The FIFA Weekly Issue #49

ISSUE 49/2015, 11 DECEMBER 2015

ENGLISH EDITION

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

SPAIN EXCITEMENT MOUNTING IN LA LIGA IRAN FIFA COURSE FOR WOMEN GOALKEEPERS 2015 REVIEW SCINTILLATING TOURNAMENTS

PORTLAND TIMBERS

USA'S NEWEST CHAMPIONS 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

The year’s highlights As the FIFA Club World Cup gets underway in Japan on 10 December to bring the curtain down on a year of dazzling FIFA tournaments, we look back over 2015’s highlights so far, from the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada and the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Portugal to the FIFA U-20 and U-17 World Cups in New Zealand and Chile.

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Nicaragua As the championship’s two play-off outsiders battle it out for the Apertura title, will it be UNAN Managua or Diriangen FC who emerge victorious?

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Croatia The 100th edition of the historic derby between Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split delivered excitement all the way to the final whistle.

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I ran After leading a goalkeeping course in Iran on behalf of FIFA, former Dutch international Marleen Wissink explains: “It was a lively exchange and a great opportunity to learn from one another.”

USA’s newest champions Our cover image shows the jubilant Portland Timbers on the way to their first MLS Cup triumph. The photograph was taken at the final in Columbus, Ohio, on 6 December.

Jeff Swinger / USA TODAY Sports

South America 10 members www.conmebol.com

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MLS Cup Portland Timbers were crowned champions after defeating Columbus Crew in the final.

(Pictured: Diego Valeri)

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Spain Barcelona remain at the summit of the Primera Division. (Pictured: the formidable trio of Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi, left to right)

The FIFA Weekly app FIFA’s magazine The FIFA Weekly is published in four languages every Friday and is also available free of charge on smartphone and tablet. http://www.fifa.com/mobile 2

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FIFA Club World Cup

FIFA Futsal World Cup

10 – 20 December 2015, Japan

10 September – 1 October 2016, Colombia

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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Turning Point Icelandic international Birkir Bjarnason on his crucial move to Basel.

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Getty Images (2), imago (2)

Nadine Kessler The 2014 FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year on that award, the development of women’s football and her potential comeback.

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UNCOVERED

What makes us strong E

arly on the evening of 20 June 2015, Serbia’s players fell to their knees and openly wept. As the television cameras turned on them, they simply continued to wail, rendered speechless by happiness. This dedicated group of players, all born shortly after the end of the war in Bosnia, had achieved something remarkable. Serbia were crowned U-20 world champions for the first time, prompting fifty thousand people to fill the streets in front of Belgrade’s city hall to welcome their young heroes home.

These are the stories that make us strong even in times of crisis. Tears of joy were also shed at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada, the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Portugal and the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile. In this issue, we look back at the four FIFA tournaments held so far this year, starting on page six. Michael Lewis also reports from the USA on Portland Timbers’ recent triumph in the MLS Cup. Å

Mario Wagner / 2Agenten

Alan Schweingruber

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THIS YEAR’S HIGHLIGHTS

Before the FIFA Club World Cup 2015 in Japan brings the curtain down on another remarkable year of football, we look back over twelve months of dazzling FIFA tournaments. While the first magical moments came at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015, where USA were crowned world champions, the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile and U-20 World Cup in New Zealand offered more sporting marvels – and let’s not forget the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Portugal. The beautiful game has delivered another year of pure emotion!

Abby Wambach USA’s record goalscorer (184 goals) embarks on a lap of honour after winning the FIFA Women’s World Cup final.

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FESTIVAL OF RECORDS IN CANADA

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orth America emerged from the FIFA Women’s World Cup Canada 2015 as major winners. First, the hosts enchanted a global audience with their colourful, atmospheric staging of women’s football’s biggest tournament, enabling the home side to deliver their best performances. Then, the USA became the first women’s side in history to lift the sport’s most coveted trophy for the third time – a new record!

In fact, it was a FIFA Women’s World Cup full of records, as 24 teams competed for the first time, up from 16 at the previous edition of the tournament. Canada 2015 also attracted a bigger audience than ever before, with a record number of fans watching on television and engaging with the event via social media. As if that was not enough, the Stars and Stripes raised their World Cup goal tally to 112, surpassing the Germans’ previous best of 111, and Japan legend Homare Sawa took to the field at her sixth FIFA Women’s World Cup. Everywhere you looked, records were tumbling!

Marta the superstar Sawa shares her impressive record with 37-year-old Brazilian Formiga, who became the oldest goalscorer at a FIFA World Cup finals tournament when she found the target in her side’s 2-0 group stage victory over Korea Republic in Montreal on 9 June 2015. To make the match even more historic, Formiga’s team-mate Marta also became the competition’s all-time record goalscorer, with 15 World Cup goals to her name. The five-time FIFA World Player of the Year seemed relaxed and approachable as she waited for the team bus in the network of tunnels running beneath the Olympic Stadium after the game, even finding time for a quick chat. Wearing a blue sweatshirt and carrying a rucksack full of kit, her hair still damp from the shower, the living football legend smiled. A win and a record: what more could you want from a group game? With Marta’s eyes betraying only the slightest hint of post-match tiredness, she reflected that the “differences in performance have got much smaller; there’s no comparison with ten years ago”.

Indeed, the teams are far more closely matched when it comes to their performance potential, with Germany’s 10-0 thrashing of FIFA Women’s World Cup debutantes Côte d’Ivoire the only exception to this trend. It became clear after the first few group matches that expanding the number of participating sides was the next step so desperately needed to establish the women’s game on the world stage and show national associations across the globe that investing in the game at home is a worthwhile endeavour.

The value of these investments is twofold: in addition to offering girls and young women a new sporting perspective, football also provides all the advantages that come with membership of a club or team – including a major boost in motivation and team spirit – and is also a practical leisure activity in regions where girls have few other opportunities to develop their personalities.

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Newcomers make powerful impression Golden Ball winner Carli Lloyd and Golden Glove recipient Hope Solo made decisive contributions to the USA’s FIFA Women’s World Cup triumph in Canada. Lloyd also scored the most spectacular goal of the tournament, lobbing Japan goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori from the halfway line to give her team an unassailable 4-0 lead in the final. The 32-year-old attacking midfielder netted a hat-trick in that game to finish second in the goalscorer list behind Germany’s Celia Sasic.

Lloyd and Sasic will meet when the FIFA World Player of the Year is announced in Zurich on 11 January 2016. The award’s third nominee is 30-year-old Japan captain Aya Miyama, who led her team to the FIFA Women’s World Cup final before their eventual 5-2 defeat by the USA. England also impressed crowds with their strong performances throughout the tournament. Ranked sixth in the world, coach Mark Sampson’s versatile team exceeded expectations to finish third under the leadership of indefatigable skipper Steph Houghton.

Several FIFA Women’s World Cup debutantes also showed that they belong at the world’s biggest tournament. Ranked 11th, 13th and 15th respectively, Cameroon, the Netherlands and Switzerland all made it to the knockout stages, setting new standards in women’s football along the way. Based on this evidence, it is safe to assume that the FIFA Women’s World Cup will continue to grow in popularity for years and decades to come. Å Perikles Monioudis 8

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imago, C. Cox / Getty Images

One of the main priorities for women’s football worldwide is for national associations to form and establish girls’ and women’s leagues. FIFA offers a wide range of support in this area, from investments and expertise to vital resources.

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PORTUGAL’S LONG-AWAITED TRIUMPH Waiting for the stars Young fans welcome the USA women’s national team to New York on 10 July 2015 after their third FIFA Women’s World Cup triumph in Canada.

Semi-final in Edmonton Japan defeated England 2-1 on 1 July 2015, thanks in no small part to goalkeeper Ayumi Kaihori.

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ad results are always tricky. On the one hand there is the desire to forget about them, but they can be beneficial if the right conclusions can be drawn. The Portuguese do not have fond memories of summer 2004, when their national team was on course for success at the European Championship on home soil, only to let the opportunity slip from their grasp. The side, spearheaded by Luis Figo, lost 1-0 to Greece in the final, and the whole nation mourned.

Portugal staged a smaller tournament 11 years later, but the situation was very similar: as hosts they started as one of the favourites going into the competition, the eighth edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. The one-time fishing village of Espinho spruced itself up for the big occasion, with numerous visitors from around the world and across Portugal arriving. In the end 96,300 spectators watched the ten-day tournament in the Estadio da Baia.

The games out on the sand were spectacular and fans benefitted from free entry to the arena.

5-3 success over Tahiti The final itself was a gripping affair. Tahiti, the small, ambitious beach soccer nation from the South Pacific managed to reach the final. Naturally enough, their challenge stirred memories of the encounter with Greece among the Portuguese contingent: another final at home to underdogs on a warm Sunday in July. This time Portugal made history though, beating the plucky islanders 5-3 to post a maiden triumph at a FIFA tournament at senior level. Two-time world champions Russia finished in third, with Italy fourth.

A total of 16 teams took part at the tournament in Espinho, of which only four came from the otherwise dominant football continent of Europe. While beach football used to be cool and offbeat, it has long since become an established game in its own right, even in countries that do not have natural sand beaches such as World Cup participants Paraguay and Switzerland. Former footballers such as Romario and Eric Cantona contributed to that, having been among the first stars to professionally publicise beach soccer in the 1990s.

A boost for beach soccer Beach soccer gained greater impetus in 2015 and the tournament in Espinho was qualitatively the best ever. The T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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The one-time fishing village of Espinho spruced itself up for the big occasion.

game has become intense and nowadays it is almost impossible for players to extend their careers on sand after playing on grass. “In the past you could compensate for a great deal if you had a good technique,” said Ramiro Amarelle, a beach soccer icon who participated at six World Cups with Spain. “But that’s not the case today because the game has got so much faster.

Portugal are only the fourth nation to be crowned beach soccer world champions, following Brazil, France and Russia. The next tournament will be held in the Bahamas in 2017. Å Alan Schweingruber

Upcoming FIFA tournaments 2015

10 – 20 December: FIFA Club World Cup (Japan) 2016

4 – 5 May: Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup (Swit zerland) 10 September – 1 Oc tober: FIFA Futsal World Cup (Colombia) 30 September – 21 Oc tober: FIFA U -17 Women’s World Cup (Jordan) 13 November – 3 December: FIFA U -20 Women’s World Cup (Papua New Guinea) In December: FIFA Club World Cup (Japan)

Antonio Pedrosa

Spectacular show The Estadio de Baia (c. below) on the beach of Espinho can hold 3,500 spectators.

Above: a shot of the World Cup match between Switzerland and Oman.

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Huge crowd Serbia’s U-20 national team celebrate their triumph in Belgrade.

HISTORIC SUCCESS

Aleksander Djorovic / imago

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here was red, white and blue as far as the eye could see when 50,000 fans gathered below the city hall balcony in Belgrade to form a euphoric welcoming committee. They had come to celebrate with their team, the U-20 side that had won a title in that age category for the first time since Serbia’s independence.

Perhaps ‘eked out’ would be a better description of their triumph, as Serbia went to extra-time in each of their fixtures in the knockout rounds en route to winning the FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand.

They were on the verge of being eliminated by Hungary in the round of 16, only to equalise in the last minute and win with ten men in extra-time. In the quarter-finals Serbia got the better of USA on penalties and in the last four they needed a header from 17-year-old Ivan Saponjic in the 101st minute to defeat Mali.

Serbia progressed to the final against Brazil, a team that went into the game with an imposing tournament record of 20 consecutive U-20 World Cup matches without defeat. Yet even the young Seleção were unable to withstand Serbia’s unbending will to win, and so a football fairytale was written. The match finished 1-1 after 90 minutes, before Nemanja Maksimovic netted a 118th-minute winner.

“What a final, what a game!” said Serbia coach Veljko Paunovic in the wake of the historic success. Goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic, who pulled off a number of outstanding saves to deny the Brazilians, enthused: “A dream has come true for us.” Yet the title came as no surprise for the custodian, who won the Golden Glove as the tournament’s best goalkeeper: “To be honest, I was convinced from day one that we would win this World Cup. I never doubted it.” Such self-confidence bodes well for the future of Serbian football.

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The U-20 World Cup was yet another thrilling youth tournament played at the highest level, with 154 goals in 52 games giving fans across the globe plenty to cheer about.

Aside from the Serbian champions, several other players made a name for themselves, chief among them Adama Traore. The Malian striker was named as the tournament’s best player after helping his team finish third by scoring four goals and providing three assists.

A technically-gifted player, his vision and speed also caught the eye.

Brazil captain Danilo was another of those who impressed. Following the tournament, his club Sporting Braga was inundated with offers for the 19-year-old, who opted to join Valencia.

It remains to be seen how the careers of the U-20 players will develop, but some of them will doubtless be seen again at the 2018 FIFA World Cup™ in Russia. Å Sarah Steiner

Player of the Tournament Adama Traore was not only named as the best player at the U-20 World Cup, he helped Mali finish in third place.

AFRICA’S MOMENT OF GLORY

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n 2013 Chidiebere Nwakali returned home a hero. His greatest wish had been to give his homeland something to cheer about at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, and he succeeded. Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets won the title and celebrations ensued for Nwakali and his team-mates. His younger brother Kelechi, 18 months his junior, was very nearly a part of that triumph in 2013, but he was omitted from the final tournament squad. Kelechi could therefore only look on from afar as Nigeria’s U-17 side romped from one victory to the next before hoisting the trophy aloft at the end. He could also take no part in his compatriots’ celebrations for his brother when he returned home, as he was playing in a youth tournament at the time. Yet Kelechi knew one thing for certain: he wanted to experience the same thing for himself one day.

He duly captained Nigeria at the U-17 World Cup 2015 in Chile, which took place from 17 October – 8 November, and by the end of the tournament there was once again a thunderous reception for a Nwakali from the Nigeria fans. The Golden Eaglets beat Mali 2-0 in an all-African final to lift the U-17 title for a record fifth time.

Cortes’ wondergoal Despite that defeat, Mali should feel like winners too. Having won the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations for the first time earlier this year, they made history at the U-17 World Cup by reaching their first final. Although the players were hugely disappointed after losing the title-decider, they still took the positives the tournament. “I’ve learned a lot here with my coaches, friends and teammates, but also from my opponents,” said Boubacar Traore, before adding af-

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Hannah Peters / Getty Images

Some of the players will be seen again at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

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ter the final whistle: “We’ll go home and be welcomed like heroes.” It is the positive memories, then, that make more of a lasting impression.

That is also undoubtedly true for Mexico’s Diego Cortes, who scored the Goal of the Tournament in the semi-finals. “I looked to see if one of my teammates was free, but they weren’t,” said the 17-year-old, recalling the moment he received the ball on the wing before racing down the flank, eventually beating five defenders and finishing a spectacular solo run with a low finish into the bottom corner. It was a sensational goal to level the score at 2-2 against Nigeria, even if it was not enough to help his side into the final. Mexico went on to lose 4-2 and also suffered a defeat in the play-off for third place against surprise package Belgium.

Tom Dulat / FIFA via Getty Images, AFP

World Cup experience Nevertheless, the Mexican fans never stopped singing and, alongside hosts Chile, created an electrifying atmosphere at a tournament that offered the potential stars of tomorrow the opportunity to play on the international stage

Final in Vina del Mar The sky, Nigeria and Mali all put on a spectacular show.

for the first time and to gain experience.

As diverse as the players were, they all have the same aim: to progress to the U-20s and make the step up to the senior side in order to be able to sample the wonderful FIFA World Cup atmosphere once again. Å

Nigeria defended their title to be crowned U-17 world champions for a record fifth time.

Annette Braun

Dream come true Kelechi Nwakali was given a hero’s welcome in his homeland after winning the U-17 World Cup. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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Spain: Primera División

Too soon to celebrate Jordi Punti is a novelist and a prolific football features writer in the Spanish media.

Barcelona’s comprehensive 4-0 win over Real Madrid last month triggered a wave optimism among Azulgrana fans. As well as extending their lead at the top of La Liga, the emphatic win also marked the return of Lionel Messi following a two-month injury layoff, his reappearance reuniting the formidable three-pronged attack he forms with Neymar and Luis Suarez, which has accounted for 31 of the 34 goals Barça have scored in the league to date.

Manuel Queimadelos Alonso / Getty Images

Adding to Barcelona fans’ glee was the fact that El Clásico has been far from Real’s only

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setback of late. Expelled from the Copa del Rey for fielding the ineligible Denis Cheryshev in the tie against Cadiz and with Karim Benzema facing blackmail charges back in France, Rafael Benitez’s side have also been contending with some inconsistent league form. Though they continue to brush off La Liga’s lesser lights, they have proved vulnerable against stronger sides, while the coach has as yet been unable to perm the talent of Isco, James Rodriguez, Casemiro, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric effectively, with only Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo holding down permanent places in the side.

Not immune to suffering over the years, Barça fans contemplated the scene and asked themselves whether it was perhaps a little too soon to start celebrating. After all, championships are won in the spring, not before Christmas, a timely reminder of which came on Matchday 14 last Saturday. While Real Madrid eased to a 4-1 defeat of Getafe, Barcelona conceded a late goal and with it two points in a 1-1 draw at Valencia, a defensive lapse at the

end of a near-perfect performance restoring some balance to the top of the table. The current league season is turning out to be the most open in years, with Atletico Madrid being joined by the likes of Villarreal, Celta Vigo and Deportivo de La Coruna in helping to make this is a more keenly contested and entertaining campaign.

While Messi works his way back to peak form, the question on everyone’s lips is whether Barcelona have any room for improvement.

The answer will perhaps come in the next few days, when they travel to Japan for the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup. Then, in January, comes the end of FIFA’s transfer ban, at which point Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal will be given the chance to show they are the catalysts Barça need to convince the Camp Nou faithful once and for all. As the fans know very well, springtime is when the silverware is decided. Å

Deflated Lionel Messi (left) and Neymar were forced to accept a 1-1 draw against Valencia after Los Che snatched a last-gasp equaliser.

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Nicaragua: Primera Division

UNA N Managua on the brink of title glor y Annette Braun is a staff writer on The FIFA Weekly.

The stars appear to be aligning for UNAN Managua, or at least for the more superstitious fans among their ranks. In the first leg of the Apertura final against Diriangen FC, the Blue Lions ran out 1-0 winners, just as they had in first leg of the semi-final against Deportivo Walter Ferretti at the end of November (the semi-final second leg ended 3-3). Furthermore, both first legs were decided by a penalty converted by 24-year-old Jonathan Donado. A good omen indeed.

Another draw in the second leg of the final and Managua will be Primera Division champions for the first time. The capital club have celebrated league titles before, winning the 2012 Clausura and the 2013 Apertura, but those successes were in Nicaragua’s second tier. Now they have the ultimate domestic prize – and the crowning moment in the club’s history – within their grasp.

For their opponents, meanwhile, fighting for the championship is nothing new. Diriangen have already been crowned kings of Nicaragua 26 times, more than any other club.

However, their glory days had faded in recent times, and they had been eclipsed by Real Estell as the best team in the land. Diriangen’s triumph against Luis Javier Londono’s Estell side in their Apertura semi-final was therefore all the more impressive, with Andres Novara’s charges grinding out a 1-0 win and a goalless draw to set up a showdown with Managua in the final.

streets to the sounds of horns blaring and people singing with delight. Pure joy and elation engulfed every single person present.

It was as though they had won the Apertura itself.

Diriangen’s jubilation could barely be contained when they reached the final, and they now sense a return to the heady days of yesteryear. The clocks were well past midnight – 2:30 am to be precise – when night turned into day and the city of Diriamba where the club is based erupted in celebration, with thousands dancing on the street and acclaiming the efforts of their team. The players later arrived to a hero’s welcome, with trucks and buses ferrying them through the

By contrast, the first leg of the final was a rather sobering affair for Diriangen. Donado’s 51st-minute penalty, fired into the bottom right-hand corner and followed by the Colombian dancing and falling to his knees in joy, set the tone for a disappointing day for the Diriamba outfit. Things went from bad to worse when the referee sent off two of their players shortly before full-time. Donado’s goal decided the match, but will it decide the championship? For the Diriangen fans intent

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Match-winner Jonathan Donado scored UNAN Managua’s goal against Diriangen in the first leg of the Apertura final.

El nuevo diario

on revenge, the answer would be a categorical ‘no’, while Managua supporters will hope their side have laid the foundations for victory ahead of a second leg in which anything could happen. All will become clear on 20 December. Å

Croatia: Pr va HNL

Last-gasp w in in the Eterna l Derby

just five minutes when Junior Fernandes headed in from a corner. Hajduk did not let the goal unsettle them, though, and in the 17th minute their pressing paid off when Mijo Caktas scored the equaliser.

Sarah Steiner is a staff writer on The FIFA Weekly.

Dinamo Zagreb versus ­Hajduk Split is an age-old rivalry that goes back to the 1940s, when the two clubs along with Red Star Belgrade and Partizan Belgrade made up the ‘Big Four’ in Yugoslavian football. Following Croatia’s independence, the derby has continued in its new home since 1992, with 23 of the 24 Croatian league titles going to one or other of the two clubs.

Jurica Galoic / PIXSELL

The start of December saw the 100th meeting between the two sides in the Prva HNL. It was yet another tense affair as the archrivals went toe-to-toe at Dinamo’s Maksimir Stadium. Despite the thick fog making for difficult conditions, the level of technical and tactical quality was high. Dinamo took the lead after

“We can at least go into the break as joint leaders with Dinamo” Marko Vesovic, HNK Rijeka

Hadjuk had by far the better chances in the second half and came close to ending their run of seven years without winning at the Maksimir Stadium. But again they went home empty-handed – and in the cruellest of circumstances. In the 94th minute of the match, the ball fell to El Arbi Hillel Soudani from a throw-in and he fired the winning goal

for the Blues with a volley from ten yards out.

Players and fans could not contain themselves as Soudani, who dedicated the goal to his seriously ill father, celebrated in front of the delirious home supporters. The result moved Zagreb to the top of the league, level on points with HNK Rijeka with two fixtures left before the winter break.

This follows a disappointing result on the last matchday for the team from the picturesque port town on the Adriatic Coast. Rijeka could only manage a 0-0 draw against Inter Zapresic, the third goalless draw between the two sides this season. Defender Marko Vesovic sought to calm nerves after the match: “We can still go into the winter break as league leaders, or at least joint leaders with Dinamo, so there is no cause for despair. We just need to keep working hard.”

The Rijeka players have already given their fans an early Christmas present after they defeated Lokomotiva Zagreb 1-0 in the quarter-finals of the cup. Å

Late strike El Ari Hillel Soudani dedicated the winning goal to his ill father.

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THE INTERVIEW

“We need to think transnationally” Nadine Kessler was crowned the 2014 Women’s World Player of the Year 12 months ago.

Here, the Germany international reflects on her big moment and discusses the positive developments in women’s football.

Nadine Kessler, what has changed for you since winning the 2014 Women’s World Player of the Year award?

You were especially touched by one message of congratulations in particular – from Pavel Kuka. Why was that?

Nadine Kessler: The Ballon d’Or is an award that is recognised across the whole world. Accordingly, the level of media interest increased. We had an enormous number of requests after the ceremony and winning the title made some massive waves.

Pavel Kuka was my idol. He was the one who got me into football and my hometown club 1. FC Kaiserslautern. I was always at the stadium as a child and he plucked me from the crowd as soon as he saw me. He was a great sportsman and is a great person. After the Ballon d’Or he was one of the first people to congratulate me. It was a very emotional message, in which he included a letter I had written to him when I was seven. He took it with him to the Czech Republic and kept it to this day.

When did it sink in for you that you were the best player in the world?

It was only after the Gala when I had time to sit together with some friends and I could see how happy it made the people who have been with me along the way that I grasped its significance.

Where did you put the trophy?

It’s in my living room in a place where I can admire it every day.

You were given a special honour in your hometown. How did the community react to your award?

Weselberg in the Rhineland Palatinate invited me to our town fair and dedicated a square to me, the Nadine Kessler Square. It’s right next to my old sports ground. I still have a lot of childhood memories of that place.

What stands out the most when you think back to the Gala in Zurich?

The event as a whole will stay with me forever. And that obviously includes the moment I went up on stage. I wasn’t expecting it at all so I had to collect myself first in order to find the right words in front of so many spectators. The first messages of ­congratulations and the first call I got from home will likewise stay with me forever.

You stood next to Cristiano Ronaldo for a while in the Kongresshaus. Were you able to talk to him – winner to winner?

We chatted briefly. A lot of former professional players, such as Clarence Seedorf and Thierry Henry, also offered their congratulations, which I was delighted about.

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You have struggled with a serious injury since the Ballon d’Or. How is your recovery going?

Unfortunately there’s nothing I can say about it right now. I’ve had a lot of injuries in my career, which is why it’s no longer a case of when I come back, but if. I’m doing everything I can to be back out on the pitch at some point.

Looking back on the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ in Canada, do you think women’s football has taken a step forward?

In the run-up to the World Cup there was a lot of criticism about the increased number of participating teams, but I think the tournament proved that criticism wrong. So many sides played extremely well. The aim has to be to offer more female players the opportunity to show what they can do on the international stage in order to reach a different level. That will expand the number of top-class players and strengthen women’s football.

Aside from in Germany, England, Sweden and Norway, women’s football is struggling in Europe. What is lacking?

In my opinion I think it’s important for our sport to think transnationally and to exchange ideas so that we’re all on the same page and going in the same direction. To start with, basic structures must be in place. There are clubs that have good conditions to work in, but there are also a lot of clubs who

struggle. It’s remarkable what women there are able to do alongside their professional careers. The gaps in the leagues are simply still too big.

Has women’s football gained greater acceptance in recent years or is it still fighting to be respected?

I think our performances are increasingly coming into the spotlight. People can see that and are saying: “Women’s football has developed. It’s become more athletic and techni­ cally better. A lot more countries are playing the game and they put on some exciting matches.” As a player you can feel that – also in terms of sponsorship and television exposure.

As a top-level player yourself, what can you do to help ensure further progress?

The way you perform out on the pitch is always the most important thing. Beyond that, every player needs to have the courage to have their own profile and to openly communicate what they want.

How would you advertise your sport and encourage a young girl to become a footballer?

I get very emotional when speaking about football. And that’s precisely what sets it apart, so that’s what I’d try to get across.

Football connects and stirs up emotions.

Going back to the Ballon d’Or, how do you assess the chances of Carli Lloyd, Aya Miyama and Celia Sasic, the three finalists for this year’s award?

They were all outstanding in their own way and therefore worthy nominees.

I’m excited to see who wins it.

Nadine Kessler was talking to Giovanni Marti

Name Nadine Kessler Date and place of birth 4 April 1988, Landstuhl, Germany Position Midfielder Clubs 2004–2009 1. FC Saarbrucken 2009–2011 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam Since 2011 VfL Wolfsburg Honours and awards

Nina Stiller

Champions League winner 2010, 2013, 2014 German champion 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014 German Cup winner 2013, 2015 European champion 2013 Women’s World Player of the Year 2014 Germany national team 29 caps, 10 goals

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First Love Place: Khartoum, Sudan Date: 15 April 2013 Time: 5.10 p.m.

Photog rapher: Ezequiel Scagnetti

fotogloria

MLS CUP

The big moment Portland ­s triker Fanendo Adi hoists the MLS Cup aloft on 6 December 2015.

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MLS CUP

1 - 2

Champions do not always finish first Fledgling US club Portland Timbers won their first MLS Cup even though coach Caleb Porter’s team only finished third in the championship’s Western Conference. Reporting from Columbus, Ohio, Michael Lewis explains how this happened.

Geoff Burke / USA Today Sports

T

he Tampa Bay Mutiny and legendary Colombian international midfielder Carlos Valderrama raced through Major League Soccer’s maiden season in 1996 like they owned it. Not only did they accrue more goals, points and wins than any other club, Tampa Bay and El Pibe left runners-up Los Angeles Galaxy nine points adrift after a grueling 32-game season. Yet despite that domination and sterling performance, Tampa Bay had won nothing in the eyes of the league and the American sporting public, even though practically anywhere else on the planet they would have been declared league champions.

To reach that goal, Tampa Bay would have had to survive a three-round postseason tournament and win the MLS Cup, but the Mutiny stumbled, losing to eventual champions D.C. United in the second round of the conference semifinals. Mutiny coach Thomas Rongen recalled how he had tried to explain this unique rule to Valderrama, former Italian international Giuseppe Galderisi and other foreign players.

“Initially, they were somewhat nonchalant about it,” he said. “ ‘Yeah, that’s OK.’ We won the regular season by a landslide. We were flipping good. We were the best team by far in the league and we lost in the second round to D.C. And that’s when all of a sudden it occurred to Carlos ... that this is B.S.”

Portland Timbers captain and center back Liam Ridgewell admitted he had a difficult time explaining the MLS playoff concept to friends and family back home in England.

“They thought I was going home six weeks ago, so they weren’t too sure what was going on,” he said on the eve of Sunday’s MLS Cup final. “The only way to explain it is like a cup competition.”

“A lot of people were ­writing us off three months ago saying that we weren’t going to make the playoffs.”

Portland captain Liam Ridgewell

A marathon over eight month Probably the best way to wrap your head around the playoffs is to imagine running a marathon over eight months and then being forced to participate in a sprint over five weeks. From the beginning of March through T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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MLS CUP

Playoff time Liam Ridgewell (left) shields the ball from Kei Kamara.

late October, 20 teams play 34 games apiece not necessarily to win the regular-season championship but rather to qualify for and position themselves for the best path to the league’s holy grail. Teams must change their strategy and focus. It is possible to experiment in the regular season and even endure a losing streak. No team is afforded such luxuries in the postseason. Many sides reach their peak during the playoffs or ride the tails of a hot goalkeeper.

MLS does recognize its regular season champion as Supporters Shield winners, who earn a spot in the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League. But they are not considered true champions of the league, even though they demonstrated the tenacity, resilience and staying power over a long season.

Winning the marathon does not necessarily mean a side emerges victorious in the sprint. Only seven of the 20 Supporters Shield winners reached the MLS Cup final, with six winning the crown. The last team to accomplish the feat was L.A. Galaxy in 2011.

This year’s Supporters Shield winners, the New York Red Bulls, were considered by many league observers and pundits to be the favorites to win the playoffs, but they were defeated 2-1 on aggregate by Columbus in the Eastern Conference final. It was a devastating result for the Red Bulls. “It feels like a failure just because the MLS Cup was our main goal 24

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Feeling like a champion Defender Nat Borchers dives in among the Portland fans.

and we did so much great work in the season to set ourselves up to host the MLS Cup,” Red Bulls captain and midfielder Dax McCarty said. “And to let ourselves down in the conference final again for the second year in a row yeah, it’s disappointing.”

The MLS playoffs have been tweaked several times since the league’s inception. In 1996, teams had to go out of their way to miss it as eight of the 10 clubs qualified for the postseason. Today, 12 of the league’s 20 teams reach the playoffs, and it is a complicated process.

“The Europeans understand it” Six teams in each conference book a spot. The top two clubs in each conference receive a bye in the first round, where the third- and sixplaced sides and the fourth- and fifth-placed teams meet in a one-game playoff. The winners of those matches move on to play the top two in a two-legged semi-final tie. The winners on aggregate then face off for the conference crown in a similar total-goals set-up. The league has adopted one football tradition as away goals are doubled to break ties. The survivors meet in the MLS Cup final, hosted by the conference final winner that accrued the most points during the regular season.

While the playoffs can be a new experience for many foreign players, there can be a steep learning curve for the mainstream American sports fan getting his or her feet wet

in the game. “It’s usually the American fans who don’t really understand the aggregate scoring,” said New York’s Luis Robles, the MLS goalkeeper of the year. “It’s the Europeans who understand, because of the Champions League and those sort of competitions. I was trying to explain it to my neighbor and his mind was blown.”

“The players deserve all the credit. They are the ones playing the game.”

Portland coach Caleb Porter

In this season’s MLS conference finals, the lower seeded teams prevailed. The Portland Timbers recorded a 3-1 home win over the Western Conference champions FC Dallas in the first leg and survived a tense and intense 2-2 draw in the second leg at Dallas.

Hosts Columbus posted a 2-0 opening-leg triumph over the Red Bulls, scoring an astounding nine seconds after kickoff and tacking on a vital insurance goal in the 85th min-

MLS CUP

Champagne shower Newly-crowned champions Portland Timbers celebrate in the dressing room.

Geoff Burke, Jeff Swinger, Mike DiNovo / USA Today Sports

ute. That forced New York to play a near-perfect second leg at home, which they failed to accomplish. They won the battle that day, 1-0, but lost the war and the series, 2-1. So both cup finalists got second chances to win the championship.

“It’s massive,” Ridgewell said. “A lot of people were writing us off three months ago saying that we weren’t going to make the playoffs.” Added Columbus coach Gregg Berhalter: “The funny thing about MLS is once you get into the playoffs, you have a good opportunity to go all the way.”

Timbers’ first MLS Cup win One team did just that. After their victory on 6 December, the fact that the Timbers had finished as a third-place side in the Western Conference was all but forgotten. All that mattered most was that Portland had won its first MLS Cup. Despite only being founded in the US state of Oregon in 2009, the Timbers lifted their first championship trophy in the North American MLS by defeating Columbus Crew 2-1 in the final in Columbus. In front of a crowd of 21,747, Argentine playmaker Diego Valeri scored to give Portland the lead just 27 seconds after kick-off - the quickest goal in the 20-year history of the championship showdown - after blocking a kick from Columbus goalkeeper Steve Clark just yards from the

goal-line to ricochet the ball back into the net.

Rodney Wallace doubled the visitors' advantage with an impressive header just two minutes later, although replays later showed that the goal should not have counted as the ball crossed the touchline during the build-up, meaning that Columbus should have been awarded a throw-in instead.

“It’s a great feeling, great feeling,” Portland coach Caleb Porter said. “All I could think about was sharing that moment with my players. We have been through a long season. We have been together through highs and lows and they deserve all the credit. They are the ones playing the game inside of the lines and they had belief. I don’t think it has fully sunk in completely yet. Good teams, when they make a run like this, they are so locked in, laser focus that there’s a next game. I don’t think it has sunk in yet that there is no next game. We are raising the trophy and we are the best team in MLS this year.” Even if the Timbers weren’t the best team during the regular season. Å

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is the highest division in American and Canadian football. The MLS is an independent organisation, but is recognised by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF). As the league is associated to the CONCACAF confederation, its teams can qualify for competitions organised by the continental body.

There are currently 20 clubs in the MLS: 17 from the USA and 3 from Canada. The season runs from March until December and starts with the “Regular Season”, in which each team plays 34 games. The side that finishes top wins the MLS Supporters’ Shield and subsequently the best 12 clubs go into the so-called MLS Cup play-offs.

The winner of the MLS Cup is determined at the end of the season following a series of knockout ties.

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GRASSROOTS

FIFA inspiring girls and boys to play football FIFA’s Grassroots programme is the core foundation of our development mission, aimed at encouraging girls and boys around the world to play and enjoy football without restrictions. Grassroots focuses on the enjoyment of the game through small-sided team games, and teaching basic football technique, exercise and fair play.

For more information visit FIFA.com

RE F O RM PAC K AG E

PRESIDENTIAL NOTE

FIFA Executive Committee ­approves reform proposals

Changing culture through reform

T

he Executive Committee has today unanimously approved a set of proposals from the 2016 FIFA Reform Committee to pave the way for significant and much-needed changes to FIFA’s governance structure. The recommendations will be put before the Congress as proposed statutory changes for approval at its extraordinary session in Zurich on 26 February 2016.

Extract from the package of reforms Separation of political and management functions The FIFA Council (replacing the FIFA Executive Committee) will be responsible for setting the organisation’s overall strategic direction, while the general secretariat will oversee the operational and commercial actions required to effectively execute that strategy. The members of the Council will be elected by the member associations of the respective region under FIFA’s electoral regulations, with a FIFA Review Committee to conduct comprehensive and enhanced integrity checks. Concrete steps will be taken to increase the role of women in the governance of football with a minimum of one female representative elected as a Council member per confederation.

Diversity Promoting women as an explicit statutory objective of FIFA to create a more diverse decision-making environment and culture.

Term limits Maximum term limits of three terms of four years will apply for the FIFA President as well as all members of the FIFA Council (see below), the Audit and Compliance Committee and the judicial bodies.

Independent committee members Key financial decisions will be made by the Finance, Development and Governance Committees, which must have a minimum number of independent members.

Integrity checks Compulsory and comprehensive integrity checks for all members of FIFA’s standing committees, conducted by an independent FIFA review committee.

Enhanced committee efficiency The number of standing committees will be reduced from 26 to nine, with increased participation of the football community to provide greater efficiency.

Greater transparency and integration Creation of a dedicated Football Stakeholders Committee to include members representing key stakeholders in the game, such as players, clubs and leagues.

L

ast week, the FIFA Executive Committee approved reforms that will help to lay the foundations for a new way of managing football globally, with important changes such as a more accountable FIFA governance structure, the introduction of term limits and centralised integrity checks, and greater representation for women.

At the same time, we saw the authorities acting as part of their investigations into wrongdoing in football. FIFA remains in full support of these actions. They are a vital part of our painful journey to repair FIFA’s image, and to build a professional and ethical organisation that is fit for purpose.

These two processes – our reforms and the ongoing investigations – are necessary for FIFA’s recovery. On the one hand, we are building a new framework strong enough to deter future wrongdoing.

On the other hand, we are working with the authorities to support their investigations into wrongdoing under the old system.

It is only through this two-sided process that we can guarantee that FIFA will recover fully from this crisis.

I fully expect all of our member associations and the confederations to support, to implement and to abide by the new reforms.

Anything less would be a shameful betrayal of the hundreds of millions of fans and players around the world who make football the wonderful game it is today.

It is crucial for the broader FIFA community to enact these reforms to the full. But it is just as important that everyone in football governance is prepared to embrace a change of culture.

The reforms give us the framework we need to govern football in a fair, transparent and responsible way. But that is not enough on its own. We need professionals in control of the game who regard this framework as normal and positive, and who are prepared to honour the spirit of reform as a matter of conscience.

As we have seen in the global banking crisis, it is far too easy to fall into complacency and denial. We took a big step forward last week, but it will take more than a vote on reforms to fix the problems we have faced. It will take a change of culture from top to bottom.

Best wishes, Issa Hayatou

The Executive Committee has also recommended that the Congress approve the implementation of a new article to the FIFA statutes that commits FIFA to respecting all internationally recognised human rights and striving to promote the protection of these rights. Å tfw T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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FIFA DEVELOPMENT PROGR AMME

“It was a lively exchange” After winning 141 caps for the Netherlands and spending a decade playing for 1. FFC Frankfurt, ­Marleen Wissink travelled to Iran on FIFA’s behalf in November 2015 to lead a goalkeeping course.

Marleen Wissink, you recently ran a goal­ keeping course in Iran. Who was this training aimed at?

Marleen Wissink: The course lasted five days and was attended by a total of 29 players across all age groups, from 18-year-old girls to older women. It was this mix that made the course so interesting. All of the participants were united by an immense passion for the beautiful game, had already gained experience in football or futsal and played for clubs.

What did you expect when you travelled to Iran?

I was prepared to be surprised and didn’t have any expectations about the trip. It was the first time I’d been to Iran, and I wanted to keep an open mind and remain impartial.

That turned out to be exactly the right decision. I felt right at home from the start and was moved by the warmth of the people I met.

What approach did you take to working with the Iranian footballers?

I scheduled two training sessions a day – one in the morning and another at midday. Each session began with a small ­t heoretical element where we decided what we would work on over the next few hours.

That collective effort and dialogue was very important to me. I wanted to know what the attendees were thinking, what stood out for them and what areas they wanted to improve.

Once this process was complete we went out onto the pitch. I’m a fan of learning by doing, so we completed specific training exercises in groups and then analysed them. It was a lively exchange and a great opportunity to learn from one another.

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Relaxed atmosphere Marleen Wissink at the goalkeeping course in Iran.

What impressed you the most in these ­sessions?

I was pleased that all the participants were so eager to learn and full of energy. Our common goal was to improve our skills and promote women’s football, and that brought us closer together. Every attendee played their part in turning the course into something special by outlining their expectations, and were keen to learn more about fitness, mental training, goalkeeper training, tactics and technique. I think they were able to take what they learned during the course and use it to help them as they continue their footballing journey.

What makes a good goalkeeper?

Naturally every coach has different preferences and ideas about the goalkeeper’s role during a match. Nevertheless, it’s generally clear that keepers must be able to contribute to play these days, which places a much greater emphasis on ball handling and

technique training compared to the era in which I played. Back then the main aim of the game was simply to stop balls.

How would you rate the current state of development of female goalkeepers in Iran?

As it’s not yet commonplace for women’s teams in Iran to hire a goalkeeping coach, keepers still warm up alone as they did during my playing career. As a result, there is

My heart belongs to women’s football and the future of goalkeeping.

FIFA DEVELOPMENT PROGR AMME

WOMEN’S FOOTBALL IN IRAN Iran has women’s national teams in every age group from U-13 level upwards, with the ­s enior side currently occupying 59th place in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.

In a countr y boasting 1,125 registered female players, the 12-team top flight plays host to 122 matches each season as another five sides battle it out in Iran’s second tier.

There are also 105 futsal teams split into four divisions, while the national team tasted ­m ajor success in September by winning the AFC Women’s Futsal Championship.

still plenty of scope for tapping the country’s immense footballing potential in this regard.

Theory time Marleen Wissink plans a training session with the players.

Practice makes perfect The plans discussed are put into action on the pitch.

Do you think the course could influence this development?

Definitely. For example, I very much think that the participants will have gathered plenty of new training ideas. They want to continue contributing to the sport as coaches after hanging up their boots, at which point they will be able to use their knowledge to lift women’s football to the next level.

Amin Jamali / FIFA via Getty Images (4)

What does your own future hold?

At the moment I’m head coach of the Netherlands’ U-15 and U-17 sides. As my heart belongs to women’s football and the future of goalkeeping, contributing to its development and committing to the cause is something very important to me. Å Marleen Wissink was speaking to Annette Braun

Feel for the ball The participants give their all while completing the course.

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Everywhere You Want To Be

Where do you want to be?

With 3 world titles, 3 goals in the final of the FIFA Women’s World CupTM and a ticket to Brazil, she’s just getting started.

Visa is proud to support Carli Lloyd and her dreams.

To be at the top of the world.

©2015 Visa. All rights reserved.

FREE KICK

SPOTLIGHT ON

GENER AL INFORMATION

Best friends Alan Schweingruber The other day at the stadium: “Hey, wasn’t the No. 9 injured last week?

So why’s he playing?“ “His name’s Lewandowski, Klaus.

LE-WAN-DOW-SKI. What will it take for you to finally memorise it?”

“But why’s he playing today? He tore a ­muscle, didn’t he?”

“That was three weeks ago, Klaus.”

Two minutes later: “You’re standing on my foot, Klaus.”

“Sorry.”

“Bit out of sorts today, aren’t you?”

“I’m so cold.”

Mario Wagner / 2Agenten

Ten minutes later: “It’s great to visit the stadium like this, don’t you think, Klaus? Good for a bit of a break from the daily routine.”

“Yeah, it’s very nice.”

“Sitting at home drinking tea all the time gets boring after a while. It’s easy to start feeling a bit shut in.”

“Shall I get us a beer?”

“Not so fast, Klaus. I’ll do it.”

“What a chance! That definitely should have gone in. Klaus, you’re bleeding!

Your lip’s bleeding ...”

“That was your elbow.”

“Again? Here, have a hanky.”

In the 51st minute Robert Lewandowski scores to make it 1-0.

“Wonderful!! That’s the stuff. The Pole shows the Dutchman how it’s done. Who scored that goal just then, Klaus? Come on – tell us his name! You know it!”

Everyone in the row laughs.

A little later, on the way back to the car: “Those were three vital points, Klaus.

Now we’re as good as champions.”

“Yeah, very important.”

“You’re completely frozen solid. Red nose, bloody lip – blimey, Klaus. You alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.”

“Let’s go home and I’ll make us a hot cup of tea.”

“Nice one, Mary.” Å

GEOGR APHIC INFORMATION Surface area: 41,285 km² Highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m Neighbouring seas and oceans: None

MEN’S FOOTBALL FIFA Ranking: 12th World Cup: 10 Appearances Best performance: Quarter-finals, 1934, 1938, 1954

WOMEN’S FOOTBALL FIFA Ranking: 21st World Cup: 1 Appearance Best performance: Round of 16, 2015

L ATES T RESULTS Men’s: Austria - Switzerland 1:2 17 November 2015 Women’s: Switzerland - Czech Republic 5:1 1 December 2015

Eight minutes later: “Blimey, it’s cold – this wind! You’d think you were in Hamburg.”

“Oh, Klaus, you’re such a wimp.”

Arjen Robben’s shot hits the post, prompting everyone to stand up and throw their arms in the air in a premature celebration.

Country: Switzerland FIFA Trigramme: SUI Confederation: UEFA Continent: Europe Capital: Bern

FIFA INVES TMENTS The weekly column by our staff writers

Since 2010: $ 3,500,000 T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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MIRROR IMAGE

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St. James’ Park, Newcastle, England

1939

Humphrey Spender / Getty Images

Home team Newcastle United take to the pitch.

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MIRROR IMAGE

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Maracana, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2014

Fabrizio Bensch / Getty Images

Germany’s world champions climb the steps to collect the FIFA World Cup Trophy.

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Š 2015 adidas AG. adidas, the 3-Bars logo and the 3-Stripes mark are registered trademarks of the adidas Group.

# B E T H E D I F F E R E N C E

THE ART OF FOOTBALL

The coach’s dream

QUOTES OF THE WEEK

“Yes, I love his music and the man that he was. He was not ‘fabricated’.

He was real. I love people who do not have conventional paths and who stand out because of their talent.”

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger on Bob Marley

“For me, she really is the best player in the world. She’s just phenomenal.

There were no airs and graces about her.

She came in, got her job done and then went home – came back the next day and did the same thing. She was fit, she was strong, she was technical, she was good in the air – she had everything in my opinion.”

Last year’s FIFA Puskas Award candidate ­ tephanie Roche on USA No 10 Carli Lloyd S

“The chairman must be crackers.

And, put it this way, I’d have never seen it coming when I was at Stocksbridge.”

Ronald Duker

imago

E

very child knows that the beautiful game is played with the feet and that participants are strictly forbidden to use their hands – with the exception of the goalkeeper, of course. Every child is also aware that football involves plenty of running, with the number of kilometres covered by a player on the pitch often providing an important indicator of their commitment to the cause. Nevertheless, there is one version of the sport in which this and other self-evident aspects of the game are turned on their head.

The variant in question is table football. Rather than a full complement of 22 players, two or four competitors only use their legs and feet to prevent them from falling over. Instead, they use their hands to grip and move rotatable rods, thereby enabling the model footballers attached to these poles to make contact with the ball.

The playing equipment consists of a rectangular box open at the top and is known as Kicker in Germany, Töggelikasten in Switzerland and Wuzzler in Austria.

While automotive engineer Lucien Rosengart devised the original form of the game, it was not until 1937 that a man from the

Galicia region of Spain by the name of ­A lexandre de Fisterra hit upon the idea of registering a patent for the table.

Although the game is often found in smoke-filled bars and other questionable locations, it should not be regarded with disdain. After all table football – or foosball, as it is also known – is not just a miniature version or pale imitation of the beautiful game. It also possesses qualities that are little more than unachievable ideals when playing the sport in the open air.

The table footballer controls his team like a puppeteer. How many coaches long for the chance to control the way one player passes to another with just the flick of a wrist? What coach does not dream of the kind of team discipline exhibited on the football table, where brave players with no faces, identical physical attributes and no way of giving post-match interviews literally line up in rows to obey their controller’s commands? When it comes to table football, the only thing that matters is the ingenuity of the player-coach who brings the figures to life. Stepping up to the table gives us a unique opportunity to play God. Å

Leicester striker Jamie Vardy on hearing the news of his former club’s plans to name a 450-seat stand at Stockbridge in his honour

“For Barcelona I think so. I would even say in the history of football because to get players together of this level with their individual ability, to get that many goals and support each other in this way, it has never h­ appened on any other team in recent history.”

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique on Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez and their place in history as a top-tier attacking trio

“The way we shut down that second half defensively was great. We’ve taken some grief for playing defensively but a couple years ago I wouldn’t have been able to put the team out there and close the game out to win. And it’s about winning.”

Portland Timbers coach Caleb Porter after winning the MLS Cup against Columbus Crew T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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FIFA PARTNER

TURNING POINT

“I knew after ten minutes: I was staying here.”

Birkir Bjarnason helped ­Iceland qualify for a major tournament for the first time in the country’s history.

Basile Bornand / 13 Photo

I

lived in Italy for three years. After a successful season at Pescara Calcio in Serie B I was sure my footballing future would be in Italy. My mind was made up. But then I received an offer from Basel. Together with my agent, we decided to go to Switzerland to take a look at everything – just like that, without any ulterior motives. I never thought they would be able to sway me.

In Basel we were given a tour of the stadium, the changing rooms, the whole complex.

Afterwards I spoke to the president and sporting director. After ten minutes I’d made up my mind: I was staying here. They knew everything about me: my past, the way I play, my strengths and weaknesses. They had been watching me for a long time and had followed my career. And the most important thing was that they wanted me at all costs. That’s what convinced me.

On top of that, FCB have played in the Champions League five times in the last six years and are in the Europa League this year. The domestic league is considerably better than I expected it to be. Life in Switzerland is similar to life in the north. I feel much more at home here than I ever did in Italy.

Home. For me, that’s Iceland. That’s where I grew up before I moved to Norway with my parents when I was 11. Even as youngsters we trained five times a week. Youth work is very important for the Icelandic FA and that’s paying off today. We qualified for EURO 2016 in

France – the first time in history that Iceland will travel to a major tournament. Unbelievable!

When we secured qualification following a 0-0 draw with Kazakhstan there was no holding back, even if initially we didn’t really know what was happening to us and how we should react. After all, we’d never experienced anything like it before. The fans hadn’t either. ­A fter the match we went into the city centre and celebrated with the people there. We’re really looking forward to the tournament. Iceland will be empty in June 2016. Even for our qualifying match against the Netherlands one per cent of the population travelled to support us. How many other countries can say that? Å Birkir Bjarnason was talking to Sarah Steiner

Name Birkir Bjarnason Date and place of birth 27 May 1988, Akureyri, Iceland Position Midfielder Clubs 2005-2011 Viking Stavanger 2008 FK Bodo/Glimt (loan) 2012-2013 Standard Liege 2012-2013 Pescara Calcio (loan) 2013 Pescara Calcio 2013-2014 Sampdoria 2014-2015 Pescara Calcio Since 2015 FC Basel Iceland national team 44 caps, 6 goals

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

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MEN’S WORLD R ANKING

Belgium (unchanged) none none 137 Congo DR, Zambia, Angola, Namibia (4 matches each) Hungary (up 186 points) Libya (up 32 ranks) Portugal (down 145 points) Liberia (down 21 ranks)

Leader Moves into top ten Moves out of top ten Matches played in total Most matches played Biggest move by points Biggest move by ranks Biggest drop by points Biggest drop by ranks Rank Team

+/- Points

Rank Team

+/- Points

Rank Team

1 Belgium

0 1494

54 Jamaica

7

591

109 Malawi

2 Argentina

1 1455

56 Serbia

-7

590

3 Spain

3 1370

57 Australia

3

4 Germany

-2 1347

57 Egypt

0

5 Chile

0 1273

59 Cameroon

-8

583

6 Brazil

2 1251

60 Congo DR

-5

580

7 Portugal

-3 1219

61 Slovenia

3

565

115 Aruba

8 Colombia

-1 1211

62 Mali

1

552

116 Mauritania

9 England

0 1106

63 Uganda

5

550

117 Azerbaijan

0 1091

64 Panama

1

544

118 Sierra Leone

10 Austria

Last updated: 3 December 2015 +/- Points

Rank Team

+/- Points

-12

322

163 Grenada

4

139

110 Zimbabwe

-1

318

164 Gambia

4

135

585

111 Mozambique

14

317

164 Liechtenstein

-1

135

585

112 Burundi

-5

307

166 India

6

132

113 Central African Republic

-3

302

167 American Samoa

-2

128

114 Chad

22

301

167 Cook Islands

2

128

-3

298

167 Samoa

-3

128

-12

297

170 Malaysia

1

127

-2

296

170 Timor-Leste

-8

127

3

295

172 Comoros

5

120

11 Uruguay

1 1074

65 United Arab Emirates

2

543

119 Turkmenistan

2

294

172 Puerto Rico

-2

120

12 Switzerland

-1 1050

66 Nigeria

-7

541

120 Ethiopia

-6

293

174 Yemen

5

119

13 Ecuador

8 1040

67 Belarus

3

514

121 St Kitts and Nevis

-20

289

174 Mauritius

-1

119

14 Netherlands

2

994

68 Bolivia

9

500

122 Georgia

-11

286

176 Dominica

-1

107 88

15 Italy

-2

991

69 Israel

-8

498

123 Armenia

4

285

177 US Virgin Islands

1

16 Romania

-2

980

69 Equatorial Guinea

0

498

124 Bahrain

-9

278

177 Laos

-1

88

17 Wales

-2

974

71 Bulgaria

-5

494

125 Syria

7

276

179 Indonesia

-5

84

18 Croatia

1

958

72 South Africa

3

487

126 Lithuania

-3

274

180 Cambodia

3

83

19 Côte d’Ivoire

3

950

73 Zambia

-2

481

127 Belize

-10

273

181 New Caledonia

-1

80

20 Hungary

13

945

74 Uzbekistan

-3

470

128 Madagascar

-10

272

182 Bangladesh

-2

78

21 Turkey

-3

933

75 Morocco

4

469

129 Kazakhstan

2

266

182 Chinese Taipei

5

78

22 Bosnia and Herzegovina

-2

898

76 Gabon

-3

468

129 Namibia

-11

266

184 Pakistan

1

76

22 Mexico

2

898

77 Haiti

-4

467

131 Swaziland

-1

265

185 Brunei Darussalam

1

74

24 Russia

-1

895

78 Benin

25

461

132 Tanzania

3

264

186 Fiji

4

68

25 France

-1

868

79 Cyprus

-3

441

133 Thailand

11

263

187 Montserrat

1

67

26 Slovakia

1

860

80 Saudi Arabia

0

432

134 Sudan

-6

259

188 Bhutan

-8

64

26 Czech Republic

-9

860

81 Libya

32

427

134 Palestine

4

259

189 Seychelles

0

56

28 Algeria

-2

845

82 Antigua and Barbuda

-2

409

136 FYR Macedonia

3

257

189 Tahiti

2

56

29 Ukraine

-1

842

83 Venezuela

0

408

137 Hong Kong

8

252

191 Suriname

-7

55

30 Northern Ireland

-1

825

84 China PR

0

405

138 South Sudan

-4

246

192 Nepal

0

49

31 Republic of Ireland

11

810

85 Montenegro

-7

403

139 Kuwait

-6

239

193 Vanuatu

8

47

32 USA

1

784

86 Qatar

-1

401

139 Philippines

-2

239

194 Sri Lanka

0

45

33 Ghana

-3

778

87 Jordan

-5

399

139 Lebanon

1

239

195 Macau

0

44

34 Poland

4

776

88 Canada

14

388

142 Luxembourg

4

237

196 Cayman Islands

-3

43

35 Sweden

10

771

89 Burkina Faso

4

381

143 St Vincent and the Grenadines

-14

221

197 Turks and Caicos Islands

0

33

36 Iceland

-5

761

89 Iraq

-2

381

144 St Lucia

-1

216

198 San Marino

-2

28

37 Costa Rica

3

759

91 Cuba

17

377

145 Barbados

-3

214

199 British Virgin Islands

-1

27

38 Albania

-2

746

92 Nicaragua

8

370

146 Guinea-Bissau

-5

207

200 Solomon Islands

-1

26

39 Cape Verde Islands

-7

745

93 Estonia

-3

369

147 Vietnam

0

200

201 Mongolia

2

6

40 Tunisia

1

711

94 Guatemala

-3

368

148 Tajikistan

12

196

201 Andorra

4

6

41 Greece

-4

706

95 Botswana

10

364

149 Singapore

3

195

203 Papua New Guinea

3

4

42 Denmark

-7

685

96 Togo

-8

363

150 Afghanistan

6

194

204 Anguilla

3

0

43 Finland

13

663

97 Faroe Islands

-8

357

151 Curaçao

-1

192

204 Bahamas

3

0

44 Senegal

-5

661

98 Kenya

27

345

151 New Zealand

8

192

204 Djibouti

3

0

45 Iran

-2

653

99 El Salvador

-5

344

153 Lesotho

-6

185

204 Eritrea

-2

0

46 Paraguay

1

647

100 Niger

5

339

154 Dominican Republic

-5

180

204 Somalia

-1

0

10

644

101 Rwanda

-5

338

155 Moldova

-1

172

204 Tonga

-4

0

48 Congo

4

638

101 Latvia

-2

338

156 São Tomé e Príncipe

1

170

49 Trinidad and Tobago

5

628

101 Honduras

-6

338

157 Guam

-2

162

50 Guinea

3

621

104 Oman

-12

333

158 Myanmar

3

155

51 Korea Republic

-3

617

105 Korea DPR

15

330

159 Bermuda

-8

154

47 Peru

52 Scotland

-8

609

105 Angola

-7

330

160 Maldives

6

150

53 Japan

-3

607

107 Liberia

-21

329

161 Guyana

-9

144

54 Norway

-8

591

108 Kyrgyzstan

16

324

162 Malta

-4

143

38

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

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

PUZZLE

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

Acting President Issa Hayatou

1

1

9

5

6

3

1

Director of Communications and Public Affairs Nicolas Maingot (a. i.)

Chief Editor Perikles Monioudis

2

5

2

7

5

2

4

9

5

1

7

1

6

2

3

MEDIUM

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7

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4

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6 7

7

9

3 3

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5 2

Editorial Assistant Alissa Rosskopf

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9

1

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Production Hans-Peter Frei

5 4

8

2

1

9

3

6

4

2

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HARD

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7

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2

Contact feedback-theweekly@fifa.org

2

Internet www.fifa.com/theweekly

9

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

6

2

Contributors to this Issue Michael Lewis, Giovanni Marti

Reproduction of photos or articles in whole or in part is only permitted with prior editorial approval and if attributed “The FIFA Weekly, © FIFA 2015”. 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.

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4

Contributors Ronald Dueker, Matt Falloon, Luigi Garlando, Sven Goldmann, Andreas Jaros, Jordi Punti, David Winner, Roland Zorn

Printer Zofinger Tagblatt AG

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8

Proof Reader Nena Morf (Lead), Martin Beran, Kristina Rotach

Translation www.sportstranslations.com

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3

Art Direction Catharina Clajus

Project Management Bernd Fisa, Christian Schaub

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7

3

Staff Writers Alan Schweingruber (Deputy Editor), Annette Braun, Sarah Steiner

Layout Richie Kroenert (Lead), Tobias Benz, Susanne Egli

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Acting Secretary General Markus Kattner

Picture Editor Peggy Knotz, Christiane Ludena (on behalf of 13 Photo)

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EASY

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8

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6 8

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8

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2 8

2 7

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1 1

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T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Puzzles courtesy: opensky.ca/sudoku

Publisher FIFA, FIFA-Strasse 20, PO box, CH-8044 Zurich Phone +41-(0)43-222 7777, Fax +41-(0)43-222 7878

The objective of Sudoku is to fill a 9x9 grid with digits so that each of the numbers from 1 to 9 appears exactly once in each column, row and 3x3 sub-grid.

39

FOOTBALL FOR HOPE

Football for Hope is our global commitment to building a better future through football. To date, we have supported over 550 socially-responsible community projects that use football as a tool for social development, improving the lives and prospects of young people and their surrounding communities

To ďŹ nd out more, visit the Sustainability section on FIFA.com.