Brazil 2014: Attendance surpasses 1m for first 20 matches (fill rate: 97.8%)

1,013,613 spectators attended the first 20 matches of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, from 12/06/2014 to 18/06/2014, according to the totals calculated by News Tank. The 12 stadiums of the World Cup had an average occupancy rate of 97.82% from the opening match (Brazil-Croatia, 3-1, group A) in the…

UEFA: U15 tournament held in Zaatari camp (Jordan) for World Refugee Day on 20/06/2014

Boys and girls U15 finals are organised by UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) in the Syrian refugee camp Zaatari (northern Jordan), held on the 20/06/2014 in the occasion of World Refugee Day. "Football's popularity means the game can serve as a massive social force. It has the power…

Qatar's 2022 organising committee: "We have fully co-operated" with ethics committee investigation

"We have fully co-operated in a completely open and transparent manner with FIFA’s [Fédération Internationale de Football Association] independent ethics committee investigation into the bidding process [the procedure for the awarding of the 2022 World Cup]," said the Supreme Committee for…

Brazil 2014: Iran instruct players not to wear new shirts for each match

To save money, the players on Iran's national team are not to wear new shirts for each match of the 2014 World Cup (12/06 to 13/07/2014), said Ali Kafashian, president of the IFF (Iranian Football Federation), on 16/06/2014. "We have not given players a shirt for each game. Players must be frugal…

Brazil 2014: France-Honduras offers first goal verification through goal-line technology

The first goal in history to be verified through goal-line technology occurred during the World Cup France-Honduras match (3-0, 15/06/2014, Group E, Beira-Rio Stadium in Porto Alegre). This was the French team's second goal, and was an own goal by Honduran goalkeeper Noel Valladares. The German…

Winning World Cup country gets stock market bump, says Goldman Sachs

Stocks in the country that wins the World Cup outperform those of other countries by 3.5% in the month following the victory, according to Peter Oppenheimer, the head of global stock strategy at the American investment firm Goldman Sachs, speaking to French newspaper Le Monde on 12/06/2014. The…

FIFA ethics committee suspends Franz Beckenbauer for 90 days from any activity in footbal

Franz Beckenbauer (Germany), special advisor to the FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) football committee, has been suspended, effective immediately, from any football-related activity for 90 days, stated Alan Sullivan, the vice-president of the FIFA ethics committee's…

Brazil 2014: Spray for drawing line of wall for free kick has been authorised since 2012

The use of a vanishing spray, which allows referees to draw a white line on the ground to enforce a 9.15 metre distance between the wall and the kicker during a free kick, was authorised by the IFAB (International Football Association Board, the guardian of the laws of the game) at its 126^th…

Video referee technology: Blatter proposes two challenge reviews per manager per match

"Why don't we give team managers the possibility of two challenge reviews for referring decisions during the match?" said Joseph Blatter, president of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), at the 64^th annual FIFA congress in Sao Paulo (BRA) on 11/06/2014. Blatter said he would…

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