International Football
The FIFA Confederations Cup in Numbers
118 – is the number of clubs from 30 different countries that are represented at Russia 2017. Bayer Leverkusen, Porto, Spartak Moscow, Sporting Lisbon and Wellington Phoenix lead the way with five players apiece.
100 – is the per cent of Russia’s players come from the country’s domestic league. Cameroon’s squad, by contrast, is comprised entirely of overseas-based players.
38 – is the number of years and four months is the age that makes Rafa Marquez the oldest player at Russia 2017. If fielded, the Mexico stalwart will become the second-oldest player in Confederations Cup history, behind Ali Boumnijel, who took to the field at the age of 39 years and two months in 2005. Marquez is also the only player at Russia 2017 who has already lifted this trophy.
36 – is the number of years and 98 days old is the age at which Anthony Hudson will become the Confederations Cup’s youngest-ever coach when he takes charge of the All Whites in their opening match. The record currently belongs to former Nigeria coach Shaibu Amodu, who was 36 years and 263 days old when he managed the Super Eagles at the 1995 edition.
29 years and one month is the average age of the Chile squad, making it the oldest ever seen at a Confederations Cup. Germany have taken a different approach altogether, selecting Russia 2017’s most youthful squad with an average age of just 24 years and four months.
18 – is the number of years old Dale Ingham could become the second-youngest player ever seen at a Confederations Cup. His New Zealand team-mate at Russia 2017, Chris Wood, holds the record, having played at South Africa 2009 six months after turning 17.
7 – is the number of editions of the Confederations Cup is the milestone Mexico will reach in Russia, taking them level with Brazil’s record tally. El Tri are the only previous winners among the eight teams vying for the title this year.
4 – is the number of Confederations Cup titles (1997, 2005, 2009, 2013) have comfortably established Brazil as the tournament’s most successful team. France, winners in 2002 and 2003, are the only other team to have won the competition more than once. Brazil have also won far more Confederations Cup matches than any other team, with 23 victories putting them 14 clear of second-placed Mexico and France.
3 – is the number of European teams will compete at Russia 2017: the hosts, world champions Germany and UEFA EURO winners Portugal. This is the first Confederations Cup to involve three teams from the same confederation.
3 – of the nine Confederations Cups to date have been won by the host nation: Mexico in 1999, France in 2003 and Brazil in 2015. Can Russia make it four from ten?
0 – number of foreign coaches have led their country to glory at the Confederations Cup. Half of the men in charge at Russia 2017 – not to mention the fans of Cameroon, Chile, Mexico and New Zealand – will be hoping to see that statistic consigned to the rubbish bin on 2 July.
Representatives from four national players’ unions on Thursday launched a new global organisation in Madrid, which they say will strengthen footballers’ rights and improve dialogue with governing bodies.
Opening a new front in the battle over who speaks for players, the International Footballers’ Association (AIF) was unveiled, with David Aganzo, president of Spain’s Association of Footballers (AFE) and a former head of the global union FIFPRO, appointed to lead the organisation.
Players’ unions from Brazil, Mexico and Switzerland were also represented.
The initiative drew a swift rebuke from FIFPRO, which said in a statement that Aganzo was acting out of self-interest and aligning himself with organisations linked to football governing bodies, as well as groups expelled from FIFPRO over alleged mismanagement.
Aganzo rejected the criticism, saying he “will not seek confrontation with FIFPRO”.
The launch comes amid strained relations between players’ unions and football authorities, particularly over the expanding international match calendar.
Relations between FIFA and FIFPRO deteriorated in 2024 after the union lodged a complaint with the European Commission, arguing that the global governing body was abusing its dominant position by adding competitions without sufficient consultation.
Aganzo denied suggestions that the new initiative was backed by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, but said “direct dialogue with FIFA” was essential.
AFE’s Extraordinary General Assembly approved the initiative in February with 99.8% of votes cast in favour of spearheading the creation of the AIF.
The same assembly also backed AFE’s withdrawal from FIFPRO, citing what it described as a “complete lack of transparency, as well as its total lack of dialogue with international bodies.”
“We represent over 30,000 footballers, and we come here with a new model aimed at safeguarding players’ rights and facilitating direct communication with all international bodies,” Aganzo told reporters.
“We are in contact with 15 to 20 unions already who were very aware of this moment and waiting for this announcement to make their move and join our initiative.”
He declined to identify any unions beyond those present.
Asked about a report that a senior envoy to U.S. President Donald Trump had urged FIFA to replace Iran with Italy at the upcoming World Cup, Aganzo urged caution.
“These are more political issues; on April 30th, I’ll be speaking to Gianni (Infantino) at the FIFA Congress, and we will discuss those things,” Aganzo said.
“People who want to go to the World Cup have to earn their place on sporting merit.”
-Reuters
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A new trial over the death of Argentine soccer legend Diego Maradona will begin on Tuesday, with seven members of his medical team charged with negligent homicide nearly a year after a previous case collapsed in a mistrial.
An enduring presence in Argentina – from towering murals to tattoos, opens new tab – Maradona died on November 25, 2020, at 60, after a heart attack while he was recuperating from brain surgery to remove a blood clot.
A court in San Isidro, near Buenos Aires, will hear testimony from just under 100 witnesses as it tries Maradona’s medical team over alleged negligence in the death of the 1986 World Cup champion.
His medical team has denied wrongdoing. The defendants are psychiatrist Agustina Cosachov, neurosurgeon Leopoldo Luque, psychologist Carlos Angel Diaz, physician Nancy Edith Forlini, nurse Ricardo Almiron, head nurse Mariano Ariel Perroni, and physician Pedro Pablo Di Spagna. An eighth defendant, nurse Dahiana Madrid, will be tried in a separate jury trial, with no date yet set.
Two months into the first trial, which started last March, a mistrial was declared when one of three judges, Julieta Makintach, resigned after video surfaced showing her being interviewed by a camera crew in the corridors of the courthouse and in her office as part of a documentary, in breach of judicial rules.
The retrial will require both prosecutors and defense lawyers to reassess their strategies after the first trial aired photographs, videos, audio recordings and forensic evidence. Many witnesses, including Maradona’s children and his former wife, Claudia Villafane, have already testified.
Prosecutors argued in the initial trial that medical professionals broke treatment protocols and that the home where Maradona was recovering from surgery amounted to a “theatre of horror,” where necessary care was not provided.
The defense countered that his death was inevitable given his longstanding health problems. Maradona struggled for decades with cocaine and alcohol addiction.
The negligence charges emerged in 2021 after prosecutors appointed a medical board to investigate Maradona’s death. The panel concluded his medical team acted in an “inappropriate, deficient and reckless” manner.
-Reuters
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Aliou Cisse has been named coach of the Angola national team, the country’s football federation (FAF) announced on Thursday, 24 hours after the Senegalese left his post in Libya.
The 50-year-old coach, who led Senegal to their maiden Africa Cup of Nations title in 2022, ended his short stint with the Libyan national team on Wednesday, after taking charge in March 2025.
“Welcome, Aliou Cisse, head coach of the Angola national team,” the FAF said on Facebook. Angola, which failed to reach this year’s World Cup, will start their 2027 AFCON qualifying campaign in September.
-Reuters
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