Portal:Football in Africa

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Introduction

Cameroon's Benoît Assou-Ekotto jostles for possession with Mustapha Allaoui of Morocco

Football is the most popular sport in Africa. Indeed, football is probably the most popular sport in every African country, although rugby and cricket are also very popular in South Africa. (Full article...)

Football was first introduced to Africa in the early 1860s by Europeans,[1] due to the colonisation of Africa. The first recorded games were played in South Africa in 1862 between soldiers and civil servants and there were no established rules for the game at this time;[2]" Initially, there were various forms of playing the game, which included elements of both rugby and soccer. It was not until October 26, 1863 that the "rules of association football were codified."[2] The first official football organization in Africa, Pietermaritzburg County Football Association, was established in 1880.Teams were being established in South Africa before 1900, Egypt and in Algeria during a similar time period. Savages FC (Pietermaritzburg, South Africa), and Gezira SC are the oldest African football clubs that remain in existence. Both began play in 1882 followed by Alexandria SC (1890), CDJ Oran from Algeria in 1894 and CAL Oran from Algeria too in 1897. By the 1930s, football was being played in Central Africa. In 1882, the first national governing body on the content was formed, South African Football Association (SAFA). SAFA was a whites-only association that became the first member of FIFA in South Africa in 1910.[2]
Egyptian Olympic football team, 1928
As Africa is a highly superstitious continent many African teams depend on witch doctors for success.[3][4][5][6][7] Activities that witch doctors have performed for teams include cutting players, placing potions on equipment, and sacrificing animals.[8]

The DR Congo National Football Team (French: Équipe nationale de football de la République démocratique du Congo), recognised by FIFA as Congo DR, represents the Democratic Republic of the Congo in men's international football and it is controlled by the Congolese Association Football Federation. They are nicknamed Les Léopards, meaning The Leopards. The team is a member of FIFA and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Congo DR have been ranked as high as 28th in the FIFA Rankings, as Zaire they were the first Sub-Saharan African team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup and twice won the Africa Cup of Nations. They are also one of the most successful teams in the African Nations Championship with 2 titles, along with Morocco. They are currently ranked 67th in the FIFA Rankings.

Selected biography - show another

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with Borussia Dortmund in 2014
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is a Gabonese professional footballer who plays for English club Arsenal and captains the Gabonese national team. He is known for his pace and his capability of playing as a striker or a winger.

Beginning his career with Italian club A.C. Milan, Aubameyang was loaned out to Dijon FCO for the 2008–09 season in order to gain some first team experience. His performances there led him to appear in World Soccer's Talent Scout section in the summer of 2009. On 24 June 2009, it was announced Ligue 1 club Lille OSC had decided to sign Aubameyang on loan. The following season, he was loaned out again, this time to AS Monaco. On 21 August 2010, Aubameyang scored his first goal for Monaco in an away match versus RC Lens. He scored again on 29 August at home to AJ Auxerre where his Monaco team won 2–0.

In January 2011, after six months at Monaco, Aubameyang was loaned to AS Saint-Étienne until the end of the 2010–11 season. In July 2011, the loan was extended for the entire 2011–12 season. On 22 December 2011, Aubameyang signed with Saint-Étienne on a permanent deal. After one and a half successful seasons with the club, he joined Champions League finalists Borussia Dortmund on a five year contract. Winning the 2013 DFL-Supercup in his debut, he received plaudits for his technical skills and finishing; gaining comparisons to Thierry Henry. He made his Bundesliga debut and scored a hat-trick against FC Augsburg, including a goal from his first shot in the league.

In the following seasons at Dortmund, Aubameyang established himself as one of the best forwards in the world, as he recorded 141 goals in 213 games, including a 31-goal haul in 2016–17 as he won the league's top scorer award. However, after only recording another DFL-Supercup and a DFB-Pokal to his name in Germany, he voiced his desire to leave, and relocated to England to join Premier League side Arsenal in a club-record deal worth £56 million (€64 million), making him the most expensive Gabonese player of all time.

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Football in Dakar, near the sea.jpg
Football in Dakar, near the sea.jpg
Credit: ImerEtrof

Football in Dakar, Senegal, near the sea

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Sources

  1. ^ "The History Of Soccer In Africa". NPR.org. 2010-06-09. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
  2. ^ a b c Alegi, Peter (2010). African Soccerscapes. Ohio University Press. pp. 1–2. ISBN 9780896802780.
  3. ^ Frimpong, Enoch Darfah. "Ghana news: A world of superstition, frustration and disillusionment - Graphic Online". Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  4. ^ Lacey, Marc (8 August 2002). "Kangemi Journal; For Spellbinding Soccer, the Juju Man's on the Ball". The New York Times. NY Times. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
  5. ^ "World Cup Witchcraft: Africa Teams Turn to Magic for Aid". National Geographic. Archived from the original on July 10, 2006. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
  6. ^ Andy Mitten (September 2010). The Rough Guide to Cult Football. Rough Guides UK. ISBN 9781405387965. Retrieved 2016-04-02.
  7. ^ "African Nations Cup overshadowed by hocus pocus | Football". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  8. ^ Kuper, Simon (2006). Soccer Against the Enemy: How the World's Most Popular Sport Starts and Stops Wars, Fuels Revolutions, and Keeps Dictators in Power. Nation Books. p. 123. ISBN 978-1-56025-878-0.