World Cup 2010 is just around the corner. As the last bunch of games for qualifications get played this year we face the possibility of a tournament without some of the games giants.

It's still early but in Africa we stand the chance of missing out on Nigeria, Egypt and Cameroon. In Central America Mexico are sitting 4th, although the change in management might be enough to catch up with Honduras.

Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov has confirmed stories about a kidnapping ordeal involving himself that happened about ten years ago in his home country of Bulgaria while at CSKA Sofia... Berbatov revealed that he was abducted by Bulgarian gangster Georgi Iliev at the age of 18 with the intention to coerce Dimitar to signing for his [.

There are many things one may hope never to encounter in their short lifetime here on Earth. One of those things is being mauled by a black bear. Another one of those things is having a Bulgarian mob boss come after you.

Ohhh, looks like a loss for Liverpool reserve keeper Nikolay Mihailov on the latter.

Ireland U17 striker Parick McEleney is staying at Sunderland after the young Derry man was confirmed as one of eight players who will be involved at the Sunderland academy of light next season.
The former St. Brigid's College pupil will be joined at Sunderland by fellow Ireland U17 international John Egan from Cork.

Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted he made a major mistake last season with Bulgaria striker Dimitar Berbatov. The former Spurs frontman, who arrived for £30.75million last summer, came under fire last season after not living up to Old Trafford expectations, but Fergie has said he played the striker too deep.

The FIFA World Rankings were released today with little change in the top ten. The one exception is Russia dropping several spots, and Portugal moving into the top 10. The top 2 remain unchanged with Brazil on top and Spain close behind. The rest of the top ten is the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Argentina, England, Croatia, France, and Portugal.

The latest FIFA World Rankings are out and Brazil has overtaken Spain for the top spot with their win in the 2009 Confederations Cup. The United States saw their ranking improve with a strong performance to reach the finals but the biggest mover into the top 20 were Australia (moved up 13 spots) and the Ivory Coast (moved up 20 spots).

The latest FIFA World Rankings were released today with little change in the top ten as Spain remains on top by a fairly comfortable margin. The Netherlands moved up to 2nd, Italy up to 4th, and England is now at 6th. Outside the top 10, the United States moved up a spot to 14th and will have plenty of chances to move up with a busy June and July schedule.

Classic schoolboy prank from Gunners Airports can be pretty dull places, but not when the cheeky scamps from the Arsenal Supporters Club Bulgaria are on hand. Allegedly waiting at Sofia airport to greet Gunners legend Liam Brady as the Republic of Ireland team landed, the group had also come armed to play a prank on Spurs [.

The Latest FIFA World Rankings are out and little change as there were no World Cup Qualifiers since early April. Here is the full list.

Ranking Team Pts
May 09 +/- Ranking
Apr 09 +/- Pts
Apr 09 1 Spain 1729 0 0 2 Germany 1362 0 0 3 Netherlands 1360 0 0 4 Brazil 1281 0 6 5 Italy 1271 0 0 6 Argentina 1195 0 -6 7 England 1173 0 0 8 Croatia 1151 0 0 9 Russia 1117 0 0 10 France 1074 0 0 11 Portugal 1013 0 0 12 Czech Republic 968 0 0 13 Greece 927 0 0 14 Turkey 923 0 -2 15 USA 919 0 0 16 Uruguay 909 0 0 17 Paraguay 906 0 10 18 Switzerland 883 0 0 19 Cameroon 871 0 0 20 Bulgaria 840 0 0 21 Israel 836 0 0 22 Ukraine 832 0 0 23 Serbia 819 0 0 24 Scotland 815 0 0 25 Mexico 803 0 -5 26 Chile 796 0 -10 27 Northern Ireland 795 0 0 28 Romania 792 0 0 29 Denmark 790 0 0 30 Nigeria 781 0 0 31 Ghana 779 0 0 32 Australia 776 0 0 33 Sweden 769 0 0 34 Republic of Ireland 761 0 0 35 Japan 749 0 0 36 Côte d'Ivoire 743 0 0 37 Egypt 742 0 0 38 Bosnia-Herzegovina 737 0 0 39 Honduras 736 0 10 40 Poland 724 1 5 41 Costa Rica 721 -1 0 42 Ecuador 695 0 -2 43 Hungary 662 1 0 44 Colombia 660 -1 -14 45 Norway 642 1 2 46 Korea Republic 641 -1 0 47 Slovakia 626 0 0 48 Gabon 616 0 0 49 Mali 604 0 -5 50 Morocco 593 0 0

.World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 1) Denmark 1 1 Portugal Hungary 1 2 Sweden World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 2) Moldova 0 0 Luxembourg Israel 0 1 Latvia Switzerland 2 0 Greece World Cup qualifiers Europe (Group 3) Poland 1 1 Northern Ireland Slovakia 2 2 Czech Republic World Cup qualifiers [.

Una selección de goles que quizás no vieron de la Eliminatoria por ser equipos no tan mediáticos:

McFadden de Escocia contra Macedonia Nicklas Bentdner de Dinamarca contra Portugal Jovetic de Montenegro contra Bulgaria

Could Man United star Dimitar Berbatov be hitting some goal scoring form? Last night he scored not one, not two, but three goals for Bulgaria. This coincides with the news that Berbatov has become a dad- congratulations to him and his girlfriend.
The Bulgarian captain and Man United striker helped his team to a comfortable 6-2 win over Georgia at the Vassil Levski stadium in Sofia.

Maybe it's a quirk, but I'm fascinated by rewatching video and highlights of games which have been deemed "less than legit", or even suggested as such. Call me curious, call me crazy...call me a fan of Serie A. This, just breaking, is one of those games. UEFA has suspended Bulgarian referee (you're shocked, I know [.

Stuff to read while you fall victim to the always deadly 45 yard free kick...... ManU to further The Brand by opening up cafes in India. (BBC) Jose Mourinho shows no signs of taming with age. (Serie Aaaaargh!) Man City usher in Tevez and a 2-3-5 formation. (Man City Offside) Kevin Doyle's agent is quite the character.

The latest FIFA World Rankings were released on Wednesday August 5, 2009 as there was little change in the top 20. Brazil remains on top followed by Spain, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Russia, England, Argentina, France, and Croatia rounding out the top 10. The United States remains at number 12 while Paraguay was able to move up to 2 spots to 20.

"VIDEO: Berbatov Pen and Assist For Bulgaria" was originally published at The Republik of Mancunia.

The Yellow Wall - Borussia Dortmund's fearsome home support out in full forceOn last week's 3 to See we scoured all of Europe to bring you derby matches in England, Bulgaria and Norway. Manchester...

Bulgaria went on to lose 4-1.

"VIDEO: Berbatov's Goal Against Cyprus" was originally published at The Republik of Mancunia.

Zico takes Japan in vintage early 90's style. Roman spends enough on lunch to feed someone for life. (Bild) Reason #8 billion social networking was a bad idea. (The Spoiler) The American foul roundup. (Climbing The Ladder) Don't set your sheep suit on fire. (The Beautiful Game) Bulgarian football is the new awesome.

Stuff to read while your kindergarten is robbed by kindergarteners........ Granada FC protest against their lack of pay midgame. (101 Great Goals) The next soon to be ex-coach of Bulgaria. (Guardian) Luca Toni has a doppelganger. (Dirty Tackle) Sometimes the B team is where the glory's at. That goes for Jose Antonio Reyes, too.

It's a busy weekend of World Cup Qualifying and key games in the UEFA Region. In Group 6, England currently leads with 15 points with a 5-0-0 record. A victory at Kazakhstan on Saturday would keep them first in the group and one step closer to automatic qualification. Other key matches include Sweden versus Denmark, Bulgaria takes on Ireland, and the Netherlands takes on Iceland.

Though it's still seven weeks away, the draw for the annual Northern Ireland Milk Cup is set. The U-18 MNT will take on Denmark on Monday, July 27 and Sudan on Wednesday, July 29. The games will take place after the famous parade that travels through the town of Coleraine on July 26.
Israel, Bulgaria and Northern Ireland (of course) will also be participating in the Elite Division of the prestigious tournament, said to be one of the favorites of YNT veterans.

Reminder Perhaps it was the explosive start off the blocks to the transfer season before settling into a silent slumber, but it seems big time club football is still ages and ages away. But strangely enough, it's precisely the opposite. Both the Champions and Europa leagues are already in full swing while Switzerland was first off [.

For those who don't enjoy the sight of a helpless body unconscious on the ground, please avert your eyes and move along. The big story here was that of Felipe Felix, who was kicked well into obliviousness during yesterday's Champions League match between Levski Sofia of Bulgaria and Azerbaijan's Baku.

If you can't reach the ball with your overhead clearance, try the attacker's face There was brief panic in Tuesday's Champions league match between Azerbaijani champions FK Baku and Bulgaria's Levski Sofia. Baku striker Felipe Felix took a boot to the face as he tried to race onto a loose ball in the Levski penalty area [.

Manchester City striker Valeri Bojinov is back in Serie A after joining newly-promoted Parma on loan.

The 23-year-old Bulgaria international endured an injury-hit spell at Eastlands, making just three Premier League starts in two years.

Bojinov did look a talented prospect when fit, but the summer arrivals of three big name strikers means his playing time would have been severely limited next season.

As the countdown to the 2010 Fifa World Cup draws ever closer, the Azzurri still have some work to do in their final qualifying matches to be assured of reaching and most importantly defending their coveted trophy once more. Whilst the final qualifying matches against Georgia, Bulgaria, Republic of Ireland and .

Inattesa, forse anche sgraziata nei modi, ma sicuramente una "strigliata" che ci voleva dopo tante chiacchiere e soprattutto tante polemiche sterili e inutili che hanno avuto come protagonisti personaggi importanti della Serie A di Calcio. Risuona fragorosa, impetuosa, improvvisa, dal ritiro azzurro, la voce di Marcello Lippi (un altro autogol?

Now this is a precedent I can get behind.
Bad referees aren't going to cut it in Bulgaria. Two of 'em got four-match suspensions for their ineptitude.

"There's no place for such referees in Bulgarian football," [BFU Vice President Yordan] Lechkov was quoted as saying after Sliven's defeat last weekend.

E una è andata. La Georgia, tra le squadre di calcio insidiose del girone, è stata superata (due gol a zero il risultato finale), non senza difficolt , e soprattutto grazie ad una buona dose di "fattore C", anzi K, visto che è stato il capitano georgiano Kaladze ad essere in serata di vena "realizzativa" (due, o un autogol e mezzo nella serata, un record o quasi).

Impressive performance from Italy who took a two goal lead after 40 minutes and closed up shop for a solid win over the Bulgarians.

1-0 Grosso

2-0 Iaquinta

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A place in the play-off draw now looks almost a certainty for the Republic of Ireland after Italy's impressive 2-0 win over Bulgaria in Turin tonight. A lot of pressure was on the Italians, in particular coach Marcello Lippi after some fairly average performances of late. However, an ...

Inter president Massimo Moratti has commented on the possibility of Thiago Motta playing for Italy at the international level, claiming he "loves" the idea. The player has dual citizenship and has already announced his desire to play for the Azzurri.

"It's always a pleasure to see one of your own players with the blue jersey on," he stated to Inter's official website, inter.

Dimitar is in the right place at the right time here as a good Bulgarian move is finished by the Old Trafford man.

Fulham Vs Manchester City Tickets Still Available!

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Dimitar Berbatov scored a tremendous hat-trick as he helped Bulgaria to a 6-2 romp over Georgia.

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You read that correctly. Berba is a papa. His girlfriend Elena gave birth in the early hours of this morning to a little girl.

Mom and baby are doing fine.

Good night all round for Dimi, as he was out on the pitch knocking in three goals for Bulgaria in their World Cup qualifier against Georgia.

It's official. France's playoff opponent is Ireland.

And Raymond Domenech is kissing the boots of UEFA for deciding to seed the draw.

France, the 1998 world champions, 2000 European champions and beaten World Cup finalists in 2006, will have the advantage of playing the second leg on home soil against an Ireland side coached by Giovanni Trapattoni.

All the stuff being covered outside the unfriendly confines of the award winning Dirty Tackle...

The derby match between St. Pauli and Hansa Rostock once again brings fire and violence and police involvement, this time inflamed by St. Pauli's Deniz Naki. [101gg]

Every fan attending the Dynamo Kiev v Inter Champions League match will be given masks to protect against the terrifying dangers of swine flu.

We love to hate on refs.
Aren't there two kinds: bad and awful...?
But one assistant referee, Plamen Georgiev, in Bulgaria deserves some super respect. When a player collapsed and swallowed his tongue, the ref rushed to his rescue and perhaps saved his life.

"I threw my flag down and went to help him," Georgiev, who rushed onto the pitch and pulled Iliev's tongue out in front of scared players and officials, told reporters.