Auckland City is through to their third consecutive Oceania Champions League final after downing Fiji's Ba 1-0 at Govind Park today.
Leading 6-1 on aggregate from their first leg effort at Kiwitea St last Sunday, Auckland always looked in control of the tie and a second-half free-kick from Alex Feneridis sealed their spot in the final.
The identity of Auckland's opponents will be confirmed tomorrow, when Waitakere tackle Amicale from Vanuatu with a two goal cushion after the first leg.
No O-League final has been contested by two clubs from the same country, but Waitakere can make that a reality if they make their 2-0 lead stand up at Fred Taylor Park.
Today, Auckland's possession-based approach virtually killed off the tie in a goalless first half. Ba created more chances than they did at Kiwitea St, with Laisenia Raura, Jacob Morrison and Scott Gannon all forcing navy blues goalkeeper Tamati Williams into good saves either side of the break.
But Feneridis' free-kick extended Auckland's aggregate advantage to 7-1 and ensured they became the first Kiwi club to win at Govind Park, with Waitakere having lost at the venue in 2007 and 2012.
The final is scheduled for Sunday, May 19 in Auckland, with the venue, thought to be Mt Smart Stadium, to be confirmed this week by OFC officials.
Soccer: Auckland into another Oceania final - Sport - NZ Herald News
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Spain is the place for punters this weekend as Atletico Madrid take on Barcelona. The visitors have already sealed this year's league trophy, but third place Atletico will be looking to make this game a contest and to make up for the 4-1 thrashing they suffered at the hands of their rival Barcelona in December.
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KEVIN Sheedy has copped a hammering from soccer pundit Craig Foster for comments made after his GWS side drew less than 6000 people to their weekend match. Sheedy, while discussing the Giants' crowd of just 5830 - the lowest at a regular-season AFL match since Fitzroy's final year of existence in 1996 - drew a candid comparison of his side's struggles with the success of the A-League's Western Sydney Wanderers.
"We don't have the recruiting officer called the immigration department, recruiting fans for Western Sydney Wanderers. We don't have that on our side,'' Sheedy said.
"We've got to actually start a whole new ballpark and go and find fans.
"Because that's what happens when you bring a lot of people through, channel into a country and put them in the west of Sydney and all of a sudden they build a club like that in one year and all of a sudden they've got probably 10,000 fans and 20,000 going to a game.''
The remarks drew a fiery response from SBS soccer analyst Craig Foster, who described Sheedy's comments as "a disgrace to this country".
"Kevin Sheedy’s comments are ... a throwback to the dark old days of anti-immigration and the ‘sheilas, wogs and poofters’ mentality that football fought against for so long," Foster wrote in a column on the SBS website.
"They reek of ignorance towards what modern Australia is all about."
Foster said he imagined AFL authorities would be working furiously to dig Sheedy out of the "hole he dug for himself".
"If it were me in their position, I'd be saying to Kevin: 'Now get out there on your knees and pretend you know who they are and that you care about them, whatever it takes," Foster wrote.
"Talk of your past work with any non-Anglos, anything. Camps, coaching sessions, travel, anything you can come up with. Just show you are not a racist old Aussie with no concept of the Australia of today."
Foster also wrote that he had been appalled by Sheedy's words while appearing alongside him at a speaking engagement in Perth a number of years ago.
Sheedy allegedly responded to Foster's speech about his pride in soccer's multiculturalism with the words: "Yeah, sure, the ‘boat people’, that’s your sport."
Foster claimed Sheedy's words silenced the crowd: "They knew what had just happened was an absolute disgrace."
"Like the people you just insulted, Kev, I’m an ‘immigrant’, part of the original ‘boat people’," Foster's column concluded.
"I’m also proud to call every Australian, from any background who finds a home at the Wanderers as a fellow Aussie.
"So, from one immigrant to another, Kev, and on behalf of everyone who lives and loves our game, maybe it's time you got on a boat, and take your ignorance with you."
Sheedy used Twitter in an attempt to clarify his comments on Sunday night.
"All I said was that Wanderers have an advantage because most people that migrate to Australia know soccer - it's a world sport,'' the four-time premiership coach posted.
"We have to work a lot harder to attract people to our game and we will. I am on record for praising Wanderers and what they have achieved.''
Benfica are more technically gifted than Chelsea but will still go into Wednesday's Europa League final in Amsterdam as the underdogs, according to former England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson.
The Swede knows a great deal about Benfica having twice been in charge of the double European champions during his globetrotting career.
"Sure, Chelsea are the favourites with a very balanced squad and with very expensive players but in my opinion the technique of Benfica's players is a tad better," Eriksson told the aBola daily newspaper.
"Benfica's technique is very sharp. They control the ball well and play good football."
The 1961 and 1962 European champions lean heavily on skilful midfielders Eduardo Salvio, Nicolas Gaitan, Pablo Aimar, Ola John and Nemanja Matic to provide the ammunition for Paraguayan sharpshooter Oscar Cardozo and attacking partners Lima and Rodrigo.
Cardozo, Lima and Rodrigo have bagged 71 of the club's 118 goals this season.
Eriksson, who was at the helm when the Portuguese team lost 1-0 to AC Milan in the 1990 European Cup final in Vienna, believes Benfica will quickly forget about their agonising 2-1 defeat by arch-rivals Porto on Saturday.
Both sides went into the game undefeated and Porto's victory put them in pole position to win the domestic championship.
"A European final is unique," said Eriksson. "As soon as they start preparing for the final the Porto match will vanish from their minds."
Eriksson came close to landing a treble for Benfica in 1983 when they won the domestic league and cup double but lost 2-1 on aggregate to Anderlecht in the two-legged final of the UEFA Cup, the forerunner to the Europa League.
The Swede won the Portuguese league three times in all in his two spells at the club.
Argentine midfielder Enzo Perez also believes Benfica will quickly shrug off the misery of losing to Porto.
"The team is beat up and sad but we can have our pay back against Chelsea. We must believe," said Perez.
In what has become an iconic image in Portugal, coach Jorge Jesus sank to his knees in dispair when Porto scored their stoppage-time winner.
"This was a very painful loss in the very last move of the match," said Jesus. "We feel deep sorrow but no one can take away the work we've done, nor our quality."
Benfica have good memories of Amsterdam where they won the last of their European Cups against Real Madrid in 1962.
Beating all-conquering Real, who had won the trophy five years in a row from 1956-60, was probably the greatest moment in the club's proud history.
Jesus, who was in charge when Benfica were beaten by domestic rivals Braga in the 2011 Europa League semi-finals, is looking forward to taking on last year's Champions League winners Chelsea.
"There won't be many finals like this either in my career or the career of my players," he said. "Motivation won't be a problem and winning the Europa League would bring us international recognition."
GREAT GUY
Chelsea can turn to their own ranks for tips on the opposition because Brazilian internationals David Luiz and Ramires were both signed from the Portuguese side.
"I am happy to meet them in the final because they are top players," said Benfica captain Luisao.
"David is having a brilliant career and I am a fan of Ramires on and off the pitch. He is a great guy."
Ramires has been a mainstay of Chelsea's midfield this season while the versatile Luiz can play alongside his compatriot or in the centre of the defence.
Captain John Terry looks like suffering final heartbreak for the second year in a row after he missed last year's Champions League shootout victory over Bayern Munich because of suspension.
The former England defender is a doubtful starter after he was carried off on a stretcher when he twisted his ankle in Saturday's 2-1 victory at Aston Villa.
Quicksilver Belgium winger Eden Hazard is also unlikely to play after he injured his hamstring at the weekend.
Playmaker Juan Mata wants Chelsea to end their season in style by winning the Europa League and then confirming a top-three finish in the Premier League with a home victory over Everton on Sunday.
"The season is about to end and perhaps the best moment is yet to come," said Mata. "We may win a new European title and officially get a ticket to play in the next Champions League.
"This is the second time in my two seasons at Chelsea that we will play for a European trophy. It would be amazing to win two European titles in consecutive years."
A Seattle man trying to dribble a soccer ball 10,000 miles to Brazil in time for the 2014 World Cup died Tuesday after being hit by a pickup truck on the Oregon Coast.
Police in Lincoln City, Ore., said 42-year-old Richard Swanson was hit at about 10 a.m. while walking south along U.S. Highway 101 near the city limits. He was declared dead at a hospital. The driver has not been charged.
Lt. Jerry Palmer said investigators found materials among Swanson's belongings listing his website, breakawaybrazil-com.
Swanson set out on the trek to promote the One World Futbol Project, based in Berkeley, Calif., which donates durable blue soccer balls to people in developing countries.
"We are deeply saddened to learn about Richard's death," Lisa Tarver, chief operating officer of One World Futbol Project, said in a statement. "He was a very inspiring man who in a very short time walked his way into many lives. Our thoughts are with his family."
Police said Palmer's soccer ball was recovered.
Kristi Schwesinger, a Seattle interior designer and close friend of Swanson's, said he had been a private investigator for many years, and switched to a new career as a graphic designer, but was laid off recently, and looking for an adventure.
"He was at a point in his life where he had raised his kids," she said. "Both his boys (Devin and Raven) had graduated from high school. He had no mortgage. He had sold his condo recently and was between jobs.
"And he loved the game of soccer," she said. "He stumbled on this great organization, One World Futbol, and decided this would be his passion the next year."
In an interview with The Daily News in Longview, Wash., Swanson said he picked up soccer just five years ago and played on club teams and rooted for the Seattle Sounders.
"I felt destined that I should go on this trip," he said.
His website said he left Seattle on May 1, and the trip would take him on foot for more than a year through 11 countries before reaching Sao Paolo, Brazil, where the World Cup soccer tournament will be played.
"It will be a trip of a lifetime where I will push myself further than I ever thought possible," he wrote.
Swanson started out in flip-flops, and managed to spend 13 nights but switched to hiking sandals in Portland, Ore., Schwesinger said. He stayed two nights in Vancouver, Wash., with his son, Devin, but otherwise had been able to sleep on on the couches of one stranger after another who befriended him and helped him on his journey.
"It was all by word of mouth, Facebook, media contacts, friends and family who put the word out," Schwesinger said.
Swanson spent Monday night in Lincoln City, where he was able to soak in a hot tub, and eat a gourmet breakfast, before he set off for Newport, not knowing where he would stay, she added. He posted photos and stories about his new friends on a Facebook page chronicling his journey.
Friends are talking about creating a foundation in Swanson's memory, and sending his two sons to Brazil for the World Cup, Schwesinger said.
"The hardest thing is he was so young," Schwesinger said. "Just today we were planning his surprise birthday party for Sunday. He was so young, so full of life, so excited by the journey he was on. To be taken from us so soon is really heartbreaking."
Read more: Man dribbling soccer ball 10,000 miles to Brazil killed by truck | Fox News
Rafael Benitez claims he did not need to win soccer's Europa League to prove he has done a good job during his turbulent six-month spell as Chelsea interim manager.
The London club stunned Benfica with a stoppage-time goal from Branislav Ivanovic in Wednesday's final to record a 2-1 win that gave them a second consecutive European title after last season's Champions League triumph.
With Champions League qualification also secure, barring a statistical fluke on the Premier League season's final day, Benitez has fulfilled the objectives he was given when he arrived in November.
However, the Spaniard, who has had to contend with outright opposition from sections of Chelsea's fans, said Wednesday's result had not suddenly turned him into a successful manager.
"I think it's sad to say this. You do your job in six months and it changes nothing if you win or lose the final, in terms of what you're trying to do," said Benitez, who has won three continental titles.
"With a team in transition, with young players, it was really difficult. But we are still winning and you saw the commitment of the players on the pitch."
Ivanovic's winner, in the third minute of stoppage time, came from a leap to meet a Juan Mata corner with a looping back-post header that left Benfica goalkeeper Artur flat-footed.
The goal, after Fernando Torres' opener had been cancelled out by an Oscar Cardozo penalty, left Jorge Jesus' men no time to react and Benitez said his side had some inside knowledge on the Portuguese team's defensive shortcomings.
"The second goal we had practised, as we know they have a weak point on corners," Benitez said.
"The technical staff worked on this but (former Benfica player) David Luiz also said they had problems there, so we tried to take advantage from all of this."
Benitez also claimed credit for the improved form of Torres and Frank Lampard, although he said he did not know if the latter's contract, which expires at the end of the season, would be extended.
"I will say nothing about Frank except that he's a great professional and is working hard in every training session," said the Spaniard.
"Now you can see he has improved. People are surprised but he has scored a lot of goals in this time and maybe it's because we have been managing him well and keeping him fresher."
On Torres, who blossomed under Benitez at Liverpool, he added: "We have had a lot of players improve during the season. Fernando was one of these players."
Benfica coach Jorge Jesus claimed his team would have been worthy winners, after a second agonising stoppage-time defeat in the space of five days.
Benfica's Portuguese league title hopes were seriously jeopardised by a 2-1 loss to Porto on Saturday, and Jesus said he was at a loss to explain the pattern.
"In the 93rd minute, once again, we suffered a goal like last week," he said. "It's not usual for a team like Benfica.
"I can't say we were unlucky. We had to do something and we didn't do it in that minute. But I want to congratulate the Benfica players for an excellent game."
Jesus, who hinted he was close to renewing his contract, said he had found solace in the words of a Dutch football great.
"I was more proud when Johan Cruyff hugged me and said Benfica were a great team," he said.
Even though the National First Division concludes on Sunday afternoon, the winner of the league and automatic promotion to the Premiership could be decided in the boardroom or even in a court of law in the coming weeks.
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) on Wednesday announced that the NFD trophy will not be presented this weekend to the winner on Sunday because of a host of disciplinary hearings that still need to be concluded.
This could very well have an impact on the start of the promotion-relegation playoffs, which are due to kick off on May 29. If the issues aren’t resolved in time, it might even cause a delay to the start of the new PSL season as well.
“We cannot hand over the trophy until we have all the teams on the same number of matches in the log. All the teams must be shown as having played 30 matches for the log to be complete. We are now waiting for the outcome of several DC matters,” Derek Blanckensee (pictured right), PSL General Manager of Football, said in a statement on Wednesday.
A number of teams boycotted matches at the start of the season due to a dispute over grants, and several games were postponed.
The PSL started with the first batch of hearings earlier this month, with most of the teams pleading guilty for missing the matches. Those matches were annulled and the teams received a suspended fine.
The same outcomes are expected next week, as a host of other teams still need to appear in front of the PSL’s disciplinary committee.
However, not all of the teams missed the same number of matches, and some teams may end up having played more matches in the league than others. A few teams have missed three matches, while others only missed one or two fixtures.
Then there is the case of Polokwane City, who after yesterday’s 4-0 win over African Warriors suddenly find themselves third on the log, level on 46 points with second-placed Thanda Royal Zulu and fourth-placed Santos. Mpumalanga Black Aces still lead the way on 47 points.
Polokwane City, who played as Bay United last season, were in a relegation dispute involving Dynamos for fielding an ineligible player. But they managed to keep their spot in the NFD, because they were fined instead of being docked points.
Because of the dispute, the Limpopo side weren’t involved in the boycott and their matches were later replayed. Some of their matches were also postponed and played on a later date after a car accident claimed the lives of four of their players in the middle of the season.
Polokwane and Dynamos will be the only teams who would have played all 30 of their matches at the end of the season.
But, while Dynamos have been already relegated to the second division, Polokwane are now right in the title mix, after they were awarded three points and a 3-0 win over Dynamos after a separate disciplinary hearing.
Dynamos and their boss Pat Malabela were charged after they walked off the field of play in the 90th minute of a league match against Polokwane last month. Dynamos and Malabela were also fined a hefty sum of money.
A win for Polokwane on Sunday and a draw for Santos against Jomo Cosmos, and a draw in the match between Aces and Thanda, would hand the Limpopo side the title. But they might only receive it later, after the legal men have had the final say ...
When David Beckham broke a bone in his left foot before the 2002 World Cup, Tony Blair, then the British prime minister, interrupted a cabinet meeting to express his concern about England’s suddenly uncertain chances. Tabloid newspapers ran photos of Beckham’s injured foot on Page 1 and asked readers to lay their hands on the picture in an attempt at mass civic healing. On Thursday, Beckham, never the best player in the world but unsurpassed in his era as a cultural phenomenon, announced his impending retirement from soccer at 38.
The sport has long had global stars, but none whose careers emerged so fortuitously at the nexus of technology, reality television and celebrity culture. Beckham was the athlete with the most crossover appeal at the moment when everyone could watch together, online or via satellite.
Beckham was not merely an athlete; he was an international brand that smartly fused a handsomeness that bordered on beauty with athleticism, marketing savvy and an eager embrace of the role of pop idol.
He was as likely to appear in Vogue as in Sports Illustrated. He was as popular appearing in underwear advertisements as in a soccer uniform. He was appreciated by working-class fans and was also an icon to gay fans. His wife was a member of the Spice Girls, and his precise passes and curling free kicks inspired a film, “Bend It Like Beckham,” serving as a metaphor for triumph over social restriction.
“David Beckham is soccer plus sex; those are the only two things that sell in the world, aren’t they?” said Stefan Szymanski, a British co-author of the book “Soccernomics” and a professor of sports management at the University of Michigan.
“What Beckham sold was athleticism or soccer to straight men and sex to women and gay men,” Szymanski said. “He did that rather spectacularly well. I’m guessing he’s the prettiest player the game has ever had. He’s the Marilyn Monroe of soccer. Everybody would want to be next to David Beckham.”
Despite his looks and talent and adulation, Beckham was not a prima donna on the field. He was considered to have given everything for his club teams and the England national team, winning titles with some of the world’s most popular clubs, Manchester United of England’s Premier League, Real Madrid of Spain’s La Liga and Paris St.-Germain of France’s Ligue 1 (he has two more matches with Paris St.-Germain).
His name and reputation alone brought newfound international respect for professional soccer in the United States during his six seasons and two championships with the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer.
And, in the era of the Internet and satellite television, Beckham’s career proved hugely influential in the swelling interest of European soccer in Asia and elsewhere around the globe.
“I don’t think it’s unfair to say he put M.L.S. on the map,” said Bruce Arena, who coached Beckham to two league titles with the Galaxy. “And he’s certainly one of the chief people responsible for worldwide attention of the game. He’s one of the most competitive people I ever coached. As he got to the end of his career, he didn’t have the legs he wanted to have, but he had a bigger heart than anyone on the field.”
Beckham, who made 115 appearances with the English national team, did have his less felicitous moments. Infamously, he committed an impetuous foul that got him ejected from a 1998 World Cup match against Argentina. And Landon Donovan, the American star and former teammate with the Galaxy, criticized Beckham’s early commitment to M.L.S. in a book entitled “The Beckham Experiment” by Grant Wahl, a senior writer at Sports Illustrated.
Still, Beckham’s global appeal went undiminished.
“I think he’s the most famous athlete in the world,” Wahl said. While a similar claim could be made about the soccer star Lionel Messi, the Olympic sprinting champion Usain Bolt and the golfer Tiger Woods, Wahl said: “Beckham has a celebrity component the other guys don’t. There’s a multiplier effect. If you play the old game, ‘How many people on earth recognize this sports star?’ I think Beckham is recognized by more people than anyone else.”
In addition to the typical mob scenes in his home country or the cities where he played — which are standard for soccer stars like Messi of Argentina, Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal or Neymar of Brazil — Beckham’s worldwide reach often seemed limitless.
In Tokyo, a chocolate Beckham statue that stood nearly 10 feet tall was featured in a downtown department store after the 2002 World Cup. In Australia, mere speculation that Beckham might be interested in playing in the country’s league prompted wealthy businessmen to consider helping finance what would have surely been an outrageously expensive transfer. In China — where Beckham’s nickname is Xiao Bei, or Little Becks — Beckham signed a contract reportedly worth as much as $75 million simply to be an ambassador for its scandal-plagued league. (During his first appearance in March, Beckham — wearing a suit and tie — slipped and fell when he attempted a free kick at a public relations event, taking a tumble that led to YouTube views around the world.) “Arguably, his brand has made more impact on football than any other player in history, with the possible exception of Pelé,” said Stephen A. Greyser, a sports management expert and professor at Harvard Business School. “He may be retiring from the pitch, but he’s not retiring from football and he’s not retiring from his brand. His impact will surely go on.”
Beckham’s brand, perhaps more than any other athlete, was himself. While Michael Jordan will always be linked with Nike, Beckham’s business associations ran a spectacularly wide gamut: when he arrived in the United States in 2007, he already had agreements with Adidas, Gillette, Motorola, Pepsi and Walt Disney, and added partnerships with Giorgio Armani, Sharpie, Yahoo, Electronic Arts, Samsung, Burger King, Sainsbury’s and Breitling at various time
Soccer matches played at a high level of competition are more likely to result in injuries - and in more serious ones - compared to less important games, according to a new study.
The finding makes sense, according to Håkan Bengtsson, who led the research, because prestigious games are likely to be "higher intensity and (result in) more situations with higher risks."
Bengtsson, a physiotherapist at Linköping University in Sweden, said previous studies have shown differences in how athletes play depending on the type of match, "but how that relates to injuries has not been studied before."
He and his colleagues used an injury database from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), which includes 26 professional soccer teams from 10 countries.
From 2001 to 2010, athletes sustained 2,738 injuries in 6,010 soccer games.
Moderate or severe injuries, which required more than one week of absence from play, were more likely at UEFA Champions League games - the most important tournament in European soccer - than at regular league games.
For instance, championship matches had a 57 percent increased risk of two or more injuries over league games.
This meant there were 33 injuries for every 100 Champions League games compared to 24 injuries per 100 league matches, according to Bengtsson.
Greater risk taking in high-stakes matches might explain the results, but "it's also possible that the importance of a competition may influence a team's willingness to let players with minor, not fully rehabilitated injuries play," Bengtsson and his colleagues write in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.
The researchers also found a difference in players' injury risk depending on whether a match resulted in a win or a loss for their team and whether it was played at home or away.
For instance, games that ended in a tie or a loss for a given team were 66 percent more likely to have two or more moderate or severe injuries to that team's players than matches the team won.
The study cannot determine the reason for the link.
"It could be expected that if you have two injuries it could have a big impact on how you perform in the match," Bengtsson told Reuters Health.
It's also possible that in games when a team is more likely to lose, players might take greater risks and end up with an injury.
Any explanation at this point "is pure speculation," said Chris Carling, a sports scientist at Lille Football Club in France, who was not involved in the study.
Carling said it would be useful to have reports from the players after matches to help understand what might have contributed to the injuries.
Curiously, home games had a higher likelihood of two or more injuries than away games.
For all types of injuries, away games were about a third less likely to include two or more injuries.
Away games, because of travel and unfamiliar environments, would have been expected to result in more injuries, said Bengtsson.
"That's a tough one to explain," he said.
Bengtsson said he hopes his results will be used to help inform soccer clubs about the extra risks in certain matches, and to involve medical teams in working to prevent them.
Higher-stakes soccer matches tied to more injuries | Reuters
Cruz Azul beat nine-man Santos Laguna 2-1 on Sunday with two goals from striker Javier Orozco, setting up a Mexican Clausura championship final against America.
Brilliant 3-0 winners in the first leg, Cruz Azul won 5-1 on aggregate to reach the final against the Mexico City giants, who are looking to equal Guadalajara's record of 11 league titles.
Cruz Azul, chasing a ninth league crown of their own, have won eight of their last nine matches and will be pitting their fine form against America's pedigree.
Orozco opened the scoring in the eighth minute of the semi-final second leg after pouncing on a mistake by defender Rafael Figueroa, then put Cruz Azul further ahead with a header in the 25th minute.
Striker Andres Renteria pulled one back for Santos, Clausura champions a year ago, in the 36th minute but any hope of a fight back were crushed when they had two players sent off in the space of seven minutes, both for second yellow cards.
Darwin Quintero was first to go, in the 51st minute, and defender Felipe Baloy followed him in the 58th.
Cruz Azul substitute Alejandro Vela was shown a red card for diving, his second booking, in the last minute and will miss the final.
America secured their place in the final with Saturday's 2-1 win over Monterrey at the Azteca. They had held CONCACAF champions Monterrey 2-2 in the first leg.
"I think a lot of people will watch the final to push for us not to win. We all know you either hate or love this team," America midfielder Rubens Sambueza said.
"People always talk about us, well or badly ... That's the nicest thing, it means people aren't indifferent towards us and we have to enjoy (our successes) for those who speak badly," said defender Miguel Layun.
Raul Jimenez put America ahead with a 64th minute penalty after defender Jose Basanta had brought down Sambueza.
Striker Cristian Benitez took his tally as the championship's top scorer to 17 with America's second goal seven minutes from time after a one-two with Jimenez. Benitez has scored 30 goals in the season, including 13 in the Apertura.
Striker Aldo de Nigris pulled one back for Monterrey in added time.
La Piedad won promotion to the top flight when they beat Neza 5-3 on penalties in the second division playoff final. They take the place of relegated Queretaro.
Soccer-Cruz Azul to meet America to meet in Mexican final
When it comes to foreign aid, sending soccer players to Brazil might seem a bit like shipping coals to Newcastle.
But when those players are women, the story is different. As part of the State Department’s Empowering Women and Girls Through Sports Initiative, retired U.S. women’s soccer players Julie Foudy and Brandi Chastain (yes, the one who tore off her shirt) are traveling to Brazil this week to encourage girls there to flock to the sport the nation’s boys have embraced with legendary zeal.
“You think of Brazil as a soccer-crazy culture, but for women, it’s really looked down at or even discouraged,” Foudy told POLITICO in a phone interview. “To me, they seem like we were in the 1950s or 1960s.”
Foudy said Marta, one of the stars of Brazilian soccer and a five-time World Player of the Year, has told U.S. players she was repeatedly told not to play soccer when she was growing up. Other female players from South America’s largest country have talked of having to rip the heads off their dolls in order to find a ball to play with. While 13 million U.S. girls play soccer, only 400,000 Brazilian girls do.
Why is this a U.S. problem? The State Department has a made a commitment to advancing women’s rights around the globe, and research shows girls who get involved in sports at a young age are more likely to stand up for themselves, start businesses and take on leadership roles.
“We want to find ways to get more women and girls on the field, the court, the track, in the pool, the mat, wherever their interests and talents take them so that they can discover their strengths, develop their skills, experience that special satisfaction that sports can bring, win or lose,” then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a June 2012 speech announcing the creation of the Council to Empower Women and Girls Through Sport. “And we believe in the positive effects that can flow out of that experience for girls and women across their lifetimes, and, by extension, for their families and communities.”
Sports “can give girls the strength and confidence to be able to say ‘No’ to some negative influences,” said Foudy, a founding member of the council.
Foudy and Chastain, who were both members of the 1999 U.S. team that won the Women’s World Cup, are part of a larger effort that will send 37 soccer, basketball, fencing and softball envoys to 12 countries this year. The duo will hold clinics for both girls and boys, meet with teachers and coaches to discuss how to encourage girls to play and talk about how Brazil could adopt an equivalent of the U.S. Title IX, the 1972 education amendment barring sex discrimination.
Even without U.S. help, the Brazilian women’s soccer team has done well, having finished second in one World Cup and winning two Olympic silver medals.
“I can see them asking ‘What are you doing?’” Foudy said, laughing. “‘Why are you helping us?’”
Read more: U.S. women's soccer stars to Brazil - Kevin Robillard - POLITICO-com
The most unforgiving criticism in sport is directed at any athlete who fans believe is celebrated too excessively above his true talent level — especially those stars who are gloried because they're such pretty people.
To wit: As David Beckham retires, so much attention is being devoted not to how good he was but to how good he was not. I never saw that emphasized with a fine athlete before. Likewise, while celebrity athletes are hardly new, in Beckham's case, he is so outlandishly notorious that it's been just impossible for many people to allow for the fact that he, like any good product, could be judged independently for his value on the one hand and his marketing on the other.
Becks came as quite a contradictory package. A huge, rich star, he was, nevertheless, a disciplined, hard worker dedicated to his craft. His teams won four championships in four countries. He was not only a sports celebrity but a social crossover — the acclaimed metrosexual. His wife — Posh Spice, the most visible of what the British sports press wonderfully call WAGs, wives and girlfriends — is the exemplar of whatever is the opposite of "shy and retiring." But your Mr. and Mrs. Beckham nevertheless managed a fairly scandal-free tabloid life.
Moreover, in contrast to his sexy, rakish image, Beckham's game was, in fact, standard, lacking much in the way of stylish invention. Yes, we all know he could bend it, but it was his ability to, in soccer parlance, cross that made him so exceptional. That is, the most glamorous athlete in the world didn't fit the hot-shot attacking mold. Beckham was, at the end of the day, an associate, a sideways guy. And like that, he was sort of equal parts vanity and wonder.
Perhaps in time his reputation will be nudged to the margins, where he will primarily be recalled more for being what we commonly refer to as a "character" — talented, yes, but remembered rather more the way Yogi Berra and Charles Barkley are in America.
But really, that wouldn't do Becks justice. He is a spectacular figure, one of those phenomena that inexplicably pop up in some part of every culture every now and then when the time is just right and the ingredients are all perfectly brewed. Understand, he was not an original. No, David Beckham has simply been more of everything that he had to be to bend himself into planetary eminence.
Sometimes, some things just come to a boil.
Backing Becks: Don't Knock The Soccer Star's Talents : NPR
It's a dream come true for New York City soccer fans who have faithfully waited for a team to call their own, especially in East Harlem -- a neighborhood where the seed was planted for a professional club three years ago and hopefully, a future generation of American soccer stars.
Tuesday, the city got its team -- New York City United, which will join Major League Soccer for the 2015 season. Wednesday, the club, which still has to choose its team colors and logo, introduced the man who will put the club together -- former U.S. national team captain Claudio Reyna.
East Harlem's PS 72 was the backdrop for Reyna's introduction as director of football for the club, which was formed through a partnership between the New York Yankees, Manchester City FC of the English Premier League, and the Abu Dhabi United Group.
"This is exactly what we need," said Eugenio Ramirez, 38, whose two sons are rising stars of the PS 72 soccer program in East Harlem, where Manchester City FC installed a rooftop field and started a soccer program for about 500 kids in 2010.
"We have been watching and waiting and waiting and now it will happen. This opens up the possibility for my sons. We have a team now. And what father doesn't want their child to play professionally for their home team?" Ramirez asked rhetorically. "Soccer has changed their lives."
The New York Red Bulls are in the MLS but they play their home games in Harrison, N.J. The new club will play in the city, but the location has yet to be determined.
For the past three years, the Manchester City FC has nurtured the interests of children across the city with its soccer program. The British club's efforts have led to a citywide championship cup that includes about a dozen public schools.
About a dozen grade school students who play in the league attended the news conference and kicked soccer balls with members of the Manchester FC. That team, which finished second in the English Premier League season that just ended, is in town for a friendly match with league rival Chelsea FC on Saturday at Yankee Stadium.
"This is amazing," said Edgar Tamaitl, 10, a fourth-grader at PS 72 who was one of the lucky students who got a chance to kick, head butt and strike goals with several starters on the Manchester City club. "I'm excited. I like to play sports and soccer is my favorite. It's amazing."
With each strike between the goal posts, the PS 72 players yelled "Ole," the international rallying cry for soccer fans.
"It's great," said Alija Radoncic, 9, a fourth-grader at the school. "I feel excited that I got to meet" the team.
Manchester FC defender Pablo Zabaleta, who was volleying with the kids, said later, "I came here three years ago and to see the kids excited today opens up the dream and hope that they too can play professionally. This is great for New York."
As lineups were announced pregame, Chelsea and Manchester City each drew impressive cheers from the 48,263 soccer fans who poured into Busch Stadium on Thursday night, but the loudest praise was reserved for when Chelsea and Manchester City met at midfield, holding up a banner that read, "Together in Support of Oklahoma."
The St. Louis Cardinals partnered with Relevent Sports and the two Premier League clubs to help children impacted by the tornado that devastated Moore, Okla., on Monday.
The Cardinals and Relevent Sports will donate one dollar for every ticket sold to Thursday's exhibition match, a 4-3 victory for Manchester City, and both soccer clubs will match the donation. The players also wore commemorative black armbands as a tribute to those affected by the tornado.
"We have all been moved by the heartbreaking images and stories coming out of Oklahoma," Cardinals president Bill DeWitt said in a statement. "Cardinals Care has established a special fund to help the many children whose lives have been forever changed by tragedy."
Chelsea took a 2-0 lead into halftime with goals from Demba Ba and Cesar Azpilicueta in the first half, and Oscar added to the lead with another score in the 53rd minute. But Manchester City stormed back with four unanswered goals in the second half, including one from Micah Richards at 90 minutes to provide a lead.
"We are a bit disappointed, of course, because we lost the game," said Chelsea goalkeeper Peter Cech. "But in terms of the football and the entertainment for the people -- it was fantastic to see so many people coming to the stadium to watch the game -- they had a pretty interesting evening."
Manchester City assistant manager Brian Kidd echoed Cech's sentiment, adding that the high-scoring affair was good for the game's U.S. exposure.
"I think if you see games like that, it definitely gives football -- soccer -- a great name. They love high-scoring games. Everything is based on that in America. … I was so pleased we had a full house, and I feel like they got a really good game. I think they got their money's worth."
The international exhibition was the first soccer game played at Busch Stadium. The mound was removed, along with a layer of dirt in the infield and around home plate. A plastic covering was placed on the remaining dirt and sod was laid on top, transforming the Cardinals' home into a soccer stadium.
Head groundskeeper Bill Findley said on Saturday that it will take two or three days to return the field to normal baseball conditions.
"It's wonderful, and I hope it continues to happen out here," said Missy Goodwin, a St. Louis native who attended the game with her daughter. "It's a little bit different to see a soccer field out there. It's amazing how they transformed it."
While there were no stakes for the friendly exhibition, the match provided an opportunity for many fans to see two of the Premier League's top clubs play closer to home.
"We get to watch the top professionals at the top of their game playing here," said Mike Dolan of Wildwood, Mo. "When my brother first got the tickets, he said, 'We're pretty far away.' I said, 'Not as far as England.'"
Soccer stars honor Oklahoma tornado victims during Manchester City-Chelsea exhibition at Busch Stadium | MLB-com: News
German sportswear makers Adidas and Puma renew their own decades-old rivalry when soccer teams Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund meet in Europe's Champions League Final at Wembley on Saturday.
Adidas is the long-standing kit supplier to Bayern and owns a stake of around nine percent in the Bavarian club, while Puma became the sportswear partner of Dortmund a year ago.
The German companies were set up after a falling out by the Dassler brothers in the Bavarian town of Herzogenaurach in the late 1940s and remain among the best known global sports brands.
However, while Adidas and U.S. rival Nike dominate a soccer market estimated to be worth up to 4.5 billion euros ($5.8 billion), Puma is playing catch-up after years of focusing more on fashion than performance sportswear.
As well as supplying Bayern's kit, Adidas is also providing the match ball and uniforms worn by the referee and his assistants for the first all-German Champions League final.
Adidas CEO Herbert Hainer said new Bayern replica shirts were selling well, as was the "Finale Wembley" souvenir ball.
"This is not only an opportunity to showcase the brand to the world but also to have some commercial successes," Hainer told Reuters at an Adidas promotional event in London.
DORTMUND DECISION PAYS OFF
Puma's decision to partner with Dortmund yielded an instant return when the club made it to the final - the biggest prize in European club soccer and expected to attract a global television audience of over 150 million.
"The exposure that we are having, especially this weekend, will make the club not just a local asset but it will become a truly global player," he added in a telephone interview.
Retailers in Japan, Malaysia and Britain have been signing up to buy the new Dortmund kit which will be launched next month, Caroti said, adding that the publicity the team has generated created a "halo effect" that would boost sales by bringing more customers into stores.
Dortmund's success has provided a rare bright spot for Puma, which warned last week of shortfalls in sales and profit. Adidas by contrast reported its highest ever gross profit margin earlier this month. [ID:nL6N0DV0WY]
A renewed focus on soccer has seen Puma pull out of sailing and European rugby, saving money in order to plough it into sponsorship deals that will bring it more business.
Caroti said the success of Dortmund and individual deals Puma has done with top players including Cesc Fabregas of Barcelona and Radamel Falcao of Atletico Madrid had helped to give its "leaping cat" brand renewed credibility in soccer.
Soccer currently makes up more than 10 percent of total sales and is growing, he said. Puma has overall annual revenues of around 3.3 billion euros compared with 14.9 billion for Adidas.
Puma's long-term objective is to build team sports into a billion euro business, Caroti said, adding soccer would be the mainstay of this division.
According to reports in English media, Puma is set to agree a deal worth more than 30 million pounds ($45.2 million) a year to provide the kit for English Premier League club Arsenal, replacing Nike.
Caroti declined to comment on those reports but said: "We are obviously searching for other top tier teams that could give us that global visibility."
Adidas and Puma take rivalry to European soccer final | Reuters
My career started in Eastleigh, took me to the bright lights of Dover Athletic and Leyton Orient before I ended up at Arsenal. I’ve won the Champions League, I’ve been to the World Cup. I own a yacht and a racehorse.
My girlfriend is unhappy because I’ve been too busy with PR photoshoots.
And it all happened on my phone. This is New Star Soccer, the simple, engrossing football phenomenon that was one of 2012’s biggest surprises. In it, you take control of a single player’s career, beginning in non-league before working your way up the football pyramid.
Matches take the form of flashpoints, with a simple touchscreen mechanic reminiscent of Angry Birds as you spray passes around the park or belt the ball into the bottom corner from 40 yards. It’s brilliant fun and embellishes the matches with the superstar lifestyle of the modern footballer, with simple life management tasks to keep your sponsors, fans and girlfriends happy.
Earlier this year, New Star Soccer won a BAFTA for best sports game, bloodying the nose of big budget behemoths like FIFA 13. The smartphone game appears an overnight success, but this version of New Star Soccer is the culmination of a decade's worth of work from Simon Read of New Star Games. “When I left university I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life,” Read tells me. “I had studied English Lit but really I wanted to get into programming which had been a hobby of mine as a kid. So I bought a PC, picked up some books and started teaching myself. I wrote a simple manager game for the 2002 World Cup but wanted to turn my attention to a different type of football game after that.”
That football game was the very first New Star Soccer, released on PC in 2003. The game set the tone for the series, with matches taking the form of text commentary and players needing to make decision on whether to pass, shoot or dribble, and the focus on the footballer’s lifestyle was already in place.
“It was inspired by two things,” Read says of his inspiration for the first game. “One was the old 8-bit game, ‘Footballer of the Year’ and the other was the rise of superstar footballers like David Beckham. I wanted to create a game that captured some of the craziness that occurs off the pitch.”
Greeted with a warm reception and modest success, Read continued to work on updates and sequels for New Star Soccer, moving from pure text commentary to a 2D match engine for NSS3, and even experimenting with a 3D match engine for the fourth version of the game. It was in 2011, with New Star Soccer 5, that the series returned to a 2D match engine and incorporated a free-to-play online account. NSS5 was the most successful version of the game yet.
Until the smartphone version.
“To be honest I was initially just trying to create something along the lines of Flick Kick Football,” says Read, referencing PikPok’s free-kick simulator. “I developed a simple ‘score attack’ game which eventually became the Arcade Mode in the final release but then I wanted to bring across some of the career elements from the PC version. Within about 4 months I had the whole game in place and thanks to the programming language I used called Monkey I could launch it simultaneously on iOS, Android and Flash.”
The free-to-play PC flash game featured on Kongregate’s website and to date has had over 45 million plays. This helped drive sales for the smartphone version, but even the best games can struggle to gain traction on crowded app stores. “To reach a tipping point on the App Store, I believe you need something a bit special,” says Read.
“For NSS I think it is the addictive nature of the game which gets people talking about it. At its peak I would see tweets every couple of minutes from fans of the game that were completely hooked and needed to tell the world about it.”
And talk about it they did, New Star Soccer’s popularity swelled through excellent reviews, social media and word of mouth. People would quickly show their mates through a game or two, and the appeal was instant, almost viral as it spread from player to player.
Football fans naturally took an instant shine to the game, but even those without a deep interest in the sport can be found swiping away at New Star Soccer. “I think the RPG side to the game --managing relationships, buying cool stuff, gambling and so on-- appeals to gamers in general,” says Read. “But even the action elements of the game work in a fun way, almost like a puzzle game. Reducing the match to just the highlights keeps it short and entertaining so it never really gets in the way of the fun stuff that happens off the pitch if that’s what you prefer.”
With success across a broad audience, you wonder why more big-budget games haven’t made an attempt to recreate the lifestyle side of the modern game. “I’m not sure really,” admits Read. “Maybe it stems from a reluctance to take risks. Gamers know what to expect from the yearly updates and are happy to pay for them, so in some ways we are all to blame for the stifling of the genre.
Back in the 90s there were so many different football games around but since FIFA and PES put a stranglehold on console football games it has been difficult for anyone else to break in with new ideas. Those games have added career modes of course but it all feels a bit bolted on for the sake of it. Thankfully the mobile scene is shaking things up a bit.”
The disruption the indie friendly mobile scene has caused stretches beyond just the games too. The free-to-play business model --for better or worse-- has made consumers re-think how they consume games. New Star Soccer allows you to play the arcade mode for free, and ten matches of the career mode before asking you to upgrade for a small fee. You can then also buy boosts for your player’s ‘Star Bux’ currency in order to buy boots, energy drinks and luxury items. While many free-to-play models can be invasive and unbalancing, New Star Soccer handles its monetisation e
Ten-man America beat Cruz Azul 4-2 on penalties to win a record-equalling 11th Mexican league title on Sunday, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat after two late goals forced extra time.
The Eagles trailed 1-0 from the first leg of the final and were quickly a man down at the Azteca after midfielder Jesus Molina was sent off in the 14th minute.
They fell behind on the night, and 2-0 on aggregate, to a 20th minute goal by Colombia striker Teofilo Gutierrez and looked set for defeat before staging a miraculous late salvo at two corner kicks.
Colombian centre back Aquivaldo Mosquera headed America's equaliser in the 89th minute from Argentine Rubens Sambueza's corner.
In the third minute of added time, America goalkeeper Moises Muñoz came up into the Cruz Azul box for another corner and his header was deflected by defender Alejandro Castro into the net to force an extra 30 minutes.
There were no goals in extra time leading to penalties with Cruz Azul, who been so close to their first championship since 1997, starting the shootout badly when striker Javier Orozco had his penalty saved and Castro slipped and sent his over the bar.
America equalled arch-rivals Guadalajara with their 11th crown.
According to German football legend Franz Beckenbauer the presence of two German teams in the European Cup final proves that the country is on top of the sport.
Beckenbauer believes that the country is on its way to success in the 2014 World cup, “Germany is on its way. Teams like Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund and the national team are on their way, maybe next year on their way to Brazil to win the World Cup.”
Beckenbauer has put the success down to Germany’s investment in youth football.
There are number of players such as Manuel Neuer, Mario Gotze and Bastian Schweinsteiger which herald from German youth football sides.
However, UEFA President Michel Platini takes a very different view, “It is cyclical. One year you are stronger, depending on the coach, players, referees. Whoever wins is the best team of that year, and I give the cup to the winner. In the Champions League, there are no bad teams.”
At present Germany is 4th favourite to win the World Cup with odds of 6/1. Brazil have the best odds of 7/2.
All German European Cup Final Leads to World Cup Speculation - Online Casino Archives
After its announcement that it was continuing to sponsor MotoGP, bwin.party has now agreed to extend and redesign its sponsorship deal with Spanish football club Real Madrid.
The bwin.party name will no longer appear on the players’ jerseys—the new deal is all about “exploiting the Group’s extensive content and media rights catalogue” and is structured to reflect changed consumer behavior.
Rather than being displayed on the shirts, the bwin.party name and logo will be on the perimeter signs and prominent on the clubs website. Co-branded mobile and gaming apps are planned and bwin will have access to players for marketing campaigns.
The company is currently neck and neck with iPoker Spain for third place in the Spanish regulated market a very long way behind 888Poker Spain and market leader PokerStars.
Real Madrid Agrees New Deal with bwin.party | Pokerfuse Online Poker News
In the first game of a busy summer schedule, the United States national soccer team was convincingly defeated by a powerful Belgian team, 4-2, on Wednesday night at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland. The United States was coming into the game off the high of two impressive World Cup qualifying results in March, a win over Costa Rica and a draw against Mexico. Belgium entered the game leading its European World Cup qualifying group and boasting one of the strongest teams in Europe, with a roster full of players from elite clubs.
Belgium controlled the game early and struck first in the sixth minute when Romelu Lukaku of Chelsea got behind the United States defense. American goalkeeper Tim Howard was unable to hang on to the initial shot, and Kevin Mirallas of Everton chipped it into the net for a 1-0 lead.
The United States found an equalizer against the run of play in the 22nd minute when Graham Zusi took a short corner and sent a deep cross for Clint Dempsey, who headed the ball back across the goal. Geoff Cameron easily headed it past Belgian keeper Simon Mignolet for his first career international goal. In the 40th minute, Belgium nearly regained the lead after a counterattack. Lukaku unleashed a powerful shot from 25 yards, which forced Howard to make a diving save.
Midfielder Sacha Kljestan said: “In the first half, things got a little bit hectic and we were getting tired already. We needed to slow it down. No one likes to lose. Belgium is a good team, but we made mistakes tonight that gifted them goals, so that’s what’s disappointing. We have to be tight in everything we do.”
In the 56th minute, Belgium found the go-ahead goal after a sloppy turnover from Brad Davis in midfield sprung a counterattack down the right side. A poor defensive clearance attempt from defender Omar Gonzalez allowed Kevin De Bruyne to make a cross to an open Christian Benteke in front of the goal. Benteke finished easily past goalkeeper Brad Guzan, who replaced Howard at the half.
“During these friendlies, these mistakes can happen, but during the qualifiers, they cannot happen,” Gonzalez said. “I want to be focused enough so I can get these things out of here now against these teams and hopefully not do them in the future.”
Klinsmann said: “We want to make sure that there is a flow and there is a rhythm, there is a better understanding between players on the field and better communication when the games come that we badly need to win. I think those are games you need to play. They understand when you make mistakes, they have to pay for it.”
In the 65th minute, the Belgians put the game out of reach. De Bruyne sent in a high cross to the far post, which Marouane Fellaini was able to head past Guzan from close range.
“You have to have a short memory,” Cameron said. “It’s a friendly. You have to take the good with the bad. You learn from your mistakes, you take the positives out of it. We’ll keep our heads held high. We can perform better.”
After another goal from Benteke in the 71st minute, the United States cut the deficit to 4-2 when it was awarded a penalty after Toby Alderweireld was called for a hand ball on Eddie Johnson’s cross. Dempsey beat Mignolet to the left side for his 33rd career international goal.
The game brought the 100th cap for DaMarcus Beasley, who started out of position at left back. Normally a speedy winger, he was the only player on the United States roster remaining from the 2002 World Cup, where the Americans advanced to the quarterfinals.
The loss leaves the United States with a 1-2-2 record in 2013. It will face Germany on Sunday before heading to Kingston for a World Cup qualifier against Jamaica on June 7.
Leading 6-1 on aggregate from their first leg effort at Kiwitea St last Sunday, Auckland always looked in control of the tie and a second-half free-kick from Alex Feneridis sealed their spot in the final.
The identity of Auckland's opponents will be confirmed tomorrow, when Waitakere tackle Amicale from Vanuatu with a two goal cushion after the first leg.
No O-League final has been contested by two clubs from the same country, but Waitakere can make that a reality if they make their 2-0 lead stand up at Fred Taylor Park.
Today, Auckland's possession-based approach virtually killed off the tie in a goalless first half. Ba created more chances than they did at Kiwitea St, with Laisenia Raura, Jacob Morrison and Scott Gannon all forcing navy blues goalkeeper Tamati Williams into good saves either side of the break.
But Feneridis' free-kick extended Auckland's aggregate advantage to 7-1 and ensured they became the first Kiwi club to win at Govind Park, with Waitakere having lost at the venue in 2007 and 2012.
The final is scheduled for Sunday, May 19 in Auckland, with the venue, thought to be Mt Smart Stadium, to be confirmed this week by OFC officials.
Soccer: Auckland into another Oceania final - Sport - NZ Herald News