Football in 2024: Messi wins Copa America, heartbreak for Ronaldo; Sunil Chhetri retires; USWNT wins Olympic gold
Football in 2024: Messi wins Copa America, heartbreak for Ronaldo; Sunil Chhetri retires; USWNT wins Olympic gold
Football in 2024 continued to be box-office for most part of the year, with Cristiano Ronaldo getting knocked out of the European Championship and Lionel Messi winning the Copa America to add another trophy to his illustrious career.
In the context of Indian football, Sunil Chhetri, the country’s record goalscorer called it a day in international football, after a goalless draw with Kuwait. Sportstar looks at everything that happened this year in the beautiful game:
The Argentina Football Association announced that it will retire the jersey No. 10 worn by legendary World Cup-winning captain Lionel Messi once he ends his international career.
Speaking at a press conference, the president of the board, Claudio Tapia, said, ”When Messi retires from the national team, we will not allow anyone else to wear the number 10 after him. His number 10 will be retired for life in his Honour. It’s the least we can do for him.”
India had a forgettable campaign at the AFC Asian Cup campaign, which finished with a 1–0 loss against Syria.
Placed in Group A with Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria, the Blue Tigers not only finished the group stages without a win but also failed to find the net even once.
In a bizarre incident in Indian football, FC Goa launched an official complaint of spying against Mumbai City FC before their match on February 28.
Goa, which was training at the Neville D’Souza ground in Bandra West, Mumbai, on Tuesday morning, spotted someone recording the movements of its players from afar, raising eyebrows of the coach and the team management.
Manolo Marquez, the coach of FC Goa, was enraged by the incident, which was evident in the pre-match press conference. When asked about Borja Herrera’s injury, he said, “Ask the photographer who was recording our training session”, but it was later clarified that he was a team analyst from Mumbai City FC.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) sacked principal legal advisor Nilanjan Bhattacharjee after he made serious “corruption allegations” against president Kalyan Chaubey, who had termed them “baseless”.
Nilanjan, in a letter written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said Chaubey worked out “corruption avenues” through non-transparent tender process and preferential allotment of tender.
Mohammedan SC lifted the I-League trophy for the first time in its history in front of home fans at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, guaranteeing the club a spot in the Indian Super League 2024-25 season.
Playing a dead rubber against Delhi FC, the Black Panthers went down 3-1 but had already confirmed the title after beating Shillong Lajong 2-1 on April 6.
Ten-man Mohun Bagan beat Mumbai City 2-1 in the final league fixture of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 and won its maiden League Winner’s Shield. Liston Colaco and Jason Cummings got the scoresheet for the Mariners.
Less than a month later, Mumbai City took revenge by stunning home-favourite Mohun Bagan Super Giant 3-1 to win its second Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 final at the Salt Lake Stadium. Jason Cummings scored for Mohun Bagan, while Jorge Pereyra Diaz, Bipin Singh and Jakub Votjus secured the Championship for the Islanders.
Real Madrid clinched a record-extending 36th La Liga title after Girona fought back to beat Barcelona 4-2, a result that left Carlo Ancelotti’s side with an unassailable lead in the standings.
In a dominant display, the Los Blancos lost one just once throughout their league campaign on the way to the title. The win also handed Girona a European spot for the first time in its history, as the team qualified for the Champions League.
The Manchester United women’s team won the Women’s FA Cup for the first time with a comfortable 4-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur in the final. Ella Toone, Rachel Williams, and Lucia Garcia were on the scoresheet for the Red Devils women.
Thirteen days later, the Manchester United men’s team went against expectations to beat arch-rival Manchester City 2-1 in the FA Cup final. Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo found the net for the Red Devils.
Real Madrid was crowned the King of Europe for a record-extending 15th time with a 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley.
Despite facing tough resistance from Dortmund, late goals from Dani Carvajal and Vinicius Jr secured the win for Ancelotti’s men.
It was an anticlimactic end for Sunil Chhetri in his last match in national colours as India played a goalless draw against Kuwait in a FIFA World Cup qualifier match at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.
With 151 caps for India, Chhetri finished as the highest goalscorer for the Blue Tigers, finding the net 94 times. Life came full circle for Chhetri as he walked around the famous grass where he had started his professional career in 2002.
The AIFF sacked Igor Stimac after India failed to reach the third round of FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers.
“Noting the disappointing outcome of the Senior Men’s National Team’s FIFA World Cup 2026 qualification campaign, the members unanimously agreed that a new Head Coach would be best placed to take the team forward,” said AIFF in an official statement.
Germany midfielder Toni Kroos announced his retirement from international football after his team’s exit from the European Championship. So did Portugal defender Pepe at the age of 41.
Though Pepe announced his retirement a month later, he played his last game at Euro 2024, where Portugal lost to France on penalties in the quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Mikel Oyarzabal scored four minutes from time to give Spain a deserved 2-1 Euro 2024 final victory over England on July 14 and a record fourth European crown, as Gareth Southgate’s team lost in its second successive final.
Meanwhile, defending champion Argentina won a record 16th Copa America title by beating Colombia 1-0 at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida on July 14, thanks to an extra-time goal from substitute Lautaro Martinez.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) appointed Indian Super League (ISL) Trophy-winning coach Manolo Marquez as the head coach of the Indian men’s team to succeed Igor Stimac, on July 20.
The Durand Cup Group stage match between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan Super Giant, scheduled on August 18, at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, was abandoned due to potential security issues.
With the city witnessing protests around the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College, the city police cited providing security as a major challenge.
Substitute Sergio Camello struck twice in extra time to settle a remarkable Olympic men’s football final as Spain beat France 5-3 to take gold after Thierry Henry’s France had earlier staged a dramatic comeback.
In women’s football, the United States Women’s soccer team won its fifth Olympic gold medal by beating Brazil 1-0 through Mallory Swanson’s early second-half goal in the final.
After a month of controversy, East Bengal officially announced that it had signed India defender Anwar Ali in a permanent transfer for an undisclosed fee. To complete the move, he unilaterally terminated his loan deal at arch-rival Mohun Bagan.
Swedish football manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, who became the first foreigner to lead the England national team, died on August 26 at the age of 76.
It was a night to forget for India coach Marquez as his team got thrashed 0-3 by Syria, which won its first Intercontinental Cup in Hyderabad on September 9.
Four days later, the 2024-25 season of the Indian Super League began, where Mumbai City FC made a spectacular comeback in the second half to hold Mohun Bagan Super Giant (MBSG) 2-2 at the Salt Lake Stadium.
Raphael Varane, who won the World Cup with France in 2018, announced his retirement from football at the age of 31 on Wednesday. ed his retirement from football.
The month was a memorable one for San Marino, the worst-ranked team in the world. It beat Liechtenstein 1-0, its first-ever competitive win and its first victory in 20 years.
Lionel Messi scored twice as Inter Miami beat the defending Major League Soccer champion the Columbus Crew 3-2 to clinch the Supporters’ Shield awarded for the best regular season record on October 3.
In the same month, Messi’s hat-trick led Inter Miami to a new MLS single-season points record after its 6-2 victory over the visiting New England Revolution on Saturday on MLS Decision Day.
Andrés Iniesta, who scored Spain’s World Cup-winning goal in 2010 and was one of the key players who made Barcelona’s tiki-taka thrive for so long, announced his retirement from football on October 8.
Spain and Manchester City midfielder Rodri won the Ballon d’Or award for the best player in the world, beating Brazil’s Vinicius Jr and England’s Jude Bellingham, both of Real Madrid, to the prestigious prize, on October 29.
Defending champion Bangladesh beat Nepal 2-1 in the final to successfully retain the SAFF Women’s Championship, with Rituparna Chakma netting the winner.
On November 15, Serie A side Juventus terminated Paul Pogba’s contract despite his doping ban being cut to 18 months on appeal.
Brazil celebrated King Pele Day on November 19 every year, marking the date the football great scored what he considered to be the 1,000th goal of his career in 1969. The country announced that the date will be celebrated every year, starting 2024.
Botafogo won the Copa Libertadores for the first time in its history with a 3-1 victory over fellow Brazilians Atletico Mineiro on November 30.
The Serie A Fiorentina vs Inter Milan game at the Franchi stadium in Florence on December 1 was suspended after the home side’s Edoardo Bove collapsed on the ground. He was transported away by ambulance.
Later, Fiorentina confirmed that Bove was stable and he then underwent surgery to implant a removable heart starter device.
Vinicius Junior won the Best FIFA Men’s Player award and became the first Brazilian to do so since its inception in 2016, on December 17.
Complete list of winners from ‘The Best’ FIFA Awards 2024
Kylian Mbappe buried ghosts of the FIFA World Cup 2022 final as he helped his Real Madrid beat CF Pachuca 2-0 in their Intercontinental Cup final, at the Lusail Stadium here on December 18.
