South Africa
| South Africa 2010 | |
|---|---|
 2010 FIFA World Cup official logo | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host country |  South Africa |
| Dates | 11 June – 11 July |
| Teams | 32 (from 6 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 10 (in 9 host cities) |
The 2010 FIFA World Cup will be the 19th FIFA World Cup, the premier international football tournament. It is scheduled to take place between 11 June and 11 July 2010 in South Africa. The 2010 FIFA World Cup will be the culmination of a qualification process that began in August 2007 and involved 204 of the 208 FIFA national teams. As such, it matches the 2008 Summer Olympics as the sports event with the most competing nations.
This will be the first time that the tournament has been hosted by an African nation, after South Africa beat Morocco and Egypt in an all-African bidding process. This decision left the Oceania Football Confederation as the only confederation yet to host the FIFA World Cup. Italy are the defending champions. The draw for the finals took place on 4 December 2009 in Cape Town.
List of qualified teams
The following 32 teams qualified for the final tournament.
AFC (4)
* Australia
* Japan
* Korea DPR
* Korea Republic
CAF (6)
* Algeria
* Cameroon
* Côte d'Ivoire
* Ghana
* Nigeria
* South Africa (hosts)
CONCACAF (3)
* Honduras
* Mexico
* United States
CONMEBOL (5)
* Argentina
* Brazil
* Chile
* Paraguay
* Uruguay
OFC (1)
* New Zealand
UEFA (13)
* Denmark
* England
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Italy
* Netherlands
* Portugal
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* Switzerland
This will be the first time that the tournament has been hosted by an African nation, after South Africa beat Morocco and Egypt in an all-African bidding process. This decision left the Oceania Football Confederation as the only confederation yet to host the FIFA World Cup. Italy are the defending champions. The draw for the finals took place on 4 December 2009 in Cape Town.
List of qualified teams
The following 32 teams qualified for the final tournament.
AFC (4)
* Australia
* Japan
* Korea DPR
* Korea Republic
CAF (6)
* Algeria
* Cameroon
* Côte d'Ivoire
* Ghana
* Nigeria
* South Africa (hosts)
CONCACAF (3)
* Honduras
* Mexico
* United States
CONMEBOL (5)
* Argentina
* Brazil
* Chile
* Paraguay
* Uruguay
OFC (1)
* New Zealand
UEFA (13)
* Denmark
* England
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Italy
* Netherlands
* Portugal
* Serbia
* Slovakia
* Slovenia
* Spain
* Switzerland
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier League is a corporation in which the 20 member clubs act as shareholders. Seasons run from August to May, with teams playing 38 games each totalling 380 games in the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. It is sponsored by Barclays Bank and therefore officially known as the Barclays Premier League.
The competition formed as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from The Football League, which was originally founded in 1888, and take advantage of a lucrative television rights deal. The Premier League has since become the world's most watched sporting league.[1] It is the world's most lucrative football league, with combined club revenues of £1.93 billion ($3.15bn) in 2007–08.[2] It is also ranked first in the UEFA coefficients of leagues based on performances in European competitions over the last five years, ahead of Spain's La Liga and Italy's Serie A.[3]
A total of 43 clubs have competed in the Premier League, but only four have won the title: Arsenal, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, and Manchester United. The current champions are Manchester United, who won their eleventh Premier League title in the 2008–09 season, the most of any Premier League team. This title triumph also levelled United and Liverpool on 18 top-flight championships altogether.
The competition formed as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from The Football League, which was originally founded in 1888, and take advantage of a lucrative television rights deal. The Premier League has since become the world's most watched sporting league.[1] It is the world's most lucrative football league, with combined club revenues of £1.93 billion ($3.15bn) in 2007–08.[2] It is also ranked first in the UEFA coefficients of leagues based on performances in European competitions over the last five years, ahead of Spain's La Liga and Italy's Serie A.[3]
A total of 43 clubs have competed in the Premier League, but only four have won the title: Arsenal, Blackburn Rovers, Chelsea, and Manchester United. The current champions are Manchester United, who won their eleventh Premier League title in the 2008–09 season, the most of any Premier League team. This title triumph also levelled United and Liverpool on 18 top-flight championships altogether.
Prior to 1992 the tournament was officially called the European Champion Clubs' Cup but was usually referred to as simply the European Cup or European Champions' Cup. The competition was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champion club of each country. During the 1990s the tournament began to be expanded, incorporating a round-robin group phase and more teams. Europe's strongest national leagues now provide up to four teams each for the competition. The UEFA Champions League should not be confused with the UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.
The tournament consists of several stages. In the present format it begins in mid-July with three knockout qualifying rounds. The 16 surviving teams join 16 seeded teams in the group stage, in which there are eight groups consisting of four teams each. The eight group winners and eight runners-up enter the final knockout phase, which ends with the final match in May.
The title has been won by 21 different clubs, 12 of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Real Madrid, who have won the competition nine times, including the first five seasons it was contested. Barcelona are the current champions. Since the tournament changed name and structure in 1992, no club has managed consecutive wins.
The UEFA Champions League (usually referred to as simply the Champions League or historically as the European Cup) is an annual Association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It is the most prestigious club trophy in the world. The final of the competition is - along with the NFL's Super Bowl - the most watched annual sporting event worldwide, drawing just over 100m television viewers[1].
Prior to 1992 the tournament was officially called the European Champion Clubs' Cup but was usually referred to as simply the European Cup or European Champions' Cup. The competition was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champion club of each country. During the 1990s the tournament began to be expanded, incorporating a round-robin group phase and more teams. Europe's strongest national leagues now provide up to four teams each for the competition. The UEFA Champions League should not be confused with the UEFA Europa League, formerly known as the UEFA Cup.
