Your weekly source of information and entertainment, Sports Journal #16 brought to you by our journalists, is here! 📖⚽

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1/ BORATS' THOUGHTS ON EVENTS!

2/ FOOTBALLTEAM'S TOP GOALKEEPERS

3/ 2026 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS

4/ VIDEO SUPPORT SYSTEM – FOOTBALL VIDEO SUPPORT (VS)

5/ BIG CHANGES IN SPEED SERVER

6/ NEW REWARDS FOR 30 DAYS OF THE CALENDAR?

7/ FOOTBALL JOKES FROM BORAT!

BORATS' THOUGHTS ON EVENTS!

Good day, dear readers of the sports journal!
Today, I would like to discuss the current format of events in the game. It's not that I dislike them, but perhaps it's worth considering how they could be improved.

Let's take a little nostalgic trip back to the days when things were greener. A couple of years ago, events had their own distinctive feature — event packs. Nearly every event had its own unique packs, which were a key part of the excitement. I still remember a phrase from KennethDalglish — the top player of the server at that time — saying that if the game becomes all about the roulette, he would quit FootballTeam. He kept his promise, but let's analyze whether this roulette was really as bad as some claim. For those who aren't familiar, let me explain: the "roulette" refers to opening event packs, which contained different types of rewards at the time (including diamond, platinum, and even historical items). You’d buy these packs and play the roulette, hoping for something valuable to drop.

I think those who played back then will remember how, once the event started, the day would be filled with notifications about people opening packs and winning valuable prizes. This was definitely an event everyone looked forward to (though many were disappointed due to the lack of big wins), and it created significant interest in the game.

Aside from the packs, there were also bonuses for work, cafeteria, upgrades, and other standard bonuses. But again, the main feature was the packs.

Can we say the same about the current events? In my opinion, no. Event packs still change, but they no longer generate the same hype they used to. Their contents don’t change much and mostly provide resources for training. The names haven’t changed, and there’s little difference. Moreover, most players prefer to buy special or starter packs instead, where the benefits are clearer and more predictable.

The roulette has disappeared. Sure, there are still event packs, so there’s technically a roulette, but it’s lost its charm. Some might disagree, but I believe that in the first few days of an event, the excitement around buying and opening packs is no longer the same. People buy them out of necessity for resource replenishment, not out of excitement.

Of course, I understand that the game format has changed. What KennethDalglish complained about has been reworked multiple times, new features have been added, and the game continues to evolve, which is hard to argue with. But what do the events bring us now? We still have bonuses for work, cafeteria, upgrades, and training, but they no longer feel like the core feature of a big event. These benefits can also be found in weekend events. Of course, those with trillions of energy might disagree with me, but the average player will easily burn through their tens of thousands of energy in weekend events and even save on energy packs, as they no longer need to burn them daily for a decent level-up.

The bonuses for leveling up in recent events haven’t exactly been "WOW" moments. For me, the situation in the game feels no different during the event period compared to everyday gameplay, and it makes me think: "When is the next event going to happen?" Now, it's just “Event? Okay, an event, so what?”

As always, this is just my subjective opinion, and I’m sure some will disagree, while others might agree. But today, I wanted to talk with you about the lack of excitement surrounding events.

Author: Борат 

FOOTBALLTEAM'S TOP GOALKEEPERS (CLASSIC)

Hello everyone, welcome to a new edition of the FT newspaper. Today it's THE ARCHERS' turn. As usual in football, we must start building the teams from the beginning, from the goal. Making a list of FT's TOP goalkeepers is quite difficult, we can argue forever about who is the best in the game. We made the best "3 gloves" of the moment, since they are key for any team, but we left some good players out of the top 5 since they don't all fit. 

1. Slay3r, the Black Stars goalkeeper

Simply brilliant, with his characteristic white shirt with blue trim, he is one of the symbols of Black Stars. A goalkeeper who has always been talked about for his great saves, reaching 22nd spot in the ranking. After making his debut in 1st division of England on 08/10/2024, where he won first medal as best goalkeeper and where he was champion in his first season. A goalkeeper with feline reflexes and a collection of great saves. He is considered the best FootballTeam Goalkeeper for his 2169 OVR.

2. RiggsCreep, the beast of Inet Squad.

RiggsCreep made his debut on 07/10/2024 in Inet Squad and his popularity arose when he became famous for saving penalties in the 1st division of England. Winner of a medal for his 2nd place as best goalkeeper but he became the II best goalkeeper in 2 seasons. His 1671 OVR is something to talk about, being in 34th place in the FT ranking.

3. Boixoholik, the legend of Black Stars.

Boixoholik in his vast career of big FT teams stands out his time at NIC TU PO NAS, Rayo eSports, Kaktusiarze Majsziego and currently in Black Stars.

He was born on 7/10/2024, in his 17 PJ AND 12 GOALS AGAINST, he has won first cup (1 from Spain). Thanks to his performance he has achieved significant results, the most relevant being the First division in Spain in season 1, in which he was crowned champion. Boixoholik is for many one of the best FT goalkeepers, occupying the 42nd place in the ranking, with his 1532 OVR.

But there are also other goalkeepers who contribute a lot in the defensive part, many of them without a club and/or inactive today. This is the TOP 5 of goalkeepers of the race... Choose yours.

Author:BÚFALO FUNES 

2026 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS

The next World Cup is still a long way off. The 23rd edition will be held for the first time in three host countries: the United States, Mexico and Canada. It will be played between June 11th and July 19th, 2026, in 16 cities. It will also be the first one to have a new format, with 48 participating countries divided into 12 groups of 4 teams. Let's talk a little about the continental qualifiers.

AFRICA

A total of nine direct spots were guaranteed and one additional spot that will be decided in an intercontinental play-off.

First phase: The 54 African teams were divided into nine groups of six teams each.

Dispute: The teams play against each other in a home and away match, and the leaders of each group qualify directly for the World Cup.

Intercontinental play-off: The second-placed team in each group will play an intercontinental play-off to define the last African spot in the World Cup.

SOUTH AMERICA

There will be six guaranteed direct spots and one spot for the intercontinental play-off.

Participants: The ten South American teams: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela.

Rounds: The teams will face each other in a home and away match, totaling 18 rounds.

Classification: The top six teams will be guaranteed a direct spot for the World Cup. The seventh-placed team will play in the intercontinental play-off.

CONCACAF

There will be three automatic spots for the host countries (United States, Mexico and Canada) and five additional spots available through the qualifiers.

First Round: Includes the four lowest-ranked teams in the region, which will face each other in two games to determine who will advance.

Second Round: Includes teams classified in the intermediate ranking, competing for spots in the final phase.

Final Round: Known as the group stage, it will include 32 teams competing for five direct places to the World Cup, in addition to one place to play in the intercontinental play-off.

ASIA

There will be eight direct places and one play-off place in the 2026 World Cup.

General Format:

First Stage: The teams with the lowest FIFA ranking face each other in home-and-away knockout matches. The winners advance to the next stage.

Second Stage: The teams that qualified from the first stage join other teams with higher rankings, being divided into groups. The best teams from each group advance to the third stage.

Third Stage: The teams that qualified from the second stage are divided into new groups, where they play games in a round-robin format. The winners of each group guarantee direct qualification for the World Cup.

Fourth Stage: The third and fourth-placed teams from each group in the third stage compete in a play-off to determine the last teams to qualify for the World Cup.

Intercontinental Play-off: The winner of the fourth round play-off will play an intercontinental play-off against a team from another confederation.

EUROPE

There will be 16 direct places for the World Cup.

First Round:

Groups: The first round consists of 12 groups, which can have four or five teams each.

Qualification: The winners of each group automatically qualify for the World Cup.

Second Round: Play-offs

Participants: The 12 second-placed teams from the first round groups qualify for the play-offs, along with four teams that qualify through the UEFA Nations League.

Format: The second round is played in a knock-out format, with home and away matches.

Placements: Europe's four remaining places for the World Cup will be defined through these play-offs.

OCEANIA

For the first time, it has secured two places in the World Cup.

The winner of the OFC qualifiers automatically secures a place in the World Cup.

The runner-up in the OFC qualifiers will have the opportunity to play an intercontinental play-off against a team from another confederation, seeking the last available spot.

And you, player, are you following the qualifiers? What is your country?

Until next time!

Author: Fábio Muri

VIDEO SUPPORT SYSTEM – FOOTBALL VIDEO SUPPORT (VS)

The Video Support System (VS) is a modern solution designed by FIFA that supports referee decisions in football matches, especially where, for financial or technical reasons, it is not possible to implement a more advanced VAR (Video Assistant Referee) system. The use of VS is a response to the growing needs of smaller leagues and tournament organizers, for whom VAR remains out of reach. FIFA's goal is to ensure greater fairness and transparency in games, even in smaller football structures.

Now I will try to briefly explain how it should work:

Football Video Support, similarly to VAR, is to be used in key moments of the game that have a decisive impact on the result of the match. These are situations such as:

Goals – the system allows for a review of decisions on whether to recognize or cancel a goal.

Penalty kicks – referees can analyze situations related to the awarding of a penalty kick.

Red cards – VS allows for a review of incidents that may result in a direct red card.

Player misidentification – in the case of mistakes, when the referee mistakenly penalizes the wrong player.

However, unlike VAR, VS is not required to automatically review every situation that could affect the outcome of the match. Instead, the team manager has the right to request a video review in a specific situation. It is worth emphasizing that a decision can only be changed if the video footage provides clear evidence of a mistake by the referee.

What is the decision-making process and how does this affect the final decision of the referee?

Referees working with VS have specific guidelines for video reviews. When a situation requires review, the head referee communicates with the video support team and reviews the situation on a special monitor or via received materials. Importantly, VS does not rely on a full team of video referees, as is the case with VAR, but is a more flexible system.

The final decision is fully at the head referee’s discretion. In the event that the video footage clearly indicates an error, the referee has the right to change the original decision. In the absence of clear evidence, the original decision remains unchanged.

How important is technology in all this?

Football Video Support does not require advanced infrastructure such as multi-dimensional video analysis, such as VAR. VS can be implemented even with minimal technological resources, making it ideal for smaller leagues and organizers who do not have access to full VAR solutions.

Despite its simplified nature, VS contributes to increased transparency and fairness in refereeing decisions, which is particularly important in grassroots football. This allows for a more uniform interpretation of the rules at all levels of the game, even when full VAR implementation is not possible.

Finally, here is my opinion on Video Support technology:

Advantages:

Accessibility – VS can be implemented in leagues and tournaments with limited budgets.

Flexibility – simplified technological infrastructure allows it to be used in many places.

Focus on key moments – VS is only used in situations that are crucial to the course of the game.

Cons:

Limited accuracy – lack of full video analysis offered by VAR can affect the accuracy of the assessment of some situations.

Simplified tools – fewer cameras and lack of automatic monitoring can result in a limited number of available angles.

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

Author: Kiero DS

BIG CHANGES IN SPEED SERVER

The Speed ​​server, despite pessimistic assumptions that it would fall after the launch of Classic, is working perfectly. Speaking truthfully, most of these rumors were made by people who had failed on the server S1, so they started over on the next server. While there is basically no competition on the new server, because practically no one from the top started, a lot is happening on Speed.

The current balance of power is as follows; Hunting Wolf has been reigning supreme since they took over TOP1 from 7more7. The CT final between these two teams may be interesting, because nothing has been decided yet.

7more7 itself is being dragged hard by TheNitroZyniak and Grim. Problems arise when one of them has to rest on the bench. The next club is SAIYANS FC, which is also playing hard, causing problems for TOP clubs.

The next two places are The Greatest and Emeryci, even though both clubs occupy places 4 and 5, they are also able to take points from higher rated rivals. The fight is open and you have to watch every match.

However, the upcoming new season may turn out to be a huge shake-up in the above-mentioned clubs. I am writing the article on Thursday, and the Journal will come out on Wednesday, so it is not certain whether everything will go according to plan. 

The project is at a very advanced level, which is why I decided to write about it today.

I think many people may be interested in it mainly because it is created by Matt DS - a player who has just returned after a year and a half break, and may be less known to most players, but he is the one behind the entire history of Dream State clubs on the Legacy server.

Matt is the only player I know who plays FootballTeam not as a player but as a scout. He enjoys building clubs, finding players for them and helping them develop. Without him, DS would never have been as successful. So I asked him to tell me about his new project on the Speed ​​server.

For my part, I'll add that I'm involved in it myself. Emeryci, where I play in, suffered a bit when the new server came out and some players moved to play there, wrongly assuming that "classic" would be a more balanced server, with equal competition.

We as Emeryci (a club that was created to have fun with people who had known each other for years) only lost players who were added to the vacant spots. Only one player dropped out of our primary team. However, this still forced us to look for a way out so that the club could continue to function.

Matt DS: Hello everyone. As you mentioned, I recently returned to the game. "A man can leave from FootballTeam, but FootballTeam will never leave a man." I knew I would come back at some point. As you well know, I have been involved with Dream State clubs for almost my entire career.

Since I found out that many of my friends I created DS with still play on the Speed ​​server, my desire to play has been even greater. As you mentioned, I mainly do scouting. An unfulfilled childhood dream that I transferred to the game, haha.

I decided to come back with a bang, so me and a few old friends would like to stir things up a bit on the server. There were many scenarios, the plan changed every now and then depending on transfers.

In the end, the new project is divided into 3 groups. The first group includes players from Emeryci. The second group includes our new friends from Saiyans FC. And the third group includes other players, without whom this project would not exist, such as GriM, BeduYiN, Atmosferovic, SeVi,  Mirdal and others.

Together we plan to create a huge project, consisting of two active teams. The first project aims to fight with HW and 7more7 for the Server's TOP1. The second project is to create a team on the border of top 4-5 SL, which would fight for victory in the European Tournament. I hope that we will manage to do it all. On paper it looks nice, but we will see how it will turn out in reality.

Author: Wącham Klej

NEW REWARDS FOR 30 DAYS OF THE CALENDAR?

Dear Readers!

Every time a new season starts, I wonder which rewards to choose. Energy, Euro or maybe Card Packs? Let's analyze all the rewards together one by one!

I'm Andrzejek, and I invite you to my next article in Sports Journal.

First, let's start with something without which many possibilities such as training have no right to exist, and so we're talking about Energy. Is several dozen thousand Energy enough value for which it's worth completing daily tasks in the calendar for 30 days?

From my point of view, this value could easily be increased 4 times, and so as not to leave my opinion without any argument, the package available for 500 Credits contains 50,000 Energy.

As for Golden Balls - I think that there are never enough of them and the more we have, the better. Never enough... And here the question arises, is their value in the calendar appropriate for a 30-day calendar and is it profitable? Improvements, skill changes or manufacture absorb huge amounts of Golden Balls and in the case of choosing this prize, I believe that it would only make sense if this value amounted to, say, 250,000 Golden Balls.

The time has come to make a choice, which in my opinion should not be on the list of prizes from the calendar in such a quantity. Why? It is enough for each of you who regularly trains at least 2x2h a day to count the euros that they have to spend on training, they would know why I think so. I believe that for many people the euro could be one of the top choices when it comes to prizes, but this value would have to be much higher.

The so-called "rockets" drinks are certainly a nice boost for our players, but for everyone? Are 30 rockets such a game changer that it is worth doing the calendar for the entire 30 days? I think it would be a cool solution to add them to individual days as an additional reward, but the final one? I'm not convinced about that.

XP drink is a reward that has been my most frequent choice since it appeared. For a player who plays F2P and manages to collect quite a lot of resources during the season, it is certainly a reward worthy of a place on the podium. However, dear administration - think about restoring the number of drinks to the old amount!

As for drinks that allow us to craft historical items MID and TOP, I think that this is an unnecessary option, because such drinks can be made in the Manufactory, and people who decide to create historical items can easily obtain such drinks in a way other than choosing in the calendar.

Together with the changes in augmentations, I think that crystals should be replaced with completely different rewards - or their number should be significantly increased. For a player in the current form of augmentation, the possibility of using a gold, platinum or even a historical crystal is practically impossible. Apart from the euro and historical drinks, I think this is the worst prize in the calendar.

After the crystals, it's time to move on to the prizes that everyone definitely likes, namely the Success Ball and the Triumph Ball. While I can still agree with the Triumph Ball in the amount of one, I can't fully agree with the balls that don't have a 100% chance of improvement. When the 60% balls could be collected in the amount of 5 pieces, it was certainly the number one choice. Unfortunately, nothing good lasts forever and this amount has been reduced. Will their amount increase after this article? :)

As for the Card Packs, I think that a very large percentage of players choose them. A thrill, or maybe new card sounds? Unfortunately, such pleasure lasts only 25 times, 5 cards per pack... Dear administration - 50 Card Packs in the next season and I choose this prize!

At the very end, there are 3 Gold Cards left, but so that it is not said that this article is full of "complaining", I will say that it is OK.

This article was supposed to be written some time ago, when I was still playing on the EU server, but now, after the changes in the Sport Journal publication, I think it's the perfect time to bring up this topic.

Nothing motivates you to struggle and complete tasks in FootballTeam like a very good reward on the 30th day of the calendar.

I was also prompted to write this article by the players' opinion, which is very important to me as an editor and I want to be your voice in my articles, and we all know that the rewards from the calendar have long needed reform.

With footballing respect, Andrzejek

Author: Andrzejek

FOOTBALL JOKES FROM BORAT!

Good day, dear readers of the sports journal!

Today, I’m back with another section of fun, interesting, and surprising stories from the world of football.

Referee and the Red Card

Football is full of stories related to red cards, but I came across a few that not only had I not heard of, but I couldn’t even imagine! In March 1998, in the London suburb of Charlton, during a match between the amateur teams "Southampton Arms" and "Hurstborn British Legion," referee Melvin Sylvester’s performance went south from the very beginning. Both teams were highly motivated to win, which led to constant disputes over the referee's decisions, practically every incident, from both sides. Tension was rising, and as often happens, someone couldn’t control their nerves, and after one player pushed another, a punch to the face followed, leading to a red card. What's unusual about this, you might ask? The player who was pushed was none other than referee Melvin Sylvester, who, in turn, punched the player back in the chest. Then, Sylvester showed himself a red card, blew the whistle, handed the match over to the assistant referee, and left the field.

I came across similar stories multiple times, but in these cases, the main referee removed his own assistant. In 1992, Peruvian referee Fernando Chappell, during a match between "León de Huánuco" and "Sporting Cristal," sent off assistant referee Juan Freddy Cruz Castañeda (a local of the host city), who was interpreting the rules in favor of the home team. If "Sporting" players were clearly pushed, Castañeda considered it part of the game. If an opponent kicked above the waist, Castañeda insisted that football was a "contact sport." The main referee couldn’t tolerate this and showed his assistant a red card, and in the second half, the officiating team returned with new members, and the home team lost 2:4.

Another story occurred in 1999 during a match between local teams "Calenzano" and "Rinascita," where assistant referee Lorenzo Rendi was sent off by the main referee for answering his mobile phone during the game!

The Scoring Defender

Brazilian defender João Carlos Pinheiro from Fluminense managed to score 10 goals in one season – all of them in his own net! Sure, he was good in defense, or else his continued participation in matches would be hard to explain. However, the team’s coach decided to find another use for his skills, moving him to the forward position, where he managed to score just once, and guess what? Again, it was an own goal. His teammates found the humor in the situation and gifted him a compass on his birthday, so that he would always know where his own goal was and where the opponent's goal was.

A Player Scored Without Entering the Field!

This interesting and surprising story happened in 1937 during a match between teams from the lower divisions of English football. At that time, substitutions were not allowed, so when the leader of one team was late to the match, instead of replacing him, they decided to play with one less player and simply wait for him to arrive. The late player came just as the match began, changed his clothes, and waited at the sideline for the ball to go out of bounds so he could help his team. A few seconds later, the ball crossed the goal line, and his team got a corner kick, which, after the referee's permission, our hero took and scored directly from the corner! So, the player, who had not yet stepped onto the field, became the author of a goal!

Author: Borat