England players back Terry

England players have publicly backed reinstated captain John Terry ahead of their Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales on Saturday.

As England look to regain the lead in qualifying Group G with a win over Wales at Millenium Stadium, much of the pre-match talk has been about Fabio Capello’s decision to hand Terry the captain’s armband, just over a year since stripping the Chelsea defender of the honour.The decision reportedly sparked a backlash within the squad, but Manchester City midfielder Gareth Barry and several other players have thrown their support behind Terry.”I think that now the decision has been made, the lads have been really comfortable with it,” Barry said. “We obviously feel for Rio (Ferdinand) and the unfortunate timing of the injuries he’s had since he’s been given the England captaincy.”"We felt that he would have done a great job for England, but the injuries have come at a bad time, Now that it’s been changed, the players are comfortable and respect the decision.”Barry Manchester City team-mate James Milner dismissed media reports suggesting the decision, had divided the squad.”Obviously, the manager’s made the decision (on the captaincy) and everyone’s happy for JT (John Terry),” Milner said.”As an England player he’s been absolutely fantastic. I think that’s the most important thing, as a team, whoever’s captain, whoever’s got the armband, that we’re all as one, and we go out there to win matches as one unit.”Terry is expected to partner Phil Jagielka in defence on Friday, and the Everton centre-back has insisted it will be an honour to play alongside the three-time Premier-League-winning captain.”The likelihood of you playing alongside the person you have played alongside a lot of times does not happen very often,” Jagielka said.”If I do manage to get a game against Wales, I will be delighted if JT is next to me.”However, Jagielka he did admit playing alongside a new partner in central defence could be a challenge.”A little bit, obviously with not playing much with JT (John Terry) or Daws (Michael Dawson) before. I have got to play quite a lot with Joleon (Lescott) at Everton.

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Players union backs January World Cup

The world footballers’ union has backed calls to play the 2022 World Cup in January to avoid the oppressive Qatari summer.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter has flagged the possibility of holding the 2022 tournament in the northern winter instead of the traditional summer to avoid temperatures that can reach up to 50 degrees Celsius in Qatar.

Players’ union FIFPro have thrown their support behind the idea, and say it could have a further advantage in that players may be fitter in January instead of July.

“We will have to take a careful look at the international match calendar, but FIFPro does not foresee any insurmountable problems in this regard,” secretary Tijs Tummers said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Space will have to be made for the tournament, even though many countries already have a winter break.”

“In Europe, competitive matches will have to be played in August and the second half of May and the first half of June.”

“If you look at what happened last weekend with weather problems in Europe because of heavy snowfall, you could see this as an advantage rather than as a problem.”

“And it might perhaps turn out that the players will be fitter at the start of a winter World Cup than was the case last summer at the World Cup in South Africa.”

However, Tummers questioned FIFA’s decision to award the tournament to Qatar based on the premise of a summer scheduling.

“It is not sensible to award a World Cup in the summer to a country with an average temperature of 41 degrees in June and July, a midday temperature of 50 degrees and above all, extremely high humidity,” he said.

“Tourists are advised not to travel to Qatar in the summer months. Inhabitants of Qatar leave the country en masse during this period.”

“The summer months in Qatar also do not provide suitable conditions for a festival of football such as the World Cup should be, including for the supporters.”

“The organisers have guaranteed that the temperature inside the stadiums and at the training centres will be reduced to 27 degrees by means of air-conditioning.”

“That is all well and good, but it obviously does not fit in with ecological thinking, which we expect to be even more widespread by 2022.”

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Many Avenues to Studying Abroad in Spain for Young Soccer Players

Studying abroad opens educational doors for young people like nothing else can. World travel fosters independence and responsibility, while developing a sense of global unity in the next generation.
Whether your child is an up and coming elite player, or a soccer lover who wishes to fully-immerse themselves in Spanish language studies, Spain offers a wide variety of Spanish Summer Soccer Camps and Year Long Academic Soccer Boarding Schools to choose from. With soccer being the most popular participatory sport in the U.S., Canada and the rest of the world, and Spanish being the second most spoken language in America and one of the world's most important languages, many students can benefit from Spain's travel abroad soccer programs.
Spanish Soccer and Language Camps
Spanish soccer camps can be a good first step to learning abroad for children and young adults. Many of these programs accept children as young as 12 years old and last from a couple of weeks to nine months (boarding schools). Children can visit Spain for these camps with just a current passport. However, for the year long soccer boarding schools players without an European passport must attain a "Student Visa". Full-immersion language and soccer camps offer the best opportunity for youngsters to gain Spanish fluency and advance soccer their skills in a short period of time.
Special Training for Elite Youth Players
For soccer players 14 and up who exhibit outstanding potential you should consider one of the "elite" soccer training programs available in Madrid, Spain. Spain has long loved the sport of soccer and their professional league is considered one of the worlds finest! With the intensity of international competition, professional coaches in Spain can offer a level of soccer training that is just not available in the United States. Spanish programs that combine full-immersion language studies, along with elite soccer training, groom players for careers in the exciting world of University or even professional soccer.
Spanish Soccer Boarding Schools
If your teenager or college student is looking for more than a soccer and language vacation, consider a soccer and Spanish boarding school in Spain. While it might seem frightening to allow your child to live in a foreign country for a year or more, there are wonderful boarding schools in Spain with caring teachers and coaches ready to guide, supervise and teach your son or daughter.
Year round high school and university programs do require educational "student visas" and, of course, are more expensive than the summer camps. Being separated is also challenging for young players and their families but it's that "independence" away from the parents and international travel that promotes growth and maturity in young people. However, the level of soccer training and cultural learning your child can receive makes all the challenges worthwhile. If you are considering such a program, be sure and plan a visit to Spain before or during your child's school year. You'll enjoy an unforgettable vacation and be able to visit your son or daughter's campus, cementing your decision.
How to Choose the Right Soccer & Spanish Program for your Child
When choosing which type of soccer and language training abroad is best for your child consider the student's maturity as well as Spanish language and soccer skill level. Cost and travel requirements are also important, so be sure and research the necessities for Spain's different programs. Last but not least, consider the experience and expertise of the program directors and staff.
Studying Abroad in Spain Helps Kids make Life-Long Goals
A Spanish language and Soccer program that provides bilingual, professional staff and well rounded, cultural learning opportunities for students will enrich your child and build skills that will help them achieve all their goals in life.


Enroll today or visit our website to learn more about EduKick study abroad soccer programs and sign up for their International Soccer training newsletter.

How to Persuade Youth Players in the USA That Soccer is the Best Sport to Play

Soccer is the most popular sport in almost every country in the world. That is unless you live in the USA where football, baseball and basketball are more popular. As a soccer coach the problem is therefore how to get youth players interested in playing soccer rather than the other sports.

Firstly we need to look at the reasons as to why other sports are more popular than soccer in the USA. One of the main reasons is spectator appeal. Local football, baseball and basketball are televised and promoted in every major city in the US. Young athletes watch this and associate with their heroes. Another reason is the money available in the professional game is much more in the American sports than in soccer. As a result, more young sports players aspire to earn their living with a high income in the American sports.

Not that soccer is a poor mans sport. Wages for soccer players around the world are now on the increase. For example 2 of the best soccer players in the world Christiano Ronaldo and Robinho are reported to be on $200, 000 and $320,000 per week respectively. David Beckham who plays for LA Galaxy is also high up there with the top soccer player earners. Although the interest in soccer is growing in the US among young sportsmen, the sport cannot compete as yet with the publicity, advertising and hype of the American sports.

The question is how to persuade young players in the US that soccer is the best sport to enter. Here are a few good reasons:

Soccer is a sport that any player can play and be successful in. As in football where physique and size is a major factor, in basketball where it is very advantageous to be well over 6 feet tall, any player can be successful in soccer no matter what size or physique a player has. Big and strong players can find positions as defenders, midfielders or forwards. Small players can find positions as forwards and wingers and develop skills to be successful in these positions. Slower players can also find positions, especially in midfield. There is a place for everyone who has the desire.

The involvement in the game is much greater in soccer than it is for other sports. In football there are so many stoppages in the game. Some players like the kickers may only have very limited involvement in the game. In soccer, even if your team does not have the ball, everyone has to hustle back to defend. Even the forwards have to defend from the front. Defenders when not defending have to support the midfield and forwards.

Soccer is very fast paced with almost continuous involvement. Basketball is probably the most similar of the American sports to soccer, the biggest difference being the size of the court to the field.

As well as speed, strength and stamina, skill is of the utmost importance in soccer thus producing an athlete with more rounded attributes. At youth level you will often find that youth soccer players often excel in the other American sports.

A good way to get youth athletes more interested in soccer is to get them watching high-class professional games on TV. The English Premier League is probably the best to watch as it is fast paced with a high skill level. Many of the best players in the world play in this league. There are several TV stations that show these games like Fox Sports World.

Also it would be good to get prospective youth soccer players to go to a few of their local college soccer games or semi pro games if there is a team in the area,

And then there is that magical feeling of scoring a goal with the goal celebration to follow. Soccer is certainly on the increase in the USA. The game produces leaders with more all round ability than the US sports. Success in soccer can lead to worldwide acclaim as players like Brad Friedel who plays in the English premier league has shown.

The author of this article - David Epstein has been a youth soccer coach for over 27 years. David is an expert in teaching parent soccer coaches how to be a better coach and get the best from their players including giving players the know how to play in all soccer positions [http://www.parentsoccercoach.com].