1.
World Cup 98 (video game)
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World Cup 98 is the first official FIFA World Cup game developed by EA Sports after obtaining the rights from FIFA in 1997. Unlike the previous World Cup games, which were in 2D and showed a view, World Cup 98 was the first in the franchise to use a 3D engine. Accurate national team kits were introduced complete with kit manufacturer logos, the game engine is based on that of FIFA, Road to World Cup 98, though it features some minor gameplay improvements to areas such as ingame strategy changing and player positioning. The playable teams in the mode also included several nations that did not qualify for the finals. World Cup 98 was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation, Nintendo 64 and Game Boy. The main feature of the game is the World Cup tournament itself, each match takes place in a recreation of the venue it was played in the actual tournament. As in the tournament, group games do not go to extra time or a penalty shootout but knockout matches do. The game was released prior to the actual World Cup, therefore results between CPU teams are not based on results from the actual tournament, at the end of each match, a caption shows the man of the match award, and if applicable a clean sheet caption. It is also possible to play friendly matches between any of the teams that are included in the game. At the end of a game the player can choose to finish the match as a draw, play extra time with the golden goal rule. As in FIFA98, national squads can be customised to reflect the actual tournaments players by including players from a pool in the customise option. The World Cup Classics mode allows the player to play fifteen classic FIFA World Cup matches, the 1982 match is unlocked by winning the World Cup mode, and by completing each unlocked game, the next one is unlocked in the order shown below. For the 1966,1954 and 1950 World Cup Final matches in this mode, the 1938 and 1930 matches are shown using sepia tone graphics. In matches that took place prior to the introduction of substitutions, the game features every team that qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, as well as eight others who did not. The game features each of the 32 teams that qualified for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, qualified teams, Teams that did not qualify, Australia Canada China PR Greece Portugal Republic of Ireland Russia Sweden The game was met with positive reception. GameRankings gave it a score of 85% for the Nintendo 64 version, 80% for the PlayStation version, the PlayStation version was a bestseller in the UK. The magazine described the game as Simply the best football game in the world, FIFA World Cup video games FIFA World Cup 98 at MobyGames World Cup 98 at MobyGames
2.
FIFA: Road to World Cup 98
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FIFA, Road to World Cup 98 is an association football video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts. It was the game in the FIFA series and the second to be in 3D on the 32-bit machines. FIFA98 was the last FIFA game released for the Mega Drive in Europe, with the new graphical improvements, players were able to have individual faces. FIFA98 even features many accurate team rosters, including national reserves for national call-up when playing in the round-robin qualification modes, in addition, eleven leagues were featured, containing 189 clubs. The game also featured a popular five-a-side indoor mode and was the first FIFA game to contain an in-game player/team editor, for the first time in a FIFA game, the offside rule is properly implemented. In previous games, when a player was in a position doing anything except running. The 32-bit and 64-bit versions of FIFA98 corrects this so that the game would only award a free kick for offside if the ball was passed roughly to where the player in the position was. The theme music for the game was Blurs Song 2, four songs from The Crystal Method were also included in the game – More, Now Is the Time, Keep Hope Alive and Busy Child – as well as a song by Electric Skychurch entitled Hugga Bear. Des Lynam was retained for the introduction and John Motson. There were 16 stadiums in the game, representing 16 countries from all six FIFA confederations, the game was a bestseller in the UK for 2 months. Play magazine in issue 29 awarded the PlayStation version of the game 88%, FIFA, Road to World Cup 98 at the Internet Movie Database Soccer Gaming FIFA98 Site
3.
France national football team
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The France national football team represents France in international football. The teams colours are blue, white and red, and the coq gaulois its symbol, France are colloquially known as Les Bleus. France play home matches at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Paris, and they have won one FIFA World Cup, two UEFA European Football Championships, an Olympic tournament, and two FIFA Confederations Cups. France experienced much of its success in three major, in the 1950s, 1980s, and late 1990s/early 2000s respectively, which resulted in numerous major honours. In 1958, the team, led by Raymond Kopa and Just Fontaine, in 1984, France, led by Ballon dOr winner Michel Platini, won UEFA Euro 1984. Under the leadership of Didier Deschamps and three-time FIFA World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane, two years later, the team triumphed at UEFA Euro 2000. France won the Confederations Cup in 2001 and 2003, and reached the final of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the team also reached the final of UEFA Euro 2016, where they lost 1–0 to Portugal in extra time. France, Argentina and Brazil are the national teams that have won the three most important mens titles recognized by FIFA, the World Cup, the Confederations Cup. They have also won their continental championship. The following year, on 12 February 1905, France contested their home match against Switzerland. The match was played at the Parc des Princes in front of 500 supporters, France won the match 1–0 with the only goal coming from Gaston Cyprès. Due to disagreements between FIFA and the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques, the sports union. In 1919, the CFI transformed themselves into the French Football Federation, in 1921, the USFSA finally merged with the FFF. In July 1930, France appeared in the inaugural FIFA World Cup, in their first-ever World Cup match, France defeated Mexico 4–1 at the Estadio Pocitos in Montevideo. Lucien Laurent became notable in the match as he scored not only Frances first World Cup goal, conversely, France also became the first team to not score in a match after losing 1–0 to fellow group stage opponents Argentina. Another loss to Chile resulted in the team bowing out in the group stage, the following year saw the first selection of a black player to the national team. Raoul Diagne, who was of Senegalese descent, earned his first cap on 15 February in a 2–1 defeat to Czechoslovakia. Diagne later played with the team at the 1938 World Cup, alongside Larbi Benbarek, at the 1934 World Cup, France suffered elimination in the opening round, losing 3–2 to Austria
4.
Brazil national football team
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The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international mens association football. Brazil is administered by the Brazilian Football Confederation, the body for football in Brazil. They have been a member of the FIFA since 1923 and member of the CONMEBOL since 1916, Brazil is the most successful national football team in the FIFA World Cup with five championships,1958,1962,1970,1994 and 2002. Brazil is the national team to have played in all World Cup editions without any absence nor need for playoffs. The seleção is also the most successful team in the FIFA Confederations Cup with four titles,1997,2005,2009 and 2013. They have also won their continental championship. Brazil is the national team to have won the World Cup on four different continents, once in Europe, once in South America, twice in North America. They also share with Spain a record of 35 consecutive international matches undefeated, a common quip about football is, Os ingleses o inventaram, os brasileiros o aperfeiçoaram. Brazil won 2–0 with goals by Oswaldo Gomes and Osman, though it is claimed that the match was a 3–3 draw, in contrast to its future success, the national teams early appearances were not brilliant. Other early matches played during that time include several friendly games against Argentina, Chile, however, led by the goalscoring abilities of Arthur Friedenreich, they were victorious at home in the South American Championships in 1919, repeating their victory, also at home, in 1922. In 1930, Brazil played in the first World Cup, held in Uruguay in 1930, the squad defeated Bolivia but lost to Yugoslavia, being eliminated from the competition. They lost in the first round to Spain in 1934 in Italy, Brazil were the only South American team to participate in this competition. After being victorious in a third South American Championship in 1949 Brazil first achieved prominence when it hosted the 1950 FIFA World Cup. The team went into the last game of the round, against Uruguay at Estádio do Maracanã in Rio. Uruguay, however, won the match and the Cup in a known as the Maracanazo. The match led to a period of national mourning, Brazil reached the quarter-final, where they were beaten 4–2 by tournament favourites Hungary in one of the ugliest matches in football history, known as the Battle of Berne. For the 1958 World Cup, Brazil were drawn in a group with England and they beat Austria 3–0 in their first match, then drew 0–0 with England. Before the match, coach Vicente Feola made three substitutions that were crucial for Brazil to defeat the Soviets, Zito, Garrincha and Pelé
5.
Croatia national football team
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The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body of football. A FIFA-sanctioned national side previously represented the short-lived Banovina of Croatia and this team was dissolved in 1945 as Croatia became a constituent federal republic of SFR Yugoslavia. In the period between 1945 and 1990, Croatia was ineligible to field a team for competitive matches. The modern Croatian team was formed in 1990, shortly before Croatias independence from Yugoslavia, the team played their first competitive matches in the successful qualifying campaign for UEFA Euro 1996, leading to their first appearance at a major tournament. In Croatias FIFA World Cup debut in 1998 the team finished third and provided the top scorer. Since becoming eligible to compete in tournaments, Croatia have failed to qualify for only one World Cup. The team was undefeated in its first 36 home competitive matches at Maksimir, the teams traditional nickname is Vatreni. The team was named FIFAs Best Mover of the Year in 1994 and 1998, Association football was first introduced to Croatia by English expatriates working on industrial projects in Rijeka and Županja in 1873. By 1907, local clubs had established in Croatia and a modern edition of the sports laws was translated and published. A hastily arranged Croatian side, managed by Hugo Kinert, played a few matches in 1918–19, in 1940, Jozo Jakopić led an unofficial national team representing the Banovina of Croatia in four friendly matches, against Switzerland and Hungary. Following invasion by the Axis powers, the Croatian Football Federation became briefly active, joining FIFA on 17 July 1941, the side, led by Rudolf Hitrec, went on to play 15 friendly matches,14 of those as a member of FIFA. Croatias first recorded result as a FIFA member was a 1–1 draw with Slovakia on 8 September in Bratislava. The Independent State of Croatia continued playing matches until 1945 and the end of World War II, from 1950 to 1956, unofficial Croatian teams were briefly active—they won games against Indonesia and a Yugoslav team playing as Serbia. The Yugoslavia squad at the 1956 Summer Olympics included Croatian footballers, as did Yugoslavia in World Cup, the last Yugoslav team to field a considerable Croatian contingent played against Faroe Islands on 16 May 1991, days before Croatias independence referendum. However, an unofficial Croatian team was formed shortly before, and played the teams first modern international game, the game, which Croatia won 2–1, was one of three games played under caretaker manager Dražan Jerković. The match against the American side also marked the introduction of Croatias national jersey, although Croatia was still officially part of Yugoslavia until its independence declaration on 8 October 1991, this team already served as a de facto national side. Croatia went on to win two more games under Jerković, against Romania in December 1990 and Slovenia in June 1991
6.
Netherlands national football team
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The Netherlands national football team represents the Netherlands in international football. It is controlled by the Royal Netherlands Football Association, the body for football in the Netherlands. The team is referred to as Het Nederlands Elftal and Oranje. Like the country itself, the team is sometimes referred to as Holland. The Dutch hold the record for playing the most World Cup finals without winning the tournament. They finished second in the 1974,1978 and 2010 World Cups, losing to West Germany, Argentina and Spain respectively, the Netherlands played their first international match in Antwerp against Belgium on 30 April 1905. The players were selected by a commission from the Dutch football association. After 90 minutes, the score was 1–1, but because the match was for a trophy, the Netherlands made their first appearance at the World Cup final tournament in 1934. After a second appearance in 1938 they did not appear in another World Cup until 1974, the 1970s saw the invention of Total Football, pioneered by Ajax and led by playmaker Johan Cruyff and national team coach Rinus Michels. The Dutch made significant strides, qualifying for two World Cup finals in the decade. The captain of the Brazilian team that won the 1970 FIFA World Cup, Carlos Alberto, went on to say, since then everything looks more or less the same to me. Their carousel style of play was amazing to watch and marvellous for the game, in 1974, the Netherlands beat both Brazil and Argentina in the second group stage, reaching the final for the first time in their history. However, the team lost to West Germany in the final in Munich, however, a converted penalty by Paul Breitner and the winner from Gerd Müller led to a victory for the Germans. By comparison, Euro 76 was a disappointment, the Netherlands lost in the semi-finals to Czechoslovakia, as much because of infighting within the squad and the coach George Knobel, as well as the skill of the eventual winners. In 1978, the Netherlands again reached the final of a World Cup, only to be beaten by the hosts and this side played without Johan Cruijff, Willem van Hanegem, and Jan van Beveren, who refused to participate in the World Cup. It still contained Johan Neeskens, Johnny Rep, Arie Haan, Ruud Krol, Wim Jansen, Jan Jongbloed, Wim Suurbier, the Netherlands were less impressive in the group stages. They qualified as runners-up, after a draw with Peru and a loss to Scotland, in the second group phase, however, the Netherlands topped a group including Italy and West Germany, setting up a final with Argentina. However, the Dutch finished as runners up for the second World Cup in a row as they ultimately lost 3–1 after two extra time goals from Argentina, Rensenbrink hit the Argentinian post in the last minute of normal time, with the score 1–1
7.
Croatia
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Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a sovereign state between Central Europe, Southeast Europe, and the Mediterranean. Its capital city is Zagreb, which one of the countrys primary subdivisions. Croatia covers 56,594 square kilometres and has diverse, mostly continental, Croatias Adriatic Sea coast contains more than a thousand islands. The countrys population is 4.28 million, most of whom are Croats, the Croats arrived in the area of present-day Croatia during the early part of the 7th century AD. They organised the state into two duchies by the 9th century, tomislav became the first king by 925, elevating Croatia to the status of a kingdom. The Kingdom of Croatia retained its sovereignty for nearly two centuries, reaching its peak during the rule of Kings Petar Krešimir IV and Dmitar Zvonimir, Croatia entered a personal union with Hungary in 1102. In 1527, faced with Ottoman conquest, the Croatian Parliament elected Ferdinand I of the House of Habsburg to the Croatian throne. In 1918, after World War I, Croatia was included in the unrecognized State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs which seceded from Austria-Hungary, a fascist Croatian puppet state backed by Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany existed during World War II. After the war, Croatia became a member and a federal constituent of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. On 25 June 1991 Croatia declared independence, which came wholly into effect on 8 October of the same year, the Croatian War of Independence was fought successfully during the four years following the declaration. A unitary state, Croatia is a republic governed under a parliamentary system, the International Monetary Fund classified Croatia as an emerging and developing economy, and the World Bank identified it as a high-income economy. Croatia is a member of the European Union, United Nations, the Council of Europe, NATO, the World Trade Organization, the service sector dominates Croatias economy, followed by the industrial sector and agriculture. Tourism is a significant source of revenue during the summer, with Croatia ranked the 18th most popular tourist destination in the world, the state controls a part of the economy, with substantial government expenditure. The European Union is Croatias most important trading partner, since 2000, the Croatian government constantly invests in infrastructure, especially transport routes and facilities along the Pan-European corridors. Internal sources produce a significant portion of energy in Croatia, the rest is imported, the origin of the name is uncertain, but is thought to be a Gothic or Indo-Aryan term assigned to a Slavic tribe. The oldest preserved record of the Croatian ethnonym *xъrvatъ is of variable stem, the first attestation of the Latin term is attributed to a charter of Duke Trpimir from the year 852. The original is lost, and just a 1568 copy is preserved—leading to doubts over the authenticity of the claim, the oldest preserved stone inscription is the 9th-century Branimir Inscription, where Duke Branimir is styled as Dux Cruatorvm. The inscription is not believed to be dated accurately, but is likely to be from during the period of 879–892, the area known as Croatia today was inhabited throughout the prehistoric period
8.
Brazil
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Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. As the worlds fifth-largest country by area and population, it is the largest country to have Portuguese as an official language. Its Amazon River basin includes a vast tropical forest, home to wildlife, a variety of ecological systems. This unique environmental heritage makes Brazil one of 17 megadiverse countries, Brazil was inhabited by numerous tribal nations prior to the landing in 1500 of explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral, who claimed the area for the Portuguese Empire. Brazil remained a Portuguese colony until 1808, when the capital of the empire was transferred from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro, in 1815, the colony was elevated to the rank of kingdom upon the formation of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Independence was achieved in 1822 with the creation of the Empire of Brazil, a state governed under a constitutional monarchy. The ratification of the first constitution in 1824 led to the formation of a bicameral legislature, the country became a presidential republic in 1889 following a military coup détat. An authoritarian military junta came to power in 1964 and ruled until 1985, Brazils current constitution, formulated in 1988, defines it as a democratic federal republic. The federation is composed of the union of the Federal District, the 26 states, Brazils economy is the worlds ninth-largest by nominal GDP and seventh-largest by GDP as of 2015. A member of the BRICS group, Brazil until 2010 had one of the worlds fastest growing economies, with its economic reforms giving the country new international recognition. Brazils national development bank plays an important role for the economic growth. Brazil is a member of the United Nations, the G20, BRICS, Unasul, Mercosul, Organization of American States, Organization of Ibero-American States, CPLP. Brazil is a power in Latin America and a middle power in international affairs. One of the worlds major breadbaskets, Brazil has been the largest producer of coffee for the last 150 years and it is likely that the word Brazil comes from the Portuguese word for brazilwood, a tree that once grew plentifully along the Brazilian coast. In Portuguese, brazilwood is called pau-brasil, with the word brasil commonly given the etymology red like an ember, formed from Latin brasa and the suffix -il. As brazilwood produces a red dye, it was highly valued by the European cloth industry and was the earliest commercially exploited product from Brazil. The popular appellation eclipsed and eventually supplanted the official Portuguese name, early sailors sometimes also called it the Land of Parrots. In the Guarani language, a language of Paraguay, Brazil is called Pindorama
9.
Ronaldo (Brazilian footballer)
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Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima, commonly known as Ronaldo, is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who played as a striker. Popularly dubbed The Phenomenon, he is considered to be one of the greatest football players of all time. A three-time FIFA World Player of the Year and two-time Ballon dOr recipient, Ronaldo, in his 1990s prime, was known for his dribbling at speed, feints and clinical finishing. He was named in the FIFA100, a list of the greatest living players compiled in 2004, and was inducted into the Brazilian Football Museum Hall of Fame and the Italian Football Hall of Fame. Ronaldo played for Brazil in 98 matches, scoring 62 goals, at age 17, Ronaldo was the youngest member of the Brazilian squad that won the 1994 FIFA World Cup. At the 1998 World Cup, he received the Golden Ball for player of the tournament in helping Brazil reach the final where he suffered a convulsive fit hours before the defeat to France. He won a second World Cup in 2002 where he starred in a front three with Ronaldinho and Rivaldo, Ronaldo scored twice in the final, and received the Golden Boot as tournaments top goalscorer. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Ronaldo scored his 15th World Cup goal, at age 23 he had scored over 200 goals for club and country. After almost three years of inactivity due to knee injuries and recuperation, Ronaldo joined Real Madrid in 2002. Having suffered further injuries, Ronaldo retired from football in 2011. Post-retirement, he has continued his work as a United Nations Development Programme Goodwill Ambassador and he served as an ambassador for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In 1993, Ronaldo began his career playing for Cruzeiro. Aged 16, he made his debut on 25 May 1993 against Caldense in the Minas Gerais State Championship. Ronaldo came to public attention on 7 November 1993, scoring five goals in the game against Bahia. Ronaldo scored 44 goals in 47 games with Cruzeiro, leading them to their first Copa do Brasil in 1993, and the Minas Gerais State Championship in 1994. Before joining Cruzeiro, he was turned down by his favourite team Flamengo. Ronaldo chose to join PSV after the 1994 World Cup, for which he was selected despite being just 17 and it was Romário who advised Ronaldo to start his European career at PSV, Romário being a former striker of the team from 1988 to 1993. Ronaldo scored 30 league goals in his first season in the Netherlands and his second season was marred by a knee injury which kept him out of most of the campaign, but he still averaged nearly a goal a game in the league, scoring 12 goals in 13 appearances
10.
England
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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years
11.
Michael Owen
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Michael James Owen is a former English footballer who played as a striker for Liverpool, Real Madrid, Newcastle United, Manchester United and Stoke City, as well as for the England national team. Since retiring from football, he has become a racehorse breeder and owner. The son of former footballer Terry Owen, Owen was born in Chester and he progressed through the Liverpool youth team and scored on his debut in May 1997. In his first full season in the Premier League, he finished as joint top scorer with 18 goals and he repeated this the following year and was Liverpools top goal-scorer from 1997–2004, gaining his name as a proven goal-scorer despite suffering from a recurring hamstring injury. In 2001, Liverpool won a cup treble of the UEFA Cup, FA Cup and Football League Cup and he went on to score 118 goals in 216 appearances in the Premier League for Liverpool, and 158 goals in 297 total appearances. Regarded as one of the greatest Liverpool players, Owen came 14th in the 100 Players Who Shook The Kop, in 2004, Owen was named by Pelé in the FIFA100 list of the worlds greatest living players. Owen moved to Real Madrid for £8 million in mid-2004, he was used as a substitute. He scored 13 goals in La Liga before returning to England the following season where he joined Newcastle United for £16 million, after a promising start to the 2005–06 season, injuries largely ruled him out over the next 18 months. After his return, he became captain and was the teams top scorer for the 2007–08 season. Newcastle were relegated in the 2008–09 season and Owen moved to Manchester United as a free agent and he spent three years at Old Trafford before joining Stoke City in September 2012. Owen is one of eight players to have scored 150 or more goals in the Premier League and he is also the youngest player to have reached 100 goals in the Premier League. On 19 March 2013, Owen announced his retirement from playing at the end of the 2012–13 season, internationally, Owen first played for the senior England team in 1998, becoming Englands youngest player and youngest goalscorer at the time. His performance at the 1998 FIFA World Cup brought him to national and international prominence and he went on to score in UEFA Euro 2000 and he is the only player to have scored in four major tournaments for England. He played at the 2006 World Cup, but suffered an injury took him a year to recover from. Occasionally playing as captain, he is Englands 11th-most-capped player and has scored a national record of 26 competitive goals, with 40 in total from 89 appearances. Owen was born in Chester, Cheshire, the child of Jeanette. His father is a professional footballer and played for clubs such as Chester City. Owen was introduced to football at the age of seven by his father who soon saw Michael as the most promising athlete in the family
12.
Goalkeeper (association football)
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Goalkeeper, often shortened to keeper or goalie, is one of the major positions of association football. It is the most specialised position in the sport, the goalkeepers primary role is to prevent the opposing team from successfully moving the ball over the defended goal-line. This is accomplished by the moving into the path of the ball. Within the penalty area goalkeepers are able to use their hands, goalkeepers usually perform goal kicks, and also give commands to their defence during corner kicks, direct and indirect free kicks, and marking. Goalkeepers play an important role in directing on field strategy as they have a view of the entire pitch. If an attacker on the opposing team obstructs the keeper from catching or saving the ball, for example, in a corner, it will normally be a free kick. If a goalkeeper is injured or sent off, a goalkeeper has to take their place. In order to replace a goalkeeper who is sent off, a team usually substitutes an outfield player for the backup keeper and they then play the remainder of the match with nine outfield players. Goalkeepers often have longer playing careers than players, many not retiring until their late thirties or early forties. This can be explained by noting that goalkeepers play a physically demanding position that requires significantly less running. For example, Peter Shilton played for 31 years between 1966 and 1997 before retiring at the age of 47. Because only one player can play in goal and the position is so specialised many professional teams on average especially at the highest level have one player as first-choice for many years, for example Gianlugi Buffon has played as first choice keeper for Juventus for more than 15 years. Petr Cech prior to his move to Aresnal was first choice keeper for Chelsea between 2004 and 2015, the squad number for a first choice goalkeeper is generally number 1. Although this is common, some goalkeepers now wear other numbers when in goal, association football, like many sports, has experienced many changes in tactics resulting in the generation and elimination of different positions. Goalkeeper is the position that is certain to have existed since the codification of the sport. The earliest account of football teams with player positions comes from Richard Mulcaster in 1581, the earliest specific reference to keeping goal comes from Cornish Hurling in 1602. One of these is appointed by lots, to the one side, there is assigned for their guard, a couple of their best stopping Hurlers. Other references to scoring goals begin in English literature in the early 16th century, for example, in John Days play The Blind Beggar of Bethnal Green, Ill play a gole at camp-ball
13.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
14.
Fabien Barthez
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He shares the record for the most World Cup finals clean sheets with Peter Shilton, with ten. In club football, he won the UEFA Champions League as well as several Ligue 1, born in Lavelanet, France, Barthez made his first division debut for Toulouse on 21 September 1991, against Nancy. He joined Marseille in 1992, and won both the French championship and the Champions League at the end of his first season in Marseille, the 1993 victory made him the youngest goalkeeper to win a Champions League title until Iker Casillas did so in 2000. He stayed with the club in Division 2 for the 1994–95 season despite offers from elite French clubs. In 1995, Barthez joined AS Monaco and won Ligue 1 titles in 1997 and 2000 and he also played in Jean Tiganas talented Monaco side which famously put his future club Manchester United out of the Champions League in 1998 on away goals after a 1–1 draw at Old Trafford. Barthez joined United for £7.8 million in 2000 and he was later reunited with national teammate Laurent Blanc, who joined United in 2001. The Barthez–Blanc head-kissing ritual was performed at the start of Champions League matches, well known for being eccentric, Barthez started out well for Manchester United. His first season was a triumph as he answered all the questions about how he would handle rainy Manchester compared to sunny Monaco, Barthez performed brilliantly throughout the season and became a crowd favourite. The fans loved his eccentric behaviour, his taunting dribbles and step-overs past opposing strikers, very often it was critical saves that kept United from defeat or dropping valuable points, helping United to the 2000–01 FA Premier League title, their third in a row. A memorable incident happened when Manchester United faced Leeds United in March 2001, Barthez deliberately kicked out with his foot at Ian Harte, who fell to the ground on the edge of six yard box, and the referee awarded a penalty to Leeds. Harte stepped up but Barthez made a low, one-handed save to his right, di Canio continued and scored the only goal of the game, and later said it was better to score and then see whether the goalkeeper is right or wrong. The 2001–02 season was split into two parts for him, the first half was a nightmare. The Frenchman seemed to be taking some unnecessary risks outside his penalty area and he was at fault for two goals in a 3–2 home defeat by Deportivo de La Coruña in October 2001. Ferguson said how eventually he will get out and it wouldnt happen again. But another couple of late errors against Arsenal in a 3–1 defeat at Highbury the following month put much pressure on Barthez, there was much speculation as to what was the source of Barthezs decline, and critics such as the BBCs Phil McNulty urged him to be dropped. Sir Alex Ferguson, however, had faith in his goalkeeper, consequently, in the second half of the season, Barthez repaired his reputation with consistent, solid performances and the spectacular saves that he was famous for. His turn in fortunes was shown in a 2–2 draw with Derby County at Pride Park, Derby forward Malcolm Christie looked to have sealed his hat-trick, but referee Steve Dunn controversially disallowed the goal, ruling that kicked the ball out of Barthezs hands. He was also noted for playing mind games before opposition players took a penalty, the first time this occurred was in November 2001 when Leicester City came to Old Trafford
15.
1994 FIFA World Cup
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The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, held in nine cities across the United States from 17 June to 17 July 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on 4 July 1988. The total attendance of nearly 3.6 million for the tournament remains the highest in World Cup history. Brazil beat Italy 3–2 in a penalty shootout after the game ended 0–0 after extra time and this made Brazil the first nation to win four World Cup titles. Greece, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia made their appearances in the finals, Norway made its first appearance since 1938. Bulgaria, Morocco and Mexico returned after missing the 1990 tournament, Greece, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia qualified for the World Cup finals for the first time. Russia, competing independently for the first time after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the defending champions West Germany were united with their East German counterparts, representing the unified Germany for the first time since the 1938 World Cup. As a result of the performances by African teams in 1990. Norway qualified for the first time since 1938, Bolivia for the first time since 1950, the qualification campaigns of both Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia were affected by political events. The nation of Czechoslovakia dissolved in 1992, and the team completed its qualifying group under the name Representation of Czechs and Slovaks, Yugoslavia was suspended from international competition in 1992 as part of United Nations sanctions against the country as a result of the Yugoslav Wars. The sanctions were not lifted until 1994, by time it was no longer possible for the team to qualify. Chiles suspension from the 1990 FIFA World Cup, following the interruption of their qualification game against Brazil. Japan failed to qualify after the Agony of Doha against Iraq, losing out to Saudi Arabia, among other teams who failed to qualify were Uruguay and England- the latter being semi-finalists, and finishing in fourth place in 1990. Denmark, Portugal, Hungary, and France failed to qualify for the second successive tournament and this was the only World Cup finals since 1938, for which neither England nor Scotland qualified. The Republic of Ireland qualified for a second successive World Cup finals tournament, as of 2016, this was the last time that Bolivia qualified for a FIFA World Cup finals. Three nations bid for host duties, United States, Brazil, the vote was held in Zurich on 4 July 1988, and only took one round with the United States bid receiving a little over half of the votes by the Exco members. FIFA hoped that by staging the worlds most prestigious tournament there, one condition FIFA imposed was the creation of a professional soccer league, Major League Soccer was founded in 1993 and began operating in 1996. Germany, Brazil, Argentina, Belgium, Italy and the United States were seeded for the draw that took place in Las Vegas, Nevada
16.
2002 FIFA World Cup
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The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup which took place from 31 May to 30 June 2002 in South Korea and Japan. Brazil won the tournament for a fifth time, winning the final against Germany 2–0. The victory meant Brazil qualified for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup for the fifth time, in the third place play-off match against South Korea, Turkey won 3–2 taking third place in only their second ever FIFA World Cup finals. China PR, Ecuador, Senegal and Slovenia made their first appearances at the finals with Turkey making its first appearance since 1954, additionally, Turkey took third place and South Korea managed to reach the semi-finals, beating Spain, Italy and Portugal en route. South Korea in particular, faced scrutiny and allegations of corruption due to their victories over Italy. However, the most potent team at the tournament, Brazil, prevailed, South Korea and Japan were selected as hosts by FIFA on 31 May 1996. Initially, South Korea, Japan, and Mexico presented three rival bids, however, the two Asian countries agreed to unite their bids shortly before the decision was made, and they were chosen unanimously in preference to Mexico. This was the first World Cup to be hosted by two countries, at the time the decision was made, Japan had never qualified for a World Cup finals. The only other countries to have awarded a World Cup without previously having competed in a final tournament are Italy in 1934. The unusual choice of host proved an issue for fans in Europe. With games taking place in the European morning, some schools, a total of 199 teams attempted to qualify for the 2002 World Cup which qualification process began with the preliminary draw held in Tokyo on 7 December 1999. Defending champions France and co-hosts South Korea and Japan qualified automatically and this was the final World Cup in which the defending champions qualified automatically. 14 places were contested by UEFA teams, five by CAF teams, four by CONMEBOL teams, four by AFC teams, the remaining two places were decided by playoffs between AFC and UEFA and between CONMEBOL and OFC. Four nations qualified for the finals for the first time, China, Ecuador, Senegal, as of 2014, this was the last time Turkey, China, Republic of Ireland and Senegal qualified for a FIFA World Cup finals. Turkey qualified for the first time since 1954, and both Poland and Portugal for the first time since 1986, all seven previous World Cup-winning nations qualified, the first time so many previous champions had been present at a finals tournament. The following 32 teams, shown with final pre-tournament rankings, qualified for the final tournament, the seeds comprised Pot A in the draw. Pot B contained the remaining 11 European sides, Pot C contained five unseeded qualifiers from CONMEBOL, Pot D contained unseeded sides from the CONCACAF region and Africa. This was the last FIFA World Cup with the champion in Group A
17.
FIFA World Cup
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The championship has been awarded every four years since the inaugural tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946 when it was not held because of the Second World War. The current champion is Germany, which won its title at the 2014 tournament in Brazil. 32 teams, including the qualifying host nation, compete in the tournament phase for the title at venues within the host nation over a period of about a month. The 20 World Cup tournaments have been won by eight different national teams, Brazil have won five times, and they are the only team to have played in every tournament. The worlds first international match was a challenge match played in Glasgow in 1872 between Scotland and England, which ended in a 0–0 draw. The first international tournament, the edition of the British Home Championship. After FIFA was founded in 1904, it tried to arrange an international football tournament between nations outside the Olympic framework in Switzerland in 1906 and these were very early days for international football, and the official history of FIFA describes the competition as having been a failure. At the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, football became an official competition, planned by The Football Association, Englands football governing body, the event was for amateur players only and was regarded suspiciously as a show rather than a competition. Great Britain won the gold medals and they repeated the feat in 1912 in Stockholm. With the Olympic event continuing to be contested only between teams, Sir Thomas Lipton organised the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy tournament in Turin in 1909. The Lipton tournament was a championship between clubs from different nations, each one of which represented an entire nation. Lipton invited West Auckland, a side from County Durham. West Auckland won the tournament and returned in 1911 to successfully defend their title, in 1914, FIFA agreed to recognise the Olympic tournament as a world football championship for amateurs, and took responsibility for managing the event. This paved the way for the worlds first intercontinental football competition, at the 1920 Summer Olympics, contested by Egypt and 13 European teams, Uruguay won the next two Olympic football tournaments in 1924 and 1928. Those were also the first two world championships, as 1924 was the start of FIFAs professional era. On 28 May 1928, the FIFA Congress in Amsterdam decided to stage a championship itself. With Uruguay now two-time official football world champions and to celebrate their centenary of independence in 1930, indeed, no European country pledged to send a team until two months before the start of the competition. Rimet eventually persuaded teams from Belgium, France, Romania, in total,13 nations took part, seven from South America, four from Europe and two from North America
18.
Association football
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Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball. It is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries and dependencies making it the worlds most popular sport, the game is played on a rectangular field with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by getting the ball into the opposing goal, players are not allowed to touch the ball with their hands or arms while it is in play, unless they are goalkeepers. Other players mainly use their feet to strike or pass the ball, the team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. If the score is level at the end of the game, the Laws of the Game were originally codified in England by The Football Association in 1863. Association football is governed internationally by the International Federation of Association Football, the first written reference to the inflated ball used in the game was in the mid-14th century, Þe heued fro þe body went, Als it were a foteballe. The Online Etymology Dictionary states that the word soccer was split off in 1863, according to Partha Mazumdar, the term soccer originated in England, first appearing in the 1880s as an Oxford -er abbreviation of the word association. Within the English-speaking world, association football is now usually called football in the United Kingdom and mainly soccer in Canada and the United States. People in Australia, Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand use either or both terms, although national associations in Australia and New Zealand now primarily use football for the formal name. According to FIFA, the Chinese competitive game cuju is the earliest form of football for which there is scientific evidence, cuju players could use any part of the body apart from hands and the intent was kicking a ball through an opening into a net. It was remarkably similar to football, though similarities to rugby occurred. During the Han Dynasty, cuju games were standardised and rules were established, phaininda and episkyros were Greek ball games. An image of an episkyros player depicted in low relief on a vase at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens appears on the UEFA European Championship Cup, athenaeus, writing in 228 AD, referenced the Roman ball game harpastum. Phaininda, episkyros and harpastum were played involving hands and violence and they all appear to have resembled rugby football, wrestling and volleyball more than what is recognizable as modern football. As with pre-codified mob football, the antecedent of all football codes. Non-competitive games included kemari in Japan, chuk-guk in Korea and woggabaliri in Australia, Association football in itself does not have a classical history. Notwithstanding any similarities to other games played around the world FIFA have recognised that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe. The modern rules of football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played in the public schools of England
19.
FIFA World Cup hosts
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Sixteen countries have been FIFA World Cup hosts in the competitions twenty tournaments since the inaugural World Cup in 1930. The organization was at first awarded to countries at meetings of FIFAs congress, the choice of location was controversial in the earliest tournaments, given the three-week boat journey between South America and Europe, the two centres of strength in football at the time. The decision to hold the first cup in Uruguay, for example, the next two World Cups were both held in Europe. Both Argentina and Uruguay thus boycotted the tournament, the first tournament following World War II, held in Brazil in 1950, had three teams withdrawing due to either financial problems or disagreements with the organization. To avoid any future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternation between the Americas and Europe, which continued until the 2002 FIFA World Cup which took place in Asia, the system evolved so that the host country is now chosen in a vote by FIFAs Council. This is done under an exhaustive ballot system, the decision is currently made roughly seven years in advance of the tournament, though the hosts for the 2022 tournament were chosen at the same time as those for the 2018 tournament. Only Mexico, Italy, France, Germany and Brazil have hosted the event on two occasions, Mexico Citys Estadio Azteca and Rio de Janeiros Maracanã are the only venues ever to have hosted two FIFA World Cup finals. Only the 2002 FIFA World Cup had more than one host, the FIFA Congress met in Barcelona, Spain on 18 May 1929 to ratify the decision, and Uruguay was chosen without a vote. For that reason, the stadium built in Montevideo for the World Cup was named Estadio Centenario. Bids, Italy Sweden Sweden decided to withdraw before the vote, the decision was ratified by the FIFA Congress in Stockholm, Sweden and Zürich, Switzerland on 14 May 1932. The Italian Football Federation accepted the duties on 9 October 1932. Electing France took only one ballot, as France had more than half of the votes in the first round. Results, France,19 votes Argentina,4 votes Germany,0 votes Bids for 1942, Argentina Brazil Germany Cancelled election of the host due to the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939. Bids for 1946, none Bid, Brazil Brazil, Argentina, and Germany had official bid for the 1942 World Cup, but the Cup was cancelled after the outbreak of World War II. Result, Brazil Bid, Switzerland The 1954 World Cup hosting duty was decided on 26 July 1946, on 27 July, the FIFA Congress pushed back the 5th World Cup finals for three years, deciding it should take place in 1954. Result, Switzerland Bid, Sweden Argentina, Chile, Mexico, swedish delegates lobbied other countries at the FIFA Congress held in Rio de Janeiro around the opening of the 1950 World Cup finals. Sweden was awarded the 1958 tournament unopposed in on 23 June 1950, result, Sweden Bids, Argentina Chile West Germany West Germany withdrew before the vote, which took place in Lisbon, Portugal on 10 June 1956, leaving two remaining bids. In one round of voting, Chile won over Argentina, again, there was only one round of voting, with England defeating West Germany for the hosting position
20.
FIFA
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The Fédération Internationale de Football Association is the international governing body of association football, futsal, and beach soccer. FIFA is responsible for the organisation of major international tournaments, notably the World Cup which commenced in 1930. FIFA was founded in 1904 to oversee international competition among the associations of Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden. Headquartered in Zürich, its membership now comprises 211 national associations, although FIFA does not control the rules of football, it is responsible for both the organization of a number of tournaments and their promotion, which generate revenue from sponsorship. In 2013, FIFA had revenues of over 1.3 billion U. S. dollars, for a net profit of 72 million and those among these officials who were also indicted in the U. S. are expected to be extradited to face charges there as well. Many officials were suspended by FIFAs ethics committee including Sepp Blatter, in early 2017 reports became public about FIFA president Gianni Infantino attempting to prevent the re-elections of both chairmen of the ethics committee during the FIFA congress in May 2017. The need for a body to oversee association football became apparent at the beginning of the 20th century with the increasing popularity of international fixtures. The French name and acronym are used even outside French-speaking countries, the founding members were the national associations of Belgium, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Also, that day, the German Association declared its intention of affiliating through a telegram. The first president of FIFA was Robert Guérin, Guérin was replaced in 1906 by Daniel Burley Woolfall from England, by then a member of the association. Membership of FIFA expanded beyond Europe with the application of South Africa in 1909, Argentina in 1912, Canada and Chile in 1913, and the United States in 1914. During World War I, with players sent off to war and the possibility of travel for international fixtures severely limited. Post-war, following the death of Woolfall, the organisation was run by Dutchman Carl Hirschmann and it was saved from extinction, but at the cost of the withdrawal of the Home Nations, who cited an unwillingness to participate in international competitions with their recent World War enemies. The Home Nations later resumed their membership, the FIFA collection is held by the National Football Museum at Urbis in Manchester, England. The first World Cup in the world was in 1930 in Montevideo, FIFA is headquartered in Zürich, and is an association established under the Law of Switzerland. FIFAs supreme body is the FIFA Congress, a made up of representatives from each affiliated member association. Each national football association has one vote, regardless of its size or footballing strength, the Congress assembles in ordinary session once every year, and extraordinary sessions have been held once a year since 1998. The congress makes decisions relating to FIFAs governing statutes and their method of implementation and application, only the Congress can pass changes to FIFAs statutes
21.
1938 FIFA World Cup
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The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third staging of the World Cup, and was held in France from 4 to 19 June 1938. Italy retained the championship, beating Hungary 4–2 in the final, France was chosen as hosts by FIFA in Berlin on August 13,1936. France defeated Argentina and Germany in the first round of voting, the decision caused outrage in South America where it was believed that the venue would alternate between the two continents, instead, it was the second tournament in a row to be played in Europe. This was the last World Cup to be staged before the outbreak of the Second World War and it was the first time that the hosts and the title holders qualified automatically. Title holders were given an entry into the World Cup until 2006 when this was abolished. Of the 14 remaining places, eleven were allocated to Europe, as a result, only three non-European nations took part, Brazil, Cuba and the Dutch East Indies. This is the smallest ever number of teams from outside the host continent to compete at a FIFA World Cup, Austria qualified for the World Cup, but after qualification was complete, the Anschluss united Austria with Germany. Austria subsequently withdrew from the tournament, with some Austrian players joining the German squad and this tournament saw the first, and as of 2016 the only, participation in a World Cup tournament from Cuba and the Dutch East Indies. It also saw the World Cup debuts of Poland and Norway, Poland and the Netherlands would not reappear at a finals tournament until 1974, while Norway would not qualify for another World Cup finals until 1994. A unified Germany team would not appear again until 1994, the knockout format from 1934 was retained. If a match was tied after 90 minutes, then 30 minutes of time were played. If the score was tied after extra time, the match would be replayed. This was the last of the two World Cup tournaments that used a knockout format. Germany, France, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Cuba and Brazil were seeded for draw taking place in Paris, five of the seven first round matches required extra time to break the deadlock, two games still went to a replay. In one replay, Cuba advanced to the round at the expense of Romania. In the other replay, Germany, which had led 1–0 in the first game against Switzerland, led 2–0 and this remains, as of 2014, the only time in World Cup history in which Germany failed to advance to the final eight. Sweden advanced directly to the quarter-finals as a result of Austrias withdrawal, the hosts, France, were beaten by the holders, Italy, and Switzerland were seen off by Hungary. Czechoslovakia took Brazil to extra time in a notoriously feisty match in Bordeaux before succumbing in a replay and this was the last ever match to be replayed in a World Cup, with all winners of replay matches in 1938 having been eliminated in the next round
22.
Stade de France
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The Stade de France is the national stadium of France, just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 81,338 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe, the stadium is used by the France national football team and French rugby union team for international competition. Originally built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the name was recommended by Michel Platini. On 12 July 1998, France defeated Brazil 3–0 in the 1998 FIFA World Cup Final contested at the stadium, the facility also hosted the Race of Champions auto race in 2004,2005, and 2006. The stadium hosted the 2003 World Championships in Athletics and since 1999 it has hosted the annual Meeting Areva athletics meet and it also hosted some matches at UEFA Euro 2016, including the final, where France lost to Portugal by 1-0 after extra-time. Domestically, the Stade de France serves as a secondary home facility of Parisian rugby clubs Stade Français and Racing Métro 92, the facility is owned and operated by the Consortium Stade de France. The discussion of a stadium in France came about as a result of the countrys selection to host the 1998 FIFA World Cup on 2 July 1992. As a result of the selection, the country and the France Football Federation made a commitment to construct an 80 and it was the first time in over 70 years since the construction of the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir that a stadium in France was being constructed for a specific event. Due to the magnitude and importance of the facility, the Council of State was allowed first hand approach to how the stadium would be constructed and paid for. The stadiums design was handled by the team of architects composed of Michel Macary, Aymeric Zublena, Regembal Michel, and Claude Costantini who were associated with CR SCAU Architecture. The stadium was ready for construction following the governments selection of manufacturers, Bouygues, Dumez, and SGE. With only 31 months to complete the stadium, construction commenced on 2 May 1995, the laying of the first cornerstone took place five months later on 6 September. After over a year of construction, over 800, 000m ² of earthworks had been created, the installation of the roof, which cost €45 million, and the mobile platform also took more than a year to complete. During the developmental phase, the stadium was referred to in French as the Grand Stade, on 4 December 1995, the Ministry of Sport launched a design competition to decide on a name for the stadium. The stadium was named the Stade de France after the Ministry heard a proposal from French football legend Michel Platini. The stadium was inaugurated on 28 January 1998 as it hosted a match between France and Spain. The total cost of the stadium was approximately €290 million, the national rugby teams first match in the facility was contested five days after its opening, on 2 February, with France earning a 24–17 win over England in front of 77,567 spectators. Philippe Bernat-Salles converted the first ever try at the stadium scoring it in the 11th minute of play, on 24 May 2000, the Stade de France hosted the 2000 UEFA Champions League Final
23.
Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis
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Saint-Denis is a commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 9.4 km from the centre of Paris, Saint-Denis is a subprefecture of the department of Seine-Saint-Denis, being the seat of the arrondissement of Saint-Denis. Saint-Denis is home to the necropolis of the Basilica of Saint Denis and was also the location of the associated abbey. It is also home to Frances national football and rugby stadium, Saint-Denis is a formerly industrial suburb currently changing its economic base. Inhabitants of Saint-Denis are called Dionysiens, until the 3rd century, Saint-Denis was a small settlement called Catolacus or Catulliacum, probably meaning estate of Catullius, a Gallo-Roman landowner. About 250 AD, the first bishop of Paris, Saint Denis, was martyred on Montmartre hill, shortly after 250 his grave became a shrine and a pilgrimage centre, with the building of the Abbey of Saint Denis, and the settlement was renamed Saint-Denis. In 1793, during the French Revolution, Saint-Denis was renamed Franciade in a gesture of rejection of religion, in 1803, however, under the Consulate of Napoléon Bonaparte, the city reverted to its former name of Saint-Denis. During its history, Saint-Denis has been associated with the French royal house. Starting from Dagobert I, almost every French king was buried in the Basilica, however, Saint-Denis is older than that. In the 2nd century, there was a Gallo-Roman village named Catolacus on the location that Saint-Denis occupies today, Saint Denis, the first bishop of Paris and patron saint of France, was martyred in about 250 and buried in the cemetery of Catolacus. Denis tomb quickly became a place of worship, around 475, Sainte Geneviève had a small chapel erected on Denis tomb, which by then had become a popular destination for pilgrims. It was this chapel that Dagobert I had rebuilt and turned into a royal monastery, during the Middle Ages, because of the privileges granted by Dagobert, Saint-Denis grew to become very important. Merchants from all over Europe came to visit its market, in 1140, Abbot Suger, counselor to the King, granted further privileges to the citizens of Saint-Denis. He also started the work of enlarging the Basilica of Saint Denis that still exists today, the new church was consecrated in 1144. Saint-Denis suffered heavily in the Hundred Years War, of its 10,000 citizens, during the French Wars of Religion, the Battle of Saint-Denis was fought between Catholics and Protestants on 10 November 1567. The Protestants were defeated, but the Catholic commander Anne de Montmorency was killed, in 1590, the city surrendered to Henry IV, who converted to Catholicism in 1593 in the abbey of Saint-Denis. King Louis XIV started several industries in Saint-Denis, weaving and spinning mills and dyehouses. His successor, Louis XV, whose daughter was a nun in the Carmelite convent, took a lively interest in the city, he added a chapel to the convent and also renovated the buildings of the royal abbey
24.
1998 FIFA World Cup Final
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The 1998 FIFA World Cup Final was a football match that was played on 12 July 1998 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis to determine the winner of the 1998 FIFA World Cup. France won the match 3–0 to claim the World Cup for the first time, zinedine Zidane, who was named man of the match, scored twice before half-time and Emmanuel Petit added a third goal in the last minute. The match had an attendance in the region of 75,000, after a 4–1 win over Chile and a 3–2 success against Denmark, they reached the final with a penalty shoot-out victory over the Netherlands. As for France, they won their three matches and defeated Paraguay in the knockout stages on golden goals. They had a penalty-shootout with Italy in the quarter-finals, and defeated recently formed Croatia to reach the final, the match also saw speculation on the condition of the Brazilian striker Ronaldo, who suffered a convulsive fit on the eve of the match. After initially being left out of the sheet, in spite of his physical state. In the match, he sustained an injury in a clash with French goalkeeper Fabien Barthez, France followed up their victory by qualifying for and winning UEFA Euro 2000 held in the Netherlands and Belgium. Brazil took the Copa America title in 1999, and then won the next FIFA World Cup in Japan, Ronaldo went on to set the record for goals in World Cups, which was later broken by Miroslav Klose of Germany in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. For Brazil, this only the second time that they had lost a World Cup final. The 3–0 scoreline was also Brazils previous largest loss at any World Cup match prior to their 7–1 loss to Germany in the semifinals of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Brazil were drawn in Group A for the group stages alongside Scotland, Morocco and Norway. They recorded victories over Scotland and Morocco to progress but lost their final game 2–1 to Norway and they next faced Group B runners-up Chile in the last-16 and comprehensively won 4–1, Ronaldo and César Sampaio each scoring twice. In the quarter-finals, they played Denmark, who had won their previous game 4–1. Despite being 1–0 down to a Martin Jorgensen goal in the minute, Brazil turned the game around in their favour with goals from Bebeto. Brian Laudrup equalised for Denmark after 50 minutes but Brazil won the game 10 minutes later courtesy of a second from Rivaldo, in the semi-finals, Brazil faced the Netherlands in Marseille. The game finished 1–1 at full-time, Ronaldo scoring just after half-time and Patrick Kluivert equalising for the Netherlands in the 87th minute, the match had to be settled by penalties which Brazil won 4–2 to reach their second successive World Cup final. France were drawn in Group C alongside Denmark, South Africa and they started their campaign with an easy 3–0 win over South Africa followed by a convincing 4–0 win over Saudi Arabia. France secured top spot in their group courtesy of a 2–1 win over Denmark with goals from Youri Djorkaeff, in the second round they faced Group D runners-up Paraguay. France won a close encounter 1–0 in extra time thanks to a goal scored by Laurent Blanc
25.
Uruguay national football team
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The Uruguay national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez, the Uruguayan team is commonly referred to as La Celeste. The Uruguayan team recently won the 2011 Copa América and they have won the Copa América 15 times, being the team that has won the tournament on most occasions. The team has won the FIFA World Cup twice, including the first World Cup in 1930 as hosts and they won their second title in 1950, upsetting host Brazil 2–1 in the final match, which received an attendance higher than any football match ever. They have won the Gold Medals in football at the Summer Olympics twice, in 1924 and 1928 recognized by FIFA as World Cup, Uruguay also won the 1980 Mundialito, a tournament among former World Cup champions. In total, Uruguay have won 20 official titles, a record for the most international titles held by any country. Another unique achievement of Uruguay is that it´s the only nation in football to organize multiple major international tournaments in own country. La Celeste won 7 Copa América tournaments,1 World Cup and Mundialito and their success is amplified by the fact that the nation has a very small population of around 3.4 million inhabitants. Uruguay is by far the smallest country in the world to have won a World Cup in terms of population,1.75 million inhabitants in 1930. The second-smallest country, by population, to have won the World Cup is Argentina with a population of nearly 28 million people in 1978, in 1901, Uruguay played against Argentina in their first ever match, a close contest won by Argentina 3–2. Prior to 1916, Uruguay played more than 30 matches, of which all, the inaugural Copa America provided Uruguay with more varied opposition. Victories over Chile and Brazil, along with a tie against Argentina, the following year Uruguay hosted the competition, and retained the title by winning every game. The 1919 Copa América saw Uruguays first defeat in the tournament, in 1924, the Uruguay team traveled to Paris to become the first South American team to compete in the Olympic Games. In contrast to the style of the European teams of the era, Uruguay played a style based around short passes. In the 1928 Summer Olympics, Uruguay went to Amsterdam to defend their title, FIFA assumed the responsibility of the organization of the Football Games to be played by FIFA rules and the tournaments would be recognized as World Championships. It only happened twice until the creation of its own FIFA World Championship, following the double Olympic triumph, Uruguay was chosen as the host nation for the first World Cup, held in 1930, the centenary of Uruguays first constitution. During the World Cup, Uruguay won all its matches, for the 1938 World Cup, France was chosen as host, contrary to a previous agreement to alternate the championships between South America and Europe, so Uruguay again refused to participate. Uruguay again won the World Cup in 1950, beating hosts Brazil in one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history, the decisive match was at the Maracanã Stadium in Brazil
26.
Italy national football team
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The Italian national football team represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is one of the most successful teams in the history of the World Cup, having won four titles. In 1938, they became the first team to defend their previous World Cup tournament victory and they have also won a European Championship, as well as appearing in two other finals, one Olympic football tournament and two Central European International Cups. Italys highest finish at the FIFA Confederations Cup was in 2013, the national football team is known as Gli Azzurri from the traditional colour of Italian national teams and athletes representing Italy. The primary training ground is at the FIGC headquarters in Coverciano, Florence, the teams first match was held in Milan on 15 May 1910. Italy defeated France by a score of 6–2, with Italys first goal scored by Pietro Lana, some turmoil kept the players of Pro Vercelli, who were the best team in the league, out of the game. At the end of the match, the players received some cigarette packets thrown by the 4,000 spectators as a prize. The Italian team played with a system and consisted of, De Simoni, Varisco, Calì, Trerè, Fossati, Capello, Debernardi, Rizzi, Cevenini I, Lana, first captain of the team was Francesco Calì. The first success in a tournament came with the bronze medal in 1928 Summer Olympics. After losing the semi-final against Uruguay, an 11–3 victory against Egypt secured third place in the competition. In the 1927–30 and 1933–35 Central European International Cup, Italy achieved the first place out of five Central European teams, other stars of that era included Luis Monti, Giovanni Ferrari, Giuseppe Ruffino and Virginio Rosetta. The hosts, Azzurri, defeated Czechoslovakia 2–1 in extra time in Rome, with goals by Raimundo Orsi and they achieved their second title in a 4–2 defeat of Hungary, with two goals by Gino Colaussi and two goals by Silvio Piola in the World Cup that followed. In 1949,10 of the 11 players in the teams initial line-up were killed in the Superga air disaster that affected Torino, Italy did not advance further than the first round of the 1950 World Cup, as they were weakened severely due to the air disaster. The team had travelled by boat rather than by plane, fearing another accident, in the World Cup finals of 1954 and the 1962 that followed, Italy failed to progress past the first round, and did not qualify for the 1958 World Cup. Italy did not take part in the first edition of the European Championship in 1960 and their participation in the 1966 World Cup was ended by a 0–1 defeat at the hands of North Korea. Despite being the tournament favourites, the Azzurri, whose 1966 squad included Gianni Rivera, the Italian team was bitterly condemned upon their return home, while North Korean scorer Pak Doo-ik was celebrated as the David who killed Goliath. In 1968, the Azzurri won their first major competition since the 1938 World Cup, the match holds the distinction of being the only European Championship or World Cup final to go to a replay. After extra time the final ended in a 1–1 draw, and in the days before penalty shootouts, Italy won the replay 2–0 to take the trophy
27.
England national football team
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The England national football team represents England in international football and is controlled by The Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England are one of the two oldest national teams in football, alongside Scotland, whom played in the worlds first international football match in 1872. Englands home ground is Wembley Stadium, London, and the current manager is Gareth Southgate, England contest the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship, which alternate biennially. In contesting for the World Cup seventeen times over the past sixty four years, England won the 1966 World Cup, when they hosted the finals, the England national football team is the joint-oldest in the world, it was formed at the same time as Scotland. A representative match between England and Scotland was played on 5 March 1870, having been organised by the Football Association, a return fixture was organised by representatives of Scottish football teams on 30 November 1872. Over the next forty years, England played exclusively with the other three Home Nations—Scotland, Wales and Ireland—in the British Home Championship, to begin with, England had no permanent home stadium. They joined FIFA in 1906 and played their first ever games against countries other than the Home Nations on a tour of Central Europe in 1908, Wembley Stadium was opened in 1923 and became their home ground. The relationship between England and FIFA became strained, and this resulted in their departure from FIFA in 1928 and their first ever defeat on home soil to a foreign team was a 0–2 loss to the Republic of Ireland, on 21 September 1949 at Goodison Park. A 6–3 loss in 1953 to Hungary, was their defeat by a foreign team at Wembley. In the return match in Budapest, Hungary won 7–1 and this still stands as Englands worst ever defeat. After the game, a bewildered Syd Owen said, it was like playing men from outer space, in the 1954 FIFA World Cup, England reached the quarter-finals for the first time, and lost 4–2 to reigning champions Uruguay. Although Walter Winterbottom was appointed as Englands first ever manager in 1946. In UEFA Euro 1968, the reached the semi-finals for the first time. England qualified for the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico as reigning champions, and reached the quarter-finals, England had been 2–0 up, but were eventually beaten 3–2 after extra time. They failed in qualification for the 1974, leading to Ramseys dismissal, under Ron Greenwood, they managed to qualify for the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain, despite not losing a game, they were eliminated in the second group stage. Despite losing to Italy in the third place play-off, the members of the England team were given bronze medals identical to the Italians’, the England team of 1990 were welcomed home as heroes and thousands of people lined the streets, for a spectacular open-top bus parade. However, the team did not win any matches in UEFA Euro 1992, drawing with tournament winners Denmark, the 1990s saw four England managers, each in the role for a relatively brief period. Graham Taylor was Robsons successor, but resigned after England failed to qualify for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, at UEFA Euro 1996, held in England, Terry Venables led England, equalling their best performance at a European Championship, reaching the semi-finals as they did in 1968
28.
Germany national football team
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The Germany national football team is the mens football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association, founded in 1900, ever since the DFB was reinaugurated in 1949 the team has represented the Federal Republic of Germany. Both have been absorbed along with their records by the current national team, the official name and code Germany FR was shortened to Germany following the reunification in 1990. Germany is one of the most successful teams in international competitions, having won a total of four World Cups. They have also been three times in the European Championships, four times in the World Cup, and a further four third-place finishes at World Cups. East Germany won Olympic Gold in 1976, Germany is the only nation to have won both the mens and womens World Cups. At the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Germany earned the highest Elo rating of any football team in history. Germany is also the only European nation that has won a FIFA World Cup in the Americas, the current manager of the national team is Joachim Löw. Germanys first championship title was won in Switzerland. At that time the players were selected by the DFB, as there was no dedicated coach, the first manager of the Germany national team was Otto Nerz, a school teacher from Mannheim, who served in the role from 1926 to 1936. After a poor showing at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, in 1937 he put together a squad which was soon nicknamed the Breslau Elf in recognition of their 8–0 win over Denmark in the then German city of Breslau, Lower Silesia. In the 1938 World Cup that began on 4 June, this united German team managed only a 1–1 draw against Switzerland and that early exit stands as Germanys worst World Cup result. During World War II, the team played over 30 international games between September 1939 and November 1942, when national team games were suspended, as most players had to join the armed forces. After the Second World War, Germany was banned from competition in most sports until 1950, the DFB was not a full member of FIFA, and none of the three new German states — West Germany, East Germany, and Saarland — entered the 1950 World Cup qualifiers. The Federal Republic of Germany, which was referred to as West Germany, with recognition by FIFA and UEFA, the DFB maintained and continued the record of the pre-war team. Switzerland was once again the first team that played West Germany in 1950, West Germany qualified for the 1954 World Cup. The Saarland, under French control between 1947 and 1956, did not join French organisations, and was barred from participating in pan-German ones and it sent their own team to the 1952 Summer Olympics and to the 1954 World Cup qualifiers. In 1957, Saarland acceded to the Federal Republic of Germany, in 1949, the communist German Democratic Republic was founded
29.
Argentina national football team
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The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association, the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentinas home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti in Buenos Aires, la Selección, also known as the Albicelestes, has appeared in five World Cup finals, including the first final in 1930, which they lost 4–2 to Uruguay. Argentina won in their final appearance in 1978, beating the Netherlands at extra time. Argentina, led by Diego Maradona won again in 1986, a 3–2 victory over West Germany and they again made the World Cup finals in 1990, and lost 1–0 to West Germany following a controversial penalty call in the 87th minute. Argentina made their appearance in a World Cup final in 2014, again losing to Germany. Argentinas World Cup winning managers are César Luis Menotti in 1978, Argentina has been very successful in the Copa América, winning it 14 times and also winning the extra South American Championships in 1941,1945 and 1946. The team also won the FIFA Confederations Cup and the Kirin Cup, both in 1992, and the Argentine olympic team won the Olympics football tournaments in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. Argentina, Brazil and France are the national teams that have won the three most important mens titles recognized by FIFA, the World Cup, the Confederations Cup. They have also won their continental championship. Argentina is known for having rivalries with Brazil, Uruguay, England, the first match ever recorded by Argentina was against Uruguay. The game was held in Montevideo on 16 May 1901 and Argentina won 3–2, during the first years of its existence, the Argentina national team only played friendly matches against other South American teams. The reasons for this varied, including long travel times between countries and World War I, la Selección, also known as the Albicelestes, has appeared in five World Cup finals, including the first final in 1930, which they lost, 4–2, to Uruguay. Argentina won in their final in 1978, beating the Netherlands. Argentina, led by Diego Maradona won again in 1986, a 3–2 victory over West Germany and their most recent World Cup final was in 2014, which they lost 1–0 to Germany. Previous to this their last World Cup final was in 1990, argentinas World Cup winning managers are César Luis Menotti in 1978, and Carlos Bilardo in 1986. Argentina has been successful in the Copa América, winning it 14 times. The team also won the FIFA Confederations Cup and the Kirin Cup, both in 1992, and an Argentina team won the Olympics football tournaments in Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. Argentina also won six of the 14 football competitions at the Pan American Games, in March 2007, Argentina reached the top of the FIFA World Rankings for the first time
30.
Jamaica national football team
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The Jamaica national football team is controlled by the Jamaica Football Federation, the governing body for football in Jamaica. A member of CFU and CONCACAF, Jamaica has won the Caribbean Cup six times, with their latest win being the 2014 Caribbean Cup when they have beat Trinidad and Tobago in the finals. Jamaica finished as the runner-up in the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Jamaica qualified once for the FIFA World Cup, in 1998. It is, along with the United States, Honduras and Costa Rica, Jamaicas first international appearance was against their Caribbean neighbours Haiti in 1925. They were invited to the French-speaking Caribbean island by Andre Chevalon, president of the United Sporting Society, Jamaica won all three games by 1–0, 2–1 and 3–0. The following year Jamaica hosted Haiti at Sabina Park and won by 6–0, Haiti remained frequent opponents and it was not until 1932 that their run of defeats was broken with a 4–1 home win in Port-au-Prince. The Caribbean All Star team included such notables as Michael Kruin from Suriname and also representing Jamaica were Lindy Delapenha, the four games were shared equally with Jamaica winning the second 2–1 and the fourth 1–0 and the All Stars winning the first 5–1 and the third 1–0. Those friendly international games were the start of Jamaicas football journey with most of the matches being played at Sabina Park. Many clubs were established during this time including Kensington, Melbourne, Kingston, Lucas and St. Georges Old Boys, in 1965, under the leadership of Brazilian coach Jorge Penna, Jamaica made its first attempt at World Cup qualifying. This was for the 1966 World Cup finals in England, the preliminary group included Cuba and the Netherlands Antilles. Jamaicas first game was against Cuba which they won 2–0 at Jamaicas National Stadium, in the qualifying match against the Netherlands Antilles, Jamaica also had a 2–0 victory with both goals coming. In the away games Jamaica was held to a draw with the Netherlands Antilles. Jamaica then advanced to the group of 3 which included Costa Rica. The winner in this group would represent the CONCACAF region, Jamaica lost at home to Mexico 3–2 and in the return leg in Mexico City, the high altitude proved too much for the Jamaicans and they were defeated 8–0. In 1968, coach George Hamilton took leadership as Jamaica made an attempt to qualify for the 1970 World Cup Finals in Mexico. Jamaica had only a couple remaining players from the previous World Cup team and had to rebuild because most of the players had retired or migrated to North America, Jamaica lost all of their qualifying games in that year. Jamaicas participation in the 1973 CONCACAF Championship qualification elimination saw the suspension of 17 players on the team because of poor behaviour on a tour to Bermuda, Jamaica withdrew from the elimination to restructure their team. For the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualifying, Jamaica was eliminated by Cuba after two losses, for the 1989 CONCACAF Championship qualification qualifying with coach Geoffery Maxwell, Jamaica won both preliminary games against Puerto Rico 1–0 in Jamaica and 2–0 at Puerto Rico
31.
Japan national football team
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The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan. The current head coach is Vahid Halilhodžić, the team has also finished second in the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup. Their principal continental rivals are South Korea and, most recently, Japan is the only team from outside the Americas to participate in the Copa América, having been invited in 1999 and 2011. Although they initially accepted the invitation for the 2011 tournament, the JFA later withdrew following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake, the Japanese team is commonly known by the fans and media as Sakkā Nippon Daihyō, Nippon Daihyō, or Daihyō as abbreviated expressions. Although the team does not have a nickname as such. For example, under Takeshi Okada, the team was known as Okada Japan. Recently the team has known or nicknamed as the Samurai Blue, while Japanese news media still refer it to by the managers last name, as Halilhodžić Japan. Japans first major achievement in football came in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. However Japan made its first appearance in the Asian Cup in 1988, where they were eliminated in the stage following a draw with Iran and losses to South Korea, United Arab Emirates. The following year Japan hosted and won the Asian Cup in their second appearance, the J. League was officially launched in 1993, causing interest in football and the national team to grow. Japans next tournament was a defense of their title at the 1996 Asian Cup. The team won all their games in the stage but were eliminated in the quarterfinals after a 2–0 loss to Kuwait. The nations first ever FIFA World Cup appearance was in 1998, the first two fixtures went 1–0 in favor of Argentina and Croatia, despite playing well in both games. Their campaign ended with a 2–1 defeat to Jamaica, in the 2000 Asian Cup Japan managed to reclaim their title after defeating Saudi Arabia in the final, becoming Asian Champions for the second time. Two years later, Japan co-hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup with South Korea, after a 2–2 draw with Belgium in their opening game, the Japanese team advanced to the second round with a 1–0 win over Russia and a 2–0 victory against Tunisia. However, they exited the tournament during the Round of 16. On June 8,2005, Japan qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, its third consecutive World Cup, however, Japan failed to advance to the Round of 16, losing to Australia 1–3, drawing Croatia 0–0 and losing to Brazil 1–4. During the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, in the round of the Asian Qualifiers
32.
South Africa national football team
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South Africas home ground is FNB Stadium, so named due to a naming rights deal, in Johannesburg. The team is currently under in charge of Stuart Baxter, who was appointed as coach on 5 April 2017, the teams greatest achievement was winning the Africa Cup of Nations at home in 1996. Having played their first match in 1924, they returned to the stage in 1992. In 2010, South Africa became the first African nation to host the FIFA World Cup when it hosted the 19th FIFA World Cup in 2010, the teams Siphiwe Tshabalala was also the first player to score in this World Cup during the opening game against Mexico. Football first arrived in South Africa through colonialism in the nineteenth century. From the earliest days of the sport in South Africa until the end of apartheid, South Africa was one of four African nations to attend FIFAs 1953 congress, at which the four demanded, and won, representation on the FIFA executive committee. Thus the four founded the Confederation of African Football in 1956. This was unacceptable to the members of the Confederation and South Africa were disqualified from the competition. At the second CAF conference in 1958 South Africa were formally expelled from CAF, the all-white were admitted to FIFA in the same year, but in August 1960 it was given an ultimatum of one year to fall in line with the non-discriminatory regulations of FIFA. On 26 September 1961 at the annual FIFA conference, the South African association was suspended from FIFA. Sir Stanley Rous, president of The Football Association of England, Rous was adamant that sport, and FIFA in particular, should not embroil itself in political matters and against fierce opposition he continued to resist attempts to expel South Africa from FIFA. The suspension was lifted in January 1963 after a visit to South Africa by Rous in order to investigate the state of football in the country, Rous declared that if the suspension were not lifted, football there would be discontinued, possibly to the point of no recovery. In 1976, after the Soweto uprising, they were expelled from FIFA. After spending nearly two decades in isolation, the South African national team played its first game on 7 July 1992. The team entered the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers and was placed in Group 5, along with Mauritius, Zambia and they won one game, away to Mauritius, and drew with Mauritius and Zimbabwe at home. The team finished third in the group and failed to qualify, for the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifiers South Africa was placed in Group D, along with Congo, Libya and Nigeria. South Africa beat Congo home and away and they drew with Nigeria at home and lost away. South Africa finished second in the group, and failed to qualify for the stage of the qualifiers
33.
1966 FIFA World Cup
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The 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the Jules Rimet Trophy, with this victory, England won their first FIFA World Cup title and became the third World Cup host to win the tournament after Uruguay in 1930 and Italy in 1934. The 1966 Final, held at Wembley Stadium, was the last to be broadcast in black, the tournament held a FIFA record for the largest average attendance, for 28 years, until it was surpassed by the United States in 1994. England was chosen as host of the 1966 World Cup in Rome, Italy on 22 August 1960, over bids from West Germany. Despite the Africans absence, there was another new number of entries for the qualifying tournament. After all the arguments, FIFA finally ruled that ten teams from Europe would qualify, along with four from South America, one from Asia and one from North, Portugal and North Korea qualified for the first time. Portugal would not qualify again until 1986, while North Koreas next appearance was at the 2010 tournament and this was also Switzerlands last World Cup finals until 1994. Notable absentees from this tournament included 1962 semi-finalists Yugoslavia and 1962 finalists Czechoslovakia, the Africans felt that winning their zone was enough in itself to merit qualification for the finals. They also protested against the readmission of South Africa to FIFA in 1963, South Africa was subsequently assigned to Asia and Oceania qualifying group, before being suspended again under pressure from other African nations in October,1964. The format of the 1966 competition remained the same as 1962,16 qualified teams were divided into four groups of four, each group played a round-robin format. Two points were awarded for a win and one point for a draw, the top two teams in each group advanced to the knockout stage. In the knockout games, if the teams were tied after 90 minutes,30 minutes of time were played. For any match other than the final, if the teams were tied after extra time. The final would have been replayed if tied after extra time, in the event, no replays or drawing of lots was necessary. The 1966 World Cup had a rather unusual hero off the field, in the build-up to the tournament, the Jules Rimet trophy was stolen from an exhibition display. A nationwide hunt for the icon ensued and it was later discovered wrapped in newspaper as the dog sniffed under some bushes in London. The FA commissioned a replica cup in case the cup was not found in time. This replica is held at the English National Football Museum in Manchester, where it is on display
34.
UEFA Euro 1996
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It took place in England from 8 to 30 June 1996. It was the first European Championship to feature 16 finalists, following UEFAs decision to expand the tournament from eight teams. Germany won the tournament, beating the Czech Republic 2–1 in the final with a goal during extra time. This was also Germanys first major title won as a unified nation, at the time of the bidding process, it had not yet been confirmed that sixteen teams would be participating. Instead, the bids were largely prepared as if hosting an eight-team tournament, all candidates had to submit their plans by 10 December 1991. The hosting of the event was contested by five bids, Austria, England, Greece, the English bid was selected by the UEFA Executive Committee at a meeting in Lisbon on 5 May 1992. In the year preceding the decision, the English FA had dropped out plans to bid for the 1998 World Cup in order to gain the support of other UEFA members who were planning to bid for that event. The hosts, England, drew 1–1 with Switzerland in the match of Group A when Alan Shearers 23rd-minute goal was equalled by a late Kubilay Türkyilmaz penalty kick. England defeated rivals Scotland 2–0 in their game, and then produced one of their finest performances ever with a 4–1 win over the Netherlands. Patrick Kluiverts late goal for the Netherlands secured his second place in the group. Group B had Western European France and Spain, along with Balkan World Cup participants Romania and Bulgaria. France and Spain dominated the group, with France avenging Bulgaria for the 1994 qualification debacle, groups C and D saw the Czech Republic and Croatia, whose national teams had only recently come into existence, qualify for the knockout stages. The Czechs lost to Germany, the group winners, in their opener. Italys defeat meant they had to beat Germany in their game to progress. In Group D, Croatia qualified for the quarter-finals, with wins over Turkey, the loss to the Croats ultimately sent the Danes, the surprise champions of 1992, home. Turkey became the first team since the introduction of a stage to be eliminated without gaining a point or scoring a goal. The other three quarter-finalists were Portugal, Spain, and a France team featuring a young Zinedine Zidane. The knockout stages were characterised by negative, defensive play, as a result, only nine goals were scored in the seven games, the first quarter-final between the hosts and Spain ended goalless, after Spain had two goals disallowed and two claims for a penalty denied
35.
Morocco
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Morocco, officially known as the Kingdom of Morocco, is a sovereign country located in the Maghreb region of North Africa. Geographically, Morocco is characterized by a mountainous interior, large tracts of desert. Morocco has a population of over 33.8 million and an area of 446,550 km2 and its capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca. Other major cities include Marrakesh, Tangier, Tetouan, Salé, Fes, Agadir, Meknes, Oujda, Kenitra, a historically prominent regional power, Morocco has a history of independence not shared by its neighbours. Marinid and Saadi dynasties continued the struggle against foreign domination, the Alaouite dynasty, the current ruling dynasty, seized power in 1666. In 1912 Morocco was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with a zone in Tangier. Moroccan culture is a blend of Arab, indigenous Berber, Sub-Saharan African, Morocco claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara as its Southern Provinces. Morocco annexed the territory in 1975, leading to a war with indigenous forces until a cease-fire in 1991. Peace processes have thus far failed to break the political deadlock, Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive and legislative powers, especially over the military, foreign policy, the king can issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law. He can also dissolve the parliament after consulting the Prime Minister, Moroccos predominant religion is Islam, and the official languages are Arabic and Tamazight. The Moroccan dialect, referred to as Darija, and French are also widely spoken, Morocco is a member of the Arab League, the Union for the Mediterranean, and the African Union. It has the fifth largest economy of Africa, the full Arabic name al-Mamlakah al-Maghribiyyah translates to Kingdom of the West, although the West in Arabic is الغرب Al-Gharb. The basis of Moroccos English name is Marrakesh, its capital under the Almoravid dynasty, the origin of the name Marrakesh is disputed, but is most likely from the Berber words amur akush or Land of God. The modern Berber name for Marrakesh is Mṛṛakc, in Turkish, Morocco is known as Fas, a name derived from its ancient capital of Fes. The English name Morocco is an anglicisation of the Spanish Marruecos, the area of present-day Morocco has been inhabited since Paleolithic times, sometime between 190,000 and 90,000 BC. During the Upper Paleolithic, the Maghreb was more fertile than it is today, twenty-two thousand years ago, the Aterian was succeeded by the Iberomaurusian culture, which shared similarities with Iberian cultures. Skeletal similarities have been suggested between the Iberomaurusian Mechta-Afalou burials and European Cro-Magnon remains, the Iberomaurusian was succeeded by the Beaker culture in Morocco
36.
Federal Bureau of Investigation
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The Federal Bureau of Investigation is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States, which simultaneously serves as the nations prime federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the U. S. Department of Justice, Intelligence Community and reports to both the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence. A leading U. S. counterterrorism, counterintelligence, and criminal investigative organization, although many of the FBIs functions are unique, its activities in support of national security are comparable to those of the British MI5 and the Russian FSB. At an FBI field office, a senior-level FBI officer concurrently serves as the representative of the Director of National Intelligence. Despite its domestic focus, the FBI also maintains a significant international footprint and these overseas offices exist primarily for the purpose of coordination with foreign security services and do not usually conduct unilateral operations in the host countries. The FBI can and does at times carry out secret activities overseas, just as the CIA has a domestic function. The FBI was established in 1908 as the Bureau of Investigation and its name was changed to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935. The FBI headquarters is the J. Edgar Hoover Building, located in Washington, in the fiscal year 2012, the Bureaus total budget was approximately $8.12 billion. In 1896, the National Bureau of Criminal Identification was founded, the 1901 assassination of President William McKinley created an urgent perception that America was under threat from anarchists. The Departments of Justice and Labor had been keeping records on anarchists for years, the Justice Department had been tasked with the regulation of interstate commerce since 1887, though it lacked the staff to do so. It had made little effort to relieve its staff shortage until the breakage of the Oregon land fraud scandal at approximately the turn of the 20th Century, President Roosevelt instructed Attorney General Charles Bonaparte to organize an autonomous investigative service that would report only to the Attorney General. Bonaparte reached out to other agencies, including the Secret Service, for personnel, on May 27,1908, the Congress forbade this use of Treasury employees by the Justice Department, citing fears that the new agency would serve as a secret police department. Again at Roosevelts urging, Bonaparte moved to organize a formal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Investigation was created on July 26,1908, after the Congress had adjourned for the summer. Attorney General Bonaparte, using Department of Justice expense funds, hired thirty-four people, including veterans of the Secret Service. Its first Chief was Stanley Finch, Bonaparte notified the Congress of these actions in December 1908. The bureaus first official task was visiting and making surveys of the houses of prostitution in preparation for enforcing the White Slave Traffic Act, or Mann Act, in 1932, the bureau was renamed the United States Bureau of Investigation. The following year it was linked to the Bureau of Prohibition, in the same year, its name was officially changed from the Division of Investigation to the present-day Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI. J. Edgar Hoover served as Director from 1924 to 1972, a combined 48 years with the BOI, DOI, Hoover was substantially involved in most major cases and projects that the FBI handled during his tenure
37.
2010 FIFA World Cup
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The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for mens national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010, the matches were played in 10 stadiums in nine host cities around the country, with the final played at the Soccer City stadium in South Africas largest city, Johannesburg. Thirty-two teams were selected for participation via a qualification tournament that began in August 2007. In the first round of the tournament finals, the competed in round-robin groups of four teams for points. These 16 teams advanced to the stage, where three rounds of play decided which teams would participate in the final. In the final, Spain, the European champions, defeated the Netherlands 1–0 after extra time, as a result of their win, Spain represented the World in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. Host nation South Africa,2006 champions Italy and 2006 runners-up France were all eliminated in the first round of the tournament and it was the first time that the hosts had been eliminated in the first round. New Zealand, with their three draws, were the undefeated team in the tournament, but they were also eliminated in the first round. Africa was chosen as the host for the 2010 World Cup as part of a policy, abandoned in 2007. Five African nations placed bids to host the 2010 World Cup, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, following the decision of the FIFA Executive Committee not to allow co-hosted tournaments, Tunisia withdrew from the bidding process. The committee also decided not to consider Libyas solo bid as it no longer met all the stipulations laid down in the official List of Requirements. South Africa, which had failed to win the right to host the 2006 event, was thus awarded the right to host the tournament. Having successfully campaigned for South Africa to be granted host status, during 2006 and 2007, rumours circulated in various news sources that the 2010 World Cup could be moved to another country. Franz Beckenbauer, Horst R. Schmidt and, reportedly, some FIFA executives, expressed concern over the planning, organisation, and pace of South Africas preparations. Blazer stated, I and others on the Fifa executive committee agreed to accept bribes in conjunction with the selection of South Africa as the host nation for the 2010 World Cup. On 6 June 2015, The Daily Telegraph reported that Morocco had actually won the vote, the qualification draw for the 2010 World Cup was held in Durban on 25 November 2007. As the host nation, South Africa qualified automatically for the tournament, as happened in the previous tournament, the defending champions were not given an automatic berth, and Italy had to participate in qualification. With a pool of entrants comprising 204 of the 208 FIFA national teams at the time, some controversies arose during the qualifications
38.
Louvre
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The Louvre or the Louvre Museum is the worlds largest museum and a historic monument in Paris, France. A central landmark of the city, it is located on the Right Bank of the Seine in the citys 1st arrondissement, approximately 38,000 objects from prehistory to the 21st century are exhibited over an area of 72,735 square metres. The Louvre is the second most visited museum after the Palace Museum in China. The museum is housed in the Louvre Palace, originally built as a fortress in the late 12th century under Philip II, remnants of the fortress are visible in the basement of the museum. Due to the expansion of the city, the fortress eventually lost its defensive function and. The building was extended many times to form the present Louvre Palace, in 1692, the building was occupied by the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres and the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture, which in 1699 held the first of a series of salons. The Académie remained at the Louvre for 100 years, during the French Revolution, the National Assembly decreed that the Louvre should be used as a museum to display the nations masterpieces. The museum opened on 10 August 1793 with an exhibition of 537 paintings, because of structural problems with the building, the museum was closed in 1796 until 1801. The collection was increased under Napoleon and the museum renamed Musée Napoléon, the collection was further increased during the reigns of Louis XVIII and Charles X, and during the Second French Empire the museum gained 20,000 pieces. Holdings have grown steadily through donations and bequests since the Third Republic, whether this was the first building on that spot is not known, it is possible that Philip modified an existing tower. According to the authoritative Grand Larousse encyclopédique, the name derives from an association with wolf hunting den, in the 7th century, St. Fare, an abbess in Meaux, left part of her Villa called Luvra situated in the region of Paris to a monastery. This territory probably did not correspond exactly to the modern site, the Louvre Palace was altered frequently throughout the Middle Ages. In the 14th century, Charles V converted the building into a residence and in 1546, Francis acquired what would become the nucleus of the Louvres holdings, his acquisitions including Leonardo da Vincis Mona Lisa. After Louis XIV chose Versailles as his residence in 1682, constructions slowed, however, on 14 October 1750, Louis XV agreed and sanctioned a display of 96 pieces from the royal collection, mounted in the Galerie royale de peinture of the Luxembourg Palace. Under Louis XVI, the museum idea became policy. The comte dAngiviller broadened the collection and in 1776 proposed conversion of the Grande Galerie of the Louvre – which contained maps – into the French Museum, many proposals were offered for the Louvres renovation into a museum, however, none was agreed on. Hence the museum remained incomplete until the French Revolution, during the French Revolution the Louvre was transformed into a public museum. In May 1791, the Assembly declared that the Louvre would be a place for bringing together monuments of all the sciences, on 10 August 1792, Louis XVI was imprisoned and the royal collection in the Louvre became national property
39.
1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
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A total of 147 teams entered the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, competing for 22 of the total 24 spots in the final tournament. The United States, as the hosts, and Germany, as the defending champions, the draw was made in New York on 8 December 1991. For the first time,3 teams would qualify from the African zone, South America,3.5 places, contested by 9 teams. The winner of the 0.5 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs, north, Central America and Caribbean,2.25 places,1 of them went to automatic qualifier United States, while the other 1.25 places were contested by 22 teams. The winner of the 0.25 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs, africa,3 places, contested by 40 teams. Asia,2 places, contested by 30 teams, oceania,0.25 place, contested by 7 teams. The winner of the 0.25 place would advance to the intercontinental play-offs, a total of 130 teams played at least one qualifying match. A total of 497 qualifying matches were played, and 1446 goals were scored, to see the dates and results of the qualification rounds for each continental zone, click on the following articles, Europe Group 1 – Italy and Switzerland qualified. Group 2 – Norway and Netherlands qualified, Group 3 – Spain and Republic of Ireland qualified. Group 4 – Romania and Belgium qualified, Group 5 – Greece and Russia qualified. Group 6 – Sweden and Bulgaria qualified, South America Group A – Colombia qualified. Argentina advanced to the CONMEBOL–CONCACAF/OFC intercontinental play-off, Group B – Brazil and Bolivia qualified. North, Central America and Caribbean Mexico qualified, canada advanced to the CONCACAF–OFC intercontinental play-off. Africa Group 1 – Nigeria qualified, asia Saudi Arabia and South Korea qualified. Oceania Australia advanced to the CONCACAF–OFC intercontinental play-off, for the first time, there would be two rounds of play in the intercontinental play-offs. The teams from CONCACAF and OFC would first play against each other on a home-and-away basis, the winner would then play against the team from CONMEBOL on a home-and-away basis. The aggregate score was tied at 3–3, however, Australia advanced 4–1 on penalties to the CONMEBOL–CONCACAF/OFC intercontinental play-off, Argentina qualified by the aggregate score of 2–1. Brazil had played 31 World Cup qualifying matches before, the entire team of Zambia was killed in a plane crash in Gabon carrying them to a qualifier against Senegal
40.
CONMEBOL
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The South American Football Confederation is the continental governing body of association football in South America and it is one of FIFAs six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Paraguay, CONMEBOL is responsible for the organization and governance of South American footballs major international tournaments. With 10 member football associations, it has the fewest members of all the confederations in FIFA, CONMEBOL national teams have won nine FIFA World Cups, and CONMEBOL clubs have won 22 Intercontinental Cups and four FIFA Club World Cups. Argentina and Uruguay have won two Olympic gold medals each, Brazil has won one Olympic gold medal and it is considered one of the strongest confederations in the world. Currently, the Confederation is planning to create the first womens qualification to the FIFA Womens World Cup to replace the Copa América Femenina. Juan Ángel Napout was the president of CONMEBOL until December 3,2015 when he was arrested in a raid in Switzerland as part of the U. S. Justice Departments widening bribery case involving FIFA. Wilmar Valdez was interim president until January 26,2016 when Alejandro Domínguez was elected president, the first and second vice-presidents are Ramón Jesurum and Laureano González. The four participating associations of that tournament gathered together in order to create a governing body to facilitate the organization of the tournament. The constitutional congress on December 15 of that same year ratified the decision, over the years, the other football associations in South America joined, with the last being Venezuela in 1952. Guyana, Suriname, and the French overseas department of French Guiana, with ten member nations, CONMEBOL is the smallest and the only fully continental land-based FIFA confederation. The main competition for national teams is the Copa América. CONMEBOL also runs national competitions at Under-20, Under-17 and Under-15 levels, for womens national teams, CONMEBOL operates the Copa América Femenina for senior national sides, as well as Under-20 and Under-17 championships. In futsal there is the Copa América de Futsal and Campeonato Sudamericano de Futsal Sub-20, the Campeonato Sudamericano Femenino de Futsal is the womens equivalent to the mans tournament. A third competition, the Copa CONMEBOL, started in 1992 and was abolished in 1999, in womens football CONMEBOL also conducts the Copa Libertadores Femenina for club teams. The competition was first held in 2009, the Recopa Sudamericana pits the past years winners of the Copa Libertadores against the winners of the Copa Sudamericana, and came into being in 1989. The Intercontinental Cup was jointly organised with UEFA between the Copa Libertadores and the UEFA Champions League winners. S, department of Justice on charges of corruption, money laundering, and racketeering. Those swept up in the operation include former CONMEBOL Presidents Eugenio Figueredo and Nicolás Léoz and several football federations presidents such as Carlos Chavez, on 3 December 2015, the CONMEBOL President Juan Ángel Napout was arrested also
41.
Confederation of African Football
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The Confederation of African Football is the administrative and controlling body for African association football. CAF represents the football associations of Africa, runs continental, national, and club competitions. CAF is the biggest of six continental confederations of FIFA, CAF has been given 5 slots out of the 32 available since the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France, this increased to 6 in 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, to include the hosts. The number of places returned to 5 for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and its first headquarters was situated in Khartoum, Sudan for some months until a fire outbreak in the offices of the Sudanese Football Association when the organization moved near Cairo. Youssef Mohammad was the first General Secretary and Abdel Aziz Abdallah Salem the president, the administrative center since 2002 is located in 6th of October City, near Cairo. It was initially made up of 4 national associations, currently there are 56 associations,55 full members since the inclusion of Zanzibar in March 2017 and Réunion Island as associate. The current CAF President is Ahmad Ahmad, suketu Patel is the 1st Vice-President, Almamy Kabele Camara is the 2nd Vice-President while Essam El Dine Ahmed is the Acting Secretary General. Hayatou announced that he would seek another term as president for the 16 March 2017 election. On March 16,2017, Ahmad Ahmad from Madagascar was elected president, in July 2016, Total has secured an eight-year sponsorship package from the Confederation of African Football to support 10 of its principal competitions. Total started with the Africa Cup of Nations that was held in Gabon therefore renaming it Total Africa cup of Nations. Reunion holds associate membership of CAF, Zanzibar held associate membership from 1980 to 2017 when it became a full member - albeit without voting rights for CAF presidency elections, the main competition for mens national teams is the Africa Cup of Nations, started in 1957. In 2009, CAF will be organising another competition for national teams. CAF also runs national competitions at Under-20 and Under-17 levels, a third competition, the CAF Cup, started in 1992 and was absorbed into the CAF Confederation Cup in 2004. The CAF Super Cup, which pits the winners of the Champions League against the winners of the CAF Confederation Cup, the Afro-Asian Club Championship was jointly organised with AFC between the winners of the CAF Champions League and the winners of the AFC Champions League. The last Afro-Asian Club Championship took place in 1998, * jointly organised with AFC Legend For each tournament, the number of teams in each finals tournament are shown. Teams are sorted by number of appearances, Legend Legend The following clubs are the top 10 clubs in CAF competitions
42.
CONCACAF
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Three South American entities—the independent nations of Guyana and Suriname and the French department of French Guiana—are also members. CONCACAFs primary functions are to organize competitions for teams and clubs. Canada, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Panama, Suriname, CONCACAF is the third-most successful FIFA confederation. Mexico dominated CONCACAF mens competition early on and has won the most Gold Cups since the beginning of the tournament in its current format. The Mexican national team is the only CONCACAF team to win an official FIFA tournament by winning the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup and they have also reached the Round of 16 for the past 6 World Cups. Between them, Mexico and the U. S. have won all, in recent years Costa Rica has become a power in the region and in 2014 became the 4th CONCACAF country after the United States, Cuba, and Mexico to make the World Cup quarterfinals. CONCACAF is led by a General Secretary, Executive Committee, Congress, the Executive Committee is composed of eight members — one president, three vice-presidents, three members, and one female member. Each of the three zones in CONCACAF is represented by one vice-president and one member. The Executive Committee carries out the various statutes, regulations, in 1969, he was succeeded in the role by Mexican Joaquín Soria Terrazas, who served as president for 21 years. His successor Jack Warner was the CONCACAF president from 1990 to 2011, Warner was suspended as president on 30 May 2011 due to his temporary suspension from football related activity by FIFA following corruption allegations. Chuck Blazer was the General Secretary during the same period, the vice-president of CONCACAF, Alfredo Hawit, acted as president until May 2012. In May 2012, Cayman Islands banker Jeffrey Webb was installed as President of CONCACAF, on 27 May 2015, Webb was arrested in Zurich, Switzerland on corruption charges in the U. S. Victor Montagliani, leader of the Canadian Soccer Association, was elected as president of CONCACAF in May 2016, CONCACAF is a non-profit company registered in Nassau, Bahamas. The headquarters of the CONCACAF are currently located in the Admiral Financial Center, George Town, previously, they were based in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago under the presidency of Jack Warner. The administration office of CONCACAF is located in Miami—the home town of Enrique Sanz, Enrique Sanz was appointed as the CONCACAF General Secretary in July 2012. It was previously located in Trump Tower, New York when Chuck Blazer was the General Secretary, there is also an office in Guatemala City, which is shared with UNCAF and an office in New York. CONCACAF has 41 member associations,27 from the Caribbean 7 from Central America 4 from North America 3 from South America M = Mens National Team. Bonaire were promoted from a member to a full member at the XXIX Ordinary CONCACAF Congress in São Paulo on 10 June 2014
43.
Iran national football team
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The National football team of Iran, also known as Team Melli, represents Iran in international football competitions and is governed by the Iran Football Federation. The national football team of Iran, known as Team Melli, ranks 1st in Asia, Iran is one of the most successful national teams in Asia with three Asian Cup championships. Iran has qualified for the World Cup four times but has never advanced past the group stage, Irans only win in the World Cup has been a 2–1 victory against the United States in 1998. The Iranian Football Federation was founded in 1920, in 1926 Tehran XI traveled across the border to Baku, USSR, this was the first away football match for an Iranian team. This Tehran Select team is the predecessor of Irans national football team. The first match that Team Melli played was on 23 August 1941, away at Kabul in a 1–0 win against British India, while Irans first FIFA international match was on 25 August 1941, away at Afghanistan. Iran won the Asian Cup three consecutive times, to which the team has not been able to add since, Iran lost two of three group stage matches against the Netherlands and Peru. After the 1979 Revolution, football was somewhat neglected and cast aside, during the 1980s, the Iranian national team did not feature in World Cup competitions due to the Iran–Iraq War and domestic football suffered the inevitable effects of conflict. The national team withdrew from the Asian qualifiers for the 1982 World Cup, the war and political upheavals left Iran without major club competitions until 1989 when the Qods League was established. A year later, the Qods League was renamed the Azadegan League, both games finished undecided, but Iran managed to qualify due to the away goals rule. Iran held Australia to a 1–1 draw at home, and a 2–2 draw in Melbourne, however, since Iran had scored more away goals, they were able to qualify for the Cup. At their first game of the Group F at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Iran played well against Yugoslavia, losing narrowly 1–0, only to a free kick goal by Siniša Mihajlović. Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the game, beating the United States 2–1, with Hamid Estili. The Iran vs USA World Cup match was preheated with much excitement because of each countrys political stance after the Iranian revolution and the Iran hostage crisis. However, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, following defeat against Iran, the United States was eliminated from the World Cup. Iran played against Germany in the third game, the goals were scored by Oliver Bierhoff and Jürgen Klinsmann. The one win and two losses meant Iran came third in the group standing and failed to make it to the next round. Iran finished first in the stage of the tournament
44.
Australia national soccer team
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The Australian national soccer team represents Australia in international mens soccer. The team has represented Australia at the FIFA World Cup tournament on four occasions, the team has also represented Australia at the FIFA Confederations Cup three times. The first Australia national team was constituted in 1922 for a tour of New Zealand, during the tour, Australia suffered two defeats and scraped a draw. For the next 36 years, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa became regular opponents in tour matches, during that period, Australia also competed against Canada and India during their tours of Australia in 1924 and 1938 respectively. Australia recorded their worst ever defeat on 30 June 1951 as they lost 17–0 in a match to a touring England side, Australia had a rare opportunity to compete on the worlds stage during the teams very first major international tournament as hosts of the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. However, an inexperienced squad proved to be reason for the disappointing performance. With the advent of air travel, Australia began to diversify its range of opponents. However, its isolation continued to play a role in its destiny for the next 30 years. It would prove to be the appearance for the Australian team until the World Cup tournament returned to Germany more than three decades later in 2006. The teams previously poor record in World Cup competition was not reflected in their performances against strong European. In 1988, Australia defeated reigning world champions Argentina 4–1 in the Australian Bicentennial Gold Cup, in 1997, Australia drew with reigning world champions Brazil 0–0 in the group stage and then defeated Uruguay 1–0 in the semi-finals to reach the 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup Final. Many commentators and fans, most notably soccer broadcaster and former Australian captain Johnny Warren, on 13 March, the AFC executive committee made a unanimous decision to invite Australia to join the AFC. After the OFC executive committee unanimously endorsed Australias proposed move, FIFA approved the move on 30 June 2005. Australia joined Asia, with the taking effect on 1 January 2006, though until then. After a successful campaign, the team took the first steps towards qualification for the 2006 World Cup, after coach Frank Farina stood down from the position after Australias dismal performance at the 2005 Confederations Cup, Guus Hiddink was announced as the new national coach. Australia, ranked 49th, would then have to play the 18th ranked Uruguay in a rematch of the 2001 qualification play-off for a spot in the 2006 World Cup. The second leg of the qualifying play-off was played in front of a crowd of 82,698 at Stadium Australia, Australia led Uruguay 1–0 after 90 minutes following a goal by Mark Bresciano in the first half. The aggregate was tied, and extra time was played, neither team scored after two periods of extra time, bringing the game to a penalty shootout
France (1st title)
Brazil
Croatia
Netherlands
Michael Owen
Morocco
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Brazil
Norway
Scotland
Italy
Chile
Austria
Cameroon
Denmark
South Africa
Saudi Arabia
South Africa
Nigeria
Paraguay
Spain
Bulgaria
Netherlands
Mexico
Belgium
South Korea
Mexico
Germany
FR Yugoslavia
Iran
United States
United States
Romania
Colombia
Tunisia
Argentina
Jamaica
Japan
114'
38'
Ariel Ortega
Marc Wilmots
Robert Prosinečki
Brian Laudrup
Michael Owen
Emmanuel Petit
Roberto Baggio
Theodore Whitmore
Ricardo Peláez
Salaheddine Bassir
Phillip Cocu
Viorel Moldovan
Shaun Bartlett
Fernando Hierro
Slobodan Komljenović
Andreas Herzog
Emil Kostadinov
Patrick M'Boma
José Luis Sierra
Léider Preciado
Andreas Möller
Mehdi Mahdavikia
Masashi Nakayama
Mutiu Adepoju
Dan Eggen
Celso Ayala
Sami Al-Jaber
Craig Burley
Ha Seok-ju
Skander Souayah
Brian McBride
Patrick Kluivert
