Football and Cricket Trivia

Zakumi was the official mascot of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa - a leopard with green hair. Jabulani was the match ball, not a mascot. Shera was the Commonwealth Games 2010 mascot. The claimed answer (Zakumi) is correct.

Lilian Thuram scored two goals (a brace) for France in the 1998 World Cup semi-final against Croatia. This is surprising because Thuram was a defender and had only scored 2 goals in his entire international career before this match. Henry and Zidane were also on that team but didn't score in this semi-final. The claimed answer (Thuram) is correct.

'Gunner' refers to a player for Arsenal Football Club. Giovanni van Bronckhorst, Andy Cole (briefly), and Emmanuel Petit all played for Arsenal. Owen Hargreaves never played for Arsenal - he began at Bayern Munich, then moved to Manchester United. The claimed answer (Owen Hargreaves) is correct - he was never a Gunner.

A 'one-club man' is a player who spends their entire senior career at one club. Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes spent their entire careers at Manchester United. Carles Puyol spent his entire career at Barcelona. However, Josep Guardiola played for Barcelona B, then Barcelona first team, then had brief spells at Brescia, Roma, Dorados, and Dia. The claimed answer (Joseph Guardiola) is correct.

Arsenal is the only club among these options that has never won the European Cup/UEFA Champions League. Celtic won in 1967, Benfica won consecutively in 1961 and 1962, and Hamburg won in 1983. Arsenal has only reached the final once (2006) but lost to Barcelona.

Middlesbrough F.C. has played at Riverside Stadium since moving there in 1995. Blackpool plays at Bloomfield Road, Cardiff City at Cardiff City Stadium, and River Plate at El Monumental in Buenos Aires.

Kenny Dalglish was manager of Blackburn Rovers during their famous 1994-1995 Premier League title win. This was Blackburn's first top-flight title since 1914 and made them one of the few clubs to break the Big Four monopoly in the Premier League era.

Matthew Briggs made his Premier League debut for Fulham at 16 years and 68 days old in 2006, making him the youngest player to play in EPL history. While Wayne Rooney is often mistakenly thought to hold this record, he was slightly older at 16 years and 237 days when he debuted.

Liverpool and Manchester United jointly hold the record for the most English top-flight titles with 20 each. This question asks about the pair of teams that shares this record, and both A (Liverpool) and D (Manchester United) are correctly identified as the joint record-holders.

Rafael Benitez managed Valencia from 2001-2004 before joining Liverpool in 2004, winning two La Liga titles with Valencia. His success at Valencia (including the 2004 UEFA Cup) earned him the Liverpool job, where he would later win the Champions League in 2005.

Joseph (Pep) Guardiola is not a one-club man because he played for Barcelona's youth and senior teams, but also had a brief playing stint at Dorados (Mexico) and later played for Brescia and Roma in Italy. Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, and Carles Puyol spent their entire professional careers at single clubs (Manchester United, Manchester United, and Barcelona respectively).

Lilian Thuram scored two goals (a brace) for France in the 1998 World Cup semifinal against Croatia. Despite being a defender known for defensive prowess, Thuram scored both goals in France's 2-1 victory. Zidane became the hero in the final with two headers, but Thuram was the semifinal scorer.

Arsenal is the only club among these options that has never won the European Cup or UEFA Champions League. Celtic won in 1967, Benfica won in 1961 and 1962, and Hamburg won in 1983. Arsenal has been runners-up twice but never won the competition.

Kenny Dalglish was the manager of Blackburn Rovers during the 1994-1995 season when they won the Premier League title. This was a remarkable achievement as Blackburn broke the dominance of Manchester United. Dalglish was a legendary figure in English football both as a player and manager.

Matthew Briggs made his Premier League debut for Fulham at 16 years and 68 days old, making him the youngest player to play in the Premier League. This record has stood since 2006. Cesc Fabregas and Wayne Rooney were also teenage debutants but slightly older than Briggs.

Sachin Tendulkar was the inaugural captain of Mumbai Indians when the IPL started in 2008, leading the team for four seasons until 2011. Harbhajan Singh served as a key player and later captain in 2012, while Kieron Pollard captained after Rohit Sharma. J P Duminy was never associated with Mumbai Indians as a captain.

Anil Kumble captained Royal Challengers Bangalore in the inaugural 2008 IPL season. Like the Mumbai Indians question, this tests early IPL leadership knowledge.