Nobody else cares about the 'world's biggest cup final', discovers globetrotting Chris Fyfe
If you tell a lie often enough it becomes the truth. In the days when World of Sport and Grandstand both covered the FA Cup final, Frank Bough and Dickie Davies told us that two billion people were watching the game live. We believed them.
Ian Plenderleith discovers the nuanced world of sub-genre webzines
Good writing, keen comment and a reasonable smattering of wit constitute the US-based website Roundnotoval, which claims to be the “greatest unread football fanzine on the planet”. Its editors produce a new issue of news and opinions on the game worldwide every week, with a special focus on the US. This regular renewal of content gives the site the kind of fresh feel that is often lacking in the maelstrom of neglected websites that have fallen foul of misplaced enthusiasm in the great Cyber-Beyond.
We asked some searching questions abou Euro 2000. Roger Titford sifted through the replies and can confirm, among other things, that referees aren't like the rest of us
If the survey in WSC 162 is anything to go by, our typical reader has undergone some changes since 1998. He (or, less frequently, she) is slimmer, less inebriated, less workshy, more clued up about the internet, more ashamed about being English and less keen on Barry Davies than ever. Or perhaps you’re just getting older and crabbier.
Mike Ticher celebrates the annual bible of facts and figures
There is a mistake on page 158 of the 1979-80 Rothmans Football Yearbook. It maintains that on March 27, 1979, Crystal Palace played a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace.
Adam Crozier arrived at Lancaster Gate in January promising to usher in reform, if not revolution. The FA’s alarmingly young chief executive spoke to Mike Ticher about the FA Cup, the 2006 World Cup bid, the England team and other disasters he inherited
Shortly after you were appointed you were quoted as saying the FA was “a bit of a shambles”. How did you find it when you arrived?
I think like everyone else I had a view from the outside on what the problems might be, but it was more of a shambles than I expected. The first 20 people I asked in the FA “What do you think you’re here to do?” I got 19 different answers. And I think that’s one reason why the FA was always so reactive, because people didn’t really understand what they were here for. The basic philosophy was, whatever you do, don’t cock up. And when you start from that point of view, the one thing that leads you to do is not make any decisions. From an organisational point of view people didn’t know who reported to who. People were doing jobs they weren’t qualified to do. So we reorganised Lancaster Gate from top to bottom and agreed a new three-year plan. We’ve got all the building blocks in place now and we’re ready to move on to the next stage.