Soccer Culture

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By Simon Kjellgren, Sweden

For Americans, soccer is just something you drive your daughter to. A world cup they always think they’ll win despite just being no.28 on the FIFA world ranking. For the rest of the world, it’s more than a sport, it’s a lifestyle. We live and breath soccer, some fans even kill and die for their club. The club is our god, the fans of that club is our family and the stadium is our home, our church. Soccer is a religion, a religion with thousands of gods. The leader of all those gods? Sadly FIFA. I’ll explain later.

tifo2Borussia Dortmund TIFO

The fans are the most important thing a club can have. It sounds cheesy I know, but there’s a reason fans are called “the 12th player”. They provide atmosphere around the stadium; they provide electric chants that energize the players. Most importantly, they provide TIFOs. A TIFO is a synchronized display before the game starts, with banners, flags and songs that the team march in to.

Women’s Soccer

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Amelie Plenk, Switzerland

 

FIFA World Cup

The FIFA Women’s World Cup has been in existence since 1991 and takes place every four years. In 2019, the next Women’s World Cup will take place in France. Then the World Cup will be held for the eighth time and 24 teams will compete against each other.

Image result for The FIFA Women's World Cup

Marta Vieira da Silva

Marta Vieira da Silva was born on the 19 February 1986. Marta has been a Swedish citizen since 14 March 2017, but she will also retain her Brazilian citizenship. Marta Vieira da Silva, commonly known as Marta, is a Brazilian 

Image result for marta vieira da silvafootballer who plays for the Orlando Pride in the National Women’s Soccer League and the Brazil National Team as a forward. With 15 goals, she holds the record for the most goals in FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments.

 

My experience

I have been playing soccer for four years on a women’s team in a small village. Four years ago, we were still the only girls team in our club and now there are 4 teams – women’s football is becoming more popular! But, of the 265 million football players worldwide, only 10 percent are women. 

 

 

FIFA World Cup 2018

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Chloe Persoglio , Nico Cojocari (France,Belgium)

The best footballers are going to battle next month until there is only one team left, the champion. There is no higher reward, every player dreams of it. Football might just be a game, but when it comes to the World Cup, it is more than that. You can see passion, determination and the will to win on the player’s faces. There is no better way to make your country proud.

fifa world cup chloe

It takes place every four years and it was created in 1928 in France by Jules Rimet.

jules rimet

The tournament includes 32 teams and starts from June 14 to July 16. The competition has 8 groups of 4 teams that are randomly assigned. Each team plays 3 games, 1 against every other team in the group. The two best teams in the group go further to the 16th round then 8th, 4th, 2nd then the finals.

The selected teams are :

Iceland, England, Russia, Denmark, France, Belgium, Germany, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Senegal, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Japan, Korean Republic, RI Iran, Croatia, Spain, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Serbia, Switzerland, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay.

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Even though some influential nations like Italy and  Holland are missing, it is still going to be the most viewed event in the world. Brazil is looking for redemption since they lost 7-1 against the previous champion, Germany. France wants to prove that they are capable of winning since they lost to Portugal at the Euro 2016 final. At the same time, Portugal definitely wants to show that is was not luck that helped them get the Cup. These are just examples. Every team wants to prove something and win the World Cup.Image result for brazil 7-1

Holding the World Cup has many benefits. One of them is the tourism opportunities that it offers to the local markets. People from all around the world are going to go to Russia in June and spend money there. All the media attraction will be around the World Cup and people are definitely going to enjoy it as much as possible.

Image result for russia world cup world attraction

Some will even enjoy it too much since there is a drug tolerance. Travelers have the right to declare drugs at customs if they have a doctor’s approval  written in Russian. Marijuana, cocaine and heroin are among the hundreds of drugs and prescriptions on the list of substances travelers can declare.

Image result for world cup 2018 drugs in stadium

 

We are definitely going to support our nations, Belgium and France. As patriots it is our duty to support our country. If your country is not selected,do not choose another one who is seen as a favorite to win but the one that is connected to you.

France Squad:

Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur/England), Steve Mandanda (Marseille), Alphonse Areola (Paris Saint-Germain);

Defenders: Djibril Sidibe (Monaco), Benjamin Pavard (Stuttgart/Germany), Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona/Spain), Raphael Varane (Real Madrid/Spain), Presnel Kimpembe (Paris Saint-Germain), Adil Rami (Marseille), Benjamin Mendy (Manchester City/England), Lucas Hernandez (Atletico Madrid/Spain);

Midfielders: Paul Pogba (Manchester United/England), Corentin Tolisso (Bayern Munich/Germany), Blaise Matuidi (Juventus/Italy), Ngolo Kante (Chelsea/England), Steven Nzonzi (Sevilla/Spain);

Forwards: Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid/Spain), Olivier Giroud (Chelsea/England), Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain), Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona/Spain), Florian Thauvin (Marseille), Nabil Fekir (Lyon), Thomas Lemar (Monaco).

 

Dates:

  1. France vs Australia – 16 June 2018
  2. France vs Peru – 21 June 2018
  3. Denmark vs France – 26 June 2018

Belgium Squad:

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Koen Casteels (VfL Wolfsburg).

Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Thomas Meunier (Paris Saint-Germain), Thomas Vermaelen (Barcelona), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham), Dedryck Boyata (Celtic), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City).

Midfielders: Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Axel Witsel (Tianjin Quanjian), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Nacer Chadli (West Bromwich Albion), Leander Dendoncker (Anderlecht), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Moenchengladbach), Youri Tielemans (Monaco), Mousa Dembele (Tottenham Hotspur).

Forwards: Michy Batshuayi (Chelsea/Dortmund), Yannick Carrasco (Dalian Yifang), Adnan Januzaj (Real Sociedad), Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United), Dries Mertens (Napoli).

Dates:

  1. Belgium vs Panama– 18 June 2018
  2. Belgium vs Tunisia– 23 June 2018
  3. England vs Belgium– 28 June 2018

Calendar :

Image result for calendrier match coupe du monde 2018

Soccer Is More Than a Game

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Collin Blunier, Switzerland

One of the most popular sports is soccer,  which is the most controversial sport in the world. There are headliners about professional soccer players  salary, their influence and their lack of sportsmanship.

Soccer is more than just a sport or a game, it brings people together, it makes friends and last, but not least, it is healthy.

If you play soccer you have to concentrate every single second. You have to be present to win, but sometimes you also need a little bit of luck. Everybody in the TV or in the stadium is watching you. The half of them hope that you will miss the goal, the other half hope that they can cheer.

One of the most important things are the supporters. They are every age, from 10 up to 90! They support the team with songs if they need it, they stay behind them if they have a bad game.

Two of the most popular players these days are Lionel Messi, Barcelona,  and Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid. They are not just players, they also make a lot of social supports. They support foundations or they have their own one.

Famous players do a lot for the soccer. They promote it, help children if they are in need and they show us if you are focus in something, you can get/be it.

Soccer is global and helps people to cross cultural barriers. It is allowing you to share your love with it and makes fans throughout the world. It doesn’t matter if you are American, Swiss, Japan or Australian, you will find people with the same interest in soccer.

Image result for soccer emotional goal      Image result for soccer fans brasilian

About me – Tim

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by Tim Schwehn from Germany

Hey! 🙂

My name is Tim and I am from Germany. I just arrived in Santa Barbara and I love the city by now. The beautiful streets and houses with the Spanish style look great. That’s one reason I chose this location for my EF study time.

What do I normally do in Germany?

I finished my exams in January and want to start my university studies in business education in October. So I have enough time to explore the world. For my study time I want to improve my English speaking and writing skills so I chose an English speaking country, but also one where the sun is shining quite often.

I like to do sports very much. I play soccer at a local German soccer club and go the gym at least two times a week. Playing sports is a very good balance for learning or working and you can turn your head off for a time.

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Furthermore, I love music. On the one hand, I like to listen to different kinds of music as well as making music on my own. I can play the piano and the guitar and I really enjoy creating music with some friends of mine.

My favorite food is pizza, but I can’t wait to eat some good Mexican food or beef burgers in Santa Barbara. I already went to one Mexican restaurant and the food tasted great. Maybe you can give me some suggestions about where to go. I will try as much as I can.

burger

I will stay in Santa Barbara for at least two months. I think it will be a beautiful time that I will never forget. So if you have some questions, feel free to ask. J

ASSEM AL-HAJJI, SAUDI ARABIA

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Maria Jose Ayala Zambrano, Ecuador

 

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WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE FOOD?

KABSA IS RICE AND MEAT IS A TRADICIONAL FOOD OF HIS COUNTRY

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE KIND OF MUSIC?

CLASSIC BECAUSE HE THINKS IS THE BEST KIND OF MUSIC AND IS COOL FOR THE MIND

WHICH IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE YOU HAVE BEEN?

SIDNEY AND GOLD COAST BECAUSE THIS CITY HAVE GOOD WEATHER HE THINKS IS PERFECT

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPORT?

PLAY SOCCER BECAUSE IS A FUN COMPETITION AND IS GOOD FOR HIS HEALTH

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE TEAM?

MANCHESTER UNITED BECAUSE THEY ARE ON THE BEST

 

 

Real Madrid C.F – Champions League Final 2017

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real madrid final pictureby Katharina Coenen, Germany

Real Madrid C.F is the most famous football club in Spain. Founded on March 6th 1906. The traditionally worn kit colors were white. In June 2017 they reached the final in the UEFA Champions League. They had to play against Juventus Football Club. The Tournament was in Wales, Cardiff, also the hometown of one of the most expensive superstars of Real Madrid, Gareth Bale. The game was special and important for the club, but especially for him. Born and raised in Cardiff, and now he had the chance to win a trophy in his hometown. Also the club had the chance to win it for the second time in a row. What else could be better ? But would he at least get the chance to play against Juventus? The Stadium was sold out, many fans decorated it with big banners. The atmosphere was gigantic and the feeling absolutely stunning. Then the official champions league hymn was heard. The players came through the tunnels and shook hands with each other, but no a sign of Gareth Bale yet.

So the match begun without him. It was really intensive and strategic. Nobody wanted to take a risk. Then after twenty minutes, a goal! Cristiano Ronaldo scored. Buffon the goalkeeper from Juventus was delirious. He shouted at his teammates ,and encouraged them on. Everyone in the stadium was excited. After just seven minutes Juventus settled the result, after a nice head goal from Mandžukić. The whole stadium was on fire, but after the first halftime Juventus did not act very self- confident. They moved back and let Real Madrid play their match. After a while Casemiro, the defender from Real Madrid took a volley after a really bad back pass from a Juventus player. It wrapped unattainable in Buffons Goal. After that Goal Juventus was resigned. Two more goals were dropped. Gareth Bale came for the last 15 minutes. The whole stadium cheered to him, and he did his best.

At the end the result was 4:1. The players cried and screamed happily. They couldn’t believe it. The night seemed magical, but not for Juventus. They were devastated. They lost again a important final. They knew that if you reached a final you have to do your best. And everyone knew in the moment they didn’t . The Italian fans applauded them and the players appreciated that.  On the other side, the Spanish Fans were thrilled and happy. Their team won this trophy, the best and most important trophy you can win in football,  the second time in a row. It was unbelievable. But Juventus was a fair team. They congratulated the players on their 12th title. And so Real Madrid wrote history. Again.

real madrid pictures 2017

Japanese Soccer Player

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Nami Matsuzawa , Japan

Do you know Japanese popular sports ?You may think of figure skating , gymnastics ,  swimming …..One of the famous sports in Japan is soccer! There are 18 soccer teams in J1 League (Japan 1 League) .You may know some team names which  are  Gamba Osaka, , Nagoya Grampus Eight, Sanfrecce Hiroshima, Urawa Red Diamonds, FC TOKYO and Kashima Antlers…..

I think that Japanese soccer players are smaller and skinnier than any other  players in the world.Some people may think Japanese soccer players don’t have skills and strong bodies .

But some Japanese  play soccer  abroad.Some Japanese soccer players have the oppotunity for success on foreign teams.They play against taller players .

Today, I will show you  a good Japanese soccer player.

Kashima+Antlers+v+Gamba+Osaka+Xerox+Super+-9A4a-QxvEam

His name is Atsuto Uchida. In 2006 , he became a Japanese professional soccer player as a right back .He played for J1 League  club Kashima Antlers. Uchida began his professional career when he debuted for Kashima at the age of 17 against Sanfrecche Hiroshima.

He is a very fast runner and has never given up his good attitude and is very competitive. So, he has to trust in his  team players and his team mate have to  trust in him , too. There is a nice relationship.

At the end of the 2008 season,  he made 34 appearances and scored once in all competitions. He was named J League Best Eleven for the first time. In addition, he signed a contract extension, keeping him until 2012.This is such a  great thing.

In 2010 ,  his team club continued to win  and he became a Japanese national football team player.His play made the  Japanese people happy. There was  no one who did not to know him at that time.

On 13 June 2010 , he joined  the German club Schalke04 .He was admitted because of his ability .He was not only fast,  but also a good defense player . He is not tall ,176 centimaters. He does not have a big body. Sometimes this characteristic is a weapon.He can run nimbly .This is one of the important skills in soccer.

When he joined Schalke04 , he didn’t  become friends with this team. His team mates could not  believe his skills. In addition , he could not speak German, but he never lost heart.

He thought “I will succeed and get back at everyone someday.”He tried to do extra practices. He became the hardest worker. His efforts affected his team mates. He was always selected as a regular member and became an essential player.

Neymar praised his defense skills. He was the first  Japanese person to win the Champion League Best 4 and sometimes he was selected as best eleven player in a European soccer magazine.

Uchida_Schalke_2015

 

 

One day ,he injured his leg and he left  Schalke04 in 2017. He was loved so much by Schalke04 supporters. When he left , Schalke04 held a big ceremony for him.

Now he has returned to play for Kashima  Antlers. I think he will play abroad again in the not so distant future. He gives a lot of inspiration to Japanese children soccer players.

I think that he is not only Japanese successful soccer player, but also Keisuke Honda who played Ac milan  , Shinji Kagawa who plays Burussia Dortmund now .

kagawa

 

honda

Now , Japanese soccer players are rising. I want everyone to pay attention to Japanese Soccer Players!

 

 

 

Olympic Games History

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Tom Lumiere ,  France

The Ancient Olympic Games were religious and athletic festivals held every four years at the sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia, a city of Greece. Competition was among representatives of several city-states and kingdoms of Ancient Greece. These Games featured mainly athletic, but also combat sports, such as battle and the pankration, horse and chariot racing events. It has been generally written that during the Games, all conflicts with the participating city-states were suspended until the Games were finished. This cessation of hostilities was known as the Olympic peace or accord. This idea is a modern illusion because the Greeks never suspended their wars

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The modern Olympic Games (French: Jeux olympiques) are best international sporting events presenting summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games are considered the world’s principal sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. The Olympic Games are adhered every four years, with the Summer and Winter Games alternating by developing every four years but two years apart.

pict 2

Their creation was inspired by the ancient Olympic Games. Baron Pierre de Coubertin (French) founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, principal to the first modern Games in Athens in 1896. The IOC is the governing body of the Olympic Movement, with the Olympic Charter defining its structure and authority.

Pierre de Coubertin

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The reason why I choose is that since I was young, I have been

going to every summer Olympic Games: ‘Athens in 2004, Beijing in  2008, London in 2012, Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and I will go to Tokyo in 2020’ .

 

 

GAIS, Swedish Soccer’s Own Yo-Yo.

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Simon Kjellgren, Sweden.

“When you start supporting a football club, you don’t support it because of the trophies, a player, or a history. You support it because you found yourself somewhere there; found a place where you belong.” This is a quote from legendary soccer player Dennis Bergkamp. I personally live by those words because they’re the truest words anyone has ever said about soccer.

football quote

“My team” is called GAIS, short for Goteborgs Atlet & IdrottSallskap (roughly translated to “Gothenburgs Athletes & Sports Association”), and is one of the oldest soccer clubs in Sweden. Founded in 1894 by a wrestler named Carl Gustafsson at a food hall in the heart of Gothenburg, they didn’t start up their soccer organization until 1897. The team blossomed and won their first national championship in 1919 and later became one of the founders, and the first champions, of Sweden’s top soccer leauge “Allsvenskan”. After that, they were ranked one of Sweden’s top teams for a while, at least until the fifties, more specifically 1954. That’s the year when we would win our last championship, at least for now.

Gais

After 1954 we became a “Yo-Yo team”. This means that we went up and down in the leagues and were never able to stay in one league for long. It would take 50 years for “GronSvart” (“GreenBlack”, one of the teams nicknames because of their colors which are, you guessed it, green & black.) to really set their foot in Allsvenskan again. They had been there a couple of times before, but only for short periods of time. They managed to stay in Allsvenskan for 7 straight seasons after their 2005 promotion, which hadn’t been done since their relegation in 1955. During the 7 seasons they proved themselves a mid-level team, with their best position being a 5th place back in 2011. The year after that GAIS would be relegated again, finishing last with the worst score in the history of Allsvenskan. And that pretty much takes us to the present.

They have always had very passionate and cynically optimistic fans, this beautiful Rock n’ Roll team from Sweden’s west coast. Every year the fans think that we will win the league, and every year they are left worrying about another demotion. It has been that way for the past 4 years, but still, the fans remain positive. They have to remain positive so as to not go crazy from all the stress and disappointment that “Makrillarna” (“The Mackerels” another nickname given to us because of our colors) has brought us. I personally stay hopeful, knowing that after rain comes sunshine. although we play best when it’s raining; we call it Makrillvader (Mackerel weather) as it’s easier to fish for mackerel when it is raining a bit. I really hope that the sun will soon shine on our beaten down emblem and that our former glory will come once again.

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GAIS supporters displaying a banner with our most famous motto: “Style, Class & Tradition – since 1894

To bring it full circle, I’d like to go back to the quote in the beginning, but tweak it just a little bit. “When you start playing for GAIS you might do it because of our history and  our trophies, but you’ll stay because you found yourself somewhere there, somewhere you belong.”

And to that end, I’d like to translate part of a song by Sweden’s most famous singer, and also our march-in song, which kind of encapsulates what the team is all about. “I don’t have any strong arms to carry you with, and I’m not much at all to look at, but you’ll never have to lie again, and you’ll never have to see me laying there, dead on the road”.