FIFA World Cup Trivia

Performances by host nations
See also: National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup#Results of host nations
Six of the seven champions have won one of their titles while playing in their own homeland, the exception being Brazil, who finished as runners-up after losing the deciding match on home soil in 1950.

England (1966) and France (1998) won their only titles while playing as host nations. Uruguay (1930), Italy (1934) and Argentina (1978) won their first titles as host nations but have gone on to win again, while Germany (1974) won their second title on home soil.

Other nations have also been successful when hosting the tournament. Sweden (runners-up in 1958), Chile (third place in 1962), Korea Republic (fourth place in 2002), Mexico (quarter-finals in 1970 and 1986), and Japan (second round in 2002) all have their best results when serving as hosts. So far, all host nations have progressed beyond the first round.


Best performances by continental zones
See also: National team appearances in the FIFA World Cup#Results by confederation
To date, the final of the World Cup has only been contested by European and South American teams. The two continents have won nine titles apiece. Only two teams from outside these two continents have ever reached the semi-finals of the competition: USA (North, Central America and Caribbean) in 1930 and Korea Republic (Asia) in 2002. The best result of an African team is reaching the quarter-finals: Cameroon in 1990 and Senegal in 2002. Oceania has only been represented in the World Cup three times, and an Oceanian qualifier has reached the second round once, as Australia qualified as an Oceanian nation in 2005, although they moved to the Asian Football Confederation before the beginning of the tournament.

All World Cups won by European teams have taken place in Europe and the only teams to have won outside Europe come from South America. The only non-European team to win a tournament in Europe is Brazil in 1958. Only twice have consecutive World Cups been won by teams from the same continent – when Italy and Brazil successfully defended their titles in 1938 and 1962 respectively.


Awards
Main article: FIFA World Cup awards
At the end of each World Cup, awards are presented to the players and teams for accomplishments other than their final team positions in the tournament. There are currently six awards:

The Golden Shoe (sometimes called the Golden Boot) for the top goalscorer (first awarded in 1982, but retrospectively applied to all tournaments from 1930); most recently, the Silver Shoe and the Bronze Shoe have been awarded to the second and third top goalscorers respectively;
The Golden Ball for the best player, determined by a vote of media members (first awarded in 1982); the Silver Ball and the Bronze Ball are awarded to the players finishing second and third in the voting respectively;
The Yashin Award for the best goalkeeper, decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group (first awarded in 1994);
The FIFA Fair Play Trophy for the team with the best record of fair play, according to the points system and criteria established by the FIFA Fair Play Committee (first awarded in 1978);
The Most Entertaining Team for the team that has entertained the public the most during the World Cup, determined by a poll of the general public (first awarded in 1994);
The Best Young Player Award for the best player aged 21 or younger at the start of the calendar year, decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group (first awarded in 2006).
An All-Star Team consisting of the best players of the tournament is also announced for each tournament since 1998.


Records and statistics

Main article: FIFA World Cup records
Two players share the record for playing in the most World Cups; Mexico's Antonio Carbajal and Germany's Lothar Matthäus both played in five tournaments. Matthäus has played the most World Cup matches overall, with 25 appearances. Brazil's Pelé is the only player to hold three World Cup winners' medals.

The overall leading goalscorer in World Cups is Brazil's Ronaldo, scorer of 15 goals in three tournaments. West Germany's Gerd Müller is second, with 14 goals in two tournaments. The third placed goalscorer, France's Just Fontaine, holds the record for the most goals scored in a single World Cup. All his 13 goals were scored in the 1958 tournament.

Brazil's Mário Zagallo and West Germany's Franz Beckenbauer are the only people to date to win the World Cup as both player and head coach. Zagallo won in 1958 and 1962 as a player and in 1970 as head coach. Beckenbauer won in 1974 as captain and in 1990 as head coach. Italy's Vittorio Pozzo is the only head coach to ever win two World Cups. All World Cup winning head coaches were natives of the country they coached to victory.


Source: Wikipedia

FIFA World Cup Part 3

Results

[edit] Summaries of previous tournaments
Year Host Nation(s) Final Third Place Match
Winner Score Runner-up 3rd Place Score 4th Place
1930
Details Uruguay
Uruguay 4–2
Argentina
United States [note 1]
Yugoslavia
1934
Details Italy
Italy 2–1 aet
Czechoslovakia
Germany 3–2
Austria
1938
Details France
Italy 4–2
Hungary
Brazil 4–2
Sweden
1950
Details Brazil
Uruguay [note 2]
Brazil
Sweden [note 2]
Spain
1954
Details Switzerland
West Germany 3–2
Hungary
Austria 3–1
Uruguay
1958
Details Sweden
Brazil 5–2
Sweden
France 6–3
West Germany
1962
Details Chile
Brazil 3–1
Czechoslovakia
Chile 1–0
Yugoslavia
1966
Details England
England 4–2 aet
West Germany
Portugal 2–1
USSR
1970
Details Mexico
Brazil 4–1
Italy
West Germany 1–0
Uruguay
1974
Details West Germany
West Germany 2–1
Netherlands
Poland 1–0
Brazil
1978
Details Argentina
Argentina 3–1 aet
Netherlands
Brazil 2–1
Italy
1982
Details Spain
Italy 3–1
West Germany
Poland 3–2
France
1986
Details Mexico
Argentina 3–2
West Germany
France 4–2 aet
Belgium
1990
Details Italy
West Germany 1–0
Argentina
Italy 2–1
England
1994
Details United States
Brazil 0–0 aet
(3–2) pen
Italy
Sweden 4–0
Bulgaria
1998
Details France
France 3–0
Brazil
Croatia 2–1
Netherlands
2002
Details South Korea
& Japan
Brazil 2–0
Germany
Turkey 3–2
Korea Republic
2006
Details Germany
Italy 1–1 aet
(5–3) pen
France
Germany 3–1
Portugal

Key
aet — after extra time
pen — penalty shootout
Notes
1.^ There was no official World Cup Third Place match in 1930; The United States and Yugoslavia lost in the semi-finals. FIFA now recognizes the United States as the third-placed team and Yugoslavia as the fourth-placed team, using the overall records of the teams in the tournament.[38]
2.^ a b There was no official World Cup final match in 1950.[39] The tournament winner was decided by a final round-robin group contested by four teams (Uruguay, Brazil, Sweden, and Spain). However, Uruguay's 2–1 victory over Brazil was the decisive match (and also coincidentally one of the last two matches of the tournament) which put them ahead on points and ensured that they finished top of the group as world champions. Therefore, this match is often considered the "final" of the 1950 World Cup.[40] Likewise, Sweden's 3–1 victory over Spain (played at the same time as Uruguay vs Brazil) ensured that they finished third.



Winners and finalists
See also: List of FIFA World Cup finals

Map of winning countries. In all, 75 nations have played in at least one World Cup.[41] Of these, only 11 have made it to the final match, and only seven have won. The seven national teams that have won the World Cup have added stars to the crest, located on their shirt, with each star representing a World Cup victory.

With five titles, Brazil are the most successful World Cup team and also the only nation to have played in every World Cup to date.[42] Italy (1934 and 1938) and Brazil (1958 and 1962) are the only nations to have won consecutive titles.

Below is a list of the 11 teams that have played in a World Cup final. Brazil and Germany each finished as either winners or runners-up seven times.

Team Titles Runners-up
Brazil
5 (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002)
2 (1950*, 1998)

Italy
4 (1934*, 1938, 1982, 2006)
2 (1970, 1994)

Germany^
3 (1954, 1974*, 1990)
4 (1966, 1982, 1986, 2002)

Argentina
2 (1978*, 1986)
2 (1930, 1990)

Uruguay
2 (1930*, 1950)
–
France
1 (1998*)
1 (2006)

England
1 (1966*)
–
Netherlands
– 2 (1974, 1978)

Czechoslovakia#
– 2 (1934, 1962)

Hungary
– 2 (1938, 1954)

Sweden
– 1 (1958*)

FIFA World Cup History

FIFA World Cup first stadium for playing in Montevideo, Uruguay, 1930; map of countries best performance in FIFA world cup; the FIFA World Cup trophy


Source: Wikipedia

FIFA World Cup

The FIFA World Cup, occasionally called the Football World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, because of World War II.
The current format of the tournament involves 32 teams competing for the title at venues within the host nation(s) over a period of about a month – this phase is often called the World Cup Finals. A qualification phase, which currently takes place over the preceding three years, is used to determine which teams qualify for the tournament together with the host nation(s). The World Cup is the most widely-viewed sporting event in the world, with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the 2006 final.
Of the 18 tournaments held, seven nations have won the title. Brazil are the only team that have played in every tournament and have won the World Cup a record five times. Italy are the current champions and have won four titles, and Germany are next with three. The other former champions are Uruguay, winners of the inaugural tournament, and Argentina, with two titles each, and England and France, with one title each.
The most recent World Cup was held in Germany in 2006. The next World Cup will be held in South Africa, between 11 June and 11 July 2010, and the 2014 World Cup will be held in Brazil.

History
Previous international competitions
The world's first international football match was a challenge match played in Glasgow in 1872 between Scotland and England, with the first international tournament, the inaugural edition of the British Home Championship, taking place in 1884. At this stage the sport was rarely played outside the United Kingdom. As football began to increase in popularity in other parts of the world at the turn of the century, it was held as a demonstration sport with no medals awarded at the 1900 and 1904 Summer Olympics (however, the IOC has retroactively upgraded their status to official events), and at the 1906 Intercalated Games.
After FIFA was founded in 1904, there was an attempt made by FIFA to arrange an international football tournament between nations outside of the Olympic framework in Switzerland in 1906. These were very early days for international football, and the official history of FIFA describes the competition as having been a failure.
At the 1908 Summer Olympics in London, football became an official competition. Planned by The Football Association (FA), England's football governing body, the event was for amateur players only and was regarded suspiciously as a show rather than a competition. Great Britain (represented by the England national amateur football team) won the gold medals. They repeated the feat in 1912 in Stockholm, where the tournament was organized by the Swedish Football Association.
With the Olympic event continuing to be contested only between amateur teams, Sir Thomas Lipton organized the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy tournament in Turin in 1909. The Lipton tournament was a championship between individual clubs (not national teams) from different nations, each one of which represented an entire nation. The competition is sometimes described as The First World Cup, and featured the most prestigious professional club sides from Italy, Germany and Switzerland, but the FA of England refused to be associated with the competition and declined the offer to send a professional team. Lipton invited West Auckland, an amateur side from County Durham, to represent England instead. West Auckland won the tournament and returned in 1911 to successfully defend their title, and were given the trophy to keep forever, as per the rules of the competition.
In 1914, FIFA agreed to recognise the Olympic tournament as a "world football championship for amateurs", and took responsibility for managing the event. This paved the way for the world's first intercontinental football competition, at the 1920 Summer Olympics, contested by Egypt and thirteen European teams, and won by Belgium. Uruguay won the next two Olympic football tournaments in 1924 and 1928.

First World Cup
Due to the success of the Olympic football tournaments, FIFA, with President Jules Rimet the driving force, again started looking at staging its own international tournament outside of the Olympics. On 28 May 1928, the FIFA Congress in Amsterdam decided to stage a world championship organised by FIFA. With Uruguay now two-time official football world champions (as 1924 was the start of FIFA's professional era) and to celebrate their centenary of independence in 1930, FIFA named Uruguay as the host country of the inaugural World Cup tournament.
The national associations of selected nations were invited to send a team, but the choice of Uruguay as a venue for the competition meant a long and costly trip across the Atlantic Ocean for European sides. Indeed, no European country pledged to send a team until two months before the start of the competition. Rimet eventually persuaded teams from Belgium, France, Romania, and Yugoslavia to make the trip. In total thirteen nations took part: seven from South America, four from Europe and two from North America.
The first two World Cup matches took place simultaneously on 18 July 1930, and were won by France and USA, who beat Mexico 4–1 and Belgium 3–0 respectively. The first goal in World Cup history was scored by Lucien Laurent of France. In the final, Uruguay defeated Argentina 4–2 in front of a crowd of 93,000 people in Montevideo, and became the first nation to win the World Cup.

Growth

After the creation of the World Cup, the 1932 Summer Olympics, held in Los Angeles, did not plan to include football as part of the schedule due to the low popularity of the sport in the United States, as American football had been growing in popularity. FIFA and the IOC also disagreed over the status of amateur players, and so football was dropped from the Games. Olympic football returned at the 1936 Summer Olympics, but was now overshadowed by the more prestigious World Cup.
The issues facing the early World Cup tournaments were the difficulties of intercontinental travel, and war. Few South American teams were willing to travel to Europe for the 1934 and 1938 tournaments, with Brazil the only South American team to compete in both. The 1942 and 1946 competitions were cancelled due to World War II and its aftermath.
The 1950 World Cup, held in Brazil, was the first to include British participants. British teams withdrew from FIFA in 1920, partly out of unwillingness to play against the countries they had been at war with, and partly as a protest against foreign influence on football, but rejoined in 1946 following FIFA's invitation. The tournament also saw the return of 1930 champions Uruguay, who had boycotted the previous two World Cups. Uruguay won the tournament again by defeating the host nation Brazil in one of the most famous matches in World Cup history, which was later called the "Maracanazo" (Portuguese: Maracanaço).
In the tournaments between 1934 and 1978, 16 teams competed in each tournament, except in 1938, when Austria were absorbed into Germany after qualifying, leaving the tournament with 15 teams, and in 1950, when India, Scotland and Turkey withdrew, leaving the tournament with 13 teams. Most of the participating nations were from Europe and South America, with a small minority from North America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. These teams were usually defeated easily by the European and South American teams. Until 1982, the only teams from outside Europe and South America to advance out of the first round were: USA, semi-finalists in 1930; Cuba, quarter-finalists in 1938; Korea DPR, quarter-finalists in 1966; and Mexico, quarter-finalists in 1970.
The tournament was expanded to 24 teams in 1982, and then to 32 in 1998, allowing more teams from Africa, Asia and North America to take part. The one exception is Oceania, who have never had a guaranteed spot in the tournament. In recent years, teams from these regions have enjoyed more success, and those who have reached the quarter-finals include: Mexico, quarter-finalists in 1986; Cameroon, quarter-finalists in 1990; Korea Republic, finishing in fourth place in 2002; and Senegal and USA, both quarter-finalists in 2002. However, European and South American teams have remained the stronger forces. For example, the quarter-finalists in 2006 were all from Europe or South America.
198 nations attempted to qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and a record 204 will attempt to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Other FIFA tournaments

An equivalent tournament for women's football, the FIFA Women's World Cup, was first held in 1991 in the People's Republic of China. The women's tournament is smaller in scale and profile than the men's, but is growing; the number of entrants for the 2007 tournament was 120, more than double that of 1991.
Football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games except 1896 and 1932. Unlike many other sports, the men's football tournament at the Olympics is not a top-level tournament, and since 1992, an under-23 tournament with each team allowed three over-age players. Women's football made its Olympic debut in 1996, and is contested between full national sides with no age restrictions.
The FIFA Confederations Cup is a tournament held one year before the World Cup at the World Cup host nation(s) as a dress-rehearsal for the upcoming World Cup. It is contested by the winners of each of the six FIFA confederation championships, along with the FIFA World Cup champion and the host country.
FIFA also organizes international tournaments for youth football (FIFA U-20 World Cup, FIFA U-17 World Cup, FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup), club football (FIFA Club World Cup), and football variants such as futsal (FIFA Futsal World Cup) and beach soccer (FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup).


Trophy
From 1930 to 1970, the Jules Rimet Trophy was awarded to the World Cup winner. It was originally simply known as the World Cup or Coupe du Monde, but in 1946 it was renamed after the FIFA president Jules Rimet who set up the first tournament. In 1970, Brazil's third victory in the tournament entitled them to keep the trophy permanently. However, the trophy was stolen in 1983, and has never been recovered, apparently melted down by the thieves.
After 1970, a new trophy, known as the FIFA World Cup Trophy, was designed. The experts of FIFA, coming from seven different countries, evaluated the 53 presented models, finally opting for the work of the Italian designer Silvio Gazzaniga. The new trophy is 36 cm (14.2 in) high, made of solid 18 carat (75%) gold and weighs 6.175 kg (13.6 lb). The base contains two layers of semi-precious malachite while the bottom side of the trophy bears the engraved year and name of each FIFA World Cup winner since 1974. The description of the trophy by Gazzaniga was: "The lines spring out from the base, rising in spirals, stretching out to receive the world. From the remarkable dynamic tensions of the compact body of the sculpture rise the figures of two athletes at the stirring moment of victory."
This new trophy is not awarded to the winning nation permanently. World Cup winners retain the trophy until the next tournament and are awarded a gold-plated replica rather than the solid gold original.

Selection of Hosts
Early World Cups were given to countries at meetings of FIFA's congress. The choice of location gave rise to controversies, a consequence of the three-week boat journey between South America and Europe, the two centres of strength in football. The decision to hold the first World Cup in Uruguay, for example, led to only four European nations competing. The next two World Cups were both held in Europe. The decision to hold the second of these, the 1938 FIFA World Cup, in France was controversial, as the American countries had been led to understand that the World Cup would rotate between the two continents. Both Argentina and Uruguay thus boycotted the tournament.
Since the 1958 FIFA World Cup, to avoid future boycotts or controversy, FIFA began a pattern of alternating the hosts between the Americas and Europe, which continued until the 1998 FIFA World Cup. The 2002 FIFA World Cup, hosted jointly by South Korea and Japan, was the first one held in Asia, and the only tournament with multiple hosts. In 2010, South Africa will become the first African nation to host the World Cup. The 2014 FIFA World Cup will be hosted by Brazil, the first held in South America since 1978, and will be the first occasion where consecutive World Cups are held outside Europe.
FIFA receives eleven bids for 2018 and 2022 World Cups
The host country is now chosen in a vote by FIFA's Executive Committee. This is done under a single transferable vote system. The national football association of a country desiring to host the event receives a "Hosting Agreement" from FIFA, which explains the steps and requirements that are expected from a strong bid. The bidding association also receives a form, the submission of which represents the official confirmation of the candidacy. After this, a FIFA designated group of inspectors visit the country to identify that the country meets the requirements needed to host the event and a report on the country is produced. The decision on who will host the World Cup is usually made six or seven years in advance of the tournament. However, there have been occasions where the hosts of multiple future tournaments were announced at the same time, as will be the case for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
For the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, the final tournament is rotated between confederations, allowing only countries from the chosen confederation (Africa in 2010, South America in 2014) to bid to host the tournament. The rotation policy was introduced after the controversy surrounding Germany's victory over South Africa in the vote to host the 2006 tournament. However, the policy of continental rotation will not continue beyond 2014, so any country, except those belonging to confederations that hosted the two preceding tournaments, can apply as hosts for World Cups starting from 2018. This is partly to avoid a similar scenario to the bidding process for the 2014 tournament, where Brazil was the only official bidder.

Media coverage
See also: List of FIFA World Cup broadcasters
The World Cup was first televised in 1954 and is now the most widely-viewed and followed sporting event in the world, exceeding even the Olympic Games. The cumulative audience of all matches of the 2006 World Cup is estimated to be 26.29 billion. 715.1 million individuals watched the final match of this tournament (a ninth of the entire population of the planet). The 2006 World Cup draw, which decided the distribution of teams into groups, was watched by 300 million viewers.
Each FIFA World Cup since 1966 has its own mascot. World Cup Willie, the mascot for the 1966 competition, was the first World Cup mascot.


Source: Wikipedia

Youth Pop Culture 2008 - 2009

emo - an American subculture of gore and solitary confinement of one's self and individuality. One sided hair and they usually live alone and in darkness

tight jeans and shirt - to emphasize their fitness, slim long legs and muscular body

very short shorts - to expose the flawlessness of legs

friendster - social networking site created for fun interaction with friends and also a hit with the elderly

facebook - same with friendster and an instant hit with organizations and some causes

SMS, MMS and cellphone - powerful, revolutionary turn of the century innovations of technology that makes communication much more effective, fast & efficient.

Two Icons In One Day

It was a day of great sorrow and grief when the stars, two great icons in music and movies stop illuminating. They both died of a dreaded illness that cut short of their life, mutilated the peak of their career, and even shattered the hearts of many. Michael Jackson (1958-2009) the "King of Pop" died of cardiac arrest while Farrah Fawcett (1947 - 2009) one of the original member of "Charlie's Angels" succumbed to anal cancer.

Michael Jackson should not be blamed for the scandals and controversies he took headlines most especially with children because he himself was a victim as young kid. Young Michael Jackson was molested by his father and never fully enjoyed his youth because he already seriously working at a young age. Instead, we should remember and let us be reminded by the legacy he left us. His music, pioneering dance styles, his charities and ideals must serve as an inspiration to many. On the other hand, Farrah Fawcett should be commended for her exemplary life. She showed extreme strength and endurance despite the unbearable sufferings, she is losing ground with her battle against cancer yet she is a valiant warrior. A symbol for women and a woman of austerity behind the glamour of limelight.

The world is weeping over the loss of these two icons in just one day because they will surely miss them but by reliving their music, dance, movies and charities they will always be alive in our hearts.

Farrah Fawcett Loses Battle With Cancer at 62

LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- Farrah Fawcett has died after a long battle with cancer, Access Hollywood has confirmed.

Farrah died at 9:28 AM on Thursday at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, Calif. She was 62.
"After a long and brave battle with cancer, our beloved Farrah has passed away," Farrah's longtime companion, Ryan O'Neal, said. "Although this is an extremely difficult time for her family and friends, we take comfort in the beautiful times that we shared with Farrah over the years and the knowledge that her life brought joy to so many people around the world."

The actress, best known for her role in the '70s TV show "Charlie's Angels" and her iconic hair, was in the hospital earlier this month and a source close to Farrah told at the time that she was not doing well.
While her condition was deteriorating, those closest to Farrah wanted to take her home for her final days.
Her death comes just days after O'Neal revealed he had asked Farrah to be his wife.

"If she's feeling a little better, I've asked her to marry me again and she's agreed," Ryan said in a new interview with Barbara Walters for ABC's "20/20," set to air June 26.
"We will as soon as she can say, 'Yes.' Maybe she can nod her head. I promise you, we will."
However, a source has confirmed to Access that Ryan and Farrah did not get married prior to her death.

In addition, Ryan and Farrah's son, Redmond O'Neal, did not get to see his mother a second time on a court-allowed visit from jail. The last time Redmond saw Farrah was during his first and only court-allowed visit on April 25.

A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's department told Access no requests had been made to transport Redmond to see his mother before she died.
Following her diagnosis with anal cancer in 2006, Farrah waged a very public battle against the disease, documenting her fight in "Farrah's Story," which aired in May on NBC and will re-air on June 26 at 8 PM. After several rounds of chemotherapy treatments, Farrah announced that she was cancer-free, but in May 2007, the cancer had returned and she underwent further treatment in Germany.

The star was born on February 2, 1947, in Corpus Christi, Texas. Even at a young age, Farrah caught people's attention - she was given the title "Most Beautiful" in high school.
She became an icon for her role as Jill Munroe in "Charlie's Angels" in the mid-'70s, inspiring fans to imitate her feathered blonde hair. She rose to sex symbol status thanks in part to a now-legendary swimsuit poster that sold over 12 million copies.

Farrah left the popular show after a single season, going on to star in a number of films, television shows and made-for-TV movies such as 1984's "The Burning Bed," which earned her an Emmy nomination.

The actress made further headlines in 1995, when she posed for Playboy at age 48.
Farrah is survived by her father James, longtime partner Ryan O'Neal, their son, Redmond O'Neal, who has dealt with numerous legal issues over the last few years, including most recently, an arrest for allegedly trying to bring heroin into an LA-area jail facility on April 5.

Michael Jackson, "King of Pop" Dead at 50

Los Angeles (AP) - Michael Jackson, the "King of Pop" who once moonwalked above the music world, died Thursday as he prepared for a comeback bid to vanquish nightmare years of sexual scandal and financial calamity. He was 50. Jackson died at UCLA Medical Center after being stricken at his rented home in Holmby Hills. Paramedics tried to resuscitate him at his home for nearly three-quarters of an hour, then rushed him to the hospital, where doctors continued to work on him.

"It is believed he suffered cardiac arrest in his home. However, the cause of his death is unknown until results of the autopsy are known," his brother Jermaine said. Police said they were investigating, standard procedure in high-profile cases.

Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long, bizarre, sometimes farcical decline from his peak in the 1980s, when he was popular music's premier all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV, dominated the charts and dazzled even more on stage.


His 1982 album "Thriller" - which included the blockbuster hits "Beat It," "Billie Jean" and "Thriller" - is the best-selling album of all time, with an estimated 50 million copies sold worldwide and also the world's longest music video with a duration of 32 minutes.


At the time of his death spread, MTV switched its programming to play videos from Jackson's heyday. Radio stations began playing marathons of his hits. Hundreds of people gathered outside the hospital. In New York's Times Square, a low groan went up in the crowd when a screen flashed that Jackson had died, and people began relaying the news to friends by cell phone.


"No joke. King of Pop is no more. Wow," Michael Harris, 36, of New York City, read from a text message a friend had sent him. "It's like when Kennedy was assassinated. I will always remember being in Times Square when Michael Jackson died."


The public first knew him as a boy in the late 1960s, when he was the precocious, spinning lead singer of the Jackson 5, the singing group he formed with his four older brothers out of Gary, Indiana. Among their No.1 hits were "I Want You Back," "ABC" and "I'll Be There."


He was perhaps the most exciting performer of his generation, known for his backward-gliding moonwalk, his feverish, crotch-grabbing dance moves and his high pitched singing, punctuated with squeals and titters. His single sequined glove, tight, military-style jacket and aviator sunglasses were trademarks, as was his ever-changing, surgically altered appearance.


"For Michael to be taken away from us so suddenly at such a young age, I just dont' have the words," said Quincy Jones, who produced "Thriller." "He was the consummate entertainer and his contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever. I've lost my brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him."


Jackson ranked alongside Elvis Presley and the Beatles as the biggest pop sensations of all time. He united two of music's biggest names when he was briefly married to Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie, and Jackson's death immediately evoked comparisons to that of Presley himself, who died at age 42 in 1977.


As years went by, Jackson became an increasingly freakish figure - a middle- aged man-child weirdly out of touch with grown-up life. His skin became lighter, his nose narrower, and he spoke in a breathy, girlish voice. He often wore a germ mask while traveling, kept a pet chimpanzee named Bubbles as one of his closest companions, and surrounded himself with children at his Neverland ranch, a storybook playland filled with toys, rides and animals. The tabloids dubbed him "Wacko Jacko."


"It seemed to me that his internal essence was at war with the norms of the world. It's as if he was trying to defy gravity," said Michael Levine, a Hollywood publicist who represented Jackson in the early 1990s. He called Jackson a "discipline of P.T. Barnum" and said the star appeared fragile at the time but was "much more cunning and shrewd about the industry than anyone knew." Jackson caused a furor in 2002 when he playfully dangled his infant son, Prince Michael II, over a hotel balcony in Berlin while a throng of fans watched from below. In 2005, he was cleared of charges he molested a 13-year old cancer survivor at Neverland in 2003. He had been accused of plying the boy with alcohol and groping him, and of engaging in strange and inappropriate behavior with other children. The case followed years of rumors about Jackson and young boys. In a TV documentary, he acknowledged sharing his bed with children, a practice he described as sweet and not at all sexual. Despite the acquittal, the lurid allegations that came out in court took a fearsome toll on his career and image, and he fell into serious financial trouble.



Michael Joseph Jackson was born August 29, 1958, in Gary, Indiana. He was 4 years old when he began singing with his brothers - Marlon, Jermaine, Jackie and Tito - in the Jackson 5. After his early success with bubble soul, he struck out on his own, generating innovative, explosive, unstoppable music.



The album "Thriller" alone mixed the dark, serpentine bass and drums and synthesizer approach of "Billie Jean," the grinding Eddie Van Halen solo on "Beat It," and the hiccups and falsettos on "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." The peak may have come in 1983, when Motown celebrated its 25th anniversary with an all-star televised concert and Jackson moonwalked off with the show, joining his brothers for a medley of old hits and then leaving them behind with a pointing, crouching, high-kicking, splay-footed, crotch-grabbing run through "Billie Jean." The audience stood and roared. Jackson raised his fist. By then he had cemented his place in pop culture. He got the plum Scarecrow role in the 1978 movie musical "The Wiz," a pop-R&B version of "The Wizard of Oz," that starred Diana Ross as Dorothy. During production of a 1984 Pepsi commercial, Jackson's scalp sustains burns when an explosion sets his hair on fire.


He had strong follow-up albums with 1987's "Bad" and 1991's "Dangerous," but his career began to collapse in 1993 after he was accused of molesting a boy who often stayed at his home. The singer denied any wrongdoing, reached a settlement with the boy's family, reported to be $20 million, and criminal charges were never filed. Jackson's expressed anger over the allegations on the 1995 album "HIStory," which sold more than 2.4 million copies, but by then, the popularity of Jackson's music was clearly waning, even as public fascination with his increasingly erratic behavior was growing.


Jackson married Lisa Marie Presley in 1994, and they divorced in 1996. Later that year, Jackson married Deborah Rowe, a former nurse for his dermatologist. They had two children together: Michael Joseph Jackson Jr., known as Prince Michael, now 12; and Paris Michael Katherine Jackson, 11. Rowe filed for divorce in 1999.
Jackson also had a third child, Prince Michael II. Now 7, Jackson said the boy nicknamed Blanket as a baby was his biological child born from a surrogate mother.


Cardiac arrest is an abnormal heart rhythm that stops the heart from pumping blood to the body. It can occur after a heart attack or be caused by other heart problems.


Billboard magazine editorial director Bill Werde said Jackson's star power was unmatched. "The world just lost the biggest pop star in history, no matter how you cut it," Werde said. "He's literally the king of pop." Jackson's 13 No. 1 one hits on the Billboard charts put him behind only Presley, the Beatles and Mariah Carey, Werde said. "He was on the eve of potentially redeeming his career a little bit," he said. "People might have started to think of him again in a different light."

United States upsets Spain 2-0 in Soccer

Bloemfontein, South Africa - The world will surely take notice of this. The U.S. soccer team is in the final of the Confederations Cup, beating mighty Spain 2-0. Even more stunning, the Americans were on the verge of elimination and ready to head home last weekend before a reversal of fortune. On Wednesday, goals by Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey led to an upset of the planet's top-ranked team. Call it a miracle on grass - maybe not the World Cup, but still an American soccer echo of the U.S. hockey team's upset of the Soviet Union at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. By winning, the maligned United States advanced to its first men's FIFA final since starting play in 1916. Altidore scored in the 27th minute and Dempsey added a goal in the 47th as the Americans became the first team to defeat Spain since Romania in November 2006.

"It goes to show what hard work and commitment to each other can bring," said U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard, who made eight saves as he frustrated David Villa and Fernando Torres."Sometimes football is a funny thing." Now the U.S. will play defending champion Brazil or host South Africa in Sunday's final, which concludes a two-week tournament designed to prepare the organizers of next year's World Cup. "Regardless of whether we play Brazil or the Bafana Bafana, the challenge will be great," U.S. coach Bob Bradley said.

Midfielder Michael Bradley, son of the U.S. coach, will miss the final. He received a red card for a late challenge in the 87th minute, the third American ejection of the tournament. Still, American players had much to celebrate, given how slim the chances of such a U.S. victory seemed just a few days ago. Or any victory, for that matter. The 14th ranked Americans were soundly defeated in their first two games in this event. "I think it just shows that we can compete with the best. Now we need to do it on a consistent basis," U.S. captain Carlos Bocanegra said.

Spain, the European champion, had set an international record with 15 straight victories and had tied Brazil's record unbeaten streak of 35 games from December 1993 to January 1996. The United States had been 1-7-1 against No.1 teams beating Brazil in the 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup and tying Argentina last summer in a exhibition at Giants Stadium. "This is an accident, a little step backward, Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said. "We have to look forward with optimism." Altidore got the first goal when he outmuscled Joan Capdevila, his teammate on Spain's Villareal, to send an 18-yard shot in off the hand of goalkeeper Iker Casillas. Capdvila thought he was fouled by Altidore, who had engaged in some trash texting a few days ago. "I told him,'Be careful of the USA.' And he tried to say I didn't understand Spanish, so it was just all fun and games," Altidore said. "We're teammates and we were just messing around with each other a little bit, but in the end we had the last laugh."

Altidore, a 19-year old forward from New Jersey , was so excited after he scored that he took off his jersey as he ran toward the stands in celebration, drawing a yellow card. It was the first goal against Spain in 451 minutes, since Turkey's Semith Senturk scored on April 1, and just the third goal the Spaniards allowed in 17 games dating to last summer's European Championship. Dempsey sealed the victory, scoring from 6 yards when he pounced on Landon Donovan's cross, which had bounced off Gerard Pique and the foot of Sergio Ramos. "There will ups and downs in any cycle," U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said. "I think this tournament makes that point very clearly. Tonight was a very big up."

The U.S. opened the tournament with a 3-1 loss to world champion Italy, then was outclassed by South American champ Brazil in a 3-0 defeat. The Americans advanced over the Italians on the second tiebreaker - total goals - only by beating Egypt 3-0 on Sunday as Brazil defeated the Azzurri by the same score. "Three games ago I think it would have been impossible to think about a night like tonight," Howard said. "We've had our fair share of critics, but we stood up and took it on the chin and kept going."

While the U.S. women have won two world championships, the men have long been outsiders and didn't even qualify for the showcase event between 1950 and '90. This ranked alongside the upset of Brazil as one of their top wins, just below victories over England in the 1950 World Cup, Portugal and Mexico in the 2002 World Cup and Colombia in the 1994 World Cup. Spain outshot the U.S. 29-9 in near-freezing conditions at the Free State Stadium, but Howard came up big every time he was needed. "We knew we had to pick and choose our moments to go forward," Dempsey said. "We're happy with the result and we know we're going to have our work cut out to get anything out o the final."

The United States had lost its three previous matches against Spain, including 1-0 in an exhibition on June 4 last year at Santander. But the Americans were boosted by Bocanegra, who had been sidelined since injuring a hamstring during a World Cup qualifier on June 6. He played left back instead of central defense. On this night, everything came together. "This win is huge for American soccer," Dempsey said. "This one is much sweeter because we were down and out, came back fighting."

Korea held by Iran

Manchester United midfielder Park Ji-Sung scored a second-half equalizer to give Korea Republic a 1-1 draw against Iran and close out their FIFA World Cup qualifying without a loss. The goal from team captain Park means Asian Group 2 winners Korea Republic end their qualifying campaign with four wins and four draws from their eight games, along with a coveted place at the table at South Africa 2010. Iran finish with 11 points and their hopes for advancing hinged on the result of the Saudi Arabi-Korea DPR match, which is to begin later today in Riyadh.

The scoring opened early in the second half when Mohammad Nosrati lofted in a cross that was met by a pack of Iranian and Korea Republic players in the goal mouth. Korea Republic keeper Lee Woon-Jae dived to deflect the ball, which replays appeared to show bounced off the leg of the charging Masoud Shojaei in the 51st minute.

Seven minutes later, Lee was tested again when he jumped to punch out a free kick by Mehdi Mahdavikia over a crowd of Iranian players. Korea Republic's Park Chu-Young had two close calls as the hosts tried to level the score.

In the 63rd minute, the Monaco forward dummied two defenders deep in the box to launch a left-foot shot, but Iranian keeper Mehdi Rahmati saved it with his left leg from point blank range. Two minutes later, Park banged a free kick off the left post with the frozen Rahmati helplessly looking on.

Salvation came for the Korea Republicans in the 80th minute, when Park Ji-Sung drove hard down the left wing. After a nifty back and forth with Lee Keun-Ho deep in the box, Park's shot sailed past defenders and the diving Rahmati.

A reinvigorated Korea Republic, already assured o first place in their group before the match, continued to press and very nearly won. In the 89th minute, Wigan's Cho Won-Hee had an open net to himself after some fine footwork in the box, but lost control of the ball.

Korea Republic had dominated early and Iran could not muster a shot on goal in the opening 25 minutes. But then Javad Nekounam tested Korea Republican keeper Lee Woon-jae from left of the arc to jump start Iran.

In the 26th minute, Mehdi Mahdavikia rolled a mid-range shot toward the net and forced Lee to make a diving save to his right. Nekounam bounced a free kick just inches past the left post in the 41st minute. In the dying moments of the first half, Masoud Shojaei intercepted a Korean back pass to unleash a left-foot strike. Lee barely got a piece of the bouncing shot and pushed it out of bounds.

Australia downs Japan, What Is The Next Target

Australia came from behind to defeat Japan 2-1 and finish top of Asian Zone qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa. The mercurial midfielder popped up for his brace after Australia had conceded their first goal in eight qualifiers to keep the team unbeaten as they head to South Africa along with Japan for next year's FIFA World Cup finals.

Cahill scored in the 59th and 76th minutes to continue his "lucky charm" effect on the Socceroos and conjure memories of his late double when Australia came from behind to beat Japan 3-1 at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany. Cahilll now has 16 goals in 33 internationals.

"This is a step forward for us, it's great to finish top of the group," Cahill said. Skipper Lucas Neill said Australia were up against it in the first half before mounting thei second-half comeback.

"They really played the game with intensity and they were running us ragged for a bit and we couldn't get ourselves in the game," Neill said.

"But we went out to make sure we had the first blow in the second half and we put enough pressure on them to make it show," Neill said.

Australia finished Group A with 20 points and inflicted Asian rival Japan's first defeat in 11 qualifiers in this campaign. Japan last lost 1-0 to Bahrain in Manama on 26 March last year. But for a time it looked as though Japan would register a prestige win in front of almost 70,000 people at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Japan's Brazilian-born defender Tulio broke the deadlock and ended Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer's seven-match run of clean sheets with a headed goal in the 40th minute. Tulio got above Nicky Carle and drove home Kengo Nakamura's corner to stunned silence from the Australian crowd. It was the first goal Australia have conceded in their eight qualifiers since a 1-0 loss to China in Sydney a year ago.

Japan almost grabbed a second goal right on halftime when Keiji Tamada's free kick just outside the box was headed off the line by Socceroos' skipper Lucas Neill. But Cahill proved Australia's hero with a trademark header 15 minutes after halftime.

Cahill and giant striker Josh Kennedy both climbed for Vince 
Grella's lofted free kick, but the diminutive Everton midfielder got his head to the ball first and arced it beyond goalkeeper Seigo Narazaki into the far top corner. His goal energised the Socceroos and they had a lively spell at the Japanese goal. Cahill scored his second 14 minutes from time when he volleyed home Carle's corner from close range.

"We don't see any drastic changes needed because of the defeat tonight," Japan coach Takeshi Okada said. "Both Japan and Australia rested five or six players, but the Australian team is very high quality as they showed at the last World Cup.
"We shouldn't be too pessimistic about our performance tonight. Of course, our fans must be disappointed and they want us to be stronger for next year's World Cup."

Australia fielded just three survivors, Schwarzer, Jason Culina and Mile Sterjovski, from last week's 2-0 win over Bahrain in Sydney, while Japan had seven members of the team who started in the 1-1 draw with Qatar in Yokohama. The Socceroos went in with two inexperienced wide defenders, leftback Shane Stefanutto [1 cap] and debutant Rhys Williams on the right.

More Iloilo Colonial Pics

pictures clockwise from top left: Oton Church was the largest and most beautiful church in Panay during the colonial regime before it was toppled by an earthquake few years after the war; the original clubhouse of Sta. Barbara Golf and Country Club that was established and built in 1907 and opened to public in 1913, Asia's oldest golf course; Muelle Loney pre-war picture; Jose Calugas of Leon, Iloilo, the first Filipino to be awarded the highest military honor in US, the US Congressional Medal of Honor; JM Basa 1928 known as the Calle Real during the colonial period touted as the "Escolta of Iloilo" due to its progressive district

More Iloilo Colonial Pics

pictures clockwise from top left: the Malays, who first settled in the Visayas are known for their painted bodies as a status symbols so the Visayas is called during the colonial period as Islas de Pintados as the explorer noticed the natives; Iznart street 1950s; Inocencia Solis of New Lucena the first Filipina to be called "Asia's fastest runner"; Iloilo front of old Capitol building, nothing remains of the structure on the right side but the old building on the left still exist until today; Iloilo Port of Entry 1930s.

There's Still More To Play For Asia, How Ironic for Philippines

After Korea Republic, Japan and Australia booked their places at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa at the weekend, the results on 10 June mean competitionfor the remaining automatic qualifying spot and two third-place berths should go down to the wire.

Needing a point away against Australia to seal third place in Group A, Bahrain failed to achieve their goal, slumping to a 2-0 defeat. This result leaves the Gulf side needing a draw from their decisive final match at home against Uzbekistan in a week's time.

Meanwhile, there will be no such opportunities for Qatar, who despite bravely holding hosts Japan to a 1-1 draw in their final game, were eliminated after taking only six points from eight qualifiers. Following the lead of the United Arab Emirates, the Qataris became the second side to bow out on the Asian Zone's final qualifying round.

Over Group B, Saudi Arabia's goalless draw in Korea Republic kept them level on 11 points with Korea DPR, though the latter are still ahead on goal difference. Iran, for their part, notched their first win in four games with a narrow home defeat of UAE to keep their faint hopes of reaching South Africa 2010 alive.