When I’m Sixty-Four

From Dunedin to Dhaka, from China to Canada, fans across the globe woke up to a Premier League win like no other. [Read more].

• Eleanor Ainge Roy, Oliver Holmes, Richard Smart Tom Phillips, “Ranieri for President!” Leicester City fans across the world celebrate a miracle, The Guardian, May 3, 2016

With grace and unshakable bond with his players the one-time “Tinkerman” has proved his critics spectacularly wrong with Leicester’s first top-flight title “Claudio Ranieri? Really?”. As much of the planet now knows, with the world’s media descending on Leicester, that was how Gary Lineker last summer received the news that the veteran Italian had been appointed to take charge of a side that narrowly escaped relegation the previous season. Now the charming 64-year-old has masterminded perhaps the greatest fairytale in sporting history, proving a battalion of doubters wrong and winning not only the undying gratitude of all those in Leicester but admiration and no little love from around the world. [Read more].

• Owen Gibson, Claudio Ranieri proves nice guys do not always come second, The Guardian, May 2, 2016

Claudio Ranieri with A.S. Roma, pictured on a football sticker from 1973.

(Just Like) Starting Over

China has unveiled a strategy to become a “world football superpower” by 2050, with plans to get 50 million children and adults playing the game by 2020. [Read more].

• China aims to become football superpower “by 2050”, BBC News, April 11, 2016

President of the People’s Republic of China 习近平 (Xí Jìnpíng) showing off his schoolboy skills at Croke Park Stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Photo: Państwo Środka.

习近平 (Xí Jìnpíng) playing Gaelic football
Photo: BBC

The Scream

The Artist

Best’s Left Foot

Garrincha

Escape to Victory

Amruta Mokal (‏@amrutamoka)

UFO Robot Grendizer

The English Football Association has suspended support for Michel Platini’s bid to become FIFA president, after learning “more information relating to the issues from Mr. Platini’s lawyers”, the FA said in a statement. Platini, who is standing in the FIFA presidential election scheduled for Feb. 26, and incumbent Sepp Blatter were banned for 90 days by the FIFA Ethics Committee last week pending a full investigation into both men’s activities. Switzerland’s attorney general’s office initiated criminal proceedings against Blatter over a two million Swiss francs ($2.1 million) payment from FIFA to Platini in 2011 for work carried out by the Frenchman between 1998 and 2002. Both men have denied any wrongdoing. Platini’s lawyers gave a presentation to all UEFA member associations on Thursday. [Read more].

• English FA suspends support for Platini’s FIFA candidacy, Reuters UK, October 16, 2015

The Black Pearl

Kirsan Nikolayevich Ilyumzhinov (@Ilyumzhinov)

FIDE President Kirsan Nikolayevich Ilyumzhinov and President of the Russian Chess Federation Andrey Vasilievich Filatov deliver a chess set as a gift to Pelé on the occasion of the exhibition “Pelé: Art, Life, Football” at the Halcyon Gallery in London.

O Rei do Futebol

Kirsan Nikolayevich Ilyumzhinov (@Ilyumzhinov)

FIDE President Kirsan Nikolayevich Ilyumzhinov meeting with “O Rei” Pelé during the exhibition celebrating his 75th birthday “Pelé: Art, Life, Football” at the Halcyon Gallery in London.

Damnatio memoriae

George Best “El Beatle”

Der Schrei der Natur

保罗·罗西

Jahrhundertspiel

The semi-final of the 1970 FIFA World Cup between Italy and West Germany is known as the “Game of the Century” (Spanish: Partido del Siglo; Italian: Partita del Secolo; German: Jahrhundertspiel). It was played on 17 June 1970 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Italy won 4–3 after five goals were scored in extra time, the only FIFA World Cup game in which this has happened. [From Wikipedia].

幸運之吻

比利 (Pelé)

吶喊

La ragazza dagli occhi verdi

Foto: la Repubblica.it

大卫与歌利亚的战斗

• Pietro Cabras, Ecco Pak Doo-Ik, l’uomo che cambiò l’Italia..., CorrieredelloSport.it, 26 marzo 2009