#Arsenals Football Club AFC

[msclaritea]

[afc-soasv]

🔴⚪️ An Open Letter to Arsenal Football Club 🔴⚪️

Fans expect more than wins—we expect integrity. Together we’re calling for accountability, transparency, and a commitment to safeguarding within the sport.

Join our cause by signing our open letter: https://openletter.earth/arsenal-supporters-against-sexual-violence-0537f68b

[vivsballer]

The skippers 🏳️‍🌈

[xivdl]

I quite like his lil beard yous stay safe though

[iva-nana-ilus]

These guys make me happy very often. Defeat sucks, but we have no choice but to move on. COYG.

IG: @iva.nana.ilus

whatever the weather♥️

[suntoucher2001]

hbd to european champion emile smith rowe

[artfromfootball]

Kyra Cooney-Cross

[daminouspurity]

Arsenal FC vs. AFC Bournemouth | 2024 Pre-season Club Friendly | Predictions EA Sports FC24

[brandtsstuff10]

The Leica Gallery Stuttgart exhibition by photographer and filmmaker Philipp Reinhard. Under the title "Black, Red, Gold!".

Reinhard has been accompanying the DFB team as a team photographer since 2017, his recordings include international matches, training sessions and major tournaments such as the 2018 World Cup in Russia and 2022 Qatar.

A particular highlight of the exhibition are the intimate snapshots that show the players in private and inconspicuous situations. Often taken in the confines of hotel rooms or on the sidelines, these images open up a new perspective on the world of top-class sport. "I want to show the people behind the athletes and maintain the balance between their public and private spheres," emphasises Reinhard.

"Kai Havertz and Julian Brandt know each other from their time together in Leverkusen and also spend a lot of time together on the national football team". Reinhard - Wolfsburg 2021.

"Bravertz as they say in modern German".

[kotromanichh]

So many delusional takes in the Kylian tag:

1. Barca fans and their "we have no front 3, he should come here and make it his own". He wont! Your broke ass is no ones problem but yours. He also doesn't like you. And he loves getting paid, so forget it!

2. Jude fangirls and their nonsense. ARE YOU SCARED?? Sounds like it. Real Madrid is a football club, not a Mr. Universe nor a popularity contest, you get that, right?! Right?! Kylian wins both, tho. Florentino Perez knows what he's doing, adding the best football player and biggest football star to his team. Sorry to break it to you delulus, but Kylian is in a league with CR, Messi and Ney, not with the Judes and Vinies of the world, put some respect! (I do like Vini & Jude, as I like Real a lot, and they are top top top ballers, but Kylian is a level above).

3. The team, Real Madrid, will be fine, I don't see any issues, they always had the biggest stars, Florentino knows how to deal with them, plus Madrid is so BIG that it keeps even the biggest egos in check. There is no one and nothing in football bigger than Real Madrid, and I say that as an life long Arsenal fan!

4. Arsenal and Liverpool links- never gonna happen. The only thing less likely than Kylian going to AFC or LFC, is him going to Barcelona. No truth in that, whatsoever.

5. I'm just happy that he FINALLY gets his dream move, and wish him success and happiness, he worked hard for this!

[pedripics]

hi! may i ask you something about this Super League? im confused because im new here. and what about that 1 billion euros for? thank you

Hi, of course 🫶🏻

The Super League is a rather complex topic, so I'm gonna give you a short summary and a longer version with the history and stuff under the cut.

In short, the Super League is a proposed football competition for football clubs in Europe that is aimed to rival the UEFA competitions, such as the Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League.

Format (this is the new version they just released):

It would include 64 men’s (spread across three leagues) and 32 women’s teams (spread across two leagues) playing midweek games in a league system across Europe. All clubs would play in groups of 8 – home and away – resulting in a guaranteed minimum of 14 matches per year. At the end of the season, a knockout stage of 8 clubs will be played in each league to determine the league champions. There would also be annual promotion and relegation between the three/ two leagues. The idea is that it would not interfere with domestic leagues.

History:

Proposals of Super Leagues in European football have been around for decades with the earliest ideas dating back to 1968. There were attempts to create a 'Super League' in 1987 and 1990 but they were abandoned after UEFA and FIFA threatened to sanction all involved clubs. In 2009, Florentino Pérez (president of Real Madrid) began planning a 'Super League' because the Champions League, in his words, was too "obsolete and problematic for the quality of the sport and an obstacle preventing clubs from growing their businesses and developing infrastructure." That idea resurfaced in 2020 when big clubs started suffering financially from the Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing debts. That got American investors interested who pledged US $5 billion towards its formation. In January 2021, FIFA and all six football's continental confederations (AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, OFC, and UEFA) issued a statement that rejected the formation of any breakaway European Super League and that they would ban any club or player involved from any competitions organised by FIFA and its six confederations.

Current 'European Super League':

In April 2021, Pérez announced the formation of the 'European Super League' (ESL) via a press release signed by twelve clubs that signed up to be involved (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspurs, Inter Milan, Juventus, AC Milan, Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Real Madrid). The aim was a new competition that "provides higher-quality matches and additional financial resources for the overall football pyramid, provides significantly greater economic growth and support for European football via a long-term commitment to uncapped solidarity payments, which will grow in line with league revenues, would appeal to a new younger generation of football fans, and also would improve VAR and refereeing." Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, and Juventus were the three leading clubs. There is much more to the financial aspect of it (like solidarity payments, welcome bonuses, participation payments, commercial revenue, etc.), but that's rather complicated and depends on what newspaper you wanna believe.

Reception:

The announcement led to a joint statement from the governing bodies of the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A condemning the formation, with all governing bodies declaring to prevent the ESL from proceeding any further. Football governing bodies from Germany, France and Russia released similar statements. UEFA reiterated their statements made in January 2021, warning that any clubs involved in the Super League would be banned from all other domestic, European and world football competitions and that players from the clubs involved would also be banned from representing their national teams in international matches. (The Premier League and their governing body FA ruled out barring the six clubs from domestic competitions and preferred to not take legal action.) Numerous politicians expressed their opposition to the proposal of the ESL. Amongst commentators, footballers and managers, the ESL sparked contrasting opinions. Media companies were mostly opposed to the idea (which does not come as a surprise as ESL promises free viewing of all live matches). Many football fans, including the fans of the involved clubs, were not in support of the idea of the ESL. The backlash led to nine clubs (all clubs, except FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Juventus) announcing their intention to withdraw from the project in April 2023. However, eight of these nine clubs remained involved as stakeholders. In June 2023, Juventus announced their decision to leave the Super League project after facing a rumoured 5-year ban from all European competitions if they went through with the project. (That only leaves FC Barcelona and Real Madrid)

Legal issues:

In May 2021, the Super League filed a complaint to the Court of Justice of the European Union against UEFA and FIFA for their proposals to stop the competition. UEFA had opened disciplinary proceedings against FC Barcelona, Juventus, and Real Madrid, which were threatened to be excluded from all UEFA competitions, in order to sanction them but these measures were stayed until further notice as a result of the rulings from the Spanish commercial court and Swiss authorities. In June 2021, the Swiss Department of Justice and Police and the Spanish Commercial Court referred the issue to the Court of Justice of the European Union to question whether UEFA and FIFA have violated two articles of the Treaty of the Functioning of the European Union. Article 101 prohibits cartels and other agreements that could disrupt free competition in the EEA and Article 102 aims to prevent businesses in an industry from abusing their position or taking action to prevent new businesses from gaining a foothold in the industry. On 21 December 2023, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that FIFA and UEFA's rules, which banned clubs from joining rival competitions, such as the Super League, are contrary to EU law. UEFA's and FIFA's rules making new football projects subject to their prior approval are also unlawful.

What does the ECJ's ruling mean:

The ECJ's ruling is binding and not subject to appeal. The ECJ's decision on UEFA's rules does however not rule on whether the Super League should (or is allowed) to exist. UEFA needs to change and clarify its rules now to comply with EU law. Once the regulations are updated, the Super League will still need to acquire authorisation to set the competition up. The ruling basically gives companies like A22 the right to pitch a new football competition and for their application to be judged on criteria which are "transparent, objective, non-discriminatory and proportionate".

Revival of the project:

In December 2023, A22 announced a new, updated proposal (which I already explained under format). However, many clubs have issued statements opposing the idea (including clubs, who were once involved in the ESL). As of right now, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and SSC Napoli have issued statements in support of the ESL. There are reports about various clubs from Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and other European leagues who are keen on joining (but no official statements from the clubs).

Why could Barça and Real Madrid receive €1 billion?

I believe this has not been confirmed by A22, but it has been reported by various newspapers. They would receive €1 billion as a reward for their loyalty, as they are the only two clubs who remained firm on their decision to take part in the Super League. That would obviously only happen if they find enough teams to set up the ESL.

[tartt9]

afc richmond: a guide to the premier league underdogs (contains spoilers of the season 3 finale of ted lasso)

from https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFC_Richmond

AFC Richmond is an English professional football club based in Richmond, West London. Founded in 1897, they play their home games at Nelson Road Stadium. The club competes in the Premier League, the top division of English football. The club has never won a major trophy.

Full name: AFC Richmond Nickname(s): The Greyhounds Founded: 1897; 125 years ago Ground: Nelson Road Capacity: 25,486 Owner: Rebecca Welton (51%), Richmond fans (49%) Chairman: Leslie Higgins Manager: Roy Kent League: Premier League 2021-22: Premier League, 2nd of 20

Richmond’s history has been notoriously mediocre. They were the last London club to make their Wembley Stadium debut (on April 18, 2021, for the 2021 FA Cup semifinals, against Manchester City). Formerly owned by Rupert Mannion, and (for a short time) Freddie Mercury, and formerly managed by George Cartrick and Ted Lasso, Richmond’s luck has truly turned around since 2019-20, when they were relegated to the EFL Championship. During that 2019 season, ownership changed hands from longterm owner Rupert Mannion, who had owned Richmond since 1987, to his now ex-wife, Rebecca Welton, after a divorce from a marriage in which Mannion cheated on Welton multiple times with multiple women. After Welton's acquisition of the club in January 2020, she hired American NCAA Division II football coach Ted Lasso to be the new manager of AFC Richmond. Lasso's extraordinary lack of knowledge of the game, despite assistance from another American coach, Coach Willis Beard, led to Richmond's relegation.

In the 2020-21 season, their first full season under the management of Ted Lasso, they earned second in the Championship and were therefore promoted back to the Premiership. They also made it to the semifinals of the FA Cup, the furthest Richmond has ever been in that competition.

In 2021-22, Richmond was predicted by literally every pundit who spoke on English football to finish 20th of 20 in the Premier League, and, therefore, be relegated once again. Statistically, it's likely that teams that earn their promotions get relegated again the very next year. But Lasso and his Greyhounds had things to say about that. After a 1-1 tie against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, legendary striker Zava joined Richmond, spurring the Greyhounds on a 5-game winning streak. It was week 6 of the season, and Richmond was in third place on the table. Their fate had seemingly turned around off the foot of Zava. But, after a devastating loss against West Ham (now owned by Rupert Mannion and managed by Nathan Shelley, formerly Richmond's kit man), they went 7 weeks without a win. When Zava retired in the middle of the season, Richmond went their 8th week without a win, and many people were considering Lasso's capabilities as manager. Those doubts continued through Richmond going to Amsterdam to play a friendly against AFC Ajax, that Richmond lost 5-0. But, upon their return to England and the Premier League, Richmond started playing with a new strategy - total football. Their first match against Arsenal also resulted in a loss, but Richmond was showing signs of life for the first time in months. Richmond ended the season on a 17-game winning streak (the longest streak in Richmond's history), earning second in the Premier League and promotion to the Champions League.

2021-22 starting xi:

14 - dani rojas (mexico, striker) 9 - jamie tartt (england, centre attacking midfield/striker) 12 - colin hughes (wales, left wing) 8 - richard montlaur (france, midfield) 21 - moe bumbercatch (switzerland, midfield) 24 - sam obisanya (nigeria, right wing) 2 - arlo dixon (england, right wing back) 13 - jan maas (netherlands, centre back) 5 - isaac mcadoo (england, centre back), captain 17 - jeff goodman (england, left wing back) 81 - thierry zoreaux (canada, keeper)

terms to know: gaffer: manager - formerly george cartrick, ted lasso, currently roy kent skipper: captain - formerly roy kent, currently isaac mcadoo

[vivsballer]

Sign it please

[januaryisbrittishbeermonth]

GOOOOAAAALLLLLLL!

Warning:  If you are allergic to soccer or any of its ingredients, stop reading now.

We learned earlier in That Sinking Feeling, that Wrexham Lager Beer Co. Ltd. are proud partners with Wrexham AFC which started me wondering if other soccer teams have official beers or partnerships with breweries.  Pretty sure the answer is yes, but it’s January, so time to do some checking.

The only two British football clubs that I can think of are Arsenal and Manchester United.  Let’s start with Arsenal since it is Thomas’s favorite team.  The Gunners inked a deal with Camden Town Brewery in 2019 and in 2024 re-upped with their North London neighbors.

I had a Camden Hells Lager at the Blackfriar in London back in 2017 (see the 2018 edition of JiBBM).  I rated it as 3.25 bottle caps which means it was a solid beer but nothing special.  The Nicholson’s cask conditioned Pale Ale that I also had that night was far superior and rated 4.25 bottle caps which meant that it was veddy nice. 

My usual thorough research did not turn up a beer partner for Manchester United, but it did uncover the fact that there is another Manchester team in the Premier League – Manchester City FC.  Who knew?   I didn’t.  But now you and I know that the official beer partner of Manchester City FC since 2022 is Asahi Super Dry.  How have I not checked-in this beer?  I see it all the time but always figure I’ve had it.  The liquor stores close at 6:00pm today (Sunday) so I’ll have to wait-to-rate.  Anyway, it seems that Man City is making a play for Japanese viewership through this partnership with "the beer with the Karakuchi taste".

A full list of beer partnerships with Premier League teams can be found at:  Beer partners of Premier League teams 2023/24 - SportsKhabri

The only surprise I found in the list is that Carling Brewery is the official beer partner of Newcastle United FC and has been since 2007.  Why is Newcastle Brown Ale not the sponsor of the Magpies?  Maybe because it was sold to Heineken and production moved to the Netherlands and moved again in 2019 to Lagunitas Chicago brewery with a new recipe.  Hmmmmmm….. 

Carling is not exactly a home town darling either – It’s owned by MolsonCoors.   Good god man, who can keep up with all of the beer industry reshuffling? 

Nearly as baffling as the beer industry is the English Football League system, also known as the football pyramid, which is a series of interconnected leagues for men's association football clubs.  According to Wikipedia “The exact number of clubs varies from year to year as clubs join and leave leagues, merge, or fold altogether, but an estimated average of 15 clubs per division implies that more than 7,000 teams of nearly 5,300 clubs are members of a league in the English men's football league system.”  Once again, good god man!  For perspective, Statista.com reports that in 2022 there were 2,426 breweries in the U.K.   

Here are the first nine tiers:

And on it goes tier after tier.

The Premier League is at the top of the pyramid, so it makes sense that they are partnering with the big boys in the brewing world.  Fourteen of the twenty Premier League teams have a beer sponsor.  The obvious question is why six do not. 

Spoiler alert for anyone watching Welcome to Wrexham, their team has been promoted from the fifth tier which is the lowest tier with full-time professional players, to EFL League One, which is the third tier.   With nearly 100 clubs in tiers 2-5 there’s plenty of room for sponsorships.  Wikipedia provides this list of teams, team names, the league they are in and name of their stadium:  List of English football teams - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia If your brewery is not partners with a football club then you’re not trying hard enough.

What about you Burton Albion FC?  Your team is named the Brewers for goodness sakes.  You’re located in a town with a rich brewing history including being the birthplace of IPAs.

And how about you Harviestoun Brewery, maker of Old Engine Oil?  Can’t find a partner?  Ach!  There are no teams from Scotland in the EFL.  Maybe because instead of a soccer ball, they kick around a haggis [citation needed].  The Scots, as it turns out, do (or did – oh, this is so confusing) have their own football league, the SLF.  From the list of teams Scottish Football League - Wikipedia Harvisetoun, I have assigned you a team - the Livingston FC Meadowbank Thistle - because I can see this determined mouse living on a meadow bank in a thicket of thistles.

It's only a 44-minute drive between the brewery and the stadium, and each time you make the drive you pass The Kelpies along the M9.  I highly recommend the entertaining video in the link below.

[worldfootballrumours]

Inter Milan set to sign Arsenal star Oleksandr Zinchenko

#Inter #InterMilan #Arsenal #AFC #defender #OleksandrZinchenko #Sport #Football #Transfers #FootballTransfers #EPL #PremierLeague #SerieA #EnglishFootball #ItalianFootball #Calciomercato #Fichajes

Inter Milan, one of Italy’s football powerhouses, are reportedly weighing up a January move for Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko. The Ukrainian defender’s limited opportunities under Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta this season have fueled speculation about a potential transfer. Since arriving at Arsenal from Manchester City in 2022, Zinchenko has made 79 appearances for the North London club, recording…