There is not much I can say regarding Italy’s match against Spain; other then I saw it in “Bar Napoli” and in the company of those who had been there for Italy’s previous match other then the already known fact that we won 2-1. Naturally as with any quarterfinal match, this one was not without its great moments which saw cheers from us; Italy’s ever faithful “tifossi”. The first of which coming at the 25 minute mark when a long range effort from Dino Baggio found the back of the Spanish net and put us ahead 1-0, which was also the score that ended the opening half.

The second half started as one can expect with Spain, the team that was loosing going forward and eventually getting an equalizer from Caminero; 58 minutes in to the match, when his shoot bounced off Costcurta and past Pagliuca (back after a two game suspension) and in to the net. Italy however was not going to be denied or at least not on that day as with two minutes remaining Signori (Lazio) managed to flick the ball over to Roberto Baggio, who found himself in a one on one situation with Spanish goalkeeper, Zubizarreta. We all held our breath’s at that moment for we knew Baggio could score but just the same we needed to see him do it. Baggio took the ball with his right foot and went by Zubizarreta but perhaps opened himself too wide of the goal and just as it seemed he had no angle to shoot from; what should happen, as we the fans in Bar Napoli watched in total anxiety? Baggio while falling down manages to get a shot off that barely filtered past Spanish defender Abelardo (sliding in to prevent a goal) and in to the back of the net; sending Italian fans everywhere in to a wild celebration along with ear bursting screams of “goal”.

We were winning by 2-1 and that is how it would end though before the end of the match; AC Milan’s Tassoti would get himself an eight match suspension for breaking the nose of Spanish forward Luis Enrrique. Italy had had its problems but what mattered to us; its fans was that we had won and would be going to the semifinal. All of which meaning that if worse came to worse; Italy would end up being among the top four teams in the world for the 5th time in the last seven world cups, though we were hoping for best coming to best which would have meant becoming champs for the 2nd time in the last four world cups.

Italy was in the semifinal, so the question was who would join them and I must say I expected it to be Germany, which would have set up another semifinal between Italy and Germany as had been the case in Mexico 70. Naturally with such a big match as would have been Italy vs. Germany in the semifinal; my chances of getting a ticket seemed limited to say the least, specially given my lack of funds at the time.

Italy vs. Germany would be a great match and though the German’s were the defending champions, it was clear to see that four years had passed by and those same players who had won the title in Italia 90 were only the same in name but by no means in form. Germany had gotten through to the quarterfinals more on their name and the fear it brought on other teams, not to mention a penalty which should have been called for Belgium but was not. This being the case for Germany while for Bulgaria; it was one of them having won their first match in a world cup after having played in five previous editions.

Bulgaria in that world cup; after a bad start in which they lost their first match 3-0 against Nigeria went on to win their first ever match in a world cup by beating Greece 4-0. It was this first victory that saw the Bulgarians and above all Stoickov; go from strength to strength. As they would go on to beat Argentina 2-0 and then Mexico; in penalties in the round of 16 to get to where they were in a position to play Germany for the right to be in the semifinal.

Germany on that day started well, going up 1-0 in the scoreboard when after 47 minutes, their captain; Mattaus put them a head, with a well taken penalty. Bulgaria, however had not come so far just to give up after one goal and it only took them 18 minutes to level the score at one a piece, when a brilliantly struck free kick by Stoickov found the back of the German net. Germany was in for a battle and it would get worse as three minutes later Bulgaria’s always solid defender Leckov put away a header in the back of the German net to make the score 2-1 in Bulgaria’s favor. Germany were now loosing and though they had made many come backs in the past, this would not be one of them; as perhaps lack of motivation or age did not allow them to be the German team of old but regardless of anything Bulgaria was through to the semifinals. They were the ones who would be playing against “La squadra Azurri” and not Germany, as many so called experts had predicated.

As for the other semifinal match; it would be Sweden against Brazil, with these two teams meeting both for the second time in USA 94 (first game ending 1-1) and the sixth time in the world cup. This second figure still being in fact the record for the most times two teams have faced each other in the world cup. I for my part could imagine that Brazil; after a hard fought match would beat Sweden but then again it might be the Swedes to pull of an upset and reach the final but before that could happen they would have to beat Brazil for the first time in a world cup.

By then I had become a regular, not only in Bar Napoli but in “Little Italy” where I was known in every bar and restaurant, as I had just about seen a match in every one of them, however I will never forget the opportunity that was presented to me two days before Italy’s semifinal encounter against Bulgaria. It happened while I was sitting outside one of these very places, waiting for my beer that a lady I knew approached me asking if I wanted to buy a ticket for Italy’s semifinal match. The answer was clear that I wanted the ticket she claimed to have but was almost sure that her asking price would be beyond my means so I asked more from curiosity then with intensions of buying how much she wanted for the ticket? She though this I do not recall the exact amount mentioned a price which almost shocked me, as it was well within what I could afford and even had on me at the time. I naturally said “yes” with a huge smile on my face and just as I was about to reach for my wallet; this lady informed me that she did not have the ticket on her but could go and get it in less then ten minutes.

I must confess to have been very enthusiastic at that point and just as she was about to go I asked her what kind of seats they were and if they were not too high up; as I might have problems with blood coming out of my nose if they were. Perhaps, it was this bit of American humor which this lady from Naples did not really understand that made her in a slightly annoyed fashion tell me that such could only be the case if the height in question were above several thousand meters. This joke obviously not translating well in to Italian.

As I waited on this hot day, I started pondering the reason that she was selling tickets to the semifinals so cheaply and even came up with some ideas that perhaps what she was offering was not “the real McCoy” so to speak. This was after all a world cup semifinal and though I had heard of a case back in Chile 62, where as few as 8,000 fans attended the semifinal between Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, it struck me as odd that she would be offering this ticket for so little and that one was available at such a late stage. I, however did not have long to consider the matter because just as I was waiting; a man came by from the Belgium football federation who offered me not only a better ticket but one that was even cheaper at 90 USD. I, being one not to waste such chances took out my money as fast as my hand could get to my wallet and paid the man 90 bucks; who handed me the ticket which I kept for many a year or at least till I gave it to the owner of San Lorenzo in Warsaw. This the Italian restaurant where this ticket currently finds itself decorating the wall of.

I was overjoyed to have this ticket which had all the signs of being the genuine article, like the ones I had bought before but still I wondered how come this man was selling a ticket that on it had a face value of 200 USD for 90, this not even being half; so I asked. The answer I got was one which I recommend all those who are fans of football to never forget; as it will be useful to them in the future to get cheap tickets to big games and it was as follows. This man told me that many Germans bought tickets when they found out that Germany would be playing the semifinal in Giant’s Stadium but when it turned out that their team lost; a lot of them, thousands to be precise decided it would be preferable to sell their tickets. This I imagined because they had probably purchased their tickets with the sole intension of seeing Germany in the semifinal, for the game in and of itself they could watch on TV.

Second of all; I also figured that the German’s who had made the trip over to America just to watch the world cup were probably staying in hotels, which they would no longer have to pay for if they simply sold their tickets at what ever price they could get, even if at a loss and just hopped the plane back home. I, however do not think the situation would have been so desperate; for instance when both Italy and Germany failed to qualify to the finals in the world cups played in their countries as those fans were probably not looking to get back home but I can see it as being similar. The moral however one can deduce from this is that when two great teams are expected to meet in a match and one of those teams is eliminated before; it usually leaves a lot of desperate fans seeking to sell tickets, which for the most part should make the price go down, as there would be no sense in anybody buying those tickets after the game, unless they wanted a souvenir. Furthermore regarding this matter, I could add that this is probably what would have happened in 2002 if Brazil had lost to Turkey in their semifinal match, which would have meant a final between Germany and Turkey.

As expected however the lady who had first offered me a ticket came back and was disappointed to see that I had bought another one from someone else but did understand that the opportunity had presented itself and she, of course could always sell her ticket to another fan. I, however for my part was thrilled I would be seeing “La Squadra Azurri” playing in the semifinal of the world cup and all I could think of was, first buying a large Italian flag, (bigger then the one I already had) and then showing my ticket to all those at my favorite pizzeria in Brooklyn. I even made up my mind to give them the Italian flag I already had as a present since I was planning on getting a bigger one.

Life, I must say was beautiful at that moment (like the name of that film with Roberto Bennini) and as I sat in Little Italy, now sipping my beer, I heard to gentlemen at a table next to me speaking Spanish. This prompting me to ask them in Spanish, where they were from and telling them that though I was Italian American, I did speak Spanish because my mother was from South America. As it turned out that these two gentlemen were from Ecuador, and it was with great enthusiasm that I told them I was going to be watching Italy vs. Bulgaria live, while they told me they had seen Germany vs. Bulgaria live. We went on to talk about other things though for the most part given that we met during a world cup limited ourselves to football, touching upon such topics as the recent killing of Escobar, which all of us without hesitation condemned as well as the cartels in Colombia. One of these men telling me that one of the cartels had bet in favor of Colombia while the other against. All creating a tense situation and as we also agreed upon, a team needs to have a 100% concentration in a world cup and be playing at its best to have any chance of winning, with me adding that even when a team was doing that; things would still be difficult.

In this most pleasant conversation, I also remember telling these two gents that during my 1984 visit to Ecuador I had met the famous “Vito Munoz”, with whom I had a very interesting conversation, naturally about football as he was and still is a very well known local sports commentator. I, for my part got to ask one question, which I had been waiting for a long time to ask somebody from Ecuador, which was why Ecuador had never managed to qualify to a world cup? After all I had been in their country, where I had seen many Ecuadorians playing football; both on a professional level and even on the streets and they definitely were not bad at the sport but quit the contrary. I even remarked how Barcelona (a team from Guayaquil, not to be confused with the one from Spain going by the same name) had made it to the final of the “Copa Libertadores” in 1990; eliminating Brazilian and Argentine teams on their way.

Additionally to my question, I added the comment that if, for instance Venezuela did not qualify to the world cup; the answer was simply that they stunk at the game, and this I say not to offend anybody from this country but because it is true. I mean lets face, baseball is their sport, not football. My question and comments actually made both men laugh as it was one that not only had been raised by many foreigners but several Ecuadorians themselves however this they could not answer and it was with good wishes that we parted company as I headed to my favorite pizzeria in Brooklyn.

My name is Gianni Truvianni, I am an author who writes with the simple aim of sharing his ideas, thoughts and so much more of what I am with those who are interested in perhaps reading something new. I also am the author of the book entitled “New York’s Opera Society” which is now available on Amazon.

Gianni Truvianni

http://www.articlesbase.com/soccer-articles/world-cup-usa-94-italy-vs-spain-682682.html

Technorati Tags: world cup italy

Every four years a World Cup will come along and occupy a football fan’s thoughts and time for weeks. Game after game, the best footballers in the world will parade their skills in front of thousands at the stadium and millions watching on the TV back in their homes.

Players

Players generally make the World Cup what it is. If there were not great players we would certainly not be watching this tournament in the vast numbers that we do. In previous World Cup finals we have seen the emergence of some great talents, talents that we would not normally be able to see.

History

Which players did the world discover after displaying their skills in previous World Cups? There would be far too greats many to be able to list in detail and there has always has always been heated discussions about who is the greatest player of all time, with two players always at the forefront of the debate.

Lets look at these players’ credentials.

Diego Armando Maradona [Argentina]

[World Cup Honours : 1982, 1986 (winner), 1990 (2nd), 1994]

Maradona is a flawed genius, no-one has ever had his sublime talents and been able to hit the self destruct button with such great effect. Never before has a player been credited with winning the World Cup trophy single handed as he did in Mexico 1986. Even in the infamous 1986 quarter final and scoring what is widely regarded the best goal that has ever been scored in the Finals. After picking the ball up in his own half he managed to dribble hi way through a quality England side before slotting the ball past Peter Shilton, the England keeper on the day.

The Argentinean team that he played with in this tournament were all excellent players but possibly not quite good enough to lift the trophy. However, with Maradona at the height of his powers there could only be one team that could possibly win.

Maradona also helped his nation to the final of the World Cup in 1990 in Italy and only lost to a German penalty scored by Andy Brehme.

However, after failing a drug test in 1991 his career was on a downhill path and then came his final appearance on the greatest stage in the game of football.

In 1994, the World Cup in USA when he scored in Argentina’s first game against Greece anyone that watched his celebration knew that it was not only adreneline that powered the little magician. Eyes glaring into the camera, the hearts of all Argentineans knew that drugs were fuelling their talismanic captain. A drug test followed and the inevitable positive result ended Maradona’s tournament and effectively his career.

Edson Arantes do Nascimento – Pele

[World Cup honours : 1958 (winner), 1962 (winner), 1966, 1970 (winner)]

The only similarity between Pele and Maradona is that they hail from the same continent. Pele was the original World superstar, enjoying a career that can be regarded as a being a model professional.

Pele’s credentials are there for all to see, he set up goals, he was an instrumental leader on and off the field and he also scored goals. In fact the amount of goals that he scored is a substantial feat in itself.

His record is phenomenal, scoring five goals in a game six times, four goals 30 times and three goals 90 times. These are numbers the modern player can never dream of matching. In his illustrious playing career he scored a stunning total of 1283 goals. In his international career he scored an amazing 77 goals in 92 appearances. However, there was much more to Pele than ‘just’ goals.

He will also be remembered as being the only player in history for winning the world Cup on three occasions, a feat that is unlikely to ever be repeated. Only an injury in 1966 in England stopped him from possibly winning the World Cup on four consecutive occasions, allowing a fine England side to become World Champions for the first time.

He was captain of the greatest team of all time, the 1970 Brazil side that won the tournament so convincingly in Mexico. Anyone who has watched the final game of that tournament, which Brazil defeated Italy by four goals to one, will be amazed at the skill and vision of the original total footballing side.

Given that Pele hung his playing boots up over 20 years ago and is still revered by football fans that never saw him in his prime is testament to the great man’s passion and skill for the greatest game of all.

Many others have graced the greatest tournament that is the World Cup, but both of the players named above are by far heralded as the greatest two. But who would make the top ten complete?

Gordon Banks, Eusebio, Puskas, Zinedine Zidane, Michel Platini, Franz Beckenbauer, Garrincha and the Johann Cruyff to name but a few. In fact many modern day critics may have Cruyff as the greatest modern player, a player who helped to mould the game into the style of play that you see today.

Then there are players that did not manage to show their talents in the World Cup, the most notable being the late, great George Best from Northern Ireland. The other most notable absentee is Alfredo Di Stefano. There are actually many Latin Americans that would hail the ‘Blonde Arrow’ Di Stefano as the greatest player that the world has ever seen.

Among those still playing, Czech Republic playmaker Pavel Nedved, of Juventus, Manchester United’s Dutch predator Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ukrainian goal-machine Andrey Shevchenko, of AC Milan, would top the list. But all three will appear at Germany 2006, barring late injuries, and will probably write some new headlines too.

We look forward to this year’s event with great enthusiasm and hopefully it will be remembered as being one of the greatest tournaments of all time. Let us all hope!

Joseph Kenny

http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/world-cup-superstars-who-is-the-greatest-30973.html

Technorati Tags: great football players, world cup superstars

For as long as football (soccer) has been around, football fans have also been around. The most significant consequence: it is appreciated that the football World Cup gathers the second greatest number of viewers, after the Olympics. For instance, the World competition of 2006 brought together more than three million spectators, and these were only those who got the chance of a seat in the stadiums. Just imagine the number of those who gathered around a TV in order to watch the matches; how useful free football online would have been! And the case of the World Cup is not singular; other football tournaments have their own faithful fans and viewers, many of whom would surely be grateful for the occasion of watching their favorite teams in action while the matches are broadcasted live. Fortunately, the latest improvements in live broadcasting allow football fans to watch live and free soccer online. Obviously, the reasons why free football online has been made possible are closely related to the popularity of this particular kind of sports event.

Football (or soccer) has not always been as popular as it is these days – and it is exceptionally popular since free soccer online is considered. Although the so called “games with a ball” (resembling football) have a long history, it was only during the second half of the 19th century that the birth of football was registered. England is the location where soccer, as we know it today (with a few minor changes), was officially born. Surely, there are stories relating that, approximately three thousand years ago, a game named “Kemari” played with a ball filled with sand was widely practiced in Japan. It did resemble football, but the number of the players on the field was only eight and even less at times. The same, it is estimated that in China, around the epoch of 2500 B.C., a game named “tsu chu”, played to pay homage to the emperor, developed up until the interval of 230 B.C.-220 A.D. The game involved a number of players trying to stop one another from kicking a stuffed ball (presumably, it was stuffed with feathers) through an opening between two bamboo stems.

However, the Football Association, the one which is “responsible” for the commencement of the game then called “Association football”, was established only as late as 1863, in London. The origins of English soccer can be identified back in the Middle Ages, when a type of mob football was practiced, as a competition between villages or towns. The purpose was to bring a ball at the central public square of the village/town of the opponents. While the game was very popular, it was also very violent, since very few play rules had been established. As a consequence, the first royal ban (by King Edward II) on the practice of this game was registered at the middle of the 14th century. The bans were maintained for the next three centuries; nonetheless, the game was still practiced. We can be sure that by 1863 a number of more accurate play rules had been adopted (in fact, 17 years earlier the first play regulations had been written down). The label of “soccer” was coined in the 1880s, and it is an abbreviation from “association”. Nowadays, Americans use the term widely so as to distinguish soccer from American football.

When the second half of the 20th century came (and along with it came the media), soccer began being popularized worldwide. The first World Cups had already taken place (ever since 1930) and the fans began swelling their numbers so that today the need to cover their demands (as spectators) by every legal means possible – and free football online is one of these means – is exploited at the maximum. Unfortunately, not all football fans allow a monthly subscription to rather costly satellite broadcasted programs in order to watch live their favorite matches.

Free soccer online is one of the alternative methods of saying that the history of football is still in the making. And it is in the making because it gives the fair share to football fans. This is what the option for free football online actually says: since the fans are those who have turned football into one of widespread and best-liked sports all throughout the world, then it is the fans who deserve their reward. Free football online is the result of the game’s popularity and the advancements in technology. Practically, anyone who has an Internet connection can be the beneficiary of free football online. And you do not lose anything from the live broadcasts, since Internet speed is the chief guarantee of a broadcast obeying every decent rule concerning quality and promptness of the transmission.

Additionally, free soccer online can cover an impressive variety of football matches. All you have to do in order to enjoy in the best possible manner your registration for free soccer online programs is to find the proper guide with the help of which you can decide on and select according to your own taste the matches you want to watch. In the end, the opportunities offered by free soccer online programs are the next expected step in the history of football, namely the stage where various means are employed so as to make sure that the fans who have kept football alive for such a long time are fully content. To what concerns the rest of the football events, i.e. victories or losses, it is only a matter of the players’ skills.

Amelie Mag

http://www.articlesbase.com/soccer-articles/the-history-of-football-84601.html

Technorati Tags: history of football

I know that countries are already beginning to play matches for the World Cup in 2010 because I saw on t.v. that Mexico is playing USA on Feb. 11, but what website could I find a list of all the matches, and who won them or are qualifying?

Thanks.

Definitely Espnsoccernet.
On the link I provided, choose a Confederation (or Continent) or, if you want to be more specific, choose a country.
I don’t know how to get all of them on one page, but look around that site because they should have all of them.

Technorati Tags: world cup 2010 schedule

FIFA has unveiled "Zakumi" as the official mascot for the 2010 World Cup. In one of Zakumi’s pictures, he is holding this addidas soccer ball and it looks very interesting. Is it the official soccer ball?

Yes!!! Adidas is the official ball supplier for the FIFA worldcups in 2010 and 2014.

If somebody lives in the United States and they want to go to the world cup in 2010 in South Africa(2 people), how much would it approximately cost? The cost of the plane tickets to go and come back, Hotel for about a week, food, and the tickets of your favorite team, or maybe some other teams also.
Thanks.

The Rand – US$ exchange rate is approximately R8-30 to US$1 after payment of comissions etc. Your ticket per person should cost you around R11 000-00 return on Delta or SAA. Good accommodation (your Best Western or Holiday Inn standards ) are currently around R1500-00 per couple per night. Tickets prices vary and start off around R250-00 per person if you are buying in SA. Check on the MATCH website for your total stay needs including tickets as they are the authorised hosts for foreigners visiting SA for the worldcup. Food is relatively cheap and good here compared to states like California or Dallas. A good dinner for a couple here in a fancy restaurant including tips should not cost you more than R220-00. You would need to travel around. Local flight trips are cheap here currently. You could pick up a province (state) to province flight from R500-00 per person currently. Car hires are also reasonable (check Avis or Budget sites in SA). Also check for B&B accommodations if you prefer a more homely accommodation stay.

I live in the United States, Georgia to be specific, and I was wondering if anyone knew how to go about getting tickets to the World Cup in which will be in South Africa in 2010. It is one of my dreams to go the World Cup, so Ineed to know info wo I won’t miss out. When do ticket go on sale? How do you get them? Where do you get them? Any information you may have will be helpful. Thanks.

I don’t think they are for sale yet. Check with FIFA
Here is a useful link http://www.worldcuptickets.com/

I envy you, Have fun!

Technorati Tags: world cup tickets