On the Eleventh Day of TBIR Christmas – The Best Website

By Stuartnoel @theballisround

The days of us sitting in front of the TV, furiously pressing “next page” on our remotes as we tried to follow our games on Ceefax are unfortunately long-gone.  But that was then and this is now.  We all get our kicks these days online.  Apparently, football result web pages are the most viewed on the Internet, more than those strange red tube things.

So here are our most used websites of 2014, those that have helped us navigate across the world as well as staying up to date.  Alas, the news that Swiss Ramble has fired up the Financial Rambler engine again in the last week of 2014 means he has missed the cut this year, but sure as Allardyce will hoof the ball long to Andy Carroll, he will be back in contention in 12 months time.

3rd Place – 500 Reasons to Love Football
When we are bored at work, or simply want cheering up then we head over to 500 RTLF.  We may be biased, being one of the authors of this ground-breaking site which, like that cathedral in Barcelona, still remains unfinished on 492 different reasons.  But we love it, and so should you – there’s something for all the family here.  Who knows, one day there could be a film…

2nd Place – Soccerway
Got a work trip coming up to Singapore?  Well, obviously you want to know if there is a game on whilst you are there…or is that just my mentality? No, of course not.  Nobody wants to really see the Singapore Flyer, the Night Safari or sip a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar at Raffles, but everyone wants to go and watch Albirext Niigata.  That does require some planning, but thankfully those top chaps over at Soccerway have taken all the hard work out of that for you.  Every (and we mean every) country in the world, every league in the world is features, showing up to date fixtures, league tables and even a little map as to where the grounds are.  Any Football Tourist worth their salt knows that Soccerway is the essential bookmark on your smartphone when you go traveling.

1st Place – Football Web Pages
Whilst we may laugh at those characters who straddle up next to you, transistor radio pressed to their ear, randomly shouting out scores no one one in particular, deep down we want to ask them how Shepshed Dynamo are getting on but we are too embarrassed to ask.  But one website spares our blushes.  Not only does it deliver the latest scores from the Premier League right the way down to the Ryman League South but it also gives us the facts and stats that would shut any anorak up.  Want to know which team in the Evostik South have the best current form?  How about the lowest attendance in the Vanerama Conference? Or even who Albion Rovers are playing next (Spalding United, Wrexham v Grimsby Town and Annan Athletic as you asked).  You could spend hours on the website, planning your whole season…or is that just me?  Top work chaps – please keep it up!

So one day to go in our TBIR 12 Days of Christmas…stay tuned same time, same place tomorrow to find out what the final gift is.