Babe of the Month - Latino Beauty Vanessa Huppenkothen

Vanessa Huppenkothen Labra was born on 24th July, 1984 in Mexico City. She is a TV Presenter, actress and model of German/Mexican decent. Her father is German and her mother Mexican. Vanessa is a lover of sport and in particular football. She grew up in Mexico, but she also lived with her father in Duisburg. At that time she attended FC Schalke games, and is still an avid fan of the Bundesliga.

After finishing school Vanessa studied International Relations and her master's thesis was on FIFA. She speaks four languages fluently - Spanish, German, English and French.
She currently works for Televisa Deportes, a division of the Mexican television network Televisa that produces sports programming for Canal de las Estrellas, Canal 5, Galavision and Televisa Deportes Network.

In 2008, she covered the Summer Olympic Games from Beijing. She reported on the Mexican soccer team during the Football World Cup in South Africa in 2010, and again was a presenter for Televisa's coverage of the Mexican national team during the 2014 Football World Cup. During the tournament in Brazil she generated considerable attention on social media platforms, and was among the top five social media searches in Singapore!

Vanessa covers a lot of the football action in Mexico as well as conducting interviews with coaches and players.

She was featured as the cover feature model for GQ in June 2014 and Esquire in June 2013. Vanessa also featured in GQ in November 2012 .

You can follow Vanessa on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram 

'The Beautiful Game' - The World Cup's sexiest fans ......... so far!

Columbian and Brazilian flag baring babes bursting at the seams!

Foxy South Korean fan puckers up for the cameras!

Argentinian blonde soaking up the attention: lights, cameras, action!

 Elegant Mexican babes looking hot to trot!

Gorgeous Columbian sweetie strikes a pose!

Columbian hottie revs up her fellow fans!

Attractive Bosnian fans can't stop smiling!                         

Glamorous Mexican World Cup reporter Vanessa Huppenkothen

Bikini clad Brazilian senorita dripping wet but whose complaining!

Columbian cutie with a hair flick for the cameras!

Busty Mexican fan takes a selfie!

The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup - Full Preview

The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, is an association football tournament for national teams, currently held every four years by FIFA and the 2013 competition will be the 9th tournament of its kind. It will be held held in Brazil from the 15th to 30th June, as a prelude to the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

It is contested by the holders of each of the six FIFA confederation championships (UEFA, CONMEBOL, CONCACAF, CAF, AFC, OFC), along with the FIFA World Cup holder and the host nation, to bring the number of teams up to eight.

The tournament was originally organised by and held in Saudi Arabia and called the King Fahd Cup (Confederations Winners Cup or Intercontinental Championship), contested in 1992 and 1995 by the Saudi national side and some continental champions. In 1997, FIFA took over the organisation of the tournament, named it the FIFA Confederations Cup and staged the competition every two years.

Since 2005, it has been held every four years, in the year prior to each World Cup in the host country of the forthcoming World Cup. Considered a dress-rehearsal for the World Cup it precedes, it uses around half of the stadia intended for use at the following year's competition and gives the host nation, who qualifies for that tournament automatically, experience at a high level of competition during two years of otherwise friendlies. At the same time, participation was made optional for the South American and European champions.

Brazil is the most successful nation in the cup's history, winning the tournament a record three times in 1997, 2005 and 2009 and were also runners-up in 1999. France have won the tournament twice, in 2001 and 2003. Argentina, Mexico and Denmark have each won the competition on one occasion.

Brazil's players celebrate their Confederations Cup success in 2009 in South Africa

Generally, the host nation, the World Cup holders, and the six continental champions qualify for the competition. In those cases where a team meets more than one of the qualification criteria, another team is invited to participate.

Italy were awarded a spot in the 2013 competition because Spain had won both the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2012 UEFA Euro Championships. Since both competitions award their winners a place in the FIFA Confederations Cup, the runner-up of UEFA Euro 2012 received an invitation to the tournament.

2013 Qualified teams:

Brazil - Hosts
Spain - 2010 FIFA World Cup winner
Japan - 2011 AFC Asian Cup winner
Mexico - 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup winner
Uruguay - 2011 Copa América winner
Tahiti - 2012 OFC Nations Cup winner
Italy - 2012 UEFA Euro runners-up
Nigeria - 2013 Africa Cup of Nations winner

Group A: Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Italy

Group B: Spain, Uruguay, Tahiti, Nigeria

Brazil and Japan open proceedings on Saturday 15th June at Brasília's Estádio Nacional while Spain and Uruguay raise the Group B curtain at Recife's Arena Pernambuco on Sunday 16th June.

Seventeen British-based players have been named in provisional squads ahead of the 2013 tournament, and they are as follows:

Spain: Fernando Torres and Juan Mata (both Chelsea), Pepe Reina (Liverpool), Santi Cazorla (Arsenal), David Silva and Jesús Navas (both Manchester City).

Japan: Shinji Kagawa (Manchester United) and Maya Yoshida (Southampton).

Uruguay: Luis Suárez and Sebastián Coates (both Liverpool), Gastón Ramírez (Southampton).

Brazil: Julio Cesar (QPR), David Luiz and Oscar (both Chelsea).

Mexico: Javier Hernández (Manchester United, right)

Nigeria: John Obi Mikel (Chelsea) and Efe Ambrose (Celtic).

All-time Confederations Cup top scorers:

Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Mexico) 9 goals
Ronaldinho (Brazil) 9 goals
Adriano (Brazil) 7 goals
Romário (Brazil) 7 goals                        
Marzouk Al-Otaibi (Saudi Arabia) 6 goals

Stadium Venues:                                                    

Six stadiums venues are to be used, each in a different city. The Maracanã, Rio de Janerio (Capacity: 78,639), The National Stadium, Brasilia (Capacity: 72,000), The Arena Pernambuco, Recife (Capacity: 46,000), The Fonte Nova, Salvador  (Capacity: 50,433), Estadio Governador Magalhães Pinto, Belo Horizonte (Capacity: 62,160), The Castelão Arena, Fortaleza (Capacity: 63,903).

All the teams and and the players to watch out for in more detail:

Brazil: (World rank 22) The Home squad is a wild card, simply because of its youth. Coach Felipe Scolari ignored veterans like Kaka and Ronaldinho, meaning that the pressure will shift to Neymar and Leandro Damiao. No one knows if this club is ready for prime time as Neymar has been inconsistent with his national team in recent outings. This is the first time he is facing major European competition in a tournament.

Italy: (World rank 8) The Italians are in this tournament thanks to a second place finish at the Euro Cup. The team still sports grizzled veterans such as midfield general Andrea Pirlo and veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, the Juventus and Italian nation team captain. It also includes a more mature Mario Balotelli (right) that has stepped up his game in recent months, since his January move back to Italy, scoring 12 goals in 13 games for AC Milan. This team is more youthful than Spain and that alone could propel them in this competition.

Uruguay: (World rank 19) The two-time World Cup winners have been in steady decline since winning the 2011 Copa America tournament in Argentina. Uruguay's strength in recent years has been their attack and this tournament will be no exception.
Tabarez will have the luxury of choosing between Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Diego Forlan and Abel Hernandez to front his team.

Spain: (World rank 1) The defending World Cup champions are undoubtedly the stand out team in this tournament. They showcase much of the same roster that earned them the 2012 Euro Cup and will be hungry to reinstate Spain as the world's top soccer country after the dual embarrassments endured by Real Madrid and Barcelona in the Champions league.
Nineteen players remain in the squad from last summer's Euros, and 18 from the 2010 World Cup. The biggest question surrounding the team will be its forward situation. Manager Vicente Del Bosque won the Euro Cup without a striker. His top options include David Villa and Fernando Torres, but neither has been reliable over the last year. Sergio Ramos (right) is the defensive rock for 'La Roja,' allowing those in front of him to play with freedom.

Japan: (World rank 32) The Samurai's have steadily improved their status in World Soccer and enter the tournament with qualification for the 2014 World Cup all but secure. CSKA Moscow's Keisuke Honda and manchester United's Shinji Kagawa pulls the creative strings in the Japanese midfield. They are drawn into a group with Spain, Tahiti, and Nigeria - this alone gives them a huge advantage in this tournament moving forward.

Nigeria: (World ranking 31) The 'Super Eagles' have experienced something of a renaissance in the past two years under manager Stephen Keshi. winning the 2013 African Cup of Nations in February with a 1-0 victory over Burkina Faso in the final.
They are also well-placed in their quest for a 2014 World Cup berth, heading Africa's Group F with eight points from four matches in the second round of qualifiers. Nigeria's Confederations Cup squad includes Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel, Maccabi Tel Aviv goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama and Dynamo Kiev forward Brown Ideye (right) who notched 21 times for the Ukrainian outfit this season. With with 'Africa Cup of Nations' top-scorer Emmanuel Emenike injured, Ideye needs to shine!

Mexico: (World rank 17) 'El Tri' have been terrible in CONCACAF competition, but still sports a team filled with elite players like Javier Hernandez, Giovanni Dos Santos and Cruz Azul's José Corona, who captained the victorious Olympic squad and has established himself as Mexico's number one goalkeeper. The team needs those three to step up as the squad's recent performances in qualifying have not been promising or inspiring.

Tahiti: (World rank 138) The tiny Pacific island-nation earned a ticket to Brazil with a 1-0 victory over New Caledonia in the 2012 Oceania Nations Cup.
Steevy Chong Hue struck the winning goal and became a national hero overnight in a country renowned more for its idyllic beaches than football.
Tahiti's side is made up mostly of amateurs but coach Eddy Etaeta has insisted the team will be no walkover for their Confederations Cup rivals. However it is highly unlikely Tahiti will makes it out of a group stage. A win would be considered a major success for this team. Their goalkeeper Xavier Samin will play a crucial role if Tahiti want to avoid any humiliating defeats.

The 2013 Confederations Cup: My predictions and the official betting:

Brazil wound up in the toughest group of the competition, Group A. Many believe Italy will take down the other teams in the group stage, but based on other European nation's previous performances in this competition, on paper at least, things do not bode well for the 'Azzurri.' The Mexican side is dangerous, but has been madly inconsistent in its World Cup qualifiers. Japan has been terrific in its qualifiers, but has not faced the level of competition that Group B will pose. The Brazilians are still a work in progress and could finish anywhere from fourth to first in this group depending on whether the other sides in the group turn up! However I expect both Brazil and Italy to finish to qualify from their group.

While Group A is the proverbial "Group of Death," Group B is anything but that. The group could best be described as "Spain versus Everyone else." Uruguay is no longer the team that captured third place in the World Cup three summers ago or the squad that won the 2011 Copa America. This is a team that has yet to win a World Cup qualifier since September 2012. Nigeria might pose the greatest danger in the group. They do possess great pace, but they lack the skill and style to hurt the Spaniards. Spain will undoubtedly win the group while Nigeria I feel will likely grab second spot.

If these scenarios play out then Brazil will Nigeria and Spain will face Italy in the semi-finals. Brazil should have no trouble with Nigeria but Italy could pull the upset on the Spaniards. Prior to their 2012 Euro Cup victory last summer, Spain had not beaten Italy in open field play in many years. Look for Italy to pull an upset.

If Brazil faces Italy, the 'Samba Kings' should have no trouble capturing their fourth Confederations Cup trophy.

Betting:

Brazil at 11/8 are favourites to win the 2013 tournament, followed by Spain 13/8, Italy 7/1, Uruguay 9/1, Mexico 11/1, Nigeria 33/1 then Japan 40/1. Tahiti are the rank outsiders. In fact you can name you're price! However I believe there are better value betting options to consider than just Brazil to win the tournament outright.

My Best Bet:
Brazil and Italy to reach the Final 5/1
Outside Bet: Japan to qualify from Group A 5/1
Mario Balotelli (Italy) to be tournaments top goalscorer 16/1
Longshot:
Brown Ideye (Nigeria) to be to be tournament top goalscorer 80/1 (Top three 1/4 odds)

# Odds courtesy of Betfred and correct at time of writing.

Go to oddschecker for all your FIFA Confederations Cup betting.

Live TV coverage of The FIFA Confederations Cup will be shown on BBC1 and BBC3 and also on ESPN, ESPN2 and CBCSports.

See here for full TV schedule of matches and kick-off times in the UK.

Congratulations to Mexico - 2011 FIFA Under-17 World Cup Winners

Mexico captain Antonio Briseno holds aloft the FIFA U-17 World Cup

Hosts Mexico won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup on Sunday, with a 2-0 victory over Uruguay in front of a crowd of just under 100,00O at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City.

Goals from Antonio Briseno in the 31st minute and Giovani Casillas in second-half stoppage time saw Mexico lift the trophy for the second time, having previously won the tournament in 2005.

Briseno scored on 31 minutes, with a close range volley after a cross from the right was headed back across goal by striker Carlos Fierro, leaving Uruguay keeper Jonathan Cubero stranded.
Uruguay nearly hit back straight away, but Elbio Alvarez's long range effort came back off the upright.

Mexico started the the second-half with more urgency, and looked the more likely to score as they tested Cubero with shots from distance.

However it was Uruguayan striker Juan San Martin who almost levelled the scores in the 61st minute, only to see his left foot shot from six yards strike the post with Richard Sanchez beaten. It was the second time the home team had been saved by the woodwork.

Casillas got his goal and Mexico's second in second-half stoppage time, scoring on the counter attack as Uruguay pressed for an equalizer. The final whistle followed just seconds later, sparking joyous scenes of unrivaled passion from fans and players alike.

"This is an amazing feeling and one of my absolute greatest sporting moments here in Mexico. We have a strong group of players in this young Mexican team, I love this job and I love this team. This is a great day." Mexico coach Raul Gutierrez after the game.

"I can't even begin to explain how happy I am, to play at the Estadio Azteca, we're so happy, me and my teammates. We worked really hard, I can't even explain how I feel," said Mexico goalkeeper Richard Sanchez.

The Under-17 World Cup tournament is famously unreliable as a guide of future success at senior level. Brazil has won the event three times, but so has Nigeria. Spain and England have never lifted the trophy, but Saudi Arabia and Switzerland have. Germany played in the first final, in 1985, but has never been back.

However, only two weeks ago the Mexico senior team won the CONCACAF Gold Cup — a competition to determine the regional champion of North America, Central America, and the Caribbean combined — defeating the United States 4-2 in the final in California.
Mexico also won the Gold Cup trophy in 2009, so are we about to witness a new era of world football domination, in the shape of Mexico? We shall see!

Mexican midfielder Julio Gomez – star of the semi-final win over Germany – was handed the adidas Golden Ball as top player while his teammates Jorge Espericueta and striker Carlos Fierro picked up the Silver and Bronze Balls respectively.

Ivorian striker Souleymane Coulibaly held out as the top finisher, to scoop the adidas Golden Shoe. His nine tournament goals in just four games was a record-equaling feat, tying him with previous tournament top scorer Frenchman Florent Sinama Pongolle, who reached the milestone playing three extra games back in 2001.

The adidas Silver Shoe went to Samed Yesil of Germany who scored six goals (and set up a further five) in a tournament where the Germans finished third.

Uruguayan goalkeeper Jonathan Cubero was awarded the adidas Golden Glove for best goalkeeper in the tournament. The Cerro man helped Uruguay earn their reputation as the meanest defence at these finals, only conceding five goals in his team’s seven games.

Full match highlights of the 2011 FIFA Under-17 World Cup Final

The 2011 FIFA Under 17's World Cup Final

versus

This Sunday the 2011 Under 17's World Cup Final takes place between Mexico and Uruguay.

Tournament hosts Mexico dominated Group A, winning all three of their games against North Korea, eventual group runners-up Congo and the Netherlands, scoring eight goals in the process. Next they despatched of Central American rivals Panama 2-0, setting up a quarter-final tie with France which they narrowly edged 2-1.

After their stunning 3-2 victory over Germany in the semi-final the Mexicans now move on to the final of the tournament at the Estadio Azteca on the 10th July, where they will meet Uruguay, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the other semi-final.

One of the biggest stars for the El Tri Under-17 team is striker Carlos Fierro, who plays for Club Deportivo Guadalajara, of the Mexican First Division - the parent club of Chivas USA. He's Mexico's leading scorer with four goals.

Arguably, El Tri's most gifted player has been the young man who flanks Fierro on the left, Giovanni Casillas. He has two goals and his been instrumental in others. Like Fierro, he also plays for Club Deportivo Guadalajara.

Mexican midfielder Julio Gomez is the only player in coach Raul Gutierrez’s squad to have already played in Mexico’s top flight. His last minute winner against Germany - a dazzling overhead kick will go down in the legend and lore of Mexican football and the U-17 World Cup.

Gomez said: "Just thinking about playing in front of a full Estadio Azteca makes me extremely happy, because it means we’ve managed to reach the final." He added, "It’s a reward for all our efforts, but we’re not finished yet. We’ve got one more very tough match against an opponent we know well (Uruguay). They beat us 6-2 in the last friendly we played together, so this could be sweet revenge."

Mexico are a best priced 6/5 with Paddy Power, Betfred and William Hill to win the final in 90 minutes, and 8/11 with Betfred to lift the trophy.

Uruguay coach Fabian Coito’s side booked a place in their first-ever final of a FIFA Under-17 World Cup with a 3-0 win over South American neighbours and arch-rivals Brazil in Guadalajara in Thursday's semi-final.

Uruguay's attacking plans may have worked out perfectly so far, but the foundation for their exploits at Mexico 2011 has been their miserly defence, which has let in just three goals in six games.

In the group stages Uruguay recorded victories over Rwanda and Canada 1-0 and 3-0 respectively, but lost 2-0 to England in their final group game having already qualified for the second stage before they took to the field.
Next up for Uruguay were Congo and the South Americans had to come from a goal behind to edge out the African Congo 2-1 and book their passage into the quarter-finals.

Uruguay secured their place in the semi-final round of the FIFA U-17 World Cup with a comprehensive 2-0 quarter-final win over Asian side Uzbekistan in Monterrey.

Their collective determination and opportunism is a hallmark of Fabian Coito’s spirited side, whose run to Sunday’s showpiece match has been founded on teamwork rather than individual brilliance - teamwork encapsulated by the contribution of squad members such as Guillermo Mendez and San Martin.

Uruguay are a best priced 12/5 with Bet365 to win in 90 minutes and are even money with Betfred to lift the trophy.

Mendez said after his sides thrilling semi-final victory over Germany: "This team always battles hard and gives everything it’s got. And we do that because we know what this jersey means. Now we’re on the way to the final."

One of the most impressive aspects of Uruguay’s relentless advance to Sunday’s showdown with Mexico at the Azteca is that is has been achieved despite a troublesome knee-injury to their star asset Juan Cruz Mascia. Despite his absence from the front line for their quarter-final against Uzbekistan and the semi-final with Brazil, Coito’s charges still managed to rack up five goals, conceding none in the process.

With Mascia sidelined, the attacking burden has been shared. Santiago Charamoni and Rodrigo Aguirre were the men on target against the Uzbeks, while Elbio Alvarez struck from the spot to set 'Los Charrúas' on the road to victory over Brazil.

Mendez concluded: "There’s no such thing as pressure as far as I’m concerned. When I’m out there I try to get on with my job, which is to play football. I don’t pay much attention to what’s going on off the pitch or in the stands."

Given the cacophony of noise that the Mexico fans are sure to serve up at the Azteca on Sunday, that approach looks to be a sensible one.

My Tip of the Weekend:

In what I expect to be be a closely fought affair I fancy Mexico to win the final by the odd goal, particularly as they are playing in front of their own fans. Mexico to win 2-1 is a best priced 8/1 with Paddy Power, Betfred and William Hill, and looks a value bet.
If you think the game will go beyond the 90 minutes, Paddy Power are offering odds of 9/2 on the final being won on a penalty shoot-out.

Sunday 10th July: The 2011 FIFA Under 17's World Cup Final - Uruguay v Mexico, Aztec Stadium, Mexico City, kick-off 00.00 BST, live on British Eurosport 1, ESPNU, Galavision and SBS One Australia.