In qualifying for Italia 90, Nigeria faced Cameroon in a crunch game. Sadly, what followed would put the national sport very much into perspective
Nils Middelboe: the buccaneering Danish banker who became Chelsea’s first foreign star
A staunch advocate of football remaining amateur, Nils Middelboe was one of the world’s best defenders in his time – and a lawyer and banker too
Jules Rimet: the Catholic visionary who founded the World Cup
Through his staunchly Catholic beliefs, Jules Rimet conceived the idea of a football World Cup that would spread his values of integration
How the 1992 Asian Cup awoke Japanese football, the continent’s sleeping giant
Prior to 1992, Japanese football registered on few radars. Glory in the Asian Cup would change all that, preceding the start of the J League a year later
How the world of Shimizu S-Pulse in the J League converted me to Japanese football
Japan is an intoxicating blend of the traditional and the futuristic. It is a unique culture, with a prevailing attitude of respect and deference that underpins its society and shapes its values,…
Why Seedorf and Kluivert, Cameroon’s new management team, are facing a mammoth task in Africa
When Cameroon announced the appointment this summer of Clarence Seedorf as the new head coach of the national team, the choice of such a high-profile name grabbed the attention. It was seemingly a…
The controversy that has damaged Luka Modrić’s reputation for many in his homeland
“Thank you Croatia! Thank you Zagreb!” hailed Croatian captain Luka Modrić to the joyous crowd in Zagreb’s Jelačićsquare. “We have achieved our dream.” More than half a million had turned out to…
The road to Moscow: how Mongolia and Timor-Leste kicked off a 936-game odyssey to Russia
The national stadium in Dili, the capital city of Timor-Leste, is an unassuming place. Two small stands, one on either side of the pitch, offer the only seating, with grass banks providing the…
The last time Belgium lit up the World Cup: a run to the 1986 semi-finals
As settings go for the biggest match in a nation’s footballing history, the Azteca in Mexico City has to be one of the finest. For the Red Devils of Belgium, this would be…
Johnny Rep: the natural Total Footballer who weaved his way into legend
“With so many great players in one team, you make art. You don’t mean to but you do.” These were the thoughts of one of the crucial cogs in the Dutch totaalvoetbal…
How Panama overcome past despair to find the ultimate glory in World Cup qualification
To taste the sweet, you must first have faced the pain. The joy of finally achieving your goals, of succeeding where you’d previously floundered, makes the ultimate attainment all the more satisfying. When dreams…
When two worlds collide: Claudio Caniggia and Benjamin Massing at Italia 90
BRUTAL ASSAULT or comic collision? Cynical professionalism or amateurish naivety? To laugh or to cry? Whatever your thoughts, whatever your emotions, the spectacular and unforgettable foul by the rugged Cameroon defender Benjamin Massing on the…
Salvatore Schillaci: the unlikely hero of Italia 90
IT IS ONE of the most iconic images of Italia 90, along with Paul Gascoigne’s tears and Claudio Caniggia being almost cut in two. The wild, staring eyes alive with an intense,…
The golden ages of the Soviet national team
THINK OF THE RUSSIAN NATIONAL TEAM and you’re unlikely to think of anything particularly positive. One brief flutter towards success came in reaching the Euro 2008 semi-finals in fine style – led by…
Tahiti at the 2013 Confederations Cup: a dream fulfilled
“We’re playing with the big boys now,” was the verdict of the Tahiti coach Eddie Etaeta. Never was a truer word spoken. Etaeta, a school teacher and former national team player and…
Antonín Panenka and the greatest penalty of all time
“I WAS ONE-THOUSAND percent certain that I would take the penalty in that way and that I would score.” That is the matter-of-fact assessment of one of the most iconic images of an…
Euro 96: when football should have come home
It has been 20 long years since Euro 96 had English fans dreaming. Boasting one of the best England squads in recent decades, the Three Lions made it all the way to the semis before succumbing to old foes Germany on penalties.
The uplifting story of American Samoa’s footballing redemption
From the depths of a 31-0 defeat, we look back at the remarkable redemption of American Samoa and their first competitve victory despite being FIFA’s lowest ranked side.