Apparently Qatar are going to trot out Katty Perry and Maroon 5 for CWC visitors as their concerts overlap with the competition. They will also build a beer/alcohol "fan park" near the stadium. That's a lot more than we got in the UAE for the CWC! (Not that I care about those "artists", but a beer tent would have been nice) Liverpool will be surprised by Club World Cup as Qatari football chief makes Mohamed Salah pledge
Maroon 5 = a pretty aptly named band for supporting the Qatari national team Anyhoo,come on how can you complain living in UAE??!! All we've gotten in the last decade I've been here were Gypsy Kings, Yanni, Bryan Adams and Toploader! Oh yeah, I think Stereophonics did come.... anyhoo, not feeling sorry for you mate there... and would you believe it? I've arranged to be away when the shows are.. anyhoo, will make the final
As someone who attended the Red Hot Chili Peppers in Abu Dhabi as recently as September - fair enough. Sounds like you need to plan your 2020 December better.
We did get the Red Hot Chili Pipers - the Scottish bagpipe ensemble here a couple of years ago... caused quite a bit of commotion, and confusion lol.... to be honest, I think we'll pass on this december's performances... 600 riyals (almost $200) to stand at the back, not really a big fan of any of those artists to be honest. Will just stick to the football thanks.
Big weekend coming up where all remaining participants are determined. In about two hours it's the Copa Libertadores final in Lima - Peru. Reading this I'm convinced the single match final is a mistake in South America. Not as big a mistake as a single match final in Africa (as scheduled next year) but a mistake nevertheless. In order to host a single match final at a neutral venue, like UEFA does, you need to have good flight/road connections and overall adequate infrastructure. Anyway, I hope Flamengo pulls it off. Their very large fan-base is starved for international success and many would make the trip to Doha. Then tomorrow it's the Asian decider. With Urawa still fighting the threat of J. League relegation, there is no excuse for failing to bring the title to West Asia for the first time since 2011. If Hilal fail again, like they did recently in 2014 and 2017, they will deserve all the ridicule coming their way. Strangely the second leg is on a Sunday. I can't remember the last time that happened. In Saudi Arabia and several other countries in the region, Sunday is the first working day of the week. Hard to watch a game at 2:00 pm. Guess I will have to record and watch it in the evening.
as a neutral I definitely prefer this one-off game to be honest... seems like the fans have shown up in Lima... can see how it doesn't work in Asia though....
What an incredible conclusion to the 2019 Libertadoes final. Flamengo take it in dramatic fashion. Get your 1981 Flamengo-Liverpool stories ready!
I have to admit, that looked pretty good for a (hastily) organized final. Perhaps I was wrong. Then again, it was two of the most popular clubs in South America facing off. But it's definitely an ill-conceived idea for the scheduled CAF CL final next year (flight connections are even more of an issue in Africa). The AFC tried this for two years in 2009-2010 with a neutral final in Tokyo and quickly gave up on it. Anyway - up next. The Asian decider!
The 2019 Club World Cup is set 🌎🏆 pic.twitter.com/0ycIprcbbX— B/R Football (@brfootball) November 24, 2019
Al Hilal finally managed to win the ACL again for the first time since 2000 and equalized Pohang Steelers' record of three titles. It is the first title for West Asia since 2011 and the first for the Saudi FA since 2005.
UEFA: Liverpool Football Club (England) CONMEBOL: Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (Brazil) CONCACAF: Club de Fútbol Monterrey (Mexico) AFC: Al Hilal Saudi Football Club (Saudi Arabia) CAF: Espérance Sportive de Tunis (Tunisia) OFC: Hienghène Sport (New Caledonia) Host: Al Sadd Sports Club (Qatar)
Finna be lit. Mt are in the playoffs, maybe they can force another Xmas Final like America did. It was good to have some football on that day
So I have my tickets confirmed for this tournament. 2 tickets / 4 games as they're both doubleheaders... Quarterfinal doubleheader of Al Hilal vs Esperence and then Monterrey vs Al Sadd/ Hygienic Sports or whatever they are called, and then the final itself... probably won't even be in the country for the semis, dunno they just don't interest me as they seem like they could be fairly one-sided affairs, well at least one of them... things haven't been so easy for the Conmebol champs as of late though. Looks like al Hilal and Al Sadd could have a potential re-match in the 5th place game, or 3rd place game. A final doubleheader of Liverpool vs Flamengo and then Al Sadd vs Al Hilal bronze game would be pretty cool given the recent regional rivalry of the latter two teams.
I don't remember the last time the Libertadores winners dispatched their semifinal opponents with ease. Even Corinthians who went on to win it all in 2012 struggled mightily against Egypt's Al Ahly. For me personally the Al Ain - River Plate semifinal was the tournament highlight last year. The atmosphere was electric inside the Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium. If you are in town you should attend, especially if Esperance progresses and has its fans at the stadium (since Al Hilal will have close to zero fans in Qatar).
Rafinha joins rare club after Flamengo wins Copa Libertadores: https://www.bavarianfootballworks.c...flamengo-river-place-bayern-munich-highlights Only the 10th player to win both, UCL and Libertadores.
Santiago Solari was with 1996 River Plate but did not play in any Libertadores matches that season. He won UEFA with 2001-02 Real Madrid. Monterrey's victory saw two players complete the "Continental Double" of CONCACAF and Libertadores. Six players have now achieved the distinction. Christian Giménez • Libertadores (2000, 2001 Boca Juniors) • CONCACAF (2006 Club América; 2007, 2008 Pachuca, 2013-14 Cruz Azul) Damián Manso • Libertadores (2008 LDU Quito) • CONCACAF (2010 Pachuca) Neri Cardozo • Libertadores (2007 Boca Juniors) • CONCACAF (2011, 2012, 2013 Monterrey) Michael Arroyo • CONCACAF (2014-15, 2015-16 Club América) • Libertadores (2017 Grêmio) Marcelo Barovero • Libertadores (2015 River Plate) • CONCACAF (2019 Monterrey) Leonel Vangioni • Libertadores (2015 River Plate) • CONCACAF (2019 Monterrey)
List could be incomplete but I only found three players that have achieved a "Continental Double" with one of those victories coming in the AFC Champions League. Lee Ki-hyung • AFC (2000-01, 2001-02 Suwon Bluewings) • OFC (2008-09 Auckland City) Paulinho • Libertadores (2012 Corinthians) • AFC (2015 Guangzhou Evergrande) Lucas Barrios • AFC (2013 Guangzhou Evergrande) • Libertadores (2017 Grêmio)
And I count six who have achieved the "C. D." with at least one victory coming as a coach. Anghel Iordanescu • UEFA (player: 1985-86 Steaua Bucharest) • AFC (coach: 1999-2000 Al-Hilal, 2005 Al-Ittihad) Guillermo Rivarola • Libertadores (player: 1996 River Plate) • CONCACAF (coach: 2010 Pachuca) Marcello Lippi (coach) • UEFA (1995-96 Juventus) • AFC (2013 Guangzhou Evergrande) Gustavo Matosas • Libertadores (player: 1987 Peñarol) • CONCACAF (coach: 2014-15 Club América) Luiz Felipe Scolari (coach) • Libertadores (1995 Grêmio, 1999 Palmeiras) • AFC (2015 Guangzhou Evergrande) Matías Almeyda • Libertadores (player: 1996 River Plate) • CONCACAF (coach: 2018 Guadalajara)