NEWS
A selection of FirstTouch's best football writing, brought to you by emerging journalists, collaborators, and fans.
12 National Teams that would have shined in 2020
The greatest honor of every soccer player is inarguably to wear their national colors. Women and men of a select 12 teams did it amazingly in 2019 and could be coming for more in 2020.
Who were MLS’ Most Valuable Teams in 2019 and Why?
Soccer is no longer small business in America.
At this point of the ABSA Premiership Season, who are the favorites?
Kaizer Chiefs haven’t really run away with it. There are at least 3 other sides breathing down their necks.
How did Arsenal fall so far and what can they do to rebuild?
The story of the Invincibles who became the Inevitables. How much longer until they rise from their ruins?
How did Borussia Dortmund become a factory for talent?
Here is a story of a club that has continually reinvented itself and now stands tall as one of the top destinations for highly-rated football talent.
2000’s Top News Stories of the Decade
We have a time machine here at FirstTouch and just used it to chew on 10 of the best moments of the decade-spanning 2010-19. Buckle up on our free tour!
FirstTouch have a fireside chat with Portland Timbers' Jeremy Ebobisse
Find out what happened when FirstTouch’s Topher Hegngi linked up with one of MLS’s top young forwards, Jeremy Ebobisse.
How is soccer keeping Niger girls in school?
In a nation where 3 out of every 4 adolescent girls dropped out of school and got married before the age of 18, football has emerged as a powerful tool to keep a substantial number in school.
FIFA’s battle to win over top clubs ahead of the revamped 2021 Club World Cup
A 24-team Club World Cup slated for 2021 seems exciting for soccer fans around the world, but there’s something else in the water.
FIFA to turn Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium into a soccer laboratory
Barcelona is taking a leap in pioneering transformative soccer technologies, find out how.
FirstTouch’s Top 5 African Male Ballers of 2019
Worry not about the so-called snoozing and losing, we got Africa’s top male players for 2019 right here.
FirstTouch’s Top 10 Female Players of 2019
Check out our pick of top 10 female players of year.
FirstTouch’s Top 10 Male Players of 2019
Check out our pick of top 10 male players for the year 2019.
Soccer clubs, the perfect home ground for brand sponsorship?
It’s not just the packed stadiums, t-shirt sales or television that rings the till for football clubs, brand sponsorship also brings in quite a significant portion.
Which of Barcelona’s youth prospects have the best chance to succeed?
Blaugrana used to be the best in the business of producing world-class talent, churning out the likes of Cesc Fabregas, Andres Iniesta, and Lionel Messi. They were down but never out. As of now, Ansu Fati is not the only promising talent, there are more!
Put aside the 93% of Spanish women following in the footsteps of the USWNT, protests over pay and working conditions are just starting
Discussions and debates about gender equality in football are all but just starting. A crescendo of the matter is surely at hand all around the world.
League of Future Stars: Seven former French Ligue 1 players thriving in the Premier League
It may not be considered the best league in the world but the best players have and continue to come through its ranks. The French Ligue 1 is the league of legends.
What’s the reason for Argentina’s woes and how can they change the narrative?
Even the reign and majestic contributions of the mercurial Lionel Messi haven’t helped Argentina break the duck of over 25-years without winning a major senior trophy. What’s really going on in La Albiceleste’s camp?