The FIFA Weekly Issue #4 by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)

ISSUE 4, 15 NOVEMBER 2013

ENGLISH EDITION

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

WORLD CUP PLAY-OFFS: WHEN STARS COLLIDE SEPP BLATTER: NO STADIUM BAN FOR WOMEN FC BARCELONA: SWISS ORIGINS Five tickets to Brazil 2014

African dreams W W W.FIFA.COM/ THEWEEKLY

CONTENTS

7 11

"Football for Hope" in South Africa An important FIFA project has moved a step closer to fruition with the opening of Alexandra Football for Hope Centre in Johannesburg. A total of 20 similar facilities in South Africa will support and assist disadvantaged young people.

Rayo playing keep-ball Rayo Vallecano and coach Paco Jemez believe having possession of the ball is the way to escape the lower reaches of La Liga.

Interview Coach Victor Piturca is aiming to lead Romania back to the World Cup finals after a 16-year absence. The game may be in crisis in his home country, but Piturca remains upbeat in the build-up to the play-offs: “We have potential.”

South America 10 members 5.5 World Cup places www.conmebol.com

Cristiano Ronaldo Will he be celebrating against Sweden?

Portugal-Sweden: Worthy of a final Ronaldo or Ibrahimovic? Only one of them can go to Brazil. Two of the best players in the world go head-to-head in the European play-offs.

F IFA President Sepp Blatter: Equal rights for women Football can be a mediating factor in social, political and religious affairs. Sepp Blatter calls for a crucial change in Iran.

FC Barcelona – How it all began essi, Xavi, Iniesta and Co have set benchmarks with Barcelona, M but the magnificent club of today would not have emerged without a Swiss pioneer.

T he Euro 2008 anthem Everyone knows White Stripes’ anthemic hit “Seven Nation Army”. But were you aware that the melody in the chorus first appeared in a symphony dating from 1881?

North and Central America 35 members 3.5 World Cup places www.concacaf.com

Drama in Africa African World Cup qualifying has rarely been as action-packed and incident-filled as the current contest. Heavyweights including Morocco and South Africa have stumbled, with the likes of Burkina Faso, Ethiopia and Cape Verde emerging in their place. And even though administrative blunders put paid to a number of teams’ chances, the African dream lives on. We survey the teams aiming for a place at Brazil 2014.

" Stay true to yourself" Jan Ceulemans once turned down the chance to join AC Milan and remained with Club Bruges. Even now, the Belgian has no regrets.

Qualified

USA

Brazil (hosts)

Costa Rica

Argentina

Honduras

Ecuador

Play-off first leg: Mexico 5-1 New Zealand

Chile Colombia Play-off second leg 20 November 2013 Uruguay - Jordan

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

THIS WEEK IN THE WORLD OF FOOTBALL

Europe 53 members 13 World Cup places www.uefa.com

Africa 54 members 5 World Cup places www.cafonline.com

Asia 46 members 4.5 World Cup places www.the-afc.com

Giuseppe Rossi The man of the moment in Serie A

Oceania 11 members 0.5 World Cup places www.oceaniafootball.com

Women in Iran Football as a means to open doors ENGLISH EDITION

ISSUE 4, 15 NOVEMBER 2013

Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904

Zlatan Ibrahimovic Showdown against Portugal

WORLD CUP PLAY-OFFS: WHEN STARS COLLIDE SEPP BLATTER: NO STADIUM BAN FOR WOMEN FC BARCELONA: SWISS ORIGINS Five tickets to Brazil 2014

African dreams W W W.FIFA.COM/ THEWEEKLY

African dreams At club level Didier Drogba has achieved almost everything. Now he wants to cause a stir with Côte d’Ivoire. Marcello Lippi Success in Asia’s Champions League

Victor Piturca Romania’s coach for a crisis Jan Ceulemans Club Brugge instead of AC Milan

Cover: Marco Grob

Inhalt: Getty Images, Pixathlon, Imago, Keystone

Samuel Eto’o Taking on Tunisia for Cameroon

Qualified

Play-offs (First leg)

Qualified

Play-off

Italy

Burkina Faso 3-2 Algeria

Australia

Second leg, 20 November 2013

Netherlands

Côte d'Ivoire 3-1 Senegal

Japan

New Zealand - Mexico

England

Ethiopia 1-2 Nigeria

Iran

Russia

Tunisia 0 - 0 Cameroon

Korea Republic

Belgium

Ghana 6-1 Egypt

Switzerland Bosnia-Herzegovina Germany Spain

Play-offs (Second leg)

Play-off first leg Jordan 0 -5 Uruguay

Algeria-Burkina Faso (19 November) Senegal-Côte d'Ivoire (16 November) Nigeria-Ethiopia (16 November)

Play-offs 15 & 19 November 2013

Cameroon-Tunisia (17 November)

Por tugal-Sweden

Egypt-Ghana (19 November)

Ukraine-France Greece-Romania Iceland-Croatia

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Only eight countries have ever lifted the FIFA World Cup Trophy.

Yet over 200 have been winners with FIFA. As an organisation with 209 member associations, our responsibilities do not end with the FIFA World Cupâ&#x201E;˘, but extend to safeguarding the Laws of the Game, developing football around the world and bringing hope to those less privileged. Our Football for Hope Centres are one example of how we use the global power of football to build a better future. www.FIFA.com/aboutfifa

UNCOVERED

A place in the sun: Roger Milla soaks up the rays at Italy ’90 – before firing Cameroon to the quarter-finals.

Talent, tribulations and a typo Thomas Renggli

“A

frica, the confederation with the most member associations, is woefully under-represented at the World Cup. This flawed state of affairs must be rectified,” wrote FIFA President Sepp Blatter in his column three weeks ago, unleashing a veritable storm of reaction. In the midst of this, UEFA President Michel Platini intervened in the debate and demanded – presumably by way of protecting the European associations – an increase in the World Cup starting field to 40 nations.

Getty Images/Allsport

Blatter’s suggestion is based on mathematical fact. Five World Cup places for a total of 54 African associations is patently disproportionate compared to Europe’s 13 places for 53 associations and South America’s 5.5 for ten associations. The history of African adventures at the World Cup is marked with mishaps and mixups. The current qualifying campaign is now approaching its denouement but a tendency to blunder has not abated: no fewer than nine teams have been docked points for fielding suspended or ineligible players.

The first World Cup finals appearance by an African country, Egypt’s tilt at the 1934 crown, was facilitated by Turkey’s withdrawal from qualifying. In their meeting with sole remaining preliminary stage opponents Palestine, Egypt prevailed on a 11–2 aggregate. But their appearance in Italy was to be the exception that proves the rule. It took until 1970 before Morocco became the next team to represent the continent at the finals. We should remember that the route to the World Cup for the African teams was always a gruelling marathon. The continent had no guaranteed places in the starting line-up and the winner of the preliminary continental contest went into an eliminator against a representative from the Asia/Oceania grouping. Between 1964 and 1992 South Africa were initially suspended and then excluded from FIFA due to the Apartheid regime. The first sub-Saharan nation to qualify for the finals were Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo). African expectations and hopes of landing a major coup have steadily grown since then, but there remains a gulf between ambition and reality. Only Cameroon, in 1990, Senegal, in 2002, and Ghana in 2010 have ever reached the quarter-finals, and once there all of them were edged out, Ghana most dramatically to Uruguay on penalties three-and-a-half years ago. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

It is impossible to ignore the common threads running through repeated African near-misses: individual class and exuberance have inevitably been more abundant than tactical nous and discipline. “African talent and Asian discipline would yield a world-class team,” some folk say when considering the reserves of potential in areas of world football. What Africans can achieve in a well-organised and functional team is proved by the example of Didier Drogba. The 35-year-old Côte d’Ivoire veteran was an inspirational leader with Chelsea, spearheading a drive which brought league and cup titles and Champions League glory. In Turkey, he led Galatasaray to the domestic double in 2013. In stark contrast, he and his Côte d’Ivoire team-mates failed to survive the group stages at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. Two decades earlier, Roger Milla thrilled and delighted the footballing family. He propelled Cameroon to the last eight in 1990, contributing four goals and legendary dances of celebration. He stepped onto the World Cup stage again four years later in the USA, where a goal against Russia made him the oldest scorer in the history of the finals. Ironically, Roger Milla’s given name was actually Roger Miller. The name under which he became famous and bears to this day is all down to an error by a civil servant filling in his birth certificate. Å 5

Three-time African Player of the Year Samuel Etoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;o and Cameroon have work to do against Tunisia.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

WORLD CUP QUALIF YING

Heroes have emerged, favourites have fallen and dreams have died in an unusually turbulent African qualifying contest. And the last act is still to come with the decisive play-offs, which are certain to capture the imagination of the African fans, with their perennial appetite for high drama and intense competition.

DRAMA IN AFRICA

Mark Gleeson, Cape Town

Gian Paul Lozza/13Photo

he African qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil has been peppered with calamity, including the failure of heavyweights such as South Africa and Morocco, and extraordinary clerical errors, reflecting poorly on administrators in Ethiopia or Burkina Faso. It is a tale of mishaps, misfortune and mistakes. But that is only one side of the story. The positives include refreshingly open football with unexpected results and the rise of several new contenders for World Cup places. The drama is yet to reach its climax, but we should begin our story at the beginning. Disaster strikes 2010 hosts A mere five of the 54 African associations will ultimately make the trip to Brazil. The qualifying marathon comes to an end next Tuesday and is threatening to return to the World Cup finals the same five countries who came through the 2010 qualifying process. Algeria, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana and

Nigeria all played at the 2010 tournament. The same five are in pole position to qualify again, although Burkina Faso, who lead Algeria 3-2 after the first leg, and Tunisia, after a goalless draw with Cameroon, harbour legitimate hopes of their own. That may suggest that little has changed in the pecking order of the African game but there has been much turmoil in the qualifiers for many of the continent’s supposed superpowers. 2010 World Cup hosts South Africa were among the heavyweight casualties in the group phase, along with Morocco, who had been to four previous finals tournaments. Also eliminated before the final round of play-off matches were the 2012 African Nations Cup winners Zambia, 2012 and 2013 Nations Cup bronze medallists Mali and perennial under-achievers Democratic Republic of Congo, who dropped out of contention well before the last group matches. New mindset in Ethiopia But the emergence of Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Cape Verde Islands and Libya in the qualifying campaign reflects how the established T H E F I FA W E E K LY

order is being challenged. Ethiopia were one of the founder members of the Confederation of African Football but faded as a power from the mid-70s. Three decades on, their football has undergone a massive revival on the back of a strong domestic league, enthusiastic fans and a strengthening economy that sees the game thriving again. Even though Ethiopia have a mere handful of foreign-based players – the general measure of strength and proficiency in African football - they have proven highly competitive. Much of it has to do with a change of mindset. “Our players are young and fresh and have played against many professional players – they have come to understand that it is man against man, eleven against eleven and that they can beat any country if they work hard,” explains coach Sewnet Bishaw. Burkina Faso have been the wonder story of 2013. Just before the turn of the year they were docked points after FIFA found they had fielded an ineligible player at the start of the qualifying campaign. They looked to have foregone any chance of going to Brazil. But the 7

WORLD CUP QUALIF YING

Ethiopian fans in Addis Ababa. Their heroes have ground to make up against Nigeria.

“Our players are young and have come to understand they can beat any country if they work hard.” Sewnet Bishaw, Ethiopia coach

’land of upright men’ emerged as surprise runners-up at the African Nations Cup finals in South Africa at the start of 2013 and took that momentum forward into the World Cup qualifiers, winning their last five successive matches to put themselves in line for a trip to next year’s tournament in Brazil. The Burkinabe meet Algeria in Blida in the last of the qualifying games on Tuesday night, looking to protect a slender 3-2 lead from the first leg of the play-off in Ouagadougou last month. The finest of lines separate success from failure in Africa. Just like Burkina Faso, Ethiopia managed to overcome the embarrassment of being docked points in the campaign. The Ethiopians miscounted their yellow card tally and used a player who should have a been suspended in a 2-1 win over Botswana in June, forfeiting three hard-won points. Mishaps, misfortune and mistakes That a further five African countries made similar errors of eligibility was mind boggling, 8

especially considering it has never happened before. Points were also forfeited by Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Sudan and Togo due to clerical errors. The worst mistake was tragically committed by Cape Verde, an island archipelago of just over 500,000 people, who played defender Fernando Varela in their decisive group game in Tunisia in September when he should have been sidelined by a suspension for an earlier red card. The Cape Verdians pulled off a famous 2-0 win in Tunisia – undoubtedly the biggest shock of the qualifiers – but were then stripped of the points and eliminated when it was discovered Varela was ineligible. Had they not made the error, the islanders would have been in line to T H E F I FA W E E K LY

become the smallest nation to qualify for the World Cup finals. The rise of the supposed minnow has been a characteristic of the African game in recent years as the gap between the top countries and the rest of the pack narrows. Libya are another country with little previous World Cup pedigree and yet, for all the uncertainty over the security situation in their country, pushed hard until right at the end of the group phase in December before being edged out by Cameroon. League competition has only recently returned to Libya at the end of two years of civil strife which makes the achievement even more remarkable.

Florian Kalotay/13Photo, Imago

WORLD CUP QUALIF YING

On course for the World Cup: Kevin-Prince Boateng with the Ghanaian national team.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

WORLD CUP QUALIF YING

Burkina Faso keeper Daouda Diakite (top) leads his team’s celebrations.

“The dream of going to the World Cup is what kept our team united.” Bob Bradley, Egypt coach

Ian Walton/Getty Images

Egypt’s World Cup curse Egypt have also had to deal with an uncertain political climate, including a brief ban on playing in Cairo by their own government, yet were the only team to emerge from the group phase with a 100 percent record of six wins out of six. A unique partnership with seasoned American coach Bob Bradley held out real hope of finally ending the ignominy of consistent failure in the World Cup qualifiers. “The dream of going to the World Cup is what kept our team united for these two years,” said Bradley. However, a one-sided 6-1 hiding from Ghana in the first leg of the play-offs last month leaves them with a near-impossible hurdle. Despite dominating African football at both national team and club level, the Egyptians have persistently failed to reach the finals 10

since their last appearance in Italy in 1990. During that time they have won an unmatched four African Nations Cup titles. Players like Ahmed Hassan, Wael Gomaa and Mohamed Aboutrika are legends on the African circuit but their career achievements look incomplete without a World Cup finals appearance. Other disappointments were Mali, Morocco and the South Africans, who all have quality-laden squads but did not display the requisite consistency. It is too much of a stereotype, but one is sometimes left feeling that a dash of European efficiency and Asian work-rate added to the abundant African flair would produce truly world-beating football teams. Å

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

FOOTBALL FOR HOPE

Football for Hope Centre opens With the inauguration of the Alexandra Football for Hope Centre in Johannesburg, F IFA’s 20 Centres for 2010 campaign has entered the home straight. The aim of the initiative is to create 20 centres to promote public health, education and football across Africa. The project began three and a half years ago with the kick-off of the World Cup in South Africa. "For us, hosting the first football World Cup in Africa was always about more than organising the event," said FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke. "Therefore we made the firm commitment to leave a tangible social legacy for the entire African continent." Since the campaign began, 70,000 disadvantaged youths in 16 countries have had access to education and medical care. The focus of the A lexandra Centre is to teach youngsters about HIV/Aids. Å

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

www.kia.com

Totally transformed, more stylish than ever All-New

*Options may vary depending on market

TALK ING POIN T S

O N

T H E

I N S I D E

Serie A

Ro s s i's r e t u r n Luigi Garlando is an editor at Gazzetta dello Sport and the author of numerous children’s books.

The old order went some way towards re-establishing itself on the latest matchday in Italy’s Serie A. After winning a record ten games in a row, the surprise pacesetters Roma stalled once again with a second consecutive draw at home to newly-promoted Sassuolo, suggesting that the absences of Francesco Totti and Gervinho have begun to blunt the attacking edge of Rudi Garcia’s team. Meanwhile, reigning champions Juventus rediscovered their form with a thumping 3-0 win over Rafa Benitez’s ambitious Napoli side, a success which has taken them to within one point of the league leaders. 'The Old Lady' is clearly on the mend, thrilling fans with some scintillating football from the likes of Paul Pogba and Co, with the added bonus of a consistent defence that has now gone four matches without conceding.

Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images

But the prize for the most remarkable return to form must surely go to Fiorentina’s Giuseppe Rossi. The pint-sized striker netted another two goals to take his tally into double figures and become Serie A’s leading goalscorer so far this campaign with 11 in 12 games, well ahead of

“Failing to recognise talent appears to be a typically Italian bad habit.” such illustrious names as Gonzalo Higuain, Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli. Not bad for a player whose biggest priority this season was holding down a starting berth after two injury-plagued seasons. Rossi’s ordeal began back on 26 October 2011, during his fifth season with Spanish side Villarreal, when he ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee playing against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. The American-born forward was operated on the following day and spent the rest of the campaign on the sidelines, before re-injuring the same ligament in training on 13 April 2012. Rossi underwent further surgery and another four-month recovery, followed by a third operation and an additional six-month layoff. During this dark spell, in January 2013, Fiorentina gambled €10 million plus another €6

million in performance related add-ons to bring the former Parma forward back to Italy in the hope of nurturing him back to his prolific best. Rossi showed tremendous strength of character to regain his fitness and today, Fiorentina can point to Rossi’s goal return and the club’s great start to the season in claiming that their gamble has already paid off. In fact La Viola succeeded where Italian football had twice failed in the past, having first let Rossi leave for Manchester United aged 17, before failing to hold onto him three years later after he bagged nine goals in 19 games on loan to Palma. Finally, however, it seems that Italy now appreciates the true worth of ‘Pepito’ Rossi, whose Spanish nickname was given to him by legendary tactician Enzo Bearzot, a world champion with Gli Azzurri in 1982. Bearzot likened the striker to his namesake Paolo ‘Pablito’ Rossi, scorer of a magnificent hattrick against Brazil during that triumphant campaign. Despite shining in South Africa at the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009, “Pepito” was unable to return there with Marcello Lippi’s World Cup squad a year later. Now, though, Fiorentina’s diminutive centre-forward—who has family roots in Abruzzo—is back in the national side and all set to play his first World Cup at the age of 27. Only time will tell if he can emulate his forbear’s success in Brazil, where the name Rossi still sends shudders down the spine of a nation’s football fans. Å

Fiorentina celebrate: Giuseppe Rossi (far right) hit a brace to go top of the Serie A goalscoring chart. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Premier League

M i l ls a nd moods David Winner is a writer and journalist from London. His books on football include "Brilliant Orange" and "Dennis Bergkamp: Stillness and Speed".

A century or so ago, as the game of football established itself in the industrial heartlands of Britain, a curious phenomenon became apparent. When the local team won, productivity in nearby mills, factories or shipyards increased. When the team lost, productivity fell. The mood-altering power of the game is no less potent today but, as anyone who followed the Manchester United - Arsenal match on Twitter could have told you, the geographical location has widened. The contest was the biggest of the English league season so far and saw the league leaders crash 1-0 at the home of the reviving champions. For Manchester United fans across the world this provided joy unconfined – and a chance for gloating. An official of the Malaysian Red Devils fan group claimed that Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil’s “invisible show” had justified United’s decision not to sign him. This United fan also seemed to enjoy seeing former Arsenal captain Robin van Persie score United’s winning goal. As he commented at half time: “yeehhhhhaaaaa!!” Red Miss Devil from Indonesia (“a Manchester United girl, Love United forever!") was less restrained, posting a picture of Van Persie’s goal celebration with the caption “GROAAAAAARRRRRRRRR!!!” before adding “Roaaaarrrrrrrrr like a tiger!!!!” and “Menaaaaaaaaang!!!!” and “Yippieeeee!!” Arsenal fans felt differently. As Van Persie’s goal went in, “Twin Cities Gooner” from Minnesota, 9,000 miles away but watching the same TV pictures, howled “How?! No!” Later he confessed that Arsenal had been “just not good enough” and said he “had to cool off” after the match. The way he saw it, the “biggest disappointment comes from the fact that when the chips are down, when it really matters we can`t/don`t beat them. And I hate that!”

Cometh the hour: Man United goalscorer Van Persie celebrates with Rooney.

From Lagos, Nigeria another Arsenal devotee called Rita C. Onwurah had started her day brightly (“I feel like I`m on top of the world!”) only to find herself experiencing the classic stages of grief, moving from anger and denial to acceptance. “I see no reason why I should be pissed off with this game, Arsenal held their own” and “it was an unfortunate match, they were unlucky not to score as well”. By nightfall Rita had come to terms with the disaster impressively philosophically: “Oh well! Life goes on doesn`t it?” Actually, it might not. “I`M IN A DIE MOOD” said a Gooner calling himself NoÖzilNoParty whose whereabouts were unclear. And a chap tweeting under the name BeritaArsenal (“Proud to be Indonesian Gooners. Sack the Arsenal`s board”) reported the final score as “Man.Utd 1 (Son of Sin) vs 0 ARSENAL”. In a spirit of defiance, Berita ended his day – though hopefully not all his days – by transmitting a famous picture of the tombstone of a United-hating fan. The message from the grave read: “I would rather be here than at Old Trafford”. Å

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Bundesliga

Au t u m n b l u e s Sven Goldman is a leading football correspondent for the “Tagesspiegel” newspaper in Berlin.

A year has passed since Bayern Munich star Thomas Muller boldly stated that while the rest of the Bundesliga was welcome to wish for a Bayern crisis during November, they “may end up waiting a long time” for it to materialise. Muller’s words followed Bayern’s disappointing defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, their first of the 2012/13 season and a result that gave their rivals in Dortmund and Gelsenkirchen a glimmer of hope. Were Bayern about to suffer an autumnal dip in form? The record Bundesliga champions delivered an emphatic response, cruising to a comfortable 3-0 victory at Hamburg before trouncing Lille 6-1 in the Champions League. Twelve months on and the Bundesliga’s other clubs are once again considering the possibility of a crisis, but this time Bayern are only indirectly involved. On this occasion, the team on everyone’s lips are their biggest and arguably only rivals Borussia Dortmund, who have suffered a loss of form just days before their all-important clash with Munich on 23 November.

Dortmund’s tough week began with a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Champions League, which dented their hopes of qualifying for the last 16 of the competition. Three days later, BVB lost 2-1 to Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, meaning a four-point gap has opened up between Jurgen Klopp’s team and Bayern so even a Dortmund victory on Matchday 13 wouldn’t be enough to overtake the league leaders. Klopp has rarely looked more baffled and forlorn than after Saturday’s match in Wolfsburg. He half-heartedly complained about two unsuccessful penalty appeals and spoke quietly and pensively about the “terrible news” that had befallen his team. Here, he was referring to the serious injury suffered by centre-back Neven Subotic during the game. The Serb tore the cruciate and medial ligaments in his right knee, bringing his season to an end before it had really got going. Subotic is a very special player in Klopp’s eyes: a reliable defender on the pitch and an inspiration to his team-mates off it. The two worked together at Mainz and when Klopp took over at Dortmund five years ago, there was never any doubt that Subotic would join him. No loss could have had a greater impact on Dortmund’s coach, whose team are currently suffering an identity crisis. There was little evidence in Wolfsburg of the desire and passion that served BVB so well in Europe last season. Klopp seemed a little helpless after the game, explaining that “last week was hardly a walk in the park” and that his team’s efforts had sapped the players’ energy.

John Super/Keystone

Such is the strength of Bayern’s squad that they managed to overcome Augsburg 3-0 on Saturday without ever getting out of third gear. Dortmund, on the other hand, are always working at full throttle. Klopp’s team thrives on their emotions, their enthusiasm, and their general sense of wellbeing. This makes them more susceptible to crises when they hit a sticky patch – as they have done in recent days. Å

“Jurgen Klopp has only rarely come across as puzzled.”

Primera División

A n c e l ot t i l au d s R ayo s t y l e JordÍ Punti is a novelist and

le demonstration from Rayo, who created more chances than Real, pulled two goals back and registered a remarkable possession level of 59 per cent. Their dominance was so overwhelming that at the final whistle Carlo Ancelotti approached Jemez, applauding him in recognition of the merits of his team.

author of many football features in the Spanish media.

Up to this September, over five years had gone by since Barcelona had ended up on the losing end of a possession battle. Until, that is, Paco Jemez’s Rayo Vallecano took on the Catalans in a league match. Barça defeated the Madridbased side 4-0, courtesy of a Pedro hat-trick and a goal from Cesc Fabregas, but the resounding victory suddenly appeared a little less sweet because their opponents had held on to the ball slightly longer than the Blaugrana had. In specific terms, Barcelona had the ball for 49 per cent of the time; Rayo Vallecano for 51 per cent. Since 7 May 2008, when Frank Rijkaard held the reins – or 316 competitive encounters – no team had enjoyed more possession than Barcelona during a whole match. It did not happen once under Pep Guardiola or Tito Vilanova; ball retention was the cornerstone of their approach to the game. As Johan Cruyff once said, in that easy way he has of turning obvious remarks into pearls of wisdom: “If you have the ball, your opponent doesn’t.” The symbolic setback gave rise to the first serious criticism of the team’s recently installed coach, Gerardo Martino. Some fans saw it as a sign of change, an indication that this new Barça would take a more practical and less elaborate approach, but players such as Xavi and Andres Iniesta were quick to state that their traditional style was ‘non-negotiable’, and that the game was nothing more than a minor blip. In reality, the fallout might have been easier to handle had they stopped to give credit to Rayo Vallecano, one of the teams in La Liga which most aspires to keep control of the ball.

The loss to Real Madrid left Los Vallecanos propping up the Primera Division, but this is not something that is likely to greatly concern Jemez. The former Deportivo La Coruna and Real Zaragoza centre-back, who played numerous times for Spain, is a close adherent to the ideas of Guardiola; for him, controlling the game takes on a higher importance than the final result. His successful record speaks for itself. Last season, he guided Rayo to eighth place in the table, the best top-flight finish in the club’s history. In terms of ball possession, they were the third-best team in Europe (58.13 per cent), finishing behind Bayern Munich (63.62) and Barcelona (69.13). Even more impressively, these feats were achieved with the lowest budget in the league (€7.5 million). “The bottom line is that you have to try to entertain people and cheer them up. That’s what happens when you go to the theatre and the opera; a football match should be no different,” said Jemez in an interview with Jotdown magazine. His words are even more striking when the size of Rayo Vallecano’s stadium is taken into account. The pitch’s measurements make it one of the smallest arenas in La Liga, rendering a passing game more difficult, but Jemez dedicates himself to training the team in such a way that scoring chances are practically guaranteed, safe in the knowledge that goals will come along in the end. If proof was needed that the team are heading in the right direction, on Sunday in Galicia they overcame Celta Vigo (2-0), another club that, under the watchful eye of coach Luis Enrique, attempts to play in the same style as Cruyff and Co. However, on this occasion, the post-match possession statistics went the way of Celta. Å

Just three weeks before, Atletico Madrid had seen off Rayo 5-0 at home, but also had the ball in their possession for less time than the away side (46 per cent to 54 per cent). Just a few days ago, the same thing happened to Real Madrid. Los Blancos came away from the Vallecas district of Madrid with a 3-2 win to their name, but the second half was a veritabT H E F I FA W E E K LY

THE INTERVIEW

“We have no infrastructure” Coach Victor Piturca is aiming to lead Romania back to the World Cup after a 16-year absence. But what is to be done about the long and deep crisis gripping the game in his home country?

For many long years, Europe and the world have been deprived of Romanian technique and finesse. What happened? Victor Piturca: It’s very simple: we have no outstanding players in Romania.

How are you coping with that? Obviously, the strength of any team is dependent on the players, but also on tactical discipline. As we don’t have the players, we’re falling back on good organisation and discipline. And it’s working.

Why don’t you have the players? Many things have simply disappeared. A generation of potentially good players has disappeared. The kids prefer to sit in front of their PCs nowadays. We’ve lost four out of every five playing fields, and our youth academies have gone too. They don’t even play football on the streets in Romania nowadays.

What’s left of the infrastructure? There is no infrastructure. And today’s youth has no appetite for football.

Germany, France, Belgium and Switzerland, to name just four, have drawn on reserves of players from immigrant backgrounds. Romania has net migration rather than immigration, but is there no hidden potential in young Italians, Spanish and French youths with Romanian roots? No. There are no players worthy of consideration.

You just about made it to the play-offs. How good is your team? If you make the play-offs, you must be good. It’s not like we don’t have a chance against Greece, and we have potential for the future. We have a few players in the Premier League for example. But our young players still have some way to go.

In the short to medium term, you’ll have to form another new team. When I took charge a little over two years ago, the team was in decline. My clear objective was to qualify for EURO 2016, so I built a 16

team from scratch and brought in players who hadn’t featured up to that point. I stabilised the team and we gained a foothold. On top of that, players like Vlad Chiriches (23, Tottenham Hotspur), Bogdan Lobont (35, AS Roma) and Razvan Rat (32, West Ham United) have made it abroad with clubs in the West.

What are you hoping to achieve with this team? A place at the World Cup finals in Brazil. Even if it’s not in my contract.

This is your third stint as Romania national coach. You’ve experienced highs and lows in the job. Why have you taken it on again? My philosophy as a coach is the one I had as a player: I aim for continuous improvement. I’ve never inherited a team of superstars. I’ve had to build a new team every time. I took over in 1998 and led the team to EURO 2000. When I returned in 2004, we qualified for EURO 2008. Now we want to go to the 2014 World Cup.

You led the team in qualifying for EURO 2000, but you were prevented from coaching Romania at the tournament. At the time you backed players who were out of favour with the powers-that-be in Romanian football and you were forced to step down. Could that happen again in Romania? The association paid the price: Romania spent eight years failing to qualify for a major tournament. Mircea Sandu, the president at the time and still in office today, will certainly never do that again. But things like that can always still happen in Romanian football. Too many of the people involved know nothing about football or indeed sport in general.

In 1986 you played up front for Steaua Bucharest’s European Cup winning team. What are your memories of that? It’s obviously something I’ll never forget. The club had absolutely no financial clout, we came from a Communist country. But we still overcame RSC Anderlecht, one of the richest clubs in the world at the time, and also Barcelona. We were a genuine team comprising outstanding players. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

What did it mean to the people of Romania? It was fantastic. We were greeted by a crowd of thousands at Bucharest airport, and tens of thousands more would have come if they’d had the chance. We brought joy to the people. And that’s what I’m trying to do today as national coach. Romania is plagued by poverty. The quality of life tends to be low.

What will Romanian football look like in 15 years? Everyone knows something has to be done. As a first step, all professional clubs should be obliged to establish youth academies. If not, it will be extremely difficult. On top of that, we need help from the state to improve our sporting infrastructure. Nothing will be possible without that.

You meet Greece in the play-offs, but who will win the World Cup in Brazil? The five teams who could do it are Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany and the Netherlands.

You’re not expecting a surprise? No. But Belgium could go a long way. Å Victor Piturca was talking to Perikles Monioudis

Name: Victor Piturca Date of birth: 8 May 1956 Place of birth: Orodel, Romania Playing career: 1974–1975 Dinamo Slatina 1975–1977 Universitatea Craiova 1977–1978 Pandurii Targu Jiu 1978–1979 Drobeta-Turnu Severin 1979–1983 Olt Scornicesti 1983–1989 Steaua Bucharest 1989–1990 Racing Club de Lens

Coaching career: 1992 Steaua Bucharest 1994–1995 Universitatea Craiova 1996–1998 Romania U-21 1998–1999 Romania 2000–2002 Steaua Bucharest 2002–2004 Steaua Bucharest 2004–2009 Romania 2010 Steaua Bucharest 2010 Universitatea Craiova

Tom Shaw/FIFA/Getty Images

Since 2011 Romania

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Dominate the distance, jump higher, tackle harder. Feel the energy behind the engine: adidas nitrocharge. adidas.com/football

ÂŠ 2013 adidas AG. adidas, the 3-Bars logo and the 3-Stripes mark are registered trademarks of the adidas Group.

nitrocharge your game

C O U N T D O W N T O B R A Z I L 2 0 14 : 3 0 W E E K S T O G O

→ http://www.fifa.com/worldcup

Crunching the numbers Perikles Monioudis

t the start of summer in 2013, mass demonstrations took place across Brazil in which large sections of the population vehemently expressed their dissatisfaction at the social inequality in the country. The Confederations Cup and FIFA itself were widely used as targets for their discontent. However, the country’s reputable media outlets had long been commenting that the nation’s social problems are far too complex to have been caused by any sporting association.

Emilio Morenatti/AP

Nevertheless, many people still made FIFA the scapegoat when looking for the root of the social unrest. Former football star Romario branded FIFA and the World Cup Local Organising Committee (LOC) as “unscrupulous” a few days ago. Claims abound that FIFA will earn €1.2 billion from the World Cup, that the LOC – a private company of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) and 100 per cent financed by FIFA – will earn almost one billion, and that the cost of staging the World Cup has already gone €1.5 billion over the initial budget. Those reasons

are cited as to why many local transport service projects have been cancelled. The truth is this: FIFA does not use any public money and is investing approximately $1.5 billion USD in the organisation of the 2014 World Cup, including the entire LOC budget of $450 million USD. Those funds are generated solely from the private sale of diverse marketing and television rights. Of that total figure, over $850 million USD will flow directly into the Brazilian economy. The primary beneficiaries will be small and medium-sized businesses in various sectors, above all IT, logistics, hosting services and hospitality. The LOC does not generate any income whatsoever. The 47-year-old Romario took to Twitter to announce that he was “against the excessive costs of the World Cup”, but not against the tournament itself. In this last regard, he is far from alone. The Brazilian opinion polling institute Datafolha recently recorded a 90 per cent approval rating for the World Cup among Brazilians. Sponsorship Intelligence found that twothirds of the country’s population were confident

the competition would go well. Former president Luiz Lula, who helped bring the World Cup to Brazil, recently stated that “if the world’s seventh-largest national economy cannot host a major sporting event, then we’ll only be left with a handful of options across the globe for future competitions.” The Brazilian government calculates that its investments in the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games between 2007 and 2016 will amount to approximately 0.15 per cent of the gross domestic product. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has indicated that education spending in Brazil has increased from 3.5 per cent of GDP in 2000 to 5.6 per cent in 2010. Investments in the World Cup stadiums did not come from government coffers but from the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), which finances infrastructure projects worldwide. The nine state and three private stadium operators will repay the loans after the World Cup. According to a study by Ernst & Young and FGV, the $9 billion USD tax revenue generated by the World Cup will far exceed the initial $3.5 billion USD investment in the stadiums. Å

Despite the social unrest, Brazilians are looking forward to hosting the World Cup. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

MIRROR IMAGE

Wembley, London

1930

Blimp over Blighty: You would think the looming presence of a 236.6-metre long and 30-metre diameter Graf Zeppelin would be hard to ignore, even for football fans. But the crowd at the FA Cup Final on 26 April 1930 seem not to have noticed the famous dirigible. Their full attention is on the Wembley pitch, where Arsenal beat Huddersfield Town 2-0.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

MIRROR IMAGE

Plaza Colon, Madrid

Denis Doyle/Getty Images

2008 Spanish fly-past: Fernando Torres struck the only goal of the EURO 2008 final in Vienna on 30 June that year. Thousands of fans gathered on Plaza Colon in Madrid to hail Spainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first major trophy since 1964. The air force supplied an appropriately patriotic dash of colour to the scenes of national relief and rejoicing.

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

EVERY GASP EVERY SCREAM EVERY ROAR EVERY DIVE EVERY BALL E V E RY PAS S EVERY CHANCE EVERY STRIKE E V E R Y B E AU T I F U L D E TA I L SHALL BE SEEN SHALL BE HEARD S H A L L B E FE LT

Feel the Beauty

BE MOVED

THE NEW 4K LED TV

“SONY” and “make.believe” are trademarks of Sony Corporation.

FREE KICK

W E E K LY T O P 11

The fiercest derbies

No comment... Thomas Renggli

egendary German coach Sepp Herberger once astutely observed that “a game of football lasts 90 minutes.” In fact, that is one of the most common misconceptions in football. No referee would ever dream of blowing the final whistle on the stroke of 90 minutes. Indeed, the two 45-minute periods have been known to last up to 100 minutes. The hourglasses, water metres and sundials used by our ancestors were a more accurate means of measurement than the rule of thumb applied by officials when it comes to accounting for stoppage time. In any case, the last kick of the game rarely signals the end of a footballer’s working day. Somewhere between the touchline and the dressing room, the post-match interview has to be given in front of the assembled media, a process which is often more painful to witness than a glaring miss during the game itself. From Vladivostok to Vancouver and from Perth to the North Cape, footballers’ post-match comments invariably follow the same pattern every week:

Å “It was a tight game but luckily we took our chances, and that’s why we won.” Å “We need to put this defeat behind us and focus on the next match.” Å “We weren’t as good as the result suggests to be honest. I’m just glad we got the three points in the bag.” Å “Apart from the goals, I thought we were as good as they were.” Å “Luck just wasn’t on our side.” Å “We’re taking it one game at a time.” Å “Refs have given penalties for that type of thing before.” Å “Not every referee would give a penalty for that.” Å “I still can’t quite believe we’ve won. It hasn’t sunk in yet.” Å “Anything can happen in the cup.”

The same could be said for the interviewers, who are often just as prone to error as those answering the questions. In other words, a silly answer is often preceded by a silly question, as the following examples prove: Å “Are you happy you won?” Å “Are you frustrated at conceding that deciding goal in stoppage time?” Å “How come you missed that penalty five minutes before the end?” Å “How do you feel after this heavy defeat?” When analysing the post-match analyses, you come to the sobering conclusion that it might be best to scrap them altogether. Perhaps more of the protagonists should follow the example set by Milan Sasic, coach of German third-division team Saarbrucken, who had one thing to say after his side’s 2-2 draw with Munster last weekend: “Please understand that I’m not going to comment on today’s game.” Not everyone ascribes to the notion that silence is golden, however. If their post-match comments are anything to go by, footballers can be broadly divided into the following categories: extremely intelligent, very intelligent, intelligent and ‘other’. It also goes without saying that a footballer’s IQ often differs greatly from his income. Only at amateur level does the former definitely exceed the latter. Å

The weekly column by our staff writers. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Celtic - Rangers: Opposite ends of the religious and political spectrums come together in the “Old Firm” derby. Celtic have traditionally been seen as a Catholic club, while Rangers have had a Protestant identity.

Boca Juniors - River Plate: “El Superclasico”. What is probably the world’s most fiery derby pits together two teams representing different social classes. Boca are a blue-collar club, River Plate a white-collar establishment.

Galatasaray - Fenerbahce: One city, two continents. Galatasaray’s roots are in the European area of Beyoglu, Fenerbahce are based in the Asian district of Kadikoy.

Partizan Belgrade - Red Star: Europe’s most explosive derby is notorious for violent clashes among fans. It has a colourful history too: Partizan were founded by the military regime.

Roma - Lazio: The biggest derby in Italy. Roma represent the city of Rome, Lazio the surrounding region.

Liverpool - Everton: Neighbours do not get much closer than this. The teams’ stadiums sit just 800 metres apart and on top of that, Anfield was originally built for Everton.

Flamengo - Fluminese: The “Fla-Flu” derby is held in the legendary Maracana stadium. In 1963 a world record 194,603 fans watched the game.

Austria Vienna - Rapid Vienna: In Europe, the Viennese derby is second only to the Old Firm in terms of the number of occasions it has been staged – over 400 times to date.

Al-Ahly - Zamalek: Derby day in Cairo is guaranteed to leave the city’s streets empty, with over 100,000 spectators cramming into the stadium, and millions more watching on television.

Mohun Bagan - East Bengal FC: Cricket may be the national sport in India, but when the Calcutta derby comes around, 120,000 fans flock to the stadium.

Sporting Lisbon - Benfica: In 1907 seven players joined Sporting from Benfica, sparking the intense rivalry that still exists today. 23

T H E P L AY- O F F S

The showmen Athleticism, power and precision: A Ronaldo overhead kick is a wonder to behold.

Either Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimovic will miss out on the 2014 World Cup. We preview the Portugal-Sweden play-off in which the star duo’s performances could well determine which nation books their ticket to Brazil.

Jordi Punti

t is safe to say that either Cristiano Ronaldo or Zlatan Ibrahimovic will find themselves subejected to even greater levels of hero worship in their homeland next Tuesday night, by which time either Portugal or Sweden will have secured their place at next year’s World Cup in Brazil. Rarely have two nations invested so much of their faith in individual footballers as Portugal and Sweden are right now. So dependent are both sides on their star peformers that this two-legged tie is as close as it gets to a personal duel. One of the things that makes this contest so exciting is the fact that its two major protagonists are so remarkably similar. Charismatic, physically prodigious players blessed with an exceptional technique that makes them stand out from the crowd, Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic are omnipresent on the pitch. Competitive to an extreme, they occasionally project an arrogant and egocentric image that delights their admirers and infuriates their detractors. Their public pronouncements usu24

ally begin with the word “I”, and when they celebrate a goal they invariably stand there with arms outstretched and head raised high as if to say: “Here I am. Don’t you just love me?” Whenever they miss a chance, they look askance at the ball, the goalkeeper or the sky, as if the world has somehow conspired against them. CR7 and Ibra are tigers waiting to pounce, more jungle buddies than direct rivals. Zlatan may have been a team-mate of Lionel Messi’s for a season at Barcelona, but it is not hard to picture him giving Cristiano his vote for the next FIFA Ballon d’Or, or the Portuguese repaying the compliment. The Real Madrid star is the world’s highest-paid footballer, two places higher than the Paris Saint-Germain man in the list of top earners, but such considerations perhaps count for less on the international stage than in the club arena. Both are the captains of their respective national teams and have come to understand the two-way street of working with their team-mates in order to achieve individual success. Portugal lie 14th in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking and Sweden 25th, so neither can be considered among Europe’s genuine heavyweights, but in both T H E F I FA W E E K LY

countries the achievements of Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic have a national resonance. So what can we expect from CR7 and Ibra in this week’s play-off ? The pair go into the tie in outstanding form, having further showcased the weaponry at their disposal by scoring nerveless hat-tricks for their clubs last weekend. In helping Real Madrid hammer Real Sociedad 5-1, the Portuguese gave another demonstration of his all-round skills, scoring from a Karim Benzema cross first of all, then the penalty spot and finally from a free-kick, while also striking the post and serving up an assist. The Swede turned in a similarly virtuoso show in accounting for all Paris Saint-Germain’s goals in their 3-1 defeat of Nice, rounding off a fine team move before converting from the spot himself and scoring with a header. If those displays are anything to go by, the upcoming play-off should be an exciting and tight affair in which penalties could well prove decisive. History also points to two close encounters. On the few occasions they have faced each other in the past, there has never been much to choose between their sides.

T H E P L AY- O F F S

“If someone was to call me the best in the world, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

Age: 32

Age:

World Cup matches:

Most recent transfer:

From AC Milan to Paris St Germain for €20 million in 2012

Club as youth: Malmo Anadolu BI

Most recent transfer: From Manchester United to Real Madrid for €94 million in 2009

Goals for Sweden: World Cup (0) and World Cup qualifying (17)

Club as youth: CF Andorinha

“Quality only comes at a price. I don’t understand the criticism. The more money I earn, the more tax goes to France.”

Goals for Portugal: World Cup (2) and World Cup qualifying (11)

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

T H E P L AY- O F F S

It may well take penalties to settle the play-off.

Ronaldo was on the scoresheet when Manchester United beat Ibra’s Inter Milan 2-0 in the knockout stage of the Champions League in 2008-09, with the Swede repaying the compliment when Barcelona overcame Real Madrid 1-0 at the Camp Nou the following season. And when Sweden and Portugal met in the qualifiers for South Africa 2010, stalemate ensued in goalless draws in Porto and Stockholm. Individual gifts aside, another determining factor will be the morale of the two sides and their ability to support their star acts. Sweden would seem to have a slight edge in that respect, having finished second only to mighty Germany in their group and hit some decent form in the process. Perhaps their best recent performance came when they beat England 4-2 in a friendly a year ago, a match in which Ibra scored all four of their goals, including the stunning long-distance overhead-kick that led to some dubbing him the Nureyev of football. Portugal were less impressive in finishing second to Russia. An air of gloom seems to hang over their side, which has come in for plenty of criticism of late, and from which Ronaldo has not been exempt. The Portuguese can at least take comfort from recent experience. In the qualifiers for EURO 2012 they also took

Unstoppable: even a massed defence looks vulnerable when Ibrahimovic charges towards goal.

the play-off route, beating Bosnia-Herzegovina to reach the finals, where they advanced to the last four before going out to Spain on penalties. The butterf ly effect Adding even more spice to the occasion is the fact that this is one of the last chances the two players will have to return to the world finals. Now 32, Ibrahimovic has played for a clutch of leading European clubs and is just five goals away from becoming Sweden’s highest goalscorer of all time. Another World Cup appearance would allow him to extend his stay in the sun. Four years his junior, Ronaldo will be 29 by the time Brazil 2014 comes around, the perfect age for him to make a lasting mark for his country. After Brazil he can expect one more shot at a return to the big stage, though his influence on the side will surely have diminished by then. The loser of this duel will have to endure a summer out of the limelight, looking on from the sidelines while the stars of world football score the goals they consider to be rightfully theirs.

Republic of Ireland thanks to Thierry Henry’s handball, and Uruguay squeezed through, the first step on a journey that would ultimately lead them to a semi-final against the Netherlands. Not to put too fine a point on it, the play-offs can trigger football’s own butterfly effect. Regardless of how much Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic are involved, Portugal’s tie with Sweden has the power to shape the destiny of many sides between now and 4pm on 13 July 2014, when the World Cup Final will be played at the Maracana. Å

The play-off round, which features Portugal-Sweden among other ties, is a sign that the World Cup is just around the corner. Four years ago, France controversially defeated the T H E F I FA W E E K LY

T HE DEBAT E

A catalyst for change

Female fandom: Iranian women in Tehran celebrate the victory over South Korea that saw their national team through to the World Cup finals in Brazil.

male and female, would have almost no opportunity to test their skills on an international basis.

A historic meeting took place at the Home of FIFA in Zurich on 23 September 2013. President of the Palestine Football Association Jibril Al Rajoub and his Israeli counterpart Avi Luzon shook hands and agreed on procedures to bring the nations closer together, including ways of simplifying the movement of people and goods.

The Palestine FA was founded in 1928 and accepted as a member of FIFA 70 years later. That allowed a chink of light from the outside world to reach Palestine. The first-ever match played by the Palestine women’s national team on 22 September 2005 represented nothing less than a cultural revolution. Team captain Honey Thaljieh talks of the power of the game to promote integration: “Through football, we were able to break down barriers. Imprisoned behind the wall in Palestine and blocked by military checkpoints, football provided us with a window to the outside world, a glimpse of brightness and a human connection. Football allowed us to invite and interact with teams from around the world. We were able to build bridges of cooperation, tolerance, and understanding.”

It was a small step towards better mutual understanding, but without the power of the game to mediate, it would almost certainly never have been possible. Prevailing travel restrictions mean Palestinian players, both

Religious affiliation plays no role in the composition of Palestine national teams. Christians and Muslims play together in both the men’s and women’s teams. The sides’ recent progress on the international front was

Thomas Renggli

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

partly facilitated by a provisional change to the Laws of the Game. In 2012 the International Football Association Board lifted a ban on headscarves, initially for a test period until 2014. The need for a rethink arose for a number of reasons, including the disqualification of the Iranian women’s national team from an Olympic qualifying tournament in 2011. A similar debate took place two years later in Quebec, when the local association banned a Muslim player from wearing a turban. FIFA intervened with a resolution citing exceptional circumstances and allowing men in Canada to play with a head covering, provided the textiles did not endanger the safety of the players and the colour matched the corresponding kit. Å

The weekly debate. Anything you want to get off your chest? Which topics do you want to discuss? Send your suggestions to: feedback-TheWeekly@fifa.org.

AFP/Atta Kenare

Football on its own cannot change the world. However, it can be a catalyst for change even in the toughest political and religious environments.

T HE DEBAT E

PRESIDENTIAL NOTE

“I come into contact with people from different cultures every day. If any differences ever arise between us, they disappear as soon as we play football together. Football is not just healthy for the body but for the mind and spirit, too. Long live football! It helps us to overcome life’s greatest difficulties.”

awarded a contract to complete infrastructure projects, they budget for the most expensive materials and ultimately use the cheapest. The difference is simply lost in a sinkhole of corruption. It would be better to use the money for schools, hospitals and social services.”

Fabio Ambrosone, Brescia (Italy)

Semen Izemesiev, Rostov (Russia)

“Football serves as an important example of how to act, particularly when it comes to respect. When you consider the way some politicians behave, without any respect for other peoples and cultures, it is hardly a surprise that problems arise in society. However, these kinds of problems are practically unheard of in football. There’s no inappropriate aggression between people on a football pitch. We play, tussle and shout to one another, but at the end of the match we shake hands. That’s why I love football. It’s a shame that more people don’t take this beautiful game as an example. I dream of a day when the Tibetan national team can take part in official international matches.” Jigme Ribi, Markham (Tibet)

“No women inside the stadium? I had no idea such archaic rules still existed. That’s an absolute no-go for me; it’s like going back in time 300 years. Football brings people from different cultures together in a modern way, so bans like that are completely inappropriate, irrespective of which country permits them. Anyone who wishes to participate in football at an international level should respect certain basic rules, and letting women into stadiums is definitely one of them. Personally, I would simply boycott matches in Iran.”

“It’s like going back I in time 300 years.”

visited Iran last week. I was invited by the Iran Football Federation, two years ago in fact, but I’ve only just been able to make a stopover en route to the U-17 World Cup final in the United Arab Emirates and take up the invitation. Football in Iran is very popular, and successful too. The national team have qualified for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, as they did in 1978 for the finals in Argentina and in 1998 for the World Cup in France. Back then, Iran beat USA 2-1 in a group stage fixture in Lyon. Many observers thought that was a historic event.

“Women’s football is completely normal in Central European culture these days, and that’s a good thing. Playing women’s football simply to demonstrate how independent and progressive you are doesn’t fit into my picture of a modern society.” Viola Ziegler, Zurich (Switzerland)

Alejandro Munoz, Sabadell (Spain)

“Football is booming in Russia. As a fan, I can’t wait until we host the 2018 World Cup here. However, it’s extremely unrealistic to expect our entire population to benefit from the tournament. Unfortunately, it’s always the same in Russia: whenever a company is

Equal rights for men and women

“Before Euro 2012, we had high hopes that Ukraine’s living conditions and public infrastructure would improve. Unfortunately, I haven’t personally noticed any difference. New football stadiums don’t change anything.”

It could also be historic if Iran decided at some point to allow women access to football stadiums. The law of the land does not currently permit this. I do not know whether this unacceptable situation can be changed. I raised the subject on the occasion of my visit to President Hassan Rouhani and Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani, and I later repeated it at the press conference. As FIFA President, but also as a football fan, I said I would like football stadiums to be open to all people. To oppose discrimination means supporting equal rights for men and women.

Oksana Galkina, Donetsk (Ukraine)

If Iran wishes to escape its isolation, it will require more than nuclear talks with the West. There’s a very unspectacular way back into the global game: a match ticket for women.

“I dream of a Tibetan national team.” Best wishes, Sepp Blatter T H E F I FA W E E K LY

With Visa you are always welcome in the country of football.

FIFA WORLD R ANKING Rank Team

Change in ranking Points

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 10

Spain Germany Argentina Colombia Belgium Uruguay Switzerland Netherlands Italy England

0 1 -1 1 1 1 7 1 -4 7

1513 1311 1266 1178 1175 1164 1138 1136 1136 1080

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 44 46 47 47 49 49 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 61 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 71 73 74 75 76 77

Brazil Chile USA Portugal Greece Bosnia-Herzegovina Côte d'Ivoire Croatia Russia Ukraine France Ecuador Ghana Mexico Sweden Denmark Czech Republic Serbia Romania Slovenia Costa Rica Algeria Nigeria Honduras Scotland Panama Venezuela Armenia Peru Turkey Mali Cape Verde Islands Hungary Japan Wales Iceland Norway Tunisia Paraguay Iran Egypt Burkina Faso Austria Montenegro Uzbekistan Korea Republic Australia Albania Cameroon Republic of Ireland Libya South Africa Finland Senegal Slovakia Israel Zambia Guinea Poland Jordan United Arab Emirates Bolivia Sierra Leone Cuba Togo Bulgaria Morocco

-3 4 0 -3 -3 2 2 -8 -4 6 4 -2 1 -3 -3 -3 5 15 2 -1 2 -4 3 6 28 -1 -1 17 -5 9 -3 2 -13 -2 8 8 -8 -1 -8 -1 -1 -1 -6 -27 2 2 -4 -13 2 -1 9 7 -7 2 -5 3 4 8 -4 3 11 -9 -1 10 2 -12 -3

1078 1051 1040 1036 983 925 917 901 874 871 870 862 860 854 850 824 783 778 767 752 744 741 724 720 715 702 692 687 686 670 668 662 636 634 634 633 632 632 613 613 610 598 596 584 582 569 564 563 554 550 540 540 538 530 528 515 513 512 503 502 496 496 493 492 488 487 478

Ranking May 2013

June 2013

July 2013

Aug. 2013

Sept. 2013

Oct. 2013

1 -41 -83 -125 -167 -209 Top spot

78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 103 105 106 107 107 109 110 111 112 112 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 121 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 129 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 141 143 144

Biggest climber

Dominican Republic New Zealand Haiti Trinidad and Tobago Jamaica Belarus Gabon Uganda FYR Macedonia Congo DR Azerbaijan El Salvador Northern Ireland Congo Oman Angola Benin Ethiopia Moldova China PR Botswana Estonia Georgia Saudi Arabia Zimbabwe Lithuania Iraq Qatar Liberia Korea DPR Central African Republic Kuwait Niger Canada Guatemala Antigua and Barbuda Guyana Mozambique Tajikistan Latvia Kenya Equatorial Guinea St Vincent and the Grenadines Lebanon Burundi Bahrain Malawi Turkmenistan New Caledonia Luxembourg Namibia Rwanda Tanzania Suriname Grenada Afghanistan Cyprus Kazakhstan Sudan Philippines St Lucia Gambia Malta Syria Lesotho Thailand Tahiti

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Biggest faller

9 -12 -2 4 -4 -3 -1 -4 -11 4 19 4 -4 1 4 -4 -4 -2 33 2 6 -11 -3 8 -1 9 2 3 8 6 -4 0 -8 -5 -12 -1 16 1 1 -2 0 -21 2 -1 3 -2 -2 0 -31 -1 -1 2 -2 4 -13 -1 0 -3 4 4 0 -3 2 2 6 -4 2

474 470 464 457 456 441 438 431 430 411 407 404 399 394 381 380 378 376 369 365 354 351 350 338 328 323 323 313 312 310 310 307 306 296 294 294 286 282 280 277 274 273 271 267 267 266 263 254 249 247 246 242 242 237 233 223 219 216 215 213 203 202 192 183 183 181 179

145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 162 162 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 171 173 173 175 176 177 178 178 180 181 182 183 183 185 186 186 188 189 190 191 192 193 193 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 202 204 204 206 207 207 207

Belize Palestine St Kitts and Nevis Hong Kong Myanmar Kyrgyzstan Vietnam Mauritania Nicaragua India Singapore Chad Maldives Liechtenstein Puerto Rico Malaysia Bermuda Indonesia São Tomé e Príncipe Bangladesh Nepal Sri Lanka Laos Pakistan Dominica Curaçao Solomon Islands Guam Barbados Aruba Faroe Islands Chinese Taipei Yemen Samoa Mauritius Madagascar Guinea-Bissau Vanuatu Swaziland Mongolia Fiji American Samoa Tonga Bahamas Montserrat Comoros US Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Brunei Darussalam Timor-Leste Eritrea Seychelles Papua New Guinea Cambodia British Virgin Islands Andorra Somalia Djibouti Cook Islands South Sudan Macau Anguilla Bhutan San Marino Turks and Caicos Islands

0 3 -10 0 13 -6 2 -2 0 1 4 2 -5 -2 1 1 -4 8 1 4 -2 2 5 2 -2 4 -2 4 -22 -8 7 -1 -4 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 3 2 2 2 2 3 4 3 -1 0 -11 -11 0 0 0 1 -2 0 0 1 1 1 -2 0 0 0 0

178 175 172 171 169 161 159 158 155 151 149 148 147 141 139 137 127 120 120 120 119 108 105 102 89 88 86 86 82 82 81 79 72 62 62 57 56 53 49 49 47 43 43 40 33 32 30 29 26 26 24 23 21 20 18 16 14 11 11 10 10 3 0 0 0

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

First Love Place: R io de Janeiro, Brazil Ye a r : 20 0 5

Photograph by Levon Biss with support from Umbro/RPM

THE FIF FA A W E E K LY

HISTORY

How football came to Barcelona

Barça forward Hans Gamper (second from right) in his element (1903).

Many people consider FC Barcelona the world’s leading club. The Catalan club was founded almost 114 years ago by a Swiss national, although Barcelona wasn’t good to him in the end.

Perikles Monioudis

asel have been the comfortably the best team in the country FIFA calls home for many years. They are Swiss champions and Champions League contenders, but when they take to the field in their blue and red jerseys, some observers in Europe feel it is all a tad presumptuous. How dare this lot play in the colours of mighty Barcelona? Is a touch of humility and a little respect for the best club in the world too much to ask? Or looking at it the other way round, is it conceivable that Barça star Neymar would ever be seen in an Basel kit? Questions, questions – and unfortunately, neither club can provide a particularly helpful answer. When quizzed on the club colours, FC Barcelona fall back on an official “nobody knows” statement, and FC Basel aren’t really 34

bothered about the question. But then, they have every right not to be, seeing as they got there first. In any case, the Basel media have for a long time spoken of a “non-verifiable myth” when it comes to anything the Catalans may have borrowed from the Swiss in the early days. What is not in doubt is that Barcelona were founded by a Swiss national. A footballer in a foreign land They still pay homage to Hans Gamper in Barcelona today. The Zurich native, who scored his goals for FC Basel between 1896 and 1898, moved to the Catalan capital a year later for professional reasons at the invitation of his uncle. He had previous experience as a founder of a football club with FC Excelsior Zurich, who played in red and blue. On 29 November 1899, a week after his 22nd birthday, he founded Futbol Club Barcelona – a Protestant club in an overwhelmingly Catholic metropolis. For Hans Gamper, who soon started calling himself Joan, this religious dichotomy would T H E F I FA W E E K LY

prove the defining experience of his time on the Mediterranean coast. When this extremely gifted footballer, practising Protestant and clerk in the Credit- Lyonnais branch in the white-collar district of Sant Gervasi, applied for membership of Tolosa gymnastics club, president Jaume Vila unceremoniously turned him down. Gamper simply didn’t belong in Barcelona, nor was it the first time he had been made aware of the fact. Vila wanted neither foreigners nor Protestants in his gymnastics club – and most assuredly didn’t want to establish a football club with them. However, in the Sole gymnastics club – which also published the sports bulletin “Los Deportes”, for which Gamper later occasionally penned articles – a couple of like-minded souls teamed up with the Swiss newcomer. After recruiting a few more players by placing an advertisement in “Los Deportes”, Gamper issued invitations to a meeting with the purpose of founding FC Barcelona. The new sports club applied for and was granted an official

HISTORY

Barcelona 1930: Hans Gamper’s funeral.

1898: Hans Gamper as a young man in Switzerland.

1961: Barça fans at Wankdorf Stadium in Berne.

1901: The first Barcelona team (Gamper front row, third from left).

FC Barcelona/Keystone

permit shortly afterwards, conditional on the appointment of a president responsible for club finances. Gamper had no desire to spend his time hassling players and chasing membership dues, so he initially declined the highest office and proved himself an outstanding striker and scorer instead, a reputation he undoubtedly deserved: he is said to have scored 120 goals in 51 matches. A serious rival to FCB soon emerged in the shape of FC Catala, a club founded by the same Jaume Villa who had once sent Gamper packing. Marriage to a Catholic The new club disputed FC Barcelona’s status as the longest-standing football club in the city, and also included foreign players in its ranks, six Scots to five Catalans. The (Protestant) Scots were not churchgoers and were thus tolerated at FC Catala as non-believers or quasi-Catholics. It dawned on Gamper that it was not his nationality, but in fact his religion holding him back in Barcelona. Protestant services were only attended by German and Swiss nationals.

Gamper ended his career in 1903, and married the Catholic Maria Emma Pilloud in 1907, thereby finally gaining acceptance into wider society – and at FCB. In 1908 he was elected president of the club for the first time, after his sometime comrade-in-arms Luis D’Osso, an increasingly assertive and ultimately fanatic Catholic, was distracted from his mission of converting FCB into a purely Catholic club by woes arising from a severe economic crisis. In the space of a few years, the club had shrunk from 198 members to just 34, so Gamper was appointed out of desperation. One of his first actions was to order a hundred FC Basel match posters, perfectly fitting FC Barcelona in terms of the club colours. Gamper’s suicide Joan Gamper served a final term in office from 1924 to 1925. It ended as abruptly as his life. Dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera ordered the closure of the club’s home ground after FCB players and supporters mocked the Spanish anthem prior to a match and cheered T H E F I FA W E E K LY

1927: Bank clerk Hans Gamper.

the English anthem instead. Gamper was forced to step down. Five years later, in 1930, he shot himself at home. FC Barcelona became mired in the confusion of Civil War from 1936. FCB players fought the Falangists, who murdered Barça president Josep Sunyol. In 1943, dictator Franco ordered FCB to lose the “Copa del Generalísimo”. Real Madrid won the match 11-1. Neymar, Barcelona’s new icon and star, would not have enjoyed the pre and post-war years at FC Catala or Real Madrid. In the here and now, he recently made his debut in the blue and red of Barcelona in the Gamper Cup. Over the years, the likes of Diego Armando Maradona (1982), Ronald Koeman (1989), Hristo Stoitschkov (1990) and Ronaldinho and Romario (1993) have graced Barça’s traditional first home appearance of the season, paying tribute to the pioneer from Switzerland. FC Basel would have been glad of their services too. Å

THE SOUND OF FOOTBALL

THE OBJEC T

Perikles Monioudis Extravagant transfer fees in today’s football business are financed from diverse sources. While Real Madrid president Florentino Perez flexed his chequebook for Gareth Bale, at comparatively smaller clubs, players’ agents and club officials combine their roles or even act as part of an investment consortium.

“Seven Nation Army”

And although there are no guarantees a new arrival will perform well - a player can be out of form or get injured - there is one sure source of income that that is immediately exploited in the wake of huge transfers: the sale of the player’s shirts.

Hanspeter Kuenzler

The origins of fans' stadium chants are often shrouded in mystery. The "Daa da da da da daa daa" song, better known as ‘Seven Nation Army’ by the White Stripes is a case in point. Prior to EURO 2008, the majority of European football supporters were probably unfamiliar with Detroit natives Jack and Meg White. Since 1997 the duo had been trying to create a musical blend out of authentic blues and various aesthetic concepts the former art students had concocted. Club Brugge do not play in red, white and black, the colours regularly donned by the band, but when the club's supporters gathered in a Milanese bar ahead of their side's Champions League match against AC Milan in October 2003, Seven Nation Army was playing on the jukebox. The good-humoured Belgian fans heartily sang along 36

to the song off the White Stripes album 'Elephant', and when their team secured a 1-0 victory thanks to Andres Mendoza's 33rd minute goal, the tune's propitious reputation was sealed. From then on, it took on a life of its own.

enter the pantheon of folk music.” His song is not alone in that regard. The “daa da da da da daa daa” can also be heard in Anton Bruckner’s Fifth Symphony in B flat major, which he completed in 1881. Æ

When Club Brugge played Roma in the UEFA Cup three years later, the melody returned to Italy with the visiting fans and swiftly became the Tifosi's unofficial national anthem just in time for the World Cup in Germany. After Italy were crowned world champions, Seven Nation Army became so widely ingrained on European football terraces that UEFA made it the official entrance song for teams at EURO 2008. Jack White, who by his own admission has little footballing talent, felt honoured, saying: “Nothing is more beautiful in music than when people embrace a melody and allow it to

So it was recently with Germany international Mesut Ozil. The Arsenal jersey of the former Real Madrid star was an instant hit and generated profits that, in a sense, originated from Perez’s coffers. Back when a shirt was just a shirt, and not made of high-tech fabric or used as a merchandising tool, a certain Luigi ‘Gino’ Colaussi dribbled his way to a maiden world title for the Azurri in France. Colaussi, a Friaul native, made a trio of appearances as an outside left at the 1938 World Cup and scored three goals, two of which came in the 4-2 final triumph over Hungary. In doing so he wore a blue shirt with armorial bearings of the former Royal House of Savoy on the right side of his chest. The description of the finely woven cotton shirt given by Christie’s auction house appropriately stated, “numerous small moth holes.” The shirt has shrunk a little, but it was never bigger than a size S in the first place. In 2000, almost a decade after Colaussi’s death, it moved to the archives at the Home of FIFA for the sum of CHF 20,000. Sales of replica Bale and Ozil shirts comfortably generate several times that amount. Å

T H E F I FA W E E K LY

TURNING POINT

“Stay true to yourself” Jan Ceulemans is Belgium’s most capped international and helped his country to the 1980 European Championship final, as well as the last four of the 1986 FIFA World Cup. The attacking midfielder rejected an offer to join AC Milan, preferring to stay at Club Brugge.

Name:

s a child I was equally enthusiastic about basketball and football. The thought of giving up one for the other never crossed my mind. Eventually it became too much for me though, so I asked my father for advice. He replied that I could make a living from football but not from basketball, so from then on I dedicated myself solely to playing football. Back then you couldn’t earn very much in Belgian football, or anywhere in the world really, but you could get by. When I was 14, practically still a boy, I focused all my efforts on playing for my club Lierse SK. Today it’d be unthinkable to leave school so easily. I signed my first professional contract aged 16 and made my top-flight debut in the 1974/75 campaign. After four seasons I had the chance to move on and learn new things, so I joined Club Brugge when I was 21. I played there for 14 years. The club and the city mean so much to me that nothing could tempt me away from there, but I’ll come back to that. I won four Belgian league titles and two Belgian Cups as an attacking midfielder for Club Brugge, but it was my time with the national team that left me the most lasting memories. Reaching the semi-finals at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico is certainly one of them. We lost the opening game against the hosts 2-1, then we beat Iraq 2-1 and drew 2-2 with Paraguay. The three points were enough for us to progress to the next round. We beat the Soviet Union after extra time and knocked Spain out on penalties, but our luck ran out against Argentina in the semi-finals. We lost 2-0 to the eventual champions, led by their captain Diego Maradona. We didn’t need any luck at the European Championship in Italy in 1980. We made it into the final against Germany following draws with Italy and England, as well as a win over

Jan Ceulemans Date of birth: 28 February 1957 Birthplace: Lier, Belgium Height: 1,88 m International appearances: 96 (Belgian record) Club: Club Brugge Clubs coached: Among others, Club Brugge, currently with R. Cappellen FC

Spain. I rank our achievement there higher than at the 1986 World Cup because we held our own against the top teams. That gives me far greater satisfaction.

vast sums of money. Today I’d probably have accepted an offer from AC Milan, but I can promise you one thing: I’ve never regretted staying at Club Brugge. Å

Guy Thys was our coach at both tournaments. I learned from him that you need to stay true to yourself. Thys was always the same, whether you bumped into him on the street or were with him in the changing room before an important match. He was always genuine and open, both as a coach and as a person.

Recorded by Perikles Monioudis

When a couple of clubs showed interest in me after EURO '80, I entered talks with them and even travelled to AC Milan. But I quickly realised that my connection with Bruges was too strong. The club had always put their faith in me and the wonderful city is one of the most beautiful in Europe, with stunning landscapes and the sea close by. Walks along the beach always help me reconnect with myself. Of course, back then we weren’t talking about T H E F I FA W E E K LY

In Turning Point, personalities reflect on a decisive moment in their lives. 37

emirates.com

Tomorrow brings us all closer To new people, new ideas and new states of mind. Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s to reaching all the places weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve never been. Fly Emirates to 6 continents.

FIFA QUIZ CUP

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

Let’s warm up gently with the first two questions. Here we go!

Internet: www.FIFA.com/TheWeekly Publisher: FIFA, FIFA-Strasse 20, PO box, CH-8044 Zurich, Tel. : +41-(0)43-222 7777 Fax : +41-(0)43-222 7878

He captained the Brazil national team and was South American Player of the Year. And he played for...

B K-1933 Qaqortoq L Neuchatel Xamax

C Garforth Town AFC S Aloha Honolulu

President: Joseph S. Blatter Secretary General: Jérôme Valcke

A round-the-world tour, organised by...

Director of Communications & Public Affairs: Walter De Gregorio

A Adidas

O Coca-Cola

E Sony

I Emirates

Chief editor: Thomas Renggli Art director: Markus Nowak

OK, now it’s make-or-break time.

Staff writers: Perikles Monioudis (Deputy Editor), Alan Schweingruber, Sarah Steiner Contributors: Jordi Punti, Barcelona; David Winner, London; Hanspeter Kuenzler, London; Roland Zorn, Frankfurt/M.; Sven Goldmann, Berlin; Sergio Xavier Filho, Sao Paulo; Luigi Garlando, Milan

A football stadium, which incidentally also hosted World Cup qualifying matches, is named after which of these referees? C

Picture editor: Peggy Knotz Production: Hans-Peter Frei (head of section), Richie Kronert, Philipp Mahrer, Marianne Crittin, Mirijam Ziegler, Peter Utz, Olivier Honauer

On a counter-attack, Gareth sprints 100 metres at 30 km/h. But it was all in vain. He trots back the 100 metres at 10 km/h. What was Gareth’s average speed over the 200 metres?

Proof reader: Nena Morf

E 25 km/h

Contributors to this issue: Honey Thaljieh, Dominik Petermann

A 20 km/h

T 17.5 km/h

D 15 km/h

Editorial assistant: Loraine Mcdouall Translation: Sportstranslations.com Project management: Bernd Fisa, Christian Schaub

The answer to last week’s Quiz Cup was WALK (detailed answers on FIFA.com/theweekly). Inspiration and implementation: cus

Printer: Zofinger Tagblatt AG www.ztonline.ch Contact: feedback-TheWeekly@fifa.org Reproduction of photos or articles in whole or in part is only permitted with prior editorial approval and if attributed “© The FIFA Weekly, 2013”. The editor and staff are not obliged to publish unsolicited manuscripts and photos. The FIFA logo is a registered trademark. Made and printed in Switzerland.

Please send your answers to feedback-TheWeekly@fifa.org by 20 November 2013. Correct submissions for all quizzes received by 31 December 2013 will go into the draw to win two tickets to the FIFA Ballon d’Or 2013 on 13 January 2014. Before sending in your answers, all participants must read and accept the competition terms and conditions and the rules, which can be found at en.fifa.com/aboutfifa/organisation/the-fifa-weekly/rules.pdf. T H E F I FA W E E K LY

ASK FIFA!

T HIS WEEK’S POLL

Who will win the FIFA Ballon d’Or 2013?

Question from Peter Ackermann, Berne: I’ve noticed that my favourite club AC Milan only have one star on their shirt, but Bayern Munich have four. Why? Answer by Thomas Renggli, chief editor: Generally speaking, a club is awarded a star for ten league titles. Bayern Munich have four stars, because in Germany they only count titles won since the start of the Bundesliga (1964). By the accepted international standards, Bayern would be the only Bundesliga team eligible for stars (for 22 titles). To repair this “injustice” the Bundesliga lowered the requirements and introduced the following system: Three titles earn one star. Five titles mean two stars. After ten league titles, three stars are awarded. And four stars are awarded for 20 titles. This system means Borussia Monchengladbach, Werder Bremen, Borussia Dortmund, Hamburg and Stuttgart also have stars.

T HE EN T ER TAINERS

goals have been scored in the 12 Bundesliga fixtures involving Hoffenheim so far this season, a nicely-balanced 28 for and 28 against the German club. It’s a treat for the neutrals, if not for the hardcore fans or the coaching staff. Despite the efforts of seven-goal Brazilian Robert Firmino (pictured), Hoffenheim are stuck in mid-table.

Lionel Messi, his face distorted with pain. The Barcelona superstar is injured for the fourth time this season and is likely to be sidelined for six to eight weeks. For the first time in five years he may miss out on the accolade for the world’s best player. Send your thoughts to: feedback-TheWeekly@fifa.org

L A S T W E E K’S P O L L R E S U LT S: Foreign investors in football: a blessing or a curse?

58+42 BLESSING

CURSE

42% 58%

T HE SHOO T ING S TAR

goals were scored by Sweden’s Valmir Berisha at the U-17 World Cup in United Arab Emirates, earning him the Golden Boot at the showcase for the stars of the future. He was the man of

THE NEW FOOTBALL MAGA ZINE The FIFA Weekly appears every week on Friday – as a print edition and an online magazine (www.Fifa.com/TheWeekly). We report on the biggest stars, the best goals and the hottest topics, but we also focus on a dialogue with our readers. Why not join the debate about the world’s favourite game? Send your opinions to feedback-theWeekly@fifa.org

THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE WINNER

Marcello Lippi is no stranger to winning major honours. After

the moment in the

triumphs in the World Cup, the

third-place play-off

UEFA Champions League and a

against Argentina,

host of national trophies, he has

firing a hat-trick in

added a new achievement to his

Sweden’s 4-1 victory.

list. Lippi has guided his current

Berisha is on the

team, Chinese champions

books at Swedish

Guangzhou Evergrande, to the

club Halmstad,

Asian Champions League with

at least for

an aggregate victory over FC

now... T H E F I FA W E E K LY

Seoul.