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3 Key Things You Need To Understand As World Cup Kicks Off In Russia

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6 years ago

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The Russia 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off today and the entire world is looking up to the host Russia to deliver the best of the biggest sporting event in the world.

There are three things that will constantly be highlighted by the media – Video Assistant Referee [VAR], racism, and goals.

VAR

FIFA has decided referees need help so they have conscripted more referees to become Video Assistant Referees [VAR] to help ensure that more often than not, the proper decisions are made on the pitch.

“If you see some assistant referee not raising the flag, it’s not because he’s making mistakes,” said Pierluigi Collina, the chairman of FIFA’s referees’ committee.

Collina added: “It’s because he’s respected the instruction to keep the flag down. They were told to keep the flag down when there is a tight offside incident and there could be a very promising attack or a goal-scoring opportunity because, if the assistant referee raises the flag, then everything is finished.”

In what many had called for – the need for technology to increase the efficiency of referees to get correct decisions -= this trial must succeed for many others to follow.

Racism

Bryan Idowu changed nationality last year and will represent Nigeria at Russia 2018.

He told Amkar Perm website in 2016, “…Then it was hinted to me that with my skin colour the path to the main team was unfeasible. The reason was the fans, who don’t like dark-skinned players.”

Racism in Russia is a fact, whether it would rear its head during this tournament is the question. As recent as March this year, Russian fans heckled some black players from France during a friendly match – a case for which FIFA fined Russia’s soccer federation $29,600.

Aleksandr Alayev, the Russian federation’s acting chief told Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency, Russia would make the persons responsible for the rude actions to pay and that the federation “will do everything possible to prevent the repetition of such incidents in the future.”

Goals

Football is about goals and will always be. The greatest cheer in the stadium and far away from the action across many television sets is when the net bulges.

The Technical Study Group for the 2014 World Cup revealed, “the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil was marked by top quality and attacking football, excellent players, and a positive general football philosophy.

“The teams’ objectives were to score and win matches instead of trying not to lose or concede. This led to a glut of goals, 171 in total at an impressive average of 2.67 goals per match, which matched the record set in France in 1998.”

The UEFA Champions League, with which many judge FIFA’s footballing extravaganza, also saw more attacking football, which led to more goals, and spectacular at that, being scored.

Will the matches in Russia be open and free flowing or will they be cagey and boring? The fans want to see goals!

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Juventus ordered to pay Ronaldo €9.7m unpaid salaries

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6 days ago

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April 18, 2024 10:01 am

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Juventus must pay Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo 9.7 million euros ($10.4 million) in back wages for the 2020-21 season, the Italian courts announced on Wednesday.

The Court of Arbitration, to which Ronaldo appealed, “orders Juventus Turin to pay the sum of 9,774,166.66 euros”, plus interest and procedural costs, it stated in its decision.

The sum equates to the difference between the salary actually received by Ronaldo and that which he should have received after tax and other deductions.

Ronaldo, who spent three seasons in Italy with Juventus (2018-21) before joining Manchester United (2021-22) and then the Saudi club Al Nassr, was claiming 19.5 million euros but the arbitration panel reduced that by 50 per cent.

Contacted by AFP, Juventus declined to comment, but said it would be issuing a statement “shortly”.

According to the rankings drawn up by the American business magazine Forbes, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner was the world’s highest-paid sportsman in 2023, with $136 million, including $46 million in wages.

Juventus, who are listed on the stock exchange, recorded losses of 123.7 million euros in the 2022-23 financial year, which ran to the end of June, it announced in October.

No provision has been made in the accounts of Italian football’s most successful club, currently third in Serie A, for the payment of this wages backlog.

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Sports

EPL to adopt semi-automated offside technology next season

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2 weeks ago

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April 13, 2024 12:19 pm

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The English Premier League (EPL) says semi-automated offside technology will be used in matches from next season.

The league announced the decision in a statement on its website on Thursday.

The decision was made after a unanimous agreement by all the clubs at a Premier League Shareholders’ meeting.

The technology will be ready for use from the 2024/25 season after the autumn international breaks.

“The new system will be used for the first time in the Premier League next season, and it is anticipated the technology will be ready to be introduced after one of the autumn international breaks,” the statement reads.

“The technology will provide quicker and consistent placement of the virtual offside line, based on optical player tracking, and will produce high-quality broadcast graphics to ensure an enhanced in-stadium and broadcast experience for supporters.”

The first usage of the semi-automated offside technology in top-level football was at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The offside rule has been subjected to change in recent years, with the video assistant referee (VAR) technology also deployed to assist the on-field officials in checking for offside calls leading to a goal.

The EPL further updated its offside rule in the summer of 2023 to include that “a player who is clearly offside should not become onside on every occasion when an opponent moves and touches the ball.”

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Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya sets to break Guinness World Record

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2 weeks ago

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April 13, 2024 12:17 pm

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Nigerian chess master, Tunde Onakoya has revealed plans to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.

Onakoya who made the plan known on his X account on Friday said that he is “doing this for the dreams of millions of children across Africa without access to education.”

He added that the attempt will hold on April 17th at the New York City’s Times Square and he is to play chess for 58 hours without a single defeat.

He wrote, “On the 17th of April 2024, I will attempt to break the Guiness World record for the longest Chess marathon in the heart of Times Square New York City for 58 hours without losing a game. Doing this for the dreams of millions of children across Africa without access to education.”

Onakoya disclosed that the attempt will start at 10am and would be available for all to stream on YouTube.

He appealed to Nigerians residing in New York, urging them to come forward and provide their enthusiastic support as he strives to establish a new world record.

Tunde Onakoya is renowned for his philanthropic efforts, notably utilizing chess as a tool to offer opportunities for young people residing in the marginalized areas, often referred to as ‘slums,’ within the country.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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