After the recent round of Qualifying Matches for the 2010 World Cup, Fours Nations have booked their place for the 2010 World Cup to be held in South Africa.

Netherlands became the first European nation to qualify for the World Cup. Playing in a relatively easier group the Dutch have won all of their Qualifying encounters. With the 2-1 win at Iceland on 6th June they cemented their berth.

Australia also booked a place in the mega soccer event for the second time drawing their world cup qualifying tie with Qatar. Australian defense has been quite remarkable during all of their qualifying matches but it is yet to be tested against the other European and South American giants.

Japan qualified for the World Cup 2010 for the second time beating Uzbekistan by a lone goal from Shinji Okazaki. Japan came second after Australia in the Group 1 of the Asian Qualifiers owing to a poor goal difference.

South Korea will be making their seventh consecutive appearance in the World Cup following their complete 2-0 victory over UAE. The Koreans didn’t lose any game and have scored all high 11 goals in their march to the World Cup.

England thrash Kazakhstan 4-0

Emily Heskey in Action Against Kazakh defender

Wayne Rooney, Gareth Barry, Emile Heskey and Frank Lampard struck for England as England inched closer to World Cup qualification. England has now dominated the group with 6-0 win / loss record. Heskey paired up with Rooney to forge a winning strike duo for England  which we might be seeing more as the tournament progresses. Now a veteran caimpaigner for England, Heskey has tipped Rooney to become the best striker in the World.

For the upcoming 2010 World Cup Qualiying Matches click here

Aliaune Damala Bouga Time Puru Nacka Lu Lu Lu Badara AKON

singer/songwriter/producer AKON might be recording for the Official 2010 Soccer World Cup Theme song.

In an interview with the Mirror.co.uk he said, “I’ve been hired as musical director for the World Cup. I will be overseeing the World Cup anthem and music at the ceremonies and I’m off to South Africa this week for meetings. I love soccer so it’s a great honour.”

FIFA is still to announce its pick for the Official Soccer World Cup Anthem and I have a feeling it might be going in for some African flavour. AKON is of Senegalese origin with a strong South African connection, hence a case for him.

Lets just hope that going against the history of some lousy selection for the Anthmes in previous world cups, FIFA picks a “Gem” this time around.

England Soccer Team

England Soccer

England may have won the Soccer World Cup only once but then only seven countries have managed to achieve that feat so far. England played its first international against Scotland on 30th November 1872, resulting in 0-0 draw. Since then England Soccer has come a long way.

England won its first and only Soccer World Cup on 30th July 1966 at Wembley Stadium, London. That is the day people buy England football tickets for. Around 98,000 people were present right there at the stadium to be the part of history when Bobby Moore’s team defeated West Germany 4-2 in the World Cup Final. Hurst and Peter were the goal scorers, the former scoring 3 of the 4 goals in total.

Since World Cup victory in 1966, major soccer events have proved to be a mixed bag for England. England has 12 World Cup participations to its credit i.e. in the year 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1998, 2002 and 2006 and seven appearances in the European Championship. The best they could achieve at this level of the game was the 3rd position in 1968.

David Beckham and Steven Gerrard are the top players of the current English team. Expected England Squad for the 2010 Soccer World Cup includes Paul Robinson, Micah Richards, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand, John Terry, David Beckham, Gerreth Barry, Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen.

Trivia
Biggest Win: England thrashed Ireland 13-0 in Belfast, Northern Ireland on 18th February 1882.
Worst Defeat: Hungary defeated them 7-1 at Budapest, Hungary on 23rd May 1954.

Soccer Fans

Who Takes the Hot Seat?

Two rounds of world cup qualifying matches in South America are over. No big surprises yet. Paraguay tops the group with 23 points; Brazil is second with 17 points, followed by Argentina with 16 points. These countries have always been there at the world cup. It is all about the hot seat now.

Hopes of Soccer fans from rest of the South America have not faded as yet. They all are prepared to book their soccer packages once their teams qualify. Mathematically all the teams are in a chance to qualify for the world cup. But at the moment Uruguay is just on the verge of edging out Ecuador. Uruguay is the front runner with 13 points but closely followed by Ecuador with 12 points and Colombia with 11 points.

Chile is also in contention but Ecuador is not the bad team either. Losing to Venezuela didn’t hurt their reputation but a disastrous show against Brazil must have been demoralizing.

Never mind there are still many games to go.

Durban, South Africa

DURBAN

Where the Earth and Ocean meet! How beautifully the Zulu name Thekweni describes this gorgeous subtropical city of South Africa. Durban is the gateway to KwaZulu Natal and the mountain kingdom of Lesotho and South Africa’s world famous wild life parks.

Population – Approximately 3, 468,086
Area – 2,291 Square Kilometers
Population Density – 1,513 Inhabitants per Square Kilometer

Durban the city of beaches is the playground of South Africa, famous for beaches, one of the most loved tourist destinations and its carnival atmosphere is great for family holidays. Durban is also a deep sea harbour and international conferencing destination which makes this city both a bustling hive of activity for businessmen and tourist alike.
The city overlooks Golden Beach which is perhaps the single most culturally diverse spot in South Africa. The enthralling atmosphere rejuvenates the life to the core as you move along frolicking families, executives free for a change, teenagers in full swing and surfers running into the waves. Durban is just not all about the beach. South Africa’s only Surfing Museum is also situated here. It is a place for all. You can have a visit at the Bartle Arts Trust, the BAT Centre which is a place for local visual art and musical creativity and of course some good restaurants catering to the need of all and some coffee shops and pubs too. However, the most adventurous of you can enjoy thrilling trip to one of the most beautiful Nature Reserves of St. Lucia and Drakensberg and Game Reserves at Mkuze and HluhluweUmfolozi and the Wild Life in abundance. The Durban Soccer Packages won’t miss the stadiums but it’s better if few other enchanting places are also covered.

Moses Mabhida Stadium

MOSES MABHIDA STADIUM
Moses Mabhida Stadium is one of the most beautiful and major venues for the upcoming grand event, the FIFA Soccer World Cup. The newly built stadium has been equipped with state of the art facilities with all the latest safety and security requirements. The stadium has the seating capacity of 70,000 and will be hosting five group games including one second round game, one quarter final and one semifinal match during the Football World Cup.

Abidjan Tragedy

GHOST of Soccer Comes Again!

The soccer is one of the most loved games on earth but ironically it is the game which has witnessed the most number of tragedies as well.
It was just another day or was it?! Not really, the ghost of soccer tragedies came back as perhaps it never left the stadiums. This time it was the turn of Abidjan, the city saw the death of 19 soccer fans and 132 injured in the crush at the national stadium. These are the official figures. Unfortunately, the real count could be higher. The incident occurred when a wall collapsed at the stadium shortly before Ivory Coast beat Malawi 5-0 in the Soccer World Cup Qualifying Match. The tragedy was caused by overcrowding. 50,000 people were packed in the 35,000 capacity stadium and police didn’t help the cause, it used tear gases which only added to the panic. Nobody knows what it would take to prevent these tragedies for happening time and again.

An inquiry has been opened into Sunday’s tragedy at the Felix Houphouet-Boigany Stadium but as far as people are concerned they are fed up of this soccer mourning every now and then. No lessons learnt! People come here for joy and saw tragedies happening and then they don’t go back home ever again. You will see bodies of 10 year old to 60 year old all over. Is this Soccer we live for? We are not buying soccer tickets but we are buying untimely and trageic death. We don’t want anybody to suffer. We don’t want our family members and friends to die. But anybody listening?! The worst part of it is in few days everything will be forgotten only to allow it to happen again at some other place at some other time. This Ghost will keep haunting the stadiums and as soccer loving people we should be mentally and physically prepared, it might happen to us sooner rather than later.

Meanwhile an emergency meeting has been called on the next day, presided over by Prime Minister Guillaume Soro. A Crisis Unit has been set up to deal with the tragedy.

It is important that such tragic happenings do not take place any more. Soccer is a beautiful game and it certainly deserves better.

South Africa 2010 Soccer World Cup

South Africa Awaits!

It is time for 2010 Soccer World Cup but Soccer Fever has just started to build up. Soccer is in full swing as every day some dramatic things are happening. Argentina has been humbled by Bolivia recently and on the other part of the world Australians have started packing there bags also. I am pretty sure that this time around too Soccer World Cup would be a great spectacle to watch. I was never a great fan of this game. I didn’t saw the magician Pele but I have seen Maradona play and since then I have never missed any of the football matches during previous World Cups but have seen them on television only. Sometimes I did manage to get to the stadiums, thanks to my friends who always sponsored my soccer tickets. The thrill of watching football matches live in the stadium is such an adventurous experience in itself which is difficult to explain. You have to be there to experience it but yes getting to the stadium is another story.

The way soccer fans have been queuing up for the soccer tickets and soccer packages around the world is amazing. It seems the whole world is getting ready for an African Safari in South Africa and why not, it is a beautiful country, isn’t it! We all have loyalties to our teams but at least I am sure of one thing that even I spent way over for my World Cup Trip, I won’t be repenting. You must be quite aware of the MLS standings this season, few glorious matches have already been played and Soccer has  just started working on the mind and the way World Cup Qualifying Matches are going, I can assure you the stage has been set perfectly for the upcoming grand spectacle.

Soccer fans have started bidding for the 2010 World Cup as FIFA has received more than 1.6 million requests from 205 countries. Apparently 2010 Soccer World Cup is not that far as it seems. The tickets will be allocated in a lottery on April 15. Well I am going to stay away from this lottery stuff. Baring in mind the recent economic conditions and the rush that has already started building up I have decided to book my Soccer Tickets and Travel Packages with WorldFootballTravel.com for my most awaited Soccer Trip to the African Continent.

World Football Travel.com has added new Tickets and Travel Packages to suit the needs of soccer fans from all over the world. They are also providing some combo offers and I guess bulk tickets for the Soccer World Cup Matches would be even cheaper and affordable for every body coming from different cultural and financial backgrounds. I am not really worrying too much about my soccer tickets and travel packages. I know WFT for a long time. It is one of the best service providers for World Soccer Travel. No matter which country, which city and which stadium is hosting the football match, World Football Travel will take you their without any inconvenience. Not only tickets but also seating arrangements in the stadiums and accommodations in the respective cities are also managed by WFT. They have been doing it in the past for many years and for so many tournaments including English Premier League, Champions League, UEFA Cup, Manchester United Games, US Major League Soccer and many more.

So if you want a memorable soccer trip to this picturesque nation of Africa make sure you get in touch with WorldFootballTravel.com well in advance to book your Soccer Tickets and Travel Packages. And no more last minute hassles, missing tickets and bad accommodations only the thrill of 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup.
See you in South Africa!

For More information on Ticket and Travel Packages for 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa visit this website: www.worldfootballtravel.com or mail at sales@worldfootballtravel.com

Maradona Lost His 100% Record As Coach

Maradona Stabbed in the Heart!

Oh! Please, don’t take it literally but it would have been the experience for Maradona when his beloved country was stunned by Bolivia 6-1. Maradona would have never imagined in his wildest dreams that he would live on to watch this happening to him.

The awesome striker of 80’s who took his team to the Soccer World Cup Victory in 1986 ironically witnessed the most humiliating defeats in 60 Years at the hand of the Bolivians. It was just not that his team lost, he lost his 100% record too.

The only solace that the Argentine can afford to have is that they should have been at this altitude only for trekking rather than playing football. At such a high altitude of 3600 meters above sea level in the Bolivian Mountains, Diego Maradona was just present there to witness the great fall of his team from those great heights.

Bolivian Striker Joaquin Botero showed no mercy and scored a hat-trick as Marcelo Martins, Alex da Rosa and Didi Torrico also added to the misery of Argentina. Martins put Bolivia on course in just the 12th minute of the game. Argentina hit back in the 25th minute when Luis Gonzalez scored for the visitors but thereafter Argentina was on the field only to be crushed by the rampaging Bolivians who gave every penny back to their fans they had spent on soccer tickets.

Diego Maradona was the captain when he led his team to World Cup win over West Germany in 1986 and ironically he is the coach when his team suffered one of the most humiliating defeats. Breathless Maradona in his own words; “Every Bolivia goal was a stab in my heart.”

England Soccer Team

It doesn’t matter if it is not cricket. The Rivalry among these two high profile nations is just the same. As expected the Socceroos won the match against Uzbekistan 2-0. Australians have to wait just for a while before they secure their trip to South Africa. Mathematics some times work for you and some times spoils your party too. Bahrain has beaten Qatar 1-0 and they are too in the race, well…mathematically at least. So Australians will be waiting for another two months before they start packing for the trip. Even if Australia loses in Qatar in Doha on June 6, they have two games remaining against Bahrain and Japan to assure back to back appearances in the Soccer World Cup.

Meanwhile England have also all the plans of joining the Socceroos on the same bus to South Africa. And who talks about cricket here. Football pitch is going to decide who the Boss is. Peter Crouch and John Terry just kept England on the right track by beating Ukraine 2-1. But why do they always try so desperately to wake up only when hit hard. The match was a nail biting finish and Ukrainians had almost drawn the match. Perhaps this time Ukrainians were in a mood of presenting a gift for the English Team and thanks to their poor defending they managed to do it easily. It wasn’t a match you would buy soccer tickets for. England did not win the match but Ukraine has lost it. But who cares! At the end of the day, a win is a win and that’s what England has done five times out of five.

Socceroos

Here Come the SOCCEROOS!

The Australian National Football Team nicknamed as the “Socceroos” is almost there. The Australian team could be the first team to qualify for the 2010 Football World Cup in South Africa.
Since 2006 Soccer World Cup Australians are riding on a wave which perhaps will see them through as the first qualifying team for the 2010 World Cup. Apart from putting there act together it will be also some combination of stats which will help them in the cause.

It is just a matter of 3 points now and Australia could be the first team heading South Africa if Pim Verbeek’s side defeats Uzbekistan at ANZ Stadium tonight and expect Bahrain and Qatar to draw their qualifying matches in Manama 5 hours later. This combination of results will ensure that the Socceroos cannot get worst than the second position in their Asian Group A and therefore guaranteeing it to be the first team for the African Safari.

The tough job has been done and Socceroos will be relaxed this time. So for this match do you think they will go with 6 Strikers on the field? I guess you are asking too much for your soccer tickets. Well, Socceroos are not that relaxed. It won’t be a do or die match for the Australians but in no way it means that it would be any less exciting. Around 60, 000 spectators are expected to watch the grand spectacle as the grueling workouts of the team for the past 15 months lead them to the Grand Soccer Event.