1.
Kazakhstan women's national football team
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Kazakhstan womens national football team represent Kazakhstan in international football. Kazakhstan made their debut in the Asian championships in 1995, Kazakhstan came second-to-last in their group. Two years later, Kazakhstan came last in the same championships, in 1999 Kazakhstan were third in their group, but only the first-placed teams qualified. This was Kazakhstans last Asian championships, in 2001, Kazakhstan looked to move to UEFA, and in 2002, they began to play their qualifying games there. It was the qualification for the European Championships in 2005 where Kazakhstan played their first qualification games, Kazakhstan began at Class B and came last in their group with just 2 points. Kazakhstan also finished last in the qualification for the World Cup in 2007, the qualification for the European Championships in 2009 were the first without seeded pre-qualification, but Kazakhstan still had to play a pre-qualification game. Kazakhstan came back against Wales after having lost 1–2 against them in a mini-tournament in Macedonia, *Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks. **Competed in the Asia qualification process Official website FIFA profile
2.
Football Federation of Kazakhstan
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The Football Federation of Kazakhstan is the governing body of football in Kazakhstan. It organizes the league, the Kazakhstan Premier League. The same year the Football Association of Kazakhstan became a member of FIFA. Its foundation marked the beginning of organising the Kazakh football according to international standards, F. F. K. has developed into the biggest sport federation of the country, football in Kazakhstan being regarded as the king of sports, occupying first place in sport fans preferences. In 1992, the federation conducted various professional level competitions, such as the league championship. In 1994 the F. F. K. was finally accepted as a member of FIFA. The decision to join the AFC was taken after a vote, the first national team match with a team outside of Central Asia took place in December 1995. The same year Oleg Litvinenko, representing Kazakhstan, was recognized as the best Asian player, in 2000, the Football Federation of Kazakhstan became a candidate member of UEFA and obtained its full membership a couple of years later. In 2008, the established a major U-17 tournament, the Kazakhstan President Cup. Spain won it in 2014 and 2015, Football in Kazakhstan Official Website Kazakhstan at FIFA site Kazakhstan at UEFA site
3.
UEFA
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The Union of European Football Associations is the administrative body for association football in Europe, although several member states are primarily or entirely located in Asia. It is one of six continental confederations of world footballs governing body FIFA, UEFA consists of 55 national association members. Until 1959 the main headquarters were located in Paris, and later in Bern, in 1995, UEFA headquarters were transferred to Nyon, Switzerland. Henri Delaunay was the first general secretary and Ebbe Schwartz the first president, UEFA was founded on 15 June 1954 in Basel, Switzerland after consultation between the Italian, French, and Belgian associations. The European football union began with 25 members, that number doubled by the early 1990s, UEFA membership coincides for the most part with recognition as a sovereign country in Europe, although there are some exceptions. Some UEFA members are not sovereign states, but form part of a recognized sovereign state in the context of international law. Some UEFA members are transcontinental states, countries which had been members of the Asian Football Confederation were also admitted to the European football association, particularly Israel and Kazakhstan. Additionally some UEFA member associations allow teams from outside their associations main territory to take part in their domestic competition, saarland Football Union 1954–1956 German football association of the German Democratic Republic 1954–1990 Football Federation of the Soviet Union 1954–1991, in 1992 became Russian Football Union. The newly independent 14 Soviet Republics created their own football associations, Football Association of Yugoslavia 1954–1992, became Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Slovenia became independent, Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro 1992–2006, became Football Association of Serbia. Montenegro, which became independent, created its own football association, the main competition for mens national teams is the UEFA European Football Championship, started in 1958, with the first finals in 1960, and known as the European Nations Cup until 1964. It is also called UEFA or the EURO, UEFA also runs national competitions at Under-21, Under-19 and Under-17 levels. For womens national teams, UEFA operates the UEFA Womens Championship for senior sides as well as Womens Under-19. UEFA also organized the UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup with CAF for youth teams in an effort to boost youth football, UEFA launched the UEFA Regions Cup, for semi-professional teams representing their local region, in 1999. In futsal there is the UEFA Futsal Championship and UEFA Futsal Under-21 Championship, the Italian, German, Spanish and French mens national teams are the sole teams to have won the European football championship in all categories. A second, lower-ranked competition is the UEFA Europa League and this competition, for national knockout cup winners and high-placed league teams, was launched by UEFA in 1971 as a successor of both the former UEFA Cup and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. A third competition, the UEFA Cup Winners Cup, which had started in 1960, was absorbed into the UEFA Cup in 1999, in womens football UEFA also conducts the UEFA Womens Champions League for club teams. The competition was first held in 2001, and known as the UEFA Womens Cup until 2009, the UEFA Super Cup pits the winners of the Champions League against the winners of the Europa League, and came into being in 1973
4.
Stanimir Stoilov
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Stanimir Kolev Stoilov, nicknamed Murray, is a former Bulgarian footballer, former manager of Levski Sofia, Litex Lovech and the Bulgarian national team. He is currently manager of FC Astana of the Kazakhstan Premier League, Stoilov began his career at the local FC Haskovo, where he stayed until 1990. He then spent some playing in Portugal and then for PFC Slavia Sofia before returning again to Levski Sofia for a third spell since July 1998 as a captain. He has also led the team to winning the cup in 2005 and 2007, Bulgarian Supercup in 2005 and 2007. Stoilov briefly coached the Bulgarian national under-19 side, in April 2007, Stanimir Stoilov was assigned as caretaker manager of the Bulgarian national football team for the matches against Belarus in June from the Euro 2008 qualification campaign. His side won the first match against Belarus in Minsk 2–0 on 2 June 2007, on 7 May 2008, Stoilov was sacked from Levski Sofia together with his friend and colleague Nasko Sirakov. Before the 2008–09 season he took over at Litex Lovech and he led them to winning the Bulgarian cup in 2009, but quit after the club failed to reach the group stage of the Europa League. In the beginning of 2009, Stanimir was announced as the manager of Bulgaria, Stoilov didnt manage to get Bulgaria into the World Cup. After two draws with the rival for the play-offs Ireland and a 2–0 victory against Cyprus Bulgarias job was now even harder. After the summer of 2009 Bulgaria won against Latvia 1–0 in a friendly and against Montenegro with 4–1, from that moment everything for Stoilov wasnt going well and he recorded a disappointing loss from Cyprus with 4–1. Bulgaria finished the campaign with a 6–2 win against Georgia, the draw for the UEFA Euro 2012 defined Bulgaria to play along with England, Switzerland, Wales and Montenegro. 2010 was a disappointing year for Stoilov and Bulgaria. He recorded a series of results, including 5 losses. On 7 September 2010, Bulgaria lost for the first time in 5 years in Sofia from Montenegro in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier with a score of 0–1, after this match Stoilov announced his resignation from his position as coach of the national team. In the winter of 2012 Stoilov was appointed as a new manager of Botev Plovdiv and his official debut was on 1 March 2013 against Slavia Sofia in a 2,2 draw. In the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League, Botev eliminated 2 teams, on domestic level, Botev became only 2014 cup runner-up. On 22 June 2014, Stoilov signed with FC Astana of the Kazakhstan Premier League, in the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League, Astana eliminated three teams to reach the play-offs, where they lost to Villarreal. The club won its title in the 2014 season, despite being in third place when Stoilov had become its manager
5.
Captain (association football)
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The team captain is usually identified by the wearing of an armband. The only official responsibility of a captain specified by the Laws of the Game is to participate in the toss prior to kick-off. Contrary to what is said, captains have no special authority under the Laws to challenge a decision by the referee. However, referees may talk to the captain of a side about the general behaviour when necessary. At an award-giving ceremony after a fixture like a cup competition final, any trophy won by a team will be received by the captain who will also be the first one to hoist it. The captain also generally leads the teams out of the room at the start of the match. The captain generally provides a point for the team, if morale is low. Captains may join the manager in deciding the first team for a certain game, in youth or recreational football, the captain often takes on duties, that would, at a higher level, be delegated to the manager. A club captain is usually appointed for a season, if he is unavailable or not selected for a particular game, then the club vice-captain will be appointed to perform a similar role. The match captain is the first player to lift a trophy should the team win one, a good example of this was in the 1999 UEFA Champions League Final when match captain Peter Schmeichel lifted the trophy for Manchester United as club captain Roy Keane was suspended. In the 2012 UEFA Champions League Final, match captain Frank Lampard jointly lifted the trophy for Chelsea with club captain John Terry, a club may appoint two distinct roles, a club captain to represent the players in a public relations role, and correspondent on the pitch. After Neville retired in 2011, regular starter Nemanja Vidić was named as club captain, são Paulos Rogério Ceni is the player who has worn the captains armband the most times. A vice-captain is a player that is expected to captain the side when the captain is not included in the starting eleven, or if, during a game. Examples include Manuel Neuer succeeding Philipp Lahm at Bayern Munich, Marcelo attaining from Sergio Ramos at Real Madrid C. F, gary Cahill being the understudy of John Terry at Chelsea FC and Lionel Messi taking over from Andrés Iniesta at FC Barcelona. Similarly, some clubs also name a 3rd captain to take the role of captain when both the captain and vice-captain are unavailable, during the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Germany had three captains. Michael Ballack had skippered the team since 2004, including the successful qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup. Lahm ended up becoming the permanent captain of Germany, as Ballack was never called up for the national team
6.
Bauyrzhan Islamkhan
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Bauyrzhan Islamkhan is a Kazakh professional footballer who plays for and captains Kairat in the Kazakhstan Premier League. Islamkhan is a member of the Kazakhstan national team, in the past he served as a captain for the Kazakhstan under-21 team. He primarily plays as an attacking midfielder, Islamkhan came up through Tarazs youth academy and impressed from an early age. He made his first team debut on 6 March 2011 in the Kazakhstan Premier League match against Irtysh, at the age of 18, next season he became the captain of the club when he was just 19 years old. He also scored six goals during his stay in Taraz, in 2012 season in the Premier League, Islamkhan recorded 22 appearances and scored 4 goals. Islamkhan has earned the Kazakhstan Football Federations Young Player of the Year award as voted on by the coaches for his performances in his campaign for Taraz during the 2012 season, on his birthday in 2013, he signed a three-year deal with Kuban Krasnodar. He made his debut on 25 February 2013 in a game against Torpedo Armavir. However, he did not play for them in the Russian Premier League, on 6 June 2013, he joined Astana on a season-long loan deal. During his playing for Astana, he appeared in seven matches, on 4 July 2013, he made his debut in the UEFA Europa League, coming on as a substitute in the 62nd minute in a first qualifying round match against Botev Plovdiv. On 11 February 2014, a deal was made between the teams FC Kuban Krasnodar and FC Kairat after that he signed a three-year deal with Kairat. In the end of July,2016 he got an offer from the champions, however, it was rejected by the footballer. Islamkhan made his debut for Kazakhstan in a friendly game against Latvia on 29 February 2012. During 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification tournament, Islamkhan played two times coming on as a substitute in matches against Sweden and Austria, as of match played 8 November 2015. As of match played 10 October 2015
7.
Cap (sport)
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In British sport, a cap is a metaphorical term for a players appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in a match of association football. An early illustration of the first international match between Scotland and England in 1872 shows the Scottish players wearing cowls, and the English wearing a variety of school caps. These to be termed International Caps, the act of awarding a cap is now international and is applied to other sports. Thus, a cap is awarded for each game played and so a player who has played x games, the practice of awarding a physical cap varies from sport to sport. It may be awarded prior to a debut or, particularly for national teams. As an example, the England mens association football teams still awards physical caps, Players are awarded one cap for every match they play — unless they play in a World Cup or European Championship finals tournament. Then they are given a cap for the competition — with the names of all their opponents stitched into the fabric of the cap itself. In mens association football, the record belongs to former player Ahmed Hassan of Egypt, the first footballer to win 100 international caps was Billy Wright of Englands Wolverhampton Wanderers. Wright went on to appear 105 times for England,90 of them he obtained whilst he was a captain, however, it is a players choice to refuse to play for or retire from his or her national team. In cricket, there are two types of caps, firstly, there is the international type, as described above. Some countries also award a domestic type generally known as a county cap, the latter system is most commonly applied in English county cricket. Most counties do not automatically award caps to players on their first appearance, instead, indeed, one can play at the highest domestic level for several years, and have a quite significant career in first-class cricket, without ever winning a cap. The world record for the number of caps in Test cricket is held by Sachin Tendulkar of India, Tendulkar also holds the record for One Day Internationals, with 463 caps. In rugby union,35 players have reached 100 international caps as of 5 June 2012, Players from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland are eligible for selection to the British and Irish Lions touring squad. Lions matches are classed as full international tests, and caps are awarded, the Pacific Islanders team, composed of players from Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Niue and Cook Islands have a similar arrangement, although no players involved have so far reached 100 caps. Players still active at Test level are in bold type, the record for most caps is held by former Australian Kangaroos player & captain Darren Lockyer with 59 games and second place is former New Zealand Kiwis player & captain Ruben Wiki with 55 games. Players still active at Test level are in bold type, mens Records and Facts FIFA Players with 100+ Caps RSSSF Picture of International Football Cap National Museum of Scotland Gallery of International Caps and Honours Caps
8.
Samat Smakov
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Samat Smakov is a Kazakhstani football defender who currently plays for Kazakhstan Premier League club FC Ordabasy. Smakov started his career in his home town Semey playing for FC Elimay and he is a four-time champion of Kazakhstan with four different clubs. Having strong leadership qualities, he has captained most of his teams and he held FC Aktobes club record for most Premier League appearances, before being surpassed by Yuri Logvinenko, in August 2013. He is a current captain of FC Kairat Almaty, in October 2014, Smakov, along with Dmitri Khomich, Mikhail Bakayev, Zaurbek Pliyev and Aleksandr Kislitsyn, was banned from training with FC Kairat by the club. On 6 January 2015, Smakov, along with Aleksandr Kislitsyn, on 4 August 2016, Smakov signed for FC Ordabasy until the end of the 2016 season. Samat received his first cap for Kazakhstan on 31 March 2000 in an Asian Cup qualifier against Jordan at the age of 18, since that time Smakov capped in all major matches of Kazakhstan, including World Cup 2002, World Cup 2006 and Euro 2008 qualifiers. As of June 2016 he has played 74 international matches and scored two goals, his first goal a penalty against Belgium in September 2007, many times he led the team as a captain. Currently he holds a record as the most capped player in Kazakhstan national football team with 74 matches as of June 2016, statistics accurate as of match played 13 October 2015 Scores and results list Kazakhstans goal tally first. com КАЙРАТ ОБЪЯВИЛ О ПОДПИСАНИИ СМАКОВА И ЛОРИЯ
9.
Ruslan Baltiev
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Ruslan Tahiruly Baltiev is a retired Kazakh football midfielder. He is a former Kazakh international, whom he is the most capped player, Baltiev started his career in FC Zhetysu in 1997 and after a remarkable first season in professional football moved to Kazakhstani grand FC Kairat. He also made his debut for the team in the same year. After 4 seasons in the league, his play got noticed by Russian club FC Sokol Saratov. Baltiev spent 2 seasons with the Russian Premier League club and established a name in Russian football. Baltiev was one of the best players in the league and helped his new club Tobol to compete for the title and play in European competitions. In December 2009 Baltiev signed a 2-year contract with FC Zhemchuzhina-Sochi, Russian First Division club. com Ruslan Baltiev at National-Football-Teams. com Ruslan Baltiev – UEFA competition record
10.
Astana Arena
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The Astana Arena is a football stadium in Astana, Kazakhstan. The stadium holds 30,000 and has a retractable roof and it serves as the national stadium for the Kazakhstan national football team. Astana Arena is the second largest stadium in the country and it was built from 2006 to 2009 at a cost of $185 million and it is also a home ground for FC Astana of the Kazakhstan Premier League and FC Bayterek of the Kazakhstan First Division. The stadium hosted the ceremony of the 7th Asian Winter Games on 31 January 2011. Astana Arena was one of the venues to bid to host Euro 2020 matches, Construction of the Astana Arena began in 2006. The stadium was designed by leading sports architects Populous in association with Tabanlioglu Architects, the general contractor was Sembol Construction. It was opened with the Lokomotiv Astana match against the Kazakhstan national under-21 football team on July 3,2009, match judged famous Italian referee Pierluigi Collina, the symbolic first blow at the ball under his whistle struck the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev. On January 31,2011, Astana Arena hosted the ceremony of the 7th Asian Winter Games. The 30, 000-seat stadium was conceived as an amphitheater with a distinctive and instantly recognizable form when viewed from a distance. Essentially a two·tiered structure, the terrace, accommodating 16,000 seats. There is effective separation of VIPs, spectators and players to ensure smooth access, all spectators are seated and have a clear sight line with an unobstructed view of the field of play. The playing surface is covered in high quality grass surface specified to meet FIFA and UEFA criteria, the grass can be covered for other events. The stadium, designed on a form, is constructed on a 232,485 m² rectangular site
11.
Kit (association football)
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In association football, kit is the standard equipment and attire worn by players. The sports Laws of the Game specify the minimum kit which a player must use, footballers generally wear identifying numbers on the backs of their shirts. Professional clubs also usually display players surnames or nicknames on their shirts, Football kit has evolved significantly since the early days of the sport when players typically wore thick cotton shirts, knickerbockers and heavy rigid leather boots. The Laws of the Game set out the equipment which must be worn by all players in Law 4. Five separate items are specified, shirt, shorts, socks, footwear, goalkeepers are allowed to wear tracksuit bottoms instead of shorts. While most players wear studded football boots, the Laws do not specify that these are required, shirts must have sleeves, and goalkeepers must wear shirts which are easily distinguishable from all other players and the match officials. Thermal undershorts may be worn, but must be the colour as the shorts themselves. Shin pads must be covered entirely by the stockings, be made of rubber, plastic or a similar material, and provide a reasonable degree of protection. The only other restriction on equipment defined in the Laws of the Game is the requirement that a player must not use equipment or wear anything that is dangerous to himself or another player. In the event of a match between teams who would wear identical or similar colours the away team must change to a different colour. The England national team plays in red shirts even when it is not required. Many professional clubs also have a kit, ostensibly to be used if both their first-choice and away colours are deemed too similar to those of an opponent. Most professional clubs have retained the basic colour scheme for several decades. Teams representing countries in international competition generally wear national colours in common with other sporting teams of the same nation, shirts are normally made of a polyester mesh, which does not trap the sweat and body heat in the same way as a shirt made of a natural fibre. Depending on local rules, there may be restrictions on how large these logos may be or on what logos may be displayed, competitions such as the Premier League may also require players to wear patches on their sleeves depicting the logo of the competition. The captain of team is usually required to wear an elasticated armband around the left sleeve to identify him as the captain to the referee. Most current players wear specialist football boots, which can be either of leather or a synthetic material. Modern boots are cut slightly below the ankles, as opposed to the high-ankled boots used in former times, studs may be either moulded directly to the sole or be detachable, normally by means of a screw thread
12.
FIFA World Rankings
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The rankings were introduced in December 1992, and eight teams have held the top position, of which Brazil have spent longest ranked first. A points system is used, with points being awarded based on the results of all FIFA-recognised full international matches, the ranking system was most recently revamped after the 2006 World Cup, with the first edition of the new series of rankings issued on 12 July 2006. The most significant change is that the rankings are now based on results over the four years instead of the previous eight years. Alternative systems have been devised, such as the World Football Elo Ratings, based on the Elo rating system used in chess and Go, ranking teams. In December 1992, FIFA first published a listing in order of its member associations to provide a basis for comparison of the relative strengths of these teams. From the following August, this list was more frequently updated, significant changes were implemented in January 1999 and again in July 2006, as a reaction to criticisms of the system. Membership of FIFA has expanded from 167 to 209 since the rankings began, the ranking formula used from August 1993 until December 1998 was very simplistic and quickly became noticed for its lack of supporting factors. When the rankings were introduced, a team received one point for a draw or three for a victory in FIFA-recognised matches – much the same as a traditional league scoring system. This was a simplistic approach, however, and FIFA quickly realised that there were many factors affecting international matches. In order to meet the objective of fairly and accurately comparing the strengths of various national sides. In January 1999, FIFA introduced a system of ranking calculation. For the ranking all matches, their scores and importance were all recorded, only matches for the senior mens national team were included. Separate ranking systems were used for other national sides such as womens and junior teams. The womens rankings were, and still are, based on a procedure which is a version of the Football Elo Ratings. FIFA announced that the system would be updated following the 2006 World Cup. The evaluation period was cut from eight to four years, goals scored and home or away advantage are no longer taken into account, and other aspects of the calculations, including the importance attributed to different types of match, have been revised. The first set of revised rankings and the methodology were announced on 12 July 2006. This change is rooted at least in part in widespread criticism of the ranking system
13.
World Football Elo Ratings
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The World Football Elo Ratings is a ranking system for mens national association football teams that is published by the website eloratings. net. It is based on the Elo rating system but includes modifications to take various football-specific variables into account, like the margin of victory, importance of a match, and home field advantage. Other implementations of the Elo rating system are possible and there is no single nor any official Elo ranking for football teams. The FIFA World Rankings, not based on the Elo method, is the national teams rating system used by the international governing body of football and is therefore more prevalent. The ratings consider all international A matches for which results could be found, Ratings tend to converge on a teams true strength relative to its competitors after about 30 matches. Ratings for teams with fewer than 30 matches should be considered provisional, the FIFA Womens World Rankings system uses a modified version of the Elo formula whereas the FIFA mens ranking system uses a non-Elo formula. The following table shows the top 100 teams in the World Football Elo Ratings on 29 March 2017, each national teams FIFA World Rankings are shown as they were in the latest release on 6 April 2017. Time averaged Elo or Elo-like scores are used to compare chess player strengths. The following is a list of the teams with the highest average Elo score from 1 January 1970 to 1 January 2017. Before this time intercontinental play was limited and many nations in Africa, North America. The team in each confederation that has achieved the highest rank is shown in color, the following is a list of national football teams ranked by their highest Elo ranking ever reached. Note that for the highest ranking/rating of a football team the Elo ratings website ignores the ranking/rating before 30 matches have been played. The table below shows the teams with the best average Elo score per decade, a list of the 16 matches between teams with the highest combined Elo ratings. A list of the matches with the biggest point exchange, the nations points before the matches are given. In 1997 Bob Runyan adapted the Elo rating system to international football and he was also the first maintainer of the World Football Elo Ratings web site, now maintained by Kirill Bulygin. The Elo system was adapted for football by adding a weighting for the kind of match, an adjustment for the home advantage. Ratings tend to converge on a teams true strength relative to its competitors after about 30 matches, Ratings for teams with fewer than 30 matches should be considered provisional. There is no first step as in the FIFA system where a team receives points for the result
14.
Kazakhstan
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Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in northern Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Kazakhstan is the worlds largest landlocked country, and the ninth largest in the world, Kazakhstan is the dominant nation of Central Asia economically, generating 60% of the regions GDP, primarily through its oil/gas industry. It also has vast mineral resources, Kazakhstan is officially a democratic, secular, unitary, constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage. Kazakhstan shares borders with Russia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, the terrain of Kazakhstan includes flatlands, steppe, taiga, rock canyons, hills, deltas, snow-capped mountains, and deserts. Kazakhstan has an estimated 18 million people as of 2014, Given its large area, its population density is among the lowest. The capital is Astana, where it was moved in 1997 from Almaty, the territory of Kazakhstan has historically been inhabited by nomadic tribes. This changed in the 13th century, when Genghis Khan occupied the country as part of the Mongolian Empire, following internal struggles among the conquerors, power eventually reverted to the nomads. By the 16th century, the Kazakh emerged as a distinct group, the Russians began advancing into the Kazakh steppe in the 18th century, and by the mid-19th century, they nominally ruled all of Kazakhstan as part of the Russian Empire. Following the 1917 Russian Revolution, and subsequent civil war, the territory of Kazakhstan was reorganised several times, in 1936, it was made the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, part of the Soviet Union. Kazakhstan was the last of the Soviet republics to declare independence during the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Kazakhstan has worked to develop its economy, especially its dominant hydrocarbon industry. Kazakhstans 131 ethnicities include Kazakhs, Russians, Uzbeks, Ukrainians, Germans, Tatars, the Kazakh language is the state language, and Russian has equal official status for all levels of administrative and institutional purposes. The name Kazakh comes from the ancient Turkic word qaz, to wander, the name Cossack is of the same origin. The Persian suffix -stan means land or place of, so Kazakhstan can be translated as land of the wanderers. Kazakhstan has been inhabited since the Neolithic Age, the regions climate, archaeologists believe that humans first domesticated the horse in the regions vast steppes. Central Asia was originally inhabited by the Scythians, the Cuman entered the steppes of modern-day Kazakhstan around the early 11th century, where they later joined with the Kipchak and established the vast Cuman-Kipchak confederation. Under the Mongol Empire, the largest in history, administrative districts were established. These eventually came under the rule of the emergent Kazakh Khanate, throughout this period, traditional nomadic life and a livestock-based economy continued to dominate the steppe. Nevertheless, the region was the focus of ever-increasing disputes between the native Kazakh emirs and the neighbouring Persian-speaking peoples to the south, at its height the Khanate would rule parts of Central Asia and control Cumania
15.
Turkmenistan national football team
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The Turkmenistan national football team represents Turkmenistan in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Turkmenistan, the governing body for football in Turkmenistan. Turkmenistans home ground is Ashgabat Stadium in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan have never qualified to the final stages of the World Cup. After the country gained independence, they played their first match against Kazakhstan on 1 June 1992 and they qualified for the 2004 Asian Cup. In the second leg the team won Afghanistan, both goals in the scored Begench Kuliyev, in the 2004 Asian Cup that took place in China, the team got to the group «C», with neighbours Uzbekistan, Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Team could only get a point against Saudi Arabia in group play. In February 2010, Turkmenistans national football team was headed by Ýazguly Hojageldyýew, under his leadership the team went to Sri Lanka to participate in the final tournament of the 2010 AFC Challenge Cup. For the first time, they made it to the final of the AFC Challenge Cup, in the same year, the Football Association of Turkmenistan invited a native Turkmen, the head coach of FC Rubin Kazan, Kurban Berdyev to resume leadership. In winter 2012 the team gathered for a camp in Turkey. In preparation for the AFC Challenge Cup 2012 team Ýazguly Hojageldyýew had a match with Romania. In March 2012, the team went to Kathmandu to participate in the tournament of the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup. Turkmenistan national team beat the tournament hosts Nepal and the team of the Maldives match with Palestine ended in a goalless draw, in the semifinals, Turkmenistan defeated the Philippines. In October 2012, Turkmenistans team took place at the 2012 VFF Cup, beating the teams of Vietnam, Laos. March 23,2013 Turkmenistan footballers defeated team Cambodia in Manila, in the second round, our team of Turkmenistan was to meet with the team of Brunei, Brunei but the team did not arrive at the tournament thus was awarded the technical victory 3–0. In the last round of Turkmenistan team lost to Philippines, in June 2014 for poor team play in the final tournament of the AFC Challenge Cup, was dismissed the entire coaching staff, including head coach. 2010 AFC Challenge Cup was used to determine qualification for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification Note and he recruited several Ukrainian players including the ones that had already played for the national team of Ukraine. Match Date,26 March 2017 Opposition, Chinese Taipei Caps, Turkmenistan at FIFA. com Turkmenistan national football team on Facebook
16.
Almaty
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Almaty /ˈælməti/, formerly known as Alma-Ata /ˌælmə. əˈtɑː/ and Verny, is the largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of 1,703,481 people, containing 9% of the countrys total population. Almaty is considered a World City with a Beta - classification according to GaWC and it served as capital of the Kazakh state in its various forms from 1929 to 1997, under the influence of the then Soviet Union and its appointees. Alma-Ata was the host city for a 1978 international conference on Primary Health Care where the Alma Ata Declaration was adopted, in 1997, the government relocated the capital to Astana in the north of the country. Almaty continues as the commercial and cultural centre of Kazakhstan. From 1929 to 1936, Almaty was the capital of Kazakh ASSR, from 1936 to 1991 it was the capital of Kazakh SSR. After Kazakhstan became independent in 1991, Almaty continued as the capital until 1997, Almaty remains the largest, most developed, and most ethnically and culturally diverse city in Kazakhstan. The city is in the foothills of Trans-Ili Alatau in the extreme south-east and it has a relatively mild climate with warm summers and quite cold winters. Since the city is in an active area, it has an endemic risk of earthquakes. Although most do not cause any significant damage, Almaty has suffered some large destructive earthquakes, in 1997 the capital was moved to Astana in the north-central part of the country. Since then Almaty has been referred to as the capital of Kazakhstan. The name Almaty has its roots in the medieval settlement Almatu, a disputed theory holds that the name is derived from the Kazakh word for apple, and is often translated as full of apples. Originally it was Almatau which means Apple Mountain, the Russian version of the name was Alma-Ata, however, since independence Russian has tended to use the Kazakh Almaty. There is great diversity among the wild apples in the region surrounding Almaty. The wild Malus sieversii is considered a candidate for the ancestor of the modern domestic apple. The citys name was written as آلماتی in Turkish and Persian written with the Perso-Arabic script, during 1000–900 BC in the Bronze Age, the first farmers and cattle-breeders established settlements in the territory of Almaty. During the Saka period, these lands were occupied by the Saka and later Wusun tribes, evidence of these times can be found in the numerous burial mounds and ancient settlements, especially the giant burial mounds of the Saka tsars. The most famous archaeological finds have been the The Golden man, also known as The Golden Warrior, from the Issyk Kurgan, the Zhalauly treasure, the Kargaly diadem, during the period of Saka and Wusun governance, Almaty became an early educational centre. During the Middle Ages, a city developed in Almaty
17.
Pakistan national football team
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Pakistans home ground is Punjab Stadium, Lahore, and the current team manager is Mohammad Al-Shamlan. Pakistan became a member of FIFA in 1948 joining the Asian Football Confederation, Pakistans national team debuted in 1950. Pakistan contest the South Asian Football Federation Championship and South Asian Games, Pakistan won the Colombo Cup in 1952, jointly with India. Pakistan have never won the SAFF South Asian Football Championship – their best performances being semi-final appearances at the 1997 and 2005 Championships, Pakistan lost their first international 5–1 away to Iran on 6 January 1950. Two years later entered the Colombo Cup in Ceylon, and were held to a goalless draw in the first match against India. They then beat hosts Ceylon 2–0 and a 1–0 win in their match against Burma made them joint champions with India. Pakistan then hosted Iran in April and drew 0–0, the following year Pakistan were runners-up in the Colombo Cup, having achieved a 6–0 win against Ceylon in Rangoon. In 1954, after again becoming runners up in the Colombo Cup, Pakistan defeated Singapore 6–2 in the Asian Games, in the final edition of the Colombo Cup, the team came second for the third year in a row to India. Pakistan failed to progress in the 1958 Asian Games after being defeated by Chinese Taipei 3–1, in 1959, they failed to qualify for the Asian Cup, after a 4–1 loss by Iran, 1–0 defeat to India and 2–0 loss to Israel. Several months later, the Green Shirts travelled to Malaya for the Merdeka Cup and they started by beating Thailand 7–0, which still shares the Pakistani record. It was followed by a 1–0 loss to the hosts Malaya, then a 3–1 victory over Japan, Pakistan returned to the Merdeka Cup two years later and this time reached the final against Indonesia, but succumbed to 2–1 defeat. It was three years before Pakistan played another competitive fixture, when played in the first RDC Cup. In 1967, they played a series of friendlies against Saudi Arabia, later in the year Pakistan lost their Asian Cup qualifiers against Burma and Khmer and drew their final match against India. They then hosted the second RDC Cup and finished third, which included the 4–7 defeat to Turkey, in 1969, they travelled to Iran to take part in friendly tournament, in which they had a 2–1 win against Iraq and a record 9–1 defeat by Iran. As a result of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, East Pakistan became The Peoples Republic of Bangladesh, in the early 1970s the national sides participation was restricted to the RDC Cup and the 1974 Asian Games, and a single friendly against South Korea in 1978. The most notable result in this period was a 2–2 draw against Turkey and they also lost 8–0 to Kenya in Riyadh Saudi Arabias Arabi tournament In the Kings Cup in 1982, Pakistan secured a goalless draw against Indonesia, the teams first clean sheet since 1962. After a loss to Thailand, they gained a 3–2 victory versus Malaysia and although they lost a game against China. Pakistan hosted a tournament involving Iran, Bangladesh, Oman
18.
Lahore
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Lahore is the capital city of the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is the second most populous city in Pakistan and the 32nd most populous city in the world, the city is located in the north-eastern end of Pakistans Punjab province, near the border with the Indian state of Punjab. Lahore is ranked as a world city, and is one of Pakistans wealthiest cities with an estimated GDP of $58.14 billion as of 2014. Lahore is the cultural centre of the Punjab region, and is the largest Punjabi city in the world. The city has a history, and was once under the rule of the Hindu Shahis, Ghaznavids, Ghurids. Lahore reached the height of its splendour under the Mughal Empire, the city was contested between the Maratha Empire and Durrani Empire, then became capital of the Sikh Empire, before becoming the capital of the Punjab under British rule. Following the independence of Pakistan in 1947, Lahore became the capital of Pakistans Punjab province, Lahore is one of Pakistans most liberal and cosmopolitan cities. It exerts a strong influence over Pakistan. Lahore is a centre for Pakistans publishing industry, and remains the foremost centre of Pakistans literary scene. The city is also a centre of education in Pakistan. Lahore is also home to Pakistans film industry, Lollywood, and is a centre of Qawwali music. The city is much of Pakistans tourist industry, with major attractions including the old Walled City. Lahore is also home to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Lahore Fort, the etymology of Lahore is uncertain, but according to legend the city was once known as Lavapura, in honour of Prince Lava of the Hindu epic poem, the Ramayana. Lahore Fort also contains a vacant Lava temple, dedicated to the founder of the city. Lahore was called by different names throughout history, to date there is no conclusive evidence as to when it was founded. Lahore is described as a Hindu principality in the Rajput accounts, keneksen, the founder of Suryavansha, is believed to have migrated out from the city. The Solanki tribe, belonging to Amukhara Pattan, which included the Bhatti Rajputs of Jaisalmer, Lahore appears as the capital of the Punjab for the first time under Anandapala – the Hindu Shahi king who is referred to as the ruler of –after leaving the earlier capital of Waihind. Few references to Lahore remain from before its capture by Sultan Mahmud of Ghaznavi in the 11th century, the sultan took Lahore after a long siege and battle in which the city was torched and depopulated
19.
Turkey national football team
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The Turkey national football team represents Turkey in association football and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey. Turkey has qualified three times for the World Cup, in 1950,1954, and 2002, although they withdrew from the 1950 event, Turkey has also qualified four times for the UEFA European Championship, in 1996,2000,2008, and 2016. They have reached the semi-finals of three tournaments, the 2002 World Cup, the 2003 Confederations Cup, and Euro 2008. The Turkish national team played their first ever match against Romania in 1923 drawing 2–2, zeki Rıza Sporel is considered as the first big star of Turkish football as he scored the first two goals against Romania. Turkey played their first ever match at the 1924 Summer Olympics losing 5–2 to Czechoslovakia. Although Turkey qualified for the 1950 World Cup, beating Syria 7–0, Turkey then qualified for the 1954 World Cup after a play-off with Spain. The Turkish team first lost 4–1 to Spain, but a 1–0 win a few days later initiated a replay, on that occasion, they tied 2–2 after, booking their place after a coin toss. Turkey was put in a group along with Hungary and West Germany, the Turks, however, never played Hungary due to the tournament format, and a 4–1 defeat by the Germans was followed by Turkey carrying out a 7–0 win over South Korea. Turkey lost the play-off to West Germany 7–2, in 1956 Turkey did however play Hungary, in a friendly match in Istanbul, beating what was one of the strongest teams of the era 3–1. Lefter Küçükandonyadis, all-time best player of Turkey netted in two goals during the tournament, despite the introduction of a national league, and showings by Turkish clubs in European competition, the 1960s would be a barren time for the national team. Most players from the 1954 World Cup squad were retired, the 1970s saw Turkey holding back in the World Cup and European Championship qualifiers, but the team was a point too short to qualify for both Euro 1972 and Euro 1976. In the 1980s the Turkish team also suffered their worst defeats with 8–0 scorelines against Poland, yet the 1990 World Cup qualifiers would mark a turning point for Turkish football, with Turkey only missing out on qualification in the final game. Prominent players in this period were Rıdvan Dilmen, Oğuz Çetin, Rıza Çalımbay, Feyyaz Uçar, in 1990, German coach Sepp Piontek was put in charge of the national team. Under his guidance, a group of new players debuted for the national team, many of these players which include, Bülent Korkmaz, Alpay Özalan, Sergen Yalçın, Rüştü Reçber, and Hakan Şükür would become the backbone of the national team for many years. Pionteks mission came to an end in 1993, where he was replaced by Fatih Terim, Turkey qualified for its first major tournament since 1954, marking another turning point for Turkish football after having failed to qualify for both Euro 1992 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The appointment of Piontek was a move by another German coach Jupp Derwall. Turkey qualified for Euro 1996, beating both Switzerland and Sweden 2–1 along the way, despite a solid performance during the qualifiers, Turkey lost all their matches without scoring a single goal. They did, however, go home with an award, the fair-play award, Turkey failed to qualify for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, they however qualified for Euro 2000 after winning a play-off against Ireland
20.
Russia national football team
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The Russia national football team represents Russia in association football and is controlled by the Russian Football Union, the governing body for football in Russia. Russias home grounds are Otkrytie Arena, Luzhniki Stadium and Lokomotiv Stadium, Russia qualified for three World Cups, and they have automatically qualified for 2018 as hosts. They have also qualified for five European Championships, led by manager Pavel Sadyrin, Russia were in Group 5 for the qualification campaign for the 1994 FIFA World Cup which consisted of Greece, Iceland, Hungary and Luxembourg. The suspension of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia reduced the group to five teams, Russia eventually qualified alongside Greece with six wins and two draws. Russia went to the USA to start a new era of Russian football as an independent country, in the final tournament, Russia was drawn into group B with Cameroon, Sweden, and Brazil. This was considered a group with Russia having limited chances of qualifying for the second round. In their first two games Russia lost 2–0 to Brazil and 3–1 to Sweden, teetering on elimination, Russia defeated Cameroon 6–1 with Oleg Salenko scoring record five goals in a single match. Russia was eliminated from the tournament with three points from one win and two losses, Sadyrin was later sacked following what was a poor performance. After Sadyrin was sacked, Oleg Romantsev was appointed coach to lead Russia to Euro 96, Romantsev was expected to qualify Russia for the final tournament and perform well. In his squad he selected many players from the 1994 FIFA World Cup such as Viktor Onopko, Aleksandr Mostovoi, Vladimir Beschastnykh, and Valery Karpin. During qualifying, Russia overcame Scotland, Greece, Finland, San Marino, in the final tournament Russia was in Group C with Germany, Czech Republic, and Italy. Group C was considered the group of death with Russia dubbed the weakest team, Russias last game against the Czech Republic ended 3–3. Germany and Czech Republic went on to meet in the final, in the qualifying stage Russia was in Group 5 with Bulgaria, Israel, Cyprus, and Luxembourg. Russia and Bulgaria were considered the two contenders to qualify from the group with Israel considered a minor threat. Russia began the campaign with two victories against Cyprus and Luxembourg and two draws against Israel and Cyprus and they continued with victories against Luxembourg and Israel. Russia suffered their only defeat of the campaign with a 1–0 loss to Bulgaria and they ended the campaign with a 4–2 victory in the return game over Bulgaria and qualify for the play-off spot. In the play-offs, Russia was drawn with Italy, in the first leg Russia drew 1–1. In the away leg, Russia were defeated 1–0 and failed to qualify for the World Cup, after failing to qualify for the World Cup in France, Russia were determined to qualify for the UEFA Euro 2000 co-hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands
21.
Moscow
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Moscow is the capital and most populous city of Russia, with 13.2 million residents within the city limits and 17.8 million within the urban area. Moscow has the status of a Russian federal city, Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, and scientific center of Russia and Eastern Europe, as well as the largest city entirely on the European continent. Moscow is the northernmost and coldest megacity and metropolis on Earth and it is home to the Ostankino Tower, the tallest free standing structure in Europe, the Federation Tower, the tallest skyscraper in Europe, and the Moscow International Business Center. Moscow is situated on the Moskva River in the Central Federal District of European Russia, the city is well known for its architecture, particularly its historic buildings such as Saint Basils Cathedral with its brightly colored domes. Moscow is the seat of power of the Government of Russia, being the site of the Moscow Kremlin, the Moscow Kremlin and Red Square are also one of several World Heritage Sites in the city. Both chambers of the Russian parliament also sit in the city and it is recognized as one of the citys landmarks due to the rich architecture of its 200 stations. In old Russian the word also meant a church administrative district. The demonym for a Moscow resident is москвич for male or москвичка for female, the name of the city is thought to be derived from the name of the Moskva River. There have been proposed several theories of the origin of the name of the river and its cognates include Russian, музга, muzga pool, puddle, Lithuanian, mazgoti and Latvian, mazgāt to wash, Sanskrit, majjati to drown, Latin, mergō to dip, immerse. There exist as well similar place names in Poland like Mozgawa, the original Old Russian form of the name is reconstructed as *Москы, *Mosky, hence it was one of a few Slavic ū-stem nouns. From the latter forms came the modern Russian name Москва, Moskva, in a similar manner the Latin name Moscovia has been formed, later it became a colloquial name for Russia used in Western Europe in the 16th–17th centuries. From it as well came English Muscovy, various other theories, having little or no scientific ground, are now largely rejected by contemporary linguists. The surface similarity of the name Russia with Rosh, an obscure biblical tribe or country, the oldest evidence of humans on the territory of Moscow dates from the Neolithic. Within the modern bounds of the city other late evidence was discovered, on the territory of the Kremlin, Sparrow Hills, Setun River and Kuntsevskiy forest park, etc. The earliest East Slavic tribes recorded as having expanded to the upper Volga in the 9th to 10th centuries are the Vyatichi and Krivichi, the Moskva River was incorporated as part of Rostov-Suzdal into the Kievan Rus in the 11th century. By AD1100, a settlement had appeared on the mouth of the Neglinnaya River. The first known reference to Moscow dates from 1147 as a place of Yuri Dolgoruky. At the time it was a town on the western border of Vladimir-Suzdal Principality
22.
Kazakh language
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Kazakh belongs to the Kipchak branch of the Turkic languages. It is closely related to Nogai, Kyrgyz, and especially Karakalpak, Kazakh is also spoken by many ethnic Kazakhs through the former Soviet Union, Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, and Germany. Like other Turkic languages, Kazakh is a language. The Kazakh language has its speakers spread over a vast territory from the Tian Shan to the shore of Caspian Sea. Kazakh is the state language of Kazakhstan, in which nearly 10 million speakers are reported to live. In China, more than one million ethnic Kazakhs and Kazakh speakers reside in Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture in Xinjiang. Today, Kazakh is written in Cyrillic in Kazakhstan and Mongolia, the oldest known written records of languages closely related to Kazakh were written in the Old Turkic alphabet. However, it is not believed any of these varieties were direct predecessors of Kazakh. Modern Kazakh has historically been written using versions of the Latin, in October 2006, Nursultan Nazarbayev, the President of Kazakhstan, brought up the topic of using the Latin alphabet instead of the Cyrillic alphabet as the official script for Kazakh in Kazakhstan. A Kazakh government study released in September 2007 said that Kazakhstan could feasibly switch to a Latin script over a 10- to 12-year period, the transition was halted temporarily on December 13,2007, with President Nazarbayev declaring, “For 70 years the Kazakhstanis read and wrote in Cyrillic. More than 100 nationalities live in our state, thus we need stability and peace. We should be in no hurry in the issue of alphabet transformation”, Kazakh exhibits tongue-root vowel harmony, with some words of recent foreign origin as exceptions. There is also a system of rounding harmony which resembles that of Kyrgyz, the following chart depicts the consonant inventory of standard Kazakh, many of the sounds, however, are allophones of other sounds or appear only in recent loan-words. The 18 consonant phonemes listed by Vajda are in bold—since these are phonemes, their place and manner of articulation are very general. The borrowed phonemes /f/, /v/, /ɕ/, /t͡ɕ/ and /x/, only occur in recent mostly Russian borrowings, in the table, the elements left of a divide are voiceless, while those to the right are voiced. Kazakh has a system of nine phonemic vowels, three of which are diphthongs, the rounding contrast and /æ/ generally only occur as phonemes in the first syllable of a word, but do occur later allophonically, see the section on harmony below for more information. According to Vajda, the quality of vowels is actually one of neutral versus retracted tongue root. Per convention, rounded vowels are presented to the right of their unrounded counterparts, phonetic values are paired with the corresponding character in Kazakhs Cyrillic alphabet
23.
Soviet Union national football team
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The Soviet Union national football team was the national football team of the Soviet Union. After the breakup of the Union the team was transformed into the CIS national football team, the Soviet Union failed to qualify for the World Cup only twice, in 1974 and 1978, and attended seven finals tournaments in total. Their best finish was fourth in 1966, when they lost to West Germany in the semifinals, the Soviet Union qualified for five European Championships, winning the inaugural competition in 1960 when they beat Yugoslavia in the final, 2–1. They finished second three times, and fourth once, when, having drawn with Italy in the semi-final, the Soviet Union national team also participated in number of Olympic tournaments earning the gold medal in the 1956 and 1988. The Soviet team continued to field its national team players in Olympic tournaments despite the prohibition of FIFA in 1958 to field any national team players in Olympics, however, in 1960 and in 1964 the Soviets were fielding its second national team. The first international played by a Soviet team came in August 1923, nine months after the establishment of the Soviet Union. The first formally recognised match played by the Soviet Union took place a year later, the 1952 Olympics was the first competitive tournament entered by the Soviet Union. In the preliminary round, Bulgaria were defeated 2–1, earning a first round tie against Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia led 5–1, but a Soviet comeback in the last 15 minutes resulted in a 5–5 draw. The match was replayed, Yugoslavia winning 3–1, the Soviet Union entered the World Cup for the first time at the 1958 tournament, following a qualification playoff against Poland. Drawn in a group with Brazil, England and Austria, they collected three points in total, one from England and two from Austria, Soviet Union and England went to a playoff game, in which Anatoli Ilyin scored in the 67th minute to knock England out. The Soviet Union were then eliminated by the hosts of the tournament, Sweden, the inaugural European Championships in 1960 marked the pinnacle of Soviet footballing achievement. Easily progressing to the quarter-finals, the team were scheduled to face Spain, in the semi-final, the Soviet team defeated Czechoslovakia 3–0 and reached the final, where they faced Yugoslavia. In the final, Yugoslavia scored first, but the Soviet Union, led by legendary goalkeeper Lev Yashin, after 90 minutes the score was 1–1, and Viktor Ponedelnik scored with seven minutes left in extra time to give the Soviets the inaugural European Championship. In the 1962 World Cup, the Soviet team was in Group 1 with Yugoslavia, Colombia, the match between Soviet Union and Colombia ended 4–4, Colombia scored a series of goals. Star goalkeeper Lev Yashin was in poor form both against Colombia and Chile and his form was considered as one of the main reasons why Soviet Union team did not gain more success in the tournament. In 1964, the Soviet Union attempted to defend their European Championship title, defeating Italy in the last 16, after two matches against Sweden, the Soviet side won on aggregate. The Soviet Union team went to Spain where the finals were held. In the semi-finals, the Soviet Union defeated Denmark 3–0 in Barcelona but their dreams of winning the title again were dashed in the final when Spain, the 1966 FIFA World Cup was the tournament which the Soviet Union team reached their best result by finishing in fourth place
24.
Asian Football Confederation
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The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football in Asia and Australia. Three other states located along the fringe of Asia – Cyprus, Armenia. Hong Kong and Macau, although not independent countries, are members of the AFC. One of FIFAs six continental confederations, the AFC was formed officially on 8 May 1954 in Manila, Philippines, the main headquarters is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The current president is Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa of Bahrain, the Asian Football Confederation was founded on 8 May 1954. Afghanistan, Burma, Republic of China, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, the Asian Ladies Football Confederation is the section of the AFC who manage womens football in Asia. The group was founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia. In 1986 the ALFC merged with the AFC, the Asian Ladies Football Confederation helped organise the AFC Womens Asian Cup, first held in 1975, as well as the AFCs AFC U-19 Womens Championship and the AFC U-17 Womens Championship. The AFC has 47 member associations split into five regions, all three competitions are held every four years. The top-ranked AFC competition is the AFC Champions League, which started in the 2002–03 season and gathers the top 1–4 teams of each country, a second, lower-ranked competition is the AFC Cup. This competition was launched by AFC in 2004, a third competition, the AFC Presidents Cup, which had started in 2005, was absorbed into the AFC Cup in 2015. The AFC also runs an annual Asian futsal club competition, the AFC Futsal Club Championship
25.
Central Asian Football Association
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The Central Asian Football Association is an association of the football playing nations in Central Asia. In June 2014, the association was in principle approved by the Asian Football Confederation, as a result, CAFA will in the future be able to have member on the AFC executive committee. The formation of CAFA was spearheaded by the Iranian Football Federation following disputes with West Asian Football Federation members and it was reported that AFC President Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa gained politically from the creation of the new zone. Members of the six nations met with AFC president Sheikh Salman on 10 May 2014 to talk about the possibility of creating a new Asian football zone, the delegations were invited by the AFC president following an initiative by Iran and Afghanistan. At the extraordinary AFC congress on 9 June 2014 in São Paulo, CAFA will consist of six member associations. All of them are members of the Asian Football Confederation, the first tournament will be held in Kyrgyzstan in October 2017. The first edition of this tournament concluded on 10 August 2016, Uzbekistan won the final 1–0 over Kyrgyzstan. The CAFA U-19 Womens Cup was played in October 2016 in Tashkent involving four teams, final standings, Uzbekistan Iran Kyrgyzstan Tajikistan An under-15 tournament for all CAFA members plus four Japanese sides was held in March 2015 in Tokyo. Under the motto SPORT FOR TOMORROW, teams played in groups of five, the final was won by Iran over Tajikistan in a penalty shootout. Asian Football Confederation ASEAN Football Federation East Asian Football Federation South Asian Football Federation West Asian Football Federation ECO Cup
26.
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
27.
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
28.
UEFA European Championship
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Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current name in 1968. Starting with the 1996 tournament, specific championships are often referred to in the form UEFA Euro, prior to entering the tournament all teams other than the host nations compete in a qualifying process. The championship winners earn the opportunity to compete in the following FIFA Confederations Cup, to date, Spain is the only team in history to have won consecutive titles, doing so in 2008 and 2012. It is the second most watched football tournament in the world after the FIFA World Cup, the Euro 2012 final was watched by a global audience of around 300 million. The most recent championship, hosted by France in 2016, was won by Portugal, in honour of Delaunay, the trophy awarded to the champions is named after him. The 1960 tournament, held in France, had four competing in the finals out of 17 that entered the competition. It was won by the Soviet Union, beating Yugoslavia 2–1 in a final in Paris. Spain withdrew from its quarter-final match against the USSR because of two political protests, of the 17 teams that entered the qualifying tournament, notable absentees were England, the Netherlands, West Germany and Italy. The hosts beat the holders, the Soviet Union, 2–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid. The tournament format stayed the same for the 1968 tournament, hosted, for the first and only time a match was decided on a coin toss and the final went to a replay, after the match against Yugoslavia finished 1–1. More teams entered this tournament, a testament to its burgeoning popularity, Belgium hosted the 1972 tournament, which West Germany won, beating the USSR 3–0 in the final, with goals coming from Gerd Müller and Herbert Wimmer at the Heysel Stadium in Brussels. This tournament would provide a taste of things to come, as the German side contained many of the key members of the 1974 FIFA World Cup Champions. The 1976 tournament in Yugoslavia was the last in which four teams took part in the final tournament. Czechoslovakia beat West Germany in the newly introduced penalty shootout, after seven successful conversions, Uli Hoeneß missed, leaving Czechoslovakian Antonín Panenka with the opportunity to score and win the tournament. An audacious chipped shot, described by UEFA as perhaps the most famous spot kick of all time secured the victory as Czechoslovakia won 5–3 on penalties, the competition was expanded to eight teams in the 1980 tournament, again hosted by Italy. It involved a stage, with the winners of the groups going on to contest the final. West Germany won their second European title by beating Belgium 2–1, Horst Hrubesch scored early in the first half before René Vandereycken equalised for Belgium with a penalty in the second half. With two minutes remaining, Hrubesch headed the winner for West Germany from a Karl-Heinz Rummenigge corner, the format also changed, with the top two teams in each group going through to a semi-final stage, instead of the winners of each group going straight into the final
29.
Soviet Union
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The Soviet Union, officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a socialist state in Eurasia that existed from 1922 to 1991. It was nominally a union of national republics, but its government. The Soviet Union had its roots in the October Revolution of 1917 and this established the Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic and started the Russian Civil War between the revolutionary Reds and the counter-revolutionary Whites. In 1922, the communists were victorious, forming the Soviet Union with the unification of the Russian, Transcaucasian, Ukrainian, following Lenins death in 1924, a collective leadership and a brief power struggle, Joseph Stalin came to power in the mid-1920s. Stalin suppressed all opposition to his rule, committed the state ideology to Marxism–Leninism. As a result, the country underwent a period of rapid industrialization and collectivization which laid the foundation for its victory in World War II and postwar dominance of Eastern Europe. Shortly before World War II, Stalin signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact agreeing to non-aggression with Nazi Germany, in June 1941, the Germans invaded the Soviet Union, opening the largest and bloodiest theater of war in history. Soviet war casualties accounted for the highest proportion of the conflict in the effort of acquiring the upper hand over Axis forces at battles such as Stalingrad. Soviet forces eventually captured Berlin in 1945, the territory overtaken by the Red Army became satellite states of the Eastern Bloc. The Cold War emerged by 1947 as the Soviet bloc confronted the Western states that united in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949. Following Stalins death in 1953, a period of political and economic liberalization, known as de-Stalinization and Khrushchevs Thaw, the country developed rapidly, as millions of peasants were moved into industrialized cities. The USSR took a lead in the Space Race with Sputnik 1, the first ever satellite, and Vostok 1. In the 1970s, there was a brief détente of relations with the United States, the war drained economic resources and was matched by an escalation of American military aid to Mujahideen fighters. In the mid-1980s, the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, sought to reform and liberalize the economy through his policies of glasnost. The goal was to preserve the Communist Party while reversing the economic stagnation, the Cold War ended during his tenure, and in 1989 Soviet satellite countries in Eastern Europe overthrew their respective communist regimes. This led to the rise of strong nationalist and separatist movements inside the USSR as well, in August 1991, a coup détat was attempted by Communist Party hardliners. It failed, with Russian President Boris Yeltsin playing a role in facing down the coup. On 25 December 1991, Gorbachev resigned and the twelve constituent republics emerged from the dissolution of the Soviet Union as independent post-Soviet states
30.
Uzbekistan national football team
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The Uzbekistan national football team represents Uzbekistan in association football and is controlled by the Uzbekistan Football Federation, the governing body for football in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistans home ground is Bunyodkor Stadium in Tashkent and their current head coach is Samvel Babayan, Uzbekistan have never qualified to the final stages of the World Cup, but they have qualified to every AFC Asian Cup since their independence. After the split from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Tajikistan on June 17,1992, Uzbekistan have consistently been the strongest team out of the new Central Asian nations. Some media outlets, especially from Russia, Croatia and the Balkans, refer to them as the Croatia of Asia due to their levels of talent. Uzbekistan won the 1994 Asian Games tournament as debutants, Uzbekistan failed to make further impact on the continental stage until they reached the last eight of the 2004 AFC Asian Cup, where they were beaten by Bahrain after a penalty shoot-out. They were knocked out in the stage of Asian qualification to the 2006 FIFA World Cup after losing on the away goals rule to Bahrain. The replay ended 1–1, and after the return finished 0–0, in the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, Uzbekistan was able to get past the group stage by beating Malaysia 5–1 and China PR 4–0. However, Uzbekistan was knocked out of the tournament in the stage by losing to Saudi Arabia 2–1. After having three foreign coaches in three years, Uzbekistan turned to former Uzbekistan Olympic team coach Rauf Inileev, four years later, in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup Uzbekistan ended in fourth place, their best result in the tournament so far. After getting past the stage and quarterfinals, the Uzbek team lost what it might have been their first Asian Cup final when Australia thrashed the team 0–6 their semifinal game. Some days later they were defeated again by South Korea in the third place playoff, in the qualifying series for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Uzbekistan advanced to the fourth round of Asian qualifying after winning their group in the third round over perennial favorites Japan. Uzbekistan finished with 16 points, which was more than any team in the third round. In the fourth round of qualifying, Uzbekistan finished third in Group A behind Iran, Uzbekistan had the same amount of points as South Korea, who had a better goal difference by one goal. The two teams who finished third in the fourth round played each other to determine the AFC participant in the intercontinental play-off. The games took place on 6 and 10 September 2013, with the two teams still evenly matched at full-time in the second leg, Jordan eventually progressed to the intercontinental playoff after winning 9–8 on penalties. Uzbekistan advanced to the stage after finishing as runners-up in the tough Group B. However, the team was knocked out of the tournament in the stage after losing 2–0 in extra time to South Korea. The following players have called for the last 12 months
31.
Kyrgyzstan national football team
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The Kyrgyzstan national football team is the national team of Kyrgyzstan and is controlled by the Football Federation of the Kyrgyz Republic. It is a member of the Central Asian Football Association, which is a member of the Asian Football Confederation, after the breakup of the Soviet Union and declaration of its independence, Kyrgyzstan became a fully recognized FIFA and AFC member. They played their first match away in Tashkent, against Uzbekistan on 23 August 1992 in the Central Asia Tournament, in June 1993, Kyrgyzstan travelled to Tehran, Iran for the 1993 ECO Cup. They lost 3–2 on 6 June to Azerbaijan and then drew 1–1 two days later against Tajikistan, in April 1994, Kyrgyzstan played other Central Asian teams in a tournament in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. On 13 April they lost 5–1 to Turkmenistan, then on 15 April 1–0 to Tajikistan, on 17 April they drew 0–0 against Kazakhstan before losing 3–0 to the hosts two days later. 1956 to 1992 – Did not enter, was part of USSR
32.
Tajikistan national football team
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The Tajikistan national football team represents Tajikistan in association football and is controlled by the Tajikistan Football Federation, the governing body for football in Tajikistan. Tajikistans home ground is the Pamir Stadium in Dushanbe, after the breakup of the Soviet Union, Tajikistan played its first match against Uzbekistan on 17 June 1992. It was not until 1994 that the Tajikistan National Football Federation was admitted to FIFA, Tajikistan played its first official game on 11 April 1994 in Tashkent as part of a regional tournament. They lost that game against Kazakhstan 0–1, the first official competition the team entered was qualification for the 1996 Asian Cup, when it was seeded in the three-team Group 8 with Uzbekistan and Bahrain. Bahrain later withdrew, leaving Tajikistan to a play-off against their Middle Asian neighbors, Tajikistan won the first game 4–0, but were beaten in the away game 0–5 after extra time. In a three-team qualifying section for Korea/Japan 2002, they had a record 16–0 win over Guam before losing 2–0 to Iran, the team won its first international tournament, the inaugural AFC Challenge Cup, in 2006, beating Sri Lanka 4–0 in Dhaka. Following Tajikistans disappointing 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, Mubin Ergashev, the team strip is currently sponsored by Spanish sporting apparel company Joma. The following players were named for the Friendlies vs Bahrain on 23 March 2017, caps and goals updated as of 28 March 2017. The following players have called up during the past 12 months
33.
Libya national football team
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The Libya national football team is the national association football team of Libya and is controlled by the Libyan Football Federation. Libya has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup, but has made it to three Africa Cup of Nations, the first was in 1982 where they finished runners-up as hosts of the tournament. The teams second participation did not come until 2006, which was the first time the side qualified without hosting the tournament, the squad failed to progress from the group stages in 2006, as was the case in their third participation in 2012. Libya finished runners-up in the 1964 and 2012 Arab Nations Cup, libyas national team is considered one of the stronger teams in Africa and the Arab world, particularly in recent years. This saw their FIFA world rankings rise to the highest it had ever been at 53, the first player ever to score for the Libyan national team in an official international was Mukhtar Ghonaay. The first penalty ever scored by a member of the team was in the 1953 Pan Arab Games group stage, in the match against Egypt. The national teams first participation in the Arab Cup was in 1964, Libya first entered the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in 1970. Their early attempts failed, but during the 1980s the national side strengthened, the countrys geopolitical position, however, affected the football team, who had to withdraw from qualifying for the 1982 and 1990 World Cups. Libya came closest to qualifying for the cup in 1986. They came to within a game of reaching the finals in Mexico, after winning their match against Sudan in their first game, the Libyans beat Ghana in the next round before taking on Morocco for a place at the finals. Morocco won the first game 3–0 and went through, even though Libya won the return leg 1–0, after not entering the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cup competition, Libya came back in the qualifying competition for Korea/Japan. The Libyans advanced to the round at the expense of Mali. In the group stage, Libya managed only two draws in eight games, in the qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, a 9–0 two-legged victory against São Tome and Principe put the Libyans through to the group stage. However, during two games Al-Saadi Gaddafi was banned when he failed a drug test. A difficult group followed containing Egypt, Cameroon and Côte dIvoire, the biggest football tournament to be held in Libya was the 1982 African Cup of Nations. Libya qualified automatically as hosts and were put in a group alongside Ghana, Cameroon, the opening match of the tournament saw the hosts take on Ghana in Tripoli in a 2–2 draw. A 2–0 win over Tunisia and a draw against Cameroon saw Libya topping the group. In the semi-finals, Libya came from behind to beat Zambia 2–1 and set up another match with Ghana, Ghana scored first in the 35th minute, but Libya equalised in the 70th
34.
North Korea
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North Korea, officially the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, is a country in East Asia, constituting the northern part of the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang is both the capital as well as its largest city. To the north and northwest the country is bordered by China and by Russia along the Amnok, the country is bordered to the south by South Korea, with the heavily fortified Korean Demilitarized Zone separating the two. Negotiations on reunification failed, and in 1948 two separate governments were formed, the communist Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea in the north, an invasion initiated by North Korea led to the Korean War. The Korean Armistice Agreement brought about a ceasefire, and no peace treaty was ever signed. North Korea officially describes itself as a self-reliant socialist state and formally holds elections, critics regard it as a totalitarian dictatorship. Various outlets have called it Stalinist, particularly noting the elaborate cult of personality around Kim Il-sung, International organizations have assessed human rights violations in North Korea as belonging to a category of their own, with no parallel in the contemporary world. Over time, North Korea has gradually distanced itself from the world communist movement, Juche, an ideology of national self-reliance, was introduced into the constitution as a creative application of Marxism–Leninism in 1972. The means of production are owned by the state through state-run enterprises, most services such as healthcare, education, housing and food production are subsidized or state-funded. From 1994 to 1998, North Korea suffered from a famine that resulted in the deaths of between 0.24 and 3.5 million people, and the continues to struggle with food production. North Korea follows Songun, or military-first policy and it is the country with the highest number of military and paramilitary personnel, with a total of 9,495,000 active, reserve, and paramilitary personnel. Its active duty army of 1.21 million is the fourth largest in the world, after China, North Korea is an atheist state with no official religion and where public religion is discouraged. The name Korea derives from the name Goryeo, the name Goryeo itself was first used by the ancient kingdom of Goguryeo in the 5th century as a shortened form of its name. The 10th-century kingdom of Goryeo succeeded Goguryeo, and thus inherited its name, the modern spelling of Korea first appeared in the late 17th century in the travel writings of the Dutch East India Companys Hendrick Hamel. After the division of the country into North and South Korea, the two sides used different terms to refer to Korea, Chosun or Joseon in North Korea, in 1948, North Korea adopted Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea as its new legal name. After the First Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War, Korea was occupied by Japan, Japan tried to suppress Korean traditions and culture and ran the economy primarily for its own benefit. Korean resistance groups known as Dongnipgun operated along the Sino-Korean border, some of them took part in allied action in China and parts of South East Asia. One of the leaders was the communist Kim Il-sung, who later became the leader of North Korea
35.
1998 FIFA World Cup
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The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for mens national association football teams. It was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998, the country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the second time in the history of the tournament, defeating Morocco in the bidding process. It was the time that France staged the competition. Qualification for the finals began in March 1996 and concluded in November 1997, for the first time in the competition, the group stage was expanded from 24 teams to 32, with eight groups of four. A total of 64 matches were played in 10 stadiums located across 10 different host cities, with the match and final staged at the Stade de France. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3–0 in the final, France won their first title, becoming the seventh nation to win a World Cup, and the sixth to win the tournament on home soil. Croatia, Jamaica, Japan and South Africa made their first appearances in the finals, France was awarded the 1998 World Cup on 2 July 1992 by the executive committee of FIFA during a general meeting in Zürich, Switzerland. They defeated Morocco by 12 votes to 7, Switzerland withdrew, due to being unable to meet FIFAs requirements. This made France the third country to host two World Cups, after Mexico and Italy in 1986 and 1990 respectively, France previously hosted the third edition of the World Cup in 1938. England, who hosted the competition in 1966 and won it, were among the original applicants, blazer stated that we facilitated bribes in conjunction with the selection of the host nation for the 1998 World Cup. Since France won the selection process it was thought the bribery came from its bid committee. It eventually transpired that the payment was from the failed Moroccan bid. The qualification draw for the 1998 World Cup finals took place in the Musée du Louvre, as tournament hosts, France was exempt from the draw as was Brazil the defending champions. 174 teams from six confederations participated, up 24 from the previous round, in Europe, fourteen countries qualified excluding France. Ten were determined after group play, nine group winners and the best second-placed team, the other eight group runners-up were drawn into pairs of four play-off matches – the winners of which qualifying for the finals as well. The winner of the Oceanian zone advanced through to an intercontinental play-off against the runner-up of the Asian play-off, four nations qualified for the World Cup for the first time, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan and South Africa. The last team to qualify was Iran by virtue of beating Australia in a tie on 29 November 1997. It marked their first appearance in the finals since 1978, the last time Tunisia also qualified for the tournament, chile qualified for the first time since 1982
36.
Iraq national football team
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The Iraq national football team (Arabic, المنتخب العراقي لكرة القدم represents Iraq in international football. It is known by its fans as Usood Al-Rafidain which means Lions of Mesopotamia. Iraq is one of the most successful teams in the AFC, winning the AFC Asian Cup once, winning the medal at the Asian Games once. Iraq has participated in the FIFA World Cup once and in the FIFA Confederations Cup once, the team has been ranked as high as 39th in the FIFA World Rankings, which they achieved in October 2004. The current manager of the team is Radhi Shenaishil, who led Iraq to a fourth-place finish at the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. As early as 1923, an Iraqi team known as Baghdad XI, controlled by the Baghdad Football Association, the Baghdad FA soon disbanded though, and it wasnt until 8 October 1948 that the Iraq Football Association was founded. The Iraq FA joined FIFA in 1950 and on 2 May 1951, Iraq played their first match and this was not a FIFA A international game though. Iraq were eventually knocked out in the stage of that tournament. In 1962, Iraq appointed their first foreign manager, Romanian coach Cornel Drăgușin, Iraq won their first trophy in 1964 when they hosted and won the Arab Nations Cup, winning three and drawing one of their four games. The next year, they participated in the Pan Arab Games for the second time, the following year, they lost the final of the 1966 Tripoli Fair Tournament to Morocco, but also retained their Arab Nations Cup title that year, beating Syria 2–1 in the final. In 1967, Iraq claimed the Tripoli Fair Tournament title with two wins and one draw, and two later they finished fifth at the Jaam-e-Doosti Cup, hosted in Iran. In 1972, Iraq hosted, and reached the final of and that year, Iraq also played at their first ever AFC Asian Cup but failed to win a game in the tournament. In March 1973, Iraq played their first ever FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign and they finished second in their group, a point behind Australia, therefore failing to qualify for the next round. The 1976 Asian Cup would be the last Asian Cup that Iraq appeared in for the next 20 years, the 1980s was arguably Iraqs most successful period in their history. They started the decade off disappointingly, being knocked out in the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification first round of qualifiers for the 1982 FIFA World Cup, after all this success, Iraq topped it off by qualifying for the 1986 FIFA World Cup with a win over Syria. This was the first and last time to date that Iraq have achieved this, Iraqs only goal in the tournament was scored by Ahmed Radhi, the second-highest goalscorer in Iraqs history with 62 goals, behind Hussein Saeed who scored 78 goals. Overall, Iraq won nine competitions in the 1980s and played in their only ever World Cup, however, things werent as great off the pitch as they were on it. In the 1992 Jordan International Tournament, Iraq recorded their biggest ever win, Iraq reached the final of the tournament but lost 2–0 to Jordan
37.
Baghdad
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Baghdad is the capital of the Republic of Iraq. The population of Baghdad, as of 2016, is approximately 8,765,000 making it the largest city in Iraq, the second largest city in the Arab world, and the second largest city in Western Asia. Located along the Tigris River, the city was founded in the 8th century, within a short time of its inception, Baghdad evolved into a significant cultural, commercial, and intellectual center for the Islamic world. This, in addition to housing several key institutions, garnered the city a worldwide reputation as the Centre of Learning. Throughout the High Middle Ages, Baghdad was considered to be the largest city in the world with a population of 1,200,000 people. The city was destroyed at the hands of the Mongol Empire in 1258, resulting in a decline that would linger through many centuries due to frequent plagues. With the recognition of Iraq as an independent state in 1938, in contemporary times, the city has often faced severe infrastructural damage, most recently due to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the subsequent Iraq War that lasted until December 2011. In recent years, the city has been subjected to insurgency attacks. As of 2012, Baghdad was listed as one of the least hospitable places in the world to live, the site where the city of Baghdad developed has been populated for millennia. By the 8th century AD, several villages had developed there, including a Persian hamlet called Baghdad, the name is of Indo-European origin and a Middle Persian compound of Bagh god and dād given by, translating to Bestowed by God or Gods gift. In Old Persian the first element can be traced to boghu and is related to Slavic bog god, a similar term in Middle Persian is the name Mithradāt, known in English by its Hellenistic form Mithridates, meaning gift of Mithra. There are a number of locations in the wider region whose names are compounds of the word bagh, including Baghlan. The name of the town Baghdati in Georgia shares the same etymological origins, when the Abbasid caliph, al-Mansur, founded a completely new city for his capital, he chose the name Madinat al-Salaam or City of Peace. This was the name on coins, weights, and other official usage. By the 11th century, Baghdad became almost the exclusive name for the world-renowned metropolis, after the fall of the Umayyads, the first Muslim dynasty, the victorious Abbasid rulers wanted their own capital whence they could rule. They chose a site north of the Sassanid capital of Ctesiphon, on 30 July 762, the caliph Al-Mansur commissioned the construction of the city, mansur believed that Baghdad was the perfect city to be the capital of the Islamic empire under the Abbasids. Mansur loved the site so much he is quoted saying, This is indeed the city that I am to found, where I am to live, and where my descendants will reign afterward. The citys growth was helped by its excellent location, based on at least two factors, it had control over strategic and trading routes along the Tigris, the abundance of water in a dry climate
38.
United Arab Emirates national football team
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They were for a time managed by legendary English manager Don Revie. United Arab Emirates home ground varies, most home games have been played at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi with Abu Dhabis Al Jazira Stadium and Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain as other venues. It has made one World Cup appearance, in 1990 in Italy, two years later the UAE took fourth place in the 1992 Asian Cup, and runner-up in 1996 as hosts of the tournament. In both tournaments their final match was lost on penalty kicks and they also won the Gulf Cup of Nations on two occasions – in 2007 when they won a title for the first time in their history and then in 2013. They finished third in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup and will be hosting the next AFC Asian Cup in 2019, the first match of UAE national football team was played on 17 March 1972, four months after the union of the United Arab Emirates. They played against Qatar at Riyadhs Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, then, the team faced three other Arabian countries, losing 4–0 and 7–0 to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait respectively and beating Bahrain 3 nothing. After participating in four Gulf Cup of Nations since 1972, the UAE hosted the 1982 edition and they again finished third, as they did in the two previous tournaments. In 1980, UAE qualified for the first time for the AFC Asian Cup and they were drawn with eventual winners, Kuwait, runner-up South Korea, Malaysia and Qatar in Group B. They drew 1–1 with Kuwait but lost the three matches and finished their first appearance at the tournament in fifth place in their group. They also qualified for two tournaments,1984 in Singapore and 1988 in Qatar and were again eliminated in the group stages in both. Their first victory of the tournament occurred against India on 7 December 1984 under manager Heshmat Mohajerani, in 1984, Mohajerani resigned as UAE head coach and was replaced with former Brazil manager Carlos Alberto Parreira. Parreira led the country at the 1988 AFC Asian Cup and left his position after the tournament and he was succeeded by Brazilian World Cup winning coach Mário Zagallo. Zagallo led the country to qualification for the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy, however, Zagallo resigned before the tournament and Parreira returned as head coach to lead UAE at the tournament. They were drawn at Group D along with eventual winner West Germany and they lost 2–0 to Colombia, 5–1 to West Germany and 4–1 to Yugoslavia. They finished fourth with no points, scoring two goals and conceding eleven goals, uAEs first goal at the tournament was scored by Khalid Ismaïl against West Germany. After the tournament, Parreira was sacked, two years later, at the 1992 AFC Asian Cup, UAE finished in fourth place, their best finish up to that date. UAE hosted 1996 AFC Asian Cup and they hired Croatian coach Tomislav Ivić one year before the tournament and were drawn in Group A along with Kuwait, South Korea and Indonesia. They drew 1–1 with South Korea in the match, then defeated Kuwait 3–2
39.
Nepal national football team
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The Nepal national football team is the national football team of Nepal and is governed by the All Nepal Football Association. A member of the Asian Football Confederation, the Nepalese football team play their games at Dasarath Rangasala Stadium, Tripureswhor. Football in Nepal had been a sport as early as 1921 during the Rana dynasty. Several clubs were formed and several tournaments such as the Ram Janaki Cup. In 1951, the All Nepal Football Association was founded, after Nepal entered an 18-man squad, ANFA flew the players to Dhaka, East Pakistan to play their first match. Nepal faced Western Railway, a Pakistani team in the Bangabandhu National Stadium, however the match was lost 0–7. Two days later, Nepal played the Dhaka Wonders, a local West Pakistani team, though this match was also lost 0–7. After two disastrous games, Nepal was sure to be knocked out of the preliminary round, the final game was against Dhaka Police Club, though despite the previous heavy losses, Nepal managed to win the game with a single goal. The goal scorer, Prakash Bikram Shah, became the first Nepali to score on foreign soil, the goal took place at the 19th minute. In 1970, Nepal became a member of FIFA, two years later, Nepal joined the Asian Football Confederation. With this, Nepal played their first international match on October 13,1972, the first Nepali footballer to score the first international goal for Nepal in a FIFA-recognized tournament was Y. B Ghale. Ghale scored against Kuwait in the 1982 Asian Games, despite Nepal being considered among the lower ranked nations, Nepal have been largely successful in the South Asian Games where they won two gold, two silver, and two bronze medals. Nepal hosted several notable friendlies from teams outside the Asian Confederation during the mid to late 80s, against Denmark in 1986, USSR and East Germany in 1987, and West Germany in 1989. While at the time, Nepal still entered tournaments against club sides such as FC Ural Sverdlovsk Oblast in the 1989 ANFA Cup. The Nepali football came across a two years from 2001–2003 when the row between two factions led Nepali football into deep trouble. Nepal faced a ban and therefore could not participate in any events, the dispute was settled, but not before it contributed in pushing Nepali football backward. Nepal celebrated their 100th international football match in January 2003 when they played Bangladesh in the South Asian Football Federation Championship, Nepal failed to make any real impact at the tournament. Nepal also faced non-AFC teams in tournaments such as Ghana U23 in the 1999 Bangabandhu Cup
40.
Macau national football team
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The Macau football team represents the Chinese special administrative region of Macau in international association football. The team is supervised by the Macau Football Association, the Macau football team has a ranking that is one of the lowest among the FIFA members. Although usually known as simply Macau, the EAFF refer to the team as Macau, the national team has never qualified to the AFC Asian Cup or EAFF East Asian Championship. The team qualified to the 2006 AFC Challenge Cup, where they got one draw, the team had been representing Macau in international football events before 1999 when Macau was a dependent territory of Portugal. It continues to represent Macau even after Macau was handed over to the Peoples Republic of China by Portugal, in Macau, the Macau football team is colloquially referred as the Macau team, while the China PR national football team is referred as the national team. Macau had been barred by the FIFA to enter any international matches because of alleged undue influence of government in forming the committee of its football association. The suspension was lifted after rectification by Macau. Caps and goals as of 15 November 2016, after the match against Nepal, the following players have also been called up to the Macau squad recently
41.
Kathmandu
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Kathmandu is the capital city of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, the largest Himalayan state in Asia. Kathmandu is also the largest metropolis in the Himalayan hill region, the city stands at an elevation of approximately 1,400 metres above sea level in the bowl-shaped Kathmandu Valley of central Nepal. The valley is termed as Nepal Proper and has been the home of Newar culture. The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Nepal and hosts palaces. It has been home to the headquarters of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation since 1985, today, it is the seat of government of the Nepalese republic established in 2008, and is part of the Bagmati Zone in Nepalese administrative geography. Kathmandu has been the center of Nepals history, art, culture and it has a multiethnic population within a Hindu and Buddhist majority. Religious and cultural festivities form a part of the lives of people residing in Kathmandu. Tourism is an important part of the economy as the city is the gateway to the Nepalese Himalayas, there are also seven casinos in the city. In 2013, Kathmandu was ranked third among the top ten upcoming travel destinations in the world by TripAdvisor, historic areas of Kathmandu were devastated by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on 25 April 2015. Nepali is the most spoken language in the city, while English is understood by the citys educated residents, the city of Kathmandu is named after Kasthamandap temple, that stood in Durbar Square. In Sanskrit, Kāṣṭha means wood and Maṇḍap means covered shelter and this temple, also known as Maru Satal in the Newar language, was built in 1596 by Biseth in the period of King Laxmi Narsingh Malla. The two-story structure was entirely of wood, and used no iron nails nor supports. According to legend, all the used to build the pagoda was obtained from a single tree. The structure collapsed during the earthquake on 25 April 2015. The colophons of ancient manuscripts, dated as late as the 20th century, the city is called Kāṣṭhamaṇḍap in a vow that Buddhist priests still recite to this day. Thus, Kathmandu is also known as Kāṣṭhamaṇḍap, during medieval times, the city was sometimes called Kāntipur. This name is derived from two Sanskrit words – Kānti and pur, Kānti is a word that stands for beauty and is mostly associated with light and pur means place. Thus, giving it a meaning as City of light, among the indigenous Newar people, Kathmandu is known as Yeṃ Deśa, and Patan and Bhaktapur are known as Yala Deśa and Khwopa Deśa
42.
Almaty Central Stadium
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The Central Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Almaty, Kazakhstan. It is currently used mostly for football matches, the stadium is shared by FC Kairat Almaty. It also serves as the stadium for the Kazakhstan national football team. Almaty Central Stadium was built in 1958 and it is a structure, oval in plan, divided into 4 inserts passages podium, the northern, western, southern and eastern. The total capacity of the stands is 23,804 seats, all places of individual seats, mounted on metal parts, provide convenience and form the shape viewer. The minimum height of the back -38 cm Central stadiums lighting systems equipped to the possibility of holding events in the evening, the playing field is natural grass, smooth and even, in good condition. Games on the field can be carried out throughout the national season, the field size is 105 m by 68 m For vehicles in the stadium there are two entrances - from the street. For the passage of the audience and engaged -4 inputs with Abay, streets K. Satpaev, since it opened it has been the home stadium of Kairat who first played there on 10 April 1960 Playing against Leningrad Admiralty, a game which finished 0-0. Almaty was the host of the 2012 Bandy World Championship, the Reserve rink of Central Stadium was built for the tournament. The matches in Group B and C was played there, except for the match for 13th place, afterwards the installation for making artificial ice was dismantled. Media related to Almaty Central Stadium at Wikimedia Commons Information about the stadium
43.
UEFA Euro 2004
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The final tournament was hosted for the first time in Portugal, from 12 June to 4 July 2004, after their bid was selected on 12 October 1999, over those of Spain and Austria/Hungary. A total of thirty-one matches were played in ten venues across eight cities – Aveiro, Braga, Coimbra, Guimarães, Faro/Loulé, Leiria, Lisbon and Porto. As in the 1996 and 2000 editions, the tournament was contested by 16 teams – the hosts plus the 15 teams that successfully overcame the qualification round. Latvia secured their first participation in a tournament after overcoming Turkey in the play-offs. The tournament was rich in surprises and upsets, Germany, Spain and Italy were eliminated in the stage, while France. The Portuguese team recovered from a defeat against Greece to reach the final, eliminating England. For the first time in a football tournament, the last match featured the same teams as the opening match. Portugal was defeated by Greece with a goal from Angelos Charisteas, Greeces triumph was unexpected, considering that they had only qualified for two other major tournaments, the UEFA Euro 1980 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup, where they failed to win a single match. In the closing ceremony, Portuguese-Canadian singer Nelly Furtado performed her single and official tournament theme song, Group A opened with a shock as Greece, ranked outsiders from start, defeated the hosts 2–1. Giorgos Karagounis put the Greeks ahead after only seven minutes, an injury time goal from Cristiano Ronaldo proved no more than a consolation. Greece then drew with Spain, before losing to Russia in their last group stage game, Portugal, meanwhile, recovered from their opening defeat by defeating Russia 2–0, who had their keeper Sergei Ovchinnikov sent off. Nuno Gomes scored the goal against Spain, which ensured Portugal finished first place in Group A. Greece advanced to the quarter-finals as runners-up, ahead Spain on goals scored, France, the holders, and England ended their Group B encounter in furious fashion as the French scored twice in injury time to go from 1–0 down to 2–1 winners. Zinedine Zidane scored in the first minute of time and two minutes later, an error by the English defence gave a France penalty and Zidane fired in the winner. Englands other two games were memorable for the performances of their young star Wayne Rooney, only 18 at the time, Rooneys goal-scoring ability proved instrumental in victories over Switzerland and Croatia. France and England qualified from the group as winners and runners-up, Group C featured a three-way tie between Sweden, Denmark and Italy for first spot. All matches between the three sides had ended in draws and all three had beaten Bulgaria, Italy were ultimately eliminated on the number of goals scored between the three sides, after Sweden and Denmark drew 2–2 and qualified to the quarter-finals as group winners and runners-up. The Italians went so far as to accuse Sweden and Denmark of fixing their match, the Czech Republic took the first place in Group D after becoming the only team to win all three of their group matches
44.
FIFA World Cup qualification
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The FIFA World Cup qualification is the process that a national association football team goes through to qualify for the FIFA World Cup finals. Qualifying tournaments are held within the six FIFA continental zones, and are organized by their respective confederations. For each tournament, FIFA decides beforehand the number of places in the allocated to each of the continental zones. The hosts of the World Cup receive an automatic berth, unlike many other sports, results of the previous World Cups or of the continental championships are not taken into account. Until 2002, the defending champions also received an automatic berth, the current qualification process is the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification which commenced in 2015 and will finish in late 2017. The first World Cup qualifying match was played on 11 June 1933 when Sweden defeated Estonia 6–2 in Stockholm, the teams have been grouped continentally, and they competed for a fixed number of places, with one or two places awarded to the winners of intercontinental play-offs. The table below lists the numbers of spots allocated by FIFA for each continent in each tournament, a large part of Africa was under colonial rule during part of the 20th century, mainly the first half of the century. As of 1954, only 3 African countries were affiliated to FIFA, Egypt, in 1923, Sudan, in 1948, Sudan and Ethiopia made entries for no Cup prior to 1958. Egypt made entries for the 1934,1938 and 1954 Cups, though an African country, Egypt entered in 1938 and 1954 in the European group, therefore the table below gives no data about Africa for these two Cups. Places in the intercontinental play-offs count as 0.5 spots, numbers in bold represent the winners of the intercontinental play-offs. +C denotes an additional spot for defending champions, +H denotes an additional spot for hosts. The number of entering the qualification process and the number of matches played have been steadily growing over time. Though an African country, Egypt entered in 1938 and 1954 into the European group, note, Only teams that played at least one match are considered for the purposes of first appearance. Teams that withdrew prior to the qualification, or that qualified to the World Cup by walkover due to other teams withdrawals, are not considered, notes Teams in bold are still participating in the 2018 qualification. The table is updated to matches played in March 2017, footnotes Players in bold are still active. Currently,32 places are available in the final tournament, one of them is reserved for the host nation, but if two or more nations host the competition jointly, each is awarded a place. From 1934 to 2002, one berth was reserved for the winners of the previous World Cup, in November 2001, FIFA announced that the defending champion would no longer get automatic entry to the subsequent tournament, starting with the 2006 finals. This decision was made to address the issue of the champions being at a disadvantage to their fellow competitors due to having not played a competitive match in the previous two years
45.
Uruguay
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Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in the southeastern region of South America. It borders Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east, with the Río de la Plata to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. Uruguay is home to an estimated 3.42 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the area of its capital and largest city. With an area of approximately 176,000 square kilometres, Uruguay is geographically the second-smallest nation in South America, only larger in size than Suriname. Uruguay was inhabited by the Charrúa people for approximately 4000 years before the Portuguese established Colonia del Sacramento, one of the oldest European settlements in the region, in 1680. Montevideo was founded as a stronghold by the Spanish in the early 18th century. Uruguay won its independence between 1811 and 1828, following a struggle between Spain, Portugal, Argentina and Brazil. It remained subject to influence and intervention throughout the 19th century. Modern Uruguay is a constitutional republic, with a president who serves as both head of state and head of government. Uruguay is ranked first in Latin America in democracy, peace, lack of corruption, e-government, on a per-capita basis, Uruguay contributes more troops to United Nations peace-keeping missions than any other country. It ranks second in the region on economic freedom, income equality, per-capita income, Uruguay is the third-best country on the continent in terms of HDI, GDP growth, innovation and infrastructure. It is regarded as a country by the UN. Uruguay is also the third-best ranked in the world in e-Participation, Uruguay is an important global exporter of combed wool, rice, soybeans, frozen beef, malt and milk. Nearly 95% of Uruguays electricity comes from energy, mostly hydroelectric facilities. The Economist named Uruguay country of the year in 2013, acknowledging the innovative policy of legalizing the production, sale, the name of the namesake river comes from the Spanish pronunciation of the regional Guarani word for it. There are several interpretations, including bird-river, the name could also refer to a river snail called uruguá that was plentiful in the water. The only documented inhabitants of Uruguay before European colonization of the area were the Charrúa, the Portuguese discovered the region of present-day Uruguay in 1512. The Spanish arrived in present-day Uruguay in 1516, the indigenous peoples fierce resistance to conquest, combined with the absence of gold and silver, limited their settlement in the region during the 16th and 17th centuries
1 (16 August 2018)
Kazakhstan 1–0 Turkmenistan 
Pakistan 0–7 Kazakhstan 
Russia 6–0 Kazakhstan 
1930 to 
1990
Soviet Union
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2022
1992
1996
2000 to 
2004
2008
2012
2020
1956 to 
1996
2000
2004
1951
1954
1958
1962
1966
1974
1986
73'
Denmark
Montenegro
Azerbaijan
Georgia
Albania
Bahrain
Belarus
Burkina Faso
Croatia
Cyprus
Estonia
Faroe Islands
Finland
Greece
Iceland
Iran
Iraq
Jordan
Kuwait
Kyrgyzstan
Laos
Libya
Lithuania
Macau
Macedonia
Malta
Moldova
Nepal
North Korea
Oman
Palestine
Republic of Ireland
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Singapore
Syria
Tajikistan
Turkmenistan
Uzbekistan
Vietnam
Umbro
