Importance Score: 45 / 100 🔵
Football Trivia: Defensive Lineups and Naming Oddities
In a recent Women’s Champions League clash against Manchester City, Chelsea deployed a defensive quartet of Bronze, Bright, Björn, and Baltimore. This unusual selection prompted Asad Butt to inquire: “Are there other instances of this – teams fielding defenses, midfields, or attacks with players sharing a common surname trait?”. This article explores football teams with quirky naming conventions, stadium name duplications, and unusual player statistics.
Defenders of the Same Initial
Way back in 2017, we addressed a query about men’s teams starting three or more players with identical first names, citing the example of five Johns in an England lineup against Switzerland in 1948: John Aston, John Haines, John Hancocks, John (‘Jack’) Rowley, and John (‘Jackie’) Milburn. As Asad mentioned, Chelsea’s recent backline in the Manchester City game showcased four players with surnames starting with the same letter (and Aggie Beever-Jones in the prior match). However, even more unique examples exist.
The Brazilian ‘R’ Squad
The Brazilian national team from the early 2000s, brimming with attacking talent whose names commenced with ‘R’, provides a striking instance. Fresh off their 2002 World Cup victory, coach Luiz Felipe Scolari unleashed an attacking foursome of Ronaldo, Ricardinho, Rivaldo, and Ronaldinho in a friendly against Paraguay a couple of months later (in a surprising 1-0 defeat for Brazil). Roberto Carlos was also in the starting eleven that day, and Rogério Ceni made a substitute appearance. Zé Roberto, another World Cup winner, was rested, as was Roque Júnior, while Romário, despite his impressive form for Vasco da Gama, remained excluded by Scolari. Romário’s prior omission from the World Cup squad followed his withdrawal from the 2001 Copa América to take a holiday, for which he later tearfully apologized.
South Korea’s Kim Quartet at the World Cup
In a 2022 World Cup group stage fixture against Uruguay, South Korea not only named a defense with four surnames sharing an initial but remarkably, all four were named Kim. Kim Moon-hwan, Kim Min-jae, Kim Young-gwon, and Kim Jin-su formed the defensive line, while goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu also started, contributing to a clean sheet in the 0-0 draw. Kim Tae-hwan, a substitute, remained on the bench, narrowly missing the chance to make it six Kims for the Korean side.
Oman’s All ‘Al’ Team
South Korea isn’t alone in having prevalent surnames or surname prefixes. Just recently in a World Cup qualifier versus Kuwait, Oman fielded an entire starting eleven where every surname began with ‘Al’. Ibrahim Al Mukhaini, Thani Al-Rushaidi, Ahmed Al-Khamisi, Amjad Al-Harthi, Ali Al-Busaidi, Arshad Al-Alawi, Jameel Al-Yahmadi, Salaah Al-Yahyaei, Abdul Rahman Al-Mushaifri, Harib Al-Saadi, and Issam Al-Sabhi all commenced the match for Oman. Ahmed Al-Kaabi, Khalid Al-Braiki, and Muhsen Al-Ghassani entered as substitutes in the second half. Among the 23 Omani squad members that day, only Abdullah Fawaz’s surname didn’t start with ‘Al’.
Bungay’s Charity Football Spectacle
In amateur soccer, a charity match in Bungay, England, in 2012 stands out. Approximately 70 individuals with the surname Bungay convened in the Suffolk town of Bungay for a game at Bungay Town’s ground. Two teams of Bungay players, along with Bungay officials, Bungay mascots, and a Bungay doctor, participated. The match concluded in a 6-6 draw, and referee John Bungay dismissed Chris Bungay – who had travelled all the way from Queensland, Australia – for using foul language.
Beyond teams with similar names or prefixes, can readers provide even more noteworthy examples? Share your insights at [email protected].
Scrabble Puzzle Revisited
Julian Borrill points out a couple of inaccuracies in the previous responses regarding Scrabble scores.
Firstly, a Scrabble board is only 15 squares wide, meaning words longer than 15 letters – such as Bosnia and Herzegovina – cannot fit. Secondly, the English Scrabble set contains only one tile for each high-scoring letter (Z, Q, X, J, K), thus “Kyrgyz Republic vs Kazakhstan” exceeds the available ‘Z’s and ‘K’s. However, Scrabble boards feature word and letter multiplier squares. Notably, a 15-letter word positioned across three triple-word score squares yields a substantial 27x multiplier.
Unfortunately, top scorers Falkland Islands and French Polynesia (both 810 points including a 50-point bingo bonus) aren’t FIFA members. Dutch East Indies (783 points, pre-1945), US Virgin Islands (588 points, post-1992), and Northern Ireland (567 points, post-1950) have never played each other. Northern Ireland’s tile composition makes it a strong contender in combination. Their 1958 World Cup matches against Czechoslovakia (as it was then named), particularly the latter match played across two triple-word scores with the ‘C’ and ‘K’ on double-letter squares, accumulates an impressive 972 points.
Stadium Name Repetition
Adam Thoroughgood asks: “Both Plough Lane and Kingsmeadow have been simultaneously called the Cherry Red Records Stadium while AFC Wimbledon played at each. Are there other clubs that have maintained the same stadium name across different locations?”.
Scottish Stadium Name Continuity
Andy Kerr from the Scottish Football Museum at Hampden offers a valuable response. “Several Scottish clubs have done this.” In recent years, St Mirren relocated from St Mirren Park (informally known as Love Street by fans) to their present St Mirren Park in 2009. Going further back, Celtic constructed a new stadium near their original Celtic Park in 1892, retaining the Celtic Park name. Kilmarnock also utilized several grounds named Rugby Park before settling at their current Rugby Park in 1899. Most famously, there have been three stadiums named Hampden Park (excluding Lesser Hampden) as Queen’s Park adopted the name when moving from the first and second Hampdens. Scotland and Queen’s Park’s home takes its name from Hampden Terrace, a street overlooking the first Hampden Park, potentially named after English politician John Hampden.
Games Played in a Single Season Record
Simon Treanor noted a few weeks ago: “I’ve always found it remarkable that in 2003-04, Marlon Harewood played 19 league matches for Forest, then joined West Ham, who had a game in hand, and played 28 times. He played 47 games in a 46-game league season (plus three in the playoffs). Can anyone surpass this?”.
Kyle Knoyle’s Season of Appearances
Ian Waterhouse responds: “Kyle Knoyle’s 2022-23 season seems to fit the criteria. A consistent starter for Doncaster Rovers in the season’s first half (25 games), he transferred to Stockport County due to a right-back injury crisis. After a substitute appearance on debut, he started all 22 remaining league matches. That’s 47 starts and one sub appearance in one league season – 51 appearances in league competition in total, including play-offs.” Similar to Harewood, he reached the play-off final, starting in the semi-finals and the final. However, he experienced defeat at Wembley.
Smallest Champion’s Ground
Roland Tye inquired in 2014: “Which English top-flight champions had the smallest stadium capacity when they won the league? Consider pre- and post-war eras, perhaps. I suspect Blackburn in the modern Premier League era.”
Post-War Smallest Champion Stadium
Roland’s guess is correct for the Premier League era. Ewood Park, largely unchanged since 1995, had a capacity of just over 31,000 [updated data: Leicester City’s King Power Stadium capacity was 32,262 in 2016]. Highbury follows, accommodating 38,419 when Arsenal last won the league in 2004. Pre-Premier League era is more complex due to stadium evolution and fluctuating capacities. Limiting consideration to post-war era offers reliable records and settled club homes. Portman Road, home of the 1961-62 champions Ipswich Town, is likely the smallest ground to host a post-war title winner, with approximately 29,000 capacity.
Seeking Your Football Knowledge
The 92 Club Stadiums
Demetri Loizou asks: “Have any players competed at all ‘The 92’ Football League stadiums? This question appeared on The Knowledge over 21 years ago! An update for current active players and the current 92 stadiums would be great – who are the leaders? Managers included?”.
World Cup Visa Issues
Pablo Miguez notes: “Following Iran’s World Cup qualification, visa concerns for fans and players for potential USA matches have arisen. Visa problems have affected qualifiers, but has a player ever missed a World Cup due to visa issues?”.
Goalscoring Percentage Records
Ben asks: “In the 1947-48 Hungarian top division, Ferenc Puskás scored 50 of Kispest AC’s 82 goals (60.98%). Has any player in any league surpassed 60% of their team’s goals (minimum 15 goals scored)?”.
Longest Outfield Goals
Michael Butler writes: “Weston-super-Mare’s Luke Coulson scored a long-distance goal (around 100 yards). Has an outfield player (excluding goalkeepers’ goal-kicks) scored from further out?”.
Tightest League Promotion/Relegation Gaps
Niall Fogg states: “In Spanish Third Division B, 10 points separate the final play-off (5th) and relegation (16th) spots. My team Alcorcón (11th) could realistically be promoted or relegated. What’s the closest promotion/relegation gap in a major league?”.
Same Name Player Matchups
Robert Heath notes: “If Spain played Wales and Wales used the same defense as against North Macedonia, Nico Williams (Spain) could face Neco Williams (Wales). Has there been a direct matchup between players with similar names?”.