“Of all the figures I’ve encountered in soccer over the years, Terry Byrne is right near the top of my most intriguing people list. A 44-year-old Englishman, Byrne has gone on a remarkable life journey from London taxi driver to massage therapist for Chelsea and England to David Beckham’s best friend and personal manager to a sports business career of his own.” SI
Can David Beckham’s best friend revive the New York Cosmos?
January 13, 2011Nutmeg Radio’s Interview with The Two Escobars Co-Director Michael Zimbalist
January 13, 2011“On the surface, The Two Escobars is a mesmerizing documentary about the tragic intersection of soccer and the drug trade in Colombia during the 1980s and 1990s. But just below the surface, the film reveals a deeper, personal story about a Colombian society simultaneously enriched and shaken to its core. It re-introduces us to legendary soccer icons, reducing them to emotional figures bearing the unique burden of simply being Colombian and incredibly talented during the rise of narco-soccer (loosely defined as the period when soccer was inextricably tied to and funded by narco-trafficking).” Nutmeg Radio – 1, Nutmeg Radio – 2
Blackpool 2 – 1 Liverpool
January 13, 2011“The manager and the year may have changed but Liverpool’s problems away from home continued as Kenny Dalglish’s first Premier League match since returning as boss ended in a 2-1 defeat at Blackpool. Liverpool’s troubles on the road contributed to the departure of Roy Hodgson last weekend but the Seasiders showed October’s win by the same score at Anfield was no fluke.” ESPN
Blackpool 2-1 Liverpool – Video Highlights, Recap, and Match Stats – EPL
The 90th Minute
Qatar’s World Cup Spending Spree
January 13, 2011
World Cup in 2022
“Qatar’s winning bid to hold the 2022 World Cup was marked by a spending spree that included investments in the home countries of several executives who were responsible for choosing the host nation, according to internal documents from the emirate’s bidding committee. The spending sheds light on how FIFA regulations—outlined in the two-page rules of conduct for World Cup host-nation bidding—left the door open for hopefuls to open wallets to exert indirect influence on international soccer’s small circle of decision-makers.” WSJ
Flamengo gambles on Ronaldinho
January 13, 2011“In Rio Flamengo fans came out in their thousands to give a euphoric welcome to new signing Ronaldinho. Some pundits have tried to pour water into their beer — such as former top class referee Jose Roberto Wright, who argued in the sports daily Lance! that Flamengo had done a bad deal.” SI – Tim Vickery
Is football the new punk?
January 13, 2011“Sometimes the slow death of a movement means that it is difficult to define when something is definitely gone, and some kind of crystallising moment is necessary, writes guest author Jamie Cutteridge. For example, the freshness of New Labour seemed to disappear somewhere around the beginning of this century, but the death of the movement was confirmed when Ed Miliband of the old left was elected leader last year.” twofootedtackle