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As the dust settles on an electrifying year, let’s take a closer look at the moments from the world of football that defined 2024:
2024 was an illustrious and hectic year filled with moments galore in football (X)
2024 has been a year to remember for football fans across the globe. From jaw-dropping scandals to record-breaking performances to heartbreaking retirements, the beautiful game once again delivered drama, passion, and unforgettable moments that united millions.
As the dust settles on an electrifying year, let’s take a closer look at the moments from the world of football that defined 2024:
Xabi Alonso and Bayer Leverkusen’s Undefeated Season
Under the leadership of Xabi Alonso, Bayer Leverkusen became the first team to complete an entire Bundesliga season without defeat after a remarkable 2023/24 campaign that also saw Germany’s new champions set a European record of 51 games in a row without loss across all competitions.
Alonso’s side dominated all fronts and concluded the 2023/24 campaign with 28 wins, six draws and zero defeats.
In doing so, they became Germany’s ‘Invincibles’ as the first team ever to go undefeated in a Bundesliga season. But, Leverkusen fell just short of capturing a treble, losing out on the UEFA Europa League in the final against Atalanta.
Rodri Wins Ballon D’Or
Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri won the men’s Ballon d’Or – awarded to the best footballer of the year – for the first time.
The 28-year-old, who lost just one game last season for club and country, is the first Spanish player to win the men’s award since 1960 and the first Premier League player to win the award since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2008.
Rodri, who helped Spain win Euro 2024 in July, was awarded the prize in Paris on Monday. He also won the Premier League, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup with City. As the first player in the club’s history to win the Ballon d’Or, the Spaniard claimed the award ahead of Real Madrid and Brazil winger Vinicius Jr and Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham.
Rodri’s win though sparked immense criticism from a section of the fans, who believed that Vinicius Jr. was ‘robbed’ of the honour, leading to the club, as a whole, boycotting the ceremony.
Manchester City’s Hearing For 115 FFP Breaches
Manchester City’s long-awaited hearing into 115 breaches of Premier League rules finally took place, but a verdict is not expected until 2025, according to reports.
The English champions stand accused of 80 breaches of financial rules between 2009 and 2018, plus a further 35 of failing to cooperate with a Premier League investigation.
City’s saga only got more dramatic as the defending Premier League champions are now reportedly facing trial for an updated 130 FFP breaches, 15 more than the originally mentioned 115 charges.
Kylian Mbappe’s Journey To/With Real Madrid So Far
After years of teasing, a dream percolated into reality for both Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid as , the France World Cup winner officially joined forces with the Los Blancos, following a tumultuous ending to the Frenchman’s tenure at PSG.
Kylian Mbappe’s exit from Paris Saint Germain took a dark turn as president Nasser Al-Khelaifi reportedly refused to pay the young French forward the remainder of his salary.
Owing to his dissatisfaction with Mbappe’s exit, Khelaifi refused to pay the player a total of 80 million Euros, in salary and bonus. PSG also did not pay Kylian Mbappé’s salary in April, ultimately leading to lawyers being involved in the saga.
PSG were ordered by the LFP to pay Mbappe the sum owed from his time at the Parc des Princes but said in October they would refuse to do so on the basis that the player had agreed in August 2023 to waive the money. Last month the French Football Federation rejected Qatar-owned PSG’s request to reconsider the order to pay Mbappe, saying it was submitted a day late.
According to the French league’s statutes, PSG could face a fine or a ban on signing players. However, it is understood that PSG is confident that the LFP cannot have the final say on the case and that it would have to go before an industrial tribunal.
Andres Iniesta Retirement
‘Don Andres’, as he was lovingly called by the Barca faithful, brought the curtains down on an illustrious football career that saw the 40-year-old make 674 appearances for the Blaugranas.
Making his way up to the first team of Barcelona from their acclaimed academy La Masia, Iniesta made his senior debut for the Catalans in October 2002 in a Champions League game against Club Brugge, after which it did not take much time for the Spaniard to establish himself as one of the best players in the world.
During his 18-year tenure in Camp Nou, Iniesta won nine LaLiga titles, four Champions League trophies, three FIFA Club World Cups, six Copa del Rey titles, three UEFA Super Cups, and seven Spanish Super Cups with Barcelona, leaving behind an inimitable legacy.
Cristiano Ronaldo Reaching The 900 Career Goals Milestone
There was no doubting Cristiano Ronaldo, as the Portuguese forward swooped into the penalty box of Croatia to get to the end of Nuno Gomes’ cross and volley it in for his 131st international goal and his 900th career goal.
With his goal, Ronaldo became the first-ever men’s player to reach the storied milestone in official matches, beating his rival Lionel Messi to it, as he now looks on to reach the seemingly unattainable 1000-goal mark next.
The former Manchester United, Real Madrid forward also holds the record for the most international goals, having scored 131 goals in his 209 appearances for Portugal.
Pep Guardiola’s Career-Worst Losing Streak
One win in the last 12 games of the year: a feat nobody thought Guardiola could have achieved. But, it seems as if the Spaniard and his Manchester City side have completely derailed from their goals, and are headed towards a crash landing, slipping from top of the PL table to seventh.
Plagues by injuries throughout the season, and missing their Ballon D’Or winner Rodri, Man City failed to find consistency on all fronts, struggling to compete in the top league, leaving Guardiola scratching his head off (almost too literally), an unprecedented run of form, the absolute worst of his managerial career so far.
Players’ Protest Against UEFA and FIFA For Intense Schedule
The newly-introduced UEFA Champions League format sparked enough controversy on its own, but it was in September when the players themselves raised their voices against the same.
With the Champions League first stage now featuring an additional two matches and the expanded Club World Cup at the end of the season, Guardiola’s Premier League champions could play a maximum of 76 matches during the 2024/25 campaign. Top players also have international fixtures to factor into the gruelling schedule. Global players’ union FIFPro has said footballers should play a maximum of 50 to 60 games per season, depending on their age.
The common sentiment was that the workload has skyrocketed following the revamp of the UEFA Champions League and the extended 32-team Club World Cup, with some players such as Spain’s Rodri calling for a strike from the players about the congested calendar.
Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola also echoed the sentiments of Rodri.
Paul Pogba’s Saga Of Controversies
There was no shortage of controversy that did not plague the French international. First, Pogba tested positive for testosterone in August 2023 after a match between Juventus and Udinese.
He was provisionally suspended in September of the same year, and then banned for four years by the Italian National Anti-Doping Tribunal the following February. But, upon appeal, it was reduced to 18 months.
That wouldn’t be the end of the drama for Pogba, as next came the case involving six men linked to Paul Pogba which shocked the French football world because the alleged perpetrators included three childhood friends and Pogba’s own brother.
Pogba told French investigators he had in March 2022 been “tricked by childhood friends” from the gritty Paris suburb where he and his brother Mathias grew up.
He accused them of snatching him before he was held at gunpoint by two hooded men with assault rifles, demanding 13 million euros for “services rendered” and blaming him for not helping them financially.
But, in a crazy turn of events, a Paris court sentenced Mathias to a three-year prison term, with two years suspended, after convicting him in a high-profile extortion case.
The five other defendants were found guilty of extortion, kidnapping and detention, as well as participation in a criminal association, and sentenced to up to eight years in prison, as well as fines of between 20,000 euros and 40,000 euros. Mathias Pogba, on the other hand, will be able to serve his one-year sentence with an electronic bracelet rather than behind bars.
Spain Win EURO 2024 In Dominant Fashion
No more tiki-taka, just vertical dynamic attacks all out. Spain were head-and-shoulders above the rest of the competition through the tournament and powered to an utterly dominant EURO 2024 win, their fourth European Championship in history.
Spain dazzled en route to the final in Berlin, where they beat England 2-1 in a thriller of a final. Player of the Tournament Rodri and Young Player of the Tournament Lamine Yamal were two of six Spaniards in the Team of the Tournament, with Yamal’s sensational equaliser against France in the semi-finals named Goal of the Tournament.
The success was the high point of a remarkable year for Spanish football, which began in February when the women’s national team won the first UEFA Women’s Nations League final by defeating France. In UEFA’s youth competitions Spain were similarly dominant, and won both the men’s and women’s Under-19 EUROs in Northern Ireland and Lithuania respectively, results which bode extremely well for their future.
PL Referee David Coote’s Betting/Coke Scandal
Premier League official David Coote was sacked after referee chiefs described his position as “untenable” over a video making derogatory remarks about former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
Coote, 42, was suspended last month after the video emerged on social media in which he branded Klopp “arrogant” and used offensive language.
The video appeared to refer to a match that Coote officiated between Liverpool and Burnley in July 2020, which finished 1-1.
Klopp criticised Coote after the match, saying the referee had been too lenient in his treatment of Burnley challenges.
Coote is also the subject of UEFA disciplinary proceedings after a video emerged of him allegedly snorting a white powder during Euro 2024.
The Football Association is investigating further allegations Coote discussed betting on giving a yellow card with a fan before a match in England’s second-tier Championship.
Jurgen Klopp Leaves Liverpool
After eight-and-a-half outstandingly successful years at the helm, the end of an era dawned upon Anfield as Jurgen Klopp stepped down from the managerial position at Liverpool.
Klopp stated that it was merely his age catching up to him and business as usual, and that he had nothing against the club that affected his decision.
Klopp had been a transformative presence since he was hired at Anfield back in 2015, winning the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League during an incredible decade of success for the club.
He was replaced by Arne Slot, who seems to have had a wondrous start to his career at Anfield, as Liverpool currently lie top of the Premier League table.
Canada Women’s Team Using Drones To Spy At Olympics
How far would you go to win? Well, Bev Preistman only needed to go as far as the opponent’s training field to reportedly spy on them only to ultimately end up getting suspended by FIFA over a drone scandal at the Paris Olympics.
The report found Priestman and assistant coach Jasmine Mander “directed, approved and condoned the actions taken by” assistant coach Joey Lombardi to fly a drone over closed New Zealand practices ahead of Canada’s first match, a 2-1 victory over New Zealand.
The three Canadian coaches were sent home and banned for a year by FIFA, and a Canada Soccer statement said the trio had effectively been fired.
Drone footage was not viewed by players on the Canadian women’s squad, according to the report on the independent external investigation conducted by Sonia Regenbogen, a Toronto attorney.
The probe also found no evidence any surveillance was undertaken at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, where the Canadian women captured a gold medal.
