The Deloitte’s sports has released its Football Money League for the season 2008-2009 and where Real Madrid emerged as the world richest football club for the fifth time in a row. Real Madrid is also the first international football team to have crossed annual revenues of Euro 400 million. Real Madrid is followed by FC Barcelona, the last season winner of the UEFA Champion league, follow by, Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool in that order. The exchange rate of the pound is said to have a great impacted Manchester United and other English Premimer League club’s position. Manchester United was at the top of this list for eight years before Real Madrid took over that position.
Seven of the top 20 richest clubs are from England despite the fall in the value of the pound due to global economy recession. Germany has five clubs, Italy has four, and Spain and France each have two clubs included in this list. Real Madrid has not had a very satisfactory playing last season as they came second in La Liga behind FC Barcelona and also got knocked out in the Round of 16 stage of the Champions League last season, which FC Barcelona went on to win. The purposes of this assessment by Football Money League, is to ascertain deal of Euro 1.1 billion seven-year deal with Mediapro has been very successful. This season most of the clubs in the top 20 stayed the same with only VfB Stuttgart and Fenerbahce being replaced by Werder Bremen and the second big spending Manchester City.
Current 2007-08 FC Club Euro
1 (1) Real Madrid 401.4 million
2 (3) FC Barcelona 365.9 million
3 (2) Manchester United 327.0 million
4 (4) Bayern Munich 289.5 million
5 (6) Arsenal 263.0 million
6 (5) Chelsea 242.3 million
7 (8) Liverpool 217.0 million
8 (11) Juventus 203.2 million
9 (10) Internazionale 196.5 million
10 (7) AC Milan 196.5 million
11 (15) Hamburger SV 146.7 million
12 (9) AS Roma 146.4 million
13 (12) Olympique Lyonnais 139.6 million
14 (16) Olympique de Marseille 133.2 million
15 (14) Tottenham Hotspur 132.7 million
16 (13) Schalke 04 124.5 million
17 (n/a) Werder Bremen 114.7 million
18 (20) Borussia Dortmund 103.5 million
19 (n/a) Manchester City 102.2 million
20 (17) Newcastle United 101.0 million
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has set a semi final target for any incoming technical adviser of the Super Eagles at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa according to one of the coach that was interview by the NFF and Presidential Task Force (PTF) yesterday said, it is a difficult task but it is achievable.
The former coach of the England football team, the three Lion, Glenn Hoddle, who apply for the Nigeria Super Eagles job, was interviewed yesterday and he is very confident that he will get the job. He spoke with to sport-exra and other newsman at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel Abuja yesterday after the interview conduct by the NFF and PTF panel, some of the prospective coach, said that, it would be difficult for any coach to achieve the target set for any incoming coach considering that there is not enough time for the team to prepare for the World Cup final in South Africa.
Hoddle who also was the former coach of Wolverhampton, says that there is lots of caliber of players in the team, and the target can be achieved with an experienced coach, adding that he has what it takes to lead the team to the semi-finals of the World Cup final in South Africa. On his chances of getting the job, Hoddle, who boasted that he was the most experienced of all the shortlisted coaches, expressed confidence in grabbing the job to lead Nigeria Super Eagles to the World Cup. He said: “I think I am ready for the job in Nigeria. With my wealth of experience as a former manager of the England national team, I believe I am most favoured for the job and I would be ready to accept the offer and begin work immediately.”
The coach also noted that the country have lots of good individual players who would require the services of an experienced coach to blend into a winning side for the World Cup, adding that the fiesta is quite different from club football. He added that he was moved to join the race for the job because of his conviction that Nigeria has the caliber of players that can shock the world in South Africa if given the necessary support.
Below is the official and alternative player rankings for the ATP pro tours and statistics as at February 15, 2010. Roger Federer is still after he won the 16th grand slam tittle.
Rank Players Country Points
| 1 |
Roger Federer |
 |
0
|
11350.0 |
| 2 |
Novak Djokovic |
 |
0
|
8310.0 |
| 3 |
Rafael Nadal |
 |
1
|
7370.0 |
| 4 |
Andy Murray |
 |
1
|
7300.0 |
| 5 |
Juan Martin del Potro |
 |
0
|
6355.0 |
| 6 |
Nikolay Davydenko |
 |
0
|
5290.0 |
| 7 |
Andy Roddick |
 |
0
|
4210.0 |
| 8 |
Robin Soderling |
 |
0
|
3855.0 |
| 9 |
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga |
 |
0
|
2985.0 |
| 10 |
Marin Cilic |
 |
0
|
2970.0 |
| 11 |
Fernando Verdasco |
|
0
|
2860.0 |
| 12 |
Fernando Gonzalez |
 |
0
|
2710.0 |
| 13 |
Gael Monfils |
|
0
|
2430.0 |
| 14 |
Radek Stepanek |
 |
0
|
2240.0 |
| 15 |
Mikhail Youzhny |
|
5
|
1980.0 |
| 16 |
Gilles Simon |
|
0
|
1880.0 |
| 17 |
Tommy Robredo |
|
2
|
1845.0 |
| 18 |
Tommy Haas |
 |
1
|
1830.0 |
| 19 |
David Ferrer |
|
1
|
1780.0 |
| 20 |
Lleyton Hewitt |
 |
1
|
1770.0 |
| 21 |
Stanislas Wawrinka |
|
0
|
1765.0 |
| 22 |
Juan Carlos Ferrero |
|
0
|
1760.0 |
| 23 |
Tomas Berdych |
|
0
|
1545.0 |
| 24 |
Ivan Ljubicic |
|
0
|
1430.0 |
| 25 |
John Isner |
|
0
|
1430.0 |
| 26 |
Nicolas Almagro |
|
0
|
1370.0 |
| 27 |
Juan Monaco |
|
0
|
1355.0 |
| 28 |
Philipp Kohlschreiber |
|
1
|
1305.0 |
| 29 |
Jurgen Melzer |
 |
3
|
1270.0 |
| 30 |
Albert Montanes |
|
0
|
1265.0 |
| 31 |
Sam Querrey |
|
0
|
1260.0 |
| 32 |
Thomaz Bellucci |
 |
4
|
1246.0 |
| 33 |
Ivo Karlovic |
|
2
|
1195.0 |
| 34 |
Feliciano Lopez |
|
1
|
1195.0 |
| 35 |
V Troicki |
 |
1
|
1135.0 |
| 36 |
Marcos Baghdatis |
 |
0
|
1125.0 |
| 37 |
Janko Tipsarevic |
|
0
|
1060.0 |
| 38 |
Igor Andreev |
|
3
|
1040.0 |
| 39 |
Julien Benneteau |
|
1
|
1004.0 |
| 40 |
Benjamin Becker |
|
0
|
961.0 |
| 41 |
Jeremy Chardy |
|
1
|
950.0 |
| 42 |
Paul-Henri Mathieu |
|
3
|
940.0 |
| 43 |
Andreas Beck |
|
0
|
930.0 |
| 44 |
Dudi Sela |
 |
1
|
912.0 |
| 45 |
Victor Hanescu |
 |
1
|
905.0 |
| 46 |
Andreas Seppi |
 |
0
|
900.0 |
| 47 |
Guillermo Garcia-Lopez |
|
0
|
894.0 |
| 48 |
Lukasz Kubot |
 |
8
|
877.0 |
| 49 |
Evgeny Korolev |
|
1
|
868.0 |
| 50 |
Pablo Cuevas |
 |
0
|
838.0 |
| 51 |
Florian Mayer |
|
12
|
821.0 |
| 52 |
Horacio Zeballos |
|
3
|
821.0 |
| 53 |
Marco Chiudinelli |
|
1
|
816.0 |
| 54 |
Richard Gasquet |
|
1
|
810.0 |
| 55 |
James Blake |
|
3
|
800.0 |
| 56 |
Michael Berrer |
|
6
|
783.0 |
| 57 |
F Fognini |
|
0
|
780.0 |
| 58 |
Olivier Rochus |
 |
3
|
772.0 |
| 59 |
Florent Serra |
|
1
|
745.0 |
| 60 |
Simon Greul |
|
4
|
729.0 |
| 61 |
Marc Gicquel |
|
10
|
724.0 |
| 62 |
Arnaud Clement |
|
1
|
724.0 |
| 63 |
Potito Starace |
|
2
|
707.0 |
| 64 |
Alejandro Falla |
 |
2
|
667.0 |
| 65 |
Stephane Robert |
|
2
|
666.0 |
| 66 |
Lukas Lacko |
 |
2
|
664.0 |
| 67 |
Jose Acasuso |
|
8
|
660.0 |
| 68 |
Michael Russell |
|
10
|
660.0 |
| 69 |
Sergiy Stakhovsky |
 |
0
|
658.0 |
| 70 |
Philipp Petzschner |
|
1
|
657.0 |
| 71 |
Mardy Fish |
|
13
|
650.0 |
| 72 |
Peter Luczak |
|
0
|
649.0 |
| 73 |
Leonardo Mayer |
|
3
|
647.0 |
| 74 |
Daniel Koellerer |
|
1
|
647.0 |
| 75 |
Thiemo de Bakker |
 |
7
|
636.0 |
| 76 |
Oscar Hernandez |
|
1
|
633.0 |
| 77 |
Denis Istomin |
 |
19
|
630.0 |
| 78 |
Taylor Dent |
|
1
|
623.0 |
| 79 |
Michael Llodra |
|
9
|
617.0 |
| 80 |
Daniel Gimeno-Traver |
|
1
|
613.0 |
| 81 |
Eduardo Schwank |
|
7
|
608.0 |
| 82 |
Rajeev Ram |
|
3
|
606.0 |
| 83 |
Juan Ignacio Chela |
|
3
|
605.0 |
| 84 |
Jan Hajek |
|
1
|
596.0 |
| 85 |
Fabrice Santoro |
|
2
|
565.0 |
| 86 |
Marcos Daniel |
|
3
|
565.0 |
| 87 |
Christophe Rochus |
|
2
|
563.0 |
| 88 |
Illya Marchenko |
|
2
|
563.0 |
| 89 |
Rainer Schuettler |
|
5
|
560.0 |
| 90 |
Igor Kunitsyn |
|
0
|
560.0 |
| 91 |
Paolo Lorenzi |
|
7
|
557.0 |
| 92 |
Mischa Zverev |
|
0
|
549.0 |
| 93 |
Maximo Gonzalez |
|
0
|
548.0 |
| 94 |
Nicolas Massu |
|
5
|
544.0 |
| 95 |
Nicolas Lapentti |
 |
0
|
540.0 |
| 96 |
Daniel Brands |
|
1
|
540.0 |
| 97 |
Santiago Giraldo |
|
3
|
532.0 |
| 98 |
Dmitry Tursunov |
|
7
|
530.0 |
| 99 |
Ernests Gulbis |
 |
1
|
529.0 |
| 100 |
Robby Ginepri |
|
1
|
529.0 |
Below is the golf world ranking for the top 200 golf players in the world, the ranking is through February 14th, 2010.
Rank Player Country Pts. Evts Lost Gained
1 Tiger Woods USA 513.81 40 -72.87 0.00
2 Steve Stricker USA 351.54 44 -32.38 83.75
3 Phil Mickelson USA 328.66 43 -46.85 12.31
4 Lee Westwood Eng 359.89 51 -32.11 48.90
5 Jim Furyk USA 251.44 47 -30.11 5.12
6 Martin Kaymer Deu 275.07 52 -27.53 69.58
7 Paul Casey Eng 231.27 45 -29.49 25.11
8 Rory McIlroy Nir 284.54 56 -23.71 31.10
9 Padraig Harrington Irl 259.95 52 -38.19 3.84
10 Henrik Stenson Swe 227.90 46 -33.15 10.61
11 Ian Poulter Eng 245.44 50 -22.91 32.40
12 Geoff Ogilvy Aus 239.21 49 -31.45 48.16
13 Kenny Perry USA 220.70 49 -34.32 9.54
14 Robert Allenby Aus 244.64 58 -23.71 37.95
15 Sergio Garcia Esp 212.11 52 -38.65 7.90
16 Sean O'Hair USA 198.48 49 -26.48 14.10
17 Ernie Els Zaf 212.89 54 -26.42 20.47
18 Ross Fisher Eng 191.78 49 -21.32 7.48
19 Robert Karlsson Swe 164.31 42 -22.84 55.41
20 Retief Goosen Zaf 232.45 60 -26.18 30.30
21 Stewart Cink USA 177.71 47 -28.88 9.28
22 Lucas Glover USA 192.60 52 -20.80 9.74
23 Luke Donald Eng 150.25 43 -18.36 38.64
24 Zach Johnson USA 177.03 51 -20.82 9.00
25 Dustin Johnson USA 184.38 55 -14.04 76.46
26 Camilo Villegas Col 167.66 51 -26.19 10.94
27 Angel Cabrera Arg 163.99 50 -18.66 7.96
28 Anthony Kim USA 161.15 50 -27.49 6.35
29 Y.E. Yang Kor 170.87 57 -15.54 9.73
30 Alvaro Quiros Esp 158.00 54 -14.33 48.65
31 Nick Watney USA 153.02 53 -16.64 11.43
32 Miguel Jimenez Esp 160.59 56 -19.77 50.00
33 Hunter Mahan USA 145.05 51 -19.70 1.93
34 Vijay Singh Fji 122.18 43 -31.43 1.68
35 Ryo Ishikawa Jpn 152.81 56 -13.76 2.38
36 Tim Clark Zaf 153.26 57 -18.31 23.15
37 Charl Schwartzel Zaf 150.29 56 -12.93 48.46
38 Michael Sim Aus 106.54 40 -7.67 18.20
39 Yuta Ikeda Jpn 106.02 40 -8.77 0.00
40 Oliver Wilson Eng 131.39 51 -17.23 15.42
41 Mike Weir Can 122.62 48 -19.26 6.00
42 Soren Kjeldsen Dnk 132.16 52 -17.61 3.35
43 Matt Kuchar USA 130.33 52 -12.70 34.84
44 Adam Scott Aus 114.78 46 -15.13 0.00
45 Edoardo Molinari Ita 129.13 52 -6.46 18.81
46 Francesco Molinari Ita 137.13 56 -14.49 7.41
47 Graeme McDowell Nir 131.49 54 -17.49 7.70
48 Anders Hansen Dnk 126.15 52 -12.44 10.15
49 Soren Hansen Dnk 130.38 55 -15.51 18.28
50 Thongchai Jaidee Tha 138.89 59 -13.56 27.12
51 Ryan Moore USA 118.25 51 -10.93 11.88
52 Rory Sabbatini Zaf 125.09 54 -13.64 29.33
53 David Toms USA 107.51 47 -14.01 1.55
54 Simon Dyson Eng 133.86 59 -13.66 4.45
55 Brian Gay USA 135.72 60 -18.37 11.76
56 Peter Hanson Swe 117.22 53 -13.30 13.85
57 Alexander Noren Swe 101.87 48 -11.11 5.22
58 Justin Leonard USA 105.08 50 -19.57 0.00
59 Ben Crane USA 106.61 51 -10.85 42.00
60 Jeev Singh Ind 121.97 60 -21.44 5.53
61 Kevin Na USA 106.97 53 -12.67 11.61
62 J.B. Holmes USA 98.76 49 -12.63 46.23
63 Stephen Ames Can 96.56 48 -12.68 9.05
64 Scott Verplank USA 93.50 47 -12.21 3.44
65 Chad Campbell USA 105.20 53 -15.71 9.25
66 Ross McGowan Eng 103.49 53 -7.93 2.45
67 Stephen Marino USA 116.88 60 -14.32 25.71
68 Louis Oosthuizen Zaf 101.56 53 -10.86 29.76
69 Chris Wood Eng 76.41 40 -7.88 11.62
70 Ben Curtis USA 83.76 44 -16.83 1.28
71 Shingo Katayama Jpn 102.41 54 -15.10 0.00
72 Gonzalo Fdez-C Esp 98.04 52 -12.95 2.08
73 Jason Dufner USA 96.70 52 -8.42 5.04
74 Brandt Snedeker USA 95.38 52 -12.13 28.00
75 Hiroyuki Fujita Jpn 89.42 49 -10.49 0.00
76 Justin Rose Eng 98.69 55 -12.96 9.67
77 Heath Slocum USA 102.83 58 -13.09 5.15
78 Marc Leishman Aus 105.64 60 -7.97 26.23
79 John Rollins USA 94.05 55 -11.32 17.28
80 John Senden Aus 102.58 60 -12.95 2.15
81 Koumei Oda Jpn 84.83 50 -6.61 0.00
82 Davis Love-III USA 86.27 51 -11.37 10.33
83 Paul Goydos USA 87.67 52 -10.93 22.96
84 Kenichi Kuboya Jpn 84.07 50 -7.25 1.89
85 Yasuharu Imano Jpn 66.94 40 -5.12 0.00
86 Gregory Bourdy Fra 92.15 56 -6.90 7.50
87 Brendan Jones Aus 67.29 41 -9.17 0.00
88 Shane Lowry Irl 64.93 40 -3.36 19.06
89 Kevin Sutherland USA 83.39 52 -13.78 9.83
90 James Kingston Zaf 85.86 54 -11.22 5.81
91 Martin Laird Sco 89.43 57 -7.00 15.56
92 Liang Wen-Chong Chn 75.24 48 -7.55 2.21
93 K.J. Choi Kor 75.07 48 -13.44 10.87
94 Bubba Watson USA 80.81 52 -10.98 14.33
95 Jerry Kelly USA 88.56 57 -12.85 2.62
96 Mathew Goggin Aus 88.93 58 -14.69 1.28
97 Anthony Wall Eng 82.63 55 -10.95 1.95
98 Pat Perez USA 75.82 51 -11.39 10.17
99 Darren Clarke Nir 81.44 56 -11.86 16.07
100 Scott Strange Aus 73.89 51 -9.12 0.00
101 Rod Pampling Aus 86.15 60 -13.49 4.86
102 Bryce Molder USA 76.82 54 -6.42 7.94
103 Ryan Palmer USA 78.24 55 -5.20 50.00
104 David Duval USA 58.17 41 -3.64 24.00
105 Prayad Marksaeng Tha 84.99 60 -13.53 4.00
106 Tom Watson USA 55.76 40 -4.57 7.50
107 Mark Wilson USA 77.88 56 -11.15 6.54
108 Andres Romero Arg 64.95 47 -13.33 11.31
109 Kim Kyung-Tae Kor 63.16 46 -4.19 0.00
110 Andrew Dodt Aus 54.64 40 -2.62 32.48
111 Richard Sterne Zaf 66.55 49 -9.01 1.92
112 Nick Dougherty Eng 71.63 53 -9.25 8.05
113 George McNeill USA 73.99 55 -7.64 13.26
114 Jason Bohn USA 53.71 40 -7.36 8.18
115 Richard Green Aus 62.47 47 -8.55 10.56
116 Tomohiro Kondo Jpn 61.92 47 -6.48 0.00
117 Bill Haas USA 77.53 59 -6.76 31.52
118 Thomas Aiken Zaf 71.97 55 -6.07 16.39
119 Charles Howell-III USA 76.89 59 -9.76 16.99
120 Danny Willett Eng 51.06 40 -4.71 8.45
121 David Smail NZl 64.96 51 -8.69 0.00
122 Gaganjeet Bhullar Ind 52.05 41 -3.76 14.00
123 Shigeki Maruyama Jpn 64.69 51 -4.02 0.00
124 Ryuichi Oda Jpn 62.12 49 -3.63 0.00
125 Fred Couples USA 50.09 40 -8.46 2.00
126 Charley Hoffman USA 68.85 55 -9.30 3.68
127 Lin Wen-Tang Twn 49.79 40 -8.52 0.00
128 Thomas Levet Fra 63.05 51 -9.22 0.00
129 Nick O'Hern Aus 68.48 56 -8.48 3.89
130 Azuma Yano Jpn 65.95 54 -8.72 0.00
131 Richie Ramsay Sco 69.13 57 -5.04 3.93
132 John Mallinger USA 65.87 55 -10.17 0.00
133 Stuart Appleby Aus 68.21 57 -12.56 0.00
134 Steve Webster Eng 58.54 49 -7.52 3.11
135 Peter Hedblom Swe 63.00 53 -9.09 5.08
136 Rhys Davies Wal 68.42 58 -5.72 10.26
137 Bradley Dredge Wal 60.05 51 -5.96 12.36
138 Fredrik Jacobson Swe 57.17 49 -9.83 2.35
139 Raphael Jacquelin Fra 66.42 57 -7.23 3.23
139 Gareth Maybin Nir 62.93 54 -7.33 4.23
141 Johan Edfors Swe 62.72 54 -9.17 1.78
142 Nicolas Colsaerts Bel 46.39 40 -3.86 0.00
143 Bo Pelt USA 68.30 60 -8.11 8.78
144 Tetsuji Hiratsuka Jpn 63.54 56 -4.41 11.30
145 Boo Weekley USA 52.18 46 -13.16 1.70
146 Blake Adams USA 45.35 40 -3.71 7.77
147 Rafael Bello Esp 67.98 60 -8.26 1.59
148 Tom Gillis USA 44.94 40 -3.56 11.59
149 David Drysdale Sco 67.13 60 -6.73 7.75
150 Josh Teater USA 44.42 40 -2.72 9.92
151 Ricardo Gonzalez Arg 53.13 48 -5.84 7.02
152 Jonathan Byrd USA 57.44 52 -7.80 6.05
153 Woody Austin USA 59.52 54 -11.29 2.00
154 Peter Lawrie Irl 62.69 57 -7.65 9.47
155 Charlie Wi Kor 61.23 56 -9.63 7.11
156 Toshinori Muto Jpn 50.07 46 -5.77 0.00
157 Webb Simpson USA 51.92 48 -5.71 7.47
158 Chad Collins USA 53.98 50 -3.96 7.73
159 Brian Davis Eng 64.49 60 -9.14 1.51
160 D.J. Trahan USA 59.75 56 -10.83 12.47
161 Danny Lee NZl 42.54 40 -4.94 1.54
162 Jason Day Aus 48.17 46 -6.72 1.32
163 Daisuke Maruyama Jpn 57.99 56 -5.44 0.00
164 Robert Rock Eng 55.91 54 -6.23 2.97
165 Greg Chalmers Aus 62.00 60 -7.38 1.68
166 Aaron Baddeley Aus 48.42 47 -10.24 1.20
167 Christian Nilsson Swe 41.16 40 -4.02 4.26
168 Jamie Donaldson Wal 52.43 51 -5.83 3.11
169 Robert-Jan Derksen Nld 53.41 52 -6.52 2.46
170 Toru Suzuki Jpn 47.16 46 -3.51 0.00
171 John Merrick USA 57.13 56 -9.93 4.83
172 Ryuji Imada Jpn 53.81 53 -11.99 11.74
173 Michael Allen USA 48.36 48 -5.48 13.11
174 Toru Taniguchi Jpn 43.94 44 -5.07 0.00
175 Troy Matteson USA 58.80 59 -6.34 6.84
176 Alex Prugh USA 46.74 47 -3.13 24.50
177 Hideto Tanihara Jpn 50.58 51 -7.47 2.61
178 Ricky Barnes USA 52.01 53 -5.16 12.27
179 Graeme Storm Eng 52.89 54 -8.37 0.00
180 Bae Sang-moon Kor 38.72 40 -5.24 0.00
181 David Horsey Eng 53.70 56 -6.40 17.27
182 Trevor Immelman Zaf 39.28 41 -14.68 0.00
183 Tim Petrovic USA 57.18 60 -7.52 0.00
184 Nathan Green Aus 56.54 60 -7.89 10.01
185 Briny Baird USA 52.75 56 -10.40 6.82
186 Thomas Bjorn Dnk 39.46 42 -4.15 14.49
187 D.A. Points USA 54.43 58 -6.42 6.56
188 James Nitties Aus 37.06 40 -3.23 0.00
189 Kaname Yokoo Jpn 46.06 50 -4.12 0.00
190 Jeff Klauk USA 53.20 58 -7.56 1.95
191 Kazuhiro Yamashita Jpn 42.71 47 -3.21 0.00
192 Rickie Fowler USA 36.30 40 -1.67 10.34
193 Chris Tidland USA 40.63 45 -4.81 1.33
194 Damien McGrane Irl 53.33 60 -8.95 1.41
195 Christian Cevaer Fra 43.97 50 -5.58 0.00
196 Niclas Fasth Swe 49.05 56 -5.94 7.02
197 Gary Orr Sco 38.26 44 -5.53 2.45
198 Cameron Percy Aus 45.05 52 -3.52 1.32
199 Derek Lamely USA 33.97 40 -2.70 3.23
200 Darren Fichardt Zaf 33.89 40 -2.14 14.00
The just concluded Africa Cup of Nations has had a major sharkup on the new FIFA/Coca-Cola World ranking of the newyear. Spain continue to occupy the top position in the new ranking ahead of Brazil and the Netherlands, Egypt the Afric champion managed to climb 14 places to tenth place after they successfully defended their nations cup title at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in Angola. As Africa champion Egypt is now in the first 1o team in the World, but they are going to miss the World Cup in South Africa later this year, because they did not qualify for the World Cup.
It is not only Egypt’s that climb to the top in the ranking, but also the second-highest of any African team since the introduction of the FIFA world ranking to break into the top fifth is Nigeria. Egypt have only been bettered by Nigeria, who reached fifth place in April 1994. Other African teams also benefited from their performances in Angola nations cup. In the top 20 of the ranking, semi-finalists Nigeria isnow ranked 15th in the world, by climbling 7 position up and finalists Ghana, who lost to Egypt in the final now in 27th position in the new world ranking, by climbling 7 position up with considerable strides. Further down the ranking, Zambia now in 73rd position in the ranking, and climb 11 position up. Malawi also gain lots of pointsin the latest ranking, now in 82nd position in the world, and gain 17 position up which is a good progress for them. Below is the table for the FIFA/Coca-Cola World ranking, as it was released by FIFA yesterday.
| Ranking |
Team |
Pts
Feb 10 |
+/- Ranking
Dec 09 |
+/- Pts
Dec 09 |
| 1 |
 Spain |
1627 |
0 |
 |
0 |
| 2 |
 Brazil |
1568 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 3 |
 Netherlands |
1288 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 4 |
 Italy |
1209 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 5 |
 Portugal |
1176 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 6 |
 Germany |
1173 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 7 |
 France |
1117 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 8 |
 Argentina |
1082 |
0 |
|
-3 |
| 9 |
 England |
1076 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 10 |
 Egypt |
1069 |
14 |
 |
237 |
| 11 |
 Croatia |
1053 |
-1 |
 |
11 |
| 12 |
 Greece |
1030 |
1 |
|
14 |
| 13 |
 Russia |
1026 |
-1 |
|
0 |
| 14 |
 USA |
963 |
0 |
|
-17 |
| 15 |
 Nigeria |
956 |
7 |
|
108 |
| 16 |
 Chile |
955 |
-1 |
|
19 |
| 17 |
 Mexico |
947 |
0 |
|
16 |
| 18 |
 Switzerland |
924 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 19 |
 Serbia |
916 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 20 |
 Cameroon |
914 |
-9 |
|
-121 |
| 21 |
 Uruguay |
909 |
-1 |
|
0 |
| 22 |
 Côte d’Ivoire |
865 |
-6 |
|
-69 |
| 23 |
 Australia |
857 |
-2 |
|
-6 |
| 24 |
 Ukraine |
848 |
-2 |
|
0 |
| 25 |
 Czech Republic |
828 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 26 |
 Denmark |
827 |
2 |
|
7 |
| 27 |
 Ghana |
823 |
7 |
|
76 |
| 27 |
 Israel |
823 |
-1 |
|
0 |
| 29 |
 Paraguay |
806 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 30 |
 Bulgaria |
801 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 31 |
 Algeria |
784 |
-5 |
|
-39 |
| 32 |
 Norway |
772 |
0 |
|
12 |
| 33 |
 Slovenia |
767 |
-2 |
|
0 |
| 34 |
 Honduras |
759 |
3 |
|
21 |
| 35 |
 Ecuador |
753 |
2 |
|
15 |
| 36 |
 Slovakia |
752 |
-3 |
|
0 |
| 37 |
 Republic of Ireland |
746 |
-2 |
|
0 |
| 38 |
 Romania |
745 |
-2 |
|
0 |
| 39 |
 Colombia |
736 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 40 |
 Japan |
729 |
3 |
|
20 |
| 40 |
 Northern Ireland |
729 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 42 |
 Turkey |
728 |
-1 |
|
0 |
| 43 |
 Sweden |
727 |
-1 |
|
6 |
| 44 |
 Gabon |
706 |
4 |
|
46 |
| 45 |
 Costa Rica |
699 |
-1 |
|
-2 |
| 46 |
 Scotland |
665 |
0 |
|
0 |
| 47 |
 Venezuela |
646 |
3 |
|
0 |
| 48 |
 Bosnia-Herzegovina |
645 |
3 |
|
3 |
| 49 |
 Korea Republic |
634 |
3 |
|
9 |
| 49 |
 Latvia |
634 |
-4 |
|
-43 |
Onaly Egypt out of the top 10 we not be in the FIFA World Cup. The next release of FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking comes uo on 03 March 2010.
Egypt coach Hassan Shehata said that Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) had contacted him on the possibility of leading the Super Eagles to the South Africa 2010 World Cup. Hassan Shehata, who has been in charge of Pharaohs of Egyptian team since 2004, on Sunday helped the team to a third successive Nations Cup triumph after beating the Black Stars of Ghana by 1 – 0 in Luanda in Angola.
The 60-year-old coach told television station Modern Sport and bbc that, “Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) expressed an interest in hiring me to take charge of their team during the World Cup. It will be a great honor for me to work in the World Cup, but the Egyptian FA will have the final word on whether I could work with Nigeria on a temporary basis.”
Nigeria, who slumped to a 1-3 defeat to Pharaohs of Egyptian in their group-stage opener, is reportedly looking to replace Shaibu Amodu or a technical advice for the Super Eager after finishing third in Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
It was reported that, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) had been linked with Zambia manager Herve Renard and Mozambique coach Mart Nooij, the Egypt coach Shehata claim came as a surprise. The choice of Shehata over Nooij and Renard may be due to the success he recorded with the Pharaohs of Egypt in the past three editions of the Nations Cup.
Egypt narrowly missed out on a place at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa after losing 1-0 to Algeria in a play-off in Sudan after both sides finished level on points and goal difference during regular qualifying. Hassan Shehata is regarded as a coach with little patience for players‘ indiscipline, which is one of the major problem of the Nigeria team.
The Australian Open 2010 is knocking at the door. The first Grand Slam event of the season is 5 days away. With stars arriving in Melbourne and most of them already appearing on the practice courts the big question is, who will win the Aussie Open?
The Women’s Singles tournament is announced to be more spectacular than ever, having numerous title contenders. Kim Clijsters is maintaining solid form after winning the US Open 2009 and celebrating a perfect comeback to her professional tennis career.
Serena Williams is the defending title holder and is always a strong candidate for the title. She lost the US Open semifinal against Clijsters and she is aiming for revenge, especially now when she looks to defend her World Number 1 spot.
Next on the list seems to be Dinara Safina. The Russian, former World Number 1, has failed to win a Grand Slam event so far. However she seems able to do it and one can never know when she will succeed.
There is also Maria Sharapova. The Russian star returns to the Australian Open. The former 2008 Champion missed to defend her title last year, because of the shoulder injury. Masha holds though a run of 7 wins in a row.
Justine Henin is another ‘fresh’ arrival at the Australian Open 2010. The Belgian star has returned to the tennis world after 1 year and a half of break. She played great in Brisbane last weekend and almost defeated Clijsters for the trophy.
The Men’s Singles tournament, surly the most spectacular tournament of the Australian Open, is also wide open. Rafael Nadal is the title defender. He produced a dream run in 2009, but later knee injuries took a tool on the Spaniard. Nadal seems to have regained his rhythm though just in time for the Aussie Open.
Roger Federer is of course another huge favorite. However, Roger last won a title in 2007, at the Melbourne Park. He just failed last year as Nadal proved himself to powerful for the Swiss Champion. With 2 Grand Slams won in 2009 out of 4, Federer is for many the main favorite.
Andy Murray has never won a Grand Slam event. He definitely showed that he has potential to do it and the 2010 Australian Open might be his wake-up call. Other favorites are 2009 US Open Champion, Juan Martin Del Potro and 2008 Aussie Open Champion, Juan Martin Del Potro. Keep in touch with all the Aussie Open events by watching live tennis online.
World footballs has jointly condemn the attack on the Togolese national team bus, which have put the African Nations Cup in jeopardy. The machine gun attack on the team bus taking the team to the tournament claimed the life of the bus driver and press officer to the team on the spot, and about four other were injured including two players. The attackers machine-gunned the team bus after it crossed from the Republic of Congo into Angola’s oil rich territory of Cabinda.
Togolese national tean to Nation cup
The bus was travelling to Cabinda from the team training ground in the Republic of Congo when the shooting happened. Football’s highest governing body, Fifa, said it was troubled by the incident. “Fifa and its president, Joseph S Blatter, are deeply moved by the incidents which affected Togo’s national team, to whom they express their utmost sympathy.”
The organisers of the tournament, which starts today, say it will go ahead. Competition officials said they had not known that the Togolese team had decided to drive directly to Cabinda. They said they had expected the squad first to fly to the Angolan capital, Luanda, and from there to Cabinda.
Togolese is due to play its first Nations cup game in Cabinda tomorrow, the team first match is with Ghana which is the opening match of the group on Monday. Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso are the other teams in Group B with the Togolose. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) confirmed that the tournament would go ahead as planned, despite the attack on Togolese team. Angolan Sports Minister Goncalves Muandumba said security for the competition would be stepped up to guarantee “all the conditions necessary for the success, tranquillity and security of the people and their belongings”.
Meanwhile, Togolese government minister Pascal Bodjona said the team was coming home because the players were in a state of shock. “We cannot in such a dramatic circumstance continue in the Africa Cup of Nations.” The Confederation of African Football (CAF) said late on today that it understood Togolose decision but that the six other matches scheduled to be played in Cabinda would go ahead as planned.
Roger Federer and Serena Williams have been named by International Tennis Federation (ITF) as the 2009 world champions men and women in tennis championship, after both of them end the year ranking as number tennis players. Federer, has won the honour for the 5th time. He won his 15th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon and another Grand Slam at Roland Garros this year.On the other hand Serena Williams won the Australian Open and Wimbledon, her 11th major success. Both of the we receive their awards at the annual ITF world champions dinner in Paris in June. 
Federer regained the world number one sport from Rafael Nadal after his Paris victory and his Wimbledon win over Andy Roddick which enable him to surpass Pete Sampras record of highest number of Grand Slam titles. He was runner-up at the Australian Open and the US Open and helped his country retain its Davis Cup world group status. Federe said: “It is an honour for me to be named ITF world champion for a fifth time. It was an incredible year for me both on and off the court. To win my first Roland Garros title, break the all-time Grand Slam record and regain the number one ranking is amazing. It means a lot to me to finish the year again at the top.”
Serena Williams won the award for the first time since 2002. As well as her Grand Slam wins, she won the season-ending WTA Championships in Doha, she gain the number 1 top ranking in the last event of the year. She also won the doubles year award with sister Venus after making their career total to 10 Grand Slam titles in the year. With this award Serena Williams joins Martina Hingis and Lindsay Davenport as the only players to become singles and doubles world champions in the same year.
Hungary
