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Month: May 2004

South Africa 2010

So then, FIFA have made their decision, and have selected South Africa to host the 2010 World Cup. Excellent news as far as I’m concerned, because, although I’d have loved to have visited Tunisia or Morocco just as much, the journey to South Africa from London should be a great one.

There’s a curious echo of the trip to Korea, during which I found my grandfather’s grave in a small village in Uzbekistan, in that my grandmother’s grave is at the foot of Kilimanjaro, in a little village called Tengeru, where she, my father and my uncle spent the majority of the war years after their ordeals in the (former) Soviet Union. It’ll be wonderful to see her grave on the way to South Africa, if I can find it…

Watch and (re)play football in Battersea Park

Match Details

Bank Holiday Monday, 31st May 2004
Kick Off 2.30pm on the All Weather Pitches in the south-western corner of Battersea Park
Click here for a map of the park

IMPORTANT
It’s Astroturf, so no studs!

The teams in Battersea Park
The teams in Battersea Park, March 2002

So then, it’s just gone half-time on the way to the next World Cup, and Football’s Leaving Home is undergoing something of a revamp. To celebrate, we’re first going to play a memorial game in Battersea Park, in the same place where we played the inaugural game in 2002. Afterwards, we’re showing the one hour movie in the function room of The Prince Albert.

Continue reading to find out more…

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World Cup 2014

I don’t know if this is true or not, but I heard on BBC Radio 5 that FIFA had pretty much decided to give the 2014 World Cup to Brazil.

According to the reporter, FIFA first decides which continent it would like to host that year’s competition and then invites bids from countries in that continent. The reporter suggested that no other South American nation other than Brazil would put in a bid. We’ll see…

Well, as I said, I don’t know if the report is true, but I really hope so – another monumental and epic journey to a World Cup lined up already.

The Ball 2018 left England on 25th March 2018 and travelled to the World Cup in Russia.

The Ball 2014 kicked off from England on 9th Jan 2014 and headed to the World Cup in Brazil.

The Ball 2010 left England on 24th Jan 2010 headed to the Opening Ceremony in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The Ball 2006 travelled from London to the Opening Ceremony in Munich, Germany.

The Ball 2002 was carried 7000 miles across Europe and Asia to the World Cup finals in Korea & Japan.