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India's World Cup and AFC Cup schedule clash

India's national football team will train in Dubai for ten days before its first round qualifier match for the 2010 World Cup against Lebanon scheduled for 8 October. The Indian team's camp in Dubai will start on 25 September, a day after Mahindra United play Lebanon's Al Nejmeh in the quarterfinal of the Asian Football Confederation's AFC Cup. Six Mahindra players will join the national squad immediately after the game.

"The time gap is too small. It will hamper our preparation. What will we do if a player gets injured? There is just not enough time to prepare," India's coach, Bob Houghton told media. "If we win against Lebanon then we play Tajikistan sometime in November I think, and if Mahindra also win their first AFC Cup match, there is a possibility the dates might clash again," he warned.

UAE takes Asian title in World Cup Beach Soccer

The United Arab Emirates has won the Asian Zone qualifiers for the 2007 World Cup Beach Soccer with a 4-3 win over Japan in the final of the series played at Mamzar Beach in Dubai. Iran finished third with a crushing 6-0 win over defending Asian champion Bahrain. UAE, Japan and Iran now will particiapte in the World Cup to be held 2-11 November in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

African communicators to spread World Cup news

More than 300 marketers and communicators from across Africa gathered in Johannesburg, South Africa, to discuss the best ways to harness the FIFA World Cup 2010 to project a new image of Africa to the world. The second annual National Communication Partnership Conference, hosted by the International Marketing Council of South Africa and the 2010 National Communication Partnership task team was organised under the theme Africa's time has come! “To make this a truly African World Cup there is a need for linkages and partnerships amongst communicators across the continent and the diaspora. This year’s Partnership conference is a step in that direction,” stressed Chairperson Nkenke Kekana. “The 2010 World Cup will be an opportunity to build African solidarity and to foster a climate that contributes to making the world think differently about us; because we are going to deliver a World Cup experience that will be hard to match”, added Yvonne Johnson, CEO of the IMC.

"Africa's time has indeed come. The entire continent must work together and consolidate African solidarity around this project, the African showpiece," Dr Makhenkesi Stofile, the South African Minister of Sport and Recreation, told delegates. He urged all Africans to unite and share what he called "the broader responsibility that transcends the borders of the African continent." Dr Ben Egbuna of Nigeria, the President of African Union of Broadcasters, concurred. "Regardless of our political complexion and national ideology, preparation for this tournament has to be an 'everybody's' undertaking. Let's foster and strengthen the inter-country competitive spirit and build synergy among the various media organisations on the continent. It is a challenge for Africa and in particular African media to use this opportunity to counter the wrong perceptions of Africa and project the positive image and values of the continent," he said.

According to Danny Jordaan, CEO of the South African Football Association-linked Local Organizing Committee, stakeholders are "quite comfortable" with progress being made for the tournament. Five new stadiums were being built, one was receiving a major upgrade and there were already four existing ones. "Four of the stadiums can be used to host the FIFA World Cup tomorrow," he said. "We are convinced that all these stadiums will be ready for 2010. If we do it on deadline we will be the first host in the world to complete all its stadia on time," he said. Efforts were also being made to ensure that the tickets, of which there would be about 3.5 million available, would be affordable. He said the preliminary draw, the first official event, will be held in Durban on 25 November with the highest number of countries ever had entered for the event.

World Cup 2010 Government Unit Director-General Joe Phaahla said the South African Government was planning to prevent major electricity outages normally experienced during its winter months during the World Cup. "We will not want to see blackouts during the tournament. We as government are cogniscant of the fact that the games will be held in winter, and it is during the time when we experience a major demand in electricity. We are working with Eskom and the Department of Minerals and Energy to make sure that all the stadia are powered by generators in terms of the FIFA agreement," he said. "The is receiving urgent attention and there is nothing to worry about," Phaahla said.

"A joint effort of communicators from across the continent is necessary to promote African solidarity, the continent's beauty and create a positive communication climate to promote development and expand opportunities in marketing our continent," said Thabo Masebe of the South African Government Information Services. While Tim Modise, spokesperson for the LOC, said the idea was not to "twist" the truth about Africa, but "the way the story is being told. It is not like we are going to do away with typical problems that we know are there, but to show the world that there is more to Africa than what people are used to," he said.

"We need to take advantage of the opportunity to create a positive image of our continent to the world. The World Cup in Africa is more than just soccer alone. It is also about growth and development of our continent," Nkenke Kekana concluded. "We want to propagate a common vision and objectives for communication and leverage the event as a means to strengthen Africa's capacity to market itself internationally, and reinforce communication on 2010-related developments at country and continental level." The delegates resolved to use the NCP to exchange ideas and suggestions on how to define the continent's image and reputation in the world.

South Koreans regain 'World Cup' fever - for U-17s

World football body FIFA has announced that over 600,000 tickets have already been sold for the U-17 World Cup being played in South Korea during 8 August - 9 September. Local organisers are hoping to beat China’s record total attendance of 735,000 for the competition which was set on its debut as an U-16 tournament in 1985.

FIFA reactivates gambling "early warning" system

FIFA is extending its betting detection system for monitoring sports betting to take in the preliminary competition for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Early Warning System GmbH, a company founded specifically for this purpose with its own staff and offices in Zurich, was contracted to undertake this task and started the relevant work on 1 July 2007. FIFA's actions are intended to prevent sports betting from having any negative impact on football matches and, at the same time, raise awareness of this problem throughout the entire football community. FIFA will immediately sign contracts via the company with bookmakers and betting organisations, under which the latter will be required to report any irregular betting activities.

The ever-increasing range of sports bets now available, largely as a result of advances in new media and internet technology, is having a growing influence on football at national and international level, Soccer Investor reported. Article 15 of the FIFA Code of Ethics forbids officials, players and players' agents from taking part, either directly or indirectly, in betting, gambling, lotteries and similar events or transactions connected with football matches. It also prohibits these persons from having stakes, either actively or passively, in companies, concerns, organisations etc. that promote, broker, arrange or conduct such events or transactions. While any transgressions of this code are to be sanctioned in accordance with the FIFA Disciplinary Code, the passing of sanctions for illegal betting activities and match rigging and the battle to eradicate such activities remain the responsibility of government authorities.

Pakistan firm makes world's largest football

A leading football manufacturing firm in Sialkot, Pakistan, has unveiled the world’s largest handmade football, measuring 34.7 feet diameter and weighing 800 kg. The huge ball took 50 stitchers over two months to complete the required 22,000 stitches. Ahsan Naeem, Chief Executive of Vision Technologies, said the football had been manufactured in record time on the request of MPM Telephone Company of South Africa and will be displayed in South Africa as part of the preparations for the 2010 World Cup. "It will be dispatched to South Africa on a special chartered flight to ensure its safe landing," he told Pakistan Times.

World Cup matches force India to modify program

The All India Football Federation is hoping its Lebanon counterpart will assist in modifying the the pre-World Cup 2010 draw issued by the Asian Football Confederation. With Round One of the pre-qualifiers scheduled for the middle of India's overcrowded domestic football calendar, the AIFF has sent a message to Lebanon asking them to agree to play an advanced return leg preferably within one week of the first leg which is slated to be played on 8 October. Originally scheduled for 28 October, India has asked Lebanon to agree to play the second leg at least a fortnight earlier, as that would not set back by a great deal the start of the inaugural I-League which was originally slated to begin on 30 September. The Asian draw has even caught Lebanon by surprise. Should they manage to beat India, they will meet the winners of the North Korea and Mongolia game on 18 November (second leg). The slight logistical problem here is that Lebanon are already due to play a pre-Olympic tie a day earlier.

The AIFF told Times of India it had asked national coach Bob Houghton what dates he preferred. Houghton reportedly suggested that playing within a week of each other was the best solution as the team too would be in fine fettle. Whatever the changes in the dates for the double-leg knockout qualifier, the start of India's first professional league stands postponed due to the 8 October first leg match and a bout of heavy rain which held up the second round of the the ongoing Goan League. "Whatever Lebanon’s decision, definitely the league will be postponed by almost a month," Savio Messias, secretary of the Goan Football Association told the newspaper.

World Cup matches force UAE to modify program

The United Arab Emirates Football Association will be forced to make changes in the fixtures of the new season due to the new schedule of the World Cup qualifiers in October and the Arab Champions League next month. After the FA sent the new season UAE League and President's Cup programs to the clubs, they "came suddenly" upon the Asian Football Confederation draw for Asia's World Cup qualifiers in which the UAE will meet Vietnam in home and away matches in October. The Al Shaab club is also meeting Al Faisaly of Jordan in the Arab Champions League on 21 September in Sharjah and 16 October in Amman. According to Sayed Ali of Gulf News, the FA's technical committee is in countact with UAE coach Bruno Metsu to adapt the program for the national team for the matches against Vietnam and the tournaments committee will have to postpone the League matches set for 6 amd 7 October and the pre-quarterfinals of the President's Cup on 27 and 28 October. The third week of the League matches on 19 and 20 October also have to be postponed due to a friendly match against Tunisia on 17 October.

AFC announces Asian draw for World Cup 2010

The Asian Football Confederation has unveiled the draw for the first round of regional qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup, with Asian Cup champions Iraq along with Afghanistan and Palestine barred from playing home matches for security reasons. “We decided this after due consideration and also after discussing it with FIFA. I think the football authorities in Iraq understand why we made this decision,” AFC Tournament Director and Assistant General Secretary Carlo Nohra told reporters.

The draw created a number of intriguing match-ups, with Iraq to face Pakistan, while sixth-seeded Bahrain will take on Malaysia. The top five teams -- Australia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Japan and Iran -- have been given a bye into the third round. Of the 19 teams that make it through the first round, the lowest eight battle in the second round for four spots in the third round, while the top 11 move directly into the third round.

The first home-and-away knockout round will take place on 8 October and 28 October while the second round is scheduled for 9 November and 18 November. The draw for the third round will take place in Durban, South Africa, on 25 November 2007. In the third round, the 20 teams are split into five groups of four, with the top two from each group advancing. The 10 remaining teams are split into two groups. The top two teams in each group qualify automatically for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Teams that finish third in each group play a home-and-away playoff and the team winning that playoff confronts the winner of the Oceania FC qualification in a home-and-away playoff to get the "jackpot" spot in the World Cup.

The seedings: 1. Australia 2. South Korea 3. Saudi Arabia 4. Japan 5. Iran 6. Bahrain 7. Uzbekistan 8. Kuwait 9. North Korea 10. China 11. Jordan 12. Iraq 13. Lebanon 14. Oman 15. UAE 16. Qatar 17. Syria 18. Palestine 19. Thailand 20. Turkmenistan 21. Tajikistan 22. Indonesia 23. Hong Kong 24. Yemen 25. Vietnam 26. Kyrgyzstan 27. Maldives 28. India 29. Singapore 30. Sri Lanka 31. Malaysia 32. Taiwan 33. Bangladesh 34. Macau 35. Pakistan 36. Afghanistan 37. Mongolia 38. Guam 39. Nepal 40. Cambodia 41. Bhutan 42. Myanmar 43. East Timor (teams ranked 1-5 receive a bye to the third round).

The pairings for Round 1
1) Pakistan v Iraq
2) Uzbekistan v Taiwan
3) Thailand v Macau
4) Sri Lanka v Qatar
5) China v Myanmar
6) Bhutan v Kuwait
7) Kyrgyzstan v Jordan
8) Vietnam v UAE
9) Bahrain v Malaysia
10) East Timor v Hong Kong
11) Syria v Afghanistan
12) Yemen v Maldives
13) Bangladesh v Tajikistan
14) Mongolia v North Korea
15) Oman v Nepal
16) Palestine v Singapore
17) Lebanon v India
18) Cambodia v Turkmenistan
19) Guam v Indonesia

Round 2:
Eight teams are paired by draw and play one home-and-away knock-out round. Four teams progress to round 3
Match Day 1: 9 Nov 2007
Match Day 2: 18 Nov 2007
or dates to be determined by teams but both matches to be completed by 18th November 2007

Round 3:
Eleven qualifiers from round 1 and four qualifiers from round 2 are joined by five highest ranked countries. These 20 teams are split into 5 groups of 4. First and second in each group qualify to next round
Match Day 1: 6 Feb 2008
Match Day 2: 26 Mar 2008
Match Day 3: 7 Jun 2008
Match Day 4: 14 Jun 2008
Match Day 5: 6 Sep 2008
Match Day 6: 10 Sep 2008

Round 4:
10 remaining teams split into two groups of 5 teams
Teams finishing first and second in each group automatically qualify
Match Day 1: 15 Oct 2008
Match Day 2: 19 Nov 2008
Match Day 3: 11 Feb 2009
Match Day 4: 28 Mar 2009
Match Day 5: 1 Apr 2009
Match Day 6: 6 Jun 2009
Match Day 7: 10 Jun 2009
Match Day 8: 17 Jun 2009
Match Day 9: 5 Sep 2009
Match Day 10: 9 Sep 2009

AFC Playoff:
Teams finishing 3rd in each group from Round 4 play home-and-away playoff
Match Day 1: 10 Oct 2009
Match Day 2: 14 Oct 2009

AFC/OFC Playoff:
Team winning AFC Playoff plays winner of OFC qualification in a home and away playoff
Match Day 1: 14 Nov 2009
Match Day 2: 21 Nov 2009

Australian squad selected for Women's World Cup

Australia's national women's team, the Matildas, will be looking to replicate the success of the men's Socceroos in Germany last year said coach Tom Sermanni when he today announced the Australian squad for the FIFA Women’s World Cup in China next month. Australia has been drawn into Group C alongside Norway, Canada and Ghana. The 21-strong squad will again be led by long-serving captain Cheryl Salisbury who is not only the most capped male or female Australian international player but also the record Australian international goalscorer. The 33-year-old is also set to join an elite group of players in the world to have played at four World Cups.

The Matildas squad: Goalkeepers – Melissa Barbieri (Melbourne), Lydia Williams (Canberra), Emma Wirkus (Adelaide); Defenders – Di Alagich (Sydney), Rhian Davies (Sydney), Heather Garriock (Sydney), Kate McShea (Brisbane), Clare Polkinghorne (Brisbane), Cheryl Salisbury (Newcastle), Thea Slatyer (Sydney); Midfielders – Lauren Colthorpe (Newcastle), Alicia Ferguson (Brisbane), Collette McCallum (Perth), Joanne Peters (Newcastle), Sally Shipard (Canberra), Danielle Small (Sydney); Forwards – Joanne Burgess (Sydney), Lisa DeVanna (Perth), Kate Gill (Newcastle), Caitlin Munoz (Canberra), Sarah Walsh (Sydney).

The Nike strip for the women’s national team launched today is engineered specifically for women. The new Matildas’ kit incorporates some of Nike’s most innovative performance technologies including Nike Dri-FIT, a fabrication that draws sweat from the skin and moves it to the outside of the garment for rapid evaporation, keeping the athlete drier and more comfortable. Female participation in Australia has grown enormously in recent years with females comprising nearly 20 per cent of the registered players. There are now just on 100,000 registered players in Australia with numbers having grown by over 16 per cent in just one year between 2005 and 2006.

South Africa begins enforcement of all seat stadia

Regulations for all-seater stadia are being put in place ahead of the FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa. According to South African Police Service senior superintendent Vish Naidoo, "only the person holding the ticket of a specific seat may be allowed to sit there. At the moment it only refers to the seat number. During the World Cup only the person in whose name it is bought will be allowed to sit in the allocated seat." Naidoo said details of how this would be implemented would be dealt with by FIFA, but it was unlikely that people would have to carry an identity book or passport. He said fans would have to start getting used to the idea of sitting in their own seats and although it would be a challenge, spectators had to understand it was part of the regulations, Soccer Investor reported.

Have the Socceroos lost the "Guus Aura"?

"A little over a year ago, Australia, which had never won a World Cup game nor scored a goal at the greatest sporting event of all, had the opportunity to come of age as a soccer nation ... Guus Hiddink's men made the world sit up and take notice ... The legend of Hiddink, which already loomed large because of his heroics with South Korea four years before, scaled even greater heights," Robert Lusetich opined in The Australian before quoting Lucas Neill's assessment of Hiddink at the time: "He's one of those managers with a lot of balls. In big pressure situations, he makes big decisions and has an uncanny knack of pulling them off."

According to Lusetich, much has changed since then. "Primarily, Hiddink is gone and with him much of the aura of that unforgettable month. It has become painfully clear that he was the catalyst; he was [Australia's] Henry Higgins. There is no better illustration of what has changed than Neill. After his sublime performances in Germany, when Hiddink turned him into an Australian Beckenbauer, Neill returned to Blackburn, before moving to West Ham, and sadly reverted to being an English fullback, tackling like a fiend and pumping speculative long balls to scampering forwards.

"Hiddink would be disheartened with the primitive way the Australians have played in the group stages in Bangkok. In Hiddink's system, the ball is played to feet from the back and space is created by sharp interchanges; it is a possession game but not a negative approach. When opponents have the ball, space is denied by a total defensive effort which involves every player; this, too, has been missing from the Australian performances in Asia as certain players have lost the will to chase."

Asian qualifiers for FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup

The draw for the Asia qualifiers for this year's FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was held this week in Dubai where the continental tournament will take place at Mamzar Beach, between 14-18 August. Defending champions Bahrain have been grouped with hosts UAE, Iran and another nation that is yet to be named. Group 'B', meanwhile, consists of the Philippines, Thailand, Japan and China. The top two teams from each group move on to the semi-finals, which will be played on 17 August. The third-place playoff and final are scheduled for 18 August. The top three teams from the competition will move on to this year's World Cup which is scheduled to take place between 2-11 November at the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Bahrain defeated Asian powerhouses Japan 5-3 in last year's final to clinch the region's championship. They were led by Abdulla Ismail Omar, who was later named the Best Player of the tournament. Beach soccer was officially recognised as a FIFA sport in 2005.

Dual nationals return to play for the Phillipines

Filipino-British Chad Alesna Gould now regrets he didn't represent his South East Asian homeland in the ASEAN Football Championship qualifying round and the AFC Challenge Cup last year. “It was a very down moment for me. Everyday, the lads text me that I should have been there and it was very sad for me,” said Gould during a press conference announcing his football clinic at Krua Thai. “There is nothing like the feeling of playing my favorite sport and coming out in the field wearing the national colors. There is something magical about it and I missed that feeling that year,” he added. Gould last donned the national colors in the 2005 South East Asian Games as the Republic of the Philippines U-23 team striker.

He is now looking forward to representing RP again in the Challenge Cup in March next year alongside former reserves of English Premier League club Chelsea, Philip and James Younghusband. However, he admitted that he found it "was strange at first playing on the kind of surface and the facilities" in the Philippines as compatred to England.

Gould is disappointed the Philippines did not register for the qualifying rounds of the 2010 World Cup. “We ranked very low in the world, maybe 191st. But if you saw our performance, you would think twice. We beat Cambodia and Brunei, which are ranked higher than us,” he said, adding that the RP team needs to be exposed to more international events. “There are a lot of us Fil-foreigners in the team. It is too difficult to have training sessions regularly and too expensive to have us travel back and forth. The way forward is to play more games and to train together,” he told the Sun Star Cebu.

FIFA un-sacks its Visa-Mastercard chief negotiator

The world football body's settlement with MasterCard over forthcoming World Cup sponsorships appears to have wiped the slate clean for at least one of the FIFA marketing executives who'd been accused of improper practices and observed by a US Federal Judge as having "lied repeatedly". Four were subsequently sacked by FIFA President Joseph S Blatter. To avoid further court action in the USA and Europe, FIFA has subsequently now agreed to pay US$90 million to Mastercard Inc to discontinue its claims.

"FIFA has, first of all, resolved a problem. Secondly - much more importantly - has paved the way to a good, new partner [Visa] that will support it and its manifold activities efficiently all around the world," Blatter told media.

However it is reported that FIFA has now reinstated marketing chief Jerome Valcke who was one of those sacked in December following the US`court hearing. FIFA apparently insists that an Appeal Court order of a review of aspects of the December hearing "means the original ruling about his misconduct has been voided." Voila!

Oceania: South Pacific Games lead to World Cup

Asian Football Business Review will feature regular articles on the under-reported Oceania Football Confederation for the interest of our wide readership, particularly those Kuwaiti leaders who have disclosed a passionate concern about Pacific football after Australia's exit to Asia. Our previously stated position is to encourage the OFC to join the AFC as a constituent regional group.

The 13th South Pacific Games, to be played in Samoa from 25 August to 7 September are stage one of the Oceania Football Confederation's qualifying matches for the FIFA World Cup 2010. The top three countries from the 10-team tournament will advance to a four-team, round-robin which will include New Zealand. The winner of that four-country tournament will advance to a two-game playoff against the fifth-ranking team from the Asian Football Confederation's play-offs, with the winner advancing to the World Cup in South Africa.

Fiji, Tahiti, New Caledonia, the Cook Islands and Tuvalu will play in Group A while hosts Samoa will be in Group B, where they will take on the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Tonga and American Samoa.

Mastercard drops two FIFA World Cups for $90m

FIFA appears to to have won its controversial battle to replace Mastercard with Visa as its financial card sponsor with MasterCard Inc's surprising annoicnement that it will accept a US$90 million settlement from FIFA to discontinue its sponsorship claims to FIFA's 2010 and 2014 World Cup tournaments.

MasterCard and football's governing body, the Federation Internationale de Football Association, have been fighting in court over MasterCard's right to the sponsorship. A US district judge ruled in December that FIFA did not honour its agreements with the credit card issuer when it awarded sponsorship rights to rival, Visa International Inc. However, in May, a US federal appeals court asked the lower court judge to review her ruling due to uncertainties over whether a 2006 contract was valid. MasterCard had served as the tournament's official sponsor since 1994.

Mastercard's Chief Marketing Officer Larry Flanagan said the decision to end the relationship with FIFA was based on "irreparable damage" to the company's trust in the organisation. He said MasterCard determined the sponsorship was "basically not worth it, based on the need to have an ongoing, collaborative relationship with the other party."

He said the settlement is in the best interest of shareholders, based on the cost of legal proceedings. The settlement resolves all litigation in the US and in Switzerland, where FIFA had wanted an arbitration panel to decide on the matter. MasterCard's general counsel Noah Hanft said the $90 million settlement payment represents half of the sponsorship amount.

Indonesia plans 15-year target to make World Cup

The Football Association of Indonesia (PSSI) has chosen a target date for the country to play in the FIFA World Cup finals. It is 2022, fifteen years away. According to the PSSI website, talented young players representing 28 clubs in this year's Medco U-15 festival will play a role in Indonesia's World Cup aspirations. "This festival is like a fresh air in local football, future stars would come from this festival. Indonesia now preparing their target to play in 2022 World Cup," it said.

Mastercard, Visa still in court over FIFA World Cup

An American appeals court has ordered a lower court to revisit a ruling that returned a coveted sponsorship deal for the FIFA World Cup football tournaments to MasterCard Inc. Last December, US District Judge Loretta Preska ruled that MasterCard, not rival Visa International, should be granted a further eight-year contract with football's governing body, FIFA. MasterCard already had sponsored the tournament for 16 years.

However a three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit said Preska needed to clarify whether a 2006 agreement between MasterCard and FIFA was binding and whether it would supersede a 2002 contract under which MasterCard contended it had the right of first refusal on a new pact. At the same time, the appellate court said: "The district court is free to reconsider other aspects of its original decision and relief ordered if the answer to the question for which we have remanded the case causes the court to rethink one or more of its rulings."

MasterCard, in a statement, said that it "looks forward to Judge Preska addressing this particular issue and final resolution of the ongoing matter," reported Martha Graybow for Reuters. FIFA said the appellate ruling was what the football body "has already long requested, that it clarify the question of which contract between FIFA and MasterCard is valid. In this respect, FIFA is very pleased with the judgement." Visa said it had no immediate comment. The appeals court last year rejected Visa's bid to become a party to the lawsuit.

Blatter prefers Asian host for 2018 FIFA World Cup

FIFA will make a decision on which continent stages the 2018 World Cup tounament later this year but its President Sepp Blatter favours a World Cup in Asia, which could include Australia now they are part of the Asian Football Confederation. "Personally, I think that we should maintain a rotation," Blatter said. "At least with four continents. To take North and South America as one continent, Europe, Africa and Asia. This would mean that the next World Cup after 2014 would go to Asia," he said as quoted by PA Sport.