I'm not dead...

Yeahhh, so I know I've been MIA for a while... And I'm sorry! I got caught up with life and have made some important moves over the past year. New friends, new talents and new lessons. But I'm back! This time for sure! (I'll try my best to keep my promise this time.) At first I covered my high school's team and what not. That was cool but now that I'm too far in college I think it's time to focus on bigger and better things! From now on I'll throw in a little spice with life experiences, motivations and of course still more soccer! Expect a lot more photo journalism! After some time of pondering (I have this habit of random thinking and daydreaming every day.) I came up with the idea to start doing some photo journalism. As they say "A picture is worth a thousand words", so I thought why not start taking more pictures and writing about it. So I'm going to give this idea a try! But yeah, lets see how this goes! Until tomorrow peoples!! Follow me on Twitter and Instagram: @chelomundoo

The Struggle is Real...

Even if your having a horrible day. You cant possibly be having a worse day then these guys who have to take their corner kick in a lake! Check it out! Would you even bother taking the corner?

The Future of Soccer.

Many have seen great players come out of Barcelona such as Messi, Pique, Fabregas, Iniesta, Xavi etc. This video shows what is yet to come from the football factory of Barcelona. Barcelona has been noted for its prestige soccer academy, also known as La Masia. Located in Barcelona, Spain it houses nearly 300 young players, 24 coaches, and other employees. The original building which housed the players was a national landmark that was built in 1702 and was later renovated. However a brand new facility was recently built for the youngsters and is known as Masia-Centre de Formació Oriol Tort located near the official first team training facility. The facility serves as both a soccer academy and provides an excellent education. It is a boarding school and contains a variety of players from all over the world. In 2009 Lionel Messi became the first player to come out of La Masia to win a Ballon D'Or. Spain who won the 2010 world cup also featured 7 players who came out from La Masia, which included Puyol, Pique, Iniesta, and Xavi. Barcelona is just one of the many academies around the globe. These academies are where dreams start to become reality for young players. Below is a video of just a taste of what this academy produces.

Ballon D'Or

The famous Ballon D’Or gala took place today in Zurich, Switzerland. The long awaited gala brought out the famous soccer stars and there best attire. The ceremony began at 1pm EST, with the introduction of the three nominees to receive the prestigious award. Lionel Messi (FC Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), and Andres Iniesta (FC Barcelona). Along with this award the other awards of the night included Player of the Year (Men/Women), Coach of the Year (Men/Woman), FIFA World XI, Puskás Award (Goal of the Year), Presidential Award, and Fair Play Award.

Player of the Year (Men’s)

Lionel Messi took home his 4^th Balon D’Or making him the only player in the world to win 4 Ballon D’Or’s. Messi has become a global sensation after proving himself at Barcelona. The 25 year old received the award from Fabio Cannavaro ex Real Madrid and Juventus player. Messi stated that it was a pleasure to be here and that he wanted to thank all of his teammates from Barcelona, Argentina, and all his family especially his wife and son. In 2012 Messi was most noted for breaking the record for most goals scored in a calendar year with 91 goals surpassing famous legends such as Pele (75 Goals) and Gerard Mueller (85) Goals. The young Argentine has been frequently noted as the best player in the world and best athlete in the world. At such a young age many say there is still more to come from Messi. Many say that in order to become the best in the world he has to win a World Cup. Messi will look to prove himself and take Argentina to Brazil 2014 where the next World Cup will be held.

Player of the Year (Women’s)

 Abby Wambach was awarded the Women’s Player of the Year Award. After coming up short last year in the 2011 gala, teammate Hope Solo presented Wambach with her first ever Player of the Year Award. Along with Wambach Alex Morgan (U.S.A) and Marta (Brazil) were also nominated for the award. Wambach is known to be one of the senior players for the U.S Womens National team (USWNT). She has served as motivational role model and a leader to her teammates. Wambach and the U.S Women’s National (USWNT) team are currently ranked the number 1 team in the world. In 2011 the USWNT gave a strong run in the Women’s World Cup however they fell short in the final to Japan in penalties. The USWNT had a second chance to prove themselves in the 2012 Olympics when they had a rematch against Japan in the final. This time it was the US who took home the gold! Wambach scored 5 goals in the Olympics and played crucial role for the team. Wambach has gained much respect since then and is known to be one of the best female soccer players in the U.S. The New York Native thanked her teammates, coaches, family, and the fans for their support and was very thankful for the award.

FIFA Puskás Award (Goal of the Year)

The Puskás Award is one of the awards most look forward to. This award determines the goal of the year. The three nominees for this award included Radamel Falcao (Colombia), Neymar (Brazil), and Miroslav Stoch (Czechoslovakia). Miroslave was the lucky one who took home the award. The Fenerbahçe player scored a beautiful goal off a volley from outside the box. Many fans had hoped that the Colombian Falcao, would win after scoring an astonishing scissor kick goal. Last year Neymar took home the Puskás Award beating out Wayne Rooney’s memorable bicycle kick.

Coach of the Year (Men’s)

Spain’s head coach, Vicente Del Bosque was awarded the Coach of the Year award. Del Bosque has won the World Cup and the Euro Cup with Spain. In the past Del Bosque has also managed Real Madrid. The 62-year-old Spanish coach has won 56 games with the National team with 5 Draws and 6 Losses since July 1^st, 2008. Also nominated for the award were Pep Guardiola (Ex – Barcelona coach) and Jose Mourinho (Real Madrid coach).

Coach of the Year (Women’s)

Pia Sundhage is most notably known for exceling with the U.S Women’s National Team. The Swedish woman has taken the U.S squad to the world cup finals and won a gold medal at the 2012 Olympics. She was awarded the Woman’s Coach of the Year Award. Bruno Bini coach of the Women’s French National team and Norio Sasaki coach of the Japanese Women’s National team were also nominated for the award. However Sundhage was ecstatic to have won such prestigious award. She thanked her team and all the fans for the support and followed by singing a song to her players Alex Morgan and Abby Wambach who were also in attendance for Women’s Player of the Year award. Pia Sundhage has recently stepped down as the USWNT coach and is now the official coach of the Swedish team.

FIFA Best XI

The following players were selected as the best 11 in the world.

Goalkeeper – Iker Casillas (Real Madrid)

Defense – Dani Alvez (Barcelona), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid).

Midfielders – Andrès Iniesta (Barcelona), Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona),

Forwards – Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Radamel Falcao (Atletico Madrid), Lionel Messi (Barcelona)

Other Awards

Presidential Award

Franz Beckenbauer was awarded the Presidential award for his accomplishments in the past by FIFA president Sepp Blatter.

Fair Play Award

Uzbekistan was awarded the Fair Play award in their efforts to better the sport. Also nominated were the Guatemalan Football Association and Eskisehirspor. 

Player Finds $5 on the Field and Gives It Away.

During the New Castle vs Everton game James Perch stumbled upon a $5 bill or as they say in England a "fiver". Perch picked up the bill and gave it back to a security guard. The fans applauded him and the game carried on. This was a random incident which is not seen often but what would you do keep it or give it away? The video pretty much speaks for itself check it out! 

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

During today's match between AC Milan and Pro Patria (4th Dvision) the game came to an end after 26 mins and was suspended. The reason behind this was a small group of fans chanting racial comments at player Kevin Prince Boateng. The Ghanaian player furiously picked up the ball and kicked it at the small group of hooligans. Following this Boateng proceeded to take of his shirt and walk away in the opposite direction to the locker rooms in disgust. Supported by his teammates, fans and other players Boateng managed to keep his cool on his way out. The rest of the stadium jeered the small section of unruly fans. AC Milan coach Massimilliano Allegri stated "We are disappointed and saddened by what has happened. Milan Play for the right to respect all players. We need to stop these uncivilized gestures. We are sorry for all the other fans who came here for a beautiful sport. We promise to return, and we are sorry for the club and players of Pro Patria, but we could not make any other decision. I hope it can be an important signal." Racism has become an ongoing dilemma throughout the world and should not be tolerated. Many applaud Boateng for his actions and respect him. Boateng even went as far as taking his frustration to social networks such as twitter! Stating " Shame that these things still happen... #StopRacismforever" What do you think did Boateng do the right thing? Tweet me at @ayochelo and let me know what you think about the situation.

Im Back!!!

Hello People! Yessss I know I have been slacking for a while with school and all but Im back! and this time I will try to be more consistent. First of all Happy New Year to all! 2012 brought lots of wonderful soccer memories from Messi's 91 goals to the U.S Women's National Team and Mexican National Team taking home the gold medal in the Olympics, just to name a few. Lets hope 2013 brings us more memories and more nail biting games! There is a lot to look forward to this year, with qualifiers, Confederations Cup, Copa Libertadores, and Champions League! I'll do my best to cover everything from highlights, to rumors, to even bazar stories. Im back so, hope you guys stop by, read and share!