French Soccer

France is home to one of the most successful national soccer teams in the world. In the last view world tournaments, the French have been eliminated early. The recent lack of success has been blamed on the tension between the coaches and players, which has led to the release of most of the coaching staff. After one bad showing in world competition the president, prime minister and French soccer officials all had to come together in order to “fix” the problem.  

Before the utter tragedy that has become the French soccer program they made it to the World Cup final in 2006. After taking an early lead in the match Zinedine Zidane, one of the French stars, head butted an Italian player. After being red carded the Italians took over the game and went on to win the World Cup. After the final, French soccer hit rock bottom, coaches and players started to play the blame game.

In 1998, France became the seventh team to win the World Cup in its first appearance in the final. This was the country’s coming out party into World Soccer. Soccer quickly gained popularity in France after the first World War. Soldiers played the game in the trenches during extended periods of downtime. They spread the game after returning home from the war. Soccer games were played primarily in the army and universities before WWI. France was always viewed as the little brother of European soccer. They were always a top team in Europe but could never seem to beat the top teams built on skill and tradition.

The French Football Federation was founded in 1919. It oversees all aspects of professional and amateur soccer throughout France and runs the international soccer matches for the national team. The Federation organizes, develops and monitors the way soccer is taught and practiced by national teams and issuing licenses to prospective coaches. The Federation manages relationships with foreign soccer associations that are affiliated with the Federation Internationale de Football Association.

Thank you for joining us for the final week of World Soccer Traditions. It was an honor to have you join me, but all great things come to an end. World Soccer Traditions would like to thank all our affiliates, Toshiba for this wonderful lap top, water for hydrating me, and fruity pebbles for my wonderful breakfast. Dear lord baby Jesus I would like to thank you for Brian McHugh and his rich knowledgeable words. “Soccer is the gentleman’s game played my scoundrels.” Thank you and goodnight soccer fanatics.

Soccer in Portugal

Portuguese soccer has been overshadowed in recent years due to the success of its arch-rival Spain. Even though Portugal has been over looked, they still have a rich soccer tradition. Soccer is the most popular sport in Portugal and in the 2011–12 Primeira Liga season Benfica had an average attendance of 38,029 people, Porto 34,843 and Sporting 30,638 with the season overall having an average attendance of 10,958 and a total attendance of 2,629,950.

The top soccer leagues in Portugal haven’t gained the respect around the world as other top leagues throughout Europe, but Benfica, the country’s most popular team, has been recognized for a tradition that we have grown accustomed to in the United States. In front of a crowd of 65,000 Benfica have two eagles swoop around the stands throughout the game. The two eagles, Victory and Glory are the names of the Benfica mascots, who are more famous than the players on the field. The club's crest features an eagle because they represent the strength of the club. They are living symbols of Benfica and live inside the stadium, resting on a specially built perch behind one of the goals when the stands are empty and everyone's gone home.

There used to be three eagles, but Italian club Lazio paid $170,000 to "sign" Olimpia from Benfica in 2011. The birds have gained more publicity for Benfica than the product on the field. Benfica has made the Champions League tournament, for Europe’s top teams from each league. No other teams have gained any recognition in recent years.

Players such as Eusébio, Luís Figo, Rui Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo have played for the Portugal national football team and have been praised around the world. The national team was third in the 1966 World Cup and fourth in the 2006 World Cup. The country hosted Euro 2004, where they were runners-up. Since then they have struggled in playing as a team, lacking a solid foundation around star player Cristiano Ronaldo

Portuguese national team star, Ronaldo, recently won the award for being the top player in the world. His ability and prowess on the club soccer field haven't transitioned to the national team’s success. Although they have made the World Cup they have failed to advance out of the group stages. In games when Ronaldo has scored, the Portuguese are nearly impossible to beat.

Thank you for joining us this week. We hope you come again next week as we travel to France. The French dominated soccer throughout the early 2000’s. Their premiere play was overshadowed by controversy. Join us next week to find out the controversy that changed the World Cup.

Spanish Soccer

Around the world people are in envy of the soccer being played in Spain. In the past, bullfighting was the national pastime but soccer has taken over the country especially in recent years. Over the last 6 years, Spain has grown to become the pinnacle of world soccer. Over the last six years Spain won the European Championship in 2006 before taking the soccer by storm and winning the 2010 World Cup and the Euro in 2012, which takes place every two years. It's a beautiful time for Spain Football, as the country's top teams and players are thriving in competitions across the globe.

When people think of club soccer the first team that comes to mind is Barcelona. Barcelona is home to the world’s number one ranked player, Lionel Messi who is from Argentina. Barcelona FC has signed many of the players that play on the national team and they have grown together to become the top squad in both club and national soccer. Barca is growing to become one of the top teams in the history of sports. They have consistently been the top team in La Liga and dominated their arch rival Real Madrid in the League. Real Madrid is the team of Spain. Outside the country people love Barcelona but within the country fans die for Real Madrid. Madrid leads the country in wins and championships in the last fifty years. The recent success of Barcelona has threatened Real Madrid’s reign as the fan favorite in Spain.

Another distinct aspect of Spanish soccer is their playing schedule. Each week every team plays on Saturday or Sunday and over 100 games take place over the course of the weekend. Spanish football is played in four professional leagues with promotion and relegation taking place at the end of each season. The season runs between mid-September and mid-May and the top twenty teams play within the league. At the end of each season the bottom three team within the La Liga table are delegated in order to keep the top competition in the top league Each team will play each other once at home and once away within a season.

Thank you for joining us this week on the “World Soccer Traditions” blog. Next week we will head to the Spanish national teams archrival Portugal. Portugal is home to Christiano Ronaldo, soccer’s runner up as player of the year and one of the world’s most famous playboys. Join us next week as we travel across the border to Portugal.

Canadian Football

When most people think of sports in Canada, hockey quickly jumps into their mind. According to FIFA, soccer’s governing body; soccer has the highest participation rate throughout Canada. More than 2,695,712 participated in organized soccer in Canada as of 2006, which make it one of the most rapidly growing sports per country in the entire world.

Association football, now known as soccer was brought to Canada in 1986. The Manitoba Football Association was the first soccer association formed in Canada.  Other provinces soon followed as Ontario in 1901, British Columbia in 1904, Saskatchewan in 1906, Alberta in 1909 and Quebec in 1911. They were followed by the formation of the Dominion of Canada Football Association in 1912. The governing body of the game retained that name until it was changed to The Football Association of Canada on June 6, 1952. The Association later changed its name to the Canadian Soccer Football Association in 1958 and then at last to the Canadian Soccer Association in 1971.

In 2000, Canada's men's team won the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup in February. The Gold Cup is the soccer tournament of North Americas’ best teams.  Canada had finished in a tie in group play with the Republic of Korea, but won the tie-breaking coin toss to advance to the quarter-final, where they beat Mexico 2-1 on an extra-time golden goal. In the semi-final, Canada beat Trinidad and Tobago 1-0, and beat Colombia 2-0 in the final. As a result of being named CONCACAF champions, Canada travelled to the Confederations Cup 2001 in Japan, earning a memorable 0-0 draw with Brazil thanks to a stellar performance from Gold Cup Most Valuable Player Craig Forrest. These consecutive victories helped to put Canadian soccer onto the world map and gained the soccer association respect around the world.

In 2007 FC Toronto became the first Canadian team to join the MLS and the only MLS team to be located outside the United States. In their inaugural season Toronto reached the semifinal in the MLS playoffs.  Canada's national team reached the semi-final at the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Dale Mitchell was named coach of Canada's senior men's team, to begin duties after the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, held in Canada. The host went out without scoring a goal and losing all three matches. The final was held in front of 20 000 people at the National Soccer Stadium in Toronto, and helped the growth of soccer within the country.

As we continue our journey around the world we head to Spain. Spain is home to the world’s number one ranked national team and club team. As we travel back to Europe, we will look at the unity between the national team and the clubs around the country. Join us next week as we look at two teams looking to make soccer history.