As deadline day approaches across some of the biggest football markets, we take you behind the scenes at FIFA TMS – the FIFA subsidiary overseeing around 12,000 cross-border transfers of professional male players each year in what is a multi-billion dollar industry. FIFA TMS, established after a FIFA Congress decision in 2007, has revolutionised the way transfers are conducted, providing the football community with state-of-the-art technology to keep pace with the high volume of transfers in today’s market and respond to the needs of the modern game. Watch the video above to learn more about FIFA TMS, with General Manager…
Author: FIFA News
Given how the past few months have unfolded, could it really have been anyone else? Germany’s footballers seem to be in the midst of a period in which everything they touch turns to gold, and Canada 2014 proved to be no exception. But while the concluding images of celebrating, white-shirted players were strikingly familiar, the way in which Maren Meinert’s women’s U-20s seized glory differed substantially to the world and Europe-conquering senior and U-19 men. “We spent the whole summer cheering on the men in Brazil, and their success definitely motivated us,” Meinert said after lifting the trophy. “We didn’t necessarily expect…
Bright Dike acted just like any other supporter at the final of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014 between Germany and Nigeria on Sunday, continually rising from his seat, shouting and occasionally holding his head with hands whenever a chance went begging. The occasion proved an especially nerve-racking one for the Toronto FC and Nigeria striker, not least because his sister Courtney was out on the pitch. Having played for his club side against Chicago Fire the day before, Bright was full of expectation after making the trip to Montreal to see his sibling in action. “It’s a…
Germany have appeared at every FIFA U-20 Woman’s World Cup and lifted the title in 2004 and 2010. Here in Canada, the European side have reached the final of the tournament for the third time in a row, where they will face Nigeria, opponents very familiar to coach Maren Meinert. Capped 92 times for her country and a World Cup winner in 2003, Meinert was at the helm four years ago when Germany beat the Super Falconets 2-0 in Bielefeld to lift the U-20 trophy. Before Sunday’s showdown in Montreal, Meinert took time out to speak to FIFA.com. FIFA.com: Ms Meinert, in this…
Nigeria’s Asisat Oshoala, better known to her team-mates as ‘Superzee’, was in truly superlative form on Wednesday evening, conjuring up four goals and two assists as the Africans overpowered Korea DPR 6-2 in the semi-finals of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014. A few days before the game FIFA.com had interviewed the bubbly striker in Moncton. Curious to find out more about following her stunning display, we asked six of her team-mates – one for every one of her collection of goals and assists against the North Koreans – to give us the lowdown on the amazing Superzee.…
Asisat Oshoala scored four times as Nigeria reached the final with a thumping 6-2 victory over Korea DPR in the highest-scoring semi-final ever seen at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Oshoala also laid on two more goals in a win that leaves the Super Falconets to face either France or Germany on Sunday at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium, and the North Koreans to play for third place at the same venue. Nigeria have had a tendency to score quick goals during their time at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014, and Courtney Dike continued that trend with a goal barely more…
Fiji’s women’s footballers will begin the new season sporting the latest strips and sparkling new equipment following the handover of a significant quantity of items provided by FIFA. Approximately USD $60,000 worth of adidas full player’s kits, boots, shin pads, goalkeeper gloves, balls and bibs will be on display across Fiji’s 12 regional women’s districts.It is, according to Fiji Football Association women’s football director Susan Wise, a watershed moment in the development of women’s football in the Melanesian nation. “The handover of the football equipment is indeed a historical moment for the country,” she said. “Women’s football has struggled and…
#HappyGirlAlways is the hashtag used most by youngster Asisat Oshoala on her Facebook profile and when you speak to her, it is not difficult to understand why. “It’s my life philosophy,” Oshoala told us. “I consider myself a happy girl, because whatever situation I find myself in, I try to be happy. I like to see people smiling, to make my friends laugh and smile. That’s what I’m like!” Right now, the young Nigerian has even more reasons to showcase her infectious smile, because things are going exceptionally well for her in Canada. Nigeria are in the semi-finals of the…
© Getty ImagesFIFA President Blatter made a visit to russia over the weekend on business related to the 2018 FIFA World Cup. During his two-day stay in Sochi, the FIFA President met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and held further talks with the Chairman and the CEO of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Local Organising Committee, Vitaly Mutko and Alexey Sorokin respectively.At the meeting with Mutko and Sorokin, FIFA President Blatter discussed a possible reduction in the number of venues for the 2018 FIFA World Cup as well as matters linked to the capacity of the arenas that will be…
There were seven minutes remaining of Nigeria’s FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014 quarter-final with New Zealand on Sunday when Super Falconets’ coach Peter Dedevbo decided to freshen up his front line. Though 2-0 up and well in control, the Africans had failed to trouble the Kiwi keeper for some time, prompting Dedevbo to look for someone to shake things up and cap his side’s impending win with a flourish. The player he turned to was the appropriately named Uchechi Sunday, and she did not disappoint. As she explained in an interview with FIFA.com after the final whistle, the…
Nigeria’s Asisat Oshoala and Uchechi Sunday both scored twice to send the Super Falconets into the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014 semi-finals at the expense of New Zealand with a 4-1 win in wet conditions in Moncton. Nigeria started quickly, just as Peter Dedevbo’s side did against Korea Republic in the group stage, with Oshoala scoring just 31 seconds into the game, finishing an attack that began from the kick-off. Ugo Njoku sent in an inch-perfect cross from the right in between two New Zealand defenders, and the No4 calmly headed home from six yards. It was the…
FIFA TMS has released a new report today providing an overview of the international transfers involving clubs from England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain during this year’s summer transfer window to date. The current window will close on 1 September 2014 for these “Big 5” football markets, with FIFA TMS set to release a detailed report shortly afterwards covering the entire summer transfer window period. The latest report compares this summer’s transfer window figures with those of the last three years at the same stage. Highlights include: • The total transfer fees spent by the Big 5 countries for the…
THE DAY REPLAYED – The final round of matches in Groups C and D at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Canada 2014 offered up its share of surprises and memorable moments. France topped Group D with a convincing 3-0 win over Paraguay, making them the only team in the tournament not to drop a point in the group stages. New Zealand also progressed to the last eight for the first time at the expense of Paraguay and Costa Rica. Things were even tighter in Group C, where Nigeria qualified as group winners by beating England 2-1. Meanwhile, Korea Republic defeated…
Nigeria have edged England with a 2-1 comeback win to top Group C, leaving the Europeans to head for home. Nigeria have a strong tradition of success at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup and displayed their fortitude by coming from a goal down to secure this decisive win. England opened in perfect fashion scoring in just the fifth minute as Hannah Blundell played a clever through ball for Nikita Parris, who took one touch and then clipped a shot past the advancing Nigeria goalkeeper Ibijoke Sangonuga from the edge of the box. The African champions drew level in an even contest four minutes before…
© Getty ImagesFootball involves the use of one’s head more often than the sport’s name would suggest. 13 per cent of all injuries sustained at FIFA World Cups™ involve the head and neck, with roughly one in seven of those injuries resulting in concussion. Football clubs, their doctors and world governing body FIFA have been investigating acute head injuries and the effects of heading a football for many years. Several different studies have already been carried out under the supervision of Jiri Dvorak, Senior Consultant at Zurich’s Schulthess Clinic and FIFA’s Chief Medical Officer. In 2006, these studies prompted the…
© Foto-netFIFA will support Sierra Leone in the fight against match manipulation. The President of the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) Isha Johansen visited the Home of FIFA to meet with FIFA President Blatter, FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke and representatives from FIFA’s Security Division and Disciplinary & Governance Department to discuss and seek advice as to how to tackle the wave of match manipulation allegations regarding football in Sierra Leone.It was agreed that FIFA’s Security Division would assist the SLFA in its fight against corruption and match manipulation in two ways – by supporting the investigation conducted by the…
As a symbolic gesture ahead of the FIFA World Cup™ Final in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and FIFA President Blatter came together to take part in a 2014/2018 FIFA World Cup hand-over ceremony. Today the eyes of the world are still on Brazil but with the curtains closing on what has been a truly memorable tournament, the focus will soon shift to 2018 when the biggest country in the world gets set to host football’s flagship event for the first time. The ceremony took place inside the iconic Maracana Stadium…
The 2014 FIFA World Cup™ Production of the Final Match will pioneer a 360-degree viewing experience thanks to a panoramic, Ultra HD OmniCam developed by scientists at the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute in Berlin. Football fans will be able to re-live all the drama and emotion of the 13 July match between Germany and Argentina in this ground-breaking format for the first time at the new FIFA World Football Museum in Zürich, which is scheduled to open its doors to the public in early 2016. The innovation is the latest visual technology to be introduced by FIFA as part of the production…
© Getty ImagesThe 2014 FIFA World Cup™ has set new records for streaming data traffic around the world, as football fans watch matches online in greater numbers than ever before. The FIFA World Cup broadcast production has already broken television viewing records in several territories around the world, underlining the growing popularity of the competition, including a breakthrough in the United States. On the digital side, leading content delivery network provider Akamai has confirmed this is the biggest event in terms of video content streaming on record, due to huge demand from fans accessing content live from the online platforms of…
The group stages of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ reached record numbers of viewers across the world, with a breakthrough performance in the United States and more impressive progress in Europe, Asia and the rest of the Americas. All eight World Cup groups set viewing highs for at least one territory, underlining the breadth of football’s popularity across the world . The blockbuster figures support FIFA’s expectation of an increase in the global TV audience compared to the 3.2 billion reach of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. Director of FIFA TV Niclas Ericson said: “We believe the…