Football (Soccer)
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The sport of Association Football is the most popular sport in the world. It is regulary played in over 200 different countries worldwide.[1] BBC columnist Tim Vickery has said that football's popularity is due to football being "a universal language that is spoken with different accents"[2] which allows it to be adapted by different cultures.
Basics Of the Game
Football, Fútbol, or Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world. One of the reasons is that the only equipment the sport needs is a ball and any markers for the goals. Bring in two teams and the game is on. Informal games can therefore be very easily set up.
Formally the game consists of two teams of 11 players. One of the players is considered a goalkeeper (goalie) and that player's objective is not to allow the ball to go into the goal. The goalkeeper is the only player who may handle the ball but only in the penalty area that (s)he is defending. The other ten field players' objective is to score by putting the ball into their opponent's goal, while trying to avoid conceding goals. They do this by dribbling, passing, and kicking the ball. The field players can use any part of their body except their hands or arms. The duration of the game is 90 minutes, with a change of ends and an interval of not more than 15 minutes after 45 minutes. The referee may make allowance for time lost in each half. Once the game is over, the team that scores the most goals (the number of times the ball goes in the goal) is declared the winner. In the case of a draw, and depending on the rules of the competition, a result may be reached by extra time (of 30 minutes duration) or a penalty shoot-out.
The Field
Field must be rectangular and either natural or artificial. The field size is directly proportional of league and international matches.
The Ball
All balls are spherical, 27-28 inches (68-70 cm) in circumference and 14-16 oz (410-450g) mass. A ball is not used in a league or international match unless it is FIFA approved.
The Players
The players are 11 on both sides of teams in a match, however substitutes are also available. There are four classes in which the 11 players are divided:-
- Goalkeeper
- Defenders
- Midfielders
- Strikers also known as Forwards or Attackers
The Formations
Although there are 11 players on a team there are several commonly used ways to arrange them. The two most commonly used formations today are probaly the 4-5-1/4-3-3 and the 4-4-2 (note: first # is the # of defenders, the second midfielders, and third fowards) although there are some different variations of each. Two variation of a 4-4-2 are the "flat back four" and a "diamond back" or "sweeper, stopper" where the back four defenders form a diamond with the stopper ahead of the sweeper. Other less commonly used formations are the 3-6-1, 4-2-4, and the 3-5-2.
The Referees
There are 3 referees. The match referee has sole authority, but two assistant referees who officiate from the touchlines may advise him, particularly on issues of offsides and whether the ball has left the pitch, or draw his attention to infringements that he may have missed.
The Duration
A football match consists of two halves and each half is 45 miutes long. Between the two halves, there is an interval, which is not more than 15 minutes long.
Stoppage time (also called injury time) is the time added on at the end of each half at the discretion of the referee. The stoppage time added is roughly proportional to the length of delays in the game. These delays may be due to injuries, time lost through substitutions, general timewasting, etc. On average, stoppage time added at the end of first half is 1 minute and at the end of the second half is 3 minutes. Although these may seem insignificant, stoppage time can be crucial for losing teams to equalize or even win. One notable example is the 1998-99 UEFA Champions League Final between Bayern Munich and Manchester United. Bayern Munich scored an early goal and controlled most of the match, until Manchester United turned things around with two goals in the 91st and 93rd minutes of the game to win 2-1.
If tied at the end of regulation time, in some competitions the game may go into extra time, which consists of two further 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, some competitions allow the use of penalty shootouts (known officially in the Laws of the Game as "kicks from the penalty mark") to determine a winner. Note that goals scored during extra time periods considered part of the final score of the game, unlike kicks from the penalty mark which are only used to decide the team that progresses to the next part of the tournament.
In competitions in which each round involves the two teams playing each other twice, known as two-legged ties, the winner is the team with the highest aggregate score over the two matches. If this results in a draw, the away goals rule is usually applied to determine which team progresses: the goals scored by each team away from their nominated venue being compared. Should results still be equal following this calculation kicks from the penalty mark are usually required. Other competitions may require a tied game to be replayed.
Scoring
A goal is scored when the ball crosses the goal line entirely, between the goalposts and under the bar, provided the attacking side has not committed an offence.
Offsides
The application of the offside law is best considered in three steps: Offside position; Offside offence; and Offside sanction.
Offside position
A player is in an offside position if "he is nearer to his opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent", unless he is in his own half of the field of play. A player level with the second last opponent is considered to be in an onside position. Note that the last two defenders can be either the goalkeeper and another defender, or two ordinary defenders. Also note that offside position is determined when the ball is touched/played by a team-mate — a player's offside position status is not then altered by subsequent runs by players of either side.
It is important to note that being in an offside position is not an offence in itself.
Offside offence
A player in an offside position is only committing an offside offence if, "at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team", the player is in the referee's opinion involved in active play by: interfering with play; interfering with an opponent; or gaining an advantage by being in that position.
Determining whether a play is in "active play" can be complex. A player is not committing an offside offence if the player receives the ball directly from a throw-in, goal kick or corner kick.
FIFA issued new guidelines for interpreting the offside law in 2003 and these were incorporated in law 11 in July 2005. The new wording seeks to more precisely define the three cases as follows:
- Interfering with play means playing or touching the ball passed or touched by a teammate.
- Interfering with an opponent means preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent's line of vision or movements or making a gesture or movement which, in the opinion of the referee, deceives or distracts an opponent.
- Gaining an advantage by being in an offside position means playing a ball that rebounds to him off a post or crossbar or playing a ball that rebounds to him off an opponent having been in an offside position.
The referees' interpretation of these new definitions is still proving controversial till this day, largely over what movements a player in an offside position can make without being judged to be interfering with an opponent.
Offside sanction
The sanction for an offside offence is an indirect free kick to the opposing team, from where the offence occurred.
Officiating
In enforcing this law, the referee depends greatly on his assistant referee, who generally keeps in line with the second last defender in his relevant end.
The assistant referees' task with regards to off-side can be difficult, as they need to keep up with attacks and counter attacks, consider which players are in an offside position when the ball is played (often from the other end of the field), and then determine whether the offside positioned players become involved in active play. The risk of false judgement is further enhanced by the foreshortening effect, which occurs when the distance between attacking player and the assistant referee is significantly different from the distance to the defending player, and the assistant referee is not directly in line with the defender. The difficulty of off-side officiating is often underestimated by spectators. Trying to judge if a player is level with an opponent at the moment the ball is kicked is not easy: if an attacker and a defender are running in opposite directions, they can be two metres apart in a tenth of a second.
Free Kicks
Free kicks are of two types:-
- Direct Free Kick
- Indirect Free Kick
Direct free kick is most probably rewarded to a team if the opponent's player touches the ball with his hands or arms(unless he is the goalkeeper within the penalty area) or fouls a player on the other team. An indirect free kick is usually awarded for an infraction of the rules, not necessarily aimed at a player of the opposing team. Direct free kicks are allowed to go into the goal with only one person touching the ball. Indirect free kicks are indicated by the referee raising his arm from the time the foul is awarded until it is first touched by a player other than the taker of the free kick. If a shot from an indirect free kick does into the opponents' goal without having been touched by another player, no goal is scored and a goal kick is awarded to the defending team. A difficult concept for many to grasp is advantage, a player may foul another player and yet a foul may not be called if that players team does not lose the advantage. An example would be if a player was knocked down in the course of passing a the ball to a teammate who scored.
Penalties
A penalty kick is the kick rewarded to a team whose opponent's player commits a foul inside its own box for which the sanction is a direct free kick. The ball is kept at a spot markd 12 yards from the centre of the goal. No player other than the penalty taker is allowed within 10 yards of the ball until it has been struck: the goalkeeper is the only othr player allowed in the penalty area during this time, and he may not advance from his line until the penalty has been taken. The taker cannot touch the ball again until another player has touched it. A goal is rewarded if the ball goes in the net.
Throw-ins
If the ball leaves the field of play at the side-line, play is restarted with a throw-in (or throw-on). The thrower must have both feet on the ground, outside of the playing area, and must throw the ball from behind his head with two hands. A goal is not scored if the ball is thrown into the goal from a throw-in without it touching another player.
Goal Kick
If a member of the attacking team is the last person to touch the ball before it crosses the goal line (other than between the posts) or if the ball enters the goal directly from a goal-kick, throw in or indirect free kick, a member of the defending team (usually, but not necessarily, the goalkeeper) restarts play with a kick from inside the area marked by a line 6 yards from the goal. The ball is not in play until it leaves the penalty area. A goal may not be scored without another player touching the ball.
Overview
Football, Fútbol, or Soccer is one of the most popular sports in the world. One of the reasons is that the only equipment the sport needs is a ball and any markers for the goals. Bring in two teams and the game is on. Informal games can therefore be very easily set up.
Formally the game consists of two teams of 11 players. One of the players is considered a goalkeeper (goalie) and that player's objective is not to allow the ball to go into the goal. The goalkeeper is the only player who may handle the ball but only in the penalty area that (s)he is defending. The other ten field players' objective is to score by putting the ball into their opponent's goal, while trying to avoid conceding goals. They do this by dribbling, passing, and kicking the ball. The field players can use any part of their body except their hands or arms. The duration of the game is 90 minutes, with a change of ends and an interval of not more than 15 minutes after 45 minutes. The referee may make allowance for time lost in each half. Once the game is over, the team that scores the most goals (the number of times the ball goes in the goal) is declared the winner. In the case of a draw, and depending on the rules of the competition, a result may be reached by extra time (of 30 minutes duration) or a penalty shoot-out.
The Field
Field must be rectangular and either natural or artificial. The field size is directly proportional of league and international matches.
The Ball
All balls are spherical, 27-28 inches (68-70 cm) in circumference and 14-16 oz (410-450g) mass. A ball is not used in a league or international match unless it is FIFA approved.
The Players
The players are 11 on both sides of teams in a match, however substitutes are also available. There are four classes in which the 11 players are divided:-
- Goalkeeper
- Defenders
- Midfielders
- Strikers also known as Forwards or Attackers
The Formations
Although there are 11 players on a team there are several commonly used ways to arrange them. The two most commonly used formations today are probaly the 4-5-1/4-3-3 and the 4-4-2 (note: first # is the # of defenders, the second midfielders, and third fowards) although there are some different variations of each. Two variation of a 4-4-2 are the "flat back four" and a "diamond back" or "sweeper, stopper" where the back four defenders form a diamond with the stopper ahead of the sweeper. Other less commonly used formations are the 3-6-1, 4-2-4, and the 3-5-2.
The Referees
There are 3 referees. The match referee has sole authority, but two assistant referees who officiate from the touchlines may advise him, particularly on issues of offsides and whether the ball has left the pitch, or draw his attention to infringements that he may have missed.
The Duration
A football match consists of two halves and each half is 45 miutes long. Between the two halves, there is an interval, which is not more than 15 minutes long.
Stoppage time (also called injury time) is the time added on at the end of each half at the discretion of the referee. The stoppage time added is roughly proportional to the length of delays in the game. These delays may be due to injuries, time lost through substitutions, general timewasting, etc. On average, stoppage time added at the end of first half is 1 minute and at the end of the second half is 3 minutes. Although these may seem insignificant, stoppage time can be crucial for losing teams to equalize or even win. One notable example is the 1998-99 UEFA Champions League Final between Bayern Munich and Manchester United. Bayern Munich scored an early goal and controlled most of the match, until Manchester United turned things around with two goals in the 91st and 93rd minutes of the game to win 2-1.
If tied at the end of regulation time, in some competitions the game may go into extra time, which consists of two further 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, some competitions allow the use of penalty shootouts (known officially in the Laws of the Game as "kicks from the penalty mark") to determine a winner. Note that goals scored during extra time periods considered part of the final score of the game, unlike kicks from the penalty mark which are only used to decide the team that progresses to the next part of the tournament.
In competitions in which each round involves the two teams playing each other twice, known as two-legged ties, the winner is the team with the highest aggregate score over the two matches. If this results in a draw, the away goals rule is usually applied to determine which team progresses: the goals scored by each team away from their nominated venue being compared. Should results still be equal following this calculation kicks from the penalty mark are usually required. Other competitions may require a tied game to be replayed.
Scoring
A goal is scored when the ball crosses the goal line entirely, between the goalposts and under the bar, provided the attacking side has not committed an offence.
Offsides
The application of the offside law is best considered in three steps: Offside position; Offside offence; and Offside sanction.
Offside position
A player is in an offside position if "he is nearer to his opponents' goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent", unless he is in his own half of the field of play. A player level with the second last opponent is considered to be in an onside position. Note that the last two defenders can be either the goalkeeper and another defender, or two ordinary defenders. Also note that offside position is determined when the ball is touched/played by a team-mate — a player's offside position status is not then altered by subsequent runs by players of either side.
It is important to note that being in an offside position is not an offence in itself.
Offside offence
A player in an offside position is only committing an offside offence if, "at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team", the player is in the referee's opinion involved in active play by: interfering with play; interfering with an opponent; or gaining an advantage by being in that position.
Determining whether a play is in "active play" can be complex. A player is not committing an offside offence if the player receives the ball directly from a throw-in, goal kick or corner kick.
FIFA issued new guidelines for interpreting the offside law in 2003 and these were incorporated in law 11 in July 2005. The new wording seeks to more precisely define the three cases as follows:
- Interfering with play means playing or touching the ball passed or touched by a teammate.
- Interfering with an opponent means preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent's line of vision or movements or making a gesture or movement which, in the opinion of the referee, deceives or distracts an opponent.
- Gaining an advantage by being in an offside position means playing a ball that rebounds to him off a post or crossbar or playing a ball that rebounds to him off an opponent having been in an offside position.
The referees' interpretation of these new definitions is still proving controversial till this day, largely over what movements a player in an offside position can make without being judged to be interfering with an opponent.
Offside sanction
The sanction for an offside offence is an indirect free kick to the opposing team, from where the offence occurred.
Officiating
In enforcing this law, the referee depends greatly on his assistant referee, who generally keeps in line with the second last defender in his relevant end.
The assistant referees' task with regards to off-side can be difficult, as they need to keep up with attacks and counter attacks, consider which players are in an offside position when the ball is played (often from the other end of the field), and then determine whether the offside positioned players become involved in active play. The risk of false judgement is further enhanced by the foreshortening effect, which occurs when the distance between attacking player and the assistant referee is significantly different from the distance to the defending player, and the assistant referee is not directly in line with the defender. The difficulty of off-side officiating is often underestimated by spectators. Trying to judge if a player is level with an opponent at the moment the ball is kicked is not easy: if an attacker and a defender are running in opposite directions, they can be two metres apart in a tenth of a second.
Free Kicks
Free kicks are of two types:-
- Direct Free Kick
- Indirect Free Kick
Direct free kick is most probably rewarded to a team if the opponent's player touches the ball with his hands or arms(unless he is the goalkeeper within the penalty area) or fouls a player on the other team. An indirect free kick is usually awarded for an infraction of the rules, not necessarily aimed at a player of the opposing team. Direct free kicks are allowed to go into the goal with only one person touching the ball. Indirect free kicks are indicated by the referee raising his arm from the time the foul is awarded until it is first touched by a player other than the taker of the free kick. If a shot from an indirect free kick does into the opponents' goal without having been touched by another player, no goal is scored and a goal kick is awarded to the defending team. A difficult concept for many to grasp is advantage, a player may foul another player and yet a foul may not be called if that players team does not lose the advantage. An example would be if a player was knocked down in the course of passing a the ball to a teammate who scored.
Penalties
A penalty kick is the kick rewarded to a team whose opponent's player commits a foul inside its own box for which the sanction is a direct free kick. The ball is kept at a spot markd 12 yards from the centre of the goal. No player other than the penalty taker is allowed within 10 yards of the ball until it has been struck: the goalkeeper is the only othr player allowed in the penalty area during this time, and he may not advance from his line until the penalty has been taken. The taker cannot touch the ball again until another player has touched it. A goal is rewarded if the ball goes in the net.
Throw-ins
If the ball leaves the field of play at the side-line, play is restarted with a throw-in (or throw-on). The thrower must have both feet on the ground, outside of the playing area, and must throw the ball from behind his head with two hands. A goal is not scored if the ball is thrown into the goal from a throw-in without it touching another player.
Goal Kick
If a member of the attacking team is the last person to touch the ball before it crosses the goal line (other than between the posts) or if the ball enters the goal directly from a goal-kick, throw in or indirect free kick, a member of the defending team (usually, but not necessarily, the goalkeeper) restarts play with a kick from inside the area marked by a line 6 yards from the goal. The ball is not in play until it leaves the penalty area. A goal may not be scored without another player touching the ball.
Corner Kick
If a member of the defending team is the last person to touch the ball before it crosses the goal line (other than between the posts) or if the ball enters the goal directly from a goal-kick, throw in or indirect free kick taken by the defending team, a member of the attacking team restarts play with a kick from the quarter circle at the corner of the pitch nearest to where the ball left the pitch.
FIFA Divisions
The countries, teams and their leagues are divided into divisions authorised under FIFA. These regions are clearly shown in the following figure.
CONCACAF: Moslty includes the North and Central Americas including Trinidad and Tobago from the South America.
CONMEBOL: All of the South America.
UEFA: The whole of Europe.
AFC: The whole of Asia excluding Papua New Guinea.
CAF: The whole of Africa.
OFC: As of January 1, 2006 Australia is a member of the AFC. OFC now consist of Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, and the rest of the polynesian countries
Major Football Clubs by Confederations
Each division has a confedration which manages a number of leagues lying under its territory..
UEFA
England
Football clubs in England are divided into league clubs (the top 92) and non-league clubs (which cover the rest). Promotion and relegation between various divisions is decided on the basis of finishing position at the end of the season, typically the bottom 3 clubs will be relegated to the league below, with the champions and runners up promoted automatically, and one other team decided by playoffs between the teams finishing 3rd to 6th. The actual number of teams promoted and relegated varies between leagues, and clubs often also have to fulfil stadium criteria in order to be promoted.
The 92 league clubs are split between the Premier League and the Football League. The football league is further divided into 3 divisions, the Championship, League 1 and League 2. All four divisions are organised nationally.
Below the league clubs sits the non-league pyramid. This consists of one national division, the Conference (currently named the Blue Square Premier League), with increasingly more regional leagues sitting below this.
The F.A. Premier League
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In 1992 the top division of clubs in England formed a breakaway league, enabling them to take a larger share of income from media rights in comparison to the rest of the football league. The Premier League (originally Premiership) currently consists of 20 clubs.
The top four teams in the Premier League currently qualify for the UEFA Champions League (at various stages during the qualifying process). The fifth place cub qualifies for the UEFA Cup, although extra clubs often qualify on the basis of league position depending on the winners of domestic cup competitions. The bottom 3 clubs are automatically relegated.
In terms of income, viewing figures and attendances the Premier League is considerd by many to be the most successful domestic football competition in the world, and compares favourably aross all sports. However many football fans within England are concerned with the vast sums of money involved, while clubs in the lower divisions struggle, with many entering administration and some going out of business. In addition the formation of the Premier League has lead to a generation of fans growing up with football as a TV only activity (as live games become more expensive to cater for corporate hospitality). This has lead to the slow death of the local football culture which developed over the last 150 years in England.
The Football League
The Football League is the oldest domestic football league competition in the world. Formed in 1888 by 12 teams. Subsequently a second division was added, followed by two regional divisions (North and South). In the 1960s the regional divisions merged to give the four division structure which continued until 1992 and the Premier League breakaway.
Today the Football League consists of three divisions, each containing 24 teams. These are
The names of the leagues were changed from the traditional Division 1/2/3 following the beginning of the current sponsorship deal with Coca-Cola. The changes were originally met with cynicism by many fans, but the change has been accepted, particulalry with the argument that the Championship trophy actually says "The Football League Championship" (being the original football league trophy used by the highest division). promotion and relegation between the leagues is run on the follwing basis:
- Championship
- Champions and Runners up promoted to Premier League, together with winners of playoffs between 3rd to 6th place
- Bottom three teams relegated to League 1
- League 1
- Champions and Runners up promoted to Championship, together with winners of playoffs between 3rd to 6th place
- Bottom four teams relegated to League 1
- League 2
- Champions, Runners up and third place promoted to League 1, together with winners of playoffs between 4th to 7th place
- Bottom two teams relegated to Conference (non league)
(B.) French Ligue 1
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Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique de Marseille
AS Monaco
Paris Saint-Germain
(C.) German Bundesliga
FC Bayern München
Bayer Leverkusen
Schalke O4
SV Werder Bremen
(D.) Italian Serie A
Juventus
AC Milan
Inter Milan
(E.) Spanish La Liga
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Real Madrid
FC Barcelona
(F.) Portuguese SuperLiga
FC Porto
Sporting Lisbon
Benfica
(G.) Dutch Eredivisie
AFC Ajax Amsterdam
Feyenoord Rotterdam
PSV Eindhoven
(H.) Other Major European Teams
There are also many clubs from smaller footballing nations that regularly compete in European competition. Here are some of them:
Olympiacos - Greece
Olympiacos is a well-known club of Greece. It's mainly rivaled with Panathinaikos. With a lineup including Rivaldo, they're managed by Trond Sollied.
Panathinaikos - Greece
Panathinaikos is clearly a good club of Greece,with 19 greek championships and 16 greek cups. Currently it's managed by Jasmiko Velic.
Rangers - Scotland
Rangers are the best team in Scotland. Their arch-rivals Celtic in recent years haver become less of a force to be reconed with. They hold several footballing world records for league championship wins and trophies gained. They are managed by Walter Smith, who is managing the club for the second time in his career.
Celtic - Scotland
Celtic are the most famous team from Scotland. They won the European Cup in 1967, the first British team to do so. They also made it to the UEFA Cup Final in 2003,about 80,000 Celtic supporters travelled to Seville for the final. They were even rewarded for there not being one single arrest because Celtic are one of the best-supported clubs in the world, with an estimated fanbase of approximately nine million. The club's traditional playing colours are green and white hooped shirts and white shorts with white socks. Celtic are still champions of the SPL 3 years in a row and looking likely for 4 in a row.
Grasshopperclub Zurich - Switzerland
[1] Grasshopperclub Zurich is also very known in their Swiss region. They're the most successful team of the swiss football with 27 Swiis super league titles and 18 swiss cups.
Shakhtar Donetsk - Ukraine
Shakhtar Donetsk is also a very good team especially because of their morale. They're managed by Mircea Lucescu.The team has done very well in recent years(they were very close to getting into the champions league second round,but lost to Benfica),having great eastern players such as Darijo Srna and Mariusz Lewandowski.
CSKA Moscow - Russia
CSKA is a very-well known team from Russia,they became the first russian team to win the UEFA cup(after the break-up of USSR. They're managed by Valeri Gazzaev.Well-known players currently playing at CSKA Moscow are Vágner Love and Sergei Ignashevich.
Club Brugge - Belgium
Club Brugge is a well-known club of Belgium which is arch-rivaled with RSC Anderlecht. They're managed by Jacky Mathijssen.
RSC Anderlecht - Belgium
RSC Anderlecht is the most successful team in Belgium with 29 league championships,5 european cups in all european cup competitions and 16 cups in Belgium competitions. They're managed by Franky Vercauteren.Well known players are(currently) Daniel Zitka,Olivier Deschacht.And former players are Nenad Jestrovic,Seol Ki-Hyeon and Vincent Kompany.
CONCACAF
CONCACAF (Confederation Of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) is the division where North America, Central America, Caribbean, and Surinam, Guyana, and French Guiana of South America are placed. The most famous teams are from the power house of Mexico.
(A.) Mexican Primera División
Mexicans aren't very known but games like FIFA 06 are getting their reputation through others up. Here are some good Mexicanos (amigos).After FIFA 06,their ratings has increased and in 2007 they were the 4th highest football league to be wathced(stadiums)
Chivas de Guadalajara
Chivas is also very well-known as América. They are commonly rivaled with each other. They have won many major titles in their history. They play at Estadio Jalisco and are managed by Jose Manuel "chepo" De la Torre. Chivas is the current Champion in the Mexicna 1st division.
Club América
Club América is very well known in Mexico. It has a number of fans and have won most of the important titles in the league. They play at the famous Estadio Azteca and are managed by Alberto Daniel Brailovsky.
(B.) USA Major League Soccer
The USA is an emerging soccer nation in the World thanks to the creation of MLS in 1996. In its 11th season it currently has 12 teams with the goal of having 16 teams in the future.
D.C. United
The most successful team in the league, has the most number of trophies in the league. 1996 MLS Cup and Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup; 1997 MLS Cup; 1998 CONCACAF Cup and Intra-American Cup; 1999 MLS Cup; 2004 MLS Cup. Currently the team is being coached by international Polish star Peter Nowak and consist of star player Jaime Moreno of Bolivia, Ben Olsen of USA, and Christian Gomez of Argentina.
Los Angeles Galaxy
An early rival team of D.C. United, it currently holds the most number of wins in the league. During the early years of MLS it was always successful but was mostly stopped by D.C. United when it came to MLS finals. However, with patience its dividends paid off during the 2001 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and CONCACAF Cup; 2002 MLS Cup; 2005 MLS Cup and Lamar U.S. Open Cup. Currently it is coached by former Chelsea F.C. and New Castle F.C. coach Ruud Gullit and consist of star player Landon Donovan of USA and David Beckham of England.
CONMEBOL
CONMEBOL (CONfedración sudaMEricana de fútBOL) {in English: South American Football Confedration} is the confedration that rules the mighty South American region of football, some great emperors have been from this place. Lets explore them.
(A.) Argentine Primera División
Argentina has a very interesting league with many variable teams (i.e. any team beats the king anytime or sometime). It has actually two halves the Clausura and Apertura. Some Argentines are.
Club Atlético River Plate
River Plate is a good team and has the record of winning most season titles. It has a very famous and strong rivalry with Boca Juniors called the "Superclásico" on the Observer it was voted top of 50 sporting thing to do before you die as 70% of Argentina support River Plate and Boca Juniors. They play at El Monumental in Nuñez and are managed by Daniel Passarella.
Boca Juniors
Boca Juniors are very famous around the world and is very known because of their platinum legend Diego Armando Maradona know as D10S or "Pibe de Oro" and "el barrilete cósmico". They are highly respected throughout the world. They have won several cups and titles(23 divison titles and 17 international titles). They play at La Bombonera and are managed by Miguel Angel Russo.
(B.) Brazilian Campeonato (1st Division)
Hola Brazil. The English although invented the football, the Brazilians perfected it. Brazil has many varible teams like Argentina. Here are the Kings.
Flamengo
Flamengo was one of the best clubs in Brazil. These days they have gone down a little bit but now they're trying their best to improve. They have won many championships and titles. They are managed by Valdir Espinosa.
Corinthians
Corinthians is the most popular club in São Paulo. They are rivaled with Palmeiras. They have a very good history in winning leagues and cups. They won the Brazilian championship in 2005. They're managed by Antônio Lopes.
Palmeiras
Palmeiras is superior to Corinthians. They are always furious against each other. Marcos, the 2002 World Cup winning goalkeeper belongs to them. They are managed by Émerson Leão.
Santos
Santos of Brazil have the same come-back story like Flamengo. They were famous because of the diamond legend, Pelé. They have been excellent at the era of the legend. They are now managed by the former Real Madrid coach, Vanderlei Luxemburgo.
São Paulo
São Paulo is one of the major clubs in Brazil with winning a lot of championships, getting the fame and putting themselves in the South American map. They are managed by Muricy Ramalho.
Table of contents
The Basics 
This section covers all the basics, rules and definitions of football.
The Trophies And Cups
All leagues do have special trophies and cups and special events too. This section covers the major events and cups.
The History 
This section covers the history of the game including invention, sister sports and more.
The News
This section covers the latest news of the game.
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