1min.football

From writing a thesis on dribbling to bamboozling Premier League defenders, here is the story of Kaoru Mitoma. The Brighton forward burst onto the scene by scoring goals against Everton, Liverpool, and Arsenal this season. Interestingly, the Japanese turned down a professional contract when he was 19. Instead of joining the J1 League side, Kawasaki Frontale, Mitoma enrolled at the University of Ts...

When Kalyan Chaubey became the President of the All India Football Federation, Indian football stepped into a new era, which demands a plan for a brighter future. AIFF’s Vision 2047 is a roadmap to lead the country into a stable and better position in international football while gradually improving all elements inside the country, including coaching, grassroots, women’s football, and infrastructu...

From playing Football Manager to taking charge of an actual top-division football club, here is the story of William Still. The 30-year-old English-Belgian manager currently in charge of the French top-division side, Stade de Reims, admitted that the video game helped him become a better coach. William learned skills such as setting up a team, negotiating a transfer deal, planning training session...

In 2018, Juventus shocked everyone by signing 33-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid for a world record €117 million. Juventus president Andrea Agnelli defended the cash spent by stating that the club assessed the cost and benefits of signing taking both the sporting and commercial sides into consideration. And it proved to be absolutely right. More than half a million Ronaldo replica jers...

FIFA has allocated $209 million to football clubs whose players participated in the World Cup. As part of the Club Benefits Programme, football clubs will be paid at the rate of $10,000 per player per day in Qatar. For each player reaching the group stage, the international governing body has issued $180,000, which rises to as much as $370,000 for playing in the finals. The scheme will benefit 416...

Toni Kroos has been wearing white Adidas Adipure 11Pro boots for more than nine years. Originally released in early 2013, the Adipure 11Pro model was discontinued in 2014. However, the German sportswear manufacturer continues to produce all-time classics exclusively for the Real Madrid player. Interestingly, Toni’s shoes are not the same as the ones available in retail stores. It contains the sole...

In 2013, having suffered four muscle problems in eight months, Messi was also spotted vomiting on the pitch. It was then that La Pulga approached the famous nutritionist, Giuliano Poser, for help. The Italian identified indigestion and food intolerance as the main causes of sickness. Leo’s meat consumption was reduced and alcohol was completely banned. Sugar, refined flour, eggs, and dairy product...

The UK is the only country in the world to observe a Saturday 3pm football blackout. From 2.45pm to 5.15pm on Saturdays, no Premier League, Football League or FA Cup match is broadcasted live on TV. During this period, it is illegal to stream live matches in public places like pubs and bars. Interestingly, the rule has been in place since the 1960s. Former Burnley chairman Bob Lord convinced fello...

Why would a tiny nation with less than 3 million inhabitants and no football pedigree host the most expensive FIFA World Cup ever? After Russia and Iran, Qatar has the third-largest proven natural gas reserves in the world. However, due to its geographic location, the country’s economy hangs by a thin wire. An instance of its fragility was witnessed during Qatar’s diplomatic crisis in 2017. Saudi...

In 2018, Iceland became the smallest nation ever to feature in the FIFA World Cup. The Nordic country proved their qualification was no fluke when they played a 1-1 draw against Messi’s Argentina in the group stage. But how did a nation with less than half a million residents achieve this remarkable feat? To overcome the challenges of a small population and harsh climate, the Icelandic football fe...

From air-conditioned stadiums to offside detection technology, the FIFA World Cup 2022 has certainly given us a sneak peek into the future of football with several cutting-edge innovations. One of them is the official World Cup ball itself. The Adidas AI Rihla contains an inertial measurement unit sensor inside it. The IMU sensor collects important data like ball speed and the exact time of impact...

The stakes are too high for the players at any FIFA World Cup. It can either bring them unprecedented fame and money or cost them their jobs, freedom, or even lives. The Round of 16 encounter between South Korea and Italy at the 2002 World Cup was full of controversial decisions. Ahn Jung-Hwan, whose goal knocked the European giants out of the competition, got his contract terminated by the Italia...

"Play to the whistle" is what we are taught as football players. But "to whose whistle?" is never mentioned. In the 1982 FIFA World Cup, debutant Kuwait was trailing 3-1 against France when the players heard a whistle. The Kuwait defence slowed down while the French team carried on and finished their move with a goal. Later, it was found that it was not the Soviet referee, Miroslav Stupar, who ble...

Named after Qatar's dialing code, Stadium 974 is as unique as its name. The stadium is made out of 974 shipping containers, which were used to bring construction items to the site. Stadium 974 is the world’s first demountable stadium, which means that the entire stadium can be deconstructed and transported to underdeveloped countries and the next World Cup venue after the World Cup in Qatar conclu...

Denmark will take the field wearing monochrome kits at the FIFA World Cup 2022. The subdued logos on the jerseys represent the nation's protest against human rights concerns in the host country. The Danish kit manufacturer, Hummel, stated that it doesn’t wish to be visible in the tournament, which has cost thousands of lives. Qatar has been heavily criticised for its human rights record, which inc...

According to the proposed roadmap for Indian Football, the I-League Champions will soon start getting promoted to the Indian Super League without paying any participation fees. However, the promoted clubs will not be entitled to any share in the ISL central revenue pool, which is the only major source of income for ISL teams. Currently, ISL teams receive almost ₹13 crores from the league every sea...

In 2005, the Glazers purchased Manchester United for an estimated £790 million, with a major portion of the capital coming from high-interest loans. After a series of debt refinancings through loans and bonds, the club was publicly listed in 2012. Interestingly, only half of the £150 million raised through the IPO was used to repay the debts, with the Glazers pocketing the other half.  Furthe...

Huddersfield Town unveiled one of the worst kits of all time, featuring an extra large Paddy Power slash logo for the 2019-20 season. As soon as the jersey was launched, the club received a lot of criticism for over-commercialisation. The FA fined the club £50,000 for breaching the advertising regulations after the club played their pre-season friendly against Rochdale wearing the same. However, l...

Athletic Bilbao has been following a unique unwritten rule since 1912. The LaLiga club signs only players who were either born in the Basque Country or learned to play football in the region. The Basque Country refers to a collection of regions in France and Spain inhabited by the Basque people. On one hand, the rule has been praised for promoting local talents, preserving regional identity and mo...

The Ballon d’Or, which translates to "Golden Ball" in English, is the most prestigious individual award in football. The French news magazine, France Football, presents the honour to the best footballer in the world over the previous year. Famous journalists from 180 countries choose the top five footballers from a pool of 30 shortlisted candidates. A player receives points according to their rank...

With over 650 million viewers in more than 180 countries, El Clásico is one of the most-watched sports events across the globe. The rivalry, which is seen as a fierce battle between the two biggest football clubs in the world, transcends the sporting dimension with its roots in the sociopolitical history of the country. Catalonia is an autonomous community in Spain that has been seeking liberation...

As a result of years of poor financial management, Borussia Dortmund accumulated over €200 million in debts and liabilities at the start of the 21st century. When the 1997 European Cup Champions were on the verge of bankruptcy and could not afford to pay salaries to the players, Dortmund’s arch-rivals, Bayern Munich, bailed them out with an emergency loan of €2 million in 2003. The loan was unsecu...

In 2019, Parth Jindal, the owner of Bengaluru FC, stated that losing ₹25 crore per season is difficult to sustain. With the growing popularity of the Indian Super League, the franchisees are constantly motivated to spend money and remain competitive. However, the revenues through sponsorships, ticketing, merchandising and player transfers are very limited. The League shares some of its revenue fro...

North London Derby is regarded as one of the fiercest derbies in the world of football. Interestingly, Arsenal and Tottenham were not rivals when the clubs first played against each other in 1887. North London was originally a Spurs territory. In 1913, Arsenal infuriated Tottenham by shifting its base to North London from Southeast London. The rivalry further intensified six years later when Arsen...

On 24 September 2022, famous international YouTubers took the football field and generated over £1 million for charities in just three hours. The fourth edition of the Sideman Charity Match, organised by popular British YouTube group, Sidemen, featured a star-studded lineup, including names like MrBeast, KSI, IShowspeed, and ChrisMD. In addition to almost 27,000 fans at the Charlton Athletic Stadi...