133-622: Mircea Lucescu ( Romanian pronunciation: [ˈmirtʃe̯a luˈtʃesku] ; born 29 July 1945) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player, currently the head coach of the Romania national team . He is one of the most decorated managers of all time. Lucescu is also one of the most successful players of the Romanian league championship , having won all seven of his titles with Dinamo București . He also had spells at Știința București and Corvinul Hunedoara , and made 70 appearances for
266-456: A foul in the build-up to the goal. Depending on the format of the competition, an equal number of goals scored may result in a draw being declared with 1 point awarded to each team, or the game goes into extra time or a penalty shoot-out . Internationally, association football is governed by FIFA . Under FIFA, there are six continental confederations: AFC , CAF , CONCACAF , CONMEBOL , OFC , and UEFA . Of these confederations, CONMEBOL
399-450: A pitch . The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposing team by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular-framed goal defended by the opposing team. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45-minute halves, for a total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries and territories, it is the world's most popular sport. The game of association football
532-601: A stele of c. 375–400 BCE in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens appears on the UEFA European Championship trophy. Athenaeus , writing in 228 CE, mentions the Roman ball game harpastum . Phaininda, episkyros and harpastum were played involving hands and violence. They all appear to have resembled rugby football , wrestling , and volleyball more than what
665-512: A 4–0 victory against Austria at the Euro 1988 qualifiers . He is also the coach that gave Gheorghe Hagi his debut at the national team at age 18 in a friendly against Norway which ended 0–0, also giving him the captain armband at the age of 20. Lucescu was named coach at Dinamo București in November 1985, while still being coach at Romania's national team and at the end of his first season spent at
798-513: A 5–0 victory against Inhulets , and on 13 May he secured the double with a 1–0 win over Zorya Luhansk in the 2021 Ukrainian Cup Final . In his first season spent at the club, he transferred compatriot Tudor Băluță on a one-season loan from Brighton & Hove Albion . Lucescu was living in Kyiv in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine . He initially wanted to stay put, but fled to his homeland on
931-488: A French XI team in 1920, and also made up most of the England team against a Scottish Ladies XI in the same year, winning 22–0. Despite being more popular than some men's football events, with one match seeing a 53,000 strong crowd in 1920, women's football in England suffered a blow in 1921 when The Football Association outlawed the playing of the game on association members' pitches, stating that "the game of football
1064-442: A caution ( yellow card ) or dismissal ( red card ). A second yellow card in the same game leads to a red card, which results in a dismissal. A player given a yellow card is said to have been "booked", the referee writing the player's name in their official notebook. If a player has been dismissed, no substitute can be brought on in their place and the player may not participate in further play. Misconduct may occur at any time, and while
1197-457: A contract with rivals Beşiktaş . It was a very important season for Beşiktaş as in 2003; the Turkish club was celebrating its 100th year since its foundation, and he managed to win the Turkish title, having only one loss and collecting 85 points – a record points tally in a single Süper Lig season, also reaching the 2002–03 UEFA Cup quarter-finals, losing with 3–1 on aggregate against Lazio . In
1330-497: A deadlock; some competitions may invoke replays . A game tied at the end of regulation time may go into extra time, which consists of two further 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, some competitions allow the use of penalty shoot-outs (known officially in the Laws of the Game as "kicks from the penalty mark") to determine which team will progress to the next stage of
1463-399: A fitness trainer who was put by Lucescu to write statistical data about players during matches, as he previously did that at Corvinul , because he wanted to know more details possible about the players performances. He and Adriano Bacconi also worked together at Brescia where in 1994 they invested each 35.000$ in order to create a software called FARM (Football Athletic Results Manager) which
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#17331056758361596-400: A goal has been scored or not; this was brought in to prevent controversy. Video assistant referees (VAR) have also been increasingly introduced in high-level matches to assist officials through video replays to correct clear and obvious mistakes. There are four types of calls that can be reviewed: mistaken identity in awarding a red or yellow card, goals and whether there was a violation during
1729-628: A latex bladder for pressurisation, but modern balls at all levels of the game are now synthetic. As the Laws were formulated in England, and were initially administered solely by the four British football associations within IFAB , the standard dimensions of a football pitch were originally expressed in imperial units . The Laws now express dimensions with approximate metric equivalents (followed by traditional units in brackets), though use of imperial units remains popular in English-speaking countries with
1862-519: A meeting attended by representatives from Eton , Harrow , Rugby , Winchester and Shrewsbury schools. They were not universally adopted. During the 1850s, many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world to play various forms of football. Some came up with their own distinct codes of rules, most notably the Sheffield Football Club , formed by former public school pupils in 1857, which led to
1995-504: A mix of basketball, and volleyball. This is the earliest form of a kicking game for which there is historical evidence. The game was first recorded as in exercise in the Zhan Guo Ce , a military history from the Han dynasty . Cuju players would pass the ball around, having to avoid it touching the ground at any point. It was then passed to a designated player, who attempted to kick it through
2128-589: A month later, he lost 2–0 away to Ukraine in 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification . The team failed to qualify for the World Cup, with their campaign ending with a 3–0 home loss to Iceland in the penultimate fixture on 6 October. In the inaugural season of the UEFA Nations League , Turkey were relegated to League C in November 2018. The following February, his contract was terminated by mutual consent. On 23 July 2020, Lucescu returned to Ukraine after signing
2261-426: A penalty kick. Other markings define the position of the ball or players at kick-offs , goal kicks, penalty kicks and corner kicks. A standard adult football match consists of two halves of 45 minutes each. Each half runs continuously, meaning that the clock is not stopped when the ball is out of play. There is usually a 15-minute half-time break between halves. The end of the match is known as full-time. The referee
2394-416: A relatively recent history of metrication (or only partial metrication), such as Britain. The length of the pitch, or field, for international adult matches is in the range of 100–110 m (110–120 yd) and the width is in the range of 64–75 m (70–80 yd). Fields for non-international matches may be 90–120 m (100–130 yd) in length and 45–90 m (50–100 yd) in width, provided
2527-522: A similar ancient game ( cuju , or tsu chu ) was played by women during the Han dynasty (25–220 CE), as female figures are depicted in frescoes of the period playing tsu chu . There are also reports of annual football matches played by women in Midlothian , Scotland, during the 1790s. Association football, the modern game, has documented early involvement of women. In 1863, football governing bodies introduced standardised rules to prohibit violence on
2660-547: A team that reached the quarter-finals in the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup where they were eliminated on the away goals rule after 1–1 on aggregate by Sampdoria , and in the following season they won the Divizia A title, the Cupa României after another win over Steaua in the final and reached the semi-finals in the 1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup where they were eliminated after 2–0 on aggregate by Anderlecht . After
2793-667: A total of 12 seasons spent at Dinamo, in which he appeared in 250 Divizia A games and scored 57 goals, including nine in the derby against Steaua, also playing 15 games in which he scored three goals in European competitions (including three appearances in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup ), managing to score against each of the Madrid giants Real and Atlético in the European Cup , however on both occasions Dinamo did not succeed to get pass
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#17331056758362926-412: A total of 58 matches managed as Romania 's coach, making his debut on 11 November 1981 in a 0–0 against Switzerland at the 1982 World Cup qualifiers . He qualified the team at Euro 1984 by winning a qualification group composed of 1982 World Cup winner, Italy with whom he earned a 0–0 on their ground and a 1–0 home victory, Czechoslovakia , Sweden and Cyprus . At the final tournament , which
3059-554: A truce to the nation's civil war in 2006 and it helped further reduce tensions between government and rebel forces in 2007 by playing a match in the rebel capital of Bouaké , an occasion that brought both armies together peacefully for the first time. By contrast, football is widely considered to have been the final proximate cause for the Football War in June 1969 between El Salvador and Honduras . The sport also exacerbated tensions at
3192-435: A two-year contract with the main rival of his former club Shakhtar Donetsk, Dynamo Kyiv . His spell started in a controversial way, as he attempted to resign from his position after only a couple of days. The reason behind his actions was that Dynamo Kyiv fans fiercely protested the decision to hire Lucescu because of his long-term spell at Shakhtar. Dynamo president Ihor Surkis initially told press that he knew nothing about
3325-575: A two-year deal with Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg , with an extension option for another year. He was dismissed roughly one year later, as Zenit failed to qualify for the Champions League after finishing third in the Russian Premier League , but managed to win the 2016 Russian Super Cup after a 1–0 victory against CSKA Moscow . On 2 August 2017, he was appointed as the new head coach of Turkey , succeeding Fatih Terim . On his debut
3458-432: A variety of positions in which the outfield (non-goalkeeper) players are strategically placed by a coach, these positions are not defined or required by the Laws. The basic equipment or kit players are required to wear includes a shirt, shorts, socks, footwear and adequate shin guards . An athletic supporter and protective cup is highly recommended for male players by medical experts and professionals. Headgear
3591-688: Is a man of infinite culture and he is a very simple person." Mircea Lucescu was taught and learned many things about coaching from Viorel Mateianu , being very impressed by his working methods, coming to study his training sessions at FC Baia Mare , sometimes asking Mateianu to extend his training sessions so he can see more of his methods, also he went to his home where they would talk all night about football and draw tactical game schemes together. He started coaching while still being an active player at Corvinul Hunedoara in January 1979, when he replaced Ilie Savu , his first match taking place on 28 February 1979 in
3724-451: Is in play, the players mainly use their feet, but may also use any other part of their body, such as their head, chest and thighs, except for their hands or arms, to control, strike, or pass the ball. Only the goalkeepers may use their hands and arms, and that only within the penalty area . The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner. There are situations where a goal can be disallowed, such as an offside call or
3857-410: Is marked by the goal line, two lines starting on the goal line 16.5 m (18 yd) from the goalposts and extending 16.5 m (18 yd) into the pitch perpendicular to the goal line, and a line joining them. This area has a number of functions, the most prominent being to mark where the goalkeeper may handle the ball and where a penalty foul by a member of the defending team becomes punishable by
3990-438: Is not a required piece of basic equipment, but players today may choose to wear it to protect themselves from head injury. Players are forbidden to wear or use anything that is dangerous to themselves or another player, such as jewellery or watches. The goalkeeper must wear clothing that is easily distinguishable from that worn by the other players and the match officials. A number of players may be replaced by substitutes during
4123-450: Is played in accordance with the Laws of the Game , a set of rules that has been in effect since 1863 and maintained by the IFAB since 1886. The game is played with a football that is 68–70 cm (27–28 in) in circumference . The two teams compete to score goals by getting the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts, under the bar, and fully across the goal line). When the ball
Mircea Lucescu - Misplaced Pages Continue
4256-405: Is positioned on each goal line, midway between the two touchlines. The inner edges of the vertical goal posts must be 7.32 m (24 ft) apart, and the lower edge of the horizontal crossbar supported by the goal posts must be 2.44 m (8 ft) above the ground. Nets are usually placed behind the goal, but are not required by the Laws. In front of the goal is the penalty area. This area
4389-800: Is quite unsuitable for females and should not be encouraged." Players and football writers have argued that this ban was, in fact, due to envy of the large crowds that women's matches attracted, and because the FA had no control over the money made from the women's game. The FA ban led to the formation of the short-lived English Ladies Football Association and play moved to rugby grounds. Women's football also faced bans in several other countries , notably in Brazil from 1941 to 1979, in France from 1941 to 1970, and in Germany from 1955 to 1970. Restrictions began to be reduced in
4522-506: Is recognisable as modern football. As with pre-codified mob football , the antecedent of all modern football codes , these three games involved more handling the ball than kicking it. Association football in itself does not have a classical history. Notwithstanding any similarities to other ball games played around the world, FIFA has described that no historical connection exists with any game played in antiquity outside Europe. The history of football in England dates back to at least
4655-579: Is the dominant region in women's football, with the United States winning the most FIFA Women's World Cups and Olympic tournaments. Europe and Asia come second and third in terms of international success, and the women's game has been improving in South America. Association football is played in accordance with a set of rules known as the Laws of the Game . The game is played using a spherical ball of 68–70 cm (27–28 in) circumference, known as
4788-673: Is the most-viewed sporting event in the world, surpassing the Olympic Games . The two most prestigious competitions in club football are the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Women's Champions League , which attract an extensive television audience worldwide. The final of the men's tournament is the most-watched annual sporting event in the world. Association football is one of a family of football codes that emerged from various ball games played worldwide since antiquity. Within
4921-451: Is the official timekeeper for the match, and may make an allowance for time lost through substitutions, injured players requiring attention, or other stoppages. This added time is called "additional time" in FIFA documents, but is most commonly referred to as stoppage time or injury time , while lost time can also be used as a synonym. The duration of stoppage time is at the sole discretion of
5054-559: Is the oldest one, being founded in 1916. National associations (e.g. The FA in England) are responsible for managing the game in their own countries both professionally and at an amateur level, and coordinating competitions in accordance with the Laws of the Game. The most prestigious senior international competitions are the FIFA World Cup and the FIFA Women's World Cup . The men's World Cup
5187-404: Is to score goals; defenders , who specialise in preventing their opponents from scoring; and midfielders , who dispossess the opposition and keep possession of the ball to pass it to the forwards on their team. Players in these positions are referred to as outfield players, to distinguish them from the goalkeeper. These positions are further subdivided according to the area of the field in which
5320-421: The football (or soccer ball ). Two teams of eleven players each compete to get the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts and under the bar), thereby scoring a goal. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner; if both teams have scored an equal number of goals then the game is a draw. Each team is led by a captain who has only one official responsibility as mandated by
5453-478: The 1967–68 Cupa României , scoring a double in the 3–1 victory from the final against Rapid București after coach Bazil Marian sent him on the field in the 77th minute in order to replace Nicolae Nagy . In the following three editions of the Cupa României , the team would reach the final in each of them, Lucescu scoring a brace in the one from 1971 but all of them were lost in front of rivals Steaua București . He would also win another four league titles, in
Mircea Lucescu - Misplaced Pages Continue
5586-609: The 1989 Romanian Revolution , Lucescu went in July 1990 to coach in Italy at Serie A club, Pisa where after a good start, in round six of the season after a 6–3 loss against Inter Milan he had his first problems with the club's president, Romeo Anconetani, however he managed to stay 24 rounds, being dismissed in March 1991, but the team relegated at the end of the season. During this period he coached 20-year old Diego Simeone and met Adriano Bacconi,
5719-629: The 1993–94 Anglo-Italian Cup , but the following season the club relegated once more, Lucescu being dismissed before the end of the season. He was called back shortly, to lead the team again in Serie B , but was dismissed again because of poor results, the club risking to fall in Serie C . During this period, the club was nicknamed "Brescia Romena", because Lucescu brought Romanian players Gheorghe Hagi , Florin Răducioiu , Dorin Mateuț , Ioan Sabău and Dănuț Lupu at
5852-485: The 1998–99 Divizia A , which was the first championship title won by the club after 32 years, also winning the 1999 Supercupa României . In December 1998, Lucescu was named coach at Inter Milan , working with players such as Ronaldo , Roberto Baggio , Andrea Pirlo , Javier Zanetti and Ivan Zamorano , managing to reach the quarter-finals in the 1998–99 Champions League , being eliminated with 3–1 on aggregate by Alex Ferguson 's Manchester United , who eventually won
5985-563: The 2000–01 season where after a 3–2 victory in the first leg, they lost with 3–0 in the second against Real Madrid . The following year, Galatasaray qualified to the second group phase of the Champions League and won the Turkish League title. Lucescu was sacked at the end of the season, despite winning the league championship, and was replaced by Fatih Terim . Shortly after his departure from Galatasaray in June 2002, Lucescu signed
6118-501: The 2008–09 UEFA Cup . He also won trophies in Ukraine with Shakhtar's rival Dynamo Kyiv, as well as Divizia A titles with Dinamo București and Rapid București , and Turkish Süper Lig titles with Galatasaray and Beşiktaş . Lucescu was named Romania Coach of the Year in 2004, 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2021, and Ukraine Coach of the Year in 2006 and between 2008 and 2014. In 2013, he was awarded
6251-613: The 2015–16 Ukrainian Cup after defeating Zorya Luhansk 2–0 in the final. In the beginning of his period spent at Shakhtar, Lucescu had Romanians Flavius Stoican , Cosmin Bărcăuan , Daniel Florea , Ciprian Marica and Răzvan Raț under his command, but only the latter stayed with him to win the 2008–09 UEFA Cup , in later years he relied heavily on young Brazilian players such as Willian , Fernandinho , Douglas Costa , Luiz Adriano , Elano , Alex Teixeira , Ilsinho , Jádson , Brandão or Matuzalém . On 24 May 2016, Lucescu agreed to
6384-515: The Caribbean and Oceania regions (except Australia ) have yet to make a mark in international football. When it comes to men's national teams, Europeans and South Americans continue to dominate the FIFA World Cup, as no team from any other region has managed to even reach the final. These regional trends do not hold true for the women's game, as the United States women's national team has won
6517-492: The Great derby ( Romanian : Marele derby ), is a football match between Bucharest rivals FCSB and Dinamo București . The game is usually among—if not the most—viewed and attended of the Liga I season. The two most successful clubs in Romania , they won a combined 95 honours: a record 61 for Steaua/FCSB (including two international trophies) and 34 for Dinamo București. It is
6650-655: The President of Romania Traian Băsescu , the National Order "Cross of Romania" in the rank of Knight, "as a sign of high appreciation of the entire football activity and the performances obtained as a coach, crowned by winning the UEFA Cup 2009, in the final in Istanbul" and on 29 May 2009 he was granted the title " Honorary citizen of Donetsk " by the city council of Donetsk for "earning the UEFA Cup, development and popularization of
6783-457: The Romania national team , which he captained in the 1970 FIFA World Cup . Lucescu has coached various sides in Romania, Italy, Turkey, Ukraine and Russia. He is well known for his twelve-year stint in charge of Shakhtar Donetsk , where he became the most successful coach in the team's history by winning eight Ukrainian Premier League titles, six Ukrainian Cups , seven Ukrainian Super Cups and
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#17331056758366916-530: The Romanian football championship 44 times out of 103 completed seasons, resulting in a percentage of 42.72%. This supremacy extends also to the Cupa României (24 times for Steaua/FCSB and 13 times for Dinamo), to the Supercupa României (6 times for Steaua/FCSB and 2 times for Dinamo) and to the Cupa Ligii (2 times for Steaua/FCSB and 1 time for Dinamo). They are also the two Romanian football teams with
7049-690: The Super Cup . He failed to win any trophies the following season , however, though he made up for it in the 2007–08 season, winning the Premier League title and the Ukrainian Cup . His only domestic success in the 2008–09 season came in the Super Cup, although he was able to guide Shakhtar to their first ever European trophy, winning the last UEFA Cup before it was renamed the UEFA Europa League. He won
7182-602: The Ukrainian football , improvement of the Donetsk, Donetsk region and Ukraine authority in the world". In December 2009, he turned down an offer to coach the Ukraine national team , his reason being to avoid another potential clash with his son, Răzvan, who then managed the Romania national team and could qualify for UEFA Euro 2012 , which Ukraine was to host. Lucescu has won the Coach of
7315-676: The fengliu yan , a circular goal atop 10–11 meter poles. During the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE), cuju games were standardised and rules were established. The Silk Road facilitated the transmission of cuju outside of China, especially the form of the game popular in the Tang dynasty , the period when the inflatable ball was invented and replaced the stuffed ball. Other East Asian games include kemari in Japan and chuk-guk in Korea, both influenced by cuju . Kemari originated after
7448-618: The final against Werder Bremen 2–1 after extra time. The 2009–10 season saw Shakhtar regain the Premier League title. The 2010–11 season was very successful for Lucescu. He guided Shakhtar to a domestic treble, winning the Premier League , the Ukrainian Cup and the Super Cup. They also had their most successful Champions League campaign, reaching the quarter-final stage before being defeated by eventual winners Barcelona . The following season saw Shakhtar retain their Premier League and Ukrainian Cup titles. This gave Lucescu his sixth Premier League and fourth Ukrainian Cup with
7581-560: The final tournament as Romania did not advance to the next stage and at the last game against Brazil which ended with a 3–2 loss, Lucescu bought the team's blue equipment for that game from his own money, because the Romanian Football Federation provided just one set of equipment which was yellow, same as the ones of the Brazilians. He played seven matches and scored two goals at the 1972 Euro qualifiers , managing to reach
7714-410: The quarter-finals where Romania was defeated by Hungary , who advanced to the final tournament . Mircea Lucescu also played two games at the 1974 World Cup qualifiers , three games in which he scored a goal in a 3–1 victory against Greece at the 1973–76 Balkan Cup , six games in which he scored a goal in a 6–1 victory against Denmark at the Euro 1976 qualifiers , making his last appearance for
7847-620: The 1960s and 1970s. The Italian women's football league was established in 1968. In December 1969, the Women's Football Association was formed in England, with the sport eventually becoming the most prominent team sport for women in the United Kingdom. Two unofficial women's World Cups were organised by the FIEFF in 1970 and in 1971 . Also in 1971, UEFA members voted to officially recognise women's football, while The Football Association rescinded
7980-515: The 21st century, under the influence of international television, "football" has been gaining prevalence, despite the dominance of other codes of football, namely rugby union and rugby league . The term soccer comes from Oxford "-er" slang, which was prevalent at the University of Oxford in England from about 1875, and is thought to have been borrowed from the slang of Rugby School . Initially spelt assoccer (a shortening of "association"), it
8113-519: The 28th of September, Romania haven’t lost a match while under his command. His first match managing the Romanian national team took place on the 6th of September 2024. It was an away victory against Kosovo (0-3) during the Nations League. The following match was played at home on the 9th of September, against Lithuania, ending in a 3-1 victory for the Romanian national team.These 2 victories see Romania at
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#17331056758368246-528: The English-speaking world, the sport is now usually called "football" in Great Britain and most of Ulster in the north of Ireland, whereas people usually call it "soccer" in regions and countries where other codes of football are prevalent, such as Australia, Canada, South Africa, most of Ireland (excluding Ulster), and the United States. A notable exception is New Zealand, where in the first two decades of
8379-570: The FIFA Women's World Cup four times, more than any other women's team. Football is played at a professional level all over the world. Millions of people regularly go to football stadiums to follow their favourite teams, while billions more watch the game on television or on the internet. A very large number of people also play football at an amateur level. According to a survey conducted by FIFA published in 2001, over 240 million people from more than 200 countries regularly play football. Football has
8512-861: The Football Association, the Scottish Football Association , the Football Association of Wales , and the Irish Football Association . FIFA , the international football body, was formed in Paris in 1904 and declared that they would adhere to the Laws of the Game of the Football Association. The growing popularity of the international game led to the admittance of FIFA representatives to the IFAB in 1913. The board consists of four representatives from FIFA and one representative from each of
8645-464: The Game while the ball is in play. The offences that constitute a foul are listed in Law 12. Handling the ball deliberately, tripping an opponent, or pushing an opponent, are examples of "penal fouls", punishable by a direct free kick or penalty kick depending on where the offence occurred. Other fouls are punishable by an indirect free kick . The referee may punish a player's or substitute's misconduct by
8778-470: The IFAB Laws. Each team consists of a maximum of eleven players (excluding substitutes ), one of whom must be the goalkeeper . Competition rules may state a minimum number of players required to constitute a team, which is usually seven. Goalkeepers are the only players allowed to play the ball with their hands or arms, provided they do so within the penalty area in front of their own goal. Though there are
8911-430: The Laws of the Game in connection with the match to which he has been appointed" (Law 5), and whose decisions are final. The referee is assisted by two assistant referees . In many high-level games there is also a fourth official who assists the referee and may replace another official should the need arise. Goal line technology is used to measure if the whole ball has crossed the goal-line thereby determining whether
9044-475: The Laws of the Game: to represent their team in the coin toss before kick-off or penalty kicks . The primary law is that players other than goalkeepers may not deliberately handle the ball with their hands or arms during play, though they must use both their hands during a throw-in restart. Although players usually use their feet to move the ball around, they may use any part of their body (notably, "heading" with
9177-432: The Manager of the Decade award in Romania, and in 2015 became the fifth person to coach in 100 UEFA Champions League matches, joining the likes of Alex Ferguson , Carlo Ancelotti , Arsène Wenger and José Mourinho . He is also ranked third in terms of official trophies won, with 38. Mircea Lucescu was born on 29 July 1945 in Bucharest , Romania and started playing football as a junior at Școala Sportivă 2 București. He
9310-421: The Spaniards further in the competition. For the way he played in 1971, Lucescu was placed fourth in the ranking for the Romanian Footballer of the Year award. In July 1977, he went to play for Corvinul Hunedoara , where in January 1979 he became the team's coach, while still being an active player, but the team relegated at the end of the season to Divizia B and Lucescu stayed with the club, promoting back to
9443-411: The Year award in Ukraine in 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. He led Shakhtar into the semi-finals of Europa League during his last season in charge , being eliminated by defending champions and eventual winners Sevilla . He announced his resignation in early 2016, ending a 12-year period in charge of Shakhtar and becoming the club's greatest manager. In his last match in charge, he won
9576-430: The advice of the Romanian embassy, as a way to help Dynamo's foreign players get to safety. On 3 November 2023, Lucescu announced that he would step down as the manager of Dynamo Kyiv after a 1–0 home defeat against their rivals Shakhtar Donetsk, and on the following day he was succeeded by Oleksandr Shovkovskyi . On 6 August 2024 he returned as a Romania national team head coach, 38 years after his first attempt.As of
9709-456: The ban that prohibited women from playing on association members' pitches in England. Women's football still faces many struggles, but its worldwide growth has seen major competitions being launched at both the national and international levels, mirroring the men's competitions. The FIFA Women's World Cup was inaugurated in 1991: the first tournament was held in China, featuring 12 teams from
9842-410: The beginning of each playing period with a kick-off until the end of the playing period, the ball is in play at all times, except when either the ball leaves the field of play, or play is stopped by the referee. When the ball becomes out of play, play is restarted by one of eight restart methods depending on how it went out of play: A foul occurs when a player commits an offence listed in the Laws of
9975-525: The beginning of the Croatian War of Independence of the 1990s, when a match between Dinamo Zagreb and Red Star Belgrade degenerated into rioting in May 1990. Women's association football has historically seen opposition, with national associations severely curbing its development and several outlawing it completely. Women may have been playing football for as long as the game has existed. Evidence shows that
10108-592: The best results in club competitions organised by UEFA . Steaua won the European Cup in 1986 , was runner-up in the same competition in 1989 after reaching the semi-finals in 1988 . In 2006 , FCSB reached the semi-finals of UEFA Europa League . Meanwhile, Dinamo reached the semi-finals of the European Cup in 1984 and in the Cup Winners' Cup in 1990 . Additionally, Steaua won the UEFA Super Cup in 1986 , but
10241-404: The buildup, direct red card decisions, and penalty decisions. The ball is spherical with a circumference of between 68 and 70 cm (27 and 28 in), a weight in the range of 410 to 450 g (14 to 16 oz), and a pressure between 0.6 and 1.1 standard atmospheres (8.5 and 15.6 pounds per square inch ) at sea level. In the past the ball was made up of leather panels sewn together, with
10374-732: The champions of these two club competitions would contest the Intercontinental Cup to prove which team was the best in the world. In the 21st century, South America has continued to produce some of the best footballers in the world, but its clubs have fallen behind the still dominant European clubs, which often sign the best players from Latin America and elsewhere. Meanwhile, football has improved in Africa , Asia and North America , and nowadays, these regions are at least on equal grounds with South America in club football, although countries in
10507-413: The club finish third in the 1981–82 Divizia A , after which he left them in order to dedicate on his work at the national team , which he was coaching simultaneously since November 1981. During his period spent at Corvinul , Lucescu showed his availability of discovering and promoting young players like Ioan Andone , Mircea Rednic , Michael Klein , Dorin Mateuț or Romulus Gabor . Mircea Lucescu has
10640-418: The club, also he brought 15-year old Andrea Pirlo to train with the senior team, but could not give him his senior debut because the rules of the federation did not allow players so young to play for senior squads. In July 1996, Lucescu signed with Serie A club, Reggiana , bringing Ioan Sabău with him, but his spell lasted until November 1996, being dismissed because of poor results, the team finishing on
10773-516: The club, he managed to win a Cupa României with a 1–0 victory in the final against rival and recently European Cup winner, Steaua București . Over the course of almost five years, he created a team by promoting players from the club's youth center like Bogdan Stelea , Ionuț Lupescu and Florin Răducioiu , transferred young players like Dănuț Lupu and Ioan Sabău , mixing them with players he coached at Corvinul like Ioan Andone , Mircea Rednic , Michael Klein and Dorin Mateuț , thus creating
10906-422: The club. In May 2004, Lucescu joined Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk and led their rise to prominence in Ukraine the following years. His first trophy with the club came in the 2003–04 Ukrainian Cup , defeating Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 2–0 in the final on 30 May. In his first full season with the club, he secured the 2004–05 Premier League title. The following season, he secured both the Premier League and
11039-470: The club. Shakhtar had a disappointing Champions League campaign, finishing in fourth place in their group . His son, Răzvan Lucescu , is a former goalkeeper who at several points managed Rapid București , a team his father had also previously managed. Coincidentally, Shakhtar and Rapid met in the group stage of the UEFA Cup, the duel was disputed in only one leg at Donetsk in November 2005 ending with 1–0 win for Rapid. On 22 May 2009, Lucescu received, from
11172-428: The competition. He left the club in March 1999, one of the reasons being a conflict with Ronaldo . In June 2000, he replaced Fatih Terim at Turkish club Galatasaray , with whom, alongside Romanian players Gheorghe Hagi and Gheorghe Popescu he won the 2000 UEFA Super Cup , after a 2–1 win against Real Madrid . Under Lucescu's leadership, Galatasaray reached the quarter-finals on the UEFA Champions League during
11305-425: The course of the game. The maximum number of substitutions permitted in most competitive international and domestic league games is five in 90 minutes, with each team being allowed one more if the game should go into extra-time; the permitted number may vary in other competitions or in friendly matches . Common reasons for a substitution include injury, tiredness, ineffectiveness, a tactical switch, or timewasting at
11438-453: The eighth century. The modern rules of association football are based on the mid-19th century efforts to standardise the widely varying forms of football played in the public schools of England. The Cambridge rules , first drawn up at the University of Cambridge in 1848, were particularly influential in the development of subsequent codes, including association football. The Cambridge rules were written at Trinity College, Cambridge , at
11571-420: The end of a finely poised game. In standard adult matches, a player who has been substituted may not take further part in a match. IFAB recommends "that a match should not continue if there are fewer than seven players in either team". Any decision regarding points awarded for abandoned games is left to the individual football associations. A game is officiated by a referee , who has "full authority to enforce
11704-566: The equivalent of Spain's El Clásico and France's Le Classique . The teams have played 186 matches in all domestic top-level competitions. Steaua /FCSB have won 68 times and Dinamo 61, with 57 drawn. The first game between the two teams was played on 21 November 1948. Dinamo won 1–0. The events are regularly marred by instances of hooliganism and frequent outbreaks of violence between rival fan groups. The two teams are notable for their collective dominance of Romanian football. Between them, Steaua/FCSB (26 times) and Dinamo (18 times) have won
11837-412: The field in the 76th minute in order to replace Ionel Fulga in a 1–1 against Sportul Studențesc București , thus becoming champion as a player and a coach in that season and at 44 years, 9 months and 17 days he is the oldest player that appeared in a Divizia A match, a competition in which he has a total of 362 matches and 78 goals scored. Mircea Lucescu has a total of 64 appearances of which in 23 he
11970-415: The first division after one year and helping the club finish third in the 1981–82 Divizia A , retiring from his playing career after that season. He came out of retirement when he was coach at Dinamo București because many of the team's players were called at a Romania's national team cantonment in order to prepare for the 1990 World Cup , so he registered himself as a player and on 16 May 1990 he entered
12103-411: The first he worked with coaches Nicolae Dumitru and Ionescu who gave him 23 appearances in which he scored three goals, in the following one Ion Nunweiller used him in 28 matches in which he scored a personal record of 12 goals, in the third he scored four times in 31 games as he worked with Dumitru and in the last one he played 19 games, netting seven times under the guidance of Nunweiller. Lucescu has
12236-459: The following season, the team could not progress from a difficult Champions League group , but was able to get a ticket to the 2003–04 UEFA Cup by finishing third in its group – only to be knocked out by Valencia in the third round, who eventually went on to win the competition. On 25 January 2004, Beşiktaş played a home game against Samsunspor in the championship, referee Cem Papila showing five red cards to Beşiktaş players and after this match,
12369-420: The forehead) other than their hands or arms. Within normal play, all players are free to play the ball in any direction and move throughout the pitch, though players may not pass to teammates who are in an offside position. During gameplay, players attempt to create goal-scoring opportunities through individual control of the ball, such as by dribbling , passing the ball to a teammate, and by taking shots at
12502-514: The formation of a Sheffield FA in 1867. In 1862, John Charles Thring of Uppingham School also devised an influential set of rules. These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of The Football Association (The FA) in 1863, which first met on the morning of 26 October 1863 at the Freemasons' Tavern in Great Queen Street , London. The only school to be represented on this occasion
12635-463: The four British associations. For most of the 20th century, Europe and South America were the dominant regions in association football. The FIFA World Cup , inaugurated in 1930 , became the main stage for players of both continents to show their worth and the strength of their national teams. In the second half of the century, the European Cup and the Copa Libertadores were created, and
12768-695: The game in a specific position, there are few restrictions on player movement, and players can switch positions at any time. The layout of a team's players is known as a formation . Defining the team's formation and tactics is usually the prerogative of the team's manager . There are 17 laws in the official Laws of the Game, each containing a collection of stipulations and guidelines. The same laws are designed to apply to all levels of football for both sexes, although certain modifications for groups such as juniors, seniors and people with physical disabilities are permitted. The laws are often framed in broad terms, which allow flexibility in their application depending on
12901-425: The goal, which is guarded by the opposing goalkeeper. Opposing players may try to regain control of the ball by intercepting a pass or through tackling the opponent in possession of the ball; however, physical contact between opponents is restricted. Football is generally a free-flowing game, with play stopping only when the ball has left the field of play or when play is stopped by the referee for an infringement of
13034-404: The highest global television audience in sport. In many parts of the world, football evokes great passions and plays an important role in the life of individual fans , local communities, and even nations. Ryszard Kapuściński says that Europeans who are polite, modest, or humble fall easily into rage when playing or watching football games. The Ivory Coast national football team helped secure
13167-654: The instigation of Alcock. England is also home to the world's first football league , which was founded in Birmingham in 1888 by Aston Villa director William McGregor . The original format contained 12 clubs from the Midlands and Northern England . Laws of the Game are determined by the International Football Association Board (IFAB). The board was formed in 1886 after a meeting in Manchester of
13300-745: The lack of a crossbar, rules which made it remarkably similar to Victorian rules football being developed at that time in Australia. The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870s, with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games. The world's oldest football competition is the FA Cup , which was founded by the footballer and cricketer Charles W. Alcock , and has been contested by English teams since 1872. The first official international football match also took place in 1872, between Scotland and England in Glasgow , again at
13433-459: The last place in the end of the season. In July 1997, Mircea Lucescu returned in Romania, coaching at Rapid București where he created a team by promoting young players like Bogdan Lobonț , Răzvan Raț and Daniel Pancu , mixing them with players he coached in the past like Dănuț Lupu , Ioan Sabău and Mircea Rednic , thus creating a team that won the 1997–98 Cupa României and after a short spell at Inter Milan , he returned at Rapid, winning
13566-487: The national team on 4 April 1979 in a 2–2 against Spain at the Euro 1980 qualifiers . For representing his country at the 1970 World Cup , Lucescu was decorated by President of Romania Traian Băsescu on 25 March 2008 with the Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal "The Sportive Merit") class III. "Mircea Lucescu is the best coach in the world. He had results everywhere he went, he knows how to adapt to all situations. He
13699-525: The nature of the game. The Laws of the Game are published by FIFA, but are maintained by the IFAB. In addition to the seventeen laws, numerous IFAB decisions and other directives contribute to the regulation of association football. Within the United States, Major League Soccer used a distinct ruleset during the 1990s and the National Federation of State High School Associations and NCAA still use rulesets that are comparable to, but different from,
13832-438: The next stoppage of play. The referee's decision in all on-pitch matters is considered final. The score of a match cannot be altered after the game, even if later evidence shows that decisions (including awards/non-awards of goals) were incorrect. Eternal derby (Romania) The Eternal derby ( Romanian : Eternul derby ), also called the Romanian derby ( Romanian : Derby-ul României or Derby de România ) or
13965-426: The offences that constitute misconduct are listed, the definitions are broad. In particular, the offence of "unsporting behaviour" may be used to deal with most events that violate the spirit of the game, even if they are not listed as specific offences. A referee can show a yellow or red card to a player, substitute, substituted player, and to non-players such as managers and support staff. Rather than stopping play,
14098-461: The original thirteen laws of the game. The sticking point was hacking, which a twelfth club at the meeting, Blackheath FC , had wanted to keep, resulting in them withdrawing from the FA. Other English rugby clubs followed this lead and did not join the FA, and instead in 1871, along with Blackheath, formed the Rugby Football Union . The FA rules included handling of the ball by "marks" and
14231-432: The pitch does not become square. In 2008, the IFAB initially approved a fixed size of 105 m (115 yd) long and 68 m (74 yd) wide as a standard pitch dimension for international matches; however, this decision was later put on hold and was never actually implemented. The longer boundary lines are touchlines , while the shorter boundaries (on which the goals are placed) are goal lines . A rectangular goal
14364-437: The pitch, making it more socially acceptable for women to play. The first match recorded by the Scottish Football Association took place in 1892 in Glasgow . In England, the first recorded game of football between women took place in 1895. Women's football has traditionally been associated with charity games and physical exercise, particularly in the United Kingdom. Association football continued to be played by women since
14497-437: The player spends the most time. For example, there are central defenders and left and right midfielders. The ten outfield players may be arranged in any combination. The number of players in each position determines the style of the team's play; more forwards and fewer defenders creates a more aggressive and offensive-minded game, while the reverse creates a slower, more defensive style of play. While players typically spend most of
14630-400: The players and spectators by holding up a board showing this number. The signalled stoppage time may be further extended by the referee. Added time was introduced because of an incident which happened in 1891 during a match between Stoke and Aston Villa . Trailing 1–0 with two minutes remaining, Stoke were awarded a penalty kick. Villa's goalkeeper deliberately kicked the ball out of play; by
14763-416: The referee may allow play to continue if doing so will benefit the team against which an offence has been committed. This is known as "playing an advantage". The referee may "call back" play and penalise the original offence if the anticipated advantage does not ensue within "a few seconds". Even if an offence is not penalised due to advantage being played, the offender may still be sanctioned for misconduct at
14896-419: The referee. Stoppage time does not fully compensate for the time in which the ball is out of play , and a 90-minute game typically involves about an hour of "effective playing time". The referee alone signals the end of the match. In matches where a fourth official is appointed, towards the end of the half, the referee signals how many minutes of stoppage time they intend to add. The fourth official then informs
15029-485: The resignation, and later that day both sides confirmed that their cooperation will in fact continue. On 20 October, in Dynamo Kyiv's opening Champions League match of the season against Juventus , Lucescu became the oldest manager to take charge of a game in the competition, at the age of 75 years and 83 days; The match ended in a 2–0 home loss. Lucescu secured his first league title with Dynamo Kyiv on 25 April, following
15162-440: The respective six confederations. The World Cup has been held every four years since; by 2019 , it had expanded to 24 national teams, and 1.12 billion viewers watched the competition. Four years later , FIFA targeted the 32-team 2023 Women's World Cup at an audience of 2 billion, while about 1.4 million tickets were sold, setting a Women's World Cup record. Women's football has been an Olympic event since 1996 . North America
15295-534: The rules. After a stoppage, play recommences with a specified restart. At a professional level, most matches produce only a few goals. For example, the 2022–23 season of the English Premier League produced an average of 2.85 goals per match. The Laws of the Game do not specify any player positions other than goalkeeper, but a number of specialised roles have evolved. Broadly, these include three main categories: strikers , or forwards, whose main task
15428-543: The sexes are so widely divided are all on the side of emancipation , and I look forward to the time when ladies may sit in Parliament and have a voice in the direction of affairs, especially those which concern them most." Honeyball and those like her paved the way for women's football. However, the women's game was frowned upon by the British football associations and continued without their support. It has been suggested that this
15561-422: The sixteenths-finals of the 1978–79 Cupa României , losing with 3–1 after extra time in favor of Divizia B club, Metalul București . Three days later, he made his Divizia A debut in a 2–0 victory against Politehnica Iași in which he scored a goal, however the team relegated at the end of the season to Divizia B , but Lucescu stayed with the club, promoting back to the first division after one year and helping
15694-468: The team's performance declined drastically and Lucescu could not stop the decline, blaming the Turkish Football Federation for one-sided decisions by the referees, leaving the club after finishing the championship in third place, claiming that the championship was stolen. During the period spent at Beşiktaş , he bought Romanian players Daniel Pancu , Adrian Ilie and Marius Măldărășanu at
15827-478: The theatre or reading a book is far more beneficial than going to clubs or restaurants. He also pressured his players to go to university. His son, Răzvan Lucescu , was also a footballer, and is currently managing PAOK . On 15 July 2009, Lucescu suffered an attack of pre-infarct angina , and was operated in an emergency hospital in Donetsk. On 6 January 2012, he was involved in a road accident in Bucharest and
15960-447: The time it was recovered, the clock had run out and the game was over, leaving Stoke unable to attempt the penalty. The same law also states that the duration of either half is extended until a penalty kick to be taken or retaken is completed; thus, no game can end with an uncompleted penalty. In league competitions, games may end in a draw. In knockout competitions where a winner is required, various methods may be employed to break such
16093-531: The time of the first recorded women's games in the late 19th century. The best-documented early European team was founded by activist Nettie Honeyball in England in 1894. It was named the British Ladies' Football Club . Honeyball is quoted as, "I founded the association late last year [1894], with the fixed resolve of proving to the world that women are not the 'ornamental and useless' creatures men have pictured. I must confess, my convictions on all matters where
16226-472: The top of group 2 in League C as of the 28 September 2024. Mircea Lucescu started writing chronicles, comments and match analysis in 1980 at the "Drumul Socialismului" newspaper. He also wrote two volumes about football: Lucescu is a polyglot . He speaks English , Portuguese , Spanish , Italian , French and Russian in addition to his native Romanian . He is often cited as telling his players that going to
16359-422: The tournament or be the champion. Goals scored during extra time periods count towards the final score of the game, but kicks from the penalty mark are only used to decide the team that progresses to the next part of the tournament, with goals scored in a penalty shoot-out not making up part of the final score. In competitions using two-legged matches , each team competes at home once, with an aggregate score from
16492-439: The two matches deciding which team progresses. Where aggregates are equal, the away goals rule may be used to determine the winners, in which case the winner is the team that scored the most goals in the leg they played away from home. If the result is still equal, extra time and potentially a penalty shoot-out are required. Under the Laws, the two basic states of play during a game are ball in play and ball out of play . From
16625-683: The year 600 during the Asuka period . It was a ceremonial rather than a competitive game, and involved the kicking of a mari , a ball made of animal skin. In North America, pasuckuakohowog was a ball game played by the Algonquians ; it was described as "almost identical to the kind of folk football being played in Europe at the same time, in which the ball was kicked through goals". Phaininda and episkyros were Greek ball games. An image of an episkyros player depicted in low relief on
16758-510: Was Charterhouse . The Freemasons' Tavern was the setting for five more meetings of The FA between October and December 1863; the English FA eventually issued the first comprehensive set of rules named Laws of the Game , forming modern football. The laws included bans on running with the ball in hand and hacking (kicking an opponent in the shins), tripping and holding. Eleven clubs, under the charge of FA secretary Ebenezer Cobb Morley , ratified
16891-438: Was brought to Dinamo București by coach Traian Ionescu , where he made his Divizia A debut on 21 June 1964 in a 5–2 victory against Rapid București . In his first two seasons at Dinamo, Lucescu won the championship in both of them, playing a total of three Divizia A games, being loaned for the following two seasons at Divizia B club, Știința București . After the loan ended, he returned to play for The Red Dogs , winning
17024-498: Was captain and nine goals scored for Romania , making his debut under coach Ilie Oană while being a player in the second league at Știința București on 2 November 1966 in a 4–2 victory against Switzerland at the Euro 1968 qualifiers in which he gained a total of six appearances and two goals scored in the both legs against Cyprus . He played six games at the successful 1970 World Cup qualifiers , also being used by coach Angelo Niculescu in all three group matches as captain at
17157-408: Was composed of eight teams, Romania earned a point after a 1–1 against Spain , but lost the other two games, 2–1 with West Germany and 1–0 with Portugal , leaving the competition without passing the group stage. He was close to win the qualification at the 1986 World Cup , finishing at just one point below second place, Northern Ireland , his last game managed taking place on 10 September 1986 in
17290-595: Was later reduced to the modern spelling. This form of slang also gave rise to rugger for rugby football, fiver and tenner for five pound and ten pound notes , and the now-archaic footer that was also a name for association football. The word soccer arrived at its current form in 1895 and was first recorded in 1889 in the earlier form of socca . Kicking ball games arose independently multiple times across multiple cultures. The Chinese competitive game cuju ( 蹴鞠 , literally "kickball"; also known as tsu chu ) resembles modern association football as well as
17423-497: Was motivated by a perceived threat to the "masculinity" of the game. Women's football became popular on a large scale at the time of the First World War , when female employment in heavy industry spurred the growth of the game, much as it had done for men 50 years earlier. The most successful team of the era was Dick, Kerr Ladies F.C. of Preston, England . The team played in one of the first women's international matches against
17556-418: Was seriously hurt. Dinamo București Corvinul Hunedoara Individual Corvinul Hunedoara Dinamo București Brescia Rapid București Association football Association football , more commonly known as football or soccer , is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players each, who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called
17689-458: Was the first football data monitoring program, afterwards in 1996 Lucescu sold his part of the company which became known as Digital Soccer Project and Bacconi sold it to Panini for 2 million euros. Mircea Lucescu signed with Serie B club, Brescia in July 1991, promoting after just one season to Serie A . In the following season he relegated after a play-off lost against Udinese , promoting again after one Serie B season in which he also won
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