We are, as the great philosopher put it, standing on the shoulders of giants. In Argentina there was a time when no footballer could hold a candle to Guillermo Stabile, who scored eight goals at the 1930 World Cup. But he was followed and surpassed by Luis Artime, a forward who ended his career with a strike rate of 0.96 goals per game for Argentina.
Bill Walton is a treasure. The NBA legend and current college basketball broadcaster is one of the most fun people in all of sports.
Now, Bill Walton is all in on soccer, and you should be too.
Walton's quote on a Soccer City SD Facebook post:
We recently had a debate here at The18 about the best soccer commercials of all time. Of course, this isn't the first time we've tackled the subject. Early in 2017, we took a look at some of our favorite soccer commercials from the past year.
You’ve got to learn to appreciate yourself, and that begins with watching Paul Scholes raking cross-field passes right onto the feet of his sprinting teammates. You should be confident in who you are and what you do, because Paul Scholes was such an unbelievable footballer that the cosmos are truly in total balance.
You, my friend, are a beautiful little ginger prince. Trust me, it's true.
Football has had its fair share of beautiful photography over the years, but what if there was a gallery of short, animated moments that illustrated the artfulness of the game? That’s where the Football In Motion Art Gallery comes into play. It’s a shitty name, but it’s one helluva art gallery.
When you sign your kid up for youth soccer, you should know that you're signing yourself up as well. Your nights will now include driving to and from practice and your weekends will be booked with various games and tournaments. You may be confused at the beginning of the season, but after a few weeks, you'll quickly understand why the sacrifices you have to make are worth it.
In seven World Cups, the USWNT has scored a staggering 112 goals. Those goals have resulted in three winners’ medals, one runners-up finish and three third place finishes.
Chief among the goal scorers are Abby Wambach (14), Michelle Akers (12), Mia Hamm (8), Kristine Lilly (7), Carli Lloyd (7) and Tiffeny Milbrett (7). While Lloyd’s exploits at the 2015 Women’s World Cup are still fresh in the memory, particularly her stunning hat trick in the final, there are some choice goals from as far back as 1991 that deserve a viewing.
It had been no secret within Argentina that Diego Maradona was a precocious talent from an early age. Appearing against Hungary as a 16-year-old, Maradona became the country’s youngest international ever.
When the 1978 World Cup came to Argentina the call to include him in the squad, now aged just 17, was resounding. But Argentine manager Cesar Luis Menotti abstained, believing that the pressures of a World Cup on home soil would be too much for the adolescent.
For those that are too young to remember Liverpool’s last title, which came in the 1989-90 season, there’s the ever-increasing danger of that triumph being cast as a footnote to the all-powerful Premier League, which began in 1992-93.
The names of John Barnes, Peter Beardsley, Ian Rush, Kenny Dalglish and Alan Hansen will always carry weight around the world, but we get to see their particular brilliance infrequently.