Daily Headlines: May 15, 2015

* Argentina: On a dark day for Argentine soccer yesterday the Copa Libertaodres match between River Plate and Boca Juniors was suspended after players were attacked with pepper spray, while league play this weekend was postponed over the tragic death of Emanuel Ortega.

* Brazil: A new report blamed a “slow justice system and flawed police investigations as well as the widespread availability of firearms” for a record 42,000 people killed by gun violence in Brazil in 2012.

* Chile: Valentina Maureira, the 14-year-old Chilean girl who earlier this year requested for euthanize, died on Thursday from complications related to cystic fibrosis.

* Colombia: A Colombian counternarcotics panel confirmed the ban on using the possible carcinogenic glyphosate in the aerial spraying against drug crops.

YouTube Source – FootballManiaChannel

Online Sources – Bloomberg, The Guardian, BBC News, TIME, sunherald.com

Daily Headlines: May 16, 2013

* El Salvador: Officials launched a violence prevention program in areas where the country’s two largest street gangs – the Mara Salvatrucha and Barrio 18 – have honored a fourteen-month truce.

* Venezuela: The government’s plans to import fifty million rolls of toilet paper as Venezuelans complain of shortages in basic commodities and foods.

* Brazil: Defending Copa Libertadores titleholder Corinthians of Brazil were ousted from this year’s version of the tournament by six-time champions Boca Juniors of Argentina.

* U.S.: A new Census Bureau report found that an influx of immigrants is expected to outpace U.S. population growth from births within thirty years.

Video Source – Video via Al Jazeera English (Video uploaded in May 2012).

Online Sources- The Guardian; infosurhoy.com; SBS; Reuters

Corinthians Win First Copa Libertadores Title

The trophy case for Brazilian soccer team Corinthians is filled with dozens of championships won on the Paulista state and national level. But like Captain Ahab in “Moby Dick” the Sao Paulo-based side could never catch capturing the biggest prize: the prestigious Copa Libertadores title. That all changed last night when Corinthians beat Argentina's Boca Juniors to win the 2012 Copa Libertadores:

Last week Boca Juniors striker Santiago Silva claimed, “Corinthians didn't create any chances (in the first leg in Buenos Aires) and got a draw that they didn't deserve.” But it was the Timao that took advantage of their opportunities in the return match. The first goal came in the 53rd minute when Emerson received a neat heel flick from Danilo, beat the Boca defense and calmly tucked the ball past backup goalkeeper Sebastian Sosa. Nineteen minutes later Emerson pounced on a failed pass by defender Rolando Schiavi, ran forty yards and scored the insurance goal for Corinthians.

"Our crowd represents 33 million fans. Since this year's Libertadores started, we have dreamed of clinching the title. We were all in need of this achievement," said Emerson to Fox Sports after the match.

Daily Headlines: May 25, 2012

* Brazil: Defending champions Santos will face fellow Brazil club Corinthians in the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores while Universidad de Chile will try to upset six-time titleholders Boca Juniors of Argentina.

* Latin America: According to a new study alcohol consumption in Latin America is far lower than Europe and the U.S.

* Argentina: Researchers were able to identify the remains of a body found in a Uruguayan cemetery as those of an Argentine man who disappeared thirty-six years ago during the “Dirty War.”

* Ecuador: Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said that Ecuador will buy $400 million of fuel from Iran.

Video Source – YouTube via paulkiske

Online Sources- SI.com, Bernama, CNN, Bloomberg

Daily Headlines: May 16, 2011

* Panama: Is the infrastructure in the U.S. unprepared for the “major trade boost” that could come with the expansion of the Panama Canal?

* Mexico: As part of an overhaul of Mexico’s immigration agency seven top officials were fired while forty agents are reportedly under investigation for possible human rights abuses.

* Cuba: A cruise ship heading towards Florida rescued nine Cuban migrants on a raft on Saturday.

* Argentina: In the latest edition of one of the world’s most exciting soccer derbies, Boca Juniors beat River Plate by a score of 2-0.

Image – LAHT (The expansion of the Panama Canal is expected to be completed by 2014).
Online Sources- Reuters, MSNBC, canada.com, Sacramento Bee, AFP

Daily Headlines: April 22, 2009

* Brazil: Soccer may be king in Brazil though that hasn’t stopped the Tampa Bay Rays from trying to make inroads there.

* Mexico: One of the country’s leading banks- Banorte- will start offering life insurance to immigrants living in the U.S.

* Paraguay: Health officials claim that a cholera outbreak occurred last month at an isolated indigenous reservation.

* Argentina: The latest edition of the superclasico between Boca Juniors and River Plate ended in a 1-1 tie.

Image- daylife.com (“Brazil's baseball team celebrates a run against Nicaragua during a Pan American Games baseball competition in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, July 15, 2007.”)
Online Sources- Reuters, MLB.com, LAHT, Goal.com

Beyond the Americas: English athletes support Palestine charity

The sport of soccer is sometimes referred to as “the beautiful game”. Beyond glamorous goals and stunning saves, the saying becomes especially true when a charitable effort is involved:

Shirts worn by players in an FA Cup tie tomorrow will be the unlikely advertising hoarding for the plight of Palestinians. Kettering Town will have the slogan Palestine Aid emblazoned on their kit to show their support for Interpal, a charitable organization which distributes aid in the Palestinian territories.

"We are trying to raise awareness and charitable funds for the refugees in Palestine," Imraan Ladak, the Kettering chairman, said of the association with Interpal that began before the escalation last month of the conflict in Gaza.

Ladak, 30, chief executive of a recruitment business based in Milton Keynes, has no personal links with Palestine. "I just think there are certain areas in the world that are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance, for whatever reason," he said, "and Palestine is the one that's suffering the most.

Some soccer club uniforms are littered with all sorts of sponsors which makes a player look like a walking billboard. Other clubs (like my favorite team) are actually named after a particular sponsor. Yet in recent years some clubs have opted to enter into partnerships with charitable groups like the case of F.C. Barcelona and Argentine side Boca Juniors with UNICEF.

Image- Guardian UK
Online Sources- UNICEF, The Offside – Red Bull New York, mlsnet.com, Guardian UK, IHT

News briefs – Soccer

* South American giants Boca Juniors will play European champion A.C. Milan on Sunday for the World Club Cup championship. The Xeneizes won over the Italian squad in the 2003 Intercontinental Cup.

* Brazilian striker Kaka can add another award to his mantel; on Thursday he was named as World Player of the Year by World Soccer magazine. Argentina’s Lionel Messi came in second though he was named as Sports Illustrated Latino’s 2007 Sportsman of the Year.

* For some teams, 2007 has been the year of the underdog:

• Lanus won the latest Argentine championship for the first time in their 93-year history.
• Argentina's Arsenal upset Mexico’s Cub America to win the Copa Sudamericana.
• Provincial side San Jose won the Bolivian league title.
  
• Atlante captured the Mexican championship for the first time since 1993.
  
• La Equidad is in the finals of the Colombian league championship despite playing in their first year in the top division.
  

* Though players like Juan Pablo Angel and Cuauhtémoc Blanco flourished last season in Major League Soccer, one Latin American player brought in under the “Beckham Rule” has been an utter disappointment. FC Dallas dropped the option of resigning Brazil’s Denilson; the former international tallied one goal and eight assists during the 2007 season.

* Speaking of designated players and MLS, Argentina’s Olé reported that Juan Sebastian Veron will stay with domestic side Estudiantes de La Plata instead of accepting a “lucrative offer” from D.C. United. (Hat tip: Soccer by Ives).

Sources- Telgraph.co.uk, The Latin Americanist, Reuters UK, ESPN Soccernet, Goal.com, The Sports Network, Wikipedia, Soccer by Ives

Image- CNN (“Neri Cardozo celebrates after scoring the winner for Boca Juniors against Etoile Sahel”)

Boca Juniors champions of Copa Libertadores

The streets of Buenos Aires were awash in blue-and-yellow yesterday after Boca Juniors won the Copa Libertadores. Boca won South America’s top soccer tournament after beating Brazil’s Gremio home 3-0 last week and 2-0 last night in Porto Alegre with goals by Juan Roman Riquelme.

Despite difficulties in qualifying from the group stage, Boca’s victory last night secured its sixth ever Libertadores title and its first since 2003. In addition, Boca qualifies for the FIFA World Club Cup with Italy’s AC Milan and Mexico’s Pachuca.

Image- SI.com (Boca Juniors' Martin Palermo holds the the Copa Libertadores and celebrates with his teammates)

Sources (English)- The Latin Americanist, International Herald Tribune, ESPN Soccernet, People’s Daily Online

Source (Spanish)- Clarin

Boca draws first blood in Libertadores final

In a battle between Argentines and Brazilians in the Copa Libertadores final, Boca Juniors is at an advantage after beating Gremio 3-0 last night. Much like in the previous rounds midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme (image) was key in Boca’s victory during the first leg of South America’s top soccer club tourney played at “La Bombonera” in Buenos Aires. The deciding second leg will be played in Brazil next Wednesday.

The Porto Alegre club tied in aggregate goals 3-3 with Santos in the semifinals, but a goal by Diego Souza during the second leg in Sao Paulo served as the tiebreaker in Gremio’s favor. Meanwhile, Boca came back from a 3-1 first leg deficit and won the second leg at home 3-0 over Colombia’s Deportivo Cucuta.

Meanwhile, leaders of several Andean states continue to protest against FIFA’s high altitude ban; a ban that one blogger blamed on Brazil and Argentina. Bolivian president Evo Morales and some of his staff played a makeshift soccer game nearly 20,000 feet up in the Andes Mountains on Tuesday.

Sources- Latin Americanist, Foreign Policy Passport, International Herald Tribune, ESPN Soccernet

Image- Javno.hr