This week's newsy bit which completely disrupted Serie A and set it on its own was less tragic,
though far more unique.
Genoa fans, outraged at their team's defense, which makes a kitchen collender look the Berlin
Wall, and subsequent league position, brought their game to a halt against Siena by flinging
fireworks, and with the score 4-0 Siena.
Professor Christopher Gaffney updates TSG on Brazil 2014.
Chris Gaffney
About: Professor Gaffney is a visiting professor at the Universidade
Federal Fluminese in the Department of Architecture and Urbanism. His research and teaching at the
university are focused on the urban and social impacts of the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer
Olympics.
This, perhaps, was not the new Europe that the leaders of the continents nations had envisaged
when the Berlin Wall came tumbling down in November 1989. The years between the European
Championships of 1988 and 1992 were the most politically tumultuous since the end of the Second
World War. At varying points over the course of those four intervening years, the geopolitics of
the entire continent had been upturned.
Hidden away among the doom and gloom spreading through football like a plague, borne on the
backs of greedy money-men, is a shimmering chink of light with the news that Mansfield Town have
finally secured ownership of their ground. The announcement that owner John Radford had purchased
the freehold to Field Mill was the final axe blow needed to sever Keith Haslam's link with the
club.
Mark Ogden, The Telegraph
It's a tough call trying to pin down the highlight of Sir Alex Ferguson's time as United
manager, but I think everything revolves around the title win in 1992-93.
But for that, would United have gone on to be successful for so long? I just think that was the
platform for everything because it lifted the weight of expectation and it was perfectly timed,
with the biggest club suddenly becoming the best team at precisely the moment that Sky came in to
inject money and global appeal into English football.
The fixtures are out and the pre-season friendlies have started. This is a time of year for
unbridled optimism and Swansea City supporter David James can look forward to his
team's first appearance in the top division of the game since 1983. They've had quite a journey to
get back there, though.
Football blogging is perhaps the best job ever the problem is that it is not a job!
James Robert Shaw laments...
At the time of writing this piece I am sitting at a desk in London undertaking a rather meagre
marketing internship. The time is 8.32am and on seven hours sleep I feel rather lethargic and
devoid of the enthusiasm needed to get me through an arduous day of spreadsheet's, conference
calls, and low-level marketing.
The Berlin Wall has long since been torn down, friends and family reunited. Germany is a country
unified and has been for some time now. While the west and east of this land are connected now and
equal, the east is still lagging behind in at least one important cultural aspect ... football.
Yet another objectively evil regime was hosting yet another Summer Olympics, and someone asked
Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice about a boycott. She spoke out strongly against it.
Quote: "I do not think the boycott of the '80 Olympics was very effective. In fact, I think it
looked feckless," she said.
