MetaFilter posts tagged with Football

Macaroni and Boom

GatorDavid — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 17:59:41 -0800

Kraft Macaroni & Cheese will be the official sponsor of A Cheddar Explosion: The Demolition of Texas Stadium.

"Television demands activity."

dng — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 07:00:31 -0800

Is television holding back the evolution of football? What is rarely considered is that television could be shaping the way the game is played, and not necessarily for the better. It sounds, admittedly, a touch far-fetched, but two of football's most respected thinkers believe it to be true, and when Jorge Valdano and Arrigo Sacchi are in agreement, it is usually worth listening. Sports journalist Jonathan Wilson investigates the effect televised football/soccer might be having on the tactics of the game. Jorge Valdano: "In South America we have the concept of the 'pause' in football, the moment of reflection which foreshadows an attack. It's built into the game, like music, which also needs pauses, drops in intensity. The problem is that this doesn't work in the language of television. A moment of low intensity in a televised football game is seen by some as time to change channels. So the game is getting quicker and quicker because television demands it." Arrigo Sacchi: "Today's football is about managing the characteristics of individuals, and that's why you see the proliferation of specialists. The individual has trumped the collective. But it's a sign of weakness. It's reactive, not pro-active... So, for example, we knew that Zidane, Raúl and Figo didn't track back, so we had to put a guy in front of the back four who would defend. But that's reactionary football. It doesn't multiply the players' qualities exponentially. Which actually is the point of tactics: to achieve this multiplying effect on the players' abilities... Is football a collective and harmonious game? Or is it a question of putting x amount of talented players in and balancing them out with y amount of specialists?" Jonathan Wilson's articles for the Guardian on football tactics are often really interesting: How will football tactics develop over the next decade? How is Brazil's 4-2-3-1 different from a European 4-2-3-1? Do formations hav eto be symmetrical? Why is fullback the most important position on the pitch?

All Quiet on Christmas Day

IvoShandor — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 23:15:19 -0800

When Pope Benedict XV called for a cease fire over the Christian holiday of Christmas the high command on both sides of no man's land called it "impossible". But the men in the icy muck and mire of Flanders decided for themselves what was possible, what was not possible. The future held millions of dead and wounded but the season motivated the British (along with some French and Belgians) and the Germans to shake off the traditional definitions of enemies and allies. The World War I Christmas Truce is no legend. It is no myth. The Christmas Truce is not a lie your teacher told you. It really happened. And for a few days the horrors of war were forgotten and fellowship ruled the day. The truce stands as a testament to the absurdities of war. A soldier shakes hands with the men he was trying to kill only hours before. A spontaneous soccer match breaks out (maybe) in the icy, bloodied no man's land between the trenches. Details are sometimes fuzzy but we know it happened. The 1914 Christmas Truce has inspired interpretations aplenty. Strange dramas, music, film, musicals, documentaries, more film, did I mention music? Or music? I have always thought that no matter what you believe about higher powers, religion, God, or Christmas, the effect of the holiday cannot be denied. I've always believed the truce demonstrated that even in the bleakest of circumstances, when all seems lost, humanity's spirit and intrinsic goodwill cannot be beaten back. Anyway, Happy Holiday season mefites! (Prev-i-ou-sly)

Extra! Extra! Football causes brain damage!

reenum — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 10:49:22 -0800

Malcolm Gladwell did an article about this in the New Yorker, but this GQ article shows the opposition the researchers who discovered CTE faced from the NFL.

A Perfect Season

valdesm — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 04:51:19 -0800

At the beginning of the '09 season a young rookie coach named Pep Guardiola was appointed manager of FC Barcelona, one of the top teams in European football. One year later, the team plays 19th December in Abu Dhabi against Estudiantes for the Club World Cup, the cusp of association football season. Guardiola had taken a talented but stagnating team to the top, a prometean figure that brought the philosophy he had inherited playing for historical player Johann Cruyff almost 20 years before. For a European club to get there, you have to win the UEFA Champions League. But Barcelona did more than that. After exhilarating moments like Iniesta's overtime goal (Spanish narration) in Champions semifinals, in May 2009 the team obtained the continental treble winning the Spanish Liga, Spanish Cup and UEFA Champions League. Minutes before the final Champions match, Guardiola played this video to his players (starts a 2:06). In August 2009, Barcelona conquered both the Spanish Super Cup and UEFA Super Cup, that pit the winners of the top trophies in Spain and Europe respectively. So Saturday in Abu Dhabi, Barcelona takes aim at a record-breaking perfect season, to bring home the sixth out of six possible trophies. Meanwhile the beauty of the team's play is recognized by awards and records. Messi got a Ballon d'Or, with four Barcelona players in the top five spots of the award. Pedro became the first player to score in all six trophies. The team was only the fifth ever to obtain the european regular season treble, Pep Guardiola was the sixth man to win a European Champions League both as a player and a manager, and some think Andrés Iniesta is the best player in the world.

Who's got the ball?

starman — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 09:38:42 -0800

(American) Football trick play video roundup: the Statue of Liberty, Fumblerooski (2), the Puntarooski, the Hook and Lateral (2), the Flea Flicker (2), the End Around (2), the Double Pass, the Fake Punt (2) (3), the Fake Field Goal (2) (3), Fake Field Goal/Fake Punt, the Swinging Gate, and the Bouquet Toss. A helpful guide. Wikipedia's take.

The Manliest Game On Earth

gman — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 15:11:23 -0800

Calcio Fiorentino was an early form of football (YT) that originated in 16th century Italy (YT). The modern version (Foto Gallery) allows tactics such as head-butting, punching, elbowing, and choking, but forbids sucker-punching and kicks to the head.

Re-Meet Ricky Williams

Lacking Subtlety — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:17:39 -0800

In case you haven't, please meet Ricky Williams. He has had one of the most fascinating careers of any professional athlete: he was a high school phenom in Football, Baseball, Track, and Wrestling. He played FOUR YEARS of minor league baseball with the Philadelphia Phillies organization. He was a two time all American at Texas and winner of the Heisman Trophy. He translated that success into a great early start in the NFL. He also grew up in an abusive home. He has tested extremely high in both IQ and diagnostic tests. He is incredibly shy and has been diagnosed social anxiety disorder. Hating the effects of medications, he opted for Marijuana claiming that it had a much better effect. A string of positive drug tests forced him to leave the NFL. He wasn't broken up about it. He joined in the CFL. He suffered a string of debilitating injuries. One of his best friends is a homeless guy named Mystic steve. They hiked the Himalayas together. He rejoined the dolphins in 2008 as a complimentary player and he grew an awesome beard. With his teammate Ronnie Brown, Ricky and the Dolphins have developed an entirely new and popular offense for the NFL called the Wildcat, which helped turn a 1-15 team around and have great success the last two years. Why mention this all today? With an injury to Ronnie Brown, last night the 32 year old running surprised just about everyone by rushing for 119 yards and 3 TDs in a great 24-17 win over the Carolina Panthers, a remarkable achievement for someone who was considered a washed up, crazy pothead. A remarkable career indeed.

The Hand of God, Part Deux

lovermont — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:49:12 -0800

The world of soccer has been rocked by a French player's game-defining handball in the much-anticipated qualifier match between France and Ireland. Thierry Henry has admitted to the offense, but said ultimately it is the duty of the linesman to make the call. His action and subsequent admission have drawn strong reactions, including attempts to vandalize his Wikipedia page. This sort of thing isn't new to the World Cup; in fact, Henry's move has been dubbed "Le Hand of God” by British tabloid The Sun, and “Hand of Gaul” by The Australian, both in reference to Argentinean player Maradona's “Hand of God” goal in the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal match between Argentina and England. Is it time to introduce video replay? Tournament organizer Danny Jordaan says videos wouldn't end these kinds of mistakes. There are others who disagree. In an added layer of controversy, last month, Ireland's goalkeeper Shay Given had voiced his displeasure with FIFA's decision regarding seeding the playoffs; Republic of Ireland assistant manager Liam Brady speculates that seeding decision may have influenced the linesman, something he expressed concern about going in. Despite all the hoopla, FIFA insists there will be no rematch. See Le Hand of Gaul here.

The Economist: The World in 2010

goodnewsfortheinsane — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:09:43 -0800

In 2010, Obama will have a miserable year, NATO may lose in Afghanistan, the UK gets a regime change, China needs to chill, India's factories will overtake its farms, Europe risks becoming an irrelevant museum, the stimulus will need an exit strategy, the G20 will see a challenge from the "G2", African football will unite Korea, conflict over natural resources will grow, Sarkozy will be unloved and unrivalled, the kids will come together to solve the world's problems (because their elders are unable), technology will grow ever more ubiquitous, we'll all charge our phones via USB, MBAs will be uncool, the Space Shuttle will be put to rest, and Somalia will be the worst country in the world. And so the Tens begin.

The Economist: The World in 2010. Previously: 2009, 2008, 2007. How did we do last time around? Guest contributions: President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso lines up Europe's priorities President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev argues for dialogue and cooperation President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed wants his island nation to remain above water President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono would like for Islam and the West to live in harmony President of South Africa Jacob Zuma says Africa should rise to the occasion Director-General of the World Health Organisation Margaret Chan predicts the development of the flu pandemic Managing director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn explains how to prevent another crisis CEO of Yahoo! Carol Bartz believes business leaders should tap into the information flood Chairman of HSBC Stephen Green argues that the financial sector should welcome emerging economies CEO of Fiat Group and Chrysler Group Sergio Marchionne thinks greener cars require bolder action CEO/CTO of SpaceX Elon Musk says the private sector should handle space travel

The quiet goalkeeper: Robert Enke (1977-2009)

starzero — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:41:28 -0800

Yesterday evening, Robert Enke, goalkeeper of Germany's national soccer team, committed suicide. At a press conference today, his wife revealed, that he had been suffering from depression for 6 years and had been in therapy. He covered it up out of fear to lose custody of his adopted daughter and his career as a professional footballer. Despite being the favorite candidate for the goalkeeper position in the German national team at the upcoming World Cup 2010, Enke's hit several professional and personal setbacks in his life. The popular keeper was also a prominent supporter of animal rights and appeared in a PETA campaign. Enke is another recent victim of depression in German professional football, a condition that already forced Germany's rising star, Sebastian Deisler, to end his career in 2007. The Guardian's Raphael Honigstein reminds German football, that sometimes you cannot go back to business as usual and Sweden's retired Patrick Andersson writes a personal tribute to his friend and former teammate.

Danish Dynamite

reenum — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:20:20 -0800

The Guardian recently published a beautiful article about Danish Dynamite, the '80s Danish national soccer (football) squad. Rob Smyth and Lars Eriksen write about how the success and failure of the national team highlighted national traits that Denmark has. The writing about the matches is among the most inspired I have ever read. In addition to the film, a documentary about the team has also been made.

14 who bucked "the Cowboy Way"

liketitanic — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 23:31:56 -0800

The airing of the upcoming PBS documentary Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons, will bring new attention to a protest event against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints that raised important questions about free speech, the rights of student athletes, and the state of the Civil Rights Movement in the Mormon Church. On October 17, 1969, 14 football players at the University of Wyoming were suspended for threatening to wear black armbands onto the field in an upcoming game against Brigham Young University. The squad members, who were known as the "Black 14," were protesting the the Mormon Church's exclusion of people of African descent from the priesthood. Other student athletes whose teams were members of the Western Athletic Conference had refused to compete against Brigham Young that year, including eight Black track team members at the University of Texas, El Paso. Others, including athletes at San Jose State, would protest in support of the Black 14; protest later extended to the University of Washington. This was not the earliest anti-LDS student-athlete protest, nor were athlete boycotts a totally new general protest tactic; in 1968, Black student athletes participated in 130 protest actions. But this case was one of the best-known, in part because of the civil lawsuit Williams v. Eaton, which alleged an infringement of the students' First Amendment Rights. At Wyoming, the Black Student Alliance first publicized the idea of a boycott and protest of BYU on October 15; the group urged students and players to protest a matchup scheduled for three days later. Despite the warning of Coach Lloyd Eaton to each of the 14 that team rules prohibited participating in demonstrations or protests, they together decided to wear armbands as a sign of protests. In a meeting with Eaton on October 17, the day before the game, the coach berated them publicly, revoking their scholarships and suspending them. Eaton remembered the event as "simply a matter of discipline. Black or white, it didn't matter to me. They broke the rule and I told them they were no longer members of the team." Yet Eaton, almost in the same breath, evoked conspiracy theory: "Why haven't we had a demonstration before? . . . we've had Negro players here since 1960. I'll tell you why. This is the first year the Black Student Alliance has been on campus. Now they're organized and ready to act. The WAC was picked because of Brigham Young. And we were picked as the trigger because of our rule against demonstrations. It all fits." And other accounts allege that Eaton told them to "shut up," and that without his team "they would be out on the streets hustling." Game-day student protests (archival footage), a 17-1 vote in the student senate to support the players, and faculty support, which extended as far as 7 faculty members threatening resignation, were not strong enough to drown out Eaton's supporters, which included the University trustees and leadership. The 14, with the help of the NAACP, became plaintiffs in Williams v Eaton, a $1.1. million civil suit filed on October 29, 1969. The Federal District court, upheld on appeal, ruled against the players, arguing in support of Eaton's no-protest policy. A subsequent appeals decision, in 1972, ruled that their free speech rights had not been violated when Eaton and the University Trustees forbade armbands. Eaton resigned in 1971, after the protests were accompanied by a wave of losses (and a worse season the following year). Ten of the 14 players graduated from college, and players Tony McGee was the best known of the four who went on to play football professionally. The LDS Church would not allow blacks to ascend to priesthood until a 1978 Revelation received by President Kimball Spencer Kimball apparently extended the office through God's providence.

The "boy-killing, man-mutilating, money-making, education-prostituting, gladiatorial sport."

phrontist — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:55:54 -0800

Does american football unavoidably lead to brain damage over time? Does a culture favoring perseverance at the expense of well being begin in high school?

World Cup 2010: Little guys play too

salishsea — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:21:17 -0800

What`s great about the World Cup of football is that everyone gets a chance to qualify, against all odds. This week was a fascinating week of World Cup qualifying matches around the world. But while the world's attention was focused on Portugal and Argentina and France and Cameroon and England, among others, a small victory was won in a dusty forgotten corner of UEFA Group Seven. On Wednesday the Faroe Islands recorded their first cWorld Cup win , a 2-1 victory over Lithuania. The Faroes are a devoted squad, and although this was their first FIFA sanctioned World Cup win, they have had other extradordinary victories, including the 7-1 drubbing of Aland in the 1989 Island Games final. It was Bergur Magnussen`s greatest moment, scoring six second half goals for his side.

The Cincinnati Bengals' Car Wash

cashman — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 09:03:56 -0800

At the insistence of Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown, the FAA is apparently targeting a pilot who was hired this month by disgruntled fans to fly messages like "Hire a GM!" over the team's training camp. A "Mike Brown Step Down" banner was flown over games last season. Brown's futility (1 winning season in 18 years) in Cincinnati has spurred fans to pay thousands for billboards and distribute urinal cakes, while HBO's Hard Knocks series has recently shown insight into his cluelessness. Former Bengal player Boomer Esiason today criticized Mike Brown's handling of the team. While Brown gives himself a bonus each year and the team is still benefiting from taxes on the surrounding county, this year the recession seems to be aiding fan efforts to bankrupt Brown - games are beginning to not sell out. But since the organization is littered with Brown's family members (including the Blackburns), things may not be looking up.

Football legend Sir Bobby Robson dies

Webbster — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 09:06:28 -0800

Football legend Sir Bobby Robson dies, following a long battle with cancer. Further tributes via the Guardian. Donate to his foundation via here.

How Beckham Blew It

dig_duggler — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:16:51 -0800

"I'm not going to spend the next three years of my life doing it this way. This is f------ miserable. I don't want to have soccer be this way." Landon Donovan , center midfielder for the USA soccer team which recently lost to Brasil 3-2 in the USA's first FIFA final, talks about playing with David Beckham in an excerpt from Grant Wahl's forthcoming book 'The Beckham Experiment'.

He owns a mansion and a yacht

Joe Beese — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 21:20:41 -0800

Roman Abramovich, the Russian billionaire owner of Chelsea Football Club, has launched his 557-foot yacht, Eclipse.

The Game is Over

william_boot — Sat, 02 May 2009 19:33:17 -0800

Jack Kemp, Buffalo Bills quarterback, Bob Dole's running mate, and New York congressman, is dead at 73.

You'll never walk again

MuffinMan — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 05:25:06 -0800

20 years ago today, a crush of fans at the Leppings Lane entrance of Sheffield Wednesday's Hillsborough Stadium killed 96 people, among them the cousin of current Liverpool player Steven Gerrard (who has the dubious honour of being the youngest victim). Coming just 4 years after the Heysel stadium disaster, which killed 39 people and was officially blamed on Liverpool fans, and almost two decades of hooligan violence, the most obvious or convenient conclusion was that history had repeated itself. The intervening years have seen bitter recriminations, against the Police and also The Sun - who repeated the accusation that Liverpool fans brought about the disaster and disgraced themselves - and a government enquiry. Still, to this day, many feel the real story has yet to come out. *The post title is deliberately ironic. Although the subversion of Anfield's iconic son "You'll Never Walk Alone" predates Hillsborough, it is still occasionally chanted by opposing fans mocking the disaster.

“I ran ‘em all!”

fearfulsymmetry — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 05:07:22 -0800

'Roy Of The Rovers' is back... The footballer* has returned to the newsagents in a one-off special. Roy was just one of a number of British comics sport stars that have appeared over the years... such as the notorious 'Look Out For Lefty', er, 'Striker'. My favourite being Alf Tupper - 'Tough Of The Track', a runner whose only performance enhancer was a fish and chip supper straight off the newspaper. *That'll be 'soccer' to our friends across the water.

Soccer is a European sport because it is all about death and despair

Artw — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 10:59:47 -0800

America is doomed. Why? Soccer.

Harvard Beats Yale 29-29

kirkaracha — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 14:51:22 -0800

Harvard Beats Yale 29-29. At Harvard Stadium on November 23, 1968, the Yale and Harvard football teams met in their annual The Game, with both teams going into the game undefeated for the first time since 1909. Heavily-favored Yale was ranked #16 and was on a 16-game winning streak. Yale was leading 29-13 with 3:34 to play and had the ball. What could possibly go wrong? Harvard recovered a fumble on their 14, then scored a touchdown with a 2-point conversion, recovered an onside kick, scored another touchdown as the clock ran out, and scored another 2-point conversion. Footage of the game. Recap. What I learned at the Harvard-Yale Game [clearly not paragraphs]. Even though it ended in a tie, the Yale players took it as a devastating loss, and Harvard took it as a win. The Harvard Crimson's banner headline was "Harvard Beats Yale 29-29." Who came up with the headline? Backup quarterback Frank Champi led the Harvard comeback. Tommy Lee Jones was a Harvard offensive guard (Al Gore was his roommate). Yale quarterback Brian Dowling inspired "B.D." in Doonesbury. Yale tailback Calvin Hill was the 1969 NFL Rookie of the Year, beating O.J. Simpson. Yale teammate Bob Levin dated Vassar undergraduate named Meryl Streep. James Fallows worked on the Harvard Crimson. Kevin Rafferty, who directed Atomic Cafe, has a new documentary about the game. New York Times Q&A and NPR Fresh Air with Rafferty.

It's only a yellow line. How hard can it be?

SpacemanStix — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:50:10 -0800

The computer generated first-down line in American football is something we take for granted these days. However, the logistics required to make this work is pretty complex. At the very least, have you considered this: if it's computer generated on a moving image, how do they draw it under the people running around on the field, and not over them? And it gets a bit more complicated than this. "Here are some of the problems that have to be solved in order for this system to work: * The system has to know the orientation of the field with respect to the camera so that it can paint the first down line with the correct perspective from that camera's point of view. * The system has to know, in that same perspective framework, exactly where every yard line is. * Given that the cameraperson can move the camera, the system has to be able to sense the camera's movement (tilt, pan, zoom, focus) and understand the perspective change resulting from the movement. * Given that the camera can pan while viewing the field, the system has to be able to recalculate the perspective at a rate of 30 frames per second as the camera moves. * A football field is not flat -- it crests very gently in the middle to help rainwater run off. So the line calculated by the system has to appropriately follow the curve of the field. * A football game is shot by multiple cameras at different places in the stadium, so the system has to do all of this work for several cameras. * The system has to be able to sense when players, referees or the ball cross over the first down line so it does not paint the line on top of them. * The system has to be aware of superimposed graphics that the network might overlay on the scene." Here's a detailed explanation regarding how it's done. And here's a cool video showing it in action.