There is never a good reason not to watch a football match, writes Liam Mackey

Brazil - The home of countless footballing superstars, from Pele to Ronaldo, Ronaldinho to Neymar.

Prince Ali of Jordan has announced he will run again for the Fifa presidency next year and threw down the gauntlet to his rivals, including Michel Platini, by claiming they “didn’t have the guts” to challenge Sepp Blatter.

Musa Bility, president of the Liberia FA, has announced his intention to stand for the Fifa presidency.

FIFA has handed over a second batch of computer data to the Swiss attorney general’s office, which is investigating the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Brazilian football great Zico wants to run for the presidency of Fifa, even though he believes the odds are stacked against him being elected.

Hubris. Now there’s a word I really like, with its hint of a serpent’s hiss at the end offset by the near certainty that the slithery one is in for a nasty surprise.

Colin Falvey used to scrape by on meagre wages at Cobh Ramblers. Now, he is being paid to stop World Cup winners like Alessandro Del Piero and David Trezeguet.

After five days of touring some of the country’s most famous tourist landmarks, this year’s crop of Roses finally planted themselves in the home of the world renowned competition, Tralee.

Considering his face is plastered on every other billboard and features in all manner of television adverts, it may seem strange to call Pele ‘the invisible man’.

For fans over a certain age following a World Cup, you’re never really watching just that World Cup.

As I walked along the footpath outside Flamengo’s old ground in Rio yesterday, there was a sudden blaring of horns and sirens and I looked up to see the traffic swiftly parting to make way for a big security convoy: motorcycle outriders, a police car, a police jeep, two trucks full of soldiers, an ambulance and, slap bang in the middle, the Netherlands team coach.

Shortly after Brazil’s dour scoreless draw with Mexico last week, a gang of kids lit a firework on a wide stretch of the pavement on Rua Das Laranjeiras in Rio.

BRAZIL 4 CAMEROON 1

Fantasy football and grim reality are set to collide at the 2014 World Cup. Liam Mackey, in Rio de Janeiro, predicts the winner.

For almost 50 years BBC’s Grandstand show defined Saturday afternoons in the UK and it came to do something similar here in Ireland for many of us once the signal for the British channels began to be picked up beyond the east coast.

Let’s be blunt: do you deserve to win when you fail to score in the entire second half and manage only three points in the last 60 minutes?

A little over a week after the 2005 All-Ireland football final, this writer received an email from a fairly irate Kerry supporter.

On a visit to Brazil this week Peter Robinson and Martin McGuinness jointly opened a George Best exhibition in Sao Paolo.

This is new for football, what it has with Messi and Ronaldo.

The inquest has begun, the tribunals of investigation have been convened and, already, there’s a whiff of cordite in the air.

He’s short, left-footed, prodigiously gifted and selected his club because they agreed to pay for the growth hormone treatment he needed. The description of Ioannis Fetfatzidis as “the Greek Messi” is both understandable and apt.

Sheamus had the belt and an entire nation’s talent for spoofery was finally rewarded.

THE Ireland U18 schools’ side let an interval lead slip yesterday as they suffered defeat by Australia in Coolock in their season opener.

Even Socrates regretted not getting to close the deal with the most beautiful woman in the world. But as he said, it can happen, and he could always say he at least got to dance with her

Former Brazil great Socrates, who captained Brazil at the 1982 World Cup, died today. He was 57.

OF all the countless tributes paid in recent years to the star player on a star-filled Barcelona team, we particularly liked the one The Guardian penned after he’d ripped the champions of England apart, so much so we’ll recite it here.

Rob Scotton’s illustrations are always a joy. In Scaredy-Cat Splat (Harper Collins €8.35) Splat is determined to win the scariest costume prize at school. His ego is knocked by classmates whose costumes are superior.

I GOT a call the other day to inform me that the boys who present ‘Football Crazy’ on UCC campus radio are celebrating 50 editions today and, as I relayed my congratulations, it struck me that, in a week which began with Chris Hughton getting the elbow at Newcastle and ended with his replacement Alan Pardew being handed a five-and-a-half year contract, they might well boast the most aptly named show in sports broadcasting.

SO in London on Tuesday, it’s the boys in green versus the boys who will be going green.

OLYMPIACOS striker Jaouad Zairi is adamant Bordeaux will put their recent struggles behind them and pose a significant threat in tonight’s Champions League encounter.

ARSENE WENGER concedes he is taking something of a gamble by bringing a youthful squad to Athens – but the Gunners manager is convinced his young charges can deliver a big performance against Olympiakos.

ARSENE WENGER openly admits he will not gamble with the fitness of any of his first-team regulars against Olympiacos in their final Champions League group game and intends to give the youngsters another chance to impress.

CSKA MOSCOW boss Juande Ramos has warned his players Man United striker Dimitar Berbatov is “unstoppable” at his best.

ARSENE WENGER maintained last night’s Champions League win over Olympiacos showed just why Arsenal are not “desperate” for new signings.

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal’s 2-0 Champions League win over Olympiacos is another example of just how his young side are maturing.

Arsenal 2 Olympiacos 0

ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC and Samuel Eto’o were both kept under wraps by their former team-mates as Inter Milan held Champions League holders Barcelona to a goalless draw at the San Siro last night.

Zico has been appointed as new Olympiacos coach, days after being sacked from CSKA Moscow.

IT’S IN at the deep end for former Ireland manager Brian Kerr tonight when his first game in charge of the Faroe Islands pits his rank outsiders against Group 7 pacemakers Serbia in a World Cup qualifier in Torshavn.

Former Chelsea manager Luiz Felipe Scolari has been appointed as the new coach of Bunyodkor, according to the Uzbek outfit.

CSKA Moscow 2 Aston Villa 0 (CSKA win 3-1 on aggregate)

ASTON VILLA manager Martin O’Neill is optimistic his side can still reach the last 16 of the UEFA Cup despite being held to a 1-1 home draw by CSKA Moscow last night.

John Carew handed Aston Villa a UEFA Cup lifeline with a second-half equaliser in the last-32 first-leg clash with CSKA Moscow at Villa Park.