AP Photo/M. Spencer GreenThe last ten years in soccer has seen an already huge sport evolve even further. Improved diet, training techniques and a greater willingness to look abroad for talent, especially young talent, has taken this game ...

1. Africa unity kit
2. Robinho joke
3. Inter Milan grilling
4. Old Brazilians unite
5. Adu unveiled

In the comments to the previous post about today's attack on Togo's team bus in Cabinda (reminding Henry Winter that it's part of Angola, and not South Africa), Andrew Guest suggested we post a map of Cabinda to illustrate its complex relation to Angola. As we can see, Cabinda is an enclave of Angola, with what is called Zaire on the map (the Democratic Republic of the Congo) between it and Angola proper.

Seven stories you may have missed on The Offside and WorldCupBlog this week: The Offside Winter Weather XI Africa's continental kit, by Puma Football's biggest clichés 10 footballers who will define the next decade 10 biggest stadiums in the world Dancing plus fake subtitles = comedy David Beckham vs The Simpsons

Like you, we were shocked when we first heard reports that Togo's team bus had been ambushed by gunmen on its way to its home base for the upcoming African Nations Cup. As of this writing, the details of the shooting remain murky and the number of injured and dead is up in the air.

I could serve up a cold dish on the details surrounding the Togo tragedy, but if you find yourself like me, you're probably looking for more. Looking for answers as to why the mainstream media took so long to give this tragedy the star... Read more

This won't be heavy reading, but there's just stuff goin' on...#1 - Okay, this is the best Arsenal v Everton extended reel for now - but I will come back here first thing in the morning to switch it over to the Match of the Day version. Hopefully, they will also upload the analysis segment after the highlights.

During my brief six months working in Angola between 2002 and 2003, a favorite pastime of mine when driving around Luanda was to try to identify the replica team shirts worn by ubiquitous street soccer teams playing in any available space. Brazil's canary yellow was the most popular, but the range was impressive; I saw complete teams kitted out in the reds of Manchester United, the burgundy of Portugal, the green stripes of Sporting Lisbon, the yellow/orange/black on white design of Germany, even the all whites of Real Madrid—a hopelessly futile choice in the face of the city's red dirt and grimy haze.

Blow Me, F***ace . . . (AP Photo/Paul Thomas)Sergio Canales has caught everyone's eyes, especially after this goal against Sevilla. [Guardian, 101 Great Goals]Big Hicks tries to perform damage control after Little Hicks made a mess, ...

AFC head honcho has come out to suddenly backtrack on his disagreement with Sepp Blatter. Rumors were flying that FIFA president hopeful came out against Blatter in a row over allocation of funds for grassroots football in Africa. However, though the two have been described as good friends, bin Hammam seems quick to smooth over any rough edges.

An African-themed shirt quiz today and not an easy one at that.

So, all of these footie shirts have been worn by African nations. Simply name them, feel great about yourself...

Good luck with those. As I said, not easy so many green kits in Africa.

I found this extremely interesting article on how African nations use over-age players in tournaments. The author thinks this is preventing the development of players and could be the reason why African countries seemingly underperform at major tournaments.The argument he puts forward is that: because African nations use overage players in Under 21 and Under 18 tournaments, they are not

Drogba's dream of being king of Africa will have to wait again.In 2006 Ivory coast lost the finals to Egypt in a penalty shootout,in 2008 they lost 4 -1 in the semis to the Egyptians again and in 2010 they fell to a late,late injury time winner.Three times unlucky.
The Ivory Coast press have been less kind in their headlines.

"I feel so sorry for the players, because they could not work any harder, but most of all I feel sorry for our fans. I wanted us to get to the final for them, and unfortunately that won't happen now."

"We have to learn from this defeat and improve. It's easy to improve when you win, but losing like this can teach a team things, so we must pick ourselves up.

Indonesia Premier League
PSMS v PSDS 1-0 (Ossas)
Semen Padang v Persiraja 3-0 (Budi, Marcio, Febri)
1 - Persipasi 10 6 0 4 12-9 18
2 - S Padang 7 5 1 1 12-3 16
Mitra Kukar v PPSM 1-0 (Eko)
Pro Duta v Persiba 1-2 (Serge; Ujik, Wijiarstanto)
Gresik United v Persikota 1-1 (David; Iswadi)
1 - Deltras 8 4 2 2 8-6 14
2 - Persiba 7 4 1 2 13-6 13
3 - Persikab 7 4 1 2 12-10 13
Persigo v PSIM 2-0 (Iksan, Andri)
Persiram v Persibo 3-1 (Gideon, Titus, Sander; Perry)
Perseman v PSMP 1-0 (Jabolot)
1 - Persiram 9 8 1 0 22-6 25
2 - Perseman 9 5 2 2 11-4 17
Friendlies
Singapore v Oman 1-4 (Indra;) 1,804
Indonesia v Africa Select 1-2 (Bambang Pamungkas;)
Persita v Gapas 5-0
Selangor v Zimbabwe 0-3

Check out this preview for Stevan Lofgren's documentary-in-progress on football in Africa. You can read a bit more about the film on an earlier post on this site and at his blog.

AP Photo/M. Spencer GreenThe last ten years in soccer has seen an already huge sport evolve even further. Improved diet, training techniques and a greater willingness to look abroad for talent, especially young talent, has taken this game ...

AP Photo/M. Spencer GreenThe last ten years in soccer has seen an already huge sport evolve even further. Improved diet, training techniques and a greater willingness to look abroad for talent, especially young talent, has taken this game ...

Number of Cup of Nations championships by country

Part of the brilliance of the Africa Cup of Nations is the way it puts the diverse stories of the continent on vivid display. Consider, for example, the contrasts in the tournament opener on January 10th when host Angola plays Mali. Angola's story is one of hope for the future—having only recently emerged from a 27 year civil war after decades of Portuguese colonialism, Angola is flush with natural resources, one of the fastest growing economies in the world, four glistening new soccer stadiums built by Chinese friends, and immense potential both on and off the pitch.

So, if the only time you've ever come across this tournament is when certain Premiership managers whine about it, let me welcome to you to one of World Football's best kept secrets. Over the years, the African Cup Of Nations has grown and grown to be one of the most respected tournaments in World Football.

Have a look at Indonesia's home record in competitive games over the last couple of years
Asian Cup v Saudi Arabia 1-2
Asian Cup v South Korea 0-1
WCQ v Syria 1-4
AFF Cup v Cambodia 4-0
AFF Cup v Myanmar 3-0
AFF Cup v Singapore 0-2
AFF Cup v Thailand 0-1
ACQ v Australia 0-0
ACQ v Kuwait 1-1
P 9 W 2 D 2 L 5 F 10 A 11
You can imagine the Omanis quaking in their boots.

Alle 11 e 19 è arrivata la tanto attesa firma. Goran Pandev, attaccante macedone ex Lazio, ha messo nero su bianco sul contratto che lo legher all'Inter fino al 2014. Davvero un gran colpo di mercato per il club di Massimo Moratti.
Domenica si era sottoposto, con esito positivo, alle visite mediche.

Nella befana i calciofili di tutt'Italia troveranno il regalo più gradito. Ovvero il campionato di Serie A. Il 6 gennaio si riparte, e le emozioni non mancheranno sicuramente. Riparte, soprattutto, la caccia all'Inter capolista che sar la prima a scendere in campo. Alle 12 e 30, match insidioso, a Verona contro il Chievo, per i nerazzurri che, senza Eto'o (impegnato in Coppa d'Africa) potranno però contare su un Pandev in più, svincolato dalla ragnatela del tarantolato Lotito e pronto a dimostrare il proprio valore con la maglia del Biscione.

Sportswear manufacturer Puma continues its relationship with African soccer by launching the "World's First Continental Football Kit" in support of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Using a design seen in most of the Puma 2010 African kits, the Puma Africa Unity kit is "designed to be worn by the 12 African football national teams that [.

I have goodies to chase and a game of my own later, but I am working on a column for S365 for later. For now, I'll occupy you all with some TV that won't rot your brains...We have another skilled pitch invader, this time in Indonesia. I include 101 Great Goals' post that explains the form of protest that makes this invasion more charming than the norm.

De nuevo, el Barcelona confirma que es el mejor equipo del mundo y las estadísticas de FIFA por fin se ajustan a la realidad por lo menos en este sentido. El Barcelona está en el primer lugar del ranking de clubes correspondiente al 2009 de la Federación de Historia y Estadística de Futbol (IFFHS), con 4341 puntos.

Usually, I try to keep this blog pretty lighthearted, but occasionally serious stuff gets in the way.So, the news that gunmen fired on the bus carrying Togo footballers , including Emmanuel Adebayor, is pretty shocking. Particularly as the driver was killed and some of the players were wounded.Apparently, Togo were supposed to be flying to the Angola capital, Luanda and from there to Cabinda for

There is only one story to cover this morning in a rare Saturday roundup, after waking up this morning and learning three more travelling with the Togo team have reportedly died from yesterday's terrorist attack in Cabinda, Angola, apparently a reserve goalkeeper, assistant coach and a PR official.

Togo's football team will play in the Africa Cup of Nations, it was announced even after the government withdrew the participation after a deadly attack on Friday. New agencies stated that the team had decided to stay back in Angola in memory of those who had died and didn't want to run off like cowards.

Este directorio de ligas de primera división es dinámico. Irá creciendo y lo actualizaré en base a la información que cada país aporte hasta compendiar un listado de todas las ligas del mundo. En los casos en que la liga tenga una página web (diferente a la de la Asociación o Federación Nacional) podrán presionar el enlace.

It looks as if Togo will depart from the Africa Cup of Nations, though games will take place in Cabinda, just days after that region saw that team come under machine gun fire, will three officials dead and one goalkeeper (who had earlier been reported as dead) in intensive care, his life in the balance.

I have been in Angola and I found it a wonderful country with wonderful people. Still, it has a sad history, poverty and violence, and although the country was awarded to host the 2010 African Cup of Nations the violence have alreayd overshadowed the entire tournament.Upon passing the border from the DR Congo to the Angolan enclave of Cabinda, the bus carrying Togo's national side was attacked by

And that's why you always wait 'til the weekend is done to pick barnburners...This time, we have two absolute slugfest thrillers for your highlight viewing pleasure: Inter Milan v Siena and the Angola v Mali wonder show that kicked off African Cup of Nations play.- Greg Seltzer

Pro Soccer Weekly is proud to present an exclusive interview with Kerry Zavagnin, currently an Assistant Coach with the Kansas City Wizards. Kerry has had an extensive playing career and a lot of different experiences, including the games that he played for the U.S. National Team. Kerry was always someone whose career I was very interested in because I remember him starting out with the New York/New Jersey Metrostars and then later as a player with the Wizards and how he improved so much over the years.

The CAF, Africa's governing body for soccer, is putting up one of the most ridiculous PR campaigns I've ever seen in regards to the Togo national team situation. The CAF, instead of being proactive and postponing Togo's matches or working out a schedule with them in light of members of its delegation being murdered, is talking trash in the media about the situation.

Blow Me, F***ace . . . (AP Photo/Paul Thomas)Sergio Canales has caught everyone's eyes, especially after this goal against Sevilla. [Guardian, 101 Great Goals]Big Hicks tries to perform damage control after Little Hicks made a mess, ...

Blow Me, F***ace . . . (AP Photo/Paul Thomas)Sergio Canales has caught everyone's eyes, especially after this goal against Sevilla. [Guardian, 101 Great Goals]Big Hicks tries to perform damage control after Little Hicks made a mess, ...

Well we all know how the competition started but the tournament kicked off in earnest on Sunday evening with the host nation Angola entertaining Mali. Hopes were high after all the political wrangling that engulfed the weekend, football could return to the forefront. What no-one expected was a series of breathless games and major shocks that have turned the Cup Of Nations on its head.

FUNDaFIELD is a charitable organization started by two high school brothers to help build soccer fields in impoverished parts of Africa. FUNDaFIELD just met its original goal of raising $100,000. Congratulations!

Today, we kick off a new series leading up to World Cup 2010 that will take a video look at the USMNT's group (and hopefully, come June, knockout) opponents well in advance. You can bet Bob Bradley, the players and staff are busy doing their homework, so let's do ours as well.Our first target is Algeria, who had two radically different African Nations Cup showings this week: a stunning upset