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Sweden take on Brazil in historic friendly

Sweden host mighty Brazil on Wednesday at Rasunda Stadium, the classic arena where the South Americans won their first World Cup title back in 1958 - defeating Sweden 5-2.

The friendly pits two teams with a mission. A bruised Brazil, who lost the Olympic final to Mexico on Saturday, are likely out to prove their class after stumbling in their effort to win their first Olympic title.

"Defeat hurts a lot, especially in the manner we lost, but life goes on. We are on the right track, there is nothing wrong," Brazil captain Thiago Silva was quoted as telling Globo Esporte after the final.

For Sweden, the match is a key tune-up for the upcoming World Cup qualifications this autumn

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The friendly is not only a re-match between the two sides but also nostalgic since it is the last international to be played at Rasunda Stadium that is to be demolished soon after the Swedish league ends in early November.

Pele and other members of the Brazil and Sweden teams that played in the 1958 final have been invited for the friendly. The veterans were due to visit the arena on the eve of the friendly.

http://www.superspor...storic_friendly

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Sweden's farewell to the Råsunda

The age of the Råsunda Stadium finished on Wednesday as it had started in 1937 – with a Sweden defeat. However, despite the 3-0 loss to 2014 FIFA World Cup hosts Brazil, Blågult fans' memories of the venue – set to be replaced by a new purpose-built arena barely a kilometre away – have been more good than bad.

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Yet, appropriately, Pelé was on hand for the ceremony preceding the farewell match – Edson Arantes do Nascimento having made his name as a 17-year-old with two goals in Brazil's 5-2 success over Sweden in the 1958 World Cup final. "Even though the stadium will no longer stand, the name Råsunda will never die," Pelé had said earlier in the week.

The only venue, along with the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, to have staged both men's and women's World Cup finals, the Råsunda played host to 195 men's senior games – with Sweden registering 116 wins, 43 draws and 36 defeats.

UEFA

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  • 2 weeks later...

Brazil goalkeeper at 1970 World Cup dies at age 74

The Brazilian soccer federation says Felix, its starting goalkeeper when it won the 1970 World Cup, has died of complications from emphysema. He was 74.

The federation says Felix died Friday morning at a hospital in Sao Paulo.

The goalkeeper made key saves during the tournament in Mexico to help Brazil win its third title with a team led by Pele. He played all six matches.

http://sportsillustr...0131/index.html

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  • 1 month later...

zidane-materazzi490ai.jpg

A statue depicting the infamous Zinedine Zidane head-butt on Marco Materazzi has been placed on public display in Paris.

The work or art, by the Algerian-born Adel Abdessemed, can be seen in front of the Centre Pompidou modern art museum in the French capital.

The incident occurred during the 2006 World Cup Final, which Italy won on penalties, and resulted in the former France and Juventus ace’s dismissal.

http://www.football-...rix-statue-show

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zidane-materazzi490ai.jpg

A statue depicting the infamous Zinedine Zidane head-butt on Marco Materazzi has been placed on public display in Paris.

The work or art, by the Algerian-born Adel Abdessemed, can be seen in front of the Centre Pompidou modern art museum in the French capital.

The incident occurred during the 2006 World Cup Final, which Italy won on penalties, and resulted in the former France and Juventus ace’s dismissal.

http://www.football-...rix-statue-show

Still a hero for that move!

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  • 1 month later...

Klinsmann close to being fired at 2006 World Cup

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The German Football Federation (DFB) had a secret plan to sack coach Juergen Klinsmann during the 2006 World Cup at home if the tournament had gone badly for the host team, according to former DFB president Theo Zwanziger.

Zwanziger says he and three other top DFB officials, including World Cup organizing committee chief Franz Beckenbauer, devised the plan to fire Klinsmann during the tournament if it turned into a "sporting disaster" for Germany. Only the four men knew about the plan to replace Klinsmann with sporting director Matthias Sammer, who was unaware of the idea.

Zwanziger was never a friend of Klinsmann and installed Sammer over Klinsmann's objections. Klinsmann led Germany to a third-place finish. He now coaches the United States.

Now retired, Zwanziger has written a book about his time at the head of the DFB and revealed the plan to possibly sack Klinsmann. Bild newspaper is publishing excerpts ahead of publication.

In excerpts published on Wednesday, Zwanziger says "Plan B" was devised after Germany lost 4-1 in Italy ahead of the tournament.

The DFB was also angered that Klinsmann skipped a World Cup workshop for coaches shortly after the loss in Italy and returned to his home in California, according to Zwanziger.

"I have to admit that I was beginning to have doubts about our team chief. Publicly, I expressed loyalty to Juergen Klinsmann ... but internally we set up a plan B," Zwanziger wrote.

"If a sporting disaster began to develop at the World Cup and Klinsmann was no longer acceptable, we decided to have Matthias Sammer jump in at short notice."

Klinsmann's assistant, Joachim Loew, was never considered because he was thought to be too close to Klinsmann and part of his inner circle, Zwanziger said. Klinsmann quit after the World Cup and the DFB gave the job to Loew, who remains the coach.

Klinsmann then had an unsuccessful stint as coach of Bayern Munich.

AP

http://www.sfgate.co...Cup-4017941.php

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  • 1 month later...
World Cup withdrawal considered amid Falklands War
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1982 marked the first time England had successfully come through World Cup qualification in 20 years

The government considered pulling the home nations out of the football World Cup in 1982 during the Falklands War with Argentina, official papers show.

In government papers newly released by the National Archives, it was suggested some players felt "revulsion" about competing along with Argentina.

But Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was warned withdrawal would be a propaganda "opportunity" for Argentina.

England, Scotland and Northern Ireland did go to Spain for the tournament.

Days after the Argentine invasion of the Falklands on 2 April 1982, a directive from sports minister Neil Macfarlane advised: "I urge no sporting contact with Argentina at representative, club or individual level on British soil. This policy applies equally to all sporting fixtures in Argentina."

In a letter to Mrs Thatcher the following month, Mr Macfarlane reported growing doubts about the UK teams' attendance at the World Cup, starting in June.

"Up until a week or 10 days ago I have taken the line that it was up to the Football Authorities to decide whether they should participate," he wrote.

"However, the loss of British life on HMS Sheffield and Sea Harriers has had a marked effect on some international footballers and some administrators. They feel revulsion at the prospect of playing in the same tournament as Argentina at this time."

He added that Fifa, international football's governing body, had made it clear that Argentina would not be pressured to withdraw from the tournament.

"In this case no other country would follow us in withdrawing from the World Cup," Cabinet Secretary Robert Armstrong wrote to Mrs Thatcher days later.

"Argentina would see British withdrawal not as putting any pressure on them but as an opportunity to make propaganda: the United Kingdom, not Argentina, would be the country set apart."

Despite the discussions between the politicians, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland did all go on to compete in the tournament, although none of them met Argentina on the pitch.

Scotland were eliminated in the first group stage, while England and Northern Ireland were both knocked out at the second group stage.

Argentina exited the tournament after finishing bottom of a second round group won by eventual winners Italy.

In August that year, after the end of the conflict, restrictions were lifted on sporting engagements with Argentina.

BBC

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  • 10 months later...

From World Cup winner and Manchester United goalkeeper to motor racing champion in a 200mph Ferrari

Former Manchester United and France goalkeeper Fabien Barthez has been crowned champion of France’s GT motorsport series.

Barthez and Sofrev ASP team-mate Morgan Moullin-Traffort finished fifth and eighth in the last two races of the series' final weekend at the Paul Ricard circuit to seal the championship by 21 points.

The field for the series featured nine-time world rally championship winner Sebastien Loeb.

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Barthez and Moullin-Traffort won four races in the 2013 series in their Ferrari 458 Italia GT - which can travel up to 200mph - and stood on seven podiums.

...

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  • 2 weeks later...

zidane-materazzi490ai.jpg

A statue depicting the infamous Zinedine Zidane head-butt on Marco Materazzi has been placed on public display in Paris.

The work or art, by the Algerian-born Adel Abdessemed, can be seen in front of the Centre Pompidou modern art museum in the French capital.

The incident occurred during the 2006 World Cup Final, which Italy won on penalties, and resulted in the former France and Juventus ace’s dismissal.

http://www.football-...rix-statue-show

This statue now moved to Doha,Qatar.Maybe by 2022 it will have been melted partly and you might see Materazzi's headbutt against Zidane. :lol:

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  • 4 months later...

Brazil's 1958 World Cup-winning captain Bellini has died at the age of 83

The defender led a team including 17-year-old Pele to a 5-2 victory against host nation Sweden in the final to claim the trophy for the first time.

He is credited with being the first World Cup captain to lift the trophy high into the air.

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A 1960 statue of Bellini, who won 51 caps for his country, shows him holding the original Jules Rimet trophy aloft one-handed outside the Maracana Stadium.

BBC

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  • 3 months later...

Brazilian trades in 1950 ticket for 2014 final

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Joedir Sancho Belmonte had a ticket to attend the famous final game of the 1950 World Cup between Brazil and Uruguay, but didn't get to use it because he stayed home with his sick mother.

But he saved the unused ticket for 64 years. And on Friday — in a swap with FIFA — he was given three tickets for the July 13 final at Rio's Maracana in exchange for the tiny, crumpled memorabilia he stashed away.

"I hope Brazil will be able to win this time," the 85-year-old Brazilian said. "This is our revenge. I want to go see our revenge."

Brazil famously lost the 1950 game 2-1, which gave Uruguay the title and stands as the most disappointing moment in the history of Brazilian football. Brazil won its record five titles after that, and on Saturday faces Chile in the second round.

Brazil is among the favorites this time with Argentina, Germany and the Netherlands.

Belmonte explained how he missed that historic match, with a crowd of about 200,000 jammed into the Maracana. Today it holds about 74,000, depending on the configuration for the game.

"My mother was sick and I thought it would not be sensible on my part to go to a football match," said Belmonte, a resident of Rio de Janeiro. "So I decided not go, and it was a good decision."

He said his mother died a few days later.

Jerome Valcke, FIFA's secretary general, said the game's ruling body received a letter a few months ago from Belmonte, who said he wanted to donate the faded ticket.

Valcke said the ticket would go into a museum in downtown Zurich that is to open in 2015.

"This is something rare we would like to have for the museum," Valcke said.

Valcke held the tiny 1950 version up against the current FIFA ticket, a large, stiff orange and white card with an electronic chip buried inside.

"Here is the ticket from 1950," Valcke said. "There was not much of a security chip in it."

AP

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  • 6 months later...
The original base of the Jules Rimet trophy has been found in FIFA’s basement

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A priceless football historic artifact has been discovered in a basement in FIFA’s headquarters.

For decades one of the biggest mysteries for football historians has been the location of the original Jules Rimet World Cup trophy.

In 1954 the original trophy got updated with a new base, and that Jules Rimet trophy was given to Brazil in 1970 after the Selecao won their third World Cup. Then, in 1983, the most famous trophy in world football was stolen from the Brazilian Football Confederation’s head offices, never to be seen again.

Incredibly, light a bolt out of the blue, it has now been revealed that the original base of the trophy has been found.

As reported by the BB:

According to the Fifa museum’s creative director David Ausseil, a staffer found the stone base of the Jules Rimet trophy in storage at Fifa headquarters last month.

Ausseil told The Associated Press: “It’s like finding an Egyptian mummy. You can’t put a price tag on it because it’s family jewels.”

“We thought (the base) was lost in Brazil. We think no FIFA president has seen it since Jules Rimet himself.”

The 10cm tall, octagonal piece of semi-precious lapis lazuli carries the names of the first four World Cup winners: Uruguay and Italy each won twice between 1930 and 1950.

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http://www.101greatgoals.com/blog/kit/the-original-base-of-the-jules-rimet-world-cup-trophy-has-been-found-in-fifas-basement-pictures/

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