ESPN Classic proud to support 2009 Golden Foot awards
On 21st September 2009, football's elite will gather at the 2009 GOLDEN FOOT awards ceremony in Monte Carlo to celebrate the careers of some of the sport's greatest long-standing heroes. In association with ESPN Classic, these accolades for a select band of unique footballers honours the players who can boast spectacular lifelong achievements. David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Raúl are among the ten icons put forward for this year's GOLDEN FOOT award and in the lead up to the big ceremony, ESPN Classic will be showing some of the best ever performances produced by the nominees for club and country, every Monday night from 6th July at 11.15PM, Sky Channel 442 (ESPN CLASSIC IN YOUR COUNTRY). The 2009 nominees are:
David Beckham (England)
Gianluigi Buffon (Italy)
Luís Figo (Portugal)
Steven Gerrard (England)
Ryan Giggs (Wales)
Thierry Henry (France)
Raúl González Blanco (Spain)
Ronaldo de Assís Moreira (Brazil)
Francesco Totti (Italy)
David Trezeguet (France)
ESPN Classic is set to be an official partner for the 2009 Golden Foot awards which are hosted annually by H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco. The ten nominees are chosen by a panel of international journalists based on the criteria that they are at least 29 years of age and still in activity. They must have great technical skills, uprightness and fairplay, popularity and international reputation with a successful career and credible personal achievements with club and country teams behind him. The ten contenders are then put to the fans' vote, as football enthusiasts from across the world.
With the glitz and glamour of this exciting event just around the corner, ESPN Classic has put together a compilation of their finest performances to remind fans why these worthy nominees have been selected. A different player's skills will be showcased every Monday night making Sky Channel 442 the perfect place to celebrate football's greatest living legends. To get the ball rolling, catch Ryan Giggs in one of the best games in FA Cup history, as the Welshman weaved his way through Arsenal's legendary defense to fire the ball home and secure a 2-1 win that took Manchester United into the final. However, Giggs is up against former team mate David Beckham whose moment of glory comes from England's FIFA World Cup 2001 qualifier against Greece, where a late free-kick from the English No. 7 curled into the net and handed the Three Lions an automatic ticket to the 2002 World Cup.
Don't miss a thrilling Thierry Henry hatrick from 2004. Fellow French superstar David Trezeguet also features with his Euro 2000 Final performance for France against Italy and Luís Figo, the only Portuguese player to be nominated for this year's award.
With so many talented footballers on this year's bill, it may prove hard for fans to pick out their all time favourite. So to provide a helping hand, and to celebrate the 2009 GOLDEN FOOT award, ESPN Classic has handpicked some first class footage to remind us just how inspirational this band of nominees truly is. Featuring alongside additional highlights of past Golden Foot awards winners in action, including Englishman George Best and French legend Zinedine Zidane, be sure to catch this year's contenders in their own moment of glory as ESPN Classic takes us on a journey with the biggest, boldest and most brilliant stars in international football.
