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El Estadio Olimpico, home to Caracas FC and the national team
Tyson comparisons grow as British 21-year-old targets world title
LAST spring, I decided to write a book about Venezuela and its football, but I knew that to do such a complex country and society justice would require me to immerse myself fully in its ways of life and to learn its unique idiosyncrasies.
Most importantly, I knew I would have to travel to Venezuela and visit as much of its football heartlands as possible. In October 2019, I did so.
During my time in Venezuela, I met Dr Richard Paez, the manager responsible for the national team’s dramatic turnaround between 2001 and 2007, which resulted in the side casting off its label of La Cenicienta (The Cinderella), as they were called in South America because they always finished last, and becoming La Vinotinto (The Red Wine) because of the colour of their shirt; Noel Sanvicente, the most successful manager the Venezuelan league has ever seen; Adelis Chavez, brother of the former Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez and the current president of Zamora Futbol Club; Stalin Rivas, the first Venezuelan to play in Europe; and many more.
There is a determined effort to reverse the diplomatic gains of the Palestinians, despite the shift in worldwide global opinion. Solidarity demands no return to business as usual, argues Ramzy Baroud
Concessions to Washington by the post-Maduro leadership in Caracas are designed to preserve the core of the Bolivarian Revolution not betray it, argue Roger D Harris, Francisco Dominguez and Mara Paez Victor. How the solidarity movement responds is critical
International solidarity can ensure that Trump and his machine cannot prevail without a level of political and economic cost that he will not want to pay, argues CLAUDIA WEBBE
US baseless accusations of drug trafficking and the outrageous putting of a bounty on a president of a sovereign country do not bode well, reports PABLO MERIGUET