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Yes, the world is in the throes of football fever. The 2010 FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) World Cup football, which wows the globe every four years is now in its quarter final stage and all bets are on to see who will capture this year’s final cup. Will the indomitable Germans beat the resilient Argentineans or, will the Netherlands score an upset? World Cup Football is hands down, the greatest and most highly anticipated sporting event of all time. Two hundred and four nations tried to qualify for thirty two spots, with the U.S. qualifying for the first time in decades. The 2006 final match between Italy and France was watched by an estimated 715 million. With shifting demographics and 21st century technology rendering borders nearly obsolete, this year’s tally is anyone’s guess. Aficionados pour into stadiums, huddle around television sets, with gladiator-like fervor. Histories are invoked, wars waged, players pilloried and publicly chastised. Allegiances for players and countries are drawn in stone with blood and sweat.

It is known universally as, «the beautiful game,» for its elegant simplicity, the divinely appointed athletic prowess of its players and its appeal to the common man. The skill of the play, the passion and the enduring love for the game creates a brotherhood that transcends the sport. The unparalleled high and mindless exhilaration of GOOOOOAAAL! Much like basketball, it elevates its gifted players to god-like status, while simultaneously connecting them with the mortals who live vicariously through them. More than any other sport, football is a great equalizer. Because not mere color of skin, or nationality or Club can dictate ability or greatness. It simply is. A boy from a favela of Brazil with a devastating strike or from an obscure village in Côte d’Ivoire can become a striker for a world-class English Club. A good number come from exceedingly difficult circumstances, where pulling yourself up by the bootstraps often means borrowing a pair of cleats and heading to a game on a dusty bowl. Today’s black football players who hail from far-flung countries to play for European Clubs such as Inter Milan, Barcelona and Manchester United. But for World Cup, they return to play only for their national team. This is not to say that racism in football is not a serious issue. Taunts and behavior of fans can be unspeakably ugly, cruel and primitive, coming as it does from a contingent that remains stubbornly ignorant and primitive. That players consistently rise above it is a testament to their personal strength and integrity. The game has become a way of life that can change the trajectory of lives and communities. Stunning paychecks are often accompanied by lofty commercial endorsement from Nike, Gillette, and others. Players share their good fortune, donating substantial amounts to build hospitals, schools, and life-saving social service programs.

The 2010 World Cup in South Africa is the first played on the continent of Africa and has the potential to shift global perceptions on a number of levels. From the Africa Cup of Nations to 2010 World Cup, footballers of African descent and nationality have put the world on notice: they are a force with which to be reckoned. Just ask Team USA.

And no self-respecting football fan ever calls it soccer. It’s football, now and always.

Here are eight of the world’s best and brightest black football players of the 2010 World Cup South Africa.

Samuel Eto’o

Country: Cameroon

Club: Inter Milan; Cameroon national team

Position: Striker

Earnings: $12. 7 million

The world’s been put on notice. Hands-down one of the top left-back in the world, Samuel Eto’o’s achievements are momentous for his country and his club. He exemplifies football excellence in the vein of the great legends and has surpassed expectations in every club for which he has played. His performance has been consistently excellent and he is at present the most decorated African player of all time, including African Player of the Year for three consecutive years. A goal scoring machine, Eto’o scored over 100 goals in five seasons with FC Barcelona. He is captain of the Cameroon national team and currently Africa’s best-paid football player. He has participated in two World Cups and five African Nations Cups and is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the African Nations Cup, (capturing championship twice) with 18 goals. In the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, Eto’o became joint leading goalscorer

As a member of the Cameroon national team, he was a gold medalist at the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Didier Drogba:

Country: Ivory Coast/Côte d’Ivoire

Club: Chelsea

Position: Striker

Earnings: $7.5 million Endorsements: Pepsi; Nike, Samsung

Mark the name for it is the future of football. Don’t be fooled by Drogba’s late entry to the football arena, he in a powerhouse. Known for breaching impregnable defenses, Drogba is a goalkeepers’ nightmare. Signed by Chelsea for $37 million, he has proved invaluable. He has scored more goals for the club than any other foreign player and is it’s 7th highest goal scorer ever. most promising African football players, he is one of the top scorers in the Premier League. Captain and all-time top scorer of the Côte d’Ivoire national football team, Drogba was signed to Chelsea for a record breaking fee of £24 million, making him the most expensive Côte d’Ivoire player in history. Drogba came to prominence as one of the world’s foremost strikers in 2006 when he won the league title with Chelsea and captained the national team for the first time. In the 2006 World Cup he scored Côte d’Ivoire’s first ever goal of the competition and was chosen the 2006 African Footballer of the Year. He is the only player to score in six English cup finals.

But much of this pales in comparison to his humanitarian work for his country. After Côte d’Ivoire qualified for the 2006 World Cup, Drogba pleaded for a ceasefire between the combatants of his country’s deadly 5 year civil war, which was honored shortly after. In 2007, he was appointed Goodwill Ambassador by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and donated his $4.5 million signing on fee for his endorsement of Pepsi towards the construction of a hospital in his hometown of Abidjan.

Maicon Douglas Sisenando

Country: Brazil

Club Team: Internazionale AKA Inter Milan

Position: Defender

Earnings:$5.4 million

A gifted righ-sided fullback and formidable back-field, Maicon is a something of a phenomenon in Brazilian football – not an easy feat. He excels at defensive games and provides great support for his team. Maicon scored Brazil’s first 2010 World Cup goal – a tight angle shot – against Korea in their first game. Maicon’s contribution to Inter Milan have included staunch defending and offensive support, place him in contention for the 2010 ballon d’Or, the European Footballer of the year award. In a nod to his prowess, Real Madrid recently paid £28 million for him to join their Club.

Patrice Evra:

Country: France

Club Team: Manchester United

Position: Defender, Full-back; French captain

Earnings: $4 million

Evra is his own version of the United Nations. Born in Senegal of Guinean heritage and a French national, he is one of Manchester United ‘s most valuable players and oddly, captain of the French national team. Arguably one of the best left backs in the world and a wicked left wingback Evra has won Premier League titles and the Champions League with Manchester United. During United’s 07-08 season, Evra became a key member of United’s defense. But he is not without controversy. Following the dismissal of teammate, Nicolas Anelka from the squad after his dust-up with coach Raymond Domenech, Evra led a player mutiny against the decision and publicly denounced the coach. Asa result, Evra was benched for the final game against South Africa. Even so, he returns to a highly distinguished career.

Thierry Henry

Country: France

Club Team: Barcelona; French national team

Position: Striker

Earnings: Annual salary plus bonus: $6.2 million, Other income: $6.2 million

Endorsements: Pepsi, Gilette, Reebok

He is one of the most recognized and lauded players in football and certainly A worthy distinction for one of the most prominent forwards in the sport. During his meteoric rise at Arsenal, the phenomenal Henry emerged as leading goal-scorer for almost every season with 226 goals in all competitions. The phenomenal Frenchman won two league titles and three FA Cups and was twice nominated for FIFA World Player of the Year. Possessed of devastating speed and superhero agility, he remains the leading all-time goal-scorer in Europe with 42 goals with a flair for impossible, dramatic goals. Despite the controversy surrounding Henry’s propensity for using his hand to set up a goal, he is a football institution that has elevated the sport to an art form.

Nicolas Anelka

Country: France

Club Team: Chelsea (ENG); French national team

Position: Striker

Earnings: $5.8 million Endorsements: Puma

Though his petulance rivals his potential, Anelka has shown tremendous potential as a striker. A relentless scorer who is lightning fast with superb control, Anelka’s goal won France its World Cup match against Ireland. His three-and-a-half year deal and his reported fee means more money has been spent on transferring Nicolas over the course of his career than on any other player in football history.

Sully Muntari Country: Ghana

Club Team: Internazionale AKA Inter Milan

Position: Midfielder

Earnings: $5.3 million, Endorsements: Puma

If Ghana takes World Cup, you can bet Muntari will be instrumental to their win. A football prodigy, Muntari was just 16 when he played for Ghana at the 2001 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina. He was voted as an All-Star Player during the 2008 African Cup of Nations Tournament in Ghana.

Yaya Toure

Country: Ivory Coast

Club Team: Barcelona

Position: Midfielder

Earning: $3.7 million

Toure’s titanic stature and gushing energy combine to make him one of the best midfielders in modern football, with a perfect combination of physical power with superb technique. He is the first player from Côte d’Ivoire to win the UEFA Champions League, in 2008/09 and one of the driving forces behind the team that rewrote football history by winning six trophies in a single season. He was recently transferred from Barcelona to Manchester City for £25m, where he’ll join his brother, brother and club captain, Kolo. He was a powerful midfielder for his native Côte d’Ivoire, who made their first appearance in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

If you ask me I would say that the midfield is the most important part of any football team. It then follows that the midfielders are the engine room of any football team.

The best teams in the world are those teams that have the best midfielders. Take a look at the Spanish national team. Take a look at the German national team. Take a look at the Argentine, Italian, English and Brazilian national teams. All these teams have something in common – powerful midfield.

Now, what are the qualities of a good midfielder? A good midfielder should be able to hold the ball. It might interest you to know that winning a match most times depends on ball possession. That is, the ability of a team to hold on to the ball more than the opponent. It is a special characteristic of a good midfielder. He or she holds on to the ball in order to prevent the opponent from getting the ball and creating chances that may result in goals because a team can only score a goal if they possess the ball.

A good midfielder should be able to give accurate passes. Chances to score goals are created by giving sublime and accurate passes. There is no way a team can win a match if they pass the ball to the opponent. And it is the function of the midfielders to supply the accurate passes to his or her teammates.

A good midfielder should be able to see very well. This is an exceptional quality of the world’s best midfielders such as Frank Lampard of Chelsea Football Club of England. This kind of midfielders scores goals from unbelievable distance. They win matches for their team by turning things around in a split second.

Zola began his footballing career with Sardinian side Nuorese in the early eighties, he also spent three seasons at Torres before signing for Serie A team Napoli in 1989. Alongside Zola at Napoli were football stars such as Diego Maradona and Brazilian striker Careca. Zola spent many hours training with Maradona and admitted to learning everything from the Argentine.

Ruud Hullit signed Zola for Chelsea in 1996 for £4.5 million. Zola fitted in straight away, unlike many Italian players who find it hard to adapt to the pace of English football, he was instrumental in helping the side reach the FA Cup final which they went on to win, beating Middlesbrough 2-1. At the end of the season he was voted FWA Player Of The Year, the first Chelsea player ever to do so.

His skill, agility and goal scoring instincts helped Chelsea reach another FA Cup final in 2000 when they beat Aston Villa 1-0. Zola forged a great striking partnership with Jimmy Floyd Hasslebank and also went on the score one of the best ever goals for Chelsea. In an FA cup tie against Norwich, he back heeled a corner inside the near post as the ball was in mid air.

During the 2001/2002 season, new manager Claudio Ranieri was keen to introduce younger blood to the squad and Zola was often sidelined. He returned to Italy in 2003 to play for Cagliari in his native Sardinia.

In 2003 Zola was voted Chelsea’s best ever player and a year later he recieved an OBE, an honorary member of the British Empire in a ceremony in Rome.

For the best part of the last decade, two names have dominated world football (soccer) more than any others; Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. These great rivals have broken countless football records, scored insane number of goals and pushed each other all the way to greatness despite the fact that they are two very different football players, playing two very different styles in two very different roles for two different clubs. The only thing that really connects the two is the ocean of ability that separates them from the rest of the players in the world. There can be no question as to whether the duo belongs in the pantheon of football all-time greats anymore. Although any effort to determine the greatest footballer of all time is subject to generational bias, it should be noted that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are not individually or collectively the greatest football player[s] of all time due to the following reasons;

Cristiano is not the best ‘Ronaldo’ to play the game: Despite his unparalleled achievement in and off the field of play, Cristiano Ronaldo is still not considered the best Ronaldo to have played the game. Ronaldo de Assisi (also known as Ronaldinho) and Ronaldo de Lima (the phenomenon) are the other ‘Ronaldos’ whose legendary attacking prowess is often compared to Cristiano Ronaldo’s. Ronaldo de Lima was a more explosive and complete striker who would have probably been the ‘World’s Best Striker Ever’ if he had stayed injury-free in his footballing career, while Ronaldinho was the entertainer who, at his peak, constantly wowed the footballing world. Cristiano Ronaldo is better than other ‘Ronaldos’ in terms of constituency over the years, phenomenal goal-scoring rates, overall fitness and prolonged career (due to low rate of injuries) but for sheer skill, explosiveness, superior technical ability, and the ‘wow’ factor, the two ‘Ronaldos’ are better than Cristiano Ronaldo.

Lionel Messi is not the best ever Argentine player: It is a well-known fact that for a footballer to be the best ever in the world, he has to be the best ever footballer in his country and sadly, Lionel Messi isn’t both. Lionel Messi is not the best football player Argentina has produced. That honor goes to Diego Armando Maradona. Maradona (widely regarded as one of the best football players ever) is a footballing legend that inspired Argentina to a world cup victory and S.S.C. Napoli (in the Italian Football League) to its first and second League title [Scudetti] in its history. He is the scorer of the world’s most dubious goal (the ‘Hand of God’ goal) and the FIFA Goal of the Century. There is virtually a cult around the player in Argentina. Diego Maradona (and Pele) is the benchmark for the illustrious South American nation when a new star comes on to the block. So, while Messi has dazzled on the European stage, passing milestone after milestone and picking up loads of awards, his countrymen regard him as the country’s second best football player ever.

Both players have never won the World Cup: Although the latter rounds of the modern-day UEFA Champions League would rival the FIFA World Cup in terms of quality, with talents from around the globe increasingly concentrated in the hands of an elite few, the World Cup still retains substantial symbolic value as a quadrennial competition which pit the best of one nation against the best of another. It is no secret Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have never won (or inspired their respective countries to win) the FIFA World Cup. Cristiano Ronaldo has won an European Cup (The Euros) with his home country, Portugal but has never been to the semi-finals or the finals of the World Cup while Lionel Messi was underwhelming in the 2014 world cup semi-final and final with his home country Argentina eventually losing to Germany. The World (and Messi) was shocked when he was named the best player and awarded the Golden Ball of the tournament. Lionel Messi is also a three-time runner-up in the Copa America competition with Argentina. Most football players such as Zinedine Zidane, Pele, Diego Maradonna, Ronaldinho, Ronaldo de Lima etc. often touted as the world’s best ever football player all played dominant roles in the World Cup tournament they eventually won. The same cannot be said presently of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

They are not Football’s best Goal-scorers ever: Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are efficient, effective and phenomenal goal scorers boasting amazing goal per match ratio but they aren’t among the five best goal scorers in football history. Neither of them have scored up more than 700 goals in their respective careers so they cannot be in the company of great players such as Pele, Romario, Josef Bican, Ferenc Puskas (he has a FIFA goal-scoring award named after him), Gerd Muller. The rate of scoring of these legendary players is more impressive than that of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo given they ended their footballing careers with goal tallies well into the 800s. So if scoring goals are what makes footballers great, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, having better players boasting better goal tallies ahead of them, cannot be the greatest footballers of all time.

Both players have been accused of being criminals: They both have tax payment issues with the Spanish authorities (the country they reside and play in) and so have been accused of being criminals. After a lengthy trial that attracted so much publicity due to his status as a supremely gifted sportsman, Lionel Messi (and his father) was found guilty of not paying his taxes to the Spanish government, fined heavily and sentenced to two years in prison (he has since agreed to pay an increased fine rather than have a 21-month suspended prison sentence). His trial, guilty verdict, fine and (suspended) sentence damaged his credibility as a morally upright athlete who could do no wrong and that of his football club (FC Barcelona). Cristiano Ronaldo is also being investigated for tax evasion by the Spanish authorities, might be tried (or not), heavily fined and get a suspended prison sentence.

Their overall goal tallies are padded with too many penalties: Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are the greatest goal scorers of their generation. They score obscene number of goals in a football season but almost half of the total goals scored both players have come from the penalty spot. In football, penalties are the easiest way to score because it involves only the designated penalty-taker and a goal keeper to beat. Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, being the designated penalty-takers of their respective club sides, always take every penalty kick awarded them or their teammates thereby increasing their goal tallies. In 2013/2014 Football season in England, Luis Suarez of Liverpool FC (before he moved to FC Barcelona to become a teammate of Lionel Messi) won the highest goal scorer award in the English Premier League and shared the European Golden Shoe award with Cristiano Ronaldo by scoring 32 goals in 33 games in open play without taking a single penalty. That is a record Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo do not yet hold.

They play for football’s most valuable clubs: Messi and Ronaldo play for super-clubs in Spain where the top sides score goals by the hatful. The second millennium’s new financial order unfortunately gave birth to the modern super team essentially creating a certain form of predictability in both domestic and continental leagues. Lionel Messi plays for FC Barcelona in Spain while Ronaldo plays for Real Madrid CF also in Spain. FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF are extremely rich and dominant football clubs that can afford to buy and stockpile the best and most expensive football talent anywhere in the world and so Messi and Ronaldo are always surrounded and assisted by world-class players to aid in dominating continental club football thus raising their international profiles. Both clubs always have a slew of world-class players at their disposal which leads to utter domination in domestic (Spanish La Liga) and continental (UEFA Champions League) football competitions.

The benefit of playing in the Modern Era: It is almost impossible to compare players of different era in a game that has changed so much over the years. Great footballers like Ferenc Puskas, Alfredo di Stefano played in an era when the game was played at a tempo unrecognizably slower than in the modern era. That does not make them less great than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. The game played presently has changed because of changes in rules governing the game and the quality of footballs produced and used. Players in the modern era are also fitter, faster, and stronger than they have ever been, but players (especially defenders) are technically weaker than they have ever been. The Champions League’s expansions of the nineties is also an advantage to the modern player: having a group stage allows a margin of error that simply did not exist in the knock out style pre-1995 tournament. It has never been easier for attackers – Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo probably would never score 40-60 goals a season in the 1980s when the rules governing the game and footballs used didn’t benefits attackers (strikers), and defenders/defenses were littered with world-class talents.

They are a part of football’s rich history: We view the history of the game through our own national experiences, or at least we did until the modern era, where we can watch the Spanish league, Messi and Ronaldo every weekend. It is worth remembering that in the 1970s and even into the 1980s, most of Europe just watched the European Cup and UEFA Cup games of their own national teams. So, here is a little suggestion; the next time Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo score a breath-taking goal and someone on Twitter suggests the debate (on the greatest football player) is over, head to YouTube and spend ten minutes watching goals from Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Pele, Ferenc Puskas, Roberto Baggio, Eusebio, Alfredo di Stefano and so on. There have been plenty of geniuses in the game, and Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are part of that rich football history.

Generational and positional bias in football: The hunt for the greatest football player in history is like that of the Holy Grail. All footballers (sportsmen) are products of their time. Due to football’s developmental stagnation relative to other sport and because there are so many different positions, and so many roles within those positions, it is hard to have a worthwhile conversation about who the best football player of all time is. Since the main objective of the game is to score a goal, the best goal scorers such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo will always be near the top of any list about the game’s best players.

Conclusion; Don’t kid yourself that there won’t be another player like Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, no-one thought they would see another player like Diego Maradona.

The electrifying Victor Ikpeba began his career at the now defunct African Continental Bank F.C of Lagos, before representing Nigeria U-17 squad that took part in the 1989 FIFA U-17 World Cup held in Scotland. His performance at that tournament convinced football scouts from Belgium to recruit him into modest Belgian club side- RFC Liege. He soon established himself as a clinical finisher after making 79 appearances and scoring 27 goals for the Belgian team.

In 1994 French club- Monaco F.C then coached by the present Arsenal tactician Arsene Wenger snapped gave snapped him up. Victor Ikpeba had the most eventful time of his football career at Monaco, as he helped the French club win the League title. He also got an invitation into the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Soccer squad of Nigeria. The Team eventually won Gold after defeating Argentina in the final.

The icing in the cake of the Delta State born Footballer came in 1997 when he won the African footballer of the year award after a wonderful season with Monaco. He played a total of 169 games and scored 55 goals for the Monaco team. This enviable feat earned him the nickname- «The Prince of Monaco».

After leaving Monaco for Borussia Dortmund in 1999, his career took a nose-dived which eventually became worse in the 2000 after the demise of his young wife- Atinuke through breast cancer. Subsequent efforts to revive his career with Real Betis of Spain, Al-Ittihad of Libya and Charleroi F.C of Belgium did not yield much fruit, as he eventually retired from active football in 2005.

It is pertinent to note that Victor Ikpeba was an integral part of the Super Eagles squad from 1993- 2000. He played a total of 30 matches and scored 3 goals for the Super Eagles of Nigeria in all competitions.

His worst miss came in the African Cup of Nations final jointly co-hosted by Nigeria and Ghana in 2000 when he scored in the penalty shoot-out against Cameroon but thought the ball had not crossed the line. He held his head in disbelieve and the referee and his assistant ruled that it was not a goal. Television replay later showed that the whole of the ball actually crossed the line. Nigeria eventually lost the game.

He was a member of the Super Eagles squad that participated at the 1994 African Nations Cup held in Tunisia as well as the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cups held in the United States and Spain respectively. He his presently a sports analyst with South African based Super Sports Channel television.

We have reached the climax of the 2010 FIFA soccer World Cup in South Africa, and the moment of glory is fast approaching, when the winner of the tournament would be declared. The battle is between two European nations – Spain and the Netherlands. Each of the teams has given a very good account of themselves since the tournament began on the 11th of June; and come 11th of July, we shall all know who emerges champions.

When the tournament started on the 11th of June, not too many soccer enthusiasts beamed their satellites on Spain or the Netherlands. Their satellites had been directed toward Brazil, Argentina, Germany, England, Italy and France. All six countries have won the world cup at least once; and looking at the strength of their teams and the quality of players they came with, it was logical for them to have concluded that one of them would win.

However, thoughts, logic and wishes soon got separated from reality as some of the big names like Italy (defending champions) and France were eliminated in the group stage. England followed in the second round; Brazil and Argentina took their exit in the quarter finals stage, leaving Germany as the clear favorites after they bundled out Argentina 4-0.

On Wednesday 7th July, Spain ensured that the remaining favorite, Germany, was sent home, leaving only Spain and the Netherlands to decide where the world cup goes to this time around. It is now very clear that the world is expecting a new champion because the two teams remaining have never tasted world soccer glory before; none has ever kissed the FIFA soccer trophy.

But who wins this year’s edition?

The two sides have done remarkably well; they have shown class, discipline and technical efficiency. On paper, the Spaniards have an edge over the Dutch; they are the reigning European champions and the bulk of the team is made up of former UEFA champions, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. Considering what they did to Germany in their semi finals match, they are surely not a push over.

The Spaniards have got a potent striker in the person of David Villa, with 5 goals in 6 matches; and also a good mid field and defense supported by Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Pedro, Charles Puyol and Sergio Ramos. They also have a goal keeper (Casillas) who has not conceded many goals from the commencement of the tournament.

The Dutch on the other hand, have a reliable striker, Wesley Sneijder, who has so far scored 5 goals; and a dependable mid field marshalled by Bronckhorst. They also have reliable attackers like Arjen Robben, Robin Van Persie and Kuyt.

We therefore expect a very fluid, attacking football, balanced with tactical discipline from both sides. The outcome of the game would be decided by the technical crews, and also by the number of opportunities utilized by both sides. Wastage has to be minimized by anyone who hopes to emerge as the crowned champions. Selfishness on the part of the strikers has to be checked as well. Temperaments must be controlled, and all kinds of diving and false alarms must be avoided if they are to give their teeming fans something to enjoy; and they should be ready to win the match convincingly to the delight of all spectators.

We earnestly await the crowning of a new world champions come Sunday 11th July 2010. We wish the finalists best of luck in their quest to win the trophy for the very first time.