On 20 August 1945, Gyorgy Szepesi commentated on a match between Hungary and Austria for Magyar Radio. Since then, Hungarian football fans have had ample opportunity to get used to Szepesi’s voice over the past 62 years as the 85-year-old is still behind the microphone. On 14 August 2005, Szepesi reported on Hungary v. Argen¬tina and celebrated his 60th anniversary as a commentator with a commemora¬tive certificate from Guinness World Records Ltd to confirm his status as the sporting world’s longest-serving com¬mentator. Szepesi, who has reported on 15 Olympic Games, was a member of the FIFA Executive Committee from 1982 to 1994. The qualified sports historian has been an honorary FIFA member since 1994 and was awarded the Olympic Order in 1995.

A team of young women international players celebrated an unusual victory in Auckland in June. The 15- to 18-year-olds beat their opponents – a group of men and women from various backgrounds – with an emphatic 6-0 result during a Corn-Unity seminar organised by FIFA. The losers even featured three former women internationals, who had been lecturing at the Corn-Unity event – New Zealand’s Michele Cox (head of women’s football at New Zealand Soccer), Germany’s Doris Fitschen (144 caps, three-time European champion, now working in the German football association’s marketing department) and the USA’s Brandi Chastain (twofold world champion and twice Olympic gold medallist, now working primarily as an ambassador for women’s football in her home country). Whereas Cox and Fitschen called it a day long ago and now play only for fun, Chastain is still toying with the idea of continuing her career. Having turned 39 in July and become a mother last year, she would still like to fulfil two wishes as a footballer. “I would like to play at least another three internationals so that I can hit the 200 mark,” she declared. “Apart from that, I would like to join the women’s professional league, WUSA, which will soon be starting again.” Chastain lives with her husband and son in San Jose, California, which has a WUSA club, but at the time of going to press Chastain had not yet received an offer.

Malters chose an unusual way to celebrate their 20th anniversary in June. The women footballers of the small Swiss second-division club set a world record in endurance football. True to the club’s slogan “Efficiency, courage, perseverance and team spirit – that’s Malters”, two teams played football for 31 hours and 13 minutes, earning themselves a mention in the Guinness Book of Records. FIFA women’s referee Nicole Petignat also attended the remarkable event. No announcement was made about the final result but after 19 hours the score stood at 99-89. Which team won? Malters, of course…