Your weekly source of information and entertainment, Sports Journal #38 brought to you by our journalists, is here! 📖⚽

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1/ FOOTBALL QUIZ

2/ INTERVIEW WITH ARAS (JOKERS GAMBIT)

3/ THE THIRD DIVISION: THE FRONTLINE! - PART ONE

4/ BORAT, WHAT ABOUT THE LEAGUES?

5/ INTERESTING, FAIRLY CHEAP WAYS TO GET A LOT OF RESOURCES AT THE EXPENSE OF OTHER RESOURCES!

6/ SEASONAL CLUB QUESTS!

7/ I AM ANDRZEJEK!

8/ REFEREE CONTROVERSIES THROUGH THE EYES OF THE MANAGER #9

FOOTBALL QUIZ

👑 The winners of the last edition are: (Classic)

100 Keys 🔑 Premium - Blalson

10,000 ⚡ Energy - gauczo10 & EL PULPO

Hello! I'm here with another part of the football quiz series. Of course, there are prizes in the form of 100 Keys 🔑 Premium for the first person to answer correctly and 10,000 ⚡ Energy for two random people with the correct answer. I'll select the winners on Thursday at 8 p.m. Let's get started!

1/ Stadium name:

A football stadium in Madrid, Spain. It is the home stadium of Real Madrid and also the venue for the Spanish national team. The stadium was opened in 1947 and has been rebuilt and expanded several times since. The first stadium on the site of the current one was built in 1924 and was called Estadio Chamartín. This stadium was too small for Real Madrid's needs, so in 1944 the club began building a new stadium.

The stadium was opened on December 14, 1947. The first match was played between Real Madrid and Portuguese Os Belenenses, with Real Madrid winning 3-1. In the early years of the stadium's existence, its capacity was around 75,000. The stadium was rebuilt and expanded several times. The first major reconstruction took place in 1954, when a second tier of stands was added. In 1982, before the World Cup in Spain, the stadium was rebuilt and expanded again.

A third tier of stands was added and the stadium capacity was increased to over 100,000. The current stadium has a capacity of 81,044. It is one of the largest football stadiums in Europe. The stadium is equipped with modern facilities such as a heated pitch, a public address system and LED scoreboards.

The stadium has hosted numerous major football events, including four European Cup/Champions League finals. The stadium also hosted the 1982 World Cup final.

2/ Player Name and Surname:

A German footballer who plays as a holding forward for Bayern Munich and the German national team. He was born on 13 September 1989 in Weilheim in Oberbayern. He began his football career at the age of 12, joining the Bayern Munich academy. He quickly rose through the youth ranks and made his debut for the first team in 2009.

The player became a key player for Bayern Munich, winning numerous titles, including 12 Bundesliga championships, 6 German Cups and 2 UEFA Champions Leagues. He is known for his versatility, goalscoring skills and assisting his teammates. He made his debut for the German national team in 2010. With the national team, he won the World Cup in 2014 and the bronze medal in 2010. He is one of the most decorated German footballers in history.

3/ Name and Surname of the player:

A Belgian footballer who currently plays as a midfielder for Manchester City. He was born on June 28, 1991 in Drongen, Belgium. He began his football career at the age of 6 in the club KVV Drongen. In 2005, he joined the Genk youth academy. He made his debut in the first team in 2009. He spent three seasons in Genk, during which he played 85 matches and scored 14 goals. In 2012, he was bought by Chelsea for 8 million euros. In his first season at his new club, he failed to earn a place in the first team. The following season, he was loaned to Werder Bremen. He played 34 matches and scored 10 goals for the German club.

After returning to Chelsea, he still could not earn a place in the first team. In 2014, he was sold to Wolfsburg for 22 million euros. He played two seasons in the German club, in which he played 71 matches and scored 20 goals. In 2015, he was bought by Manchester City for 76 million euros. In the English club, he became one of the best footballers in the world.

He played over 300 matches in Manchester City and scored over 100 goals. During his career, he won many trophies, including: the English Championship, the Champions League, the Player of the Year (England and Germany). He is considered one of the best footballers in the world. He is a great playmaker, has excellent vision of the field and technical skills. He is also very effective in the attack, can score goals and assist shots of his teammates. He is also a very intelligent player who reads the game perfectly. He played 106 matches for the Belgian national team and scored 25 goals. He was selected for the FIFA Team of the Year in 2019. In 2021, he was selected for the UEFA Team of the Year. In the same year, he took second place in the Ballon d'Or plebiscite.

Author: Wylewinho

INTERVIEW WITH ARAS (JOKERS GAMBIT)

I invite you to a conversation with a player from the absolute top. A player who went from zero to a FootballTeam hero. He started two years ago on the PL server, where he never made a great career. TTK gave him a boost to the game - the strategies he developed brought the unremarkable Saiyans team TOP 3 of the week in training. The turning point was the launch of the Speed ​​server. Here's Aras!

PanEgo: After many months of playing on the PL server, you set out to conquer Speed. Where did you enjoy playing better and why?

Aras: Hey, first of all, thank you for the opportunity to take part in the interview. For many people, I am probably a rather anonymous person, because I have been playing the game since September 2023, and in addition, I am not very often on the DC game, for example. The period September 2023-February 2024 is a time of learning and getting to know the game. In February I started the Saiyans project with a friend who unfortunately had already finished playing. After two months we were already in the first league, where we won the cups in the first season. Incidentally, not being an SL team, we managed to win 3rd place in TTK twice. It was a great period that I remember very fondly and I met many great people. It all started in February and ended in May, because... Speed ​​started. We moved the most active part of the team there + we picked a few friends from the PL server and dreamed that we might play in SL. The reality turned out to be completely different... from the first season we were in the TOP server and fought for trophies. It's hard for me to point out where I played better. PL was a time for me to learn, get to know the game and build the first team that was very close to each other and it was definitely a better time in terms of the fun of breaking the ice. Speed, on the other hand, is playing at a different level and fighting for the highest goals. If I had to choose, it would be Speed, due to the more dynamic game. At some point, the news broke that both servers would be merged. How did you and your teammates react to this news?

"The news broke" fits here perfectly. There's no hiding it, everyone knew that the servers would be merged.

 However, we thought it would happen a little later, e.g. in May. For the team we had at the end of Speed's existence, it was not good news and no one was happy about it. We saw that there was little time left to make the most of the bonuses that the server gave compared to Legacy. Personally, I think we could have waited another month. Let's look at the player rankings. Only two from Speed ​​are in the server's TOP10, while only 5 people are in the TOP20. This shows that the merger was a bit too early and Legacy players were in a privileged position here.

You were given some time to prepare. Did you focus on getting into the new server as best as you could?

It was actually about a month after the announcement that the servers would be merged. There was an event, there were opportunities to catch up with OVR compared to TOP Legacy. However, as I wrote above, the ranking shows that it was still possible to wait a month with the merger. Personally, I tried to get the most out of the last two weeks of Speed ​​and I am happy with the progress I made then.

Almost a season has passed since the start of the new server. Has anything surprised or surprised you?

Generally, nothing particularly surprised me. Looking from our perspective, we saw that we would be the second strongest team in terms of OVR and the first strongest team in SL.

Do you think the transfer market can be saved? How can it be changed? Many teams have a concrete line-up and every departure is a big problem for the club.

It is true that many clubs have concrete line-ups, but our example shows that anything is possible. After the server merger, we were joined by: Kinder, Kiero, Gustaw. Although it is difficult to get transfers, we managed to make three significant reinforcements. Our club board did a great job here. And surely someone can say now... "yes, but it is easier to get someone to the TOP2". Yes... but Rome was not built in a day. We have been building the club for several months, step by step. Transfer after transfer. Systematicity and patience in actions are the key to success.

You are currently TOP2 on the server. Are you making plans to climb to the very top?

First of all, the most important thing is stability and atmosphere in the team. Of course, we look at TOP1 and we know that we are capable of getting there. But never "over dead bodies to the goal". If 2-3 people came to us today who would make TOP1, but there was no one to put them in the team for or they did not match our character, we would still be TOP2. What I wrote above... systematicity and patience. It is not a success to jump higher for a month. Success is to get there and stay there.

Author: PanEgo

THE THIRD DIVISION: THE FRONTLINE! - PART ONE

Greetings, resilient and battling Football Team community! This week, we tear away the veil of Super League glamour and divert the elite flashes to enter the dusty, yet glorious, trenches of the third divisions. There, where budgets are tighter than a miser's grip and squads resemble a depleted Subbuteo team, resides the pulsating soul of our virtual football. We speak of the unsung heroes, those who, with wavering faith but incandescent hearts, parade their unconditional love for the digital ball.

The 75th season, our pixelated epic, boils in its final stretch. The strategists' calculator in the Third Tier becomes an oracle, rivalling in importance the centre-forward (whose salary, at times, is a mere mirage!). It's time to peek at the virtual coffers, beg for the phantom sponsorship, and hope that the planning, woven with hope and a few bonus coins, finally blossoms.

In this peculiar and vast universe of Football Team, twenty third divisions pulse like valiant hearts, filled with a grit that would make any millionaire wage bill envious. Prepare to witness epic sagas of overcoming adversity, glimpse talents on the verge of exploding (maybe!), and follow the dramatic battles that forge the destiny of these clubs who, with a stubborn pride, echo: "I'm Third Division, and I shall never surrender!".

Poland:

In the chilly Polish League 3A, uncertainty hangs in the air like smoke from a chimney on a winter's day. Although Fighterborn FT leads, three other contenders – Leed United (have they finally learned to spell the name?), ФК АТЛЕТИКО (with that virtual "olé" touch), and FC REAL MADRID (interlopers from bankrupt galácticos?) – lurk for the title like wolves in the snow.

Moving to League 3B, the battle for the virtual cheese bread (or would it be pierogi?) involves the speedy Hellcat Redeye, the dancing Coco Jambo, and the promising youth of Кузбасс PRO молодёжка. May the hungriest win!

And in League 3C, the fight for the Polish podium resembles a race of runaway steam trains: the legendary  SANTOS FUTEBOL CLUBE (trying to show that Pelé plays on any server!), the tenacious Duckling Army (watch out for the pecks!), and the ever-elegant Vecchia Signora FC.

England:

In the rainy English League 3A, two virtual gangs – GANSTERS (with their unorthodox methods) and Athletic Bilbao (virtual Basques in the Queen's land!) – are battling for the top spot as if the last pint in the pub were at stake.

Continuing to 3B, where Red Lions seems to have found the Holy Grail of promotion, marching towards the title with an almost celestial advantage. It's up to Atlético Paulista (missing the sun!) and ZKS Unia Tarnów 2023 (a name that's already a marathon!) to seek a miracle worthy of Merlin.

We arrive at 3C, where only two virtual souls are chasing the pot of gold at the end of the British rainbow: the enigmatic DETALLES TM21 and the shadowy Shadow Raven. May the light of victory illuminate the cleverest!

Italy:

In the warm Italian League 3A, Football Freaks, with their eccentricity that would make Fellini smile, can already order the virtual title celebration pizza. Their lead is so big that their pursuers look more like tourists lost in Rome.

League 3B in Italy is still boiling like a simmering tomato sauce! Four contenders – Los indomables (will they tame the table?), To Be Continued (the promotion saga?), Интер (the bankrupt Milan branch?), and Masked CF (who's hiding behind the mask?) – promise emotions worthy of real "calcio."

And in League 3C, two teams are flying higher than paparazzi drones chasing celebrities: the powerful Bayern Munchen (virtual Germans have invaded Italy?) and the tropical B R A S I L (bringing the samba to the boot!).

The Third Division: The Frontline! - Part Two

After peeking into Poland, England, and Italy, our intrepid virtual reporter laces up the boots of curiosity and ventures into the other five national leagues of Football Team's Third Tier. Prepare your hearts (and perhaps a tissue), because the drama, nervous laughter, and relentless fight for promotion continue to ignite the pixelated pitches!

Spain:

In the sunny Spanish League 3A, we already have a virtual champion crowned: FK Hoper, with a 10-point advantage that would make even Real Madrid envious. Olé to them!

And in League 3B, Zaragozano CF would need a very specific kind of bad luck not to celebrate the virtual title with sangria and tapas. The trophy seems to have an Aragonese accent!

"Habemus disputa" in League 3C! Odra WodzisławŚląski (a name that ties even the virtual Cervantes' tongue) and the speedy TACHIBANA TWINS promise a virtual Iberian duel that will only end at the last "fiesta."

Germany:

In the German League 3A, the title "soap opera" has two protagonists with distinct accents: the exotic ФК АҚТӨБЕ and the South American Club Cerro Porteño. Let's await the next virtual "Krimis"!

A trio of virtual virtuosos in German League 3B are accelerating towards the podium as if free beer were at the finish line: the traditional HHC Hardenberg, the promising Akademia Polish Power, and the slippery Łososie w Termosie (Salmon in a Thermos?).

Only two virtual dreamers aim for the top of German League 3C: the fearsome La Familia Gang and the mysterious Engine Fault. May the best virtual "machine" win!

France:

In the charming French League 3A, Praise The Moon (do they play by moonlight?) and Twierdza Wrocław (an unbreachable virtual fortress?) are walking the yellow brick road towards their own virtual "Oz."

French League 3B presents us with two virtual "Les Bleus" with real title chances: the railway workers of CFR 1907 Cluj and the modest Crawley Town F.C. "Allez les bleus" virtual style!

Turkey:

In the Turkish League 3A, a virtual triad of titans seeks the title "ippon": the billionaire PSG 1 (did they spend too much on pixels?), the tenacious UNIA WARSZAWA, and the cup specialist Boca Juniors.

Three virtual "ships" navigate turbulent seas in search of the perfect plunder in Turkish League 3B: the aristocratic Астон Вилла, the pragmatic ACAB Milan, and the disciplined Sparta United. May the most skilled virtual captain win!

Russia:

In the chilly Russian League 3A, a virtual straight flush seeks the winning hand: the folkloric ФК Карпати, the methodical Newton United II, the naval Южный Флот, and the ambitious SZCZYT II. May the shrewdest virtual strategy prevail!

Only two virtual "bears" are fighting for the title in Russian League 3B: the organised KKS Lech Poznań Academy and the dynamic Team Activity Reloaded. May the virtual force be with them!

And you, noble virtual players, are you part of any of these epic battles? Who are you placing your virtual chips on to lift the sweaty third division trophy? Tell us in the comments!

Thanks for your company, and see you next week with more excitement from our beloved Football Team!

Author: Fábio Muri

BORAT, WHAT ABOUT THE LEAGUES?

Good afternoon, dear readers of the sports magazine!

Today let's try to slowly sum up the results of the first championship after the last merger (there seems to be no one else to merge with, unless with another game, for example, Counter-Strike). The distribution took place according to the principle of location in the top every 8 teams.

Let's see how the teams are located in the table - are there any surprises? Looking ahead, I will say that there are surprises!

Polish league

And immediately we come across a surprise (though, I bet, it's temporary).

We do not take Public Enemies into account - to defeat them, you need to immediately inflict injuries on five of their leaders in order to have at least some chances.But in second place was the team Dream Snake, which overtook the obviously stronger Łosie w Kosmosıe. Honestly, I don't know why this happened, but Łosie w Kosmosıe played without a number of their leaders and were +/- equal in strength in this match. What prevented them from releasing the base roster is not clear to me. If there is no collusion, then by the time the article is read, I think Łosie w Kosmosıe will already be ahead. Otherwise, everything is exactly as it should be at the top of the table. By the way, I note that at the time of writing, not everyone has chosen a principal rival! And Public Enemies have chosen an opponent with whom they should not play this season - the top 2 server Jokers Gambit, and it’s mutual.

English league

And again a surprise. As in the previous league, Jokers Gambit has firmly established itself in first place, as well as second, where Duck Army also feels confident, but in third place unexpectedly was the first and only, beloved and unique Спартак, which is ahead of the stronger SAIYAJINS. It so happened that in the first match Спартак unexpectedly won, which predetermined the appointment of a principal rival for the second round and allowed the red-whites to win in the second head-to-head match. If there are no miracles, the top five will remain unchanged.

Italian league

Oh, how! The third league is under consideration - and the third surprise. Again, the first place is out of competition captured by Monster FC, but the second strongest LIONHEART was not in second, but in third place, and a couple of steps away from the fourth Salford City. The rest are far behind. And LIONHEART lost twice to both Monster FC and KS Оpatowskie Opony, which is not surprising given the boost of the main rival and more activity than LIONHEART. Here, probably, the European Cup layout will not change anymore.

Spanish league

The first league, which is without surprises. The teams, as they go in the top by rank, are also located in the standings TeamTsubasa, Devils FC, La Familia and FC Mayaply and in fifth place we note the team Медведи - the rest are far behind. According to the layout, nothing will probably change.

German league

And here there is something to talk about. No, we will not talk about Кремень - here, as with the previous headliners of their leagues, there are no competitors. But for the second place, there is a direct struggle of three teams, two of which boosted against Wings , which, despite this, still lead in this trio. But FC Inter Milan and WIZARD are very close. The cherry on the cake can be the match in the last round between Wings and WIZARD - we are waiting for a proper match!

French league

Here, too, not everything is in its place, if everything is clear with the first two - OboOboObo and FC ParaBellum, then the presence of AK Elite Team in 4th place with a serious lag behind KKS Lech Poznań looks strange. Honestly speaking, draw matches with obviously weaker opponents pushed the team away from the leading three.

Turkish league

Here, as in the Spanish league, everything is without surprises - the distribution of places is according to the "purchased tickets". ФК Беркут is in first place, Coś niecoś is in second, FC HIENAS is in third, and ФК Спарта is in fourth. The only thing that can be noted is that FC HIENAS, in theory, should be closer to Coś niecoś than to ФК Спарта, but it is what it is, perhaps by the time the article is released it will be so. 

The rest are far behind. To understand the difference: the team in 6th place has an OVR of 3k+ and could compete for 5th place if the goalkeeper hadn't left them, which led to several technical defeats. This usually happens with teams at the bottom of the standings, but here it is - the middle one.

Russian league

The leader - The Legends OW - is undeniable and invincible, as in previous leagues. But then - our favorite surprises. In second place are Syzyfy FC, who chose Polish DF as their main rivals, who are in third place and with the main rival The Legends OW, who is obviously stronger than the others. Apparently they wanted to fight for first place, but now they apparently won't even fight for second.You can also note Фк Металлург Липецк, which is far from 4th in the list of teams but occupies exactly this line in the standings. I'm not sure they will reach that high, but they still deserve to be noted.

Numbers:

• Most of all goals were scored by Kremen - 180!

• Jokers Gambit conceded the least - only 1 goal!

Phew... A brief (or even very brief) overview of 8 leagues. In fact, we ran through the tops.

What can be noted?

Looking at the results of the matches of the leading threes, you see that these teams play 6:0, 7:0, 8:0, 9:0, and sometimes among themselves. In the last leagues, teams in the pre-European Cup zone in the previous format would rather fight for survival. I would like to see more competition.

Author: Борат 

INTERESTING, FAIRLY CHEAP WAYS TO GET A LOT OF RESOURCES AT THE EXPENSE OF OTHER RESOURCES!

Hey! Kyrunio here, in today's article I will focus on what tasks have been added to the last update. There are several tasks that are worth doing due to their low costs and high rewards. This is my first article in this style, so let me know in the comments if you like this format. Let's get to the point.

The first of these tasks is the basic one that should be done by every player with at least 20 billion euros in their account, which after recent events such as x5 or x4 work should be just a formality. A task called Enchanter, which can be found in one-time tasks in the "Items" tab

It is impossible to estimate the exact costs of completing this task, because you have to upgrade the item 5000 times. This is a task in which, in order to spend as little as possible, you have to be really lucky with failures in upgrading. The best way to complete this task is to simply take the green item and click the “Upgrade” button until the task is completed.

The rewards that we can receive by completing the entire task are as follows:

• 358,750 Energy,
• 10 Hero Stars

So if we are to look at it from the perspective of a beginner player who has earned an amount of euros that they will not spend for the next few months, this is a nice perspective for development, because 10 Hero Stars is an additional permanent 4% of trained skills.

The next task that I will focus on is a challenge in which you have to click one button as many as 9,000 times. This is a task about augmenting items. However, the cost of completing this task is more precisely defined, because the prices of both crystals and Augmentation are fixed. The cost of this task is also much higher than the costs of the previous one, here Golden Balls also come into play.

How to complete this task?

The smallest cost you can incur while completing this quest is simply buying/dropping a red item from the Market and augmenting it until the quest is completed.

The costs of completing the task are as follows:

Without the event:

• 8,055,000,000 Euro
• 675,000 Golden Balls

With the event -50% on Crystals and -50% Augmentation price:

• 4,027,500,000 Euro
• 337,500 Golden Balls

I have given the costs of completing such a task above, so let's move on to the rewards:

• 3x XP Drink VII
• 1x Millionaire Drink VII
• 149,000 Energy
• 4 Hero Stars
• optionally +2 Hero Stars if you decide to complete another 1,000 Augments

This is a task that is worth doing during the event, because the costs of Golden Balls of around 700 thousand for one task are something that many players cannot afford.

However, when completing such a task, I prefer to do 9000 Augmentation, due to the fact that the last 1000 can be earned at any time, trying to get the highest percentage of Augmentation on your set.

To sum up this article, I will tell you that I recommend looking at new tasks, because some of the rewards are trivial to get, and thanks to them you can really improve your character, both in training and in the number of Hero Stars.

That's all from me for today, I encourage you to read the articles submitted by other journalists and evaluate my article. Until next time!

Author: Kyrunio

SEASONAL CLUB QUESTS!

With the last update, club stars were added. They are of great importance because they can ultimately give players in the club up to 60% additional bonus, which together with individual stars gives the possibility of having an additional 180%!

How does it look in terms of brackets:

How can we get them?

Club Tasks, CLUB TOP WEEK / TRAINING TOP WEEK, Top Bets and Games, but let's discuss the first aspect, the tasks, because not every club can fight for CLUB TOP WEEK, but everyone can complete the tasks!

The tasks are divided into 2 categories:

Expansion, in which we need to return the following number of items in total:

• 2000 regular items

• 1400 improved

• 525 rare

• 75 epic

• 20 legendary

• 1,000,000 golden balls

• 2000 any crystals

• 5,000,000,000 Euro
  

Training (and others) where we have to do the following activities as a player:

• Use the Training Center 1650 times

• Sign up for Club Training 550 times

• Use any XP Drink 550 times

• Use any Provident Drink 550 times

• Use any Pennywise Drink

• Exchange 9000 boosters for Energy

• Exchange 1800 booster sets

• Complete 19,500,000 trainings together
  

Well, it looks amazing, but let's break it down to 20 players, because we are not alone in the club. We have to do it together! Then the cost per player is as follows (in brackets it will be written how many activities are given/performed daily)

Upgrade:

• 100 regular items

• 70 improved

• 26~ rare

• 3-4 epic

• 1 legendary

• 50,000 Golden Balls

• 100 any crystals

• 250,000,000 Euro

Well, that doesn't look so bad, does it?

And what about the other activities?

Training (and other):

• 82-83 (3x a day) times use the Training Center

• 27-28 (basically once a day) times sign up for Club Training

• 27-28 (basically once a day) use Any XP drink

• 27-28 (basically once a day) use Any Provident drink

• 27-28 (basically once a day) use Any Pennywise drink

• Exchange 450 (15 a day) boosters for Energy

• Exchange 90 (3 a day, you can exchange 8 daily) booster sets

• Complete 975,500 (32,500 daily) training
  

That's right, this part is definitely more difficult to do, but I believe that each of you can do it!

Remember that the total reward for completing both tasks apart from Golden Balls and Energy are Hero Stars: 6 clubs and 5 individuals for each player.

Author: Mr Messive

I AM ANDRZEJEK!

Dear Readers!

It's Wednesday, probably afternoon, so it's the perfect time for another edition of Sports Journal. The season is in full swing, the games are picking up speed, and the situation in the league tables is not entirely clear when it comes to the Super League, the Champions Tournament, the European Tournament, the National Cup or the lower leagues. Strikers are scoring, midfielders are assisting, defenders are intervening and goalkeepers are defending.

That's all for the obvious. I wondered for a long time whether such an article makes sense at all, whether it's not too late and whether this is a good time to publish this type of article. During all this time, I have calmly written well over 50 articles for Sports Journal and I think that in the near future this number may even reach a hundred. There were articles about leagues, national cups and tournaments. I wrote interviews for you, comparisons of players or teams, and I also described the best, worst or well-progressing IN MY OPINION players. I often wrote controversial articles for you because those who know me know very well that I don't bite my tongue and always write what I think. I'll just write it like this... I'm Andrzejek.

How did I start playing FootballTeam and how did I find out about this game?

I've never been good at dates, but I think it was 2010-2011 when I first created an account. At that time, "The best football browser game" (borrowed from Kieras, greetings!) looked completely different and in my opinion it was played completely differently than now - national teams, remember! This adventure didn't last very long because the friend who tried to infect me with the love of FootballTeam was one of the best at that time (he bought an account :D) he didn't want to guide me properly and I gave up on playing.

New FootballTeam and Andrew Norbertson:

Almost 10 years passed and one day while surfing the internet I saw an advert for FootballTeam so without much thought I created an account and logged into the game. That's how Andrew Norbertson was created. Why such a name? The game's theme is football, Liverpool is my favourite club in the English league and since I wanted to play as a defender the choice was obvious - Andrew Robertson.

First club and achievements:

Although it won't be my first club because I don't remember its name exactly, due to a short episode in my career. The first club in the new FootballTeam was the Crowns team - it was in this team that I armed myself as much as I could and learned everything from scratch, and the atmosphere in this team was amazing. Our biggest success at that time was promotion to the first league, but you have no idea how much satisfaction it gave. Back then there was no Super League, EU/US server, Speed ​​or Classic. The number of online players was really impressive. It was simply much better to play. At some point, I went from being an ordinary club member to a board member with successes in the 1/2 league. There came a time when the board burned out and we decided to end the project with the guys. I played in Joker Team for a while, then in TheBestThalibTeam for 1 season (TheBestThalibTeam curse, who knows, knows) and gave up on FootballTeam.

EU server:

At the urging of someone I met through FootballTeam (greetings from Durić!), I returned to playing on the EU server. My friend played for a week, and I stayed for longer. Befriending the leader of TheBestThalibTeam, I managed to find a place in the line-up of one of the top teams and played my matches there. I played in TheBestThalibTeam, and a moment later in Obstawamy, or Łysy Pereira's team. After a short time, we made a decision and merged with We Call It Soccer, and it turned out to be a bull's eye for my individual career. Despite my bonus status with the guys, I won everything I could and from this place I would like to greet the entire We Car It without exception.

Andrzejek:

How did the name Andrzejek come about? While in We Call It Soccer, a teammate, a well-known person to everyone - Blomek, drew me into the life of the FootballTeam discord, and I was encouraged to do so by the benefits he gained thanks to giveaway. The community that was there at that time was the best to this day and at that time I met many valuable people. One of them was a joker, a comedian, and now even a buddy from the WillieVV team. As is his wont, he twisted the name Andrew Norbertson into his dictionary, hence the name Andrzejek.

Retirees:

A fast server, and therefore a fast career. It was there that I created an account with the name Andrzejek, where I played with old FootballTeam veterans from the Dream State team. Before joining the DS team, I played for a short while at the beginning with my old friends from We Call It Soccer, but out of respect for the guys, I didn't want to block a place in the 20-person squad and decided to leave, because I didn't plan to play in FootballTeam. On the fast server I managed to achieve practically nothing in terms of in-game rewards, but I gained a lot of new friends and that's what matters most to me.

Classic server:

On the speed server I really played half-heartedly. There was information that there would be a new server so I created an account just to see who was playing there. The server started, but I didn't. A day or two after the start I logged into my account and looked, and there were credits. I started to wonder where I got so many credits, but I forgot that Mateo took my reflink from me and unfortunately I play because of it to this day 😀 As for the classic server, users from this server certainly know who Andrzejek is.

That's all for this article. This is my "short" history related to FootballTeam. I would be very happy if you leave a trace.

Regards, Andrzejek

Author: Andrzejek

REFEREE CONTROVERSIES THROUGH THE EYES OF THE MANAGER #9

Hello, Kiero DS here. Due to the numerous controversial situations involving football referees, I have decided to create a new series, where I will analyze these situations step by step. This series will appear relatively regularly, along with the emerging controversies.

Red card for Otieno – a fair decision, but a broken procedure. Sylwestrzak had no right to reverse the game:

Watching the Pogoń Szczecin – Raków Częstochowa match, I could not ignore the situation from the 15th minute. Erick Otieno's foul on Rafał Kurzawa was undoubtedly brutal and deserved a red card. However, the disciplinary decision is not the biggest problem here. Much more serious is how the main referee Damian Sylwestrzak reached this decision – or rather how he broke the fundamental principles of the "Laws of the Game of Football", in particular those concerning the VAR system. And this is something that requires deep analysis.

The pitch situation – details matter

Otieno fouled Kurzawa in Raków's half, right by the halfway line. The foul was brutal – that's beyond dispute. Sylwestrzak stopped the game when the clock showed "14:09" and indicated the place of the free kick. However, his behavior was uncertain from the very beginning – the slow approach to the place of the incident, the lack of a clear signal about the seriousness of the offense, all of this caused anxiety on the pitch.

The moment Kurzawa stood up, the referee blew the whistle again – and gave a clear signal that the game could be resumed. The clock showed "15:02", and Leo Borges took the free kick almost from the place of the offense – in accordance with general refereeing practice, which allows for a certain margin of error regarding the exact location.

And then the violation of the rules began…

After the game was resumed, Sylwestrzak – without any clear basis – suddenly interrupted it again. He points to the place of the restart, suggesting that it was taken incorrectly. Looking at it as a spectator, and above all as someone who knows the rules, I have no doubts – it was an improvisation. The foul was serious, brutal, but the referee received information from VAR too late and tried to find a way to return to the moment that had already ended – the moment before the resumption of play.

After a few seconds, in a "frame" gesture, Sylwestrzak indicates that he is going to watch the replay. He returns and shows Otieno a red card. A foul? Sure, he deserved it. But the procedural path was inconsistent with the rules.

What do the rules of the game say?

Here I have to refer to the specifics contained in the "Rules of the Game in Football 2024/25". We are talking about three very clear, consistent provisions – in the basic part and the VAR Protocol – which clearly state:

1/ Page 65-66, article 5 – "Video review after the restart of play":

"If play has been stopped and restarted, the referee may decide to review and take appropriate disciplinary action only in the event of a mistaken identity or potential sending-off related to violent, aggressive behaviour, spitting, biting or an extremely offensive action."

2/ Page 144, point 10 of the "VAR Protocol":

"If play has been stopped and restarted, the referee may not decide to review, except in the case of a mistaken identity or violent, aggressive behaviour, spitting, biting or an extremely offensive action."

3/ Page 150, further fragment of the "VAR Protocol":

"After the restart of play, video review is only permissible in the event of a misidentification or a situation qualifying for exclusion due to violent, aggressive behavior..."

https://pzpn.pl/public/system/files/site_content/941/6151-PrzepisyGry_2024_25.pdf

Wait a minute - doesn't that mean that Sylwestrzak acted in accordance with the regulations?

Well, NO. The key wording here is: after the restart of play, video review is ONLY possible if the game was interrupted and restarted.

But according to the record, VAR cannot initiate an intervention after the restart of play if there was no previous misidentification or we are not talking about "violent, aggressive behavior" UNRELATED to the fight for the ball.

In Otieno's case, we are talking about a brutal foul, but in a fight for the ball - so it is not classified as "aggressive behavior" in the understanding of VAR after the restart. It was simply a flagrant foul, for which, according to the regulations, a player can be punished with a card - but not after the restart, if the referee did not interrupt it earlier and did not stop the restart until the replay was viewed.

"Reversing the game" - a game of pretense:

The referee's action - reversing the game under the pretext of a bad restart - was a classic game of pretense. The referee allowed the restart himself, and then tried to bypass the system to be able to reach for VAR.

But the regulations are clear: if the game was restarted correctly, it cannot be reversed just to watch a replay of a situation that was missed! If we allow such behavior, we will destroy the foundation of the logic and transparency of the VAR system.

Consequences and conclusions:

I have no doubts that Sylwestrzak had good intentions. He wanted to punish a foul that fully deserved a red card. But the path he took was against the rules. And this creates a bigger problem - it creates a precedent. If today we allow the referee to reverse the game like this, tomorrow another referee will do it in a different situation, and then another - and we will stop trusting VAR and the entire refereeing system.

The video review system is effective only when it operates within clearly defined rules. In this case, these limits were crossed.

Summary:

Red card for Otieno? Deserved.

Sylwestrzak's behavior? Inconsistent with the rules.

Trust in the system? Threatened.

Football is a game of mistakes, but the referee has an obligation to stick to the rules, even if they sometimes do not allow for "justice". Because only then do we have the right to expect consistency and honesty from him.

Thank you for reading my article! If you like this type of content or have ideas for more topics I should write about, leave your suggestions in the comments. Best regards!

Author: Kiero DS