1 USA'S DRESS REHEARSAL
When Ecuador pulled out of a plan to host this summer's competition at the end of 2022, barely an eyebrow was raised.
Copa America hosting duties are seldom straightforward, with changes more normal than a Uruguayan slurping some mate. The previous edition, held in Brazil in 2021, was initially scheduled to take place in Colombia and Argentina a year earlier, before COVID fears redirected proceedings. The 2019 extravaganza was supposed to be in Chile, but also ended up in Brazil, while the 2015 tournament was due to be hosted by Brazil, but switched to Chile. Got it? Good.
What irked many this time was Ecuador's replacement: the USA. Critics claimed the decision - which means the hosts, plus fellow CONCACAF members Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica and Canada, join the fun minimises the 108-year-old competition's prestige. Some even sarcastically labelled this year's event the 'Copa Panamericana'.
On the flip side, it does represent a 2026 World Cup dress rehearsal - to be played across the USA, Canada and Mexico. The States has staged the Copa America once before, a special centenary edition in 2016, and can now test-run eight of the venues used in two summers' time: Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Jersey, Santa Clara and Kansas City (Missouri).
Other host cities include Austin, Charlotte, Orlando and Phoenix. Las Vegas, too, fresh from Super Bowl hosting duties in February. The last host city is the other Kansas City, found in Kansas state and home to MLS side Sporting Kansas City, immediately across the river from Missouri's Kansas City, home to Super Bowl champions Kansas City Chiefs' Arrowhead Stadium. We told you nothing was ever straightforward...
2 MESSI'S 'THREE-PEAT'
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Over the Top with Brian Clough - The legendary former Derby and Nottingham Forest manager was a columnist for FourFourTwo from 2001 until his death in 2004 at the age of 69 - not all of his forecasts came true, though he was never short of an opinion...
The legendary former Derby and Nottingham Forest manager was a columnist for FourFourTwo from 2001 until his death in 2004 at the age of 69 - not all of his forecasts came true, though he was never short of an opinion...
"THE PLAYERS DIDN'T SEE KEVIN KEEGAN'S 'MELTDOWN' AS ANYTHING NEGATIVE. WE LOVED HIM FOR HIS PASSION"
The Geordie recalls King Kev's rant, shares his love for Ossie Ardiles and reveals what it's like to cross the Tyne-Wear divide
"HODDLE HAD BEEN PLAYING FOR MONACO UNDER WENGER, SO WE COULDN'T BELIEVE IT WHEN HE JOINED SWINDON HE WAS LIGHT-YEARS AHEAD!"
The tireless winger opens up on playing in his dad's shadow and making the wrong kind of headlines at Sunderland...
"I'M PROUD TO BE THE FIRST AFRICAN IN THE PREMIER LEAGUE - BUT LOOK WHO CAME LATER"
FFT chats to the three Boy's A Bit Special stars of Issue 1: first, a humble hotshot on rejecting Arsenal and being 'Nuddy'
AROUND THE GROUNDS
Rangers' in-form keeper tells FFT he has his sights set on a Three Lions recall
WHY MESSI'S ARGENTINA HAD TO GET 'WORSE' TO CONQUER WORLD
The Albiceleste didn't have their most talented squad in 2022, and their star wasn't at his absolute peak - but 4-4-2 helped them to win anyway...
WHY 1999 WAS THE FINEST MOMENT FOR 4-4-2... AND SIR ALEX FERGUSON
Manchester United swept to a famous Treble thanks to the management skills of their legendary boss - and a formation that suited them perfectly
HOW THE 4-4-2 BECAME BRITISH FOOTBALL'S MOST ICONIC FORMATION
A system of playing inspired the name for this very magazine - on these shores, for numerous reasons, it's football heritage
FINDING DIEGO
A little over a year before his untimely death at the age of 60, Diego Maradona was managing Mexican second-tier side Dorados de Sinaloa - FourFourTwo went deep into drug cartel country to track him down
RESPECT
That's what women's football demands more than anything. Its status has grown exponentially during FourFourTwo's lifetime, but finally the long and arduous battle for recognition is starting to pay dividends
