Courtesy:
FIFA.com10 dates for 2014Wednesday 1 January 2014Happy New Year! A sure-to-be thrilling 2014, which will feature no less a showpiece than the FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil, has now begun, yet the next 365 days also contain a host of other key dates on the Planet Football calendar.
To help make sure you do not miss any of these events, FIFA.com brings you an overview of the year ahead.
13 January – FIFA Ballon d’Or Gala: The Kongresshaus in Zurich will host a gala night to pay tribute to the standout performers of 2013. The very biggest names in world football will come together in Zurich to see who takes home the FIFA Ballon d’Or, among other coveted awards.
8 February – The UEFA Futsal EURO will take place in Antwerp, Belgium between 28 January and 8 February, with Spain aiming to collect their fifth consecutive continental crown. Can anyone stop the holders and FIFA Futsal World Cup 2012 runners-up?23 February – The focus of the European football firmament will be on Nice for the draw for the UEFA EURO 2016 qualifiers. This event is the first step towards the continental championship held on French soil in two years’ time.
4 April – Women’s football will not be left behind this year, with the young generation kicking off the elite action on 15 March in the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Costa Rica 2014. Twenty-one days later comes the title decider in San Jose, where the successors to holders France will be crowned.
24 May – After a fiercely contested season of action, Lisbon is set to provide a magnificent stage for the final of the UEFA Champions League. The last grand finale was an all-German affair, but who do you think will take home the ‘cup with the big ears’ this time around?
12 June – This big one. At 17.00 local time in Sao Paulo, host nation Brazil get the 2014 FIFA World Cup up and running when they take on Croatia.
13 July – The eyes of the planet will be on the Maracana where, from 16.00 local time, the final of the 20th World Cup will take place.
13 August – Returning to the pinnacle of the club game and, while most European competitions will just be beginning, the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final will be held on this day - with the victors hailed as South America’s finest.
24 August – After all the excitement of Brazil 2014, Canada will pick up the baton and bring the women’s game back to the fore – with the final of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup to be played in the city of Montreal. Spanning the six previous editions of the tournament, only Germany, USA and Korea DPR have lifted the trophy. Will one of these heavyweights repeat the feat or can we expect a new flag atop the podium?
20 December – The year will draw to a close with the relatively short but certainly intense competition that is the FIFA Club World Cup, featuring the leading club sides from each of the FIFA confederations. And in the title decider just before Christmas, the name of the next club world champions will be revealed.
Have Your SayThough we have selected just ten events in what will be another football-packed year, which of them will you be doing everything you can not to miss? Are there any you’d like to add to our list? Click 'Add your comment' to join the debate.
Posted by
Luca Ranocchiari -->
luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com
