Champions of Europe, Attention of the World

Four football clubs are still alive in the UEFA Champions League, the tournament that crowns Europe's best professional football team.
English juggernauts Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal join Barcelona in the final four. The championship match is set for May 27 in Rome.

Hello I'm Charlotte Bellis and you're watching Newsy.com.

That was Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo 64 mph "wonder goal" in the quarter finals against Porto. The Guardian called the screaming strike one of ten best in Champions League history.

Bleacherreport.com compares global popularity of Champions League football to America’s Super Bowl.

“[Last year's final match between Chelsea and Manchester United] was watched by approximately 1.5 billion people in over 200 countries... The Super Bowl is watched by a global audience of over 100 million people, the majority of which are in the United States.” (Bleacherreport.com)

The Champions League final is played in a different city each year, but hooliganism by Italian fans threatened Rome's selection as this year's venue. The UK's Daily Mail put it this way.

"The character of the Italian capital changes when European football drops in among the relics… Suddenly, the knives come out and the dimly lit, tree-lined streets around the Olympic Stadium become the scene for a sinister game of dare, with potentially fatal consequences." (Daily Mail)

UK's The Mirror reports on the longstanding rivalry between Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, known as Fergie, and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. The two face off for the first time in Europe.

"Their rivalry reached its peak with the infamous Battle of the Buffet at Old Trafford in October 2004, when Fergie was hit by pizza thrown from Arsenal's dressing room after United had ended their 49-game unbeaten run." (The Mirror)

Does Barcelona have what it takes to break up the English monopoly? Is Rome a safe place for visiting fans?

1. By: newsydotcom
2. Categories Sports
3. Views 401
4. Added :24-Apr-09
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