Christian "Chucho" Benitez left us too soon. On July 13, 2013 he entered a hospital in Doha, Qatar with abdominal pains. He never left.
We will probably never know what happened in that hospital, and his cause of death has been disputed.
What is not in dispute is that Chucho Benitez was a great player. He played the game with a joy that is rarely seen, exuding an infectious energy all around the pitch.
Sometimes things just start with a friend.
“My really good friend in school when I was about 7 started playing soccer, so I signed up, just to take part and really soon after just started to enjoy it.”
It’s a little frustrating to hear that a professional soccer player started playing the game so, well, randomly. Here is someone ostensibly living a dream, and it all started off with an “I guess I’ll do that.”
“If it had, by default, been an instrument or a different sport I think I kind of just would have gone with it.”
Good news Bundesliga fans, the season opener between Bayern Munich and Hamburger SV is only one day away and the entire year is accessible to watch in America for the first time on FOX. We have compiled the top five reasons of why this 2015/16 Bundesliga season will be one of the most thrilling, exciting years filled with highs and lows, and plenty of glory.
1. Bayern Munich’s World-Class Signings
Borussia Dortmund have announced the extension of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s contract with the club until 2020, according to the club's website. The Gabonese forward has been sought out by many European clubs, including Arsenal and Bayern Munich. His pace makes him an attractive player to many managers, but his talents will remain with Dortmund.
Life is unfair, but no one needs to tell that to Rafael van der Vaart.
He should have been an amazing player, and by most accounts he was. The man had incredible passing ability, and a canny knowledge of how to attack. For some players those two traits were enough to earn them millions of dollars, the adoration of their team’s fans, and probably a trophy or two. This was not the case for van der Vaart.
Celia Sasic, one of the most pivotal German women to put on her country’s shirt, has announced her retirement from football at the age of 27. Her efforts during the 2015 Women’s World Cup has earned her the title of top scorer in the competition. Her match against the Ivory Coast during the group stages was enough to convince anyone that they would have won the whole competition had the USA not burst their dream.
AC Siena was beating Internazionale Milan 3-2 in 2010. Inter would go on to win the treble that year; beating Barcelona along the way with one of the most classic “Mourinho parks the bus” defensive efforts of all time. Siena, on the other hand, would be relegated. An upset was on hand, but Wesley Sneijder was yet to have his final say.
We have been talking on the phone with Rachel Van Hollebeke for a good twenty minutes when she states the unspoken truth. The kind of truth that is only obvious after it has been said aloud.
“I’ve learned the idea of controlling the controllable,” she says.
Clearly, I remember thinking. We are in Boulder, Colorado. Rachel Van Hollebeke, née Rachel Marie Buehler, veteran of the U.S. Women’s National Team, is a thousand miles away in California.
When seven year-old Martunis was found on an Indonesian beach after the Indian Ocean tsunami, his world was turned upside down. Being forced to survive on puddle water and stray noodles scattered around from the destruction, Martunis was only days away from losing his life.
Musical artist and rapper Jay Z has announced the signing of the first European footballer to his own sports agency label called Roc Nation Sports. German defender Jerome Boateng joins current American sport giants like Kevin Durant, CC Sabathia, and Dez Bryant with the Roc Nation group.