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2009 - MARCH NEWS
FIFA asks for a minute's silence after Ivory Coast's stampede...
31.03.2009 :FIFA has today asked all it's member associations that are
scheduled to hold their next match for the World Cup South Africa 2010
preliminary competition on 31 March and 1 April 2009, to observe a minute's
silence prior to kick-off.
World football's governing body Fifa is investigating the stampede at Abidjan's Felix
Houphouet-Boigny arena on Sunday before the World Cup qualifier with Malawi.
The minute´s silence is a mark of respect for the African football family and in
memory of the persons who lost their lives outside of the stadium in Abidjan,
Ivory Coast on 29 March 2009, ahead of the preliminary competition match in the
same competition between Ivory Coast and Malawi where Ivory Coast win 5 - 0.
Some of the worst disasters in soccer stadium
May 24, 1964 - Lima, Peru: 318 people are killed and another 500 injured in riots at National Stadium.
June 23, 1968 - Buenos Aires, Argentina: 74 people are killed and more than 150 injured when fans try to
leave stadium by closed exit and are crushed by other fans.
Jan. 2, 1971 - Glasgow, Scotland: 66 people are killed and 140 are injured when barriers in Ibrox Stadium
collapse near the end of a match.
Aug 16, 1980 - Kolkata, India: 16 Football Fans are killed at Eden Garden when
a Derby match was playing between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan during IFA
Kolkata Footall League Match.
Oct. 20, 1982 - Moscow: 340 are reportedly killed at a European Cup match after fans try to re-enter the
stadium, crushing one another.
May 11, 1985 - Bradford, England: 56 people die when a cigarette stub ignites a stadium's wooden terrace
section and fire engulfs the structure.
May 29, 1985 - Brussels: 39 fans killed before European Cup final when Liverpool fans breach segregation
and charge their Juventus counterparts, who are crushed against a wall that then collapses. English clubs
serve a five-year ban from European competition.
March 12, 1988 - Katmandu, Nepal: At least 93 people are killed and more than 100 injured when fans fleeing
a hailstorm stampede into locked stadium exits.
April 15, 1989 - Sheffield, England: 96 Liverpool fans are crushed to death when police open gates to
alleviate crowding, resulting rush of people onto the already filled terrace. The disaster leads to the
dismantling of the fences and the introduction of all-seated grounds in English top-tier soccer.
June 16, 1996 - Lusaka, Zambia: Nine soccer fans were crushed to death and 78 others injured during a
stampede.
Oct. 16, 1996 - Guatemala City: 84 people died and about 150 others were injured during a stampede at a
stadium before a World Cup qualifying match.
April 6, 1997 - Lagos, Nigeria: five fans were crushed to death and more than a dozen injured when crowd
heads for exits to find most of them locked.
April 23, 2000 - Monrovia, Liberia: Three people suffocated to death and others were injured as thousands
of fans forced their way into an overcrowded stadium.
July 9, 2000 - Harare, Zimbabwe: 13 fans died after police fired tear gas into a crowd estimated at 50,000
to quell growing unruliness.
April 11, 2001 - Johannesburg, South Africa: 43 people were killed and 155 injured as fans try to push into
an overcrowded stadium.
April 29, 2001 - Lubumbashi, Congo: Seven people are crushed to death in a stampede after police fired tear
gas into unruly crowd.
May 9, 2001 - Accra, Ghana: At least 123 people died in a stampede after police fired tear gas into the
stands in response to fans who threw bottles and chairs on the field. The worst stadium disaster in Africa.
Oct. 11, 2004 - Lome, Togo: Four people are killed and another eight injured during a stampede at the end
of a World Cup qualifier between Togo and Mali. A power outage shut down the lights and prompted panicking
fans to run for the exits.
June 3, 2007 - Lusaka, Zambia: 12 fans are crushed to death as a crowd rushes from the stadium after
Zambia's victory in an African Cup qualifier against Republic of Congo.
June 1, 2008 - Monrovia, Liberia: At least eight fans die in a crush after a metal barrier gives way in an
overcrowded stadium before a World Cup qualifier between Liberia and Gambia.
March 29, 2009 - Abidjan, Ivory Coast: Thousands of fans pushing to get into a game between Ivory Coast and
Malawi set off a stampede that killed 19 people and injured more than 100.
Devid Beckham Vs A.R.Rahman...
31.03.2009 : France Football has released its annual list of the highest earners in football and David Beckham,
currently on loan at Milan from the Los Angeles Galaxy, again tops the list with total earnings of €32.4
million in 2008.David Beckham, come into play against Slovakia (4-0), Saturday, now totaling 109 with the
team selections of England record for a player in the field of English jersey.
Meanwhile, Barcelona's Lionel Messi comes in second place and Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo is also
included. Three English internationals in Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, and John Terry round out the top
ten.
The top 10 Highest Paid Footballer of the World 2008 - 2009 (in euros)
1. David Beckham (Milan): 32.4 million
2. Lionel Messi (Barcellona): 28.6 million
3. Ronaldinho (Milan): 19.6 million
4. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United): 18.3 million
5. Thierry Henry (Barcelona): 17 million
6. Kaka (Milan): 15.1 million
7. Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Inter): 14 million
8. Wayne Rooney (Manchester United): 13.5 million
9. Frank Lampard (Chelsea): 13 million
10. John Terry (Chelsea): 11.7 million
On the managerial side, Jose Mourinho ranks second, earning €11 million. But the top earner? Unemployed
layabout Luiz Felipe Scolari with his €12.5 million and limitless amount of free time in which to spend it.
On the other hand the Mozart of Madras, India, Double Oscar winner A R Rahman has ousted soccer superstar David Beckham
from the Motorola ad as the new brand ambassador and has taken home a whopping Rs 28 crores for the deal.
Before roping in Rahman, the cellphone brand reportedly paid Rs 22 crore for the endorsement to Beckham.
Ever since his Oscar success, Rahman is reportedly being chased by innumerable companies to endorse their
brand.
Rahman has attained more fame across the globe particularly after bagging two awards at the Oscars this
year for Slumdog Millionaire.
But there has been no official quote from Rahman on the deal so far.
Pune's Cedrick's 8 beat Goa's Fatorda 6 in the Bud Cup finals
31.03.2009 :Hyderabad, home of Budweiser in India hosted the finals at
the LB Stadium.India winner will compete against 13 other nations at Old Trafford
on May 25th.
Pune’s Cedrick’s 8 emerged victorious at the Budweiser 6v6 Cup India Finals in Hyderabad.The team from Pune
beat opponents Fatorda 6 in extra time to win the championship 2-1. Hosts Hyderabad crashed out of the
Budweiser 6v6 Cup yesterday at the city’s LB Stadium. The two teams from Hyderabad, United FC and Hyderabad
Hawks, played fantastic football in the league round but was not good enough to beat the competition from
across the country..
In the first semi-final, Cedrick’s 8 demolished defending champions YMSC from Mumbai 5-2 to book their spot
in the finals. In the other semi-final, Fatorda 6 beat Mix Friends in an all-Goa clash. The third place
match was a high intensity battle between the 2008 champions YMSC and Mix Friends. YMSC put to use the best
of their skills to win the third position.
In the final match, Cedrick’s 8 and Fatorda 6 were tied 1-1 at the end of regular time. Player of the
tournament, Eugenson Lyngdoh, displayed some amazing footwork and coordination with his teammates to play
an instrumental part in his side’s victory.”
“The finals was a fantastic match, with both teams treating fans were to some exciting fast paced football
action which created a fantastic atmosphere for those watching on the sidelines,” said Anil Manjunath, Head
of Marketing for Budweiser in India. “Fans were disappointed that there was no team representing Hyderabad
in the finals, but nevertheless they enjoyed some high quality football.” The overwhelming response we got
from fans in Hyderabad goes a long way to show that the beautiful sport is alive and has great potential in
this city. We hope to see the same response from fans next year at the Bud Cup.”
In 2008, 4,000 teams registered to participate in the Budweiser 6v6 Cup’s inaugural year in India. With the
Premier League season coming to an end and Manchester United back on top of the table, football fans here
will once again be looking for a chance to visit Old Trafford.
“Football is a way of life in Hyderabad and we at Budweiser will continue to nurture and grow the sport. In
Hyderabad, Budweiser was the title sponsor of the recently concluded SAAP-Budweiser Premier League,” said
Anil Manjunath.
“The teams representing their respective countries at the Bud Cup comprise some of the best amateur
football talent from across the world. The finals at Manchester promises to be an electrifying event with
football being played at the highest level,” said Anil Manjunath. “Now that the teams in India are one step
closer to living their dream of playing at Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United, we are sure this
stage will see a tremendous display of skill from these passionate footballers who are hoping to Live their
Dream.”
After the Bud Cup 2008 made a splash among football fans in India, and kicked off the brand’s involvement
with the sport, Budweiser continued to connect with football fans across the country.. In Mumbai, Budweiser
is also the proud sponsor of the Budweiser Man of the Match award at the ongoing Mahindra Mumbai Football
League. In the past year Budweiser has extended its support to Goan football at the grass roots level,
providing jerseys, footballs and other equipment to local teams and referee organizations in the state. At
the 2008 edition of the Santosh Trophy, Budweiser sponsored the Goa state team, providing the team with
comfortable travel and accommodation and presenting the team with jerseys designed by Goa fashion icon
Wendell Rodricks
Globally,Budweiser,the world’s favourite beer,is proud sponsor of the Premier League and Manchester United.
Budweiser has been the “Official Beer” of the FIFA World Cup™ since 1986 and will continue its support in
2010 and 2014.
Dhorasoo coming to Delhi for street talent hunt..
30.03.2009 :Former France international player Vikash Dhorasoo, the only Indian origin footballer
who has played in a World Cup, will be in the national capital to spot young talent
among underprivileged children.
Dhorasoo, who represented France in 18 international matches, will kick off the
first ever 'DSC Soccer Baalak Ki Khoj', an initiative to discover and nurture
talented young players among street children who will be sponsored for training
and exposure to professional football.
The exhibition match on April 4 at 10 am at St. Columba's School here is being
held by the Consortium for Street Children (CSC), a prominent international member
-based network dedicated to advocating, promoting and campaigning for the rights
of street children globally.
Dhorasoo will lead a team of street children between the age group of 14 to 18 in
an exhibition match against another side of street children led by India
international player Renedy Singh.
Dhorasoo had recently expressed his desire to be associated in raising the standard
of Indian football. He met FIFA officials last month in Zurich to discuss his role in
the 'Win in India with India' launched by FIFA president Sepp Blatter in 2007.
"I've got a footballing project in India on the go. We felt there was a desire from
the world of football and FIFA in particular to turn its focus towards this country.
So I wanted to meet the people in Zurich to see how we can work together on
this project," Dhorasoo had said.
"I've been delighted to see how FIFA's perspective on football in India corresponds
with my own vision of things. I have the impression that in every country in which
FIFA chooses to start up a project, there is also a social component to it, and I
like that," said the 35-year-old who has played for top European clubs like
Bordeaux, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.
PIFA-CYFC U-17 invited to SAFA Soccer City Stadium
30.03.2009 :PIFA Directors Anjali & Nirvan Shah were invited by Mr Phil Mogodi of South African Football
Association and Mr Pule Malefane the acting CEO, Gauteng Tourism Authority to visit the
magnificent Soccer City stadium that will host the 2010 FIFA World Cup openinig & closing
ceremony. The stadium is nearing completion.
The team was given a tour of SAFA house, the Head quarters of the South African Football
Association in Johannesburg and shown a model of the stadium to give us an idea on how it
would look on completion.
The children were very impressed and look forward to attndeing the 2010 World Cup with PIFA
next summer.
HOMELESS WORLD CUP FOUNDATION APPOINTS NEW TEAM
30.03.2009 : Press Release :The Homeless World Cup Foundation has today announced the appointment of six people, in
newly created posts, including a CEO, International Development Director and two Fundraising
Managers. The expansion is made possible with core start up funding from The Vodafone
Foundation.
The Homeless World Cup Foundation uses football to energise people who are homeless to
change their own lives. Its ambition is to develop grassroots football projects in over 75
nations triggered by the world-class international football tournament, the Homeless World
Cup, and to reach one million people who are homeless with the benefits of football.
Mel Young, Co-Founder and President, Homeless World Cup, said: “The Homeless World Cup has
inspired grass roots football projects all over the world. The Foundation will now support
and grow these projects to develop sustainable enterprises, create jobs, and affect real,
lasting change.
“What the world needs now, in the current climate, is the emergence of new leaders and new
entrepreneurs with a completely new set of values. These people are scattered throughout our
partner organizations. We now want to fulfill this potential and build a powerful grass
roots movement using football to change the world.”
Andrew Dunnett, Director, The Vodafone Foundation, said: “We are delighted to see the
Homeless World Cup Foundation use our support to significantly grow the organisation,
increasing the depth and breadth of its international football programme The Vodafone
Foundation is committed to funding projects that achieve high-level impact - with proven
success, the Homeless World Cup Foundation is already a force for change with phenomenal
potential.”
The first Homeless World Cup took place in Graz 2003 uniting 18 nations. Players
represented their country and changed their lives forever. Over 70% of participants come off
drugs and alcohol, move in to jobs, homes, education and even become coaches and football
players. At the 6th Melbourne 2008 Homeless World Cup 56 nations were united with the first
Women’s Cup and a legacy of 30 football programmes across Australia. The 7th Milan 2009
Homeless World Cup takes place from 6-13 September 2009.
MDFA ASKS ITS CLUBS TO IGNORE WIFA
30.03.2009 : Press Release :The Mumbai District Football Association (MDFA) has asked its affiliated clubs not to deal
with the Western India Football Association (WIFA) directly and to have no truck with the
proposed ‘Maharashtra league’ after learning that the state body had called its elite
division clubs for a meeting (which has now been postponed to April 5, 2009) to discuss the
proposed state league.
At a meeting of the MDFA’s Elite Division clubs and the MDFA executive committee at the
association’s headquarters at Parel, Mumbai, on Friday, March 27, 2009, MDFA president
Commander Kehar Singh, VSM, IN (retd) exhorted the clubs to ignore all communications from
the WIFA which seek to bypass the MDFA..
The MDFA has already written to its clubs to ignore all letters from the WIFA and to report
any such activities to it. The MDFA has also written to the WIFA asking it not write
directly to its clubs by bypassing the MDFA.
“You are affiliated to the MDFA, which is in turn affiliated to the WIFA and hence the state
body has no locus standi to deal with you directly,” Commander Singh told the club
representatives at the meeting.
Commander Singh pointed out that the proposed state league is nothing but a ruse to disrupt
the activities of the MDFA.. He further added that it would be a farce as, baring one or two
teams, the clubs from the other districts will prove no match against the MDFA’s top
outfits, three of which are competing in the I-League.
The MDFA president also suggested that if the WIFA is keen on promoting football it should
do so in the districts, almost all of which have no clubs or football activity worth the
name, and not in Mumbai where the MDFA has 264 registered clubs playing in eight division
leagues besides several other tournaments.
Representatives of almost all the MDFA’s 17 Elite Division clubs like Mahindra United,
Mumbai FC, RCF, Central Railway, Akbar Travels, Kenkre Academy etc., attended the meeting.
All of them present unanimously agreed to stand by the MDFA in all respects and have no
direct dealings with the WIFA.
Ecuador hold Brazil in W.C Qualifier
30.03.2009 : 5 times World Cup football Champion Brazil drew 1-1 their
away match in Ecuador in their World Cup qualifier on Sunday through an
outstanding performance from goalkeeper Julio Cesar(Inter Milan).
Ecuador outplayed the five-times world champions but were repeatedly foiled by the Inter Milan goalkeeper
and then caught out when Julio Baptista scored for Brazil in the 72tnd minute, who came by replacement of
midfielder Ronaldinho.
Substitute Cristian Noboa restored justice for Ecuador by equalising in the 89th minute.
Brazil have 18 points from 11 games in the 10-team South American qualifying group, five behind leaders
Paraguay, while Ecuador have 13.
1-1 was how it finished but Brazil know that they escaped a real hiding. It’s also becoming patently clear
that without Kaka, Brazil struggle. If they were to somehow lose Julio Cesar, they would be in real
trouble.
Brazil: Julio Cesar, Maicon (Daniel Alves), Lucio, Luisao, Marcelo, Gilberto Silva, Felipe Melo,
Elano (Josue), Ronaldinho (Julio Baptista), Robinho, Luis Fabiano.
Standing of South Amerian Sides
Team
GP
W
D
L
GF
GA
PTS
Paraguay
11
7
2
2
18
8
23
Argentina
11
5
4
2
17
7
19
Chile
11
6
1
4
17
14
19
Brazil
11
4
6
1
16
5
18
Uruguay
11
4
4
3
21
10
16
Colombia
11
3
5
3
6
8
14
Ecuador
11
3
4
4
13
18
13
Venezuela
11
3
1
7
12
27
10
Bolivia
11
2
3
6
13
24
9
Peru
11
1
4
6
11
23
7
Match to be played : ARGENTINA
Round 12 :: 1st April VS Bolovia
Round 13 :: 6th June VS Columbia
Round 14 :: 9th June VS Ecuador
Round 15 :: 5th Sept VS Brazil
Round 16 :: 8th Sept VS Paraguay
Round 17 :: 10th Oct VS Peru
Round 18 :: 13th Oct VS Uruguay
Match to be played : BRAZIL
Round 12 :: 1st April VS Peru
Round 13 :: 6th June VS Uruguay
Round 14 :: 9th June VS Paraguay
Round 15 :: 5th Sept VS Argentina
Round 16 :: 8th Sept VS Cheli
Round 17 :: 10th Oct VS Bolivia
Round 18 :: 13th Oct VS Venezuela
Experience the glorious past and the vibrant present of FC Barcelona
through pictures and news readily available online. Apart from the
official club website, exciting and breathtaking FC Barcelona pictures
are in abundance in several blogs, news sites, and websites dedicated
to the club. Check out the latest FC Barcelona news in the
top news sites in the world as well as in the official and other unofficialwebsites.
Futbol Club Barcelona, nicknamed Barca, is not as
much as a football club as it is a Catalan institution. Founded in 1899, it is one
of the best Spanish clubs with Real Madrid as its closest rival. At present, it
home to other sports teams apart from the football club.
FC Barcelona is said to be the most popular football club in the whole
of Europe. Some surveys show that it has a fan base of 44.2 million fans in the
football-crazy continent alone. Hence, FC Barcelona news
and Barça rumors are in great demand
online. Fans are also racing to shoot photos of their beloved clubduring matches and sell them online. Online buyers are faced with
several options.
Track Record Barça is among the big
three Spanish football club. Alongside Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, it has
never been relegated or demoted from the La Liga, the premier league in Spain.
All in all, the club has lifted 18 La Liga titles, a record of 24 Spanish Cups, two
League Cups, and seven Spanish Super Cups.
In European leagues, FC Barcelona has won four UEFA
Cup Winners' Cups, two European Cups, two UEFA Super Cups, and three Inter-
Cities Fairs Cups.
Camp
Nou
The home stadium of Barça is Camp Nou,
also referred to as “Nou Camp.” Constructed in 1957, it has witnessed hundreds
of football matches against visiting clubs since 1857. Camp Nou is rated by the
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) as a five-star stadium. It can
hold up to 98,772 people and is the biggest European football stadium.
Camp Nou is one of the preferred hosts of UEFA Champions League Finals.
The club won their very first game at their new stadium in 1957. They thrashed
Legia Warsaw of Germany, 4-2.It was built from 1954 to 1957 and was designed
by a group of three architects. The stadium has also been the venue for several
major music events.
There are plenty of FC Barcelona pictures
with Camp Nou as the background available to fans. They come in
colored and black-and-white. Sometimes, the pictures are able to capture the
club in their most intense action. There is drama, joy, love, and passion in
pictures. You could also easily find group and individual photos.
Latest News In the most recent Barça news, the club
bulldozed Malaga in a pre-weekend La Liga match. The resounding win
catapulted the club to the topmost position in the league standings, six points
ahead Real Madrid. They are slated to next face Valladolid but their recent
triumph over Malaga is bound to boost their spirits prior to their anticipated
UEFA Champions League quarterfinal fixture against Germany's Bayern Munich
Find all the latest FC
Barcelona News at All About FC Barcelona. At All About FC Barcelona you
will find all the latest FC
Barcelona Pics and match statistics with indepth analysis.
Football levy called for in Germany
29.03.2009 :Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness has suggested each household in Germany pay an extra two euros a
month to put German league football back on terrestial television.
The levy would be added to the €17.98 monthly television licence fee in an effort to close the gap in
television revenue with England, Spain and Italy. Hoeness argued that it was not even the price of a small
beer, but those Germans who are not interested in football might resent paying it.
It would be a general levy to serve a specific purpose. Hoeness calculates that an additional two euros per
month from the country's 37 million households that receive television would generate some €900m in annual
revenue. Bundesliga football is currently broadcast on cable television broadcaster Premiere with
subscribers paying €25 a month. However, newspaper headlines have been unsurprisingly negative, e.g.,
'Solidarity surcharge for footballers' and 'Compulsory fee for millionaire players'. A recession is not
exactly the best time to put forward such a scheme.
The 36 clubs in the Bundesliga's two divisions currently receive a total of around €300m from television, a
figure set to rise to €412m from next season. Under the Hoeness plan German clubs would receive double
their current payment. Hoeness says that while leading clubs around continental Europe received between
€80m and €130m annually from national television rights, Bayern earn some €50m from television, €30m of
which comes from the Bundesliga.
Bayern have said that they may adjust their ticket prices downwards to help fans if the recession worsens.
This would be more typical of the spirit of solidarity in German football that is often praised by the
likes of Sepp Blatter. However, it comes at a price in terms of the ability of clubs to compete
internationally.
Hyderabad Hawks and United FC reach in the all-India Budweiser Cup Finals
27.03.2009 : Amateur football champions Hyderabad Hawks and United FC gear up for the all-India Budweiser Cup Finals
Hyderabad, home of Budweiser in India, to host finals at the LB Stadium on 27th and 28th March
India winner will compete against 13 other nations at Old Trafford on May 25th.
Hyderabad will be gripped by football fever tomorrow when the city hosts the India final of the exciting
Budweiser 6v6 Cup, an amateur football tournament. The two teams from Hyderabad, United FC and Hyderabad
Hawks, will represent the city against the best amateur football teams from Mumbai, Goa, Pune and Bangalore
in the Budweiser 6v6 Cup India finals at the LB Stadium on March 27th and 28th.
Hyderabad Hawks and United FC their spots in the India finals after beating some of the best amateur
football teams in the city. Day one of the two-day finals will be played in a league format with the eight
teams being divided into two groups each. On the second day, the top two teams from each group will play in
the semi-finals and finals to determine the best amateur team in the country and the new Bud Cup India
champions.
With the advantage of being the home team, Hyderabad Hawks and United FC will have a psychological edge
over their opponents going into the national finals. While United FC will face off against Bangalore’s
Sunday F.C., Mumbai’s YMSC and Goa’s Mix Friends United FC in the group stage; Hyderabad Hawk’s will be
clashing with Goa’s Fatorda 6, Bangalore’s Red Devils and Cedrick’s 8 from Pune in their group matches.
“Both these teams played some fantastic football in the Bud Cup Hyderabad finals. With these two teams on
the pitch, fans were treated to some exciting fast paced football action which created a fantastic
atmosphere for those watching on the sidelines,” said Anil Manjunath, Head of Marketing for Budweiser in
India. “Hyderabad has produced some fantastic players for the country in the past. The overwhelming
response we got from fans in Hyderabad goes a long way to show that the beautiful sport is alive and has
great potential in this city. With both teams in different groups, the India finals could be an
all-Hyderabad affair.”
In 2008, 4,000 teams registered to participate in the Budweiser 6v6 Cup’s inaugural year in India. With the
Premier League season coming to an end and Manchester United back on top of the table, football fans here
will once again be looking for a chance to visit Old Trafford.
“Football is a way of life in Hyderabad and we at Budweiser will continue to nurture and grow the sport. In
Hyderabad, Budweiser was the title sponsor of the recently concluded SAAP-Budweiser Premier League,” said
Anil Manjunath.
“The teams representing their respective countries at the Bud Cup comprise some of the best amateur
football talent from across the world. The finals at Manchester promises to be an electrifying event with
football being played at the highest level,” said Anil Manjunath. “Now that the teams in India are one step
closer to living their dream of playing at Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United, we are sure this
stage will see a tremendous display of skill from these passionate footballers who are hoping to Live their
Dream.”
After the Bud Cup 2008 made a splash among football fans in India, and kicked off the brand’s involvement
with the sport, Budweiser continued to connect with football fans across the country. In Mumbai, Budweiser
is also the proud sponsor of the Budweiser Man of the Match award at the ongoing Mahindra Mumbai Football
League. In the past year Budweiser has extended its support to Goan football at the grass roots level,
providing jerseys, footballs and other equipment to local teams and referee organizations in the state. At
the 2008 edition of the Santosh Trophy, Budweiser sponsored the Goa state team, providing the team with
comfortable travel and accommodation and presenting the team with jerseys designed by Goa fashion icon
Wendell Rodricks
Globally, Budweiser, the world’s favourite beer, is proud sponsor of the Premier League and Manchester
United. Budweiser has been the “Official Beer” of the FIFA World Cup™ since 1986 and will continue its
support in 2010 and 2014.
Mohun Bagan wants to earn full points against JCT
27.03.2009 :Tomorrow at Ludhiana Kolkata Giant Mohun Bagan will fight
against JCT. The match will start at 3.30 PM. Coach Karim Bencherifa said only win
could make them in contention for the coveted trophy.He said stopper back Peter
Odafe is now fit to play who was rested in the previous match against
Chirag United for injuries which they won 2 -1.Mohun Bagan won their 1st leg
against JCT 2 - 0 where the scorer was Barreto and Isfaq Ahmed.
Mohun Bagan,who is now standing the 3rd place with 36 points from 18 games
have four more to play while Churchill Brothers 42 points with two games in hand
and Sporting Clube de Goa's 39 points.
After JCT's match, Mohun Bagan will play against Mahindra United in Mumbai and
Vasco and Dempo in home.But Churchill Brothers would emerge victorious on better
goal average as they have 46 goals against Mohun Bagan's only 23.
JCT facing relegation Zone with 21 points from 19 matches beat 2nd position holder
Sporting Goa 2-0 in their last match will be a no hold bar contest on Saturday in
Ludhiana. Anwar Ali, Baljeet Singh Saini and Last match scorer sarbjeet singh of
JCT was booked against sporting Goa Match.
26.03.2009 :ONGC I- League 22nd round two matches between Air India
vs Sporting Goa and Mohun Bagan vs Mahindra United which is scheduled to be
held on 16th and 17th April respectively are now uncertain due to LOKSABHA
ELECTION OF MAHARASHTRA during that period.
AIFA has already informed AIFF about the matter that the police authorities are
not giving permission them for staging these matches during poll on April 16.
Indian group Tata invited to sponsor Man Utd
26.03.2009 -:Manchester United Football Club is courting industrial conglomerate Tata Group,
owner of the Jaguar and Land Rover car marques, as a potential shirt sponsor,
according to media reports in India.
The club is trying to find a replacement for controversy-wracked American
International Group, which is not renewing its £56m deal at the end of the current
season.
Indian media reports said the club has sent Tata a sponsorship proposal. News
agency Reuters quoted a brand consultant to Tata as saying that the team shirt
is one of a number of options being considered.
Manchester United also approached Sahara Group, another Indian company, in
January.
Tata’s UK interests also include the Brunner Mond soda ash business in Northwich.
Its other automotive interests include the world’s cheapest car, the Tata Nano
and it is also involved in steel, software, tea and hotels.
Saudi Telecom and insurer Prudential have been linked by media reports in the UK
with potential sponsorship deals at the Old Trafford club.
courtesy : www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk
18 Red Cards in a match in Argentina
26.03.2009 -:In Argentinian Primera C match was abandoned last Saturday after the referee
sent off all 11 away team players and seven substitutes following a mass brawl
with home fans.
The incident began midway through the second half, with Barracas Bolívar were
leading 3-0 against visitors General Lamadrid.
Reacting to taunts and abuse from the home fans, three players and four staff
from Lamadrid became involved in a heated dispute, which quickly escalated into
brawling.
Seeing the events unfolding on the touchline, all the players from the away side
came over to defend their colleagues, resulting in fighting in and around the
stands.
In seeing what had happened, the referee decided to issue 18 red cards to the
away team, sending off not just the eleven players on the pitch, but also the
seven substitutes.
It means Lamadrid will now have to play with a team of reserve and youth players
in their next match.
Courtesy: www.insideworldsoccer.com
TWO MORE INDIAN PLAYERS EYE CAREER IN FOREIGN TERRAIN.
25.03.2009 - Rahul Sengupta:US Based FIFA License Soccer Agent Eddie
Rock has now signed up with Indian Star footballers N P Pradeep who is a plyers
of I-League Mumbai based team Mahindra United and Kolkata Giant Mohun Bagan
player Ishfaq Ahmed.
As per information recevied from Arvind Narayan , Liebro Sports LLc signed up with
the Mohun Bagan star after his dazzling performance in the I League 2008 - 2009
season.
With this step two more players joins the list who are lured into making their
career abroad.The agent is waiting for the season in India to get over which shall make the
players available for a long term trial in the desired clubs.
Meanwhile Eddie Rock had forwarded the match DVD’s of Subrata Pal and Steven
Dias to some of the major clubs and have also shown their interests in having
them, but nothing could be mentioned as talks were still on primary level.
KOLKATA FOOTBALL LEAGUE TO UNDERGO RENNOVATION.
25.03.2009 - Rahul Sengupta :The final decision was taken at the
Governing Body meeting of IFA on Wednesday 25th March 2009 in presence of
IFA secretary Mr. Utpal Ganguly and IFA & AIFF Vice President Mr. Subrata Dutta
and other high Officals .
The Sahara CFL (Premier League ) 2009 organised by Indian afootball Association, West Bengal
from now on shall consist of 17 teams which is possible after merging of the
Premier and the Super Division Leagues.
The 17 teams will face each other in the one legged league starting from the
month of July. After this decision was taken it was unearthered that from now
the historical Calcutta Premier league will only host three derby matches.
No decision was made regarding the merger of the exisiting Lower Division Leagues.
It was also decided that the teams will be allowed to register 35 players for the
tournament.
The I league teams have been given the luxury to sign upto 45
players. No decision was made regarding the limit of foregin players. Two teams
will get relegated every season and two teams from the lower division shall get
promoted into the Premier League. It is also mandatory for each team to field
atleast one U-19 player thorughout the duration of the match.
THE 17 TEAMS
Mohun Bagan (Last Year Winner) East Bengal Mohammedan Sporting
Chirag United Camellia George
Telegraph Calcutta Port Trust Railway F.C Peerless S.C West
Bengal Police S.C
Eastern Railway S.C Tollygunge Agragami ,BNR Calcutta Customs S.C
Mohammedan
A.C Indian Air Force Kalighat M.S Kalighat Club
FIFA INSPECTION AT SALT LAKE STADIUM
25.03.2009 - Rahul Sengupta:FIFA Official Timmy Setiavan along with a team of AIFF Officials conducted ground
inspection at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan.
Timmy Setiavan Security officer of FIFA from Indonesia is on a 10 day visit to
India to inspect the basic faciliities provided at the major stadiums in India. Timmy
along with AIFF Technical committee Director Col.Gautam Kar will be inspecting
football Stadium Gandhi Stadium(Guwahati) ,Yuba Bharti Krirangan (Kolkata),
Ambedkar Stadium(Delhi),Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium(Cochin),Sree kanteerva
Stadium (Bangalore) and Gachi Bowli Stadium (Hyderabad) during his stay here.
This inspection is a regualr excersise conducted by the FIFA on its member
associations and the Inspection is carried on to reveiew the ground facilities,
press and media centre and crowd faclities. This excersise is being done because
India will be hosting World cup and Olympic Qualifer Matches.
THIS WIN WILL BRING CONFIDENCE BACK TO OUR TEAM: KARIM
24.03.2009 - S.Mitra :Talking to press after Mohun Bagan - Chirag United match at Barasat
Mohun Bagan Coach Karim Benchirifa said, "Chirag Unuited is definitely a good
team, it is surprising that they are at the bottom side of table,
they deserve a position somewhere in the middle.
They played well today. Another important factor is that, we had lost
4 matches in a row, our confidence was down, so in first half we could
not play to our potential. We made many mistakes in this half. However,
we came back strongly in 2nd half and created chances, scored and won the
match. We badly wanted to win this match. This will bring confidence
back to our team. Now we have to win the rest of the matches.
Still we are in the title race. We have seen many times in various leagues
that a team can make mistake near the final round and many upset can
happen. We will just have to concentrate on our game and win the
remaining 4 matches."
Subrata Bhattacharya said, "Mohun Bagan luckily won today. They
scored the goals from corner and free kick and in both cases referee
gave a wrong decision. This thing is happening quite often against us
and big teams utilize these kind of mistakes made by referee and
score goals, the same thing happened today.
We played very well today without the absence of 3 regular players. I think
Churchill will the I-league title this year, it is very tough for Mohun Bagan to
emerge champions."
Mohun Bagan beat Chirag 2 - 1
23.03.2009 - Rana Bosu : Before the start of the day’s proceedings, the coach and the players of Kolkata’s
glamour club were under tremendous pressure to register a win and come back on
track. After four successive loses, first against local outfit Kingfisher East Bengal
and against title contenders Churchill Brothers in Goa in the I-League, as also in
the two AFC Cup matches, first against the Syrian side and then later against
Al Widat of Jordan.
Mohun Bagan took the field today at Barasat, playing in 4-4-2 formation against
lowly placed Chirag United who are in the relegation zone. N. S. Manju came in
for yellow-carded Peter Odafe serving a one- match ban. Habibur and Mohanraj
played as the two side backs with Dipak Mondal combining with Manju as the two
central defenders. In the midfield were Ishfaque, Masih, Marcos and Tulunga.
The ever-dependent Bhaichung and Barreto working upfront.
Chirag surprisingly showed more enterprise and at the 7th minute Shankar Oraon
squeezed in through the left and essayed a cross, which Snehasish headed out.
Mohun Bagan slowly began coming into terms and at the 9th minute Manju’s
throw aimed for Bhaichung was cleared at the nick of time by Arnab Mondal.
Mohun Bagan midfielders and Mohanraj in particular were guilty of playing too
many mispasses resulting in sufficient lackluster display in the middle.
The first goal came about in the 44th minute. Ishfaque darted down the left flank
and was fouled near the corner flag. Bhaichung’s header off the resultant free
kick taken by Marcos was off-target but Arnab Mondal guided it into the vacant
goal.
Mohun Bagan went into the lemon break with a 1 goal lead. The second half start
was also uneventful in the initial stages but in the 64th minute Bhaichung
essayed a defense splitting through which Barreto shot over. Thereafter,
Mohanraj took a shot from outside the box, which the Chirag goalkeeper did well
to keep out. At the 72nd minute Bhaichung’s feeble shot was saved by the
keeper.
Shankar Oraon meanwhile was trying his heart out and nearly scored off a miss-
pass from Mohanraj which he failed to trap with the open goal in front of him.
That was in the 75th minute.
Chirag equalized at the 78th minute through Snehasish off a Louis pass after
Habibur failed to clear the ball (1-1). Chirag’s joy was shortlived as Bhaichung
headed home a Marcos free-kick and that was in the 79th minute (2-1).
Bhaichung also headed home at the 85th minute but the Tamilnadu referee Mr.
Pradip Kumar ruled it out on the pretext that he had fouled the defender while
climbing up for the header.
Chirag United’s Arnab Mondal was declared Man of the Match.
22.03.2009 : :
A Junior Coaches clinic is being conducted at TFA ,Jamshedpur on the sidelines of
AIFF Under 13 Boys Coaching Camp from 22nd to 28th Mar.AIFF Technical Director
Colm Joseph Toal is conducting the clinic.The clinic is being attended by 13
Coaches besides ten Local Coaches from Jharkhand.
Local Coaches from Jharkhand :Biswajit Biswas ,Anup Kumar Singh ,Rajesh Pandey
,Iftikar Alam ,Kousar Ahmed ,Junul Soy ,Mahinder Murmu ,Amir Kant Sundi ,Shiva
Kumar ,Soud Qureshi.
Courtsy: www.the-aiff.com
Probable players of Bagan against city rival Chirag
22.03.2009 : : Mohun Bagan coach Karim Bencharifa has made his priorities clear on numerous occasions, saying that the
I-League is more important than the AFC Cup. The green and maroon brigade, who are on 33 points from 17
matches, have no alternative but to win their remaining matches if they want to challenge current league
leaders Churchill Brothers, who have garnered 42 points from 20 matches.
Mohun Bagan will take on Chirag United tomorrow at Barasat Stadium,who are on 33 points from 17 matches,
have no alternative but to win their remaining matches if they want to challenge current league leaders
Churchill Brothers, who have earned 42 points from 20 matches.
Karim Benchirifa’s boys already lost both of their AFC Cup matches, to Al Karama 0 - 1 and Al Wehdat 1 - 2, as
also their last two I-League encounters, against East Bengal 0 - 3 and Churchill.
Mohun Bagan full side may be available Monday. P.C. Lalawmpuiya is out with a hamstring injury, while
defender Peter Odafe will miss the match with a double caution.
On the other hand Chirag United who is now placed 11th position with 21 points from 18 matches, will
fight against Bagan three of their key players — Daniel Bidemi , Murithala Ali and Subhasish Roy Chowdhury
for their double caution. But Karim refused to take his opponents lightly.
Mohu Bagan coach Karim says after practice that it would be a tough game because he though Chirag is
good side with some experienced players.His team will play an all out game to earn full points from Chirag
United.
22.03.2009 : :With the help of ace stricker Odafe Okolie's fine brace
Churchill Brothers defeat Kolkata giant East Bengal 3-1 in their 20th round ONGC
I League match at goa todat to sure their top sport in League table with 42
points in hand while East Bengal remained on same 24 points from equal number
of outings..
Churchill started a good pace from the kick off of the match and came up with
few good opportunities to score in the 15th and 18th minutes but failed to score
Churchill went ahead in the 33rd minute, when Felix gave a pass to Odafe, who
just tapped the ball into the net to make the score 1 - 0. East Bengal defenders
thought the situation is offside but linesman denied it.
In 44th minute Churchill had another chance to increase the
lead from a counter attack of Kalu-Felix duo but East Bengal goalkeeper Abhra
Mondal saved it well.
After the lemon break, Churchill consolidated thier lead in the
47th minute through Ogba Kalu,when Felix beat East Bengal defender Nirmal Chetri
by an inside dodge and passed to Ogba Kalu, who made no mistake to make it
2-0 for Churcill.
Churchill again consolidated their lead in the 75th minute through Odafa Okolie,
got the ball off a pass from Felix and pushed through his right footer which found
the net to make it 3-0.
East Bengal managed to reduce the margin during the injury time of the second
half through Yakubu off a missed pass from Chandan Singh.
Odafa Okolie , who was adjudged the man of the match, has 24 goals to his
credit in the tournament so far as a top scorer.
22.03.2009 : : Mohammedan Sporting stun Mumbai FC 2-0 in their Round 20 ONGC I-L
eague encounter at Vidyasagar Krirangan ,Barasat today evening .
In a must win situation, Shabbir Ali's boys started positively and went into the attack right from the
starting of the match. The Kolkata outfit drew the first blood through Stayajit Bose's corner kick in the
15th minute was collected by the Mumbai FC keeper Amit Singha Roy behind the goal line and referee Pratap
Singh awarded them with a goal .
In the 72nd minute Satyajit Bose was brought down inside the box and Pratap awarded them with a penalty.
Ugene Grey utilized the opportunity to give Mohammedan a 2-0 lead.
Mumbai FC tried desperately in the dying minutes with Felix Aboagye launching the attack, however, Naseem
Akhtar saved it brilliantly to finish with three points. Naseem Akhtar who stopped every effort from the
Mumbai outfit.
Mohammedan Player Satyajit Bose was adjudged Man-of-the-Match for his brilliant display.Now Mohammedan
Sporting will wind up their I-League campaign, facing Dempo SC and Churchill Brothers in both their away
matches.
With this win Mohammedan Sporting have moved to ninth position with 22 points in their pocket and are ahead
of JCT and Chirag United.
PIFA-CYFC U-17 FOOTBALL TEAM FOR SOUTH AFRICA TOUR
21.03.2009 : :PIFA-CYFC under-17 football team chosen from all over India, will feature in the Gauteng Future Champions
Under-17 Football Tournament that will be held in South Africa from March 23 to 29, 2009.
The 16-member team from India, which has been invited by the Gauteng Provincial Government, will join 11
other top junior teams from around the globe. The competition is a being held in the run-up to the 2010
FIFA World Cup that will be held in South Africa.
The tournament, being held for the first time, will include 12 teams that will be divided into three groups
of four teams each.
PIFA-CYFC is in Group ‘A’ along with Notwane FC of Botswana, Inter Milan of Italy and Sedibeng Select of
South Africa.
PIFA-CYFC kick off their campaign with their opening match against Notwane FC of Botswana on Monday.
The other teams in the tournament include the formidable SC Corinthians of Brazil who are in Group ‘B’ and
Boca Juniors of Argentina who are in Group ‘C’.
Team PIFA-CYFC has been selected following trials from the academy & the camps held all over India and
includes junior India defender Ajit Bhoir and junior India goalkeeper Harshad Meher. In addition, forward
Kean Lewis & Karan Sawhney students of PIFA now with the Tata Football Academy, Jamshedpur, Burges Master
played for the MDFA Elite League for PIFA CYFC this season.
The team also has three officials – Coach Nirvan Shah, a UEFA licencee, Tour Manager Armaan Malick and Team
Manager Anjali Shah.
PIFA-CYFC Team List
1. Harshad Meher (India-GK) Capt.
2. Ajit Bhoir (India-D)
3. Amarjeet Gadhri (D)
4. Rehan Poonawala (D)
5. Sumehr Gwalani (D)
6. Rickin Dang (D)
7. Rishi Singh (M)
8. Suveer Katariya (D)
9. Burges Master (M)
10. Dev Krsna Sagar (M)
11. Crish Shah (M)
12. Kean Lewis (F)
13. Karan Sawhney (F)
14. Siddharth Singh (F)
15. Prudhvi Kumar (F)
16. Amal Khandwala (GK)
The travel is fully sponsored by South African Airways. The entire team’s playing kits is provided by Nike.
The team will depart for South Africa on Saturday, March 21 and return on March 30. All expenses for the
tour will be borne by the tournament organisers.
The Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, Republic of South Africa, believes India has a vast
potential with a huge trough of talent and hopes to promote football here.
UEFA Champions League Qr.,Semi & Final Draw
20.03.2009 : :
Quarter Finals
(April 7th-8th, April 14th-15th, 2009)
1. Villarreal Vs Arsenal
2. Manchester United Vs Porto
3. Liverpool Vs Chelsea
4. Barcelona Vs Bayern
Semi Finals
(April 28th-29th, May 5th-6th, 2009)
5. Winner of Match 2 Vs Winner of Match 1
6. Winner of Match 4 Vs Winner of Match 3
Final (May 27th, 2009, Rome)
Winner of Match 6 Vs Winner of Match 5
ONGC I-League 2nd Divn.Final Round ,Fixture released by AIFF
20.03.2009 :
ROUND - 1
31.03.09 :ONGC Vs Pune FC
01.04.09 : Viva Kerala Vs Lajong FC
02.04.09:Sesa FA Vs Salgaocar SC
ROUND - 2
04.04.09: ONGC Vs Lajong FC
05.04.09: Pune FC Vs Salgaocar SC
06.04.09: Viva Kerala Vs Sesa FA
ROUND - 3
08.04.09: Salgaocar SC Vs ONGC
09.04.09: Lajong FC Vs Sesa FA
10.04.09: Pune FC Vs Viva Kerala
ROUND - 4
12.04.09: Sesa FA Vs ONGC
13.04.09: Salgaocar SC Vs Viva Kerala
14.04.09: Lajong FC Vs Pune FC
ROUND - 5
Not settled :ONGC Vs Viva Kerala
Not settled :Sesa FA Vs Pune FC
Not setteled :Salgaocar SC Vs Lajong FC
Rohan Gavaskar join Mumbai's top 24 amateur Football Team
20.03.2009 : : Rohan Gavaskar and Cyrus Broacha join Mumbai’s top 24
amateur football teams for the Bud Cup eliminations.Saturday’s matches decide
top 8 amateur teams to qualify for the Mumbai finals to be played on Sunday.
Mumbai’s top 24 amateur footballers will have company in the form of the city’s
celebrities as they take to the pitch in the next round of the Mumbai leg of the
Budweiser 6v6 Cup on Saturday, 20th March at the Western Railway Grounds,
Parel. On Saturday, cricketer Rohan Gavaskar and TV anchor Cyrus Broacha will
also captain teams of celebrities in a the Budweiser 6v6 Celebrity Cup.
“Last weekend, football amateurs in Mumbai played some brilliant football.
With teams not letting their guard down and having a great desire to win, the
famous never-say-die spirit of Mumbai was visible in the way some teams came
from behind to take victory,” said Anil Manjunath, Head of Marketing for
Budweiser in India. “The celebrity lineup this weekend will add to the excitement
of an already successful Budweiser 6v6 Cup. With a host of names including
Rohan Gavaskar, Cyrus Broacha and Ritwik Bhattacharya playing in the Budweiser
6v6 Celebrity Cup this weekend, Mumbaikars are all set for another weekend of
exciting, fast paced 6v6 action.”
The 24 amateur teams will play for the top 8 berths in the Mumbai quarterfinals
which will be played on Sunday, 22nd March. Fans at the matches will witness
some intense football as 16 teams will be eliminated from the competition. The
winning team in Sunday’s Mumbai finals will be flown down the Hyderabad for the
national finals, where teams from Mumbai, Bangalore, Goa, Pune and Hyderabad
will battle it out to be crowned as Champions of the Budweiser 6v6 Cup 2009 and
also bestowed with the honour of being called ‘Team India.’
The highlight of Saturday will be the Budweiser 6v6 Celebrity Cup match which will
kick off at 5 PM with Rohan Gavaskar and Cyrus Broacha keen to display their
football prowess. Squash player Ritwik Bhattacharya, national level footballer
Santosh Kashyap, TV actor Sachin Sharma, Ashwini Kakkar, Vice Chairman of
Mercury Travels, businessman Harsh Piramal and film director Iqbal Rizvi will be
among the celebrities lining up as part of Rohan’s 8 and Cyrus’ 8 on Saturday
evening. The highly anticipated celebrity match will be played according to the
existing 6v6 format of the Bud Cup.
“It will be an inspiring moment for amateur footballers to see some of their idols
playing at the Mumbai leg of the Bud Cup. Participation of celebrities in the Bud
Cup is a step forward in promoting football in India,” said Anil Manjunath. “Last
year, a team from Mumbai represented India at the Bud Cup in Old Trafford. We
are sure with the high level of talent here, footballers will once again reach to the
top of Bud Cup glory. Increased participation in the Bud Cup has re-affirmed our
continued support towards the growth of football in India,” said Anil Manjunath.
On May 25th, 2009 amateur teams from 14 nations including India will get to
experience coaching sessions at Carrington and line up on the pitch at Old
Trafford to challenge each other with only one aim – reign supreme at the
Budweiser 6v6 Cup. In 2008, 4,000 teams registered to participate in the
Budweiser 6v6 Cup’s inaugural year in India. With the Premier League season
coming to an end and Manchester United back on top of the table, football fans
here will once again be looking for a chance to visit Old Trafford.
“The response to Budweiser’s football initiatives in Mumbai has been phenomenal,”
said Anil Manjunath. “In Mumbai, Budweiser is also the proud sponsor of the
Budweiser Man of the Match award at the ongoing Mahindra Mumbai Football
League to encourage players to bring out the best in football.”
In the past year Budweiser has extended its support to football at the grass roots
level, providing jerseys, footballs and other equipment to local teams and referee
organizations in Goa. At the 2008 edition of the Santosh Trophy, Budweiser
sponsored the Goa state team, providing the team with comfortable travel and
accommodation and presenting the team with jerseys designed by Goa fashion
icon Wendell Rodricks. After the Bud Cup 2008 made a splash among football
fans in India, and kicked off the brand’s involvement with the sport, Budweiser
continued to connect with football fans across the country. In Hyderabad,
Budweiser was the title sponsor of the recently concluded SAAP-Budweiser
Premier League.Globally, Budweiser, the world’s favourite beer, is proud sponsor
of the Premier League and Manchester United. Budweiser has been the
“Official Beer” of the FIFA World Cup™ since 1986 and will continue its support
in 2010 and 2014.
Club Licensing System for Asia
19.03.2009 : Press Release : AFC will implement the AFC Club Licensing
System (CLS) for the 2012 season for all Member Associations who want to
participate in the AFC Champions League.
This is in line with FIFA’s directive to implement the CLS at the confederation and
Member Association level.
Any club that intends to take part in the 2012 AFC Champions League must obtain
a licence before it can participate in the continental showcase.
The timeline set by AFC for implementation of the AFC Club Licensing System
(CLS) is below:
i. June - July 2009 : Announcement of the implementation of the FIFA and AFC CLS
to Member Association(s). Overall concept of the CLS to be explained as well as
the compulsory appointment of a Licensing Manager (LM) at the national level
(qualification & job scope will be explained).
ii. Early August 2009 : Publication of the AFC Club Licensing Regulations. iii. 30 November 2009 : Deadline for MAs to appoint LM. iv. January 2010 : Course for Licensing Managers to explain details of AFC CLS. v. January - April 2010 : LM to draft Member Association CLS. 30 April 2010:
Deadline for LM to submit MA Club Licensing Regulations. vi. 1 May - 30 Nov 2010 : AFC to approve MA CLR. 30 Nov 2010 is deadline for AFC
to approve MA CLR. vii. 30 May - 31 Dec 2010 : LM to conduct seminars at national level to explain to
theirs clubs the MA CLS. viii. 30 June 2011 : Deadline for clubs to apply for licence. ix. 1 July - 30 Nov 2011 : Assessment of Clubs by Licensor, including appeals
process. x. 30 Nov 2011 : Deadline for MA to communicate to AFC the licensing decisions.
Source: www.the-afc.com
PIFA announces soccer camp to AC Milan & Real Madrid this summer
18.03.2009 : :Premier India Football Academy have organized soccer
camps to the greatest clubs in Europe.Premier India Football Academy (PIFA) has planned exciting soccer camps from
India to Europe this summer for boys & girls between the ages of 10 & 18 years
of any ability.Children will be escorted at all times by two adults from India. The camps are
specially designed with the children in mind, ensuring that the children enjoy,
learn football and make new friends in a safe and healthy environment. This
experience makes them independent and develops their social skill.
PIFA have tied with the best football academies in the world for their soccer
tours. The camps have been highly rated by Mr Nirvan Shah, PIFA Director and
UEFA B licensed coach. The camps are of the highest standard with emphasizes
on health & safety of the children.
PIFA campers have gone on to play for Elite clubs like Mahindra United, Mumbai
FC, ONGC and PIFA-CYFC.
The proceeds of the camps help develop the PIFA Community Programs namely
the PIFA Colaba Youngstar FC Elite, Senior & 4th Division teams in Mumbai.
This successful program helps the players to prepare for a top clubs, state
and/or national teams.
The PIFA Milan camp, Italy will be from 20-29 May 2009.
Children will visit the San Siro stadium and museum; they will watch AC Milan
play AS Roma in a Serie A clash. Afterwhich they will get an opportunity to
meet the players such as David Beckham, Kaka, Ronaldhino & young Alex Pato.
Last year, the campers met Maldini, Cafu, Pato & Gattuso.Football training will be
conducted daily by the Milan Junior Camp coaches which is the official AC Milan
youth program.
The PIFA Madrid Camp, Spain will be held from 12-21 Jun 2009.The camp will be
held in the vibrant city of Madrid. Accommodation and training will be at the state
of the art facility that are currently being used by the Spanish team.
They will tour the famous Bernabeu Stadium & museum, home one of the greatest
football clubs - Real Madrid FC. The coaching will be conducted by Fundacion
Real Madrid, the official youth soccer program of Real Madrid FC.
This camp is targeted primarily at the International schools.The participants will
also get to play a match against a local team. At the camp the child will get a
training kit, awarded a certificate and a photo CD of the tour.Seats are limited
to 20 per camp.
PIFA have been successfully organizing football camps like these since 2003.
They have already conducted eighteen camps taking over 450 children to
Europe.For once children can do what they like during their holidays. Their dream
to visit the best club in the world and an opportunity to be trained by the best
football academy. Undoubtedly making it the most cherished & memorable
experience.
Dempo stun Al Faisaly in AFC Cup
17.03.2009 : : Defending I-League champion Dempo claim an impressive
4-3 victory over Al Faisaly in their group B AFC cup Match today at Amman
International Stadium.
Dempo took the lead in the 22nd minute when Clifford Miranda scored from Ranti
Martins cross. Dempo doubled their margin in 26th minute when Anthony Pereira
scored with a powerful shot which beat Al Faisaly goalkeeper Mohammad Halawa.
Dempo established a 3 - 0 lead before half-time when Nigerian striker
Ranti Martins powerful shot enters in the goal after hitting the bar post.
Substitute Salim scored for Al faisaly in the 56th minutes.But Dempo again
increase their margin to 4 - 1 througn Climax Lawrance who beat Substitute
Al Faisaly Keeper in 71st minute.
Al Faisaly reduced the margin 4 - 2 in 73rd minute when Abu keshek's cross
was put into his own net by Dempo defender Valeriano Rebello.
Just Two minutes later Al faisaly put an anoher goal when
Abu keshek scored from a close range off a cross from Abdelhadi Maharmeh's
4 - 3.
Source: www.the-afc.com
Al Faisaly: 22-Mohammad Ala'eddin Haidar Halawa (46' 23-Zapen Khaleel
Menazel Alkhawaldeh); 17-Hatem Mohammad Yousef Aqel , 20-Mohammad
Zuhair Hasan Shawish, 21-Ibrahim Mohammad Farhan Zawareh, 26-Abdulelah
Yousef Abed Alhanahneh (19-Moayad Salim Ali Mansour), 35-Khalil Zaid Kh
Baniateyah; 12-Isam Abdallah Ibrahim Al-Mbaydin, 13-Qusai Mohammad Mahmoud
Abu Alieh, 28-Mohammad Salem Hussein Alsaqer (76' 27-Siraj Ahmmad Yousef
Al-Tall); 10-Moayad Omar Suleiman Abukeshek, 11-Abdelhadi Mohammad Ali
Almaharmeh
17.03.2009 : Rana Basu :Host Mohun Bagan Club took on Jordan’s Al
Wedat at HMC Stadium today in the second match of the AFC Cup.
Mohun Bagan’s coach, Mr. Karim Bencherifa, fielded a host of bench players as he
chose to rest his regulars with the the AIFF I-League matches just round the
corner. His two normal side backs were new as N. Mohanraj started in place of
Habibur Rahman Mondal and Dipak Mondal moving inside to play as a Central
Defender in place of Manju who was rested. In the midfield zone Karim started off
with Lalramluaha, Lalkamal Bhowmick, Ishfaque and James Singh (Sr.).
The line-up was a 4-3-2-1 formation, popularly known as the “Christmas Tree”
formation with Bhaichung Bhutia playing as a lone striker and Lalkamal Bhowmick
assigned with the role of playing slightly behind as a supporting striker.
The host team started off in a whirlwind fashion and as early as the sixth minute
Lalkamal tested the Jordanian goalkeeper with a top-of-the box punch that was
fisted over.
The pressure continued and on the 13th minute Rakesh Masih’s pile driver from
outside the box off a Bhaichung Bhutia passes crashed into goal with the
goalkeeper helplessly looking on (1-0).
However, all the good work done by Rakesh Masih was cancelled out five minutes
later as the Jordanian side quickly found out Mohanraj to be the weakest link in
the opponent’s defence. Their #10, Isa Al Safar feinted and shook-off Mohanraj
and centered from the corner flag and their #9, M. Shal Balan headed home to
equalize with Peter Odafe and Rahul Kumar not making any effort to clear the ball
(1-1).
Mohun Bagan kept pressurizing the Jordanian defence and in between Bhaichung
received a high cross from James Singh (Sr.), which he chest-trapped and shot
feebly and wide.
Rahul Kumar also overlapped a lot and put in a few crosses of which Bhaichung
headed wide. What was very evident and obvious in Mohun Bagan’s play was
that all attacks originated from the right and very often Ishfaque Ahmed on the
left was deprived of supply, which could have created goal-scoring opportunities
for Mohun Bagan.
Al Widat players slowly crept in and on the 42nd minute Hasan Abdel Fateh
chest-trapped a ball and drove in a left-footer to score with Sangram beaten
hands-down (1-2).
The score remained at 1-2 at the break. On resumption Marcos Periera replaced
Lalramluaha who was all at sea right through the first half and was contributing
very little either in attack or defense. In the 53rd minute Lalkamal from a scoring
position shot wide. Ten minutes later Karim made a double change, Branco
Cardozo replacing Lalkamal and Tulunga coming in place of James Singh (Sr.).
Tulunga’s run down the right kept stretching the Jordanian defence and lent bite
in Mohun Bagan’s attack for goal. The Al Widat goalkeeper was lucky not to be
booked for time wasting tactics as on more than one occasion he delayed taking
the goal kicks. Mohun Bagan now started using the left channel more often and
Ishfaque’s low cross had the Jordanian goalkeeper in some sort of trouble.
In the 80th minute Branco’s powerful header was gathered by the keeper.
Immediately after, Marcos had the misfortune to see his header of a Rahul Kumar
free kick hit the outside of the upright and rolling out with the goalkeeper beaten
all ends up. In the dying stages of the match Bhaichung Bhutia’s header was off
target and when the Malaysian referee blew the final whistle the result stood
1-2 in favour of the visitors.
Thus, Mohun Bagan lost both the AFC Cup matches in the Group D round robin
league with four more matches to be played.
AL Wedat:: 30-Malek Samih Yousef Shalabiya; 6-Basem Fathi Omar
Othman, 8-Amer Deeb Mohammad Khalil, 3-Fadi Faris Nimer Shahin, 5-Hasan Abdel-Fattah Hasan Mahmoud,
19-Haitham Hasan Saleh Semrin,10-Issa Husamaldean Issa Alsapah (89' 48-Ahmad Ibrahim Husni Albanna), 15-Yahia
Jum'ah Alabed Issa (90'+2' 11-Khalil Helal Mohammad Fetian), 21-Ahmad
Abdelhalim Abdelsalam Alzugheir, 9-Mahmoud Omar Mahmoud Shelbaieh,
40-Amer Abdel Karim Radi Abuhwati (68' 17-Rami Adnan Hasan Alaradaideh)
Iraqi football player shot dead while attempting to kick goal
16.03.2009 :Football fans were shocked on Sunday when a player was shot dead in a football
game in Hillah, south of Baghdad.
The player was lining up for a kick at goal which would have tied the game,
seconds before the end of the game, when a spectator supporting the opposite
team pulled out a gun and shot him in the head. The player died instantly.
Police Major Muthanna Khalid said the player only had a goalie in front of him as
he lined up for the kick. He was a player in the Buhairat amateur team, which
was playing Sinjar, which led 1-0 at the time of the shooting.
Courtesy:www.argentinastar.com
"AT THIS MOMENT, I LEAGUE IS HEADING MY PRIORITY LIST" : KARIM
16.03.2009 :Mohun Bagan will play against Al Wihdat of Jordan in their AFC Cup group D match
tomorrow, the match is scheduled to start at 2.30 pm at Howrah Municipal
Stadium. In today’s pre match press conference, Mohun Bagan coach Karim
Bencherifa said that he will make few
changes in his team and said, “At this point, I league is heading my priority list.
It is not that I am not giving importance to AFC cup, but it comes 2nd in my
priority list.
I might make few changes to use fresh legs in coming I league matches.
He further added that Al Wihdat is a strong side and they have couple
of national team players in their squad. “They are one of the best sides in Jordan
as their statistics speaks for them. They have won the Jordan league nine teams
and this time they have scored close to 39 goals and have just conceded 6. So
we know it is going to be tough for us,” Karim said.
Brazilian Jose Ramirez Barreto, who didn't go for the first AFC match, was still
nursing an injury and midfielder Marcos Pereira, also a Brazilian, who missed a
penalty in Syria, is a doubtful starter against Jordon's strongest side.
The newly-recruited Al Wihdat coach Akram Salman said, “We have seen Mohun Bagan play their AFC
cup match, they are a good side and we will have to play well to get 3 full points.
” Commenting on ground condition, he said, “Grounds in our country are much
better than this.”
Al Wihdat has some important match in their premier league as
well as in Arabian Champions league due to which few key players are missing
from their squad, they have not brought any foreigners with them. Last year Al
Wihdat had played their AFC cup match against East Bengal. East Bengal beat
them 2 - 0 in Jordan but in Kolkata, East Bengal lost 2 - 4.
TEAM AL WIHDAT - Achievements
Jordan League: 10 Times
Jordan FA Cup: 6 Times
Jordan FA Shield: 7 Times
Jordan Super Cup: 8 Times
AFC Cup:
2006: Semi-Finals
2007: Semi-Finals
2008: Group Stage, 2nd In Group
AFC Cup Winners Cup:
2000/01: Quarter-Finals
2001/02: Second Round
Manipur lift the 17th Women National Championship title
15.03.2009 :Manipur retained the AIFF 17th National women's football
title after scoring an emphatic 2-0 victory over Bengal in the final which was held
in Neyveli of Tamil Nadu on Sunday . In 2003 Manipur beat Bengal in the same
venue and same result .
Manipur scored once in each half through Kamala Devi 18 minutes and Tababi Devi
62 mitutes.
In the 17-year history of the championship, Manipur have now won the title for
14th times, appearing in most of the all previous finals. Bengal have won the title
twice and 9 times Runners up.
LIST OF THE PAST WINERS
Sr.No
YEAR
VENUE
WINNERS
RUNNERS-UP
SCORE
1.
1992
Imphal
Bengal
Manipur
2.
1993
Bihar
Manipur
Bengal
4-0
1994
Tournament not held
3.
1995
Haldia
Manipur
Bengal
1-0
4.
1996
Assam
Manipur
Bengal
6-5
5.
1997
Haldia
Bengal
Manipur
1-0
6.
1998
Barasat
Manipur
Bengal
2-1
7.
1999
Shillong
Manipur
Bengal
1-0
8.
2000
Assam
Manipur
Bengal
1-0
9.
2001
Ludhiana
Manipur
Bengal
1-0
10.
2002
Kolkata
Manipur
Orissa
1-0
11.
2003
Tamilnadu
Manipur
Bengal
2-0
12.
2004
Bhopal
Manipur
Bengal
6-5(tb)
13
2005
Manipur
Manipur
Bengal
3-0
14.
2006
Rourkela
Manipur
Kerala
2-0
15.
2007
Rourkela
Manipur
Bengal
2 - 1
16.
2008
Haldia
Manipur
Orissa
4 - 1
17.
2009
Tamil Nadu
Manipur
Bengal
2 - 0
Sporting Goa will fight against East Bengal
14.03.2009 :I - League table topper Sporting Goa are hoping to use the
home advantage to earn full points from East Bengal to maintain their position
intact in their 19th round ONGC I League football match to be played here at
Nehru stadium Fatorda tomorrow. In their away match at Salt lake Stadium they
lost 1 - 3 .
Sporting at the movement is leading the table with 38 points from 18 matches
and are ahead by only two points from second placed Churchill Brothers( 36
points) followed by Mohan Bagan ( 33 points).
On the other end, East Bengal, placed seventh in the table with 23 points, will try
to defeat Sporting again like their home match.
Brazil team against Ecuador and Peru Qualifying match
14.03.2009 :Ronaldinho and Kaka were called up by Brazil coach Dunga
on Thursday for the team's next two World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and
Peru to be played on march 29th and 1st of April.
Ronaldinho and Kaka,the AC Milan players were both chosen despite struggling
with injuries in the past month. Kaka injured on Feb. 7 in a Serie A match against
Reggina. Before a Feb. 10 friendly against Italy, Ronaldinho had not been
summoned by Dunga for Brazil's friendly against Portugal and World Cup qualifiers
against Colombia and Venezuela.
Goalkeepers : Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Doni (AS Roma)
Defenders: Maicon (Inter Milan), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Marcelo
(Real Madrid), Kleber (Internacional), Lucio (Bayern Munich), Thiago Silva
(AC Milan), Miranda (Sao Paulo)
Midfielders : Elano (Manchester City), Julio Baptista (AS Roma), Kaka
(AC Milan), Ronaldinho (AC Milan), Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos), Josue
(Wolfsburg), Felipe Melo (Fiorentina), Anderson (Manchester United),
Julio Baptista (AS Roma)
Mumbai’s amateur footballers ready to Live their Dream
13.03.2009 : Mumbai’s amateur footballers are ready to show
off their skills at the Mumbai leg of the Budweiser 6v6 Cup, which kicks off
tomorrow at the Western Railway Grounds, Parel. League matches will be played
on 14th and 15th March followed by the knockout round leading up to the Mumbai
finals on 21st and 22nd March.
“Mumbai is a city with tremendous football talent and this weekend amateur
footballers will be out on the field with one aim – to make it to the national Bud
Cup Finals, become India winners, and Live their Dream at Old Trafford,” said Anil
Manjunath, Head of Marketing for Budweiser in India. “Because of the large
number of teams participating in Mumbai, fans will experience the fast paced
excitement of 6v6 football over two weekends. Mumbai’s favourite celebrities
will also line up on the pitch on March 21st to battle it out for top honours. ”
The league rounds will be held on March 14th and 15th followed by a knockout
round leading up to the Mumbai finals on the weekend of March 21st and 22nd.
Matches will be played between 10 AM and 4 PM. On March 27th and 28th, the
top amateur team from Mumbai will take on hosts Hyderabad and teams from Goa,
Bangalore and Pune at the India Finals with the ultimate aim of lining up as Team
India in the players tunnel at Old Trafford on May 25th and emerge as the first
ever Budweiser 6v6 Cup champions from India.
“The Budweiser 6v6 Cup had a terrific start in Hyderabad and Pune last weekend.
A passionate display of skill, speed and stamina backed up by enthusiastic fans
on the sidelines ensured that the matches there were simply outstanding,” said
Anil Manjunath. “Mumbai has had a long association with the beautiful sport of
football. In 2008, a team from Mumbai Lived their Dream, representing India at Old
Trafford, beating Abu Dhabi and tying with Italy before losing to Cyprus. With
Budweiser’s favourite team, Manchester United taking on archrivals Liverpool this
weekend, football fans have a lot of top quality football to look forward to.”
With the Premier League season coming to an end and Manchester United back on
top of the table, football fans here will once again be looking for a chance to visit
Old Trafford in a season that has seen a spectacular turn of events. “When I
heard Budweiser is giving amateur football fans a chance to play at Old Trafford,
nothing was going to stop me from representing my country – and taking a shot
at victory,” exclaimed Osbern D’Souza, Mumbaiite and captain of Team India at
the 2008 Budweiser 6v6 Cup. “Standing in the player’s tunnel on match day,
hearing Manchester United’s anthem, waiting to walk onto the field, I could only
imagine thousands of fans chanting my name out in the stands.”
After the Bud Cup 2008 made a splash among football fans in India, and kicked off
the brand’s involvement with the sport, Budweiser continued to connect with
football fans across the country. In Mumbai, Budweiser is the proud sponsor of
the Budweiser Man of the Match award at the ongoing Mahindra Mumbai Football
League. In the past year Budweiser has extended its support to Goan football at
the grass roots level, providing jerseys, footballs and other equipment to local
teams and referee organizations in the state. At the 2008 edition of the Santosh
Trophy, Budweiser sponsored the Goa state team, providing the team with
comfortable travel and accommodation and presenting the team with jerseys
designed by Goa fashion icon Wendell Rodricks. In Hyderabad, Budweiser was
the title sponsor of the recently concluded SAAP-Budweiser Premier League.
Globally, Budweiser, the world’s favourite beer, is proud sponsor of the Premier
League and Manchester United. Budweiser has been the “Official Beer” of the
FIFA World Cup™ since 1986 and will continue its support in 2010 and 2014.
FIFA has conveyed its condolences at the death of Ugandan footballer Alex Katete.
12.03.2009 ::Kampala — THE world soccer governing body FIFA has conveyed its condolences
at the death of Ugandan footballer Alex Katete.
FIFA president Joseph Blatter expressed shock and sadness at the passing of
Katete. He died of a heart attack last week in India, where he featured for
second division side George Telegraph.
In a letter to Albert Colaco, general secretary of the All India Football Federation,
Blatter wrote: "It with a sad heart that I write to you today, having learned of
the tragic passing of Alex Katete."
Relevant Links
The condolence message also posted on the FIFA website adds, "On behalf of
FIFA and the worldwide family of football, I wish to extend to the Ugandan
football community and, most importantly, to Alex Katete's family, friends and
loved ones our sympathies.
"Please let them know that today the football community stands by their side.
We would hope that in some way, our words of support may bring a little bit of
peace and solace in this time of sadness."
FUFA yesterday extended a sh2m contribution for burial arrangements to Katete's
family.
Football against hunger :Euro Footballers joins hands
12.03.2009 :: Over 200 professional football clubs, 100 stadiums and
millions of football fans will be involved in the first-ever Europe-wide football
weekend against hunger being held from 20 to 22 March, the UN Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO), said Wednesday.
Aimed at raising awareness about the urgent need to fight hunger and poverty,
exacerbated by the current economic crisis, funds raised during the
will help to finance anti-hunger micro-projects around the world, said the agency
in a news dispatch from its headquarters in Rome, Italy.
The match weekend is part of a “Professional Football against Hunger” campaignl
aunched on 15 October 2008 by FAO and the European Professional Football
Leagues on the occasion of the celebration of the World Food Day at FAO
headquarters in Rome.
The Association of European Professional Football Leagues (EPFL) is made up of
29 Members Leagues and Associated Members, comprising more than 900
professional football clubs across Europe.
The “Professional Football against Hunger” campaign is intended to raise awarene
ss of the plight of the 963 million people who suffer from hunger and malnutrition and who do not have adequate access to food.
The money raised in the campaign will serve to finance FAO TeleFood micro
projects designed to provide immediate and lasting solutions to poor families and
communities and enable them to produce their own food.
Earlier this year, a high-level delegation of European professional football leagues
managers and football players from Italy, Germany, Spain and Portugal visited
micro projects in Egypt as part of the preparations for the FAO-EPFL partnership’s
global “Professional Football Against Hunger” campaign.
The micro projects, funded for a maximum of 7,000 euros each, are used to finance tangible resources such as fishing equipment, seeds and agricultural implements.
They vary enormously, from helping families raise pigs in Venezuela, through
creating school gardens in Cape Verde and Mauritania or providing school lunches
in Uganda and teaching children to grow food, to raising fish in a leper community
in India.
The Professional Football against Hunger weekend will include, among others,
major matches from Italian Lega Calcio and Pro Lega, German Bundesliga, English
Premier League, Spanish League, Portuguese League, Dutch Eredivisie, Scottish
Premier League, Bulgarian League and Welsh Premier League.
In Portugal, the 2009 Carlsberg Cup Final is included among the main games
supporting the FAO/EPFL campaign.
Courtesy : www.afriquejet.com
Mohun Bagan in Syria
10.03.2009 Starting XI of MMB : Sangram Mukherjee (GK), N.S.Manju, Ishfaq Ahmed,
Peter Odafe ,Bhaichung Bhutia (captain), Rahul Kumur,Tulunga,Rakesh Masih,
Lalramluaha, N. Mohanraj, Marcos Pereira
Starting XI of Al Karamh : Mosab Balhous (GK),Hassan Abbas - captain
(DF),Alhamwi - FW, Fahd - MF, Belal - DF, Anas - DF, Shbli - MF,Obeng Darko -
FW (African), Jenniat - MF, Richard Bohomo- DF (African),Feras Ismail (MF)
93' :: Al Karamah won their home match against Mohun Bagan by 1 - 0. They will
play therir away match in Howrah Stacium, India on 5th May from 3.00 PM IST.
88' :: 2 - 5 minutes more... Al Karamah is still leading one - nil
85':: MMB Keeper Sangram has a great day under the bar pulling off several
brillinat saves in the second half..
80' :: Mohun Bagan is trying to equalise ...
70' ::Therefater Al Karamah start to dominate proceedings. MMB tries to
equalise but good defending by the Syrian team prevents this.
59' :: - However against run of play Mohamed Alhamwi's shot
beats sangram to put Al Karamah 1-0 up in 59 th minute.
46': Second half starts with both teams on a positive note.
The 1st half was dominated by the Mohun Bagan Team.
but Initial 10 minutes both teams tried to measure each other.
44' :: - Rakesh Masih tries another long ranger but failed .
43' :: - MMB gets a penalty after a forward is brought down by
the defender inside the box. However Marcos fails to score as his
shot is blocked by a diving Karamah GK who anticipates correctly.
42' :: - Rakesh Masih long ranger parried off by a diving Karamah
GK for a corner.
20' :: - Mama fails to score with the GK at his mercy.
NB :Mohanraj and Tulunga shown yellow card
Hyderabad Hawks and United F.C.to represent Hyderabad in the
Budweiser 6v6 Cup India finals
10.03.2009 :: Hyderabad Hawks emerges top amateur team from Hyderabad,United F.C.’s Abu
Baker Salam declared player of the tournament
Hyderabad to host Bud Cup finals on March 27th and 28th at the LB Stadium
Hyderabad Hawks and United F.C. emerged as the winners of the Hyderabad leg of the Budweiser 6v6 Cup
at the Gymkhana grounds today. The two teams will now represent their city at the India finals of
the Budweiser 6v6 Cup which will be played in Hyderabad on March 27th and 28th at the LB Stadium.
“Hyderabad witnessed pure football action over the last two days. The passion with which these
amateurs performed on the pitch was unbelievable,” said Anil Manjunath, Head of Marketing for
Budweiser in India. “Even though only Hyderabad Hawks and United F.C. qualified for the India
finals, the other teams played incredibly well. Today’s matches, especially the finals, came down to
the wire and with such tough competition, it was nearly impossible to predict match outcomes.”
With 32 teams registering for the Hyderabad leg of the Budweiser 6v6 Cup, today’s matches kicked off
with the top eight teams - Rangers, Hooligans, Krebs F.C., United F.C., Dynamos, Hyderabad Hawks,
Gunners and George 8 – playing in the quarter finals. After some intense action Rangers lost to
United FC in the first semi-final and the Hyderabad Hawks beating George 8 in the other semi-final.
The score at the end of regular time was 0 - 0 in the match between Hyderabad Hawks and United FC,
with many missed chances and some wonderful display of defensive skills. Ten minutes of extra time
saw five goals being scored with Hyderabad Hawk’s Christopher scoring the match winning goal to take
the final score to 3-2.
“The final between Hyderabad Hawks and United FC was a fantastic show of footballing prowess. Even
though both finalists qualified for the India finals, the immense desire to be the top team in this
leg of the tournament could be seen from the way the Hyderabad Hawks snatched victory from United
F.C. in the closing seconds of extra time,” said Anil Manjunath. “Football fans in Hyderabad are in
for some more action when the city hosts this year’s Budweiser 6v6 Cup India finals on 27th and 28th
March, giving Hyderabadis a chance to enjoy top quality football from across the country right here
at home.”
Amateur teams from 14 nations will get to experience coaching sessions at Carrington, watch a
Manchester United home game and line up on the pitch at Old Trafford on May 25th, 2009 to challenge
each other with only one aim – reign supreme at the Budweiser 6v6 Cup.
Budweiser was the title sponsor of the recently concluded SAAP-Budweiser Premier League. In the past
year Budweiser has extended its support to Goan football at the grass roots level, providing jerseys,
footballs and other equipment to local teams and referee organizations in the state. At the 2008
edition of the Santosh Trophy, Budweiser sponsored the Goa state team, providing the team with
comfortable travel and accommodation and presenting the team with jerseys designed by Goa fashion
icon Wendell Rodricks. In Mumbai, Budweiser is also the proud sponsor of the Budweiser Man of the
Match award at the ongoing Mahindra Mumbai Football League.
Globally, Budweiser, the world’s favourite beer, is proud sponsor of the Premier League and
Manchester United. Budweiser has been the “Official Beer” of the FIFA World Cup™ since 1986 and
will continue its support in 2010 and 2014.
File Picture of M.Mohun Bagan
TEAM Al Karamah (Syria)
Goalkeeper : Adnan Al Hafez, Mosab Balhous, Fahd Saleh
Defender : Hassan Abbas, Belal Abduldaim, Anas Al Khouja, Naser Al Sebai, Tamer Haj Mohamed ,Jehad Kassab ,
Yasser Shahin , Tawfek Taearaa ,
Midfielder : Mohamad Abdulkader, Mahmoud Al Mallul, Ahmad Al Omair, Alaa Al Shbli, Fahd Aodi, Feras Esmaeel,
Mohamad Idd, Aatef Jenyat,
Forward : Mohanad Al Ibrahim, Haani Al Taiar , Zyad Chaabo , Youssef Sleman,
Report From Syria :: M.Mohun Bagan to Play AFC Cup
10.03.2009 : DAY 2 :: The Team Members had a walk around the city centre near the Hotel in the
morning. At the Pre Match Press Conference the Coach Mr. Karim Bencherifa
commented to a query from the local media that since the I-League was in full
swing and at a vital phase and the AFC Cup was also underway, so prioirities have
to be considered. Accordingly a few changes would be made in the regular squad
which plays in the I-League and so a few youngsters would be in the final XI.
The captain Bhaichung Bhutia was asked about the standard of Syrian Football
and especially about the fact that Syria's FIFA ranking is higher than that of India
to which he commented that Syria had been beaten by India about a year ago
in the Nehru Cup final at New Delhi.
The Managers Meeting was conducted in the afternoon by the Match
Commissioner, Mr. Tokabaev Kemel from Kyrgyzstan.
All the four match officials from Turkmenistan namely,
Referee: Kurbanov Charymurat
AR1: Allaberdiyev Begench
AR2: Atajanov Bahtiyar
4th Official: Niyazdurdiyev Berdimyrat were present at the Meet along with the
Officials of both Teams and the LOC.
At 4 pm local time, the Team had a video show and watched and discussed a
match of Al Karamah of last season and another match of this season.
The Team had a practice session under floodlights at the venue in the evening.
It was quite cold (6-7 C) and windy. The Team is very positive about the match
tommorrow.
Courtesy: Prince Rufus : Media Officer of M.Mohun Bagan from Syria
Group D ::AL KARAMAH (SYR) |AL WEHDAT (JOR) |KUWAIT SC (KUW) |M.MOHUN BAGAN (IND)
10 Mar 2009 ::AL WEHDAT (JOR) - KUWAIT SC (KUW) King Abdullah International Stadium
10 Mar 2009 ::AL KARAMAH (SYR) - MOHUN BAGAN (IND) Khaled Ibn Al Waleed Stadium (11 PM IST)
17 Mar 2009 ::KUWAIT SC (KUW) - AL KARAMAH (SYR) Kuwait S.C. Stadium
17 Mar 2009 ::M.MOHUN BAGAN (IND) - AL WEHDAT (JOR) :: Howrah Stadium
7 Apr 2009 ::AL KARAMAH (SYR) - AL WEHDAT (JOR) Khaled Ibn Al Waleed Stadium
05 May 2009 ::KUWAIT SC (KUW) - AL WEHDAT (JOR) Kuwait S.C. Stadium
05 May 2009 ::b>M.MOHUN BAGAN (IND) - AL KARAMAH (SYR) :: Howrah Stadium
19 May 2009 ::AL WEHDAT (JOR) - M.MOHUN BAGAN (IND) King Abdullah International Stadium
19 May 2009 ::AL KARAMAH (SYR) - KUWAIT SC (KUW) Khaled Ibn Al Waleed Stadium
Day 1 :; 08.03.2009 :The McDowell Mohun Bagan Team comprising
of 18 players and 6 officials reached Damascus yesterday in the morning. The
Team was then escorted by bus to Homs, 162 Kms from the capital which took
about 2 hours. Homs is the third largest city of Syria and is home to the Al
Karamah Team which has four national team players in its squad. The Team had a
light practice session under flloodlights at the venue in the evening.
Football is the main sport of Syria and so the local people and the Media are very
enthusiastic about the match. The fans of Al Karamah are also very passionate
and there were hordes of supporters with drums and horns at the Stadium to
watch and encourage their Team during their practice session. It is expected that
the 40,000 capacity Khaled Bin Whaled Stadium will be full on the match day
which will kickoff at 7.30 pm local time (11 pm IST). The Stadium is named after
an ancient Islamic Warrior.
The weather was cold (about 10 C).
Courtesy: Prince Rufus : Media Officer of M.Mohun Bagan from Syria
Commander Kehar Singh elected as MDFA president
08.03.2009 :: PRESS RELEASE :: Commander Kehar Singh (retd) was reelected as President of the Mumbai District
Football Association at the executive committee meeting that followed the Annual
General Meeting of the Association held at the MDFA HQ at Parel, on Saturday,
March 7, 2009. The MDFA is affiliated to the WIFA which is a constituent of the
AIFF. The office bearers are as follows:
Cdr Kehar Singh VSM IN Retd (President), Digambar Kandarkar, Austin Coutinho,
Vilas Rane, Hugh Fernandes (Vice-presidents), Souter Vaz (General Secretary),
U Bannerjee (Treasurer), Everest Gonsalves, Xavier Faria, Suresh Banjan, C K
Shetty, Sudhakar Rane (Asst Secretaries), Mario Rodrigues (PRO) , Glen
Fernandes, Jeffrey Menezes, Sydney Alexander, John Almeida, Alex Vaz, Ronald
Pinto, Conrad Pereira, Prakash Shetty, Shashank Shah, Ranvir Singh, John
Alphonso, Adip Kenkre, Shodhana Shetty, Gurbux Singh Grewal (committee
members).
LIVE :: Juggler Manoj Mishra setting Guinness Record
08.03.2009 :: Manoj Mishra, World Record Holder Ball Juggler from Panskura,
Midnapur,West Bengal is performing his new world record act of balancing a Football
on his head for 14 hours contniously. He began his performance today at 6.30 AM and
it will end at 9.00 PM tonight. During this period of 14 hours, he has and still he is peforming various
styles of "RAMDEV PRANAYAM" and "YOGA". The stage is all set with a crowd of around 2500 to witness a new Guinness world record if
he can continue this act for another couple of hours from now.
To see his last performance assisted by www.kolkatafootball.com on 15th August
2007 where he broke an world record, click
JUGGLER MANOJ MISHRA'S WORLD RECORD
Already 12 hours has been past.. He is still performing on stage of Andul Tarun Sangha
Club Maidan.. More than 2000 people are there enjoyng his perfornamces..
For more ... stay with us
Sporting Veterans Goa down Air India Veteran for title
07.03.2009 :Sporting Veterans, Goa laid claims to the winner’s purse of Rs I lakh
in grand fashion, outplaying former champions Air India 3-0 in the
final of the Siro Clinpharm 7th Karnatak Veterans All-India Football
Tournament, organized by the Karnatak Sporting Association at their
ground on Saturday.
A goal in the eighth minute by Willie Moraes set the trend of the
match and Inacio Viegas made it 2-0 in the 34th minute before former
India captain Bruno Coutinho signed off in style, scoring from a free
kick to seal a comprehensive win.
Earlier, Reserve Bank of India edged out FCI, Kolkatta 1-0 in the
third place match, Mathew Verghese scoring the matchwinner in the 2nd
minute. Air India took home Rs 75,000, while RBI won Rs 25,000 for
their efforts.
The former internationals and national players who made up Sporting
Veterans, had impressed with their fitness, ball skills and
combination in their previous games too, but the goal seemed to have
been eluding them. It all came together for the champions in the final
against Air India.
In the eighth minute, Moraes let fly with a left footer from the top
of the box to beat Shyam Sawant under the Air India bar. Sawant, who
had a great tournament before the final, floundered when it mattered
most and in the 34th minute he let slip through his hands a well
directed flag kick by Inacio Viegas to give Sporting Veterans a 2-0
lead.
However, there was nothing Sawant could do to keep away a perfectly
executed free kick by Coutinho in the 47th minute from outside the box
that eluded the defensive wall and the goalkeeper before bulging the
net.
Coutinho was rightly adjudged the best forward of the tournament,
while the best player’s award went to the hardworking midfielder from
Sporting Veterans Alfred Fernandes. RBI’s Dolfred Pereira was judged
the best midfielder, while the best defender award went to Air India’s
Anthony Barretto. FCI’s Mohd Qadeer was judged the best goalkeeper.
As in previous years, KSA also felicitated five sportsmen for their
excellence. Suresh Mendon, former international footballer, Lokesh
Mendon, discus thrower and Shekar Shetty, former National kabaddi
player were awarded a purse of Rs 10,000 each, while Ajit Bhoir and
Harshad Neher, both under-15 footballers, who have represented the
country, were awarded Rs 5,000 each.
From :The Karnatak Sporting Association,Mumbai.
Air India set up title clash with Sporting Veterans Goa
05.03.2009 : :: Playing with the flair and finesse that Goan football is famed for, Sporting Veterans thoroughly
outclassed RBI 2-0 to book their spot in the final of the Siro Clinfarm 7th All India Veterans
Invitational football tournament, 2009, played at the Karnatak Sporting Association ground on Thursday.
Sporting veterans will take on former Champions Air India, who edged out FCI (Kolkatta) 4-1
via-tie-breaker in the first semi final.
Former International and current Mahindra United coach Derrick Pereira open the scoring for Sporting
Veterans in the second half heading a ball deflected on by Inacio Veigas.
Bruno Coutinho then showed why he was such a gifted and lethal striker in his hey days. Receiving a
ball in the centre from Dominoes Vaz on the right, Coutinho only glanced goalword once before banging
the ball into top right corner of the net.
FCI, who had slotted home all their shots from the spot against defending champion KSA Red in the
previous round, floundered with their kicks through Alok Mukherjee and Gurmeet Singh, while only A
Saleem could score. For Air India Santan D’souza, Anil Lakshman, Raghunath Pillai and Joginder Thapa
all were on target.
Air India were on the back foot in the mid field battle, David Cardoz waging a lone battle upfront his
speedy runs fetched Air India four flag kicks, defended easily by FCI’s tall goal keeper Mohammad
Qudeer.
In the second half too, FCI dictated terms but couldn’t manage to create much of a flutter in the Air
India box.
Results (Semi Finals):
Air India (Mumbai) 0 - 0, 4 - 1 FCI (Kolkatta) -Tie Breaker
Courtesy: : Prakash Shetty, Hon. Football Secretary
The Karnatak Sporting Association,Mumbai.
Maharashtra U - 13 Boys falicitated :: Make way for the Champions
04.03.2009 : The Hon'ble Governor of Maharashtra Mr. S.C. Jamir
felicitated the Boys Under 13 for their sterling performances at the AIFF Under
13 (Boys) Festival of Football conducted in TFA Jamshedpur.Mr Wali Mohammad
(Asst Secretary of WIFA) announced a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh for the team.
Maharsathra won the Fair play trophy with a total of 65 points, Goa and Manipur
finished second with 60 points each.
The winning team consisted of 5 Players trained by SSAA, including the Captain
Aryaman Sethi (Son of emiment Film Actress Archna Puran Singh Sethi)and the 2nd Best goalkeeper of the tournament and was also
coached by SSAA coach Maloy Sengupta. SSAA is proud in supporting and
starting a winning Trend. WIFA has done a commendable job in supporting the
development of Football and has been modest in recognizing sincere effort in this
direction by SSAA.
03.03.2009 : Kolkata Giant M.Mohun Bagan will face tomorrow Churchill
Brothers at Goa without their Captain Baichung Bhutia who has received an automatic
suspension for two yellow cards.
Mohun Bagan Coach Karim may include Lalampuia in place of Baichung who scored
the only goal for 1 - 0 win over Churchill in 1st leg .On the other hand goal
machine of Churchill Brothrts Odafa Okolie who is in top form with 20 goals, and
playmaker Chimaokwu Felix who scored 8 goals , Churchill Brothers are being rated
a top contender for this edition of the league.
Maharashtra U-14 girls felicitated by the Governor
03.03.2009:The Maharashtra girls team that competed at the AIFF
Under-14 Football Festival held in Chennai from 23 December 2008 to 1 January
2009 and finished second was felicitated by His Excellency S.C. Jamir, the
Governor of Maharashtra on 3rd March at the Cooperage Stadium
This is the first time in the history of Maharashtra football that a Maharashtra
team has finished at such a high rank.
Mr Wali Mohammad (Asst Secretary of WIFA) announced a cash reward of Rs
1 lakh for the team.
PIFA Directors Mrs Anjali Shah was Team Manager, while Nirvan Shah was the
Coach.
George Telegraph striker Alex has died last night in Assam
03.03.2009:I-League 2nd Division Football Team from Kolkata,
Camellia George Telegraph's Striker 24 years old Alex Katete has died last night in
Silchor, Assam.
Last Day his team lost to Lajong F.C 1 - 2 in the group 'A' opening match of 2nd
Division I-League at Santosh Mohon Dev Stadium in Silchar Assam.
He scored the only goal for his team George Telegraph off a penalty yesterday. Not only
that, before leaving for Assam to participate in I-League, George Telegraph played
a friendly match against I-League 1st Divn. team Mohun Bagan. The match ended
in a 1 - 1 draw. Alex scored for his Team.
It has been reported that, after the match against Lajong finished last night, the
George team came back to the Hotel International, at night he felt breathing problems and
died.
Todays match between Bengal Mumbai F.C and Oil India Assam has been cancelled
by the Authority. Later they will announce the date and time of the match.
The entire team of kolkatafootball.com has deepest regards for late Alex and pay condolences.
Football Juggler Manoj Mishra wants to make it into the Guinness World Records
03.03.2009:Manoj Mishra, a 26 years old, ball juggler from Panskura, Midnapore, left home 6 years ago for football. He made it into the "Limca Book of World Records" in 2005 by juggling a football non-stop 20,000 times using his feet, thighs, head and chest and did not allow the ball to touch the ground. The event was held at Shivaji Park ,Mumbai in presence of a large crowd on April 6, 2005.
In 2006, he bettered the 2-hour Guinness record of Mexico’s Adalberto Sanchez by balancing a football on his head, he beat the record four times over.
On January 6, 2008, he set another record for balancing the ball on his head for 12 hours without a break. Manoj developed his juggling technique while working in Gujarat. He said, “I was living on my own and there was no one to play with. But I did not want to stop playing. So I used to practice juggling and balancing the ball,” says Mishra, who shifted to Mumbai about three years ago and started working as a caretaker of a Dadar based Bengal Club.
He has been approached by the Guinness Book of World Records to register this
feat. He will perform a show on 8th March 2009, at Andul Primary School Field,
Howrah assisted by a local club Tarun Sangha, where he wants to set a record for
balancing a football on his head for 14 hours. During his balancing act, he will
perform various styles of "RAMDEV PRANAYAM" and "YOGA".
He said in presence of media people, he will record the full video of his show and
will send the same to Guinness' London Office .
To see his last performance assisted by www.kolkatafootball.com on 15th August
2007 where he broke an world record, click
JUGGLER MANOJ MISHRA'S WORLD RECORD
Use Of Formwork In The Build Up To The 2010 Fifa World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup is just around the corner with the
first match kicking off in less than two years. During the event, all eyes will
literally be on South Africa when the immense influx of football fans, tourists,
world leaders and news reporters will paint a picture of South Africa’s capabilities
to the rest of the world.
Major cities such as Johannesburg,
Bloemfontein, Durban, Cape Town, and Port Elizabeth are already showing the
signs that the world’s most popular sports tournament is coming. This is without
doubt the biggest event to be hosted by South Africa, and the incredible
transformations taking place in these cities are a testament as to how important
a successful execution of the tournament is for South Africa.
South Africa is rising to the challenge admirably by using construction and
formwork for building state-of-the-art sports complexes and stadiums,
upgrading major airports, revamping major cities, overhauling the transport system
through the creation of the Gautrain and extending freeway sizes along with
fixing roads and existing public transport systems. With the incredible formwork
and construction happening in South Africa right now, by 2010, the country
will be able to host a highly successful World Cup tournament and illustrate to
millions of people around the world what a capable and incredible country South
Africa is.
Sports Stadiums Five brand new
stadiums are under construction for the FIFA 2010 World Cup including Green
Point Stadium (the previous Green Point Stadium was demolished in 2007),
the Peter Mokaba Sports Complex, the Mbombela Stadium in Mpumalanga, the
Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth (which, when complete, will be
the fastest constructed sports stadium in the world) and the King Senzangakhona
Stadium in Durban.
Other stadiums include the Soccer City Stadium
and Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg, the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein,
the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria
and the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Rustenburg. These stadiums each
require huge construction processes and would not be able to be completed
without formwork. With the use of formwork, construction companies are able to
create magnificent and world-class stadiums, for example, the Mbombela Stadium
in Mpumalanga has been designed to mix modern architecture with trusted
formwork and construction techniques.
18 concrete and steel giraffe
structures provide supports for the steel roof to the stadium which will have used
50000 cubic meters of poured concrete, 6000 tons of steel, 90000 cubic meters
of formwork concrete slabs used to create retaining walls and sheer walls to raise
the Mbombela Stadium from the ground.
The Green Point Stadium in Cape
Town will have made use of 130000 cubic meters of concrete, 390000 square
meters of formwork, 12000 tons of reinforcing steel, six million bricks and a steel
cable tensioned glazed roof.
The Gautrain
The Gautrain is an underground railway system under construction in Johannesburg
to help ease the pressure on public transport during the tournament and to help
traffic flow in the city. The planned route of the train is run between four main
stations - Johannesburg, Sandton, Tshwane and OR Tambo Airport and also to
additional stations – Rosebank, Marlboro, Midrand, Centurion, Hatfield and
Rhodesfield.
Formwork is a major part of the Gautrain construction
as the entire railway runs underground and requires underground boring and
high strength supporting walls. There are already 783 precast segments
manufactured for lining the tunnel. In Midrand there is a precast yard which is
capable of pouring 120 cubic meters of concrete per hour. Various bridges
along the railway are under construction, requiring the use of M-Beam Formwork
which is transported via trucks to the sites where the bridges are under
construction.
Roads and Infrastructure
Because of the influx of people expected for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the need
for reliable infrastructure and transportation has increased greatly. With so many
tourists expected to flock to South Africa during the tournament, the road
system in the country is receiving a major upgrade. For example, the eThekwini
(Durban) municipality is upgrading the Western Freeway. As it is one of the
country’s busiest roads and would have been unable to cope with the heavy
traffic expected during the World Cup tournament in terms of traffic flow and
the road strength.
To ease congestion, both directions of the freeway
are being extended to house additional lanes, making the freeway a four or five
lane structure. Formwork is especially important when freeway bridges are under
construction due to the difficult nature of constructing such heavy structures
at a height. Formwork can be pre-cast and driven in or completed by scaffolding
formwork.
City and Buildings
Many city
centres in South Africa have suffered tremendous neglect as crime levels in the
CBDs have kept the areas unpopular and unmaintained. With the forthcoming
FIFA World Cup, major overhauls of the cities in South Africa are underway to
create an attractive and memorable experience for everyone involved in the
World Cup tournament.
In Johannesburg, the NASREC Expo Centre
is currently being renovated for use as the media centre during the tournament
with the outside areas already becoming more aesthetic with paved pathways.
The CBD in Cape Town is seeing many benefits from the renovations happening
in the centre – many old buildings are being returned into their former glory with
careful renovations whilst the V&A Waterfront has just been extended.
The construction on the Waterfront has included a major emphasis on
parking but also on increasing the size of the extremely popular building to
include more shops, restaurants and activities for the influx of tourists.
All of the major cities in South Africa are experiencing such renovations,
increasing the attractiveness of South Africa to the foreigners who will visit
the country during the famous tournament.
Formwork has been
a major contributor to the construction efforts underway in South Africa.
Using formwork, the country is producing first-rate sports stadiums, superior
infrastructure, renovated, new and stylish buildings, better transport systems
and generally, a modern, world-class destination. Through formwork, South
Africa has the potential to prove to the world just how capable the country
is of hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup successfully.
www.cfcscaffolding.co.za
Formwork Contractors (CFC) is a contractor based in Cape
Town offering formwork and other construction services and is fully
compliant with the OHS Act and SANS 10085.
Mauricio Afonso and Francisco Bruto de Costa passed AFC 'A' License
02.03.2009 : ::Out of Four Goan participants, Mauricio Afonso,
former Midfielder of Salgaocar, Dempo and India National Football Team Captain,
Goa Santosh trophy Team Coach (2005), Assistant coach of Indian National Team
(2006) and coach of defending I-League Champions Dempo Sports Club (2000)
and Francisco Bruto daCosta , Technical Director - Salgaocar Sports Club
Youth Development, who has an AFC ‘B’ License have successfully passed the
AFC ‘A’ coaching certificate course which was conducted by FIFA instructor
Subramanian at Jamshedpur, Jharkhand last year.
