Historical Pieces

On November 25th 1953 a football match between England and Hungary took place at Wembley Stadium. Hungary beat England 6-3 in what was dubbed "the match of the century." Nándor Hidegkuti scored a hat trick, Ferenc Puskás scored twice, and József Bozsik scored once. It was the first time England had ever lost on home soil. Less than a year later Hungary invited England to Budapest to do it all over again. England left with a 7-1 defeat — their heaviest ever, a record that stil

What do you call a player who scored 35 goals, added 9 assists, won both Serie A and the Copa América as the top scorer in each, and netted the winning goal in extra time of an international final? The best player in the world? The face of the sport? Apparently, you call him 8th in the Ballon d’Or odds. Lautaro Martínez has quietly put together one of the most accomplished individual seasons in modern football. Yet, when Ballon d’Or discussions begin, his name barely surfaces

Is it ever going to end? Cristiano Ronaldo scoring goals. He is entering his 23rd season, and he’s still somehow finding the back of the net. He’s just hit 900 goals, and it doesn’t look like he’s stopping. This isn’t supposed to happen—99% of players peak in their mid-20s, transfer to a less competitive league by their early-to-mid 30s, and collect a paycheck while they watch the sunset on their career, content with their achievements. But not Ronaldo. While he has transferr

Entering the 2004–05 season, Barcelona had gone five years without winning a trophy. The club was on its sixth manager since the turn of the century, and fears of a prolonged decline loomed. Then, on May 1, 2005, a teenage Lionel Messi scored his first goal for the club. Few realized it at the time, but that moment marked the beginning of one of the greatest dynasties in football history. Nearly two decades later, Barcelona once again finds itself placing its hopes on a teena