Sports Video 24 – Sports News , Scores, Biography, Gallery and Other Games

Raúl González Blanco (born 27 June 1977 in Madrid, Spain), known simply as Raúl, is a Spanish footballer who plays as a striker. He currently plays for German club Schalke 04, in the Bundesliga. Raul has spent most of his career playing for Spanish club Real Madrid until 2010 and is the club’s all-time top goalscorer. Raúl is a three-time winner of the UEFA Champions League and has long been the competition’s all-time leading goal scorer. He left Real Madrid on the 25th July 2010, having scored 323 goals in 740 appearances. He is also the all-time top goalscorer for the Spanish national side.

Raul Gonzalez

Full name: Raúl González Blanco
Date of birth: 27 June 1977
Place of birth: Madrid, Spain
Height: 1.82 m
Playing position: Striker
Club Career: San Cristóbal de los Ángeles / Atlético Madrid / Real Madrid (Youth career) / 1994–2010 – Real Madrid – 550 – (228) / Schalke 04

Real Madrid: Although he started out with cross-town rivals Atlético Madrid, he began the 1994-95 season in Madrid’s C-team, but was promoted…

(more…)

Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri (born October 31, 1963 in Ijuí, Rio Grande do Sul), commonly known as Dunga, is a Brazilian former football defensive midfielder, of Italian and German descent, and a World Champion for Brazil in the 1994 World Cup. Dunga coached the national team in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and was dismissed by the Brazilian Football Confederation following the team’s elimination in the quarter finals.

His nickname is derived from the portuguese translation of Dopey dwarf from Snow White tale, and was given to him by an uncle due to his short height.

(more…)

Thierry Daniel Henry (born 17 August 1977) is a French professional footballer who plays for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer.

Henry was born in Les Ulis, Essonne (a suburb of Paris) where he played for an array of local sides as a youngster and showed great promise as a goal-scorer. He was spotted by AS Monaco in 1990 and signed instantly, making his professional debut in 1994. Good form led to an international call-up in 1998, after which he signed for the Serie A defending champions Juventus. He had a disappointing season playing on the wing, before joining Arsenal for £10.5 million in 1999.

Full name: Thierry Daniel Henry
Date of birth: 17 August 1977
Place of birth: Les Ulis, Essonne, France
Height: 1.88 m
Playing position: Striker/Winger
Club career: CO Les Ulis / US Palaiseau / Viry-Châtillon / Clairefontaine / Monaco / Juventus / Arsenal / Barcelona / New York Red Bulls
National team: France U20 – 5 – (5) / France – 123 – (51) (1997 – 2010)

(more…)

Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980 in Porto Alegre), commonly known as Ronaldinho or Ronaldinho Gaúcho, is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Milan and the Brazilian national team. He is widely regarded as one of the most gifted footballers of his generation. He is a free-kick specialist and has exceptional dribbling ability.

Full name: Ronaldo de Assis Moreira
Date of birth: 21 March 1980
Place of birth: Porto Alegre, Brazil
Height: 1.82 m
Playing position: Winger / Attacking midfielder
Club career: Grêmio – Paris Saint-Germain – Barcelona – AC Milan

Ronaldinho, Portuguese for “Little Ronaldo,” is known in Brazil by the nickname “Gaúcho,” in order to distinguish him from Ronaldo, who was already called “Ronaldinho” in Brazil. Ronaldo simply went by his first name upon his move to Europe, thereby allowing Ronaldinho to drop the “Gaúcho” and remain simply as Ronaldinho.

Prior to his move to Milan, he played for Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona, with whom he won his first Champions League in 2006 and he won the Ballon d’Or in 2005. He became a Spanish citizen in January 2007.

International career: Ronaldinho is one of few Brazilian players to have played at every international age level. He was part of the first Brazilian team to win the FIFA U-17 World Championship in 1997, in which his first goal was a penalty against Austria in the first group match, which Brazil won 7–0. Ronaldinho finished with two goals and was awarded the Bronze Ball award as Brazil scored a total of twenty-one goals while only conceding two.

1999 was a busy year for Ronaldinho in terms of international play. He took part in the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship, scoring his first goal in Brazil’s last group match. In the round of sixteen, he scored two first-half goals in a 4–0 win over Croatia, and finished with three goals as Brazil were eliminated by Uruguay in the quarterfinals. On 26 June, three days before the start of the 1999 Copa América, he earned his first cap for Brazil in a 3–0 win over Latvia, and he scored one goal during Brazil’s victorious Copa América campaign. One week after the conclusion of the Copa América, he was called up for the 1999 Confederations Cup, in which he scored in every match except the final, including a hat-trick in an 8–2 semifinal rout of Saudi Arabia. Ronaldinho did not score in the final, which Brazil lost 4–3 to Mexico. He won the Golden Ball award for the best player in tournament as well as the Golden Boot award for the tournament top-scorer.

In 2000, Ronaldinho participated in Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia with Brazil U-23 team. Earlier that year, Ronaldinho led Brazil to win the Pre-Olympic Tournament, scoring nine goals in seven matches. However in the Olympics, Brazil was eliminated in the quarterfinal by Cameroon, who later won the gold medal. Ronaldinho appeared four times and scored only one goal, which came in the quarterfinal defeat by Cameroon.

Ronaldinho participated in his first World Cup in 2002, as part of a formidable offensive unit with Ronaldo and Rivaldo, who were also on the 1999 Copa América winning squad. He appeared in five matches and scored two goals. The first goal came in the group stage match against China, which Brazil won 4–0. The second goal was a match-winning goal in the quarterfinal against England on 21 June. In the 50th minute, Ronaldinho took a free-kick from 35 metres, beating England goalkeeper David Seaman to give Brazil a 2–1 lead. However, seven minutes later, he was sent-off for a foul on England defender Danny Mills. He was suspended for the semifinal, but returned to Brazil’s starting lineup for the 2–0 victory over Germany in the final as Brazil won the World Cup for the fifth time.

Ronaldinho’s next international tournament was 2003 Confederations Cup. However, Ronaldinho did not manage to score any goals during the tournament as Brazil performed poorly and was eliminated in the group stage. The following year, he was left out from Brazil’s 2004 Copa América squad, as coach Carlos Alberto Parreira decided to rest his stars and used a largely reserve squad.

He was the capitain of Brazil to its second Confederations Cup title in 2005, and was named Man of the Match in a 4–1 victory over archrivals Argentina in the final on 29 June. Ronaldinho scored three goals in the tournament and is tied with Cuauhtémoc Blanco as the tournament’s all-time scorer with nine goals.

Ronaldinho Video

Ronaldinho started in all five of Brazil’s 2006 World Cup finals matches as part of a much-publicized “magic quartet” of offensive players, alongside Adriano, Ronaldo, and Kaká. However, the foursome finished with only five goals as Brazil disappointed as a whole in the tournament. Ronaldinho turned in his worst collective performance in his international career, going scoreless with only one assist, which was for Gilberto’s goal in a 4–1 group stage victory over Japan. He was a non-factor as Brazil was eliminated by France 1–0 in the quarter-finals, in which Brazil had only one shot on goal for the entire match. The team was harshly criticized by Brazilian fans and media following their return home. On 3 July, two days after Brazil’s elimination, vandals immolated and destroyed a 7.5-meter (23-foot) tall fiberglass and resin statue of Ronaldinho in Chapecó.The statue had been erected in 2004 to celebrate his first FIFA World Player of the Year award. That same day, Ronaldinho, joined by Adriano, returned to Barcelona and held a party at his home, which was continued into the early morning hours at a nightclub. This aggravated the hard feelings of many Brazilian fans, who believed that they were betrayed by the lack of effort from the squad.

Ronaldinho Goal Top 10 Video

On 24 March 2007, he scored twice in a 4–0 win over Chile, which marked his first goal since the 2005 Confederations Cup final and thus ended a scoreless streak that lasted nearly two years. He was not called up for the 2007 Copa América after asking to be excused from the tournament due to tiredness. On 18 October, he was controversially benched by Barcelona after he was late returning to Spain following Brazil’s 5–0 friendly win over Ecuador. He and several Brazil players celebrated the win by partying through the night at a posh Rio de Janeiro nightclub. Ronaldinho left at 11 a.m. the next morning, allegedly in the trunk of a car in order to avoid the media.

On 7 July 2008, Ronaldinho was named to Brazil’s 2008 Summer Olympics squad as one of the over-age players. Barcelona initially blocked the move because of his then-upcoming Champions League commitments with the club, but the decision was later nullified following Ronaldinho’s transfer to Milan, who in turn permitted him to make the trip to Beijing. Ronaldinho scored his only two goals in a decisive 5–0 victory over New Zealand before Brazil were beaten by Argentina in the semifinal. Brazil finished with the bronze medal after defeating Belgium 3–0 in the bronze medal match.

Despite having returned to good form and being named as a member of the 30-man provisional squad that was submitted to FIFA on 11 May 2010, he was not named in Coach Dunga’s final squad of 23 for the Brazilian squad in South Africa for the 2010 World Cup despite his deep desire to do so. Critics have claimed that the exclusion of players such as Ronaldinho, Alexandre Pato, Adriano and Ronaldo signals a move away from the classic Brazilian attacking “Joga Bonito” style of play.

Footballers:

Lothar Matthäus (Germany), five times (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998)

Antonio Carbajal (Mexico), five times (1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966)

Uwe Seeler (Germany) four times (1958, 1962, 1966, 1970)

Wladislaw Zmuda (Poland) four times (1974, 1978, 1982, 1986)

Karl-Heinz Schnellinger (Germany) four times (1958, 1962, 1966, 1970)

Pele (Brazil) four times (1958, 1962, 1966, 1970)

Djalma Santos (Brazil) four times (1954, 1958, 1962, 1966)

Gianni Rivera (Italy) four times (1962, 1966, 1970, 1974)

Pedro Rocha (Uruguay) four times (1962, 1966, 1970, 1974)

Diego Maradona (Argentina) four times (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994)

Giuseppe Bergomi (Italy) four times (1982, 1986, 1990, 1998)

Andoni Zubizarreta (Spain) four times (1986, 1990, 1994, 1998)

Enzo Scifo (Belgium), four times (1986, 1990, 1994, 1998)

Frankie van der Elst (Belgium), four times (1986, 1990, 1994, 1998)

Paolo Maldini (Italy) four times (1990, 1994, 1998, 2002)

Cafu (Brazil) four times (1994, 1998, 2002, 2006)

Sami Al-Jaber (Saudi Arabia) four times (1994, 1998, 2002, 2006)

Of the SOLID TOURNAMENT MOST COUNTRIES: Brazil 18 / Italy 16 / Germany 16 / Argentina 14 / Mexico 13 / England 12 / France 12 / Spain 12 / Belgium 11 / Sweden 11 / Serbia – Yugoslavia 10

MOST SEMI-FINAL, FINAL CHAMPIONS AND SEE THE COUNTRIES:

CHAMPIONSHIP: Brazil (5) / Italy (4) / Germany (3) / Argentina (2) / Uruguay (2) / France (1) / England (1)

FINAL: Brazil (7) / Italy (6) / Germany (7) / Argentina (4) / Uruguay (2) / France (2) / England (1) / Netherlands (2) / Czechoslovakia – Czech Republic (2) / Hungary (2) / Swedish (1)

SEMI FINAL: Brazil (10) / Italy (8) / Germany (11) / Argentina (4) / Uruguay (4) / France (5) / England (2) / Netherlands (3) / Czechoslovakia – Czech Republic (2) / Hungary (2) / Swedish (4) / Poland (2) / Yugoslavia / Serbia (2) / Austria (2) / Portugal (2) / Belgium (1) / Chile (1) / USSR – Russia (1) / Spain (1) / United States (1) / Bulgaria (1) / Croatia (1) / Turkey (1) / South Korea (1)

FIRST RECORD AND WITH RESPECT TO THE COUNTRY AND PLAYERS:

The oldest footballer to play in World Cup history: 42 years of age 39 days last Cameroonian Roger Milla.

The youngest footballer to play in World Cup history: Northern Ireland’s Norman Whiteside. Whiteside, 1982, in Yugoslavia, came out the match just 17 years old.

Multiple trophies on those wearing the uniform of the country: Luis Monti (Argentina in 1930 and Italy 1934), Ferenc Puskás (Hungary in 1954 and Spain 1962), Jose Santamaria (Uruguay in 1954 and Spain 1962), Mazola (Brazil in 1958 and Italy 1962), Robert Prosinečki – Robert Jarni (Croatia, Yugoslavia in 1990 and 1998 ), the shortest World Cup career: Tunisian Khemais Labidi (1978 – 2 minutes against Mexico), Argentine Marcelo Trobbiani (1986 – 2 minutes against West Germany)

The first substitution: Anatoli Pusatch (USSR – in 1970 Mexico entered the game later in the game. The World Cup until the year 1970 was not a substitute)

Substitutions at the earliest: the Italian national team in 1998 with Alessandro Nesta’yı Giuseppe Bergomi, 2006, England, Michael Owen, Peter Crouch has changed in the fourth minute.

The oldest referee: English referee George Reader. Reader, 1950 Brazil-Uruguay final 236 days past the age of 53 he was managing.

The youngest coach Argentina’s national team coach, Juan Jose Tramutola. Argentina National Team at the helm of the Tramutola 1930, 27 years old.

The oldest coach: Gaston Barreau 70-year-old coach of France.

World Cup History – Statistics and Notes

Francesco Totti, Cavaliere Ufficiale OMRI,(born 27 September 1976 in Rome) is an Italian World Cup-winning footballer who is the current captain of Serie A club Roma. His position is that of a striker or an attacking midfielder, though he is best known for playing as a second striker. Totti has spent his entire career at Roma, is the number-one goalscorer and the most capped player in the club’s history. “Er Pupone,” as he is commonly nicknamed, is considered one of the greatest players in his generation and also one of Roma’s greatest players ever.

Francesco Totti

Full name: Francesco Totti
Date of birth: 27 September 1976
Place of birth: Rome, Italy
Height: 1.80 m
Playing position: Striker / Attacking midfielder
Youth career: Fortitudo / Smit Trastevere / Lodigiani / Roma
Club career: AS Roma (1992 – ….)

Francesco Totti Top Ten Goals Video

…soonnn…..

Totti has won several awards in Italy during his career including a record five Italian Footballer of the Year awards and two Serie A Footballer of the Year awards.He was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004.

Totti is currently the top active Serie A goalscorer, and sixth all-time in league history with 192 goals.

International: Totti first came into international prominence while playing in the UEFA youth tournaments and won the UEFA under-21 championships in 1996. After starring with the Azzurrini in Italy’s Under-19 and Under-21 sides, he earned his first cap for Italy during a Euro 2000 qualifying victory against Switzerland on 10 October 1998.

Euro 2000: Italy went to Euro 2000 with Totti and he was in excellent form. He scored 2 goals during the tournament. The first goal against co-host nation Belgium in the first round and the second goal against Romania in the quarter-finals. Though Italy lost to France in the final, Totti was named the man of the match and he was selected for the 22-man Team of the Tournament.

2002 World Cup: Disappointment followed at the 2002 World Cup, with Totti failing to make a significant impact and then being sent off during Italy’s second-round loss to South Korea after being handed a controversial second yellow card by Byron Moreno for an alleged dive in the penalty area.

Euro 2004: Totti acquired a measure of infamy at Euro 2004 after he spat at Danish midfielder Christian Poulsen in a goalless draw on 14 June 2004. He was subsequently banned until the semifinals, but never made it back to action and finished the competition scoreless due to Italy’s elimination in the first round.

2006 World Cup: Though Totti recovered in time to join the national team for the 2006 World Cup, he was not completely in game shape after three months on the sidelines following his injury against Empoli, and played with metal plates in his ankle that had yet to be removed. He nonetheless was a regular fixture in the Marcello Lippi’s side. During the tournament he played behind the lone striker Luca Toni rather than as a pairing, notably scoring the controversial goal via a penalty in Italy’s 1–0 win over Australia on 26 June, and starting in the final against France until being substituted in the 61st minute. Italy went on to win the World Cup, and Totti was selected for the 23-man All-Star Team.

Retirement: Totti intended to retire from the Azzurri after the end of the World Cup, but reneged on his decision and remained undecided on his future for over a year and was never called up in the meantime. He made his retirement official on 20 July 2007, at the beginning of the 2007–08 Serie A season in order to focus solely on club play with Roma. The current Italy coach, Roberto Donadoni, attempted to get Totti to change his mind for the remaining Euro 2008 qualifiers but was not successful.

After the national team reunited with Marcello Lippi, Totti announced that he would like to play in the 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa if he got called up, however, no official statement release from both Totti and Lippi about possible comeback. In the event, Totti was not named in the final squad, and Italy was subsequently eliminated as a bottom place in their group, their worst ever group stage results in the history of the World Cup. Diego Maradona and former national teammates Fabio Cannavaro and Gianluigi Buffon commented one of the reasons for Italy’s early exit is that the Azzurri lack creative players like Totti.

Marcos Evangelista de Moraes (born 7 June 1970), better known as Cafu, is a former Brazilian footballer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest right-backs ever. He was given this nickname due to his speed up and down the right flank which was reminiscent of Cafuringa, a Brazilian forward from the 1970s.

Cafu was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. He is best known for his tireless overlapping runs.

Club Career: São Paulo / Juventude / Zaragoza / Palmeiras / Roma / AC Milan

Full name: Marcos Evangelista de Moraes
Date of birth: June 7, 1970
Place of birth: São Paulo, Brazil
Height: 1.76 m
Playing position: Right back

International Career: Cafu is the most-capped Brazilian player of all time with 143, including 21 World Cup finals appearances. He has won two World Cups in 1994 and 2002, and is one of the few players that have participated in four consecutive tournaments, as well as being the first and to this day the only player to participate in three consecutive WC final matches. He earned his first cap in a friendly against Spain on 12 September 1990, and played sparingly for Brazil in the early 90s, making the 1994 World Cup roster as a substitute. He appeared in the final against Italy, following an injury to Jorginho in the 22nd minute. After that, Cafu was soon a regular in the starting eleven as Brazil won the Copa América in 1997 and 1999, and reached the 1998 FIFA World Cup final.

Brazil endured a rocky qualification for the 2002 tournament, during which Cafu came under heavy criticism from coach Wanderley Luxemburgo, who stripped him of the team captaincy after he was sent off in a qualifier against Paraguay. Shortly after that, though, Luxemburgo was out of a job, and replacement Luiz Felipe Scolari made Emerson his new choice for captain. However, Emerson missed the cut after he dislocated his shoulder in training, which allowed Cafu to regain the armband. After Brazil defeated Germany 2–0 in the final match, he stood on the victory podium during the postmatch celebration and, as he raised the trophy, shouted to his wife, “Regina, eu te amo!” (“Regina, I love you!”).

Cafu and Brazil fell short of high expectations placed on the squad four years later in 2006, as the Seleção meekly exited in the quarterfinals after a 1–0 defeat by France. Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira was criticized for featuring fading veterans, most notably the 36-year-old Cafu and 33-year-old Roberto Carlos, in the starting eleven in lieu of younger players. Cafu was one of only a few Brazil players who spoke to the press in the midst of a hailstorm of criticism from Brazilian fans and media alike following the team’s return home. He nonetheless expressed interest in participating in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where he would be 40 years old. However, he has since retired from football altogether.

Cafu was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004.

Cafu Video

Paolo Cesare Maldini (born 26 June 1968 in Milan, Italy) is a retired Italian footballer. He spent all 25 seasons of his career at Serie A club Milan, before retiring at the age of 40. During that period, Maldini won the UEFA Champions League a record five times, as well as seven Serie A titles, one Coppa Italia, five Supercoppa Italiana, five European Super Cups, two Intercontinental Cups and one FIFA Club World Cup. He played for 14 years for the Italian national team, making his debut in 1988 before retiring in 2002 with 126 caps scoring 7 goals.

Maldini’s father, Cesare formerly played for and captained Milan and is a successful national U-21 coach.

Full name: Paolo Cesare Maldini
Date of birth: 26 June 1968
Place of birth: Milan, Italy
Height: 1.86 m
Playing position: Left back / Centre back

Club Career: AC Milan (1978–1985)

International Career: In 1986, Maldini was called up by his father Cesare to the Italian U-21 side, where he earned twelve caps and scored five goals in two years. He made his Azzurri debut at the age of nineteen on 31 March 1988, in a 1–1 friendly draw against Yugoslavia, and made one appearance for Italy at the 1988 Olympics. Maldini featured in all four of Italy’s games at Euro 1988, and participated in his first World Cup in 1990, where Italy lost to Argentina in the semifinals on penalties.

Maldini’s first international goal came in his 44th career match, in a 2–0 friendly win over Mexico on 20 January 1993. He captained Italy at the start of the 1994 World Cup, losing to Brazil in the final on penalties. He was named in the Team of the Tournament, 32 years after his father received the same honor at the 1962 World Cup. Euro 1996 would see Italy eliminated in the group stage, and the quarterfinals of the 1998 World Cup. Italy did reach the final of Euro 2000, but lost to France in extra time.

After Italy were eliminated in the 2002 World Cup round of sixteen, Maldini retired trophyless from international competition as Italy’s most capped player. He scored seven international goals, all coming in home games. He spent over half of his 16 years as an international as team captain, wearing the armband a record 74 times.

In February 2009, Italian head coach Marcello Lippi declared his support for a testimonial match for Maldini, stating that it would give him a chance to play for the Azzurri for a final time. Italian Football Federation offered him a place in the line-up in a friendly match against Northern Ireland. However, Paolo Maldini rejected the offer, saying that he wanted to part with football in an “official” match.

Paolo Maldini Compilation Video

Franky Van der Elst (born April 30, 1961 in Ninove) is a former Belgian footballer and a current manager.

A defensive midfielder, he played mainly with Club Brugge, being regarded as a legend there, and briefly coaching the team in the 2000′s. Also, he was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers, in March 2004.

Date of birth: April 30, 1961
Place of birth: Ninove, Belgium
Height: 1.84 m
Playing position: Midfielder

Club Career: Molenbeek / Club Brugge (1978 – 1999)

UEFA: Beker Club Brugge – Borussia Dortmund 87-88 Video

Vincenzo Enzo Scifo (born February 19, 1966, La Louviere), Belgian footballer.

La Louviéroise’de football began at the age of 14 RSC Anderlecht’e Scifo was transferred yet. In 1984 he won the gold shoes in Belgium. RSC Anderlecht’ten active career in another AS Monaco, Auxerre and Internazionale also played.

Left football in 2000.

Full name: Vincenzo Daniele Scifo
Date of birth: February 19, 1966
Place of birth: Haine-Saint-Paul, Belgium
Height: 1.78 m
Playing position: Attacking Midfielder

Club Career: Anderlecht / Internazionale / Bordeaux / Auxerre / Torino / Monaco / Anderlecht / Charleroi (1983 – 2001)

Enzo Scifo al INTER (1987-1988) Video