SILVA WANTS WORLD CUP
Brazilian defender Thiago Silva has said that he wants to lift the FIFA World Cup 2014, which will be held in his home country. He has also targeted the Champions League title with his club team PSG as well.
The 2014 will be an important one for some players, but Silva has said that it is especially big for him. The former AC Milan man is regarded as one of the best defenders in the world. He arrived at the French capital in a deal worth in excess of £ 35 million, thus making him the most expensive defender in the world.
FIFA STILL CONFIDENT
FIFA has expressed the confidence in the South American nation Brazil, as he prepares to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup. This is an extremely demanding tournament for the government, as it generally involves upgrading the infrastructure in every part of the country. Stadiums and transport are the major infrastructure that would be developed as part of this tournament.
NEIL SLAMS REVOLT
Australian captain Lucas Neill has rejected the mutiny allegations that has been thrown at him. The allegations of the player revolt emerged in well-known Australian football commentator Les Murray's new book The World Game: The story of how football went global.
Murray claimed Neill was unimpressed with Verbeek's tactics for the Germany game and sent the Dutch boss away from the changing rooms before instructing his team-mates to disobey the orders.
However, Neill, currently on holiday in the United States, hit back at the allegations when he spoke to Fox Sports.
ESPN WINS SEVEN AWARDS WORLD CUP 2010
ESPN was presented with the seven Sports Emmy Awards that they won for broadcasting the FIFA World Cup 2010. They were presented for the 32nd year by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences tonight in New York. The honorees represent a wide range of disciplines, including event coverage, studio programming, enterprise reporting and technical excellence.
WORLD CUP HELPS SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM
South Africa seems to have clearly benefitted from the World Cup 2010 as there was a 15.1 percent increase in tourism in 2010.
"We are delighted with these strong growth figures, particularly as it comes so soon after a global economic recession," Marthinus van Schalkwyk told journalists.
South Africa was the first African country to host the World Cup, the world's most-watched sports event, and the month-long tournament passed off smoothly despite fears of organisational chaos and high levels of crime.
BECKS LEADS 2018 BID
David Beckham leads a cast of football giants in a new film to boost England's chances of hosting the World Cup in 2018, ahead of this week's decision.
The film showcases the bid's proposals for a 'Football United', a global fund for football, which FIFA President Sepp Blatter has already backed.
Bid vice-president Beckham is joined in the video by a host of fellow English and international footballers 'united' behind the proposal.
MORE FIFA ALLEGATIONS
New allegations of corruption have arisen just days before FIFA executive committee members are due to vote on football's World Cup hosts in 2018 and 2022, Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung reported.
The newspaper said a list of FIFA officials who have taken "millions in payments" is circulating.
"There are many names from postbox companies," an anonymous Swiss resident who has seen the list told the newspaper, which explained that some FIFA executive committee members are hiding behind these companies.
AUSTRALIA HOPE FOR 2022 WORLD CUP
Australia says that making sure visiting fans enjoy themselves will be a priority if it is awarded the right to host the 2022 World Cup.
Frank Lowy, who is leading the Australian bid, said that his country had been inspired to enter the race by what he saw in Germany in 2006, when fan festivals and a party atmosphere transformed the image of the country.
"When I was in Germany and we took part in the World Cup, we got to the last 16 and I thought Australia could do the same in terms of getting the fans involved," he said five days before FIFA chooses the hosts in Zurich.
WORLD CUP BIGGER THAN OLYMPICS
SO you thought the Sydney Olympics was a big deal? By the end of this week, Australia might be preparing for something that blows the 2000 Games out of the water.
In the small hours of Friday morning (AEST) Australians will discover whether a two and a half year campaign, led by the inexhaustible Westfield chairman Frank Lowy, has convinced soccer’s world governing body to let us host the 2022 World Cup.
ARSHAVIN BACKS RUSSIA BID
Arsenal midfielder Andrei Arshavin insists that he loves to play football in England, but that a World Cup held in Russia would leave a "human legacy" that would last for generations.
Arshavin, who is the captain of the Russian national team, claims 'it is my duty to support the development of football throughout my country' and as an ambassador for the Russian 2018 bid, maintains that his country would benefit more from the hosting the event than any of their rivals, including England.
