A map and list of the many naturalized players called up to Qatar’s National team in the last couple of years.

Qatar is the country that offered Brazilian player Aílton, who was the top scorer in the Bundesliga at the time, a sum of $1,000,000+ to become a naturalized Qatari so he could help their push towards the 2006 World Cup. That didn’t work out (FIFA blocked the move), but as can be seen from this list, Qatar has been very open to naturalizing players from other countries to improve their national team. More→

It was 9 Years ago today that the famous David Beckham free kick against Greece took place, qualifying England for the 2002 World Cup.

England v Greece – Oct 6, 2001
Highlights leading up to the goal at the 6:15 mark

An up-to-date list of F1 driver salaries has been published, revealing just who is being paid what this season – and what kind of performance return they are giving for their remuneration…
The annual list of F1 salaries has again been published, with two world champions topping the list and a driver who is not even competing on the grand prix grid this year coming in at third place.

The report published by Spanish newspaper El Mundo and citing information compiled by Business Book GP revealed that Ferrari star Fernando Alonso is on a retainer of some 30 million, supplemented by his external endorsements.

That is almost twice the salary that the Oviedo native’s former team-mate and sworn rival currently Lewis Hamilton earns at McLaren-Mercedes, whose 16 million pay packet is virtually the same as what World Rally Championship convert Kimi Raikkonen is receiving as the Finn continues to benefit handsomely indeed from his early Ferrari pay-off.

Next up is Felipe Massa on 14 million notably, less than half of what team-mate Alonso is on with defending F1 World Champion Jenson Button fifth on 9 million, just ahead of Mercedes Grand Prix’s Michael Schumacher, whose 8 million remuneration is arguably generous indeed for the comparatively poor on-track return that the German legend has provided on his desperately disappointing comeback to active competition thus far this year.

In a laudable policy of equality, however, Schumacher’s team-mate Nico Rosberg is on exactly the same retainer with Renault F1′s Robert Kubica in many observers’ eyes, the star of the season to-date on 7.5 million.

A significant surprise if the findings are accurate, is that both Williams’ ultra-experienced veteran Rubens Barrichello is on more money at 5.5 million than either current world championship leader Mark Webber or Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull Racing, with the Australian perhaps similarly unexpectedly receiving more than the German with 4.2 million to 2 million though both are understood to be on substantial bonus agreements for every victory notched up.

Lotus Racing’s Jarno Trulli also outpoints Vettel in the basic salary stakes on 3 million, with team-mate Heikki Kovalainen on a basic retainer of around 2 million, Timo Glock for fellow F1 2010 newcomer Virgin Racing on 1 million and Williams rookie Nico Hlkenberg on 700,000.

Bringing up the rear of the list are Sauber duo Pedro de la Rosa and Kamui Kobayashi on 500,000 apiece, Renault’s Vitaly Petrov and Scuderia Toro Rosso pairing Jaime Alguersuari and Sbastien Buemi on 400,000 each and Force India’s Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi and Virgin new boy Lucas di Grassi all on 200,000. The final ‘paid’ driver, Hispania Racing’s Bruno Senna, is on just 150,000 or, to put it into perspective, roughly 200 times less than Alonso.

The figures make Ferrari comfortably the highest spender of the year in terms of driver expense, with (60 million) or without (44 million) Raikkonen taken into consideration, as the full list below shows. The ranking on the far right is current championship position.

Drivers:

1. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 30m 5th
2. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 16m 2nd
3. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 16m N/A
4. Felipe Massa Ferrari 14m 6th
5. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 9m 4th
6. Michael Schumacher Mercedes Grand Prix 8m 9th
7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes Grand Prix 8m 7th
8. Robert Kubica Renault F1 7.5m 8th
9. Rubens Barrichello Williams F1 5.5m 11th
10. Mark Webber Red Bull Racing 4.2m 1st
11. Jarno Trulli Lotus Racing 3m 19th=
12. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing 2m 3rd
13. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus Racing 2m 19th=
14. Timo Glock Virgin Racing 1m 19th=
15. Nico Hlkenberg Williams F1 700,000 15th
16. Pedro de la Rosa Sauber 500,000 17th
17. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber 500,000 12th=
18. Vitaly Petrov Renault F1 400,000 12th=
19. Jaime Alguersuari Scuderia Toro Rosso 400,000 18th
20. Sbastien Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso 400,000 16th
21. Adrian Sutil Force India F1 200,000 10th
22. Vitantonio Liuzzi Force India F1 200,000 14th
23. Lucas Di Grassi Virgin Racing 200,000 19th=
24. Bruno Senna Hispania Racing 150,000 19th=
25. Karun Chandhok Hispania Racing Nil 19th=
26. Sakon Yamamoto Hispania Racing Nil 19th =

Teams:

1. Ferrari 60m 3rd
2. McLaren-Mercedes 25m 2nd
3. Mercedes Grand Prix 16m 4th
4. Renault F1 7.9m 5th
5. Red Bull Racing 6.2m 1st
6. Williams F1 6.2m 7th
7. Lotus Racing 5m 10th=
8. Virgin Racing 1.2m 10th=
9. Sauber 1m 8th
10. Scuderia Toro Rosso 800,000 9th
11. Force India F1 400,000 6th
12. Hispania Racing 150,000 10th

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Deluxe version of the Tendulkar Opus, costing £49,000, features cricketer’s blood mixed into paper pulp, tinting the signature page.

Worship of cricket’s “little master”, Sachin Tendulkar, is set to cross a new boundary, as a luxury book publisher brings out a special edition of his autobiography made with the batsman’s blood.
Only for the most dedicated of fans, the “blood edition” of the Tendulkar Opus, which also includes unpublished family pictures and Tendulkar’s thoughts about his career, weighs 37kg, measures half a metre square and stretches to 852 pages edged in gold leaf, costing $75,000 (£49,000). Out next February, only 10 copies are being printed and they have all already been pre-ordered.

“The signature page will be mixed with Sachin’s blood – mixed into the paper pulp so it’s a red resin. It is what it is – you will have Sachin’s blood on the page,” said publisher Kraken Media’s chief executive Karl Fowler. “It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, it’s not to everyone’s taste and

some may think it’s a bit weird. But the key thing here is that Sachin Tendulkar to millions of people is a religious icon. And we thought how, in a publishing form, can you get as close to your god as possible?”
As well as taking blood from the cricketer, Kraken asked for a sample of his saliva and used this to create his DNA profile, which will be printed on a two-metre gatefold in the book. “What you’ll be looking at is his genetic makeup,” said Fowler.
All proceeds from the sale of the 10 copies will go to Tendulkar’s charitable foundation to help build a school in Mumbai.
Kraken will also publish around 1,000 copies of a cheaper edition of the autobiography at $2,000-$3,000 (£1,300-£1,900). Signed by Tendulkar, this edition will also be a half-metre square in size and will contain around 75% previously unpublished material about the cricketing star, as well as his DNA profile – but not his blood. It is also releasing a $200-$300 (£130-£190) smaller edition of the book.
“We’re publishing next February, in time for the cricket World Cup, which is being held in India. It’s perfect timing,” said Fowler. “He’s never done an autobiography before and has a great story to tell.”
Other titles out later this year from the luxury publisher include a book on major league baseball, one on Ferrari and one on Formula One. No plans to use blood in any of these have yet been revealed.

Via: The Gaudlrdian

Shakira and World Cup, you gotta love this. Who are you rooting for this year’s tourney?

The Jabulani ball, the special World Cup 2010 ball, is already a reason of controversy.  Some players say the ball is great, but some (like England goalkeeper Robert Green) would tend to disagree.  The ball has a special construction, that makes it “the roundest” ever and it was developed after intensive studies that Adidas made together with scientists from Loughborough University, in the United Kingdom.  Still, Brazil star Robinho said that the person who designed the ball certainly never played football.  On the other hand, Kaka, Frank Lampard and Michael Ballack praise the ball. The Jabulani ball will also have a gold version, called the Jo’Bulani, that will only be used in the final.

The constant drone of cheap and tuneless plastic horns is killing the atmosphere at the World Cup.

Where are the loud choruses of “Oooohhsss” from enthralled crowds when a shot scorches just wide of the goalpost? And the sharp communal intake of breath, the shrill “Aaahhhhss,” when a goalkeeper makes an acrobatic, match-winning save? Or the humorous/moving/offensive football chants and songs?  Mostly, they’re being drowned out by the unrelenting water-torture beehive hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm of South African vuvuzela trumpets. Damn them. They are stripping World Cup 2010 of football’s aural artistry.  Vuvuzela apologists – a few more weeks of this brainless white noise will perhaps change, or melt, their minds – defend the din as simply part of the South African experience. Each country to its own, they say. When in Rome, blah, blah, blah.  Which would be fine if this was purely a South African competition. Fans could then legitimately hoot away to their hearts’ content while annoying no one other than their immediate neighbors.  But this is the World Cup, a celebration of the 32 nations that qualified and of all the others that did not but which still play and love the game. Hosting planet football brings responsibilities. At the very least, South Africa should ensure that the hundreds of millions of visitors who come in goodwill to its door, both in person and via the magic of television, do not go home with a migraine. How many TV viewers who long for a more nuanced soundtrack to go with the show have already concluded that the only way to enjoy this World Cup is by pressing mute on their remote?  In Tweeting “No offense to the vuvuzela posse but, man, it’s a bit much,” seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong was not alone.  Attending or watching a match should be a feast for both the eyes and the ears. Those two senses work better together, each augmenting the other.  Sounds should ebb and flow like tides with the fortunes on the field. That adds to the drama. Fans reacting with their voices to action on the pitch, to events in the stadium and to each other’s sounds, songs and chants are part of football’s theater.  A sudden crowd silence can also tell a story – perhaps of the heartbreak of a late, defeat-inflicting goal or of the collective shock of seeing a player horribly injured by a bad tackle. Sometimes, you should even be able to hear a coach bark orders from the touchline or players shouting at each other for the ball.  There are stadium sounds other than vuvuzelas at this World Cup – just not enough of them. They are being bullied into submission by the trumpets’ never-ending screech.  In Rustenburg there were scattered unison chants of “In-ger-land, In-ger-land,” a few bars of “God Save the Queen” and the occasional “USA! USA!” when England played the United States on Saturday night. But vuvuzelas ultimately won the battle of the bands. They and the result – a disappointing 1-1 tie – silenced England’s fans, who usually are among the best-drilled noisemakers in football.  More→

Just like that, the Kansas City Wizards became one of the best-supported soccer clubs not only in MLS but the world over.

With a single transaction — the formal signing of India’s star soccer player, Sunil Chhetri, in March — the Wizards gained the firmest of footholds in the second-most populous country on the globe. The club’s Facebook page is now red-hot and media requests have poured in at all hours of the night.

Chhetri’s native country is known more for spicy food and computer technicians than for exporting soccer players — and despite numbering an estimated 1.1 billion citizens, India has only 20 Olympic medals to its name, the lowest count per capita in the world. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old Indian forward is a Kansas City Wizard.

But the signing of Chhetri, lest you be fooled, was anything but a marketing ploy. A team lacking in attacking fortitude, highlighted by Kei Kamara’s circus miss against the Los Angeles Galaxy two weeks ago — which made the foreign press — has designs on Chhetri’s prolific ways.  Unlike many of his countrymen, Chhetri has a pedigree in the sport. His mother played for the Nepal national team with her twin sister before she was married at 18 and had to quit. His father, also Nepalese, played in the Indian army. More→

 Wenlock & Mandeville