Football GoldMine

During Salisbury City's 3-1 win over Chester in September 2013, the game was interrupted when a parachutist landed on the pitch.

He had been taking part in a charity skydive but was forced to make an emergency landing, reportedly due to low cloud.

Chester defender Danny Higginbotham described the incident as the "most bizzare" thing he had ever seen on a football pitch.

Berti Vogts is the only person to win the European Championship as both player and manager.

A defender, he was a part of the West German squad that won Euro 1972, though he didn't play any game.

Then as a manager, he led Germany to victory in Euro 1996, having finished runner-up in the competition four years earlier.

Hamburger SV are the only German side to win the European Cup/UCL besides Bayern Munich and Dortmund.

They achieved the feat in the 1982-83 season after beating Juventus 1-0 in the final.

They have also won six top flight league titles, three DFB-Pokals, one European Cup Winner's Cup, amongst others.

They were the only club to have played in every season of the Bundesliga since the competition was founded in 1963, until they were eventually relegated in the 2017-18 season.

The club's most successful manager is Ernst Happel, who won one European Cup, two league titles and one DFB-Pokal.

Notable players to have played for the club include: Herbert Wojtkowiak, Uwe Seeler, Felix Magath, Manfred Kaltz, Horst Hrubesch, Uli Stein, Kevin Keegan, Tony Yeboah, Tomáš Ujfaluši and Rafael van der Vaart.

Having competed in the 2. Bundesliga for many years, the club made its return to the Bundesliga in the previous season.

Ahmed Musa made his debut for the Super Eagles of Nigeria on 5 August 2010, coming on as a substitute for Mikel John Obi, in a 2-0 win over Madagascar during a 2012 AFCON qualifier match.

He has featured in three AFCON tournaments (2013, 2019, 2021 and 2023) and two World Cup tournaments (2014 & 2018).

Musa is Nigeria's all-time top scorer at the World Cup (4 goals). He became the first Nigerian to score more than once in a FIFA World Cup match, after scoring twice against Argentina in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

He also became the first Nigerian to score in two FIFA World Cup competitions, after scoring twice against Iceland in the group stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

He is Nigeria's most capped player with 110 appearances.

Musa retired from international football in December 2025 but currently plays for Kano Pillars at club level.

The 2007-08 FA Cup was the 127th edition of the competition.

Led by Harry Redknapp, Portsmouth made it to the final, knocking out 11-time champions Manchester United in the sixth round. Cardiff City also reached the final under manager Dave Jones.

This was the first time since 1995 the FA Cup would be won by a team other than the "Big 4" (Arsenal, Chelsea Liverpool, Man United). In fact, none of them made it to the semi-finals that season.

Portsmouth were appearing in their fourth final, having previously lost the 1929 and 1934 finals and won the 1939 final.

For Cardiff City, it was their third final, having previously lost the 1925 final and won the 1927 final, so their attack was led by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Paul Parry.

The final was played on 17 May 2008 at the Wembley Stadium, London and had an attendance of 89,874.

Kanu Nwankwo took advantage of a cross from John Utaka to score the only goal of the game in the 37th minute, as Portsmouth emerged champions with a 1-0 win. Kanu was named the Man of the Match.

For the duo of Milan Baros and Sulley Muntari, that was their last match in a Portsmouth shirt. Harry Redknapp also left the club a several months later.

To mark Barcelona's 100th anniversary, the club engaged the Brazilian national team in a friendly match at the Camp Nou on 29 April 1999. It ended in a 2-2 draw.

Barcelona's starting lineup: Hesp, Reiziger, Guardiola, Abelardo, Figo, Sergi, Cocu, Kluivert, Luis Enrique, Zenden, Frank de Boer.
Manager: Louis van Gaal.

Brazil's starting lineup: Rogerio Ceni, Zé Maria, Odvan, Scheidt, F. Conceiçao, Roberto Carlos, Amoroso, Emerson, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Romario.
Manager: Vanderlei Luxemburgo da Silva.

Ronaldo opened scoring for Brazil while Luis Enrique equalized for Barcelona.

Rivaldo put Brazil ahead again with a strike from just outside the box but Phillip Cocu made it 2-2 after Brazilian goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni spilled Luis Figo's free kick.

Five goalkeepers have scored in the UEFA Champions League...

Hans-Jörg Butt is the only one to score multiple times. He scored three penalties. The first was for Hamburger SV against Juventus on 13 September 2000.

The second was for Bayer Leverkusen against Juventus on 12 March 2002.

The third was for Bayern Munich against Juventus on 8 December 2009.

Sinan Bolat scored a header for Standard Liège against AZ Alkmaar on 9 December 2009.

Vincent Enyeama scored a penalty for Hapoel Tel Aviv against Lyon on 29 September 2010.

Ivan Provedel scored a header for Lazio against Atlético Madrid on 19 September 2023.

Anatoliy Trubin scored a header for Benfica against Real Madrid on 28 January 2026.

Nicknamed "El Loco," retired Colombian goalkeeper René Higuita was known for his dramatic flair and eccentric playing style, often taking risks and actively coming out of the penalty box to take on opponents, play the ball out to defenders, undertake individual dribbling runs, and attempt to score goals, which led him to be described as a 'sweeper-keeper.'

However, he ran out of luck during the 1990 FIFA World Cup, which was the only World Cup tournament he played in.

Colombia were in Group D, alongside West Germany, Yugoslavia and United Arab Emirates.

Following a 2-0 win over United Arab Emirates, a 1-0 loss to Yugoslavia and a 1-1 draw with West Germany, Colombia progressed to the next round as one of the best third-placed teams.

They faced Cameroon in the round of 16 and after a goalless draw, the game proceeded to extra time, where Roger Milla opened scoring for Cameroon in the 106th minute.

Two minutes later, Higuita attempted to dribble past Cameroonian striker Roger Milla but was dispossessed, as Milla went on to double Cameroon's lead.

Bernardo Redín pulled one back for the South Americans in the 115th minute but it was not enough, as they lost 2-1 after extra time and were eliminated from the competition.

Nicklas Bendtner holds the record for the fastest goal scored by a substitute in the Premier League.

In December 2007, while playing for Arsenal against Tottenham Hotspur, he headed the winning goal from a Cesc Fabregas corner just six seconds after coming on as a substitute for Emmanuel Eboue.

Arsenal won the game 2-1.

Chelsea vs Liverpool holds the record for most consecutive meetings (5) in the UEFA Champions League.

In 2004-05, they met in the semi-finals and Liverpool won 1-0 on aggregate.

In 2005-06, they met in the group stages and played 0-0 on aggregate.

In 2006-07, they met in the semi-finals and Liverpool won 4-1 on penalties after a 1-1 aggregate draw.

In 2007-08, they met in the semi-finals and Chelsea won 4-3 on aggregate.

In 2008-09, they met in the quarter-finals and Chelsea won 7-5 on aggregate.

Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann became the first player to be sent off in a UCL final after he fouled Barcelona's Samuel Eto'o in the 18th minute back in 2006.

10-man Arsenal fought hard and took the lead in the 37th minute via a Sol Campbell header, before Eto'o equalized for Barcelona in the 76th minute and Juliano Beletti scored the winner in the 80th minute.

Didier Drogba (in 2008) and Juan Cuadrado (in 2017) are the only others to get sent off in a UCL final.