January 4th, 2010
Well now you can, courtesy of bwin.com. If you’ve ever dreamed of living the life of a world class football professonal, then bwin.com is offering you a magical opportunity to realise your wildest dreams. Europe’s biggest online gaming brand is giving you the chance to sign for one of the greatest clubs in the world, AC Milan, and experience, first hand, what it’s like to play for such a well respected and successful team. You’ll have to deal with everything the professionals do, and that means starting with the media, and answering journalist’s questions in your very own press conference! After this however, you’ll be quickly whisked away to try on your personalised AC Milan shirt, making you an official member of the team. Then, it’s all aboard the official team bus en route to the training ground, where you’ll have a meet and greet with the likes of David Beckham, Ronaldinho, Gennaro Gattuso, and Fillipo Inzaghi. But that’s not all, because you’ll be taking to the field with the said individuals, and taking part in a real training session. Who’s to know, maybe you’ll end up practicing free-kicks with Beckham, or penalties with Andrei Pirlo?
This once in a lifetime prize includes flights to and from Milan, and also accommodation for you and a friend to enjoy. What’s more, entering the competition is simple and hassle free. Just visit www.enter-the-game.com and describe your perfect Milan debut. And after scoring the winner in the Milan derby, just place a bet on who you think will finish as the team’s top goalscorer come the end of the season. And that’s it. So, don’t hesitate, and let bwin.com make your dreams become reality. You could be rubbing shoulders with Europe’s elite.
Posted by admin in Matches
November 6th, 2009
It’s the big one in the Barclays Premier League this Sunday, as Chelsea welcome Champions Manchester United to Stamford Bridge. Something has to give between the top 2, with the Blues unbeaten at home in League but coming off the back of conceding a late equaliser away to Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in midweek. Manchester United didn’t fare much better in their tie at home to CSKA Moscow, but they did show great heart in coming back to level from 3-1 with a late own goal. With the game live on Sky Sports at 4pm Sunday, it would be rude not to get the odds from SkyBet first wouldn’t it?
As you would expect it is tight with Chelsea to win at evens, United at a favourable 3/1 and a draw at 9/4. It could be like so many top 4 clashes that both sides cancel each other out, so a 0-0 draw is a decent effort at 17/2 and 1-1 at 11/2. A 1-0 win for Chelsea could be appealing to Blues fans at 6/1 , with a 2-0 United win at 18/1 a decent long shot at this point.
A draw at half time and Chelsea to win in the second half is worth a tipple at 4/1, with United slightly more eye catching on the same bet at 7/1. Didier Drogba has three goals in his last 2 games and is decent money to open the scoring at 5/1. Michael Owen got the first for United against CSKA in the week, and is decent money to open his account against a top four side for the Red Devils at 9/1, with Wayne Rooney at shorter odds of 7/1. Dimitar Berbatov scored in his last league game and is decent odds at Coral to score first at Stamford Bridge at 9/1. If you’ve done your homework Nemanja Vidic scored Manchester United’s opener against Chelsea last season in a 3-0 home win, and is decent money to repeat the feat this Sunday at Ladbrokes at 28/1.
Posted by admin in Matches / Tags: betting, chelsea, manchester united
October 4th, 2009
If you ever come to Wembley Stadium, you will surely notice bronze statue of Bobby Moore standing outside the main entrance at the new Wembley Stadium. The statue was erected in 2007 to honor the former captain of the England team when they won the 1966 World Cup.
Born in April 12th 1941, Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore — also known as Bobby Moore — won a total of 108 caps for the England team. It remains a record until goalkeeper Peter Shilton and David Beckham collected respectably 125 and 109 caps. He was born in Barking, London, and was known for his superb defending skills.
Moore joined West Ham as a player in 1956, playing his first game against Manchester United on September 8, 1958. His surprising ability to read the game and anticipate opponents’ next move caught the eyes of many UK football fans instantly. He played his first match to replace his mentor, Malcolm Allison, who was suffering from tuberculosis yet he soon became a regular first team player right after that. There is no doubt that Moore was indeed destined for greatness, and he kept showing tremendous playing skills as well as attitude both in the field and on his daily life.
Moore was on the verge of terminating his contract when he played the 1966 World Cup. Only after the intervention of Sir Alf Ramsey that he realized his ineligibility to play and resolved differences he had with West Ham manager Ron Greenwood and renewed his contract with the team. England was down 0-1 at the World Cup final when Moore acted smartly and delivered a quick free kick (after he was fouled midway inside the German half) for an equalizer. He remains calm through the entire final game and helped England won the World Cup title.
Posted by admin in Players
October 2nd, 2009
Do you know that there are seven UK teams using “The Blues” as their nicknames? The most famous Blues would be Chelsea, but Birmingham City, Chester City, Grays Athletic, Ipswich Town, Shrewsbury Town, and Southend United are also called The Blues. It is quite common for sports team, in this case British football teams, to use nicknames. Some come from their fans while others are self-invented or created by the press.
In many cases, including the use of “Blues” by seven teams, nicknames come from color (or colors) of home strip or home uniform kit. Chelsea is known for their famous blue home uniform which grants them the title “The Blues” in the first place. The Black Cats, Sunderland, got their name after the Black Cat gun battery on the river Wear as well as the lucky black cat which led to the team winning the FA cup. Middlesbrough’s nickname, Boro, is a short version of the original team name.
Arsenal is also known as the Gunners for its local links to military arsenal. Tottenham Hotspur is known as Lillywhites from the color of their home strip. Manchester United’s Red Devils was originated from the nickname of nearby rugby league team called Salford. Altrincham, Bristol City, Charlton Athletic, Cheltenham Town, and Swindon Town all got the name “Robins” because the colors of their home kits are similar to a robin’s chest. Aston Villa, Villans as they are nicknamed, got their nickname derived from their official name.
Football clubs’ nicknames can be based on anything. You already see several examples of UK football team nicknames come from the color of their home kit, official name, and local history or industry. You can also find nicknames derived from the name of the ground or the home stadium, their logo, and even misinterpretation of certain terms referring to the team.
Posted by admin in Fun
September 11th, 2009
Level with me, what is the most memorable moment of Eric Cantona’s career? The answer would be the flying kung-fu kick incident at Crystal Palace, right? How Eric Cantona shocked the world of UK football by kicking Matthew Simmons who was watching the game at that time wasn’t the highlight of his career, yet a lot of people remember the incident perfectly — especially with the help of the famous photograph of the incident now being used as the cover of Ash’s single “Kung-Fu”. The incident which took place on January 25th 1995 resulted Simmons (the so-called victim) banned from English football ground for a year after they discovered series of felon acts previously committed. Cantona stated what appears to be his most famous quote, “When the seagulls follow the trawler, it’s because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea. Thank you very much.”, when a reporter asked him about the incident.
Aside from that particular incident, Eric Cantona enjoyed being titled as “King” in Old Trafford. Manchester United was not at their best when they recruited Cantona, and many thought this marvelous man to be the engine that brought the team to its prime state again. The Manchester United fans refer to him as King Eric after he won the 2001 the title of the game’s player of the century. He won 4 Premiere Leagues titles, 2 FA Cup trophies, and 3 Charity Shields, during his career in Manchester United. He played the total number of 432 games throughout his career, scoring not a goal less than 161 goals — 82 of them was scored for Manchester United.
Eric Cantona now lives as an actor, but he will always be known as British football legend. He deserves the title “King” and will be on his fans’ heart for years to come.
Posted by admin in History, Players
September 5th, 2009
UK football has been part of British popular culture for years now. Along the way there are several football movies created by both UK and international filmmakers. Movies about teams as well as fans and hooligans have been made. One of the most interesting movies about UK football is “The Football Factory”, released in 2004. It tells the story of Tommy Johnson, an avid football hooligan, and his quest to make peace with himself and his morality. It is certainly not the best or most famous movie about football or hooligans, but it is interestingly plotted and deals with a lot of issues such as racism, sexism, class consciousness, football hooliganism and working class culture.
I’m not too keen on the fact that this movie uses too much bad language or overly-portrayed violence, but it sure can describe clearly how social interaction between football fans from different teams affect everyone’s daily life to a certain extent. It depicts how random, often seen as irrelevant, events can cause brawls and vandalism among hooligans from different teams. You can see how small mistakes such as ending at the wrong girl’s house or hitting the brother of a strong hooligan character that has influence over group of supporters lead to the Headhunters, who support Chelsea F.C., and the Bushwackers, who support Millwall F.C. fighting against each other in a big brawl.
It is interesting to see the main character ask himself if it is all worth it, and replied with confidence that it is. The love of die-hard fans of British football for their teams is amazingly big and the bond created among the two is very strong. There is no doubt that football has been a huge part of British lives to its very roots. It is the fuel of one massive sporting engine.
Posted by admin in Movies
August 30th, 2009
Are you a die-hard fan of UK Football? Have you ever go to the National Football Museum? It is the best museum when it comes to association football (or football as we know them today). Located in Preston, Lancashire, this museum displays around 2,000 items from the museum’s collections while about 30,000 more are being stored securely at their archive.
One of the best items in this museum would have to be the two balls used in the first World Cup Final in 1930. Although it is not directly related to UK football specifically, it is a historical item that marks a milestone in international football as well as Uruguay as the first World Cup winner. The museum also holds the infamous replica of the Jules Rimet Trophy, the original World Cup trophy before being replaced by the current version. The original trophy was stolen in 1966 and FA secretly creates this replica.
Another great thing about the National Football Museum is their Hall of Fame. The book “Football’s Greatest Heroes: The National Football Museum Hall of Fame” published by Robson Books is based on National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame, highlighting achievements of top English football talents as well as non-English players and managers who have become significant figures in the English leagues. You will find names such as Eric Cantona or Sir Bobby Charlton all the way to Roy Keane and the recently inducted Joe Mercer. The Hall of Fame is becoming an important part of the National Football Museum and UK football in general, so it will be well worth your time to visit this place and go through some of the best memorabilia stored here.
There are words saying that the FA is spending more than £10million on a modern new museum at Wembley, scheduled to be ready by 2011. Still, the National Football Museum is a great part of UK football and will continue to be so for years to come.
Posted by admin in History
August 21st, 2009
There is no doubt that Liverpool F.C. is a great team, but they are facing a tough challenge this weekend against the Black Cats, Sunderland. Bolo Zenden, recently signed by Sunderland, will be playing his debut on this match scheduled October 17th 2009. Liverpool has a nice possibility of winning against Sunderland, but it is not on its prime condition and Sunderland is known to have been full of surprises. Let’s try to predict the match by seeing their previous encounters, shall we?
The last time Liverpool play against Sunderland was March 2009 where Liverpool scored two goals and won the match. In fact, Liverpool vs. Sunderland has never been that good for Sunderland except for once, plus five draws. This means Liverpool won 10 out of 16 games against Sunderland already. The last six of those winnings were made without Sunderland scoring a single goal. Looking pretty good for Liverpool, right?
But then let us consider the fact that Liverpool’s top scorer, Fernando Torres, is injured. He is at about the same recovery state as Gerrard and will not be able to play in this match. Torres is known for his ability to penetrate enemy defense; even the toughest defense must give in to Torres’s divine football skill. His movement is fast and irregular, weakening the defense line of enemy team substantially. A lot of Liverpool’s goals are made thanks to Torres’s movements, and now they are playing without him.
Sunderland has also won their last four home games in all competitions, scoring a total amount of 13 goals in those four games. Another interesting fact is that Steven Bruce, the manager of Sunderland, will be making a record for unwelcome century this weekend (losing 99 Premier League games as manager) and will surely look forward to a victory to avoid that.
Posted by admin in Matches
