On 7 April 1983, three-time French Player of the Year Franck Ribéry was born in Boulogne-sur-Mer. A winger who prefers to play on the left, he is considered by many to be one of the leading French players of his generation, with former French superstar Zinedine Zidane calling him "the jewel of French football."Ribéry began his professional career in 2000 with his hometown team, Boulogne, then in the fourth division. After only two seasons, which saw Boulogne promoted only to be relegated again, he moved to couple of lower-division teams (Olympique Alès, 2002-03, and Stade Brestois, 2003-04) before landing in Ligue 1 with Metz in 2004. His initial stay in the French top flight was brief, as he left after only six months due to a contract dispute, ending up at Istanbul's Galatasaray in January 2005.His stay in Turkey was equally brief, as after winning the 2005 Turkish Cup, he returned to Ligue 1 to play for Marseille. Although he had three years left on his contract with Galatasaray, he petitioned FIFA to void it, claiming that he had not been paid and that a Galatasaray director had threatened him with a baseball bat. The Turkish club denied the charges, but FIFA decided the matter in Ribéry's favor.In two seasons at Marseille, he established himself as one of France's most dynamic and creative players, helping the club to capture the 2005 UEFA Intertoto Cup, then reach the back-to-back Coupe de France finals in 2006 and 2007, leading to his first French Player of the Year Award. His success in Marseille sparked a bidding war among several European clubs, including Arsenal and Real Madrid, but Germany's Bayern Munich eventually signed him in 2007 for €25 million.At Bayern, Ribéry was instrumental in helping restore the club to its former glory, securing a double in 2007-08 by winning the German Cup and the league. For his role, Ribéry was named both the 2008 French Player of the Year and the 2008 German Footballer of the Year. He is currently still playing for Bayern, having won another three league titles (2010, 2013, 2014) and the Champions League (2013).
On 6 April 1924, the Italian national team suffered its worst defeat to date, losing 7-1 to Hungary in Budapest. The match, a friendly, was played in preparation for the upcoming 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris (where Italy failed to earn a medal, losing 2-1 in the semifinals to silver medalist Switzerland).Italy's unlucky goalkeeper against Hungary was 22-year-old Gianpiero Combi from Juventus, making his first appearance for the Azzurri. He did not play again for the national team until almost a year later on 22 March 1925, when Italy beat France 7-0 in Turin. He was Italy's primary goalkeeper for the next ten years and helped them win the bronze medal at the 1928 Summer Olympics - Italy's first trophy - and captained them to the World Cup trophy in 1934.
On 5 April 1902, during a match between the Scottish and English national teams at Ibrox Park in Glasgow, the West Tribune Stand collapsed, killing 25 people and injuring 547 others.Close to 80,000 people were in attendance to watch the match between Scotland and England, the first one contested between entirely professional sides. It was the final scheduled match of the 1902 British Home Championship, with the title yet to be decided. A win for either side would have delivered the championship, while Scotland could also have claimed the title with a draw.The stadium was state-of-the-art, having just been built by Rangers in 1899 for the then-substantial cost of £20,000. Early in the match, however, a portion near the top of the western terrace (pictured above) collapsed, dropping several hundred people a distance of 40 to 50 feet. The majority of the 25 fatalities were caused by impact, either from the fall or by debris from the collapsing structure. Three people reportedly died from shock trauma or heart failure.The collapse caused a panic in the crowd, forcing people onto the pitch. The game was halted for approximately 20 minutes, then resumed, with the teams playing to a 1-1 draw. After the extent of the injuries was revealed, the match was declared void. The teams held a replay on 3 May 1902 at Villa Park in Birmingham. The result was another draw, this time 2-2, giving the title to Scotland.The contractor who built the western terrace faced criminal prosecution later that year, but was acquitted of any wrongdoing in connection with the collapse.
On 4 April 1991, former Tottenham star midfielder Glenn Hoddle (pictured second from the right) was appointed player-manager of Division Two side Swindon Town F.C.
Prior to his term with Swindon, he had just finished a successful four-year term at AS Monaco in France playing under Arsene Wenger. (He spent a month with Chelsea in the interim, but made no senior appearances for the Blues before taking the post with the Robins).
Swindon Town was Hoddle's first managerial appointment. At the time he took charge, the Robins were 17th in the Division 2 table and in danger of relegation. Hoddle kept them up, but just barely, taking only 7 points of the 24 available during the remainder of the season and finishing in 21st place, only two points above the drop zone.
Under Hoddle, the Robins finished in 8th place the following season. The improvement continued in the 1992-93 season, when Swindon reached the playoffs and earned promotion to England's top flight, the recently-established Premier League.
Hoddle went on to manage Chelsea from 1993-96 (as player-manager from 1993-95, and solely as manager in 1996), then England from 1996-99. His tenure with English national team was controversial, despite qualifying for the 1998 World Cup, where England lost to Argentina on penalties in the second round in a match famous for David Beckham being sent off in the 47th minute. Hoddle was dimissed from the English side in 1999 after giving an interview with the Times in which he suggested that physical disabilities were the result of bad karma "from another lifetime."
Hoddle returned to management with Southampton (2001-01), Tottenham Hotspur (2001-03), and Wolverhampton Wanderers (2004-06), but has since retired from management.
In 2008, he established the Glenn Hoddle Academy in Jerez, Spain to aid former Premier League and Football League Championship players in their efforts to return to professional football.
On 3 April 1905, Club Atletico Boca Juniors was founded in the La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires by five Italian immigrants - Esteban Baglietto, Juan Farenga, Teodoro Farenga, Santiago Sana, and Alfredo Scarpati. The first match was played on 21 April 1905. The photo above is the first-known photograph of Boca Juniors, taken in 1906.Boca Juniors play in blue and yellow, which the club reportedly patterned after the colors of the Swedish flag. Prior to that, Boca played in shirts with black and white vertical stripes, which were also used by another local club. In 1906, the two clubs played a match, with the winner keeping the stripes. Boca lost, and decided to use the colors of the first ship to sail into port at Buenos Aires, which was a Swedish freighter. Thus Boca adopted their now-famous blue and yellow kits.Boca won their first title - the Argentinian amateur championship - in 1919, starting a series of successes that now includes 32 domestic and 18 international trophies, making them one of the most decorated clubs in history. Their achievements include four Intercontinental Cup/FIFA Club World Cup titles (in 1977, 2000, 2003, and 2007).A number of international stars have played for Boca, including Juan Roman Riquelme (1995-2002 and again from 2007-present), Carlos Tevez (2001-04) and Argentine football legend Diego Maradona (1981-82, 1995-97).
On 2 April 1989, Arsenal defender and captain Tony Adams had the misfortune of being the only goalscorer in the Gunners' 1-1 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Adams scored his first goal of the day to give Arsenal a 0-1 lead, only to bring Man United level when he inadvertently put the ball into his own net.Adams had skippered the Arsenal side for just over a year, having been appointed in January 1988 at the age of 21, making him the youngest Arsenal captain to that point. His tenure as captain improved, however, as Arsenal went on to claim the league title in 1989 with their famous 0-2 win at Anfield in their last match of the season. He also led Arsenal through their record-breaking unbeaten league season in 2003-04.Adams held onto the captain's armband for fourteen years before retiring in 2002 as one of Arsenal's most decorated players. During his career, in addition to the 1989 title, he helped Arsenal to three more league titles (in 1991, 1998, and 2002), three FA Cup trophies (1993, 1998, 2002), two League Cup trophies (1987, 1993), a European Cup Winners' Cup (1994), and three Community Shields (1991 (shared), 1998, 1999 ). He made 504 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 32 goals.
On 1 April 1984, Shamrock Rovers beat Shelbourne 3-1, securing their first league title in 20 years. It was a major stepping stone in Rovers' establishment as the most successful club in Ireland.Rovers were founded in Dublin in 1901, but struggled during their early years and twice went through a cycle of disbanding and resurrection between 1906 and 1921. In 1922, one year after their second resurrection, the League of Ireland elected Rovers as a member. It was a turning point for the club, who won the league title that season. By 1949, Rovers were the dominant team in Ireland, having won 44 major trophies, including six league titles and 11 FAI Cups.The club struggled through the 1970s, coinciding with a general decline in fortunes for Irish football, as match attendances diminished and two clubs - Drumcondra and Cork Hibs - disbanded. Rovers finished at the bottom of the table in 1975 and had to re-apply for admission to the league.In 1983, Rovers signed new manager Jim McLaughlin, who set about rebuilding the squad from the ground up. He released the majority of the players he inherited from the previous manager and spent freely to replace them with stars from around the league. That approach proved successful, as Rovers' win over Shelbourne on 1 April 1984 clinched their first league title since 1964. They went on to win three more consecutive titles, though only two were under McLaughlin, who left in 1986 to manage his hometown club Derry City (leading them to a domestic treble in 1989, when they won the the league, the FAI Cup and the League Cup).Rovers currently hold records for most League of Ireland titles (15), FAI Cups (24), and League of Ireland Shields (18). They narrowly missed adding to their tally last season, finishing in second place, four points behind league winners Bohemians.
