Like many things in 2020, global football faced unprecedented challenges. It’s hard to think all the way back to March, but virtually nothing was settled at the time, other than Liverpool running away with the Premier League. There was even talk of the Premier League not finishing their season and denying them a well-deserved title! (I wrote a blog about Liverpool’s dominance and then a day later the Prem announced the season would restart lol). Whatever the case, here are some notable stories that came of 2020.
Shutdown & Restart
In late February and early March, Italy became one of the first countries outside of Asia to get hit hard with COVID. Matches began to be played without fans, until eventually, games started to get canceled (while America was oblivious to this and exerted no caution to stop the disease from spreading before it started). Other countries followed suit in Europe, and eventually, we saw a 2-month hiatus from worldwide soccer. Some teams with injury issues benefitted with the time off while others on hot streaks struggled to maintain the same form afterward. Soccer was the first sport to return, and in May/June, the majority of European leagues resumed (France and Holland canceled their seasons).
Bayern’s Treble & Robert Lewandowski
I’m still really annoyed they didn’t award the Ballon d'Or this year. Lewandowski had an unreal year and is undeservedly not crowned the world’s best player (he won other awards, at least). Beyond his exceptional form, Bayern went on to dominate in every competition they played, including an 8-2 shellacking over Barcelona in the Champions League Quarterfinal. Barca had never allowed 4 goals in a half, and Bayern scored 4 on them EACH HALF. This team is full of stars and fun personalities like the emergence of Alphonso Davies and Serge Gnabry, and a dominant midfield with Goretzka, Kimmich, and the new Liverpool player Tiago. They’ll be the favorites to repeat in this year's Champions League.
Liverpool’s 30-Year Drought
They get so much hate, but it was awesome to see Liverpool finally win the league. Their team is very likable and the Klopp project deserves to go down in history. For those of you salty towards their success, your silver lining can be that they weren’t able to celebrate with fans.
Zlatan’s Resurgence
This dude is 39 and is one of the top scorers in Italy this season with AC Milan at the top of the Serie A table after a decade of dreadful results for their lofty supporters. Zlatan doesn’t get enough credit for how remarkable this is - when people talk about Tom Brady’s form as old as he is, Zlatan’s name should come up first. To play a sport that requires so much running so late in his life is truly a spectacle that we should all appreciate while we can.
USMNT’s Youth
Shortly after the embarrassment that was the night in Trinidad & Tobago in October 2017, I said this would be the best thing that would happen to the future of American soccer. Instead of qualifying for the World Cup and continuing to accept our mediocrity, it sparked a fire that we needed a new recipe to compete with the world’s best. Since late 2017, we’ve seen a drastic rise in youth players going overseas, and as of now, there are Americans regularly starting for Chelsea, Barcelona, Juventus, Dortmund (all aged 23 or younger), with many more playing in Europe’s elite leagues. The future is brighter than ever.
Diego Maradona
In late November, we lost an all-time great. Diego Maradona died at age 60 after an illustrious career that included a (controversial) World Cup victory. We saw global mourning which included countless soccer players and fans alike share stories of his impact on their personal lives. Along with tributes came a flurry of quotes and stories that truly reflected one of the most charismatic and unique superstars world sports have ever seen.
2020’s Wacky Premier League
Finally, this Premier League season has been absolutely nuts. Each week, there’s a new team that emerges as title contenders or favorites while others slip out of the race. In early October, Tottenham obliterated Manchester United 6-1, so we’d expect Tottenham to be competing for the league while United struggle, right? As of publishing time, United are 3 points behind first-place with a game at hand while Tottenham’s abysmal form in December has them in seventh after spending all of November at the top of the league. By the end of January, I’m sure there will be a whole new team we’re talking about challenging to win the league. Buckle up y’all, 2021 is going to be fun.
Author: Living in Denver, Robert Sweeney has been a fan of soccer since he played as a young child. Since then, he’s become a diehard Tottenham and US National Team fan. Rob enjoys writing about the impact soccer has had on his life in hopes that it betters others as well. Twitter: @robsweeney11