As we look forward to 2010, it’s impossible not to dwell a bit on the unforgettable ending of the 2006 World Cup final. Here’s a recent essay that goes back to Zidane’s head-butt and to the many interpretations of it that emerged.
Since we will be talking about the upcoming World Cup in South Africa this week I thought it was an appropriate time to write a post about my experience at the 2006 Cup and my plans for 2010… I was lucky enough to get to attend the Portugal vs. Iran game in the group stage… Read More »
The drawing of lots for the 2010 World Cup will be determined on the 4th of December. FIFA have yet to announce the seeding procedure and thus a mixture of geographical draw precedent, current FIFA rankings and past World Cup performance points, and upcoming ranking changes, have been used to complete the below. Goal.com underlines… Read More »
With the furor surrounding the France-Ireland game, and Thierry Henry’s decisive handball, dying down a little, it may be time to think through what just happened, and what it illuminates for us about the sport of football. After receiving a barrage of criticism, a not inconsiderable amount of it openly racist, Henry redeemed himself in… Read More »
If football were fair in any way, Ireland would be heading to the World Cup in South Africa. Instead, after a largely weak performance, France snuck through thanks to a handball by Thierry Henry converted into a header by Gallas. Irish fans, who packed in large numbers in the Stade de France, are surely reeling… Read More »
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/24/AR2009102401219.html
A South African football team made up of 35 grandmothers may have the possibility of playing in a “curtain raiser” for the 2010 World Cup this summer. The team gets together twice a week to play in a local league made up of 8 teams. The grandmothers range in age from 40’s to 80’s and… Read More »
Today in class a few people (including myself) raised questions about the “Hope Solo Incident” at the 2007 Women’s World Cup. I don’t have a whole lot to say in this post (maybe more in a future post), but to start I wanted to share some links to articles I found interesting and insightful. A… Read More »
As an Englishman, I was relieved to see England negotiate their World Cup qualifying group with relative ease, thus banishing the demons of the calamitous Euro 2008 qualifying campaign fought under the tragic stewardship of a hapless Steve McClaren. As an Englishman living in Scotland, I took great pleasure in seeing the Scottish national team… Read More »
Here is an interesting take on the ’78 World Cup in Argentina that took place under a violent military dictatorship. It highlights how FIFA can be used for political means – what should FIFA’s response be in situations like this? [kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/n89H2cyccX8″ width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /]
