On 10 April 1886, Heart of Midlothian F.C. opened its current ground, Tynecastle Stadium, with a 4-1 win in a friendly against English side Bolton Wanderers. Located on Edinburgh's Gorgie Road, the stadium has hosted a number of historic matches and undergone several renovations since that first match, including the construction of the old Main Stand by famous stadium architect Archibald Leitch.Tynecastle hosted its first international match on 26 March 1892, a British Home Championship contest between Scotland and Wales. The Scots won by the score of 6-1.Tynecastle's record attendance is 53,396, acheived for Hearts' 3rd-round Scottish Cup match against Rangers on 13 February 1932, which Hearts lost 0-1. Due to its conversion to an all-seater, however, and other renovations, Tynecastle's current capacity is 17,529.In 2004, in an effort to curb the club's rising debt, Hearts chief executive Chris Robinson announced plans to sell the stadium, claiming that it was no longer suitable. Hearts supporters strongly opposed the plan, however, and responded with the "Save Our Hearts" campaign to block the sale. The sale was canceled upon Vladimir Romanov's purchase of the club in January 2005.
On 9 April 1995, 35-year old Crystal Palace supporter Paul Nixon died during an outbreak of violence before the FA Cup semi-final between Crystal Palace and Manchester United at Villa Park.According to police reports, Nixon and a group of other Crystal Palace fans were outside a pub in Walsall, eight miles from Villa Park, when they were attacked by a group of United supporters. Nixon was stabbed and hit by a brick before falling and being crushed under the wheels of a bus as he tried to escape.Nevertheless, the match was played, ending in a 2-2 draw. United won the replay four days later by the score of 2-0, with first-half goals from Gary Pallister and Steve Bruce. United then progressed to the final, where they lost to Everton. It was the first season since 1989 that United had failed to earn a trophy.Tensions had been high between supporters of Crystal Palace and Manchester United since January of that year, when Manchester United played away to Crystal Palace. During that match, which ended in a 1-1 draw, star United forward Eric Cantona leapt into the crowd and kicked a Palace supporter he claimed had been issuing racist taunts. Cantona was suspended for the rest of the season and fined £20,000.
On 8 April 1908, Bolivian club The Strongest was founded in La Paz by Jose Leon Lopez Villamil, making it the oldest active football club in the country, as well as the only one that has played in Bolivia's top flight for over 100 years without interruption.The club's colors are yellow and black, adopted in 1908 from the colors of the Chayñita, a local bird.The Strongest have earned numerous honors, their first being the inaugural (and only) Copa Prefectural championship in 1911. That was the first football tournament played in Bolivia and was contested between amateur sides. They went on to win the first of 28 league titles in 1914.The Strongest also have the distinction of being the only Bolivian team to finish a season without conceding a goal (in 1933, though they did not win the league that year).
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.
