International Football
FLASHBACK: STORY BEHIND THE ICONIC BRAZIL YELLOW SHIRT AND BLUE SHORTS
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
One of the most iconic football attires in the world is the Yellow shirt with green collars over blue shorts, which has been the traditional jersey of the Brazilian national football teams.
Before the advent of the jersey, Brazil used to put on white shirts with blue collars. A major loss on the football field occasioned the sudden dropping of the jersey for the current one.
On this date, 16 July 1950, at the Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil; Alcides Ghiggia scored a 79th minute winner as Uruguay beat Brazil, 2-1.
Co-incidentally, today is also the death anniversary of the scorer of the final goal as he, being the last surviving member of the winning team, died on this date, 16 July 2015 – exactly 65 years after scoring the decisive goal
He died aged of 88. The 1950 World Cup edition was with a difference. Unlike other World Cup editions, the 1950 winner was determined by a final group stage, with the final four teams playing in round-robin format, instead of a knockout stage.
With Brazil one point ahead of Uruguay, going into the last match of the round robin league, Uruguay needed a win, while a draw was sufficient for Brazil to be declared champions. The host team shot ahead in the 47th minute by Albino Friaça Cardoso.
But Uruguay leveled up in the 66th minute through Juan Alberto Schiaffino before Ghiggia’s winning goal.
The World Cup loss by Brazil had a lasting effect. The attire of the Brazilian national team, white shirt with blue collars, won in the 1950 was changed for ever.
In 1953, a competition was held by the newspaper Correio da Manhã to design a new outfit, with the rule being that it must incorporate the colours of the national flag.
Eventually, the competition was won by Aldyr Garcia Schlee, a newspaper illustrator, who came up with the design of a yellow shirt with a green trim, blue shorts and white socks that were first used in March 1954 against Chile, and has been used ever since.
When Brazil first won the World Cup in 1958, they wore their away kit as the new colours clashed with those of hosts Sweden.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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