How not to clear a football. Hamburg SV’s Ze Roberto and David Jarolim score 2 nearly identical goals within 86 seconds against Hertha Berlin. Berlin’s goalkeeper Burchert can certainly head the ball. But he was not hired for that purpose.
Excerpt from the new spoof film, “15 Minutes that Shook the World,” that uncovers what really happened in the Liverpool dressing room at half time during the Champions League Final, 2005 (when Liverpool came back to beat AC Milan in Istanbul, Turkey).
From Reuters:
CAPE TOWN, Sept 17 (Reuters) – South Africa faces a funding shortfall of 2.3 billion rand ($315 million) for six new stadiums built for next year’s Soccer World Cup, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said on Thursday.
South Africa, in its first recession in 17 years, is the first African country to host the world’s most watched sports spectacle, starting next June.
“National Treasury has informed me of the projected shortfalls for the 2010 FIFA World Cup stadiums. The total shortfall on the six new stadiums is 2.33 billion rand as of July 2009,” Gordhan said in a written response to a question in parliament.
The funding shortfall comes on the back of accommodation, transport and security concerns raised by FIFA, soccer’s world governing body.
Gordhan said contractual responsibility rested with South Africa’s 10 host cities to deal with rising costs, and it would be “clearly unreasonable” for national government to take full responsibility for reimbursement of rising costs. “Only one of the new stadiums is likely to be completed within budget,” he said, without specifying which stadium. Soccer City, where the finals will be played in Johannesburg, accounted for almost half of the total shortfall at 1.26 billion rand, he said.
Yesterday Brazil beat Argentina 3-1 in Rosario, Argentina. Brazil qualified, but Argentina is just about holding onto the fourth automatic qualifying place for South Africa 2010. (The fifth placed Conmebol or South American team will face CONCACAF’s 4th placed side in a home-and-away play-off. The Americas could provide a tasty appetizer for South Africa: Argentina vs. Mexico anyone? Or get the popcorn out for the USA against Venezuela!)
Argentina has some tough qualifying games ahead (particularly Paraguay, and a trip to the Centenario in Montevideo). This could be the first time they fail to qualify since 1970. They are coached by one Diego Maradona, God to some Argentinian (and all Scottish) fans. And some observers and the country’s fans (this is sacrilege of course) think he (gasp) is the problem.
A Test of Faith in Argentina.
Dios Mio! Argentina in Trouble.
Critics round on Diego Maradona after Brazil twist knife against Argentina
Christopher Merrett
Football is often described as the “beautiful game”. Indeed, it is. As Michael Worsnip pointed out recently (The Witness, June 12), football on the local recreation ground reduces the possibility that young people will be tempted into crime. And, of course, South Africa will host a successful Fifa World Cup next year — if it tries hard enough. All of this is obvious. But what is crucially missing from public debate are a number of awkward political, economic and social questions.
Trailer for Fahrenheit 2010 – Warming Up for the World Cup in South Africa on TrailerAddict.
FAHRENHEIT 2010: WARMING UP FOR THE WORLD CUP IN SOUTH AFRICA
directed by Craig Tanner, Australia/South Africa (2009) documentary
The measured Fahrenheit 2010 systematically examines the expectations of a variety of South Africans on the country’s staging of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Focal points of the film are South Africa’s socio-economic disparities and debate as to whether the erection of state of the art sports arenas will leave the country with white elephants which it can ill afford. Interviewees include Danny Jordaan, Desmond Tutu, Michael Sutcliffe, Jomo Sono, Dennis Brutus and also, amongst others, construction workers, street traders, soccer players and the sangoma with the answer to Bafana Bafana’s woes.
Report in the South African newspaper, The Mercury
THE fate of some of South Africa’s oldest stadiums, including Durban’s
Absa Stadium, is already decided, despite the emotional debate expected
to rage around the continued existence of these venues.
Danny Jordaan, CEO of Fifa’s 2010 Local Organising committee, said at
the African Journalism Awards 2010 media debate in Durban on Friday,
that a decision to demolish the Boet Erasmus stadium in Port Elizabeth
had already been taken and that both Newlands and the Absa stadium in
Durban would share the same fate in time.
Responding to a question on whether the new stadiums would be white
elephants once the World Cup was over, Jordaan said the lifecycle of any
stadium was 50 to 70 years and that Newlands and the Absa stadium were
reaching their sell-by date.
“This is an emotional debate that will go on for a long time, but who,
once they have experienced the new, modern, sophisticated stadiums will
want to go back to the old ones? South Africa has made a bid to host the
Rugby World Cup in 2015 and if we win that, the games will most
certainly be hosted in the new stadiums. If that happened it would
certainly help to move this debate along,” he said.
Sharks rugby CEO Brian van Zyl said the issue hadn’t been raised with him.
“That’s the first I’ve heard of it and it’s absolute nonsense? Jordaan’s
opinion of Absa is subjective. In any case, we have made a promise to
all our stakeholders that before we make any decisions regarding this
stadium we will consult with them through a transparent process. To
date, the indication from many of them is they don’t want to move – I
guess it could be considered an emotive issue, but it’s about a culture.”
Van Zyl said according to clause six of the South African Rugby Union’s
constitution all international rugby matches, including the World Cup,
would be played at rugby venues. “And I don’t think that’s about to change.”
Western Province Rugby Union’s managing director, Rob Wagner, said it
was also the first he had heard of it.
“We own the stadium, there is no debt on it and it’s probably one of the
oldest rugby grounds in the world. It has heritage and tradition, why
would we want to demolish it? I can’t understand how Jordaan could have
said that.”