Welcome to the land down under, Australia. The home of kangaroos, wallabies and for the creative imaginations, the Tasmanian devil. From moustaches and mullets to snakes and spiders, Australia really is a unique place.

The great Manchester United of the nineties, the invincible Arsenal, the dominant Barcelona era. All incredible teams with immense success. Even more recently Manchester City winning it all, Bayern Munich and PSG overwhelmingly succeeded in their respective nations.

The World Cup, the pinnacle of international football, every nation has the right to participate with every player holding the same dream, of becoming a world champion. A feat unmatched by any other international competition.

The Coupe de France, a staple of French footballing tradition, is a competition that runs from the top division and down to the depths of the French lower leagues. Much like the FA Cup in England, this competition allows smaller clubs to gain notoriety, financial benefits and exciting ties against the giants of the competition. The Coupe de France however is slightly different, in fact, teams can travel thousands of miles to play a singular cup game.

Reading the title of this piece you may think that this is another story of a young talent ready to take the world by storm, but this is not the case with Roy Krishna. This is a story looking at the only ever Fijian native to become a professional footballer.

Many Christians will follow their religion in their own way, some pray at home, and some lead a lifestyle that aims to do good in life. Many go to church.

What if though, that church started a football team? What if that church went on to finish in the top two of the national league, and qualify to participate in a continental club tournament? This is the story of the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Football Club (MFM).

Now, it is common knowledge that San Marino, despite their recent first competitive win, is found at the bottom of the FIFA world rankings. Usually sitting in 211th place, 210th currently, due to ongoing issues in Eritrea who have withdrawn from football for the time being, with the thought of players seeking political asylum on away trips being the key factor. Is 211th the lowest rank in football though? What if there is a nation that hasn’t played an official game of football yet? Where do they rank? This is the story of the Marshall Islands.

The football league system, nearly every nation with a footballing culture has one. Teams from villages, towns and cities travel up and down their respective countries every week to fulfil a packed schedule of games, all to decide which team is better.

Now, many of you reading this would take one look at the title of this article and jump to a conclusion, that this piece will reflect on some incredible moments that have occurred through the years when watching our beautiful game.

For those who are hoping to read about that, this is not the place to find it. This is a writing on an actual football match that had accusations of witchcraft and juju.

The Golden Boot, a trophy awarded to the top scorer in each respected competition. Leagues, cups and international tournaments all recognise the award and hand out a trophy to commemorate each player to have finished top of the scoring charts.

What is the most isolated location on earth? That would be Point Nemo, a mark on the map of the Pacific Ocean. At times the closest people to this pole are the astronauts on the International Space Station who fly just under 400km above the area. That’s the most isolated point on earth then, how about the most isolated piece of land?

The Falkland Islands, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom. Most people understand the situation regarding the war and the constant debate between the United Kingdom and Argentina.

The islands are located roughly 300 miles to the east of the coast of Argentina, with the capital being Stanley. The Falklands famously has a large population of sheep and sheep farmers with the bulk of the economy coming through this route of trade.

The Netherlands, a footballing powerhouse over generations, the birthplace of total football, wearers of the iconic orange strip. Producers of great talents, Virgil Van Dijk, Johan Cruyff and Ruud Gullit.

Mainstays of the Dutch national team all with their own legacies to leave behind. What about the likes of Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf and Jerrel (Jimmy) Floyd Hasselbaink? All representing Holland over the years to huge successes, but what if you were told that not one of these three is even European?

Who is Henri Saivet? The average football fan would be forgiven for not knowing who this all-but-forgotten footballer is. The more eagle-eyed viewer however might remember the name and his story, particularly his time in Newcastle.

A Premier League and International footballer purchased for a reported £5 million in 2016? Why doesn’t everyone remember Henri Saivet?

How can it be that the world’s largest island has a footballing history and culture that next to nobody knows anything about? Greenland, unlike the name suggests, is not very green, in fact, the island is snow-covered and consistently exists with extremely cold weather conditions.

Brunei Darussalam, ask your friends, colleagues and acquaintances and see how many of them know anything about this tiny nation. Many probably couldn’t even point it out to you on a map or would even recognise the flag of the nation, so how is this oil-rich country with strong religious ties so unknown to many?

Football, an art form played on grass, is a display of sporting excellence respected and enjoyed around the world, a sport which anyone can love. As a writer from the United Kingdom, I see football through an almost romantic lens.

I see the good areas of the game, we all have our favourite teams and players, we discuss with friends and have a laugh at each other’s expense when results go against our own or our friend’s team.

What if it wasn’t just laughs, if it resulted in more than that, unpleasant verbal interactions, physical altercations, violence and in some cases death?

Serbia, a footballing nation renowned for hooliganism and die-hard fans, you would have seen Champions League and Europa League games on the screen from the country and the first thing you would see is, more than likely, pyrotechnics and a hostile crowd.

Often described as the most dangerous place to travel for an away fan, Serbian football has a dark secret hidden away. This is the story of how a warlord dictated the league system and won.

The Shetland Islands, an archipelago belonging to Scotland and north of the mainland, is a place with a rich historical past more associated with the Nords than the Scots and populated with people who would much rather identify themselves as Shetlanders over Scottish.

A group of islands with an estimated population of 23,000, long cold winters and short warm summers, but what is the story behind the football on the islands?

The 2026 World Cup is now only two years away and already in some regions of the globe qualification for the tournament has begun, Africa, Asian and South America (Conmebol) have played numerous games with the usual suspects leading the way in most stages.

The likes of Argentina, Egypt and Japan currently sitting top of their respective groups. With this tournament to be like no other, the format expanding from 32 teams up to 48, but what does this mean?