements of being able to survive in the position.”

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Winfried Schafer The German describes the saddest moment of his career as a football coach.

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USA Galaxy idol Landon Donovan is embarking on a farewell tour of Major League Soccer.

Back on track Our cover image shows Austria’s David Alaba in the match against Sweden on 8 September 2014.

The FIFA Weekly Magazine App The FIFA Weekly, FIFA’s magazine, is available in four languages as an e-Magazine and on your tablet every Friday.

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Getty Images (3), imago

REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

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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Italy Inter Milan are losing touch with the top of the table – can Walter Mazzarri continue as coach?

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Global summit Tokyo Sexwale, who fought for freedom alongside Nelson Mandela, discusses the sporting world's latest efforts to tackle racism.

FIFA Club World Cup 10 – 20 December 2014, Morocco

FIFA U-20 World Cup 30 May – 20 June 2015, New Zealand

FIFA Women’s World Cup 6 June – 5 July 2015, Canada

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UNCOVERED

Austria rising

Football fever An Austria fan pulls on his newly-acquired replica shirt.

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he words football and Austria conjure up images of the “Wunderteam” of the 1930s, the World Cup contenders in 1954, the generation spearheaded

by Hans Krankl and Herbert Prohaska in the late 1970s – and unfulfilled promise at practically all other times. Now though, a new generation is setting about restoring Austrian football’s once formidable reputation with some gusto. Our writer Andreas Jaros, himself an Austrian, examines a national resurgence from page 6.

A Paul Kranzler

t a summit on November 20 and 21, the recently founded Global Watch initiative will launch a charter backed by a barometer to fight discrimination in all sports. Our interview with Tokyo Sexwale, who accompanied Nelson Mandela on his journey for many years and has convened the meeting in Johannesburg, starts on page 24.

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n his weekly column on the previous page FIFA President Sepp Blatter expresses his delight at the award of two of the biggest accolades in global broadcasting, the International Honour for Excellence and Judges’ Prize, to FIFA TV. Å Perikles Monioudis T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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© Wien Museum

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Immortalised Austria’s Wunderteam depicted in a 1948 painting by Paul Meissner.

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HUNGRY FOR SUCCESS

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Austria once had a “Wunderteam” that captivated the footballing world.

Now, many years later, hopes of a resurgence are stirring.

Andreas Jaros (text), Paul Kanzler (photos) T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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A Sunday to remember An Austrian fan watches events at the Wiener Stadion from a distance.

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t had been such an incredibly mild and pleasant Sunday that many Viennese had even managed to take a dip in the New Danube. Now, with the sun setting on 12 October 2014, the atmosphere inside the Ernst Happel Stadium was electric, just as it had been for the last few Austria matches, with the stirring sounds of the Radetzky March giving the occasion an additional musical boost.

A sea of red, white and red flags shimmered as 44,200 fans waited in feverish anticipation for the European Championship qualifier against Montenegro, a team held to a 0-0 draw in Liechtenstein just three days earlier.

Those fans would end up going home satisfied. Although Austria had three excellent chances to take the lead in the first 15 minutes, and their tally of shots had reached double figures by the time the final whistle sounded, only one strike found the target thanks to Rubin Okotie, striker for German second-tier side 1860 Munich and replacement for suspended Australian A-League forward Marc Janko. The hosts’ 1-0 lead came under threat in the game’s closing minutes after a well-disguised shot from Montenegro captain Mirko Vucinic was well saved by Robert Almer.

Although Austria have not exactly taken the easy route in their EURO 2016 qualifying campaign so far, there was no room for excessive self-doubt after such a jittery finish. A wall of jubilant noise drowned out the eagerly awaited sound of the final whistle, and there was no stopping the wave of elation as word spread of Russia’s 1-1 draw with Moldova confirming Austria’s position at the top of Group G with seven points. Having given every ounce of energy during the game, the players trudged a well-deserved lap of honour around the pitch. To round off the celebrations, the unofficial national anthem “I am from Austria” rang out around the stands.

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The Wunderteam of the 1930s Such patriotic exuberance is natural after nervy wins against Montenegro and Moldova. “Previously we wouldn’t have won that away match against Moldova,” Austrian attacking midfielder Zlatko Junuzovic said confidently of their scrambled 2-1 victory three days earlier.

Every step forward gives this Alpine nation another reason to be cheerful, which is understandable given they last qualified for a major tournament 17 years ago when Andreas Herzog fired them into the 1998 World Cup finals with a magnificent strike at the Happel Stadium. Sweden, their opponents that evening, again stand in Austria’s way en route to France 2016.

Austrian football has had little to celebrate in the recent past, either at international or club level. The fact that bland promises of a better future and almost never-ending dry spells have become the norm makes the country’s current hunger to succeed all the more acute.

The world has long forgotten that Austria were once practically a footballing superpower. The Wiener Schule and Scheiberlspiel were bywords for excellence in the 1930s and were forerunners of the quick passing game favoured by such modern possession-based behemoths as Barcelona or Bayern Munich.

No side embodied this technical brilliance combined with an innate understanding of the game better than the Wunderteam. The nickname was given to the Austrian team of the early 1930s who not only played with elegance and finesse but were more than just aesthetic crowd-pleasers. They were equally capable of staunchly seeing a match through to the bitter end or of unleashing torrents of goals. Nor did it matter whether they were lacing up their shooting boots at home or away: they dispatched Germany 6-0 in Berlin and allowed the present-day world champions only the slightest of improvements by beating them 5-0 in Vienna. The high-flying Scots conceded five to them, while

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Group leaders David Alaba and his Austria team-mates celebrate their 1-0 win against Montenegro.

After the second golden era, an early exit at the 1958 World Cup provided the first indication of the lean years to follow.

Herbert Pfarrhofer / Keystone

both Switzerland and Hungary shipped eight goals, losing 8-1 and 8-2 respectively. The last of these teams went on to produce a golden generation of their own in the 1950s.

Ironically, the birth of the Wunderteam in 1931 was something of a team effort in itself. After losing 2-1 to Italy and enduring a goalless draw against Hungary, representatives from Vienna’s sports press lost their patience and vehemently demanded changes. The most important of these requests was a comeback for brilliant centre-forward Matthias Sindelar, nicknamed Der Papierene (‘The Paper Man’) because of his slight stature. Coach Hugo Meisl ultimately gave in, making his famous concession in a coffee house on the city’s Stubenring with the angry exclamation: “There, you’ve got your hacks’ team now!”

Missing out on the emergence of sports science The Wunderteam went unbeaten for twelve successive matches before the sheen on this golden era began to fade in 1933. Nevertheless, Austria enjoyed a second period of success after the Second World War, securing third place at the 1954 World Cup thanks to a 3-1 win over two-time world champions Uruguay, a result that remains their best-ever finish at a major tournament.

Undoubtedly Austria’s most famous game at that tournament was the Hitzeschlacht von Lausanne (‘The Heated Battle of Lausanne’) against Switzerland in the quarter-finals. In the opening stages of a turbulent 7-5 victory, Austrian goalkeeper Kurt Schmied suffered from hyperthermia and conceded three quick goals in an age before substitutes were permitted. After half-time, the team’s masseur directed the staggering keeper from behind the goal, issuing instructions such as “Kurt, it’s coming in from the right…”

It was not long before Austria collectively lost their bearings, with an early exit at the 1958 World Cup providing the first indication of the lean years to follow. It would be 20 years before they reached another World Cup finals. The team were soon adrift in a sea of Wunderteam nostalgia, relying on footballing skills alone and arrogantly ignoring developments in coaching which saw a new focus on tactics, athleticism and conditioning was opening up professional, modern and innovative new avenues elsewhere.

Wolfgang Winheim, football expert at Austrian daily newspaper Kurier witnessed this period first-hand: “While handball players and track and field athletes had long since begun to think outside the box, the world of football had missed out on the emergence of sports science. Only the Slovakian Leopold Stastny managed to introduce pioneering education for coaches.”

Long-serving national team coach Stastny also founded a nationwide schoolboy league and laid the foundations for a legendary 1978 team that included Bruno Pezzey, Herbert Prohaska and Hans Krankl. The 3-2 win over Germany known as the ‘Miracle of Cordoba’ at the Argentina World Cup that year was Austria’s first victory over their neighbours in 47 years and a source of endless discussion by the media for decades afterwards.

The team that qualified for the 1982 World Cup was even better, but were let down by infighting, overinflated egos and the repercussions of the ‘Disgrace of Gijon’, when they played out a 1-0 loss against Germany T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Potential The home match against Montenegro was almost a sell-out, something that has not always been the case even for Austria’s most vital games.

An anxious wait One fan does not dare to believe in the prospect of victory against Montenegro.

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Look! A young fan searches for his idol, David Alaba.

to ensure the two neighbouring teams progressed at the expense of Algeria. Despite the emergence of new stars such as Andreas Herzog and Toni Polster by the 1990s, Austria were eliminated from both the 1990 and 1998 World Cups at the group stage.

League system changes on the horizon At club level, teams representing the red, white and red of Austria reached two European finals during the 1990s, while Austria Salzburg and their ’boy band’ (including hugely popular players such as keeper Otto Konrad, who was also a part-time pop star) sparked nationwide euphoria by enjoying reasonable success in the Champions League. Despite many millions of euros of investment, the club’s successor Red Bull

Scheiberlspiel “Scheiberlspiel” was the name given to Austria’s playing style at the start of the 1930s. This flat passing game originated from Vienna and was renowned for its elegance and lightness of touch. Players often launched attacks by playing numerous short passes until they reached the opponents’ penalty box, before turning away to start the whole process again.

Austria’s best World Cup results: 1934 (4th place), 1954 (3rd place), 1978 (7th place), 1982 (8th place) Austria’s best European Championship result: 1960 (quarter-final) National team coach: Marcel Koller (Switzerland) FIFA ranking: 39th place EURO 2016 qualifying, Group G: 1. Austria 3 matches/7 points.

2. Russia 3/5. 3. Sweden 3/5. 4. Montenegro 3/4. 5. Liechtenstein 3/1.

6. Moldova 3/1.

Salzburg has yet to emulate this achievement, failing to reach the group stages of Europe’s elite competition in seven attempts.

Die Roten Bullen have found success much easier to come by in domestic competitions, even if they are currently being upstaged by small club Wolfsberg (see page 12). The first side from the state of Carinthia to lead the Austrian Bundesliga table, WAC and their five million euro budget have put not only wealthy Red Bull to shame but also Vienna’s largest clubs, who enjoy four times the financial support Wolfsberg receive.

The format of the league is once again under scrutiny in Austria, with players’ union VdF demanding a single professional league from the 2017/18 season onwards instead of the two ten-club tiers currently operating (Bundesliga and First Division). “Whether that league contains 10, 12, 14 or 16 clubs depends on how many clubs can and wish to meet the necessary criteria,” said VdF president Gernot Zirngast. “The pseudo-professional status of the second tier is no longer viable due to the lack of earning opportunities there.”

Currently the most popular Swiss import in Austria, head coach Marcel Koller has instilled a new spirit of optimism in the national side.

Apart from a couple of Salzburg players, most of the squad join up with the national team from their clubs abroad regardless of whether they have to make lengthy trips from Australia as Janko has to, represent second-tier clubs in Germany in the case of Okotie or spend all their time warming the bench, as goalkeeper Robert Almer does at Hannover.

Alaba a symbol of Austria’s quality Almer made a fantastic reaction save in the 87th minute of his team’s match against Montenegro to secure three points for Austria and once again justified Koller’s trust in him, while Janko’s vital goal against Moldova demonstrated just why he continues to make the 16,000-kilometre from Sydney. Even Marko Arnautovic, currently a reserve player at Stoke T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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WOLFSBERG

The pride of Carinthia

With a third of the championship already over, an unfancied Wolfsberg side are top of the standings. Are Red Bull Salzburg, Rapid and Austria able to muster up a response?

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peaking in a thick Viennese dialect while waiting at a snack kiosk in the south stand of Austria Vienna’s Generali Arena, an elderly fan voiced his confidence that the side’s next victory was imminent: “We’ve already beaten [defending champions] Salzburg, and now it’s time for the next win.”

The purple-clad men at his side uttered their agreement, equally sure that the visitors - surprise package RZ Pellets WAC – would be returning home empty-handed. “Our Roman Kienast will score three on his own,” said one of the group. Even in the press box the general opinion favoured the hosts to take the points. “The stage is set for Austria to win,” said one young radio reporter confidently.

Less than two hours later fans of the 2012/13 champions were left stunned, their pre-match optimism replaced by disenchantment. The ‘Wolves’ from Wolfsberg had continued their fairytale run and deservedly won the game 2-0 to cement their place at the top of the standings with almost a third of season now played. They had done so by relying on a well-executed counter-attacking style, rather than employing aggressive, long-ball tactics. Peter Zulj opened the scoring in the 28th minute from the first noteworthy move of the encounter, before Manuel Weber grabbed the second shortly before the final whistle in the 93rd minute.

Igniting passions How has this small club from the Lavant valley on the eastern tip of the southern state of Carinthia managed to keep a well-funded Salzburg side and – even more impressively - the two Viennese giants Rapid and Austria at bay this far into October? The answer is actually rather simple: good organisation, personnel continuity, team spirit, an excellent blend of youth and experience, and star coach Didi Kuhbauer. The 43-year-old, who won 55 caps for Austria,

was known as an aggressive leader in his playing days and although he may now have mellowed somewhat, the former Wolfsburg and Real Sociedad midfielder still gets involved in skirmishes with opposition players and coaches on the touchline.

Such hot-headedness also ignites passions to good effect within his squad, as he proved during his time at Admira Wacker by leading the ‘Grey Mouse’, as they are also known, into the Europa League. Little over a year ago Kuhbauer took charge at Wolfsberg with the side rooted at the foot of the table. Team captain Michael Sollbauer said of his coach: “He doesn’t expect us to perform miracles; the only thing he asks is that we go into each game believing in ourselves, that we stay compact and are quick in our transitions.”

Contractual clauses?

Given Austria Kärnten’s bankruptcy and the largely unused Worthersee stadium in Klagenfurt – a sad relic of EURO 2008 – WAC now are the pride and joy of Carinthia, despite having been relegated from the state league ten years ago. They were rescued by merging with regional outfit St. Andra in 2007 and three years later had returned to the second division, where they had spent much of the 1970s and 80s. In 2012 Croatian coach Nenad Bjelica led Wolfsberg into the top flight and since then they have steered well clear of relegation by finishing in fifth and then seventh spot in the last two seasons.

Attention has now turned to the very top the table in light of the team’s outstanding form. So much so that the club’s long-term backers and long-serving president Dietmar Riegler are having to deal with the question of whether bonuses for winning the league are included in the players’ contracts.

Andreas Jaros

imago

Floored Wolfsberg’s Manuel Weber wheels away in delight from Austria Vienna’s James Holland.

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“MODERN INFR A S TRUC T URE S ARE NEEDED” How do you view the state of Austrian football?

Peter-Michael Reichel Former LASK Linz president.

Peter-Michael Reichel: You can see proof of the potential in Austrian football by looking at the friendly against Brazil on 18 November.

The match was sold out within 28 hours of tickets going on sale. If the national team continue to improve it will create such a great amount of pressure that politicians will finally be forced to invest in the infrastructure of the game. That would include investing in youth development. If the government makes an investment then the states and local authorities would follow suit.

You are referring to the failings after hosting EURO 2008...

The biggest mistake was that no national stadium was built that meets international standards. Our co-hosts Switzerland took a step forwards after that tournament but we went backwards.

I’m still annoyed that in my 14 years at LASK I wasn’t able to modernise the infrastructures.

Record champions Rapid Vienna are building a new stadium because their old Hanappi Stadion is outdated.

And that will pay off. I think they can get an average of 20,000 spectators per home game.

What do you think of the idea of having just the one professional league?

On track at last Spectators express their satisfaction after the final whistle.

Alaba has long known what sacrifices must be made to turn his potential into achievement.

City, is finally fulfilling his potential – there has never been such thunderous applause for him as there was when he was substituted on 12 October.

This reception particularly pleased his friend David Alaba, Austria’s darling with Nigerian-Filipino roots who has long known what he wants and what sacrifices must be made in order to turn his potential into actual achievement. The 22 year old has already been richly rewarded for this attitude, having emerged as a regular member of the remarkable Bayern Munich side that won the Champions League, Bundesliga and German Cup treble. He has also established himself as the linchpin of the Austria team by happily assuming responsibility from the beginning. He has already converted two penalties in this European Championship qualifying campaign – the first in the 1-1 draw with Sweden and the opener in the 2-1 win in Chisinau.

Alaba was emblematic of the quality the entire team showed against Montenegro, pressing until the very last second, showing passion and playing creative football. Although Koller insists on playing down their chances, Austria will extend their unbeaten run in the home match against Russia on 15 November if their coach continues to apply his Midas touch.

The fact the game has long been sold out demonstrates just how keen the crowd are to hear more anthems booming from the stadium’s speakers. Å

Read the interview with Austria coach Marcel Koller on FIFA.com

I’m completely on the side of the players’ union. That was always my preferred model. Below the professional league I’d create a semi-professional championship with a salary cap.

“ W E C A N B E AT A N Y O N E I N V I E N N A” How do you assess Austria’s chances of reaching the 2016 European Championship?

Michael Konsel Austria’s goalkeeper at the 1998 World Cup.

Michael Konsel: After the draw was made I said that qualification was possible. We’re on the same level as our opponents, but of course there are awkward away games against Sweden and Russia to negotiate first.

What has impressed you most about the team?

We’re very strong at home and can beat anyone in Vienna. The lads play with so much heart and the right amount of aggression that sparks fly. They try hard, they give it their all and are willing to fight. Everyone runs for everyone else; they’re a real team. One thing that also helps is that a lot of people underestimate us because we haven’t been on the radar for many years.

Now that the tournament has been increased to 24 teams, we really should make it.

Where do you think improvements can be made?

The team shouldn’t waste as many goalscoring chances as they did against Montenegro.

Are there any similarities to the Austria side that qualified for the 1998 World Cup? That was a different time. I don’t want to make any big comparisons, although there is one similarity: we had a lot of players at foreign clubs back then too. For example I was the goalkeeper at AS Roma.

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Football is a brotherhood. It’s peace.

© 2014 Visa. All rights reserved.

Oscar Arias Nobel Peace Laureate

Talking points

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T H E

U S A ’s M a j o r L e a g u e S o c c e r

On the home s t r a i g ht Jordi Punti is a novelist and the author of many football features in the Spanish media.

Shaun Clark / Corbis

Major League Soccer (MLS) has come of age. The American top flight is now in its 19th season, with November’s play-offs soon set to round off the current domestic campaign. The regular season still has two matchdays to go and much is still at stake. With time now running out, it is looking increasingly likely that this season’s Supporters’ Shield (the award given to the best team in the regular season) will either be taken home by Los Angeles Galaxy or Seattle Sounders. The top two teams in the Western Conference will lock horns home and away before the end of the month. Both sides have already successfully qualified for the play-offs and have now firmly set their sights on becoming the next winners of the coveted trophy after New York Red Bulls last season.

There are two clear signs that the MLS is no longer the fledgling league it once was: the increasing fervour among the fans and the fact that the American domestic game is now making history of its own. Football fans love to look back at the past and declare their wishes for the future, fondly recalling the greatest matches and players while discussing their hopes for success. And in this respect, lovers of the beautiful game in the USA already have a few legendary players of their own to admire. Landon Donovan, perhaps the greatest Northern American player of all time, is one such example. Back in August the attacking midfielder announced his intention to hang up his boots at the close of the current campaign just months after being left out of the USA’s World Cup squad by national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann – a decision which provoked widespread debate. The 32-year-old LA Galaxy star wrote on Facebook: “I am sad to leave a profession that has brought me so much joy.” He then went on to thank all the team-mates, coaches and friends who have supported him over the years before adding: “I want to single out the fans. You are the lifeblood of this sport and, without you, none of us would be fortunate to call ourselves professional soccer players in MLS.”

I N S I D E

Landon Donovan began to bid a fond farewell to the world of professional football last week, making his last appearance for the US national team in a friendly against Ecuador. Donovan played for 40 minutes against the South American nation and was unlucky not to mark his international swansong with a goal when his shot rebounded off the post. When the attacking midfielder was finally substituted, the entire crowd in East Hartford (Connecticut) rose to give him a standing ovation for over a minute and sang: “Thank you Landon!”

And once the final whistle had blown with the score at 1-1, a film showing some of his career highlights was played on big screens inside the stadium, reducing an emotional Donovan to tears. The LA Galaxy no.10 can look back on an impressive career which has seen him score over 240 goals, including 57 for the US national team, and win the MLS Cup on five occasions. Now it just remains to be seen what the play-offs have in store for the retiring star.

Many football fans are expected to follow Donovan’s last matches with great interest.

Ultimately, his decision to retire at the age of just 32 came as something of a surprise to many, especially given that ageing stars, often in the twilight of their career, have been largely responsible for the considerable progress the MLS has made in recent times.

For example, the last matchday saw 38-yearold Italian striker Marco di Vaio grab a brace for Montreal Impact to secure his team a 2-2 draw against New England Revolution.

Meanwhile, Thierry Henry, now 37, was putting in another almost perfect performance for the New York Red Bulls. Henry already has ten goals and 14 assists to his name this season, with the vast majority of the chances created by the Frenchman being converted by Bradley Wright-Phillips. The former Manchester City player currently leads the MLS scoring charts by some distance, bringing his tally for the season up to 25 with a goal against FC Toronto on Saturday. The Red Bulls have now put together a ten-game unbeaten run at home, thus qualifying for the play-offs and improving their title chances. Å

Landon Donovan In his last season.

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Coach Walter Mazzarri is feeling the heat at Inter Milan

A n e ve n i n g o f t r u t h at t h e S a n Si r o Luigi Garlando writes for “Gazzetta dello Sport” and is the author of numerous children’s books.

The phrase “See Naples and die” may soon become “See Naples and wave goodbye” in the case of Inter Milan coach Walter Mazzarri. After back-to-back defeats to Cagliari and Fiorentina in which his side shipped a total of seven goals, the Nerazzurri already sit ten points behind league leaders Juventus with just six games gone.

Club president Erick Thohir has consulted with his predecessor Massimo Moratti and stated that despite Mazzarri’s contract recently being extended until 2016, a 16

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f­ urther defeat against Napoli could lead to the end of the coach’s time at the club.

Having booed Mazzarri off at the end of the last game, the Inter fans are clearly unhappy and that has only exacerbated the situation as their side have responded with nervous displays.

Results aside, questions have also been asked of Mazzarri’s tactical stubbornness in persevering with a 3-5-2 formation and its emphasis on patience and counterattacking. Aurelio De Laurentiis, the president of his last club Napoli, aimed the same sort of criticism at Mazzarri when he was in charge and has since brought Rafa Benitez to Napoli because of his attractive, attacking style of play, so it is an ironic twist of fate that sees Mazzarri battling to keep his current job against his former employers.

The game also features a battle between strikers Gonzalo Higuain and Rodrigo Palacio, a pair presumably still causing former Argentina head coach Alejandro Sabella some sleepless nights due to their

missed chances in the World Cup Final defeat to Germany.

At the top of the table, the battle between Juventus and Roma continues after a feisty affair between the top two on the previous matchday saw two players sent off, scuffles breaking out on the pitch and a host of controversial refereeing decisions before the Old Lady edged a 3-2 win. Francesco Totti led the pack in pointing out the referee’s mistakes and even went so far as to question the legitimacy of the championship. Considering the trouble already brewing in Italian football after a fan was shot last season, Totti’s comments were perhaps a little ill advised.

After only six league games, Juventus against Roma, a game of moderate quality, reflected the hysteria surrounding Italian football. But there is reason to be hopeful. The day after the game, Roma president James Pallotta distanced himself from Totti’s accusations and sought to defuse the situation. “Let’s take a deep breath and calm down. Referees also make mistakes.

We must learn to accept defeat.” Å

Pier Marco Tacca / Getty Images

Serie A

Singapore S.League

L ate t w i s t i n t i g ht t it l e r a c e

DPMM will be more than aware that if they can put an end to their current malaise they are masters of their own destiny – win all their remaining matches and they will be champions no matter what those around them do. It is as simple as that.

Winnable games against Balestier Khalsa (October 25) and Albirex Niigata (October 28) are up next before their campaign reaches a testing finale against a resurgent Tampines three days later. Å

Jan Griffiths is a Kuala Lumpur-based football writer.

When Hafiz Rahim converted a 62nd minute free-kick to register what proved to be the decisive goal in last week’s 3-2 win for Warriors FC away at Brunei DPMM, the forward added yet another twist to an already fascinating S.League title race in Singapore.

The Bandar Seri Begawan result saw second-placed Warriors close to within two points of table-topping DPMM, a far from comfortable lead for the Bruneians whose lofty ambitions are also under threat from Tampines Rovers given that the Stags are only a further point behind. Put simply, and with three rounds of matches to go, it has become more than apparent that the island republic is set for a distinctly nail-biting finish to the season.

While paper thin winning margins are nothing new in Singapore, this year’s quest for glory and the accolades that follow also represents yet another challenge to the Lion City’s footballing establishment by a DPMM side which has taken the country by storm since arriving on the scene in 2009.

Md Asdeny Yakub / Brunei Times

Three League Cup wins – in 2009, 2012 and 2014 – as well as an S.League runners-up spot in 2012 are testimony to the fact that DPMM, who once plied their trade in both Malaysia’s Premier and Super Leagues, are now a force to be reckoned with. They are and should continue to be a distinct threat to Singapore’s traditional powerhouses such as the Warriors, Tampines and Home United.

Ably guided by former Blackburn Rovers manager Steve Kean and buoyed by the goals of Brazilian Rodrigo Tosi and 29-year-old Irish midfielder Roy O’Donovan, DPMM were scoring for fun while keeping clean sheets at the other end thanks to a defence marshalled wonderfully by goalkeeper Wardun Yusof. Life was good, and the gap between the Brunei outfit and their title rivals a healthy one.

However, a recent run of poor form has included two home league defeats and a Singapore Cup semi-final exit. Nevertheless,

Six-pointer Chief pursuers Warriors FC (in white) beat leaders Brunei DPMM 3-2.

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Name Date and place of birth 30 April 1965, Adelaide, Australia Residence Sydney Football posts held - Member of FIFA Executive Committee - AFC vice-president

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Nic Walker / Fairfax Syndication

Moya Dodd

THE INTERVIEW

“I’d love to lose 30 years and do it all again” Moya Dodd, vice-president of the Asian Football Confederation, speaks about her journey through women’s football, gender equality and how Liverpool helped ignite her love for the game.

Moya Dodd, what are your first memories of playing football?

Moya Dodd: I was kicking an Australian Rules oval-shaped ball around in Adelaide, the city where I grew up. In school, football only meant Aussie Rules but when I was about ten, a kid joined the school who was more interested in soccer and we started kicking around a flat basketball. I still didn’t realise the attraction until my family got a colour television and there was an hour a week of football. It soon became the best hour of my week. I watched religiously. My first experience of a live match was watching the 1977 English FA Cup final when Liverpool played Manchester United. I begged my parents to let me stay up to watch. Even though Liverpool lost they played the better football. I became a Liverpool fan there and then, and still am.

What about the development of your own career as a player?

Having fallen in love with the game, I began to understand why my friend at school had been so keen on it. In Adelaide in the 1970s it wasn’t so easy to find a team but one of them, Port Adelaide, was close enough to my house to cycle there and that’s how I started.

How did you progress from there?

I went to Adelaide university to study law, joined the university soccer team, then made it to the state team of south Australia at age 19 and from there, the national team at 20. I played for the Matildas until I was 29 when I tore my cruciate ligament while playing in the US. That was sadly the last time I played and I missed the 1995 World Cup finals. If I could, I’d love to lose 30 years and do it all again!

How has the development of women’s football in Australia been and what’s the current state of the women’s game?

The growth has been incredible. When I played for the national team there were about 10,000 players. Now there are more than 100,000. We have a national league, the Westfield W League, which comprises eight teams. We’re very keen to have as much synergy as possible with the men’s A League.

A lot of money was invested in the A-League in terms of brands and when the W-league started, almost all of them were in the same cities as A-League clubs. That’s been important for the visibility of the women’s game because you can watch the men’s team play one weekend and the women’s the next.

There’s obviously a gap between the men and women but that’s the same virtually everywhere you go.

Is Australia a barometer for how aspiring women players should be treated within the Asian Football Confederation since not everywhere is it socially acceptable?

Well put it this way: Australia has a culture of encouraging girls to play sport.

We are very lucky in that respect. When I see women in some AFC countries not having those same opportunities it only makes me more determined. But it goes much deeper than sport. In some cultures across the world, there is a strong preference for sons over daughters. They are fed first, educated first and given leisure time first, ahead of their sisters. That’s a large barrier to girls being able to play football. I know of one football programme in a particular Asian country where a girl dropped out because she was sold into slavery by her family to pay for her brother’s education.

What would you say have been the biggest successes in developing the women’s game in the region?

Certainly changing the rule about players wearing headscarves helped remove barriers. Making gains in the countries where it’s most difficult shows you just how

powerful football is as a means of giving women and girls the potential to achieve.

As a woman in a man’s world, so to speak, how do you handle male-dominated football administration?

I don’t spend too much time thinking about it to be honest. I’ve worked for many years in law and business so it’s not unusual for me to find myself as the only woman in a meeting. It doesn’t hold me back. I’ve talked a lot of football with a lot of men over the years!

But how do you juggle your FIFA and AFC roles with being a mother of two young children?

The worst days are the days I fly out from Sydney and the best days are the days I come home. The kids love the game and are interested in what I do. They are also keen travellers so sometimes they tag along.

What are the biggest challenges facing the women’s game and what changes would you like to see?

I’d like to see it become normalised for women and girls to be involved in the game at every level. Football is the most played, most watched and most loved game in the world. Geographically it has saturated every corner of the globe. Demographically, however, it’s a game for half the world. I’d like to see it being for the whole world and that means consciously opening up opportunities and ensuring accessibility. It’s not just a matter of fairness and redressing historic inequities, it’s also a huge growth and commercial opportunity. The world is changing.

It bothers me that in some countries access to football for women is not happening. Å Moya Dodd was speaking to Andrew Warshaw

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First Love Place: Seoul, Korea Republic Date: 9 June 2014 Time: 11.15 a.m.

Ed Jones / AFP

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Developing football everywhere and for all

Organising inspiring tournaments

Caring about society and the environment

For the Game. For the World.

FIFA is committed to developing football for the benefit of all. Our mission is to: Develop the game FIFA’s primary objective is to develop the game of football in our 209 member associations. The FIFA World Cup™ gives us the resources we need to invest USD 550,000 per day in football development across the globe.

Touch the world FIFA’s aim is to touch the world through its international football competitions and events, uniting and inspiring people everywhere.

FIFA.com

Build a better future Football is much more than just a game. Its universal appeal gives it a unique power and reach which must be managed carefully. FIFA believes it has a duty to society that goes beyond football.

FIFA T V

PRESIDENTIAL NOTE

Committed to innovation FIFA TV is responsible for producing and distributing match and non-match content to broadcasters and fans worldwide.

An “Oscar” for FIFA

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t a glittering ceremony in Amsterdam, the IBC celebrated FIFA TV’s long-term dedication to distributing and delivering the very best viewing experience of the World Cup to fans around the world.

Peter Owen, chair of the IBC Council which awards the International Honour for Excellence, said: “FIFA TV continues to innovate and to engage with its huge global audience. It brings together the latest technologies and leading vendors to deliver unmatched content to unrivalled audiences.”

FIFA TV, the television arm of FIFA, also won the coveted IBC Judges’ Prize in recognition of a range of broadcasting innovations introduced during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, including the very latest multimedia content and production and ultra-high definition coverage of matches.

Continued commitment In awarding this prize, the IBC praised FIFA TV for its continued commitment to embracing new technology and for bringing together a host of industry-leading companies to work on innovative projects at the FIFA World Cup. The 2014 FIFA World Cup reached every territory on the planet and broke records for online streaming and television viewing in several key markets, including the United States and Germany.

World Cup a global phenomenon The sale of media rights for the FIFA World Cup is a vital part of securing the financial r­ esources

FIFA needs to invest in football development from grassroots to international competitions around the world. These agreements with broadcasters, including several arrangements for free-to-air viewing, also ensure that the FIFA World Cup is a truly global phenomenon that can be enjoyed by fans everywhere.

In further recognition of FIFA TV’s work during the 2014 World Cup, the Sports Video Group presented the team with a Production Achievement Award at their annual Sport Production and Technical Achievement Awards ceremony at the IBC conference. Å

P

ictures are worth a thousand words, and that saying was again proven to be true by the World Cup in Brazil. The outstanding TV coverage of the 20th edition of the tournament set entirely new standards, and has earned FIFA TV two of the most prestigious awards presented by the global broadcasting industry, the International Honour for Excellence and the Judges’ Prize.

These awards are recognition of our ongoing commitment and efforts to offer football fans in every corner of the globe the best possible TV experience. Football is part of the entertainment industry and showbiz, and should showcase itself accordingly.

These awards place FIFA TV on a par with highly acclaimed individuals and organisations from the entertainment industry such as Oscar-winning Hollywood directors James Cameron (“Titanic”) and Peter Jackson (“Lord of the Rings”), the world renowned producer of natural history documentaries David Attenborough, the innovative research lab operated

by Japanese broadcaster NHK, and audio pioneer Ray Dolby. I would like to express warm and wholehearted congratulations on this achievement, especially to FIFA Director of TV Niclas Ericson.

Our TV coverage also contributes directly and indirectly to our development programmes and the promotion of the game. The sale of media rights plays an essential role in our commitment to social and community projects – another reason why these awards mean so much to us.

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

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“GLOBAL WAT CH”

Global Watch Tokyo Sexwale (left) carries on the legacy of Nelson Mandela.

“Racism is a monster” Take a stand, say No to racism the Nelson Mandela way. Tokyo Sexwale, a freedom fighter who stood side by side with Nelson Mandela, has called for the first global anti-racism-discrimination summit in sport. On November 20 and 21 in Johannesburg the newly launched initiative “Global Watch” will introduce a global charter backed by a barometer to fight discrimination in all sports.

Mr Sexwale, how much of Nelson Mandela is there in Global Watch?

Tokyo Sexwale: We regard this initiative very much as a Nelson Mandela legacy for a non-racial, peaceful and prosperous world. Of course we are inspired by his famous quote on the subject. “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination!”

Was Mandela excited by this intiative?

We briefed Madiba, as we call him, long before he passed away. He was aware of the 2006 FIFA campaign to fight racism and discrimination. Together we took the decision to fight racism – not just in sport, 24

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but in the whole world. Focusing only on football gives the impression that racism is a FIFA problem. This is erroneous. Motor sports, rugby, cricket, basketball, netball, tennis etc have people being victimized.

The problem is much wider. Racism is a society problem. It’s like a monster that is trying now to infiltrate sporting fields. It’s not borne out of the sporting field, but it can definitely destroy the field of sport.

If we don't stand up, if we allow racism to overpower sport, we will be doomed to existence in a hostile world.

There are various initiatives and institutions which take a firm stand against racism. What makes Global Watch different in comparison to those initiatives?

We applaud them all. The European Parliament, the United Nations, FIFA, IOC, etc. All have declarations on how to tackle racism in sports

“GLOBAL WAT CH”

Denzil Maregele / Getty Image

and in football and we have looked at them. With the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on 21st March, the football community reinforced the importance of eradicating racism. Yet to date there is no global, centralised and coordinated leadership in this battle in all sport. That is what’s missing and this is what Global Watch will provide. That’s the difference.

s­ uggested that South Africans must take the lead in this initiative. At the first Global Watch summit in November in Johannesburg the objective is to launch a roadmap based on a basic set of principles to address racism and discrimination in sport. We also aim at proposing national summits to produce national codes of conduct of each country. Above this, we are going to launch a Global Charter and a Global Barometer.

But you are not starting from scratch?

Certainly no, we are going to build upon the good work and long involvement of many organisations, large and small, and individuals across the world. Global Watch itself arises from the “Say No to Racism in Football” campaign which was launched by FIFA during the 2006 World Cup in Berlin. At that time I already felt that it needs a hub, an umbrella organisation, a unique platform to fight racism. It was

What are those tools supposed to be?

The Global Charter which will be presented to the UN for “adoption” will be a short document with all the do’s and don’ts for all sports. This charter will be monitored by a barometer. There are various barometers on poverty, health, wealth, corruption, you name it, but there is no barometer on racism in sports. The Global Watch barometer is an index T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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“GLOBAL WAT CH”

Bananas are for eating Barça star Dani Alves on April 27, 2014.

A strong No to racism Fifa President Sepp Blatter in Berlin standing side by side with Tokyo

which will show which countries are serious about eliminating racism in the sporting areas of the world. It will monitor adherence to the charter, country-by-country, and will ensure that this process gains the highest possible transparency and credibility. This index is to be administered by an internationally recognised and independent body through an annually published report. The Mandela Foundation, inter alia, will play host to the barometer for Globel Watch.

Manchester City’s U-21 team walked off the pitch against NNK Rijeka in Novigrad. Global Watch afterwards released a statement mentioning that the youngsters have shown courage. Why?

Let me just preface by saying that Global Watch will resist very strongly – the Mandela way – the tempation by anybody from using the charter or the barometer for vindictive purposes. We will always be very, very careful and sensitive because inappropriate allegations can destroy lives.

In any event, even the comments of this gentlemen, if true, are inflammatory – especially as they were directed at our young and innocent people.

It’s completely the wrong signal to send. People such as Nelson Mandela, Sepp Blatter, Beckenbauer, Pele and many others clearly agree on a zero-tolerance approach to racism. Italian football has, by electing the gentleman concerned, therefore put itself up for serious scrutiny.

Italy had a number of high profile incidents of racism recently. Former Milan player Kevin-Prince Boateng walked off the pitch in protest at racial abuse during a friendly match. Mario Balotelli continues to be the victim of racial chants. Are walk-offs an appropriate reaction?

We recall what happened to Balotelli and that his gesture raised a lot of questions. Walk-outs although understandable should not be encouraged as they can play into the hands of people who want to destroy sport. Racists will celebrate whilst the real fans lose out. At the same time, I do not always agree with the rules and guidelines which say that if a player walks out under these conditions he or she can be fined or suspended. Nevertheless associations and governing bodies have to look at the circumstances. I can understand that such a man wants to walk off. Once a player has been racially abused this breaks his or her soul and spirit to play.

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“We all agree on a zero-tolerance approach to racism” Balotelli’s teammate Immobile said: In 2014, we should not need to be talking about racism again.

I wish it were like this. The journey is a long one to eradicate this evil. Our goal is to end racism in the 21st century. There is still plenty of work to do. I recall Boateng speaking in front of the United Nations.

He said: Racism won’t go away like a headache. Instead it’s more like malaria. It’s contagious and spreads. Global Watch will combat racism inside the playing field and in society generally. We have to treat its real cause. We have to take appropriate strong measures that can have an impact, like a medicine, but without destroying the whole body.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said football associations should make more use of their right to ban clubs and deduct points to them instead of monetary penalties.

Blatter is perfectly correct. FIFA passed a resolution and we agreed to come up with sanctions at the FIFA Congress in Mauritius 2013.

Alexander Hassenstein / Getty Images

You have critized the appointment of Carlo Tavecchio as the new president of the Italian Football Association. In Tavecchio’s speech about the mass influx of foreign players in Italy he literally said: Here instead we get Opti Pob, who previously ate bananas and then suddenly becomes a first-team player with Lazio. Where will Italy end up on the Global Watch barometer?

Those young men have taken a strong and courageous moral stance.

But we need to help them even further. As I have said before, walking off the field of play is an act of desperation. There must be a body that stands up for those people. This is where Global Watch comes into play – to liberate sporting officials and administrators from having to focus on something which is not their real core business and which diverts them from their field of expertise. We are here to educate, prevent, monitor and raise awareness, if needs be calls may be made for punishment.

“GLOBAL WAT CH”

Sexwale, Franz Beckenbauer and other high ranking officials before the 2006 World Cup.

However sanctions alone are not going to change racism. It needs more. Racists must feel the pressure. We have to put pressure on them via all possible means, otherwise nothing will happen. Right now Blatter has taken the lead in the world showing the red card to racism.

Many others have to stand up more as well. Emptying a stadium is not necessarily the most appropriate punishment. With this you may be punishing 20,000 - 80,000 people and even more. Should thousands, suffer because of one fool who threw a banana or because of a small group of people who painted their faces and started monkey chants?

Locate the banana thrower, ban him or her, but surely not a whole stadium. Relegation is tricky as well. What if the person throwing a banana onto the pitch has been paid to do so?

Bayern Munich were hit with a partial stadium closure for their Champions League quarter-final against Manchester United over a homophobic banner.

From what I learned Germany has red-carded racism and taken a very strong position on discrimination. I feel that Germany is much more intolerant to racism today. For me Franz Beckenbauer as the chairman of the LOC of the World Cup has played a very special role in this process. Germany in 2006 invited the world with a great message: It’s time to make friends. I remember us standing together at the Berlin stadium and launching the “Say No to racism campaign”. Isn’t that ironic! There we were, 70 years later, in the same stadium where Hitler during the Berlin Olympic Games of 1936 wanted to prove to the world his horrible theory of the Master Race – yet this time round, we were uniting as a force for good!

Martial Trezzini / Keystone

Are we still too cautious to take actions in sports?

Look at what happened to the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team. In fact it was within a few days that NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Donald Sterling from the NBA for life after a recording emerged of him making racist remarks. He was forced to sell his shares in the team. Sterling is a billionaire, a very powerful person, not just a banana thrower. But he was strongly dealt with. We admire what the NBA did there, it was very swift, just and firm. That is what we would like to see happening more often – of course after proper and thorough investigation.

Fighting for human rights Kevin-Prince Boateng at the United Nations in Geneva.

Barcelona’s Brazilian defender Daniel Alves was commended for his response of eating a banana thrown at by a racist fan during Barcelona’s 3-2 away win at Villareal on April 27. Afterwards he called for the banana-thrower who sparked a global anti-racist uproar to be given his job back after he reportedly lost it due to the incident.

The Dani Alves example shows maturity. That’s how the world should react. That is very much the Nelson Mandela way. Alves is a victim who feels for others. I always highlighted that we need leaders, warriors, strong and tough people to fight racism. They have to lead by example and Alves has proven to be one of them. “If Alves is a monkey then we are all monkeys.” Neymar said at the time. Great stance by Barcelona in following him! We said to all of them: well done gentlemen!

Their call for action is part of the education we want to provide. Again, Global Watch is not about vindictiveness. It’s not about destroying people. We want to educate people. We want to build a better society.

So are there any right sanctions?

That’s what we will discuss at the summit. FIFA, for example, brought in heavy sanctions for South Africa due to the racist and discriminatory Apartheid system. South Africa was suspended in 1964 and subsequently expelled in 1976. Our primary objective is education and awareness and to monitor and prevent and with sanctions and punishment applied only as a last resort. Å Tokyo Sexwale was speaking to Bernd Fisa

The NELSON MANDELA WAY The Global Watch summit takes place on November 20 and 21 in Johannesburg.

Global Watch is a Nelson Mandela legacy project. Mandela died last year on December 5 at the age of 95. “Sport has the power to change the world.” This is the heritage and message of Nelson Mandela. The Global Watch initiative is an association of the Mandela, Doha Goals and Sexwale Foundations.

For more information: www.nelsonmandela.org, www.globalwatch-racism.org

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IN BRIEF

B

anana throwing is one of the most disgraceful acts imaginable within a football stadium. Protected by the anonymity of the crowd, spectators throw the fruit onto the field to denigrate a player simply because of where he comes from – a situation most recently witnessed in Romania just a few days ago. While playing for top-flight side Concordia Chiajna, Brazilian player Wellington had a banana thrown at him and was reduced to tears by the incident. Footage of the distraught striker in the tunnel was shown repeatedly on Romanian television – until the Rapid Bucharest fan responsible contacted Wellington to apologise personally, a gesture accepted by the 27-year-old. Å Perikles Monioudis

Concordia Chiajna

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n the last issue, The FIFA Weekly took a look at several long and noteworthy careers, and now Martin Odegaard could be at the start of a similarly lengthy spell in international football. The Norwegian featured in his team’s 2-1 win over Bulgaria in European Championship qualifying, becoming the competition’s youngest ever player at the age of 15 years and 300 days. Odegaard came on as a substitute in the 63rd minute to surpass the previous record of 16 years and 251 days set by Iceland’s Sigurdur Jonsson 31 years ago. The attacking midfielder has already caused a stir at national level; he has made 19 appearances in Norway’s Tippeligaen since making his professional debut for Stromsgodset in April, scoring three goals and providing six assists. The Scandinavian country’s youngest international, top-flight player and goalscorer of all time has suddenly become one of global football’s most exciting young talents, attracting the interest of many of the world’s biggest clubs. Many are already comparing the technically adept teenager to Lionel Messi, who is incidentally Odegaard’s favourite player, having made his debut in Barcelona’s first team ten years ago at the age of 17. In any case, Norway’s newest star seems unruffled by all the hype. “It’s cool to now have this record,” he said after the match. “It’s difficult to put into words everything I’ve experienced this year. I’m just trying to enjoy it all.” Å Tim Pfeifer

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hat a start to the UEFA EURO 2016 qualifying campaign! As fans across the continent opened up their newspapers to review the standing of Groups A to I, many may well have felt compelled to dig out a pair of scissors and glue a clipping to their bathroom mirrors. This would certainly be the case in countries like Wales, Iceland, Austria, Denmark, Northern Ireland, Poland and Slovakia, whose national teams sit atop seven of the nine sections. Curiously, none of these resurgent sides appeared at the most recent World Cup. Conversely, Brazil 2014 participants have endured a hangover of sorts, with Portugal losing at home to Albania, Switzerland coming unstuck in Slovenia and the Netherlands and Spain suffering remarkable defeats by Iceland and Slovakia respectively. In addition, Bosnia-Herzegovina were shocked at home by Cyprus, Russia dropped two points to modest Moldova in Moscow and Germany, so impressive as they secured the world crown over the summer, went down in Poland. The Germans also failed to win their third fixture, during which Ireland, second in Group D, gained the prize for the most hard-fought point. Trailing 1-0 and having been given the run-around for much of the game in Gelsenkirchen, the Irish launched a desperate attack, scoring an unexpected equaliser deep into injury time, much to the delight of their 3,000 travelling fans, whose joyous songs and chants rang out in the Ruhr night. However, the thoughts of the unlikely goalscorer, John O’Shea, have already turned to Ireland’s next test, a tricky trip to Scotland in November. “Let’s hope that after that match we’ll be closer to the top of the group,” he said. “Maybe we’ll even be top.”

Alan Schweingruber T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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F I F A ’ S 11

Highest scoring matches at the Club World Cup

1

8 goals Gamba Osaka - Manchester United Final score: 3-5 Date: 18/12/2008

2

7 goals Raja Casablanca - Al Nassr Final score: 3-4 Date: 7/01/2000

When football hits home

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6 goals Boca Juniors - AC Milan Final score: 2-4 Date: 16/12/2007

6 goals Al-Ahly - Pachuca Final score: 2-4 Date: 13/12/2008

Ronald Düker

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or a football enthusiast like me, the small town where I was born and raised was hardly the ideal environment. Although there was a football club, to go alongside the tennis and table-tennis clubs, the side floundered in the lower leagues and its so-called stadium looked more like what would pass for a youth team training pitch anywhere else. That meant the only excitement to be had from football was restricted to television, especially when live games were broadcast, such as during World Cups, which I have consciously followed since 1982.

That may be an awfully long time ago but fundamentally not a great deal has changed since then, even if plenty has happened in the intervening period, including numerous visits to watch top-flight games. The last World Cup took place in Brazil and I was in Berlin, so once again I could only see the dazzling performances of the German national team on TV. How to describe, then, the events surrounding the squad’s return to the German capital after the tournament?

Nothing could have prepared me for that moment. Not my alarm clock, nor an initial glance at the news online, which announced the imminent arrival of the ‘Siegerflieger’ (‘winners’ plane’) – the moniker Lufthansa gave the Boeing 747 that flew the players back to Berlin from Brazil. I stayed updated on the website flightradar24.com, which allows you to track the progress of any flight around the world in real time on a map. At nine o’clock the Siegerflieger was over Paris, reaching Strasburg shortly afterwards before flying over the

Ruhr district, Leipzig and Magdeburg. When the flashing aeroplane symbol on my screen approached the outskirts of Berlin I jumped up from my desk and rushed to my window. And there it was, in the no-fly zone directly above the city, flying so low that it was even possible to read the word ‘Siegerflieger’ printed on it as it passed directly over the building I live in.

If anyone had seen me at that instant, overcome with a childlike enthusiasm, I would probably have died of embarrassment. I quickly switched on my television and watched as the plane continued its arc over the city before landing at Tegel airport. Indeed, that single, fleeting moment shortly beforehand was so real and so strong that I felt more connected with football than at any match I remember attending. Football had come home to me. Å

6 goals Internacional - Seongnam Final score: 4-2 Date: 18/12/2010

6 goals Al-Ahly - Monterrey Final score: 1-5 Date: 18/12/2013

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5 goals Real Madrid - Raja Casablanca Final score: 3-2 Date: 10/01/2000

5 goals Al-Ittihad - Sao Paulo Final score: 2-3 Date: 14/12/2005

5 goals Al-Ittihad - Deportivo Saprissa Final score: 2-3 Date: 18/12/2005

5 goals TP Mazembe - Auckland City Final score: 2-3 Date: 16/12/2009

5 goals Al-Wahda Sports Club - Seongnam Final score: 1-4 Date: 11/12/2010

The weekly column by our staff writers

Source: FIFA (FIFA World Cup, Milestones & Superlatives, Statistical Kit, 13.10.2014) T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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MIRROR IMAGE

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Liverpool, England

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Bob Thomas / Getty Images

I’m forever blowing bubbles: Kenny Dalglish (Liverpool) and Bob Latchford (Everton) prior to the Merseyside derby.

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MIRROR IMAGE

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The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images

Pretty bubbles in the air: Japanese teams try their hand at Bubble Football, the latest Norwegian craze.

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FIFA WORLD R ANKING Rank Team

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 29 31 32 33 34 34 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 48 48 48 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 73 75 76 76

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Change in ranking Points

Germany Argentina Colombia Netherlands Belgium Brazil Uruguay Spain France Switzerland

0 0 1 -1 0 1 -1 -1 1 -1

1765 1631 1488 1456 1444 1291 1243 1228 1202 1175

Portugal Chile Italy Greece Costa Rica Mexico USA England Croatia Algeria Ecuador Côte d’Ivoire Russia Ukraine Bosnia and Herzegovina Romania Denmark Czech Republic Scotland Wales Tunisia Sweden Ghana Serbia Iceland Senegal Nigeria Turkey Austria Slovakia Cape Verde Islands Cameroon Montenegro Iran Albania Bulgaria Peru Guinea Japan Burkina Faso Congo Armenia Slovenia Hungary Panama Honduras Guatemala Uzbekistan Mali Paraguay Egypt Republic of Ireland Korea Republic Israel Finland Venezuela South Africa Libya Jordan Poland Northern Ireland El Salvador Congo DR United Arab Emirates Sierra Leone Oman Norway

0 0 1 -1 0 1 1 2 -3 4 0 3 0 -2 -6 1 -1 7 -1 12 11 -3 3 -3 12 23 -4 -6 1 5 33 12 6 4 25 26 5 16 -4 10 30 -16 -14 -20 8 -13 77 -7 1 -13 -23 4 -6 4 -10 -37 2 -6 -13 -9 24 55 20 -8 -25 -9 -23

1150 1100 1068 1052 988 963 936 935 928 926 889 879 875 855 851 837 833 812 714 714 701 662 661 646 646 645 642 637 622 616 604 601 591 572 571 570 563 557 557 557 557 556 555 548 540 535 534 530 526 514 513 506 501 498 491 476 458 455 450 436 435 431 430 430 424 421 421

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Ranking 04 / 2014

05 / 2014

06 / 2014

07 / 2014

08 / 2014

09 / 2014

1 -41 -83 -125 -167 -209

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Top spot

Biggest climber

Benin Uganda Antigua and Barbuda Estonia Saudi Arabia Gabon Australia Cyprus Trinidad and Tobago Morocco Zambia Belarus Iraq Botswana Zimbabwe Rwanda Bolivia Azerbaijan Qatar China PR Malawi Latvia Jamaica Angola Palestine Lithuania Bahrain Moldova St Vincent and the Grenadines Dominican Republic Niger Mozambique Georgia Kenya FYR Macedonia Namibia Equatorial Guinea Tanzania Lesotho St Kitts and Nevis New Zealand Haiti Canada Lebanon Cuba St Lucia Kuwait Togo Liberia Luxembourg Kazakhstan Aruba Guinea-Bissau Burundi Ethiopia Sudan Philippines Afghanistan Tajikistan Grenada New Caledonia Central African Republic Mauritania Turkmenistan Vietnam Myanmar Chad

-1 2 69 12 1 19 -5 55 -6 -6 -4 -1 1 -5 -2 8 -23 -22 -4 0 8 1 -15 -26 -14 0 3 -6 28 19 11 -2 -15 -7 -36 1 -1 -5 -10 42 -20 -2 2 -6 2 15 -13 -38 -7 -18 4 -5 -7 -1 -20 -18 -6 -6 -16 5 -1 -17 -7 -4 -3 17 -4

Biggest faller

420 418 411 403 402 392 390 388 374 371 365 364 357 356 353 349 346 344 342 341 340 333 321 312 311 309 305 302 301 295 295 294 290 288 286 284 280 277 277 276 274 266 265 264 257 256 250 245 241 239 239 233 226 226 222 221 218 214 213 209 209 209 198 197 194 193 185

145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 158 160 161 162 163 164 164 166 167 168 169 170 170 172 172 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 193 193 193 193 198 199 199 199 202 203 204 205 205 207 208 208

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

0 -3 -16 34 3 -4 -7 -5 0 1 -5 -3 -2 -8 -1 -2 8 9 -1 -1 -3 -18 1 -3 3 3 5 -5 8 1 -11 2 0 1 4 1 -11 -9 -17 0 0 0 4 -2 -1 -1 -1 -1 0 0 0 5 0 -1 2 2 1 1 -4 0 0 1 0 0 0

183 180 175 164 163 160 158 154 148 134 133 130 126 116 116 114 112 106 103 102 102 101 89 86 84 83 83 81 81 80 77 76 72 70 67 66 65 64 62 58 43 41 37 33 32 30 29 28 26 26 26 26 26 23 13 13 13 11 9 8 6 6 1 0 0

NET ZER KNOWS!

THE OBJEC T

Do goalkeepers really have a special character?

Question by Florence Pasquier, Paris

Perikles Monioudis

F

At ease Germany international Gunter Netzer in 1970.

Sven Simon / imago

G

iven a goalkeeper’s role in a team he does indeed need to have a special character.

That’s one of the basic requirements of being able to survive in the position.

If a midfielder makes a mistake there is plenty of time and opportunity to make amends but if a goalkeeper makes a mistake then the consequences are often fatal. Of course you always win and lose as a team but that doesn’t change the fact that a keeper has to come to terms with any glaring errors he makes. Viewed subjectively, those are always very personal kinds of defeats.

Goalkeepers develop psychologically very early on, normally as teenagers. If they make the step up into the first team and become a professional then it’s not easy to shake them off balance. A goalkeeper has to be able to bear his destiny and must be able to cope with the fact that he always shoulders a great deal of responsibility as the last line of defence. I can think of plenty of tasks that would be more rewarding. As is the case with referees, you only usually talk about goalkeepers if they have a bad day. It is the exception rather than the rule for a keeper to be praised.

There is another factor that should be taken into consideration: while a left-back, for example, can drift in and out of a game, a goalkeeper is always at the heart of the action. Not only does he need to protect the goal, he also needs to keep the defence together. That requires leadership skills and therefore a strong character, especially when results aren’t going a team’s way. I hold the role of a goalkeeper in very high regard. Å

ootball provides a rich source of slapstick comedy, making it a playground for caricaturists and cartoonists. Although this art form is not exactly in great demand, it still has its place, particularly in the media.

Newspapers are no longer reliant on sketches when it comes to succinctly presenting the facts; after all, online technological aids and presentation possibilities are incredible nowadays. Nevertheless, although a picture still says more than a thousand words, a caricature can often say more than a thousand pictures.

The sketch pictured above is part of the FIFA Collection. Signed by ‘JAK’, it depicts a classic case of “when two people quarrel, a third rejoices”. Two opposing teams have been forced to give up their struggle after scrapping for the ball and are sprawled on top of one another like rugby players. Meanwhile, the ball has come to rest at the very edge of the puddle, leaving it to the sole player who refrained from entering the fray.

Is he a player from the defending side, or is he moments away from scoring for his team?

Knowing the rules of caricature, it is probably the latter.

Raymond Allen Jackson, alias JAK, was a renowned British caricaturist. He passed away in the summer of 1997, aged 70. Å

What have you always wanted to know about football? Ask Gunter Netzer: feedback-theweekly@fifa.org 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

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TURNING POINT

“Everyone burst into tears” The death of Marc-Vivien Foe cast a shadow over the 2003 Confederations Cup, and it changed the life of the man in charge of Cameroon at the time, Winfried Schafer.

imago

I

t was 6pm on 26 July at the 2003 Confederations Cup and I was the coach of Cameroon as we kicked off at the Stade de Gerland in Lyon against Colombia in the semi-finals. We took the lead after only nine minutes, thanks to a goal from N’Diefi. I wasn’t to know what tragic fate lay in store. It was dreadfully hot in Lyon – 37 degrees. MarcVivien Foe had just recovered from a stomach bug and was passed fit to play; the doctors had given him the green light and he’d trained with us for the past two days.

During the interval, the coaching team asked all of the players if they were okay to carry on. Everybody said yes. After 60 minutes, the doctor and I both wanted an update on how Foe was feeling. I still didn’t speak any French so I had to ask my assistant to consult with Marc. He gave us the thumbs up and said: “No problem, coach.” So I left him on.

Eleven minutes later, Marco, as I called him, collapsed to the ground in the centre circle. I didn’t really think it could be anything serious straight away so I used the break to give some tactical orders to the team. The doctors carried Marco off the field and one of them almost slipped on the grass. I rushed across to the stretcher and realised Marco was not moving. His gaze looked distorted - you could practically only see the white of his eyes. One arm was dangling down lifelessly and I thought to myself: my God, what’s going on? I couldn’t really concentrate on the game anymore. The team celebrated qualifying for the final to begin with, dancing around in joy. But I then told them: “Let’s just wait until Marco’s back.”

Then we heard Rigobert Song scream: “Marc’s dead!”. We all burst into tears and I was struck by a terrible grief. We returned to the team hotel. I knew I had to be there for the players, to help them. But I couldn’t. I needed help myself.

To this day, I’m still stunned by what happened to Marco. It may sound banal, and doesn’t do him justice, but sometimes these things just happen to the best people. He was a fantastic player and a wonderful person; a gentleman. He had an excellent career. If he’d played for a big nation – Germany, France, Italy or the like – he would have become a world star. But you can’t achieve all that much with Cameroon. The Confederations Cup final would have been the biggest international game of his career. He didn’t get to play it. I wished we could have won the final against France for him. We lost 1-0, but who cared about that anymore? It all became incidental and I needed a long, long time before I could focus on the football again. I still miss my friend Marco. Å

Winfried Schafer was talking to Nicola Berger

Name: Winfried Schafer Date and place of birth: 10 January 1950, Mayen (Germany) Playing position: Midfield Clubs as a player: 1968–1970, 1977–1985 Borussia Monchengladbach 1970–1975 Kickers Offenbach 1975–1977 Karlsruher SC Clubs as coach (selection): 1986–1998 Karlsruher SC, 1999–2000 TB Berlin 2001–2004 Cameroon, 2005–2007 Al-Ahli 2007–2009 Al-Ain, 2011–2013 Thailand, since 2013 Jamaica

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

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

37

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Hello Tomorrow

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

FIFA QUIZ CUP

A beauty queen, a new world champion and someone special – test your knowledge!

1

In 1930, the first World Cup was played in three stadiums, all in Montevideo, but which World Cup was hosted by just four venues?

President: Joseph S. Blatter

O I S A

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

Switzerland 1954 Mexico 1970 Chile 1962 Argentina 1978

Chief Editor: Perikles Monioudis Staff Writers: Alan Schweingruber, Sarah Steiner, Tim Pfeifer

2

This Portuguese star coach has worked for Porto, Chelsea and Inter Milan, sometimes on multiple occasions. Which club is he managing in 2014?

Art Direction: Catharina Clajus Picture Editor: Peggy Knotz Production: Hans-Peter Frei Layout: Richie Krönert (Lead), Tobias Benz, Marianne Bolliger-Crittin, Susanne Egli, Alissa Rosskopf Proof Reader: Nena Morf, Kristina Rotach

C

3

Contributors: Sérgio Xavier Filho, Luigi Garlando, Sven Goldmann, Hanspeter Kuenzler, Jordi Punti, Thomas Renggli, David Winner, Roland Zorn

Project Management: Bernd Fisa, Christian Schaub Translation: Sportstranslations Limited www.sportstranslations.com

P

T

A 2014 FIFA Final in Rio de Janeiro: A former world champion presents the winner’s trophy to …

A Aprile E May I June O August

Contributors to this Issue: Nicola Berger, Ronald Düker, Jan Griffiths, Andreas Jaros, Andrew Warshaw, Andreas Wilhelm Editorial Assistant: Honey Thaljieh

H

4

It is perhaps the world’s largest football tournament and even features beauty queens, but which city hosts this unusual event?

E Salvador K Manila S Sao Paulo T Manaus

Printer: Zofinger Tagblatt AG www.ztonline.ch 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 CUPS Detailed answers on www.fifa.com/theweekly Inspiration and implementation: cus

Send your answer by 22 October 2014 to feedback-theweekly@fifa.org.

Correct solutions to all quizzes published from 13 June 2014 onwards will go into a draw in January 2015 for a trip for two to the FIFA Ballon d’Or on 12 January 2015.

Before sending in answers, all participants must read and accept the competition terms and conditions and the rules, which can be found at: http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/af-magazine/fifaweekly/02/20/51/99/en_rules_20140613_english_neutral.pdf T H E F I FA W E E K LY

39

L A S T W E E K’S P O L L R E S U LT S

T HIS WEEK’S POLL

Which of these South American goalkeepers in Europe have impressed you the most so far?

Which of these forwards impressed you most in the recent international friendly matches?

73+13+86 8%

6%

13%

73%

≠ ≠ ≠ ≠

Claudio Bravo (Chi/Barcelona)

Fernando Muslera (Uru/Galatasaray) Diego Alves (Bra/Valencia) Rafael (Bra/Napoli)

Choose from the following: · Abderrazak Hamdallah (Mar) · Carlos Bacca (Col) · Karim Benzema (Fra) · Joao Plata (Ecu) · Eduardo Vargas (Chi) · Diego Tardelli (Bra) Cast your votes at: Fifa.com/newscentre

“If I could choose between Messi, Ronaldo or Robben, I’d choose Robben. He’s the most complete. People don’t see it like that because too much focus is put on goals.”

Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk

minutes is all that Robbie Keane needed in Ireland’s meeting with

5.6 40 per cent is the unsatisfactory

goals for Brazil is what

strike rate in shots at goal by

Neymar has registered in just

hat-trick after the kick-off in a

Germany in three UEFA EURO

58 appearances for his country.

UEFA EURO qualifier or

2016 qualifiers so far, an uncharac-

He has overtaken Bebeto and climbed

finals match. The

teristically poor return for the

to fifth on the all-time Brazilian roll

veteran also over-

team that scored with 18.4 per cent

of honour behind legends Pele (77

took Hakan

of their shots en route to winning

goals), Ronaldo (62), Romario (55) and

Sukur to become

the 2014 World Cup. The Germans

Zico (48). The striker netted all the

the all-time

have made an impressive 77 attempts

goals in a 4-0 victory over Japan last

leading scorer in

at goal in their three qualifying

Tuesday and became the sixth

European Champi-

fixtures but have beaten the opposing

Brazilian to score four times in a

onship qualifying on 21 goals.

keeper a mere three times.

full international.

Gibraltar to break Marco van Basten’s record for the fastest

imago (2), Getty Images, Keystone

17

WEEK IN NUMBERS