1.
1974 FIFA World Cup
–
The 1974 FIFA World Cup, the tenth staging of the World Cup, was held in West Germany from 13 June to 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the current trophy, the FIFA World Cup Trophy, the previous trophy, the Jules Rimet Trophy, had been won for the third time by Brazil in 1970 and awarded permanently to the Brazilians. The host nation won the title beating the Netherlands in the final, the victory was the second for West Germany, who had also won in 1954. Australia, East Germany, Haiti and Zaire made their first appearances at the stage. West Germany was chosen as the host nation by FIFA in London, hosting rights for the 1978 and 1982 tournaments were awarded at the same time. West Germany agreed a deal with Spain by which Spain would support West Germany for the 1974 tournament, ninety-eight countries took part in the qualifying tournament, and some of footballs most successful nations did not qualify. The USSR was disqualified after the playoff against Chile,16 teams qualified, divided into four groups of four. Each played a round-robin with two points for a win and one for a draw, and goal difference used to separate teams level on points, the top two teams from each group advanced to the next stage. However, in a change from the used in the previous five competitions, the second round consisted of another group stage. The winners of each played each other in the final. The tournament was held mostly in bad weather, and the stadia had few protected places, few western European nations had qualified, of which most were eliminated early. Fans from the Eastern neighbor states were hindered by political circumstances, carlos Caszely of Chile became the first player to be sent off with a red card in a World Cup match, during their match against West Germany. Red cards were introduced in World Cup play in 1970. Two teams made a powerful impact on the first round. The Dutch marked their first World Cup finals since 1938 by topping their group, with wins over Uruguay and Bulgaria. Sweden joined the Dutch in the group round after beating Uruguay 3–0. Poland, meanwhile, took points from a group containing two of the favourites for the tournament. They beat Argentina 3–2, trounced Haiti 7–0, then beat Italy 2–1 – a result that knocked the Italians out of the Cup, while Haiti didnt do particularly well in their first World Cup finals they did have one moment of glory
2.
Juazeiro
–
Juazeiro, formerly also known as Joazeiro, is a municipality in the state of Bahia, in the northeastern region of Brazil. Its name comes from the tree which grows in the region. The city is twinned with Petrolina, in the state of Pernambuco, the two cities are connected by a modern bridge crossing the São Francisco River. Together they form the region of Petrolina-Juazeiro, an urban conglomerate of close to 500,000 inhabitants. It was founded in 1833 and became a city on July 15,1878 and its city districts are Abóbora, Carnaíba, Itamotinga, Junco, Juremal, Massaroca, and Pinhões. The annual average temperature is 24.2 °C, although it lies on the São Francisco River and the Curaçá River, the climate of the city is semi-arid and it gets an annual precipitation of only 399 mm. For more detailed information on the climate see Petrolina, Juazeiro was at the center of an ongoing mosquito spread Zika virus outbreak in early 2016. There are highway connections with several capitals of the Northeast and railroad connections to the coast are made by the Ferrovia Centro-Atlântica, the railroad connection ends at the fluvial port of Juazeiro. Like its sister city Petrolina, Juazeiro has experienced growth in the last decade due to the irrigation of the semi-arid soils with water from the São Francisco River. Fruit cultivation is important to such an extent that Juazeiro entitles itself Capital of Irrigated Fruit, for more detailed information on the development of this fertile valley see the article on Petrolina
3.
Brazil
–
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. As the worlds fifth-largest country by area and population, it is the largest country to have Portuguese as an official language. Its Amazon River basin includes a vast tropical forest, home to wildlife, a variety of ecological systems. This unique environmental heritage makes Brazil one of 17 megadiverse countries, Brazil was inhabited by numerous tribal nations prior to the landing in 1500 of explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral, who claimed the area for the Portuguese Empire. Brazil remained a Portuguese colony until 1808, when the capital of the empire was transferred from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro, in 1815, the colony was elevated to the rank of kingdom upon the formation of the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves. Independence was achieved in 1822 with the creation of the Empire of Brazil, a state governed under a constitutional monarchy. The ratification of the first constitution in 1824 led to the formation of a bicameral legislature, the country became a presidential republic in 1889 following a military coup détat. An authoritarian military junta came to power in 1964 and ruled until 1985, Brazils current constitution, formulated in 1988, defines it as a democratic federal republic. The federation is composed of the union of the Federal District, the 26 states, Brazils economy is the worlds ninth-largest by nominal GDP and seventh-largest by GDP as of 2015. A member of the BRICS group, Brazil until 2010 had one of the worlds fastest growing economies, with its economic reforms giving the country new international recognition. Brazils national development bank plays an important role for the economic growth. Brazil is a member of the United Nations, the G20, BRICS, Unasul, Mercosul, Organization of American States, Organization of Ibero-American States, CPLP. Brazil is a power in Latin America and a middle power in international affairs. One of the worlds major breadbaskets, Brazil has been the largest producer of coffee for the last 150 years and it is likely that the word Brazil comes from the Portuguese word for brazilwood, a tree that once grew plentifully along the Brazilian coast. In Portuguese, brazilwood is called pau-brasil, with the word brasil commonly given the etymology red like an ember, formed from Latin brasa and the suffix -il. As brazilwood produces a red dye, it was highly valued by the European cloth industry and was the earliest commercially exploited product from Brazil. The popular appellation eclipsed and eventually supplanted the official Portuguese name, early sailors sometimes also called it the Land of Parrots. In the Guarani language, a language of Paraguay, Brazil is called Pindorama
4.
Defender (association football)
–
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposing team from scoring goals. There are four types of defenders, centre-back, sweeper, full-back, the centre-back and full-back positions are essential in most modern formations. The sweeper and wing-back roles are more specialised for certain formations, a centre-back defends in the area directly in front of the goal, and tries to prevent opposing players, particularly centre-forwards, from scoring. Centre-backs accomplish this by blocking shots, tackling, intercepting passes, contesting headers, with the ball, centre-backs are generally expected to make long and pinpoint passes to their teammates, or to kick unaimed long balls down the field. For example, a clearance is a long unaimed kick intended to move the ball as far as possible from the defenders goal, during normal play, centre-backs are unlikely to score goals. In this case, other defenders or midfielders will temporarily move into the centre-back positions, in the modern game, most teams employ two or three centre-backs in front of the goalkeeper. The 4–2–3–1, 4–3–3, and 4–4–2 formations all use two centre-backs, the sweeper is a more versatile centre-back who sweeps up the ball if an opponent manages to breach the defensive line. This position is more fluid than that of other defenders who man-mark their designated opponents. Because of this, it is referred to as libero. For example, the system of play, used in Italian football in the 1960s. The more modern libero possesses the qualities of the typical libero while being able to expose the opposition during counterattacks. The Fundell-libero has become popular in recent time with the sweeper transitioning to the most advanced forward in an attack. This variation on the position requires great pace and fitness, while rarely seen in professional football, the position has been extensively used in lower leagues. Modern libero sit behind centre-backs as a sweeper before charging through the team to join in the attack, some sweepers move forward and distribute the ball up-field, while others intercept passes and get the ball off the opposition without needing to hurl themselves into tackles. If the sweeper does move up the field to distribute the ball, they will need to make a speedy recovery, in modern football, its usage has been fairly restricted, with few clubs in the biggest leagues using the position. Though it is used in modern football, it remains a highly respected. A recent and successful use of the sweeper was made by Otto Rehhagel, Greeces manager, Rehhagel utilized Traianos Dellas as Greeces sweeper to great success, as Greece surprisingly became European champions. The full-backs take up the wide positions and traditionally stayed in defence at all times
5.
Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras
–
Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras is a professional football club, based in São Paulo, Brazil. The club was founded on August 26,1914, as Palestra Italia and it is one of the most popular and successful Brazilian clubs, with around 17 million supporters and 126,000 season ticket holders, including a large number of Brazilians of Italian ancestry. Despite being primarily a football team, Palmeiras competes in a number of different sports. Palmeiras is one of the most successful clubs in Brazilian football, the team has won 13 national competitions, more than any other club in Brazil. The clubs most important titles are 1 Copa Libertadores,9 Brazilian National League Titles and 4 national cups, Palmeiras is also the second most valuable club in the Americas, being worth R$1.5 billion in 2016 by Forbes Mexico. In 1951, Palmeiras won the Copa Rio, hailed as the first World Club cup, in 1999, the team was declared the Champion of the Century in Brazilian football. Its original colors were red, white and green, the original badge is still present in the current one, and the club has used red as a third color. Just over three earlier, Italy had been unified – a fact that was not known to some Italian-Brazilians. There were numerous Italian clubs, but each one represented an Italian Province or was geared to activities other than football, at the time, the game was starting to take hold and drew many players and fans. After several meetings,46 interested individuals gathered at the Alhambra Room on what is now Rua do Riachuelo, ezequiel Simone was named club president. The Italian Consulate in São Paulo became interested in the new club because it would spread the word among Italians that their country now had one flag. After some initial difficulties, Palestra Italia played its first game in the town of Votorantim – beating Savoy 2–0 with goals from Bianco, in 1916, the team joined the citys main sports league and held its first official championship match. The following year it would be runner-up in the São Paulo State Championship, Palestra won that initial game 3–0 with three goals from Caetano, it also won the rematch 3–1 of what would become the teams chief rivalry. In 1920, Palestra Italia captured the São Paulo State championship with a victory over the rugged Paulistano squad in the deciding match, Palestra continued to grow as a sports club and also began acquiring more assets. Estádio Palestra Itália, purchased in 1920, was remodeled and expanded in 1933 – when it became the first Brazilian stadium with concrete grandstands and barbed-wire fences. Starting in 1964, the field would be suspended, which gave fans a complete, broad view. In 1942 during World War II, the government of President Getúlio Vargas made a decree banning any organization from using names related to the Axis Powers, Palestra Italia was compelled to change its name, and became Palestra São Paulo. Palestra is a Greek word that did not violate the government measure, however, the change did not soothe political and sporting pressures
6.
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo
–
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo, commonly referred to as Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro. The club was established in 1895, although it did not play its first official game until 1912 and its traditional playing colors are red and black hooped shirts with white shorts and red and black hooped socks. The team achieved the most prestigious accolade in South American football when they defeated Cobreloa 2–0 in the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo to become champions of South America and they subsequently became known as the Geração de Ouro, or the Golden Generation. That same year, Flamengo became world champions after defeating Liverpool 3–0 in Tokyo. Flamengo is the most popular team in Brazil, with over 39.1 million supporters as of 2010, the club has long-standing rivalries with nearby neighbors Fluminense, Botafogo and Vasco da Gama. There is also a rivalry with Atlético Mineiro. Flamengo was founded on 17 November 1895 as a club by José Agostinho Pereira da Cunha, Mário Spindola, Nestor de Barros, Augusto Lopes, José Félix da Cunha Meneses. The group used to gather at Café Lamas, in the Flamengo neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, Rowing was the elite sport in Rio de Janeiro in the late 19th century. The young men hoped that forming a club would make them popular with the young ladies of the citys high society. They could only afford a used boat named Pherusa, which had to be rebuilt before it could be used in competition. The team debuted on October 6,1895 when they sailed off the Caju Point, from the Maria Angu beach, however, strong winds turned over the boat and the rowers nearly drowned. They were rescued by a boat named Leal. Afterwards, as the Pherusa was undergoing repairs, the boat was stolen, the group then had to save up money to buy a new boat, the Etoile, renamed Scyra. On the night of 17 November, the group, gathered at Nestor de Barross manor on Flamengo beach, founded the Flamengo Rowing Group and elected its first board, the name was changed a few weeks later to Clube de Regatas do Flamengo. The founders also decided that the anniversary of the foundation should be celebrated on 15 November, so as to coincide with the Day of the Republic. Flamengo only embraced football when a group of dissatisfied players from Fluminense Football Club broke away from that club following a dispute with its board, the players decided to join Flamengo because Borgerth, the teams captain, was also a rower for Flamengo. Admittance of the new members was approved on 8 November 1911, a motion against the club taking part in football tournaments was defeated, and the members assembly officially created the football team on 24 December,1911. The new team used to train on Russel beach, and gradually gained the support of the locals, the first official match was played on 3 May 1912 and is, to this day, the most spectacular victory of the club, as the team defeated Mangueira 16-2
7.
Sport Club Corinthians Paulista
–
Sport Club Corinthians Paulista is a Brazilian multi-sport club based in Tatuapé, São Paulo. Although they compete in a number of different sports, Corinthians is mostly known for its association football team. In 2000 the club won the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup as the host nations representative, the clubs home kit traditionally features white shirts and black shorts, accompanied by white socks, since 1920. Their traditional crest was introduced in 1939, by modernist painter Francisco Rebolo featuring the São Paulo state flag in a shield and they hold many long-standing rivalries, most notably against Palmeiras and São Paulo. In 1910 the football in Brazil was an elitist sport, the top clubs were formed by people who were part of the upper classes. Among them were Club Athletico Paulistano, São Paulo Athletic Club, lower-class society excluded from larger clubs founded their own minnow clubs and only played floodplain football. It was August 31,1910 when these workers were watching a match featuring a London-based club touring Brazil, after the match, while the group returned home, The men spoke of partnerships, business ideas, and general dreams of grandeur. In the mind of each one surfaced a great idea, the foundation of a club, after several exchanges in a lively argument, the arguments led to the conclusion that they would meet the next day to make a dream into reality. In anticipation of heavy rains, the agreed to meet after sundown in public sight. That night at 8, 30pm, on Rua José Paulino (Rua dos Imigrantes, underneath the glow of an oil lamp the five workers reunited alongside their guest and neighbors from Bom Retiro. That night the club was founded, alongside its board of directors, on September 14, Luis Fabi scored Corinthians first goal against Estrela Polar, another amateur club in the city, and Corinthians won their first game 2–0. Just one year after joining the league, Corinthians was crowned champion for the first time, and were again two years later. There were many fly-by-night teams popping up in São Paulo at the time, the year of 1922, the Centennial of Brazilian Independence, marks the start of Corinthians hegemony in the São Paulo State Championship. As football was almost exclusively played at Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo by that time, after defeating the Rio de Janeiro State Championship champion of that year, América, Corinthians joined the company of the great teams in Brazil. The same year marked the first of three State Championships in a row, something that happened again in 1928–30 and 1937–39. Corinthians seemed destined to win State Championships in threes, after six years without being a champions, the 1940s were a more difficult time, and the club would win a championship in 1941 and would only win their next in 1951. At the beginning of the 1950s Corinthians made history in the São Paulo Championship. In 1951, the composed of Carbone, Cláudio, Luisinho, Baltasar and Mário scored 103 goals in thirty matches of the São Paulo Championship
8.
Brazil national football team
–
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international mens association football. Brazil is administered by the Brazilian Football Confederation, the body for football in Brazil. They have been a member of the FIFA since 1923 and member of the CONMEBOL since 1916, Brazil is the most successful national football team in the FIFA World Cup with five championships,1958,1962,1970,1994 and 2002. Brazil is the national team to have played in all World Cup editions without any absence nor need for playoffs. The seleção is also the most successful team in the FIFA Confederations Cup with four titles,1997,2005,2009 and 2013. They have also won their continental championship. Brazil is the national team to have won the World Cup on four different continents, once in Europe, once in South America, twice in North America. They also share with Spain a record of 35 consecutive international matches undefeated, a common quip about football is, Os ingleses o inventaram, os brasileiros o aperfeiçoaram. Brazil won 2–0 with goals by Oswaldo Gomes and Osman, though it is claimed that the match was a 3–3 draw, in contrast to its future success, the national teams early appearances were not brilliant. Other early matches played during that time include several friendly games against Argentina, Chile, however, led by the goalscoring abilities of Arthur Friedenreich, they were victorious at home in the South American Championships in 1919, repeating their victory, also at home, in 1922. In 1930, Brazil played in the first World Cup, held in Uruguay in 1930, the squad defeated Bolivia but lost to Yugoslavia, being eliminated from the competition. They lost in the first round to Spain in 1934 in Italy, Brazil were the only South American team to participate in this competition. After being victorious in a third South American Championship in 1949 Brazil first achieved prominence when it hosted the 1950 FIFA World Cup. The team went into the last game of the round, against Uruguay at Estádio do Maracanã in Rio. Uruguay, however, won the match and the Cup in a known as the Maracanazo. The match led to a period of national mourning, Brazil reached the quarter-final, where they were beaten 4–2 by tournament favourites Hungary in one of the ugliest matches in football history, known as the Battle of Berne. For the 1958 World Cup, Brazil were drawn in a group with England and they beat Austria 3–0 in their first match, then drew 0–0 with England. Before the match, coach Vicente Feola made three substitutions that were crucial for Brazil to defeat the Soviets, Zito, Garrincha and Pelé
9.
UEFA
–
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
10.
Intercontinental Cup (football)
–
The competition has since been replaced by the FIFA Club World Cup. From its formation in 1960 to 1979, the competition was contested over a two legged tie, with a playoff if necessary until 1968, and penalty kicks later. During the 1970s, European participation in the Intercontinental Cup became a question due to controversial events in the 1969 final. From 1980 until 2004, the competition was contested over a match held in Japan and sponsored by multinational automaker Toyota, which offered a secondary trophy. All the winning teams are regarded by mass media and footballs community as world champions. The first winner of the cup was Spanish side Real Madrid, the last winner was Portuguese side Porto, defeating Colombian side Once Caldas in a penalty shoot-out in 2004. The aforementioned final match of the 1957 Tournoi de Paris, as well as a Real Madrid C. F and it was the brainchild of UEFA president Henri Delaunay, who also helped Jules Rimet in the realization of the inaugural FIFA World Cup in 1930. Initially played over two legs, with a match if required in the early years, the competition had a rather turbulent existence. The first winners of the competition were Spanish club Real Madrid, Real Madrid managed to hold Uruguayan side Peñarol 0-0 in Montevideo and trounce the South Americans 5-1 in Madrid to win. In 1962 the tournament grew more in worldwide attention after it was swept through the football of a Santos team led by Pelé. Santos would successfully defend the title in 1963 after being pushed all the way by Milan, after each side won 4-2 at their respective home legs, a playoff match at the Maracanã saw Santos keep the title after a tight 1-0 victory. The competition had attracted the interest of other continents, the North and Central America condeferation, CONCACAF, had asked, unsuccessfully, to participate. Milans fierce rivals, Inter Milan, would go on to win the 1964 and 1965 editions, Peñarol gain revenge for their loss in 1960 by crushing Real Madrid 4-0 in aggregate in 1966. During this time, the competition became dogged by foul play, calendar problems, acts of brutality, even on the pitch, and boycotts tarnished its image, to the point of bringing into question the wisdom of organizing it at all. A fourth Celtic player was dismissed, but amid the chaos he got away with staying on. The following season, Argentine side Estudiantes de La Plata faced Englands Manchester United in which the return leg saw Estudiantes come out on top of a bad-tempered series, but it was the events of 1969 which damaged the competitions integrity. After a 3-0 win at San Siro, Milan went to Buenos Aires to play Estudiantes at La Bombonera, Estudiantes players booted balls at the Milan team as they warmed up and hot coffee was poured on the Italians as they emerged from the tunnel by Estudiantes fans. Estudiantes resorted to inflicting elbows and allegedly even needles at the Milanese team in order to intimidate them, pierino Prati was knocked unconscious and continued for a further 20 minutes despite suffering from a mild concussion
11.
Johan Neeskens
–
Johannes Jacobus Johan Neeskens is a Dutch football manager and former midfielder. Former England manager Alf Ramsey said Neeskens was as good as any player in the tournament and he was the assistant coach to Frank Rijkaard at Barcelona but was sacked along with Rijkaard as the end of the 2007–08 season. He was the coach of the Dutch B national team until June 2009. Neeskens, a native of Heemstede, started his career at RCH Heemstede in 1968, before being spotted by Rinus Michels, the youngster impressed at right-back, playing in that position for Ajax in the 1971 European Cup Final win against Panathinaikos. During the 1971–72 season, Neeskens took up more of a midfield role. He adapted well to his new central midfield role because he was a runner, had great technical skills. Ajax completed a hat-trick of European Cup wins between 1971 and 1973, and Neeskens moved on to FC Barcelona in 1974 to join Cruijff, there he was nicknamed Johan Segon. While his time at Barcelona was relatively unsuccessful for the club, in 1979, he accepted an offer from the New York Cosmos, spending 5 years at the club. The Cosmos released him October 1984 and he also played for FC Groningen during the 1984–85 season. In June 1985, he signed with the South Florida Sun of the United Soccer League, the USL collapsed six games into the 1985 season. On 15 August 1989, he signed with the Kansas City Comets of the Major Indoor Soccer League and he then played for FC Baar and FC Zug in Switzerland, finally hanging up his boots in 1991. Neeskens was capped 49 times for his country, scoring 17 goals and he made his debut against East Germany, and played a crucial role in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups, playing in central midfield. Neeskens scored the goal of the 1974 World Cup final against West Germany with a penalty kick after only two minutes of play. Four years later, Neeskens was a player for the Dutch. The Netherlands again reached the final, only to again to the host nation. He played his international game in 1981 in a 2–0 defeat against France in a qualifier for the 1982 World Cup. Neeskens was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. When Hiddink stepped down as coach after the 1998 FIFA World Cup
12.
La Liga
–
The Primera División, commonly known as La Liga and as La Liga Santander for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. A total of 60 teams have competed in La Liga since its inception, nine teams have been crowned champions, with Real Madrid winning the title a record 32 times and Barcelona 24 times. Real Madrid dominated the championship from the 1950s through the 1980s, from the 1990s onwards, Barcelona and Real Madrid both dominated, though La Liga also saw other champions, including Atlético Madrid, Valencia, and Deportivo de La Coruña. In more recent years, Atlético Madrid has joined a coalition of now three teams dominating La Liga alongside Real Madrid and Barcelona. Its clubs have won the most UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup titles, and its players have accumulated the highest number of Ballon dOr awards. La Liga is one of the most popular sports leagues in the world. The competition format follows the usual double round-robin format, during the course of a season, which lasts from August to May, each club plays every other club twice, once at home and once away, for a total of 38 matchdays. Teams receive three points for a win, one point for a draw, and no points for a loss, teams are ranked by total points, with the highest-ranked club at the end of the season crowned champion. A system of promotion and relegation exists between the Primera División and the Segunda División, the top teams in La Liga qualify for the UEFA Champions League. The first, second, and third placed teams enter the group stage. Teams placed fifth and sixth play in the UEFA Europa League, if both teams in the cup final finish in the top six, an additional berth in the Europa League is given to the team that finishes in seventh. In April 1927, José María Acha, a director at Arenas Club de Getxo, first proposed the idea of a national league in Spain. After much debate about the size of the league and who would take part, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, Arenas Club de Getxo and Real Unión were all selected as previous winners of the Copa del Rey. Atlético Madrid, Espanyol and Europa qualified as Copa del Rey runners-up, only three of the founding clubs, Real Madrid, Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, have never been relegated from the Primera División. They were also runners-up in 1932 and 1933, in 1935, Real Betis, then known as Betis Balompié, won their only title to date. Primera División was suspended during the Spanish Civil War, in 1937, the teams in the Republican area of Spain, with the notable exception of the two Madrid clubs, competed in the Mediterranean League and Barcelona emerged as champions. Seventy years later, on 28 September 2007, Barcelona requested the RFEF to recognise that title as a Liga title and this action was taken after RFEF was asked to recognise Levante FCs Copa de la España Libre win as equivalent to Copa del Rey trophy. Nevertheless, the body of Spanish football has not made an outright decision yet
13.
Copa del Rey
–
The Copa del Rey is an annual football cup competition for Spanish football teams. Its full name is Campeonato de España - Copa de Su Majestad el Rey de Fútbol, the competition was founded in 1903, thus making it the oldest Spanish football competition. Typically, the winner of Copa del Rey goes to the UEFA Europa League, Barcelona are the current holders, who won their 28th Copa del Rey against Sevilla at the 2016 Copa del Rey Final held at the Vicente Calderón Stadium. Four other teams joined Madrid FC for the competition, FC Barcelona, Club Español de Foot-Ball, New Foot-Ball de Madrid and that cup is on display in the Athletic Bilbao museum and the club includes the victory in its honours list. Nevertheless, it is considered only the forerunner of the Copa del Rey, Copa del Rey was Spains football National Championship from 1903 until the foundation of the Campeonato de Liga — League Championship — in 1928. It was initially known as the Copa del Ayuntamiento de Madrid, between 1905 and 1932, it was known as the Copa de Su Majestad El Rey Alfonso XIII. Athletic Bilbao were declared winners in 1904 after their opponents Español de Madrid failed to show up. In 1937, during the Spanish Civil War, clubs in the Republican area of Spain entered the Copa de la España Libre, because of the dispute regarding the 1902 competition, the statistics regarding the leading winners are also disputed. Barcelona have won the Copa 28 times, Athletic Bilbao are just behind, with either 24 or 23 titles, throughout the history of the competition, there have been 12 actual trophies. Trophies have been awarded to clubs for winning the competition either three times in a row or on five separate occasions and for other special reasons. Thus, four trophies have been awarded to Barcelona, three to Bilbao and one to Real Madrid. In December 2010, the cup was given to Sevilla, the 2010 winners, before the formation of La Liga in 1929, the competition was effectively a national championship. Teams qualified to enter via their regional leagues, over the years, various formats, including group stages have been used. Unlike the English FA Cup, entry is limited, only teams from the Primera División, Segunda A, about 23 teams from the Segunda B and the Tercera División champions are invited to enter. The early rounds are one-off games with teams from the lower divisions given home advantage, the round of 32, the round of 16, the quarter-finals, and semi-finals are played over two legs. The final is a game played at a neutral venue. The winners qualify for both the Supercopa de España and the UEFA Europa League the following season. There had been a precedent for this, Real Madrid were allowed to keep the last Copa de la República, Sevilla, the first Copa del Generalísimo and, Atlético Madrid, a new trophy was made by Madrid jeweller Federico Alegre
14.
Portuguese language
–
Portuguese is a Romance language and the sole official language of Portugal, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Angola, and São Tomé and Príncipe. It also has co-official language status in East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Portuguese is part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, and has kept some Celtic phonology. Portuguese is also termed the language of Camões, after Luís Vaz de Camões, one of the greatest literary figures in the Portuguese language and author of the Portuguese epic poem, the museum is the first of its kind in the world. In 2015 the museum was destroyed in a fire, but there are plans to reconstruct it, when the Romans arrived in the Iberian Peninsula in 216 BCE, they brought the Latin language with them, from which all Romance languages descend. Between 409 CE and 711 CE, as the Roman Empire collapsed in Western Europe, Portuguese evolved from the medieval language, known today by linguists as Galician-Portuguese, Old Portuguese or Old Galician, of the northwestern medieval Kingdom of Galicia. It is in Latin administrative documents of the 9th century that written Galician-Portuguese words and this phase is known as Proto-Portuguese, which lasted from the 9th century until the 12th-century independence of the County of Portugal from the Kingdom of León, by then reigning over Galicia. In the first part of the Galician-Portuguese period, the language was used for documents. For some time, it was the language of preference for poetry in Christian Hispania. Portugal became an independent kingdom in 1139, under King Afonso I of Portugal, in the second period of Old Portuguese, in the 15th and 16th centuries, with the Portuguese discoveries, the language was taken to many regions of Africa, Asia and the Americas. The language continued to be popular in parts of Asia until the 19th century, some Portuguese-speaking Christian communities in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Indonesia preserved their language even after they were isolated from Portugal. The end of the Old Portuguese period was marked by the publication of the Cancioneiro Geral by Garcia de Resende, Most literate Portuguese speakers were also literate in Latin, and thus they easily adopted Latin words into their writing—and eventually speech—in Portuguese. Portuguese is the language of the majority of people in Brazil and Portugal, perhaps 75% of the population of Angola speaks Portuguese natively, and 85% are fluent. Just over 40% of the population of Mozambique are native speakers of Portuguese, Portuguese is also spoken natively by 30% of the population in Guinea-Bissau, and a Portuguese-based creole is understood by all. No data is available for Cape Verde, but almost all the population is bilingual, there are also significant Portuguese speaking immigrant communities in many countries including Andorra, Bermuda, Canada, France, Japan, Jersey, Namibia, Paraguay, Macau, Switzerland, Venezuela. In some parts of former Portuguese India, namely Goa and Daman and Diu, in 2014, an estimated 1,500 students were learning Portuguese in Goa. Equatorial Guinea made an application for full membership to the CPLP in June 2010. In 2011, Portuguese became its official language and, in July 2014. Portuguese is a subject in The school curriculum in Uruguay
15.
Captain (association football)
–
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
16.
Marinho Chagas
–
Francisco das Chagas Marinho, generally known as Marinho Chagas or Francisco Marinho, was a Brazilian association footballer. One of the best left back of his era, he is best known for his curly blond hair and his performance at the World Cup 1974. Marinho was born in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte and he played left-back with Botafogo FR of Rio and the Brazilian national team. He played the Football World Cup 1974 and he was a skilful and innovative right footed left back who was considered at the time one of the top players at his position. He was an attack minded full-back with a shot, and is considered a pioneer. He travelled the world and played for different clubs in Brazil, the USA and Germany, always showing great skill and quality. His longest stint was with Botafogo, where he stayed four years from 1972 to 1976 and he spent two years in the North American Soccer League. Marinho scored 8 goals in his 24 matches that season, the following year, playing with German striker phenomenon Gerd Müller for the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in Florida, he scored three goals in 19 matches. The Strikers finished the season as runners-up in the championship, losing the final 0-3 to the Cosmos, however, Marinho did not play in the final. Back in Brazil he won with São Paulo FC the State Championship of São Paulo of 1981 and his personal performance in this year yield him a third Bola de Prata of the specialist magazine Placar. After his return to Natal Marinho stood there as Liberal Party candidate for the city council and his release of the single with the song Eu Sou Assim did not enter him into a career in this sector. In 1991, he was hired to coach the El Paso Patriots, Marinho Chagas has no relation to the Brazilian serial killer Francisco das Chagas Rodrigues de Brito, often referred to in press as simply Francisco das Chagas. Marinho Chagas died on 31 May 2014 in João Pessoa, from a digestive hemorrhage, at the time of his death, he was working as a sports commentator for a station in Natal. The former full back had been battling Alcoholism in his later years and he was a father of three, two sons and a daughter as well as a grandfather to three. In an interview in 2013, he joked that he might have children, given his wild ways. He was a starter for every match during the 1974 FIFA World Cup, dave Morrison, Francisco Marinho NASL Soccer, North American Soccer League Players
17.
Jairzinho
–
Jair Ventura Filho, better known as Jairzinho, is a retired Brazilian footballer. A quick, powerful winger, he was a member of the legendary Brazilian national team won the 1970 FIFA World Cup. He was listed at number 27 in World Soccer Magazines list of the 100 greatest players of the 20th century, one place ahead of Zinedine Zidane. He went on to play in Europe during the years of his career, a common pattern for South American players until the 1980s. Jairzinho replaced his footballing idol Garrincha in both the Botafogo and Brazil teams, and played in three consecutive World Cups,1966,1970 and 1974, Jairzinho was born in Rio de Janeiro, where he went through the youth setup at local club Botafogo. He made his debut with the club as a striker at the age of fifteen. His hero Garrincha, whom he would eventually replace for both club and country, also played at Botafogo, albeit in Jairzinhos preferred position on the right wing and this resulted in Jairzinho spending most of his early games playing on the left wing or as a centre forward. However, he would fill in as a winger, by far his strongest position. He made his debut as a 19-year-old in 1964 against Portugal. He played in the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England, however, Jairzinho struggled to be effective in this position, and he couldnt prevent Brazil from exiting the competition at the first round. When, after the tournament, Garrincha announced his retirement from international football, now in his favourite position, Jairzinho became a far more effective and consistent performer for country. At the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, Jairzinho was one of Brazils star players and he scored his seventh goal of the tournament in Brazils 4–1 world cup win over Italy in the final. However, his goals tally at the finals were not enough to win the Golden Boot, which went to Germanys Gerd Müller. Jairzinho has claimed that FIFA awarded him a best body on the prize for his athleticism, however. Following his display in Mexico, Jairzinho moved to Europe to play for French side Marseille, however, he struggled with Marseille and soon returned to Brazil to play for Cruzeiro, with whom he won the Copa Libertadores in 1976. The Cruzeiro team at the time included the likes of Nelinho, Jairzinho scored two goals in the 1974 FIFA World Cup, which would prove to be his last World Cup for Brazil. The 3rd-Place Final was his last match for Brazil until he was given a one-off farewell cap against Czechoslovakia on March 3,1982 in a game which Brazil drew 1–1 and he scored 33 goals in 81 games during his international career. After retiring as a footballer, Jairzinho became a coach and managed a number of teams in his native Brazil
18.
Rivellino
–
Roberto Rivellino is a former Brazilian professional footballer. He was one of the stars of Brazils 1970 FIFA World Cup winning team, Rivellino currently works as a pundit for Brazilian TV Cultura. He also perfected a football move called the flip flap, famously copied by Romário, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, a former attacking midfielder, he is widely regarded as one of the most graceful football players ever, and among the best midfielders of his generation. With the close control, feints and ability with his left foot, in 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA100 list of the worlds greatest living players. Rivellino started as a futebol de salao player at Clube Atletico Barcelona, however, the late 60s and early 70s were one of the most troubled periods in the history of the club, which did not win a single São Paulo state league title between 1954 and 1977. He moved on to Rio de Janeiro, where he defended Fluminense until the end of the 1970s, Rivellino was undoubtedly the greatest star in the excellent Fluminense of the mid 70s, dubbed the tricolor machine, among Doval, Pintinho, Gil and Carlos Alberto Torres. He won the Rio de Janeiro league championship in 1975 and 1976, by the end of the decade, he moved on to play for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, he retired from professional football in 1981. Rivellino was a key member of Brazils 1970 FIFA World Cup winning team, Rivellino also played in the 1974 and 1978 FIFA World Cups, finishing in fourth and third place respectively. After his professional retirement, Rivellino started a career as a football commentator, Rivellino further represented Brazil in the 1989 edition of the World Cup of Masters, scoring in the final against Uruguay. You start sweating the moment you leave the locker room
19.
Valdomiro Vaz Franco
–
Valdomiro Vaz Franco, better known as Valdomiro, is a former Brazilian footballer who played as a striker. He played 17 matches For the Brazilian team between 1973 and 1977, and scored 5 goals, Valdomiro also participated at the 1974 FIFA World Cup, playing in 6 games and scoring one goal. He scored for Internacional in their 1976 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A final victory over Corinthians and he played for the following clubs, Comerciário, 1965–1967 Perdigão,1968 Internacional, 1968–1979 Millionarios, 1980–1981 Internacional,1982
20.
Nelinho
–
Manoel Rezende de Mattos Cabral, known as Nelinho, is a former Brazilian association footballer who played as right back. He played for clubs in his home country and abroad, most notably Belo Horizonte rivals Cruzeiro. Nelinho also represented the Brazilian national team in two FIFA World Cups, born in Rio de Janeiro, Nelinho started his career at local club Olaria, but signed his first professional contract with América. After a recommendation by Otto Glória, then manager of the team, a brief stint with Venezuelas Deportivo Anzoátegui followed, before returning to Rio de Janeiro to play for Bonsucesso, which then loaned him to Remo. After good performances in the 1972 Brasileirão, Nelinho was signed by Cruzeiro for the following season. At the Belo Horizonte-based club, Nelinho won the Campeonato Mineiro four times between 1973 and 1977, and one Copa Libertadores in 1976, scoring in two matches of the finals against River Plate. While at the club, he was selected for the Bola de Prata three times, in 1975,1979 and 1980. In total, he had 411 appearances with Cruzeiro, and scored 105 goals, after a brief spell at Grêmio, where he won a Campeonato Gaúcho, Nelinho returned to Belo Horizonte to play for Cruzeiros rivals Atlético Mineiro in 1982. He spent the rest of his career at the club, where he won four more Campeonato Mineiros and was awarded with the Bola de Prata once more in 1983 and he also coached the club in 1993. Nelinho was capped 28 times by Brazil, between April 1974 and June 1980, and scored eight international goals and he won a Taça do Atlântico with the Seleção, and was part of the squad in two Copa Américas. After retiring from football, Nelinho joined Brazils Democratic Labour Party and was elected State Deputy of Minas Gerais in 1987, after a period of involvement with politics, he returned briefly to football and managed Atlético Mineiro in 1993 and Cruzeiro in 1994. In 2005, Nelinho worked as pundit for TV Globo and SporTV, and currently owns a health club in Belo Horizonte. com
21.
Ademir da Guia
–
Usually a playmaker, he was known for his fantastic close control and passing ability. He was nicknamed O Divino, which means The Divine One, da Guia was born in Rio de Janeiro. His father, Domingos da Guia was a national team member who played at the 1938 FIFA World Cup. His uncle, Ladislau da Guia, had pursued the career path at an earlier stage, playing for Bangu Atlético Clube. His lack of playing time was partially a result of the presence of playmaker Rivelino on the Brazil team. Da Guia played his match on 18 September 1977 at Estádio do Morumbi. He was elected in 2004 for the period of 2005–2008 as councilman for the city of São Paulo as a member of the Communist Party of Brazil. Brazilian Championship,1967,1967,1969,1972 and 1973 São Paulo State Championship,1963,1966,1972,1974 and 1976. Rio-São Paulo Tournament,1965 IV Centenary of the City of Rio de Janeiro Tournament,1965 Ramón de Carranza Trophy,1969,1974 and 1975, laudo Natel Tournament,1972 Mar del Plata Tournament,1972
