Category: Football

Jules Rimet was a French football administrator, best known as the longest-serving president of

Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the driving force behind the creation of the World Cup. Rimet became president of FIFA in 1921, having served as acting president for six months previously and held that position until two years before his death, aged 73, in 1956.

On May 28, 1928, Rimet proposed the creation of a football world championship to his FIFA colleagues. They agreed and, with the reigning Olympic champions Uruguay offering to pay travelling expenses, the inaugural World Cup kicked off in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, on July 13, 1930. Thirteen teams took part, including just four – France, Belgium, Romania and Yugoslavia – from Europe, because of the time involved in travelling to South America by sea. Nevertheless, from difficult beginnings, the World Cup has flourished into what is probably the most popular sporting event on the planet.

The original World Cup trophy, previously known as ‘Victory’, was renamed the Jules Rimet Trophy in his honour in 1946. Of course, that was the trophy won by England in 1966, hence the line ‘Jules Rimet still gleaming’ in the song ‘Three Lions’, which has become an anthem for the English national team in recent years. The Jules Rimet Trophy was presented, permanently, to Brazil when they won the World Cup for the third time in 1970, but was stolen in 1983 and never recovered.

Yes.The Tricky Trees were inaugural members of the Premier League when it replaced the old First Division as the highest tier of English football in 1992. However, the 1992/93 season was to be their last under ‘Ol’ Big Head’ Brian Clough and, following the sale of Teddy Sheringham – who, ironically would become the leading goalscorer – Forest finished bottom of the table with just 40 points.

However, after just one season in what was now the First Division, the Reds were promoted back to the Premier League under new manager Frank Clark in 1993/94. Remarkably, they finished third in the Premier League in 1994/95, albeit 11 points behind second-placed Manchester United, thereby qualifying for the UEFA Cup. Despite selling Stan Collymore, Forest were unbeaten after twelve games of the 1995/96 season and eventually finished ninth, with 58 points.

By contrast, a dismal start to the 1996/97 season saw the departure of Frank Clark, who was replaced, temporarily, by Stuart Pearce and, permanently, by Dave Bassett. Nevertheless, Forest finished bottom of the table, again, with just 34 points. Once again, though, they were promoted from the First Division at the first time of asking. However, the return to the Premier League was short-lived and, after a series of embarrassing defeats, including an 8-1 loss to Manchester United, Forest finished bottom, yet again, with a dismal 30 points.

More and more nowadays we live in the world of the virtual. Whether it’s experiencing windfalls on https://www.casinojoka.co/fr or similar sites, or the sudden growth of NFTs (Non-fungible tokens), so much of what is valued appears to take place or exist online. However, there is still of course room to value the physical, especially when it’s tied to a cultural event of note.

The first version of the FA Cup, in its current guise, was designed and manufactured by Fattorini & Sons of Bradford and hallmarked in Sheffield in time for the 1911 FA Cup Final, which was, coincidentally, won by Bradford City. Standing a fraction over two feet high, the trophy was ‘retired’ in 1992 and has since been replaced by two exact replicas, the latest of which was made, in handspun sterling silver, by Thomas Lyte of London and introduced in 2014. An exact replica of the 1911 trophy it may be, but the current version is heavier than the original, weighing in at nearly 14lb, to withstand wear and tear.

While not everything has to instantly have a value placed on it like an artwork or online casinos win, the original Fattorini & Sons FA Cup trophy appeared on an episode of the BBC television programme ‘Antiques Roadshow’, aired on October 23, 2016. On that occasion, Alastair Dickenson, former Director of Antiques at Asprey, valued the trophy at ‘quite comfortably… well over £1 million.’ He did confess, ‘The hardest thing of all about this is putting a value on it. This is, alongside the Wimbledon trophy, the most famous cup in the country.’

FIFA announced that it is evaluating changing the frequency of the World Cup to take place every two years! Since 1930 the world cup tournament was occurring every 4 years, but it seems that modern times have another opinion!

The reactions of analysts and sports managers to this decision differed; Some coaches (such as Jurgen Klopp) saw that this decision is only about money. On the other hand, some other coaches support it, they think that it will strengthen global football. Allow more players and national teams to join. Replace less prominent tournaments like the Club World Cup.

For the last point, whether you are with or against this decision, holding the World Cup every two years means cancelling many local and regional tournaments!

In this article, we will explain the most important reasons behind this decision and what are its main pros and cons.

Where the Idea Came From?

You might think that this idea came from Europe, but this is not true! The idea originated from Saudi Arabia, which hosts the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF). The vision of the Federation to hold the tournament every two years is to give football a greater value and more popularity. Also, it will allow the most prominent players to join more tournaments during their golden years. The most important reason is developing the FIFA financial resources; When two versions of the World Cup take place within 4 years instead of once, FIFA will get double profits!

This proposal did not get any media coverage simply because FIFA President Gianni Infantino, stated in short words that he would study it with “an open mind”. Nut it seems that he was serious about what he said and stick to his word! As the proposal is now being seriously discussed among the Football confederations.

FIFA will hold a conference with the confederations representatives to get their opinions on this proposal. If the majority approved, it will change the whole football tournaments calendar!

What Does FIFA Want?

Infantino would like to change the regular football we all know! It is no coincidence that all these decisions come one after the other. Firstly, Euro 2020 was held this year but its name has not been changed. In addition, the FIFA president has authorized 48 teams to join the World Cup instead of 32. Also, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will take place in the winter instead of in the summer.

Infantino’s intentions cannot be taken as stemming from his complete love for the sport of football; The devil is in the detail! We can give very logical reasons for all the decisions that FIFA’s president made; FIFA didn’t change the name of the Euro 2020 because all the sponsors have produced their ad campaigns on the basis that the tournament will occur in 2020. FIFA added more teams to the championship to extend its duration and get more advertisers’. Also, the World Cup will occur every two years to get more Profits!

Football is the most popular sport in the world, and since it is a favourite of everyone, we must see the proposals from different angles to understand all its effects.

Bookmakers View

UK bookmakers see this as a brilliant decision for them on all sides. First and foremost, when the tournament takes place every 2 years instead of 4, they will be able to attract more punters. Also, they can promote themselves more effectively. For bettors, they will have a chance to claim more free bets and bonus offers and apply the matched betting strategy which guarantees a sure win, if you want to know more info about this strategy click here for more info.

What Are the Pros & Cons of This Decision?

This proposal has lit up the global football arena and generated a storm of comments ranging from welcome to dismissive. Jurgen Klopp has a contrary view. While Javier Mascherano, who is one of the most famous Argentine football stars, saw support this decision. In addition, the Moroccan Federation was protective of this decision and believed that it would help African teams to appear in this important tournament.

Pros

Many experts believe that this decision has a lot of advantages, which are as follows:

• Offer chances for more teams. In general, holding the tournament every two years means that more teams have a chance to join.
• More Connection Between Football Associations. When the World Cup occurs every two years, more talented players will appear and sports teams will communicate with each other to buy them.
• Realignment of global leagues. Each country will coordinate the League Championship to be fast in the seasons that witness the World Cup and also to play the continental qualifying matches that will be held each year!
• Get more national income resources. When this tournament is hosted every two years, the host countries will get more sources of income from tourism and broadcasting contracts!

Cons

Despite the great pros of this tournament, there are some downsides also.

• Stress and injury. The most obvious downside to this proposal is the Injury frequency as a result of the stress and pressure of matches in different tournaments.
• Diminishing the prestige of the tournament. Back in 1930, all football fans used to watch the World Cup every 4 years. This made it the most prominent sportive championship in the world, but if it takes place every 2 years it will lose its lustre.
• Conflict with other leagues. In general, holding the tournament every two years will conflict with the agendas of continental tournaments, including Euro, Africa Cup of Nations, the Asian Nations, and other tournaments.

Conclusion

FIFA mainly seeks to increase its profits. However, this proposal will have negative consequences on the health of players and their performance with their clubs and they can’t win major trophies. So, this proposal requires more study and may need to change the football system completely!