The Players Championship

The Players Championship

 (commonly known as simply The Players, stylized by the PGA Tour as The PLAYERS Championship) is an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour. Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, it began in 1974.[2] The Players Championship currently offers the highest prize fund of any tournament in golf ($12.5 million in 2019), overtaking the U.S. Open which offers a $12 million purse.[3] The field usually includes the top 50 players in the world rankings, but unlike the major championships and World Golf Championships events, it is owned by the PGA Tour and not an official event on other tours.

The Players is not considered a major, although it has a high class field, prestige, a famous host course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida (the TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course at which the tournament has been played since 1982, home of the iconic par-3 No. 17 "Island Green"), and its large purse.
Format
As of 2020, the victor receives $2.7 million, the winner's share (18%) of the largest purse in golf ($15 million),[6] and receives 80 points towards his world ranking, the largest share aside from the majors, for which winners earn 100 points. For comparison, the winners of the four individual World Golf Championships generally receive between 70 and 78 points.

The winner also receives a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour (formerly ten years),[7] a three-year invitation to the Masters Tournament, three-year exemptions for the U.S. Open and The Open Championship, and an exemption to the next three PGA Championship tournaments starting in 2018. The winner earns 600 FedEx Cup points, if a PGA Tour member.

Field
The field consists of 144 players consisting of the following criteria:

Winners of PGA Tour events since last Players
Top 125 from previous season's FedEx Cup points list
Top 125 (medical)
Major champions from the past five years
Players Championship winners from the past five years
The Tour Championship winners from the past three years
World Golf Championship winners from the past three years
Memorial Tournament and Arnold Palmer Invitational winners from the past three years
Top 50 from the Official World Golf Ranking
Senior Players champion from prior year
Korn Ferry Tour money leader from prior season
Money leader during the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, if not the regular-season money leader
Top 10 current year FedEx Cup points leaders
Remaining positions and alternates filled through current year FedEx Cup standings
History
The Players Championship was conceived by the PGA Tour commissioner Deane Beman; the inaugural event in 1974 was played at Atlanta Country Club in Marietta, Georgia, concluding on Labor Day weekend in early September.[2] It moved to Texas for 1975, at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth in August, and then to south Florida for 1976 at Inverrary Country Club in Lauderhill, at its East Course in late February.[8] In these first three years the event replaced existing events, the Atlanta Classic in 1974, the Colonial National Invitational in 1975 and the Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic in 1976, which each returned to the schedule the following year.[9][10]

In 1976 the PGA Tour agreed a multi-year deal to play the event up the coast at Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach in mid-March, beginning in 1977.[11][12] Since 1982,[13][14] it has been played across the road to the west, at the Stadium Course at TPC at Sawgrass.[5] The word "Tournament" was dropped from the title following the 1987 event.

Following the 2006 event, the course underwent a major renovation, which received very positive reviews from the players in 2007. Included in the renovation was a new 77,000-square-foot (7,150 m2) Mediterranean Revival-style clubhouse.

Move to May
For the first thirty years at Ponte Vedra Beach, the championship was played in mid- to late March, several weeks before The Masters. (Three weeks prior for the first six seasons (1977–1982), then two weeks prior in 1983.) It was moved to May in 2007, to the weekend including the second Saturday, as part of a restructuring of the PGA Tour. This restructuring involved the introduction of the lucrative FedEx Cup, which concludes with The Tour Championship. The change gave the PGA Tour a marquee event in six consecutive months (The Masters in April, The Players in May, the U.S. Open in June, The Open Championship in July, the PGA Championship in August, and the Tour Championship in September).[15]

With the rearrangement of 2007, the final round of The Players Championship was usually on the second Sunday of May, Mother's Day. To mark this, most players wore pink shirts or accessories on Sunday, and many in the galleries also joined them in donning pink garb. (The two exceptions were in 2011 and 2016, when the final round was on Sunday, May 15.)

In August 2017, it was announced that The Players would return to March beginning in 2019, due to a realignment of the golf season that moves the PGA Championship from August to May.[16][17][18]

Playoffs
The playoff format was sudden-death through 2013, lately starting at the par-3 17th hole. The format was changed to a three-hole aggregate in 2014, similar to the PGA Championship, played over the final three holes, in order. If still tied, the playoff goes to sudden-death on the same three holes, but starts at the 17th.[19]

Since moving to the Stadium Course in 1982, only four playoffs have been necessary (1987, 2008, 2011, 2015). The 1987 playoff started at the par-5 16th and went to a third extra hole at the par-4 18th, with three pars by the winner;[20][21][22] the next two ended at the first extra hole (17), also with pars by the victors. (The only playoff prior to the Stadium Course was in 1981; it also ended on the first hole with a par by the winner.)[23][24]

The 2015 playoff was the first for the three-hole aggregate and included three participants; two birdied 17 and the other player was eliminated after three holes. It went to sudden-death at 17 and became the first playoff at the Players to end with a birdie.

Defending champions
The Players has yet to produce a successful title defense; victories in consecutive years. Jack Nicklaus won three of the first five events, but in alternating years on different courses. Since moving to TPC Sawgrass in 1982, five players have won twice, but the shortest span between victories is six years (Steve Elkington: 1991, 1997).

The best finish by a defending champion is a tie for fifth place (1977, 1990, 2001) and the closest margin is four strokes behind (1977, 1981, 1989, 2005). The defending champion has missed the cut nine times, most recently in 2016, and has not participated (for health reasons) on three occasions (1983, 1998, 2014). The most recent top-ten finish was in 2005, a tie for eighth place.

ليستر سيتي

ليستر سيتي

ليستر سيتي (بالإنجليزية: Leicester City FC) المعروف أيضا باسم الثعالب نادي كرة قدم إنجليزي، تأسس في عام 1884 تحت مسمى ليستر فوس ثم اعتمد اسم ليستر سيتي في عام 1919، مقره مدينة لستر على ملعب كينغ باور يلعب في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

اعتبر ملعب فيلبرت ستريت مقر نادي ليستر سيتي لكرة القدم لمدة 111 عامًا من عام 1891 حتى 2002، قبل أن يتم الانتقال إلى ملعب ووكرز في عام 2002، والذي تم إعادة تسميته ليصبح ملعب كينغ باور بعد تغيير الملكية في عام 2011. تم انتخاب ليستر سيتي لكرة القدم عام 1894، قبل تحقيق بطولة الدوري الأنجليزي كسادس فريق يتوج باللقب في النسخة الجديدة، كان أفضل مركز حققه نادي ليستر سيتي هو وصيف بطل الدوري الإنجليزي عام 1928–29، وذلك خلف فريق شيفيلد وينزداي بفارق نقطة واحدة فقط، وبعيدا عن الدرجة الممتازة، حقق بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الدرجة الأولى مرة واحدة، وتوج كأكثر الفريق حصداً لدوري الدرجة الثانية الإنجليزي (6 مرات عبر تاريخه).

في نهاية موسم 2013–14 فاز بالبطولة الإنجليزية ليعود بعد غياب 12 موسم إلى الدوري الممتاز ويحتل المركز الرابع عشر في موسم 2014–15، ولكن الفريق بقيادة كلاوديو رانييري اعتبر الحصان الأسود في سباق البريمرليغ 2015–16، حيث استطاع الفوز باللقب الأول في تاريخه قبل جولتين من نهاية الموسم. وأول بطولة دوري للمدرب الإيطالي رانييري خلال مسيرته التدريبه مع الفريق.

حقق ليستر سيتي كأس الرابطة الإنجليزية ثلاثة مرات، ووصل لنهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي أربع مرات، حيث خسرها جميعها أخرها عام 1969، مما جعله أكثر فريق وصول لنهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي دون تحقيق اللقب. ويعتبر موسم 2008-2009 الأسوأ في تاريخ ليستر سيتي، لأنه الموسم الوحيد في تاريخه الذي لعبه خارج مصاف الدرجتين الأعلى في إنجلترا، لكنه عاد سريعاً وتعافى، ليلعب من جديد في الأدوار التي اعتادها. أما بالنسبة للمشاركات الأوروبية، فقد ظهر ليستر سيتي في أوروبا 3 مرات، لكنه خرج في كل المناسبات من الدور الأول، وكانت مشاركاته في كأس أوروبا لأبطال الكأس (1961-1962) وبطولة الدوري الأوروبي موسمي (1997-1998 و2000-2001)، علماً أنه خرج في المشاركتين الأولى والثانية أمام أتلتيكو مدريد، في حين أطاح النجم الأحمر اليوغسلافي بليستر سيتي في مشاركته الثالثة.

يشتهر ليستر سيتي بلقب الثعالب ويعود سبب وضع الثعالب على شعار ليستر سيتي، أن المنطقة التي ينتمي لها مشهورة بصيد الثعالب وكثرة هذا الحيوان فيها.

التأسيس

تشكيل النادي عام 1884 من قبل مجموعة من فتيان مدرسة ويجستون أعضاء كنيسة عمانوئيل وانضم النادي إلى الاتحاد الإنجليزي لكرة القدم عام 1890 باسم "ليستر فوس"، قبل الانتقال إلى فيلبرت ستريت عام 1891، لعب النادي في خمسة أراضي مختلفة، بما فيها فيكتوريا بارك. انضم إلى النادي أيضا في دوري ميدلاند لكرة القدم عام 1891، بعد انتخابه عام 1894 للعب في الدرجة الثانية من دوري كرة القدم، حصول على المركز الثاني، أول مبارة هزم في ليستر ضد غريمسبي تاون، أول فوز له كان ضد روتردام يونايتد في فيلبرت ستريت.

شهد الموسم نفسه أيضا أكبر فوز للنادي حتى الآن، انتصاره 13-0 على نوتس أولمبيك في تصفيات كأس الاتحاد الأنجليزي. أنهى النادي الموسم 1907-1908 وصيف الدرجة الثانية، وانتقال إلى دوري الدرجة الأولى، وهو أعلى مستوى كرة القدم في ذلك الوقت قبل أنشىء الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز، هبط النادي بعد موسم واحد بإحتلاله المركز الأخير في ترتيب الدوري بحصوله على 25 نقطة، تضمنت أكبر هزيمة له في تاريخه خسارة 12-0 ضد فريق نوتينغهام فورست

بعد الحرب العالمية الثانية

وصل نادي ليستر سيتي لنهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي للمرة الأولى في تاريخه في 30 أبريل 1949، غير أنه خسرها بنتيجة 3-1 من أمام نادي وولفرهامبتون واندررز، ومع ذلك، فإن النادي احتفل بعد أسبوع عندما ضمن تعادله في اليوم الأخير من الموسم وبقاءه في الدرجة الثانية، تم تتويج نادي ليستر سيتي بطولة الدرجة الثانية في عام 1954 بعد تساويه بالنقاط مع نادي إيفرتون و اللجوء للمعدل التهديفي الذي رجع كفت ليستر سيتي بفضل آرثر رولي، أحد مهاجمي النادي الأكثر تهديفاً، على الرغم من هبوط الفريق من الدرجة الأولى في الموسم 1954-1955 باحتلاله المركز ما قبل الأخير بحصوله على 35 نقطة، تمكن الفريق بعد موسمين تحت قيادة المدرب الأسكتلندي ديف هاليداي من العودة لدوري الدرجة الأولى في عام 1957، سجل آرثر رولي رقما قياسيا للنادي بتحقيقه 44 هدفا في موسم واحد، ليستر بقي في الدرجة الأولى حتى عام 1969، كأطول فترة بقي فيها النادي في دوري الدرجة الأولى. وصل ليستر سيتي تحت إدارة مات جيليس ومساعده بيرت جونسون لنهائي كأس الاتحاد الإنجليزي في مناسبتين لكنه خسره عامي 1961 و1963.

بطل الدوري الممتاز 2015–16

في 30 يونيو عام 2015، أقيل مدرب الفريق نايجل بيرسون من منصبه بسبب عدد من الخلافات الداخلية رغم نجاحه في إنقاذ الفريق من الهبوط بعد تحقيق سلسلة من الانتصارات في المراحل الأخيرة من موسم 2014–15، حيث أشار النادي إلى أن "علاقة العمل بين نايجل ومجلس الإدارة لم تعد قابلة للحياة". كان آخرها قضية جيمس بيرسون نجل نايجل بيرسون مدرب الفريق أحد ثلاثة لاعبين قرر النادي طردهم بعد تورطهم في واقعة تحرش جنسي وعنصرية ضد ثلاث سيدات خلال رحلة الفريق إلى تايلاند، يذكر أن بيرسون قاد ليستر سيتي إلى الدوري الممتاز بعد التتويج معه بطل لدوري البطولة الإنجليزية 2013-14.

في 13 يوليو عام 2015، أعلن نادي ليستر سيتي المدرب الأيطالي كلاوديو رانييري مديرا جديداً بعقد مدته ثلاث سنوات، حيث أعرب عن سعادته بالعودة إلى الدوري الأنجليزي الأقوى في العالم مرة أخرى، تحت قياداته إحراز النادي بداية استثنائية لهذا الموسم، حيث سجل المهاجم جيمي فاردي 13 هدفا خلال 11 مباراة متتالية من أغسطس إلى نوفمبر، محطماً رقم رود فان نيستلروي القياسي في الدوري الممتاز بتسجيله في 10 مباراة متتالية.

بدأ ليستر سيتي الموسم على النهج التصاعدي الذي أنهى به الموسم السابق بفوزه في أول مباراة له بأربعة أهداف لهدفين على سندرلاند، وصعد إلى المركز الأول وبقي في الصدراة أسبوعين، قبل أن يتعادل في مباريتن متتاليتين أمام توتنهام وبورنموث، جعله ينزل إلى المركز الثالث وكان يتوقع أن يواصل ليستر سيتي هبوطه في ترتيب الدوري، ولكن ذلك لم يحدث ولم يهبط إلى مركز أدنى من السادس، عاش فترة صعبة مرة واحدة خلال الموسم عندما حقق فوزاً واحداً في خمس مباريات في مطلع العام 2016، قبل أن يتصدر الدوري مجددا في 11 يناير 2016 بعد فوزه على توتنهام بهدف لصفر، ولم يتنازل عن العرش بعدها، تمكن الفريق من تحقيق الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز يوم 2 مايو 2016، بعد فشل توتنهام في تحقيق الفوز أمام تشيلسي وفقدانه فرصة المنافسة على اللقب، قبل جولتين من نهاية الموسم، لم يخسر خلال 37 مباراة سوى 3 مباريات، فيما يعد هذا الإنجاز هو الأقرب لإنجاز نادي نوتينغهام فورست الذي توج في بطولة الدورى الإنجليزى عام 1978، فارق النقاط بين ليستر سيتي وبين ثاني أقرب منافس أقل من الفارق الذي حققته الفرق الخمسة الفائزة بالدوري الإنجليزي قبله.

يرجع تتويج ليستر بالدوري باللقب أساساً إلى جهود هداف الفريق جايمي فاردي الذي اختير كأفضل لاعب بحسب جمعية الصحافيين، وصانع العاب رياض محرز الحاصل على جائزة أفضل لاعب في الدوري الإنكليزي الممتاز 2016، الذين شكلا ثنائياً ذهبياً، وكانا وراء أغلب أهداف الفريق، كما يرجع الفضل إلى المدرب كلاوديو رانييري، الذي كان يعاب عليه تغيير تشكيلته باستمرار، عندما كان يشرف على فريق تشيلسي، ولكنه في فريق ليستر حافظ على تشكيلة أساسية واحدة طوال الموسم، وقلما أجرى تعديلات عليها. مرتكزاً على الصلابة الدفاعية والاعتماد على الهجمات المرتدة مستغلاً سرعة محرز وفادري. في بداية الموسم، منحت مكاتب المراهنات نسبة واحد على 5 آلاف لليستر لكي يتوج باللقب وكان الأمر طبيعياً لأن ليستر نجا بأعجوبة من الهبوط إلى الدرجة الأولى نهاية الموسم الماضي. عبّر ريتشارد سكودامور رئيس رابطة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز لكرة القدم إن تتويج ليستر سيتي بلقب البطولة، بعد أن كان يصارع للبقاء في دوري الأضواء يتجاوز حدود الرياضة وقد لا يتكرر.

شهد ملعب كينغ باور الخاص بالنادي في 7 مايو 2016 اكتظ بأكثر من 33 ألف متفرج في أجواء احتفالية أشعلها دخول المدير الفني لفريق كلاوديو رانييري، رفقة مواطنه والمغني الأوبرالي أندريا بوتشلي مرتديا قميص «الثعالب» وغنى مقطوعة من الأغنية الشهيرة (نيسون دورما) أو «ليهجر الجميع النوم» وهي أغنية من الفصل الأخير في أوبرا بوتشيني «توراندو»، بالإضافة إلى أغنية «Time to Say Goodbye» أو «الوقت لنقول وداعا» بفوزه بلقب بطل الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز لكرة القدم لأول مرة في تاريخه، وذلك قبل بدء مباراته أمام ضيفه إيفرتون في الجولة 37 للدوري وسط احتفالات عارمة لجماهير "الثعالب" التي اكتست باللونين الأزرق والأبيض في المدرجات.

في حين قرر رجل الأعمال التايلاندي، فيشاي سريفادانا برابا، مالك نادي ليستر سيتي الإنجليزي، تقديم سيارة مرسيدس من طراز "ب إلكتريك درايف" لكل لاعب ساهم في أحراز لقب الدوري. بالإضافة إلى رحلة إلى لاس فيغاس مدفوعة بكافة التكاليف خلال الصيف المقبل، تنفيذا لوعد كان قطعه رجل الأعمال التايلاندي خلال شهر فبراير الماضي، عندما وعد لاعبيه وكامل الجهاز الفني لفريقه بهدية غير متوقعة في حال نجاح الفريق في الفوز ببطولة الدوري الإنجليزي لكرة القدم.

Leicester City

Leicester City

Leicester City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Leicester in the East Midlands. The club competes in the Premier League, England's top division of football, and plays its home games at the King Power Stadium.[2]

The club was founded in 1884 as Leicester Fosse F.C.,[3] playing on a field near Fosse Road. They moved to Filbert Street in 1891, were elected to the Football League in 1894 and adopted the name Leicester City in 1919. They moved to the nearby Walkers Stadium in 2002,[4] which was renamed the King Power Stadium in 2011.

Leicester won the 2015–16 Premier League, their first top-level football championship. They are one of only six clubs to have won the Premier League since its inception in 1992. A number of newspapers described Leicester's title win as the greatest sporting shock ever, multiple bookmakers had never paid out at such long odds for any sport.[5][6][7] As a result, the team was dubbed "The Unbelievables", a spin-off harking back to Arsenal's undefeated team "The Invincibles".[8] The club's previous highest finish was second place in the top flight, in 1928–29, then known as the First Division.

Throughout their history, Leicester have spent all but one season in the top two divisions of English football. They hold a joint-highest seven second-tier titles (six Second Division and one Championship). The club have been FA Cup finalists four times, won the League Cup three times, and competed in four European campaigns.

Founding and early years (1884–1949)

Formed in 1884 by a group of old boys of Wyggeston School as "Leicester Fosse", the club joined The Football Association (FA) in 1890.[9] Before moving to Filbert Street in 1891, the club played at five different grounds, including Victoria Park south-east of the city centre and the Belgrave Road Cycle and Cricket Ground.[10] The club also joined the Midland League in 1891, and were elected to Division Two of the Football League in 1894 after finishing second. Leicester's first ever Football League game was a 4–3 defeat at Grimsby Town, with a first League win the following week, against Rotherham United at Filbert Street. The same season also saw the club's largest win to date, a 13–0 victory over Notts Olympic in an FA Cup qualifying game.[3] In 1907–08 the club finished as Second Division runners-up, gaining promotion to the First Division, the highest level of English football. However, the club were relegated after a single season which included the club's record defeat, a 12–0 loss against Nottingham Forest.[3][11]

In 1919, when League football resumed after World War I, Leicester Fosse ceased trading due to financial difficulties of which little is known. The club was reformed as "Leicester City Football Club", particularly appropriate as the borough of Leicester had recently been given city status. Following the name change, the club enjoyed moderate success in the 1920s; under the management of Peter Hodge, who left in May 1926 to be replaced two months later by Willie Orr, and with record goalscorer Arthur Chandler in the side,[12] they won the Division Two title in 1924–25[13] and recorded their second-highest league finish in 1928–29 as runners-up by a single point to Sheffield Wednesday.[9] However the 1930s saw a downturn in fortunes, with the club relegated in 1934–35[14] and, after promotion in 1936–37,[15] another relegation in 1938–39 would see them finish the decade in Division Two.[3][16]

Historical league positions of Leicester City in the Football League

Post-World War II (1949–2000)

City reached the FA Cup final for the first time in their history in 1949,[3][17] losing 3–1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers. The club, however, was celebrating a week later when a draw on the last day of the season ensured survival in Division Two.[18][19] Leicester won the Division Two championship in 1954,[20] with the help of Arthur Rowley, one of the club's most prolific strikers. Although they were relegated from Division One the next season, under Dave Halliday they returned in 1957,[21] with Rowley scoring a club record 44 goals in one season.[12] Leicester remained in Division One until 1969,[22] their longest period ever in the top flight.

Under the management of Matt Gillies and his assistant Bert Johnson, Leicester reached the FA Cup final on another two occasions, but lost in both 1961 and 1963.[3] As they lost to double winners Tottenham Hotspur in 1961, they were England's representatives in the 1961–62 European Cup Winners' Cup. In the 1962–63 season, the club led the First Division during the winter, thanks to a sensational run of form on icy and frozen pitches the club became nicknamed the "Ice Kings" eventually placed fourth, the club's best post-war finish. Gillies guided Leicester to their first piece of silverware in 1964, when Leicester beat Stoke City 4–3 on aggregate to win the League Cup for the first time.[3] Leicester also reached the League Cup final the following year, but lost 3–2 on aggregate to Chelsea. Gillies and Johnson received praise for their version of the "whirl" and the "switch" system, a system that had previously been used by the Austrian and Hungarian national teams.[23] After a bad start to the season, Matt Gillies resigned in November 1968. His successor, Frank O'Farrell was unable to prevent relegation, but the club reached the FA Cup final in 1969 for the last time to date, losing to Manchester City 1–0.

In 1971, Leicester were promoted back to Division One, and won the Charity Shield for the only time.[3] Unusually, due to double winners Arsenal's commitments in European competition, Division Two winners Leicester were invited to play FA Cup runners-up Liverpool, beating them 1–0[3] thanks to a goal by Steve Whitworth.[24] Jimmy Bloomfield was appointed for the new season, and his team remained in the First Division for his tenure. No period since Bloomfield has seen the club remain in the top division for so long. Leicester reached the FA Cup semi-final in 1973–74.[25]

Frank McLintock, a noted player for seven years for Leicester in a successful period from the late Fifties to the mid Sixties, succeeded Jimmy Bloomfield in 1977. City were relegated at the end of the 1977–78 season and McLintock resigned. Jock Wallace resumed the tradition of successful Scottish managers (after Peter Hodge and Matt Gillies) by steering Leicester to the Division Two championship in 1980.[26] Unfortunately, Wallace was unable to keep Leicester in Division One, but they reached the FA Cup semi-final in 1982. Under Wallace, one of City's most famous home-grown players, Gary Lineker, emerged into the first team squad. Leicester's next manager was Gordon Milne, who achieved promotion in 1983. Lineker helped Leicester maintain their place in the First Division but was sold to Everton in 1985 and two years later Leicester were relegated, having failed to find a suitable replacement to partner Alan Smith, who was sold to Arsenal after Leicester went down.

Milne left in 1986 and was replaced in 1987 by David Pleat, who was sacked in January 1991 with Leicester in danger of relegation to the Third Division. Gordon Lee was put in charge of the club until the end of the season. Leicester won their final game of the season, which guided them clear of relegation to the third tier of the football league.[3]

Brian Little took over in 1991 and by the end of the 1991–92 season Leicester had reached the playoff final for a place in the new FA Premier League, but lost to Blackburn Rovers and a penalty from former Leicester striker Mike Newell. The club also reached the playoff final the following year, losing 4–3 to Swindon Town, having come back from 3–0 down. In 1993–94 City were promoted from the playoffs, beating Derby County 2–1 in the final.[3] Little quit as Leicester manager the following November to take charge at Aston Villa, and his successor Mark McGhee was unable to save Leicester from finishing second from bottom in the 1994–95 season.

McGhee left the club unexpectedly in December 1995 while Leicester were top of the First Division to take charge of Wolverhampton Wanderers.[27] McGhee was replaced by Martin O'Neill.[3] Under O'Neill, Leicester qualified for the 1996 Football League play-offs and beat Crystal Palace 2–1 in the final through a 120th minute Steve Claridge goal to gain promotion to the FA Premier League. Following promotion, Leicester established themselves in the Premier League with four successive top ten finishes. O'Neill ended Leicester's 33-year wait for a major trophy, winning the League Cup twice, in 1997 and 2000, and Leicester were runners-up in 1999. Thus, the club qualified for the UEFA Cup in 1997–98 and 2000–01, the club's first European competition since 1961. In June 2000, O'Neill left Leicester City to take over as manager of Celtic.

Decline in the early 21st century (2000–2008)

O'Neill was replaced by former England under-21 coach Peter Taylor. During this time, one of Leicester's European appearances ended in a 3–1 defeat to Red Star Belgrade on 28 September 2000 in the UEFA Cup.[28] Leicester began well under Taylor's management, topping the Premier League for two weeks in the autumn and remaining in contention for a European place for most of the campaign, before a late season collapse dragged them down to a 13th-place finish.

Taylor was sacked after a poor start to the 2001–02 season, and his successor Dave Bassett lasted just six months before being succeeded by his assistant Micky Adams, the change of management being announced just before relegation was confirmed. Leicester won just five league matches all season

Leicester moved into the new 32,314-seat Walkers Stadium at the start of the 2002–03 season, ending 111 years at Filbert Street. Walkers, the Leicestershire-based crisp manufacturers, acquired the naming rights for a ten-year period.[29] In October 2002, the club went into administration with debts of £30 million. Some of the reasons were the loss of TV money (ITV Digital, itself in administration, had promised money to First Division clubs for TV rights), the large wage bill, lower than expected fees for players transferred to other clubs and the £37 million cost of the new stadium.[30] Adams was banned from the transfer market for most of the season, even after the club was rescued with a takeover by a consortium led by Gary Lineker.[3] Adams guided Leicester to the runners-up spot in Division One and automatic promotion back to the Premier League with more than 90 points. However, Leicester lasted only one season in the top flight and were relegated to the newly labelled Championship, previously known as Division One.

When Adams resigned as manager in October 2004, Craig Levein was appointed boss. This would prove to be an unsuccessful period and after 15 months in charge, Levein was sacked, having failed to get the Foxes anywhere near the promotion places. Assistant manager Rob Kelly took over as caretaker manager, and after winning three out of four matches, was appointed to see out the rest of the season. Kelly steered Leicester to safety and in April 2006 was given the manager's job on a permanent basis.[3]

In October 2006, ex-Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandarić was quoted as saying he was interested in buying the club, reportedly at a price of around £6 million, with the current playing squad valued at roughly £4.2 million. The takeover was formally announced on 13 February 2007.[31] On 11 April 2007, Rob Kelly was sacked as manager and Nigel Worthington appointed as caretaker manager until the end of the season. Worthington saved the club from relegation, but was not offered the job on a permanent basis. On 25 May 2007, the club announced former Milton Keynes Dons manager Martin Allen as their new manager with a three-year contract. Allen's relationship with Mandarić became tense and after only four matches, Allen left by mutual consent on 29 August 2007. On 13 September 2007, Mandarić announced Gary Megson as the new manager of the club, citing Megson's "wealth of experience" as a deciding factor in the appointment. However, Megson left on 24 October 2007 after only six weeks in charge, following an approach made for his services by Bolton Wanderers. Mandarić placed Frank Burrows and Gerry Taggart in the shared position as caretaker managers until a professional manager was appointed.

On 22 November, Ian Holloway was appointed manager, and he became the first Leicester manager in over 50 years to win his first league match in charge, beating Bristol City 2–0.[32] However, this success did not last, and Leicester were relegated from the Championship at the end of the 2007–08 season. Holloway left by mutual consent after less than a season at the club, being replaced by Nigel Pearson.

Third tier to Premier League and takeover (2008–2015)

The 2008–09 campaign was Leicester's first season outside the top two levels of English football, but they hit this nadir only seven years before becoming the 2015–16 Premier League champions – the fastest seven-year rise to the top of the English football league system apart from Ipswich Town in 1962.[33] Following relegation to the third tier the previous season, Leicester returned to the Championship at the first attempt in 2008–09, finishing as champions of League One after a 2–0 win at Southend United, with two matches in hand. The 2009–10 season saw Leicester's revival under manager Nigel Pearson continue, as the club finished fifth and reached the Championship play-offs in their first season back in the second tier. Though coming from 2–0 down on aggregate, away to Cardiff City, to briefly lead 3–2, they eventually lost to a penalty shoot-out in the play-off semi-final. At the end of the season, Pearson left Leicester to become the manager of Hull City, claiming he felt the club seemed reluctant to keep him, and that Paulo Sousa had been the club's guest at both play-off games, hinting at a possible replacement. On 7 July 2010, Sousa was confirmed as Pearson's replacement.[34]

In August 2010, following agreement on a three-year shirt sponsorship deal with duty-free retailers the King Power Group, Mandarić sold the club to Thai-led consortium Asian Football Investments (AFI), fronted by King Power Group's Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.[35] Mandarić, an investor in AFI,[36] was retained as club chairman.[37] On 1 October 2010, after a poor start that saw Leicester bottom of the Championship with only one win out of the first nine league matches, Paulo Sousa was sacked by the club with immediate effect.[38] Two days later, Sven-Göran Eriksson, who had been approached by the club after the 6–1 loss to then bottom-of-the-table Portsmouth two weeks earlier, was appointed as his replacement, signing a two-year contract with the club.[citation needed] On 10 February 2011, Vichai Raksriaksorn, part of the Thai-based Asia Football Investments consortium, was appointed new chairman of the club after Mandarić left in November to take over Sheffield Wednesday.[39]

Leicester were viewed as one of the favourites for promotion in the 2011–12 season, but on 24 October 2011, following an inconsistent start with the Foxes winning just 5 out of their first 13 matches, Eriksson left the club by mutual consent.[40] Three weeks later, Nigel Pearson returned to the club as Eriksson's successor. Pearson would go on to lead the Foxes to a sixth-place finish in the 2012–13 season, ensuring Leicester were in the Championship play-offs. However, Leicester lost the playoff semi-final 3–2 on aggregate to Watford after Anthony Knockaert missed a late penalty and Troy Deeney scored right at the end after a swift counterattack from a Manuel Almunia double save.[41]

In 2014, Leicester's march up the league system hit a breakthrough. Their 2–1 home win over Sheffield Wednesday, combined with losses by Queens Park Rangers and Derby County, allowed Leicester City to clinch promotion to the Premier League after a ten-year absence. Later that month, a win at Bolton saw Leicester become the champions of the 2013–14 Championship, the seventh time they had been champions of England's second tier.

Leicester started their first season in the Premier League since 2004 with a good run of results in their first five league matches, starting with a 2–2 draw on the opening day against Everton.[42] The Foxes then claimed their first Premier League win since May 2004, with a 0–1 win at Stoke City.[43] On 21 September 2014, Leicester went on to produce one of the greatest comebacks in Premier League history to beat Manchester United 5–3 at the King Power Stadium after coming back from 3–1 down with 30 minutes left to score four goals. They also made Premier League history by becoming the first team to beat Manchester United from a two-goal deficit since the league's launch in 1992.[44]

During the 2014–15 season, a dismal run of form saw the team slip to the bottom of the league table with only 19 points from 29 matches. By 3 April 2015, they were seven points adrift from safety. This could have brought a sudden end to Leicester's seven-year rise, but seven wins from their final nine league matches meant the Foxes finished the season in 14th place with 41 points. They finished the season with a 5–1 thrashing of relegated Queens Park Rangers. Their upturn in results was described as one of the Premier League's greatest ever escapes from relegation.[45][46] They also became only the third team in Premier League history to survive after being bottom at Christmas (the other two being West Bromwich Albion in 2005 and Sunderland in 2014), and no team with fewer than 20 points from 29 matches had previously stayed up.

Premier League champions (2015–16)

On 30 June 2015, Pearson was sacked, with the club stating, "The working relationship between Nigel and the Board is no longer viable." The sacking was linked to a number of public relations issues involving Pearson throughout the season, with the final straw involving his son James' role in a "racist sex tape" made by three Leicester reserve players in Thailand during a post-season goodwill tour.[48][49][50] Leicester reacted by appointing former Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri as their new manager for the new 2015–16 Premier League season.[51] Despite an initially sceptical reaction to Ranieri's appointment, the club made an exceptional start to the season.[52] Striker Jamie Vardy scored 13 goals over 11 consecutive matches from August to November, breaking Ruud van Nistelrooy's Premier League record of scoring in 10 consecutive matches.[53] On 19 December, Leicester defeated Everton 3–2 at Goodison Park to top the Premier League on Christmas Day, having been bottom exactly 12 months earlier.[54] A 2–0 victory at Sunderland on 10 April, coupled with Tottenham Hotspur's 3–0 win over Manchester United, ensured Leicester's qualification for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history.[55]

Leicester won the Premier League on 2 May 2016 after Tottenham threw away a 2–0 lead against Chelsea, drawing 2–2 at the "Battle of Stamford Bridge".[56][57] This completed the fastest seven-year rise to the title except for Ipswich Town in 1962, and Leicester faced a far more unequal top tier than Ipswich did back then.[33][58] Bookmakers thought Leicester's victory was so unlikely that Ladbrokes and William Hill offered odds of 5,000–1 for it at the start of the season. Neither bookmaker had ever paid out such long odds, and the trophy resulted in the largest payout in British sporting history with total winnings of £25 million.[59][60][61] The scale of the surprise attracted global attention for the club and the city of Leicester.[62][63] The Economist declared it would be "pored over for management lessons".[64] Several commentators have viewed it as an inspiration to other clubs and fundamentally transforming the expectations similar sized clubs face in English football.[65]

Leicester became known for their counterattacking style of play, "incredible pace in the areas it is most essential" and defensive solidarity.[66] Former boss Nigel Pearson was credited by several pundits and fans as having laid the foundations for Leicester's title winning season.[67] Players were often praised for their work ethic and togetherness which was apparent throughout the squad. Reacting to City winning the Premier League, Executive chairman Richard Scudamore said:

“ If this was a once in every 5,000-year event, then we've effectively got another 5,000 years of hope ahead of us. ”

A film has been planned of the story, centred on Jamie Vardy.[68]

Established Premier League side (2016–present)

Leicester, while performing well in the Champions League, struggled domestically during 2016–17, spending much of the first few months in the bottom half of the table. In December 2016, Ranieri was awarded coach of the year and Leicester team of the year at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.[69] However, on 23 February 2017, Ranieri was sacked due to the club's continuing poor form, resulting in them being only one point above the relegation zone. The sacking was met with significant upset and anger from the media, with Gary Lineker called the sacking "very sad" and "inexplicable",[70] while Manchester United manager José Mourinho blamed it on "selfish players".[70] Rumours began emerging some days later that players had been meeting with the owners to discuss Ranieri's sacking without Ranieri knowing, which sparked widespread outrage over social media, but these were never proven.[71]

Craig Shakespeare took over as caretaker manager, and in his first match in charge, Leicester won 3–1 against fifth-placed Liverpool, with Vardy scoring a brace.[72] In his second match as caretaker, Shakespeare led Leicester to another 3–1 victory, over Hull City.[73] Following two impressive results and initiating "the type of positive response that we hoped change would bring", the club's owners then decided Shakespeare would become the club's manager until the end of the season.[74]

The 2016–17 campaign was also the first season in 15 years that Leicester qualified for European football. Leicester were placed in Group G of the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League, alongside Porto, Copenhagen and Club Brugge. In their inaugural Champions League campaign, they went undefeated in their first five matches to progress to the knockout stages as group winners.[citation needed] The Foxes then faced La Liga club Sevilla in the round of 16 and defeated the Spanish side 2–0 on the night, and 3–2 on aggregate to advance to the quarter-finals.[75] There they faced Atlético Madrid, and drew 1–1 in the second leg, but lost 1–2 on aggregate after losing 1–0 in the first leg. This put an end to Leicester's 2016–17 European campaign, and they finished as Champions League quarter-finalists.[76] Despite the loss, Leicester remained unbeaten at home in the 2016–17 Champions League.

Shakespeare, having impressed during his caretaker spell, was appointed full-time on a three-year contract.[77] However, following a poor start to the season he was sacked in October 2017 after four months officially in charge, with Leicester in 18th place in the table. [78] He was replaced with former Southampton boss Claude Puel on 25 October 2017. By Christmas, Leicester were in 8th position in the Premier League and went on to finish one place lower in 9th at the end of the season.

Despite rumours that Puel would leave, he remained at the club for the next season and performed well. However, the team suffered a poor run of games in 2019 which saw Leicester suffer 4 successive home defeats, and following a 4–1 home defeat to Crystal Palace, Puel was sacked on 24 February 2019 with the club in 12th place.[79] Two days later on 26 February 2019, former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers was appointed as his replacement.[80] They finished the season again in 9th place.

On 25 October 2019, Leicester recorded a 9-0 away win at Southampton in the Premier League. Ayoze Perez and Jamie Vardy both scored hat tricks as the game became the joint largest win in Premier League history and the largest away win in English top flight history

Hudson-Odoi

Hudson-Odoi

Callum James Hudson-Odoi (born 7 November 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger for Premier League club Chelsea and the England national team.

During his time with Chelsea's academy, Hudson-Odoi was part of the squads which won the U18 Premier League in 2017 as well as back-to-back FA Youth Cup titles. His form at youth level was rewarded in January 2018 when he was handed his senior debut and he has since made over 20 appearances for the club.

Hudson-Odoi also enjoyed considerable success at youth level for England, being part of the squad which ended as runners-up in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship and which won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in the same year. In March 2019, he became the youngest player to debut in a competitive match for England, doing so in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Czech Republic. On 13 March 2020, he became the first Premier League footballer to test positive for COVID-19

Early and personal life

Hudson-Odoi was born and raised in Wandsworth, Greater London.[5][6] He is the younger brother of non-League striker Bradley Hudson-Odoi and the second son of former Hearts of Oak Ghanaian midfielder Bismark Odoi.[7][8] He has a younger brother.[9] Hudson-Odoi was educated at Whitgift School in Croydon.[10]

Club career

Chelsea

Early career

"You dream of being a professional as a kid, especially at the club I’ve now been at for so long. You think, “Can I become like him (Eto’o) or at least get to the top where he is?” and I’m now fulfilling that dream"

—Hudson-Odoi on celebrating with Samuel Eto’o as a ball-boy in 2014.[11]

Hudson-Odoi joined Chelsea in 2007 and made his under-18 debut in August 2016. He went on to net eight times in twenty-five appearances in his debut campaign, assisting the under-18's to their eight FA Youth Cup triumph.[12] Following this, Hudson-Odoi was promoted to the under-23 team at the age of sixteen and went on to score four times in three games during their EFL Trophy campaign,[13] including a double in their 2–2 draw with League One team Plymouth Argyle.[14]

On 20 December 2017, Hudson-Odoi first appeared in Chelsea's first-team matchday squad in their EFL Cup tie against Bournemouth, remaining as an unused substitute in the 2–1 victory.[15] On 28 January 2018, Hudson-Odoi made his first-team debut in the FA Cup match against Newcastle United. He came off the bench in the 81st minute, replacing Pedro in a 3–0 home victory.[16] His Premier League debut came as a substitute on 31 January in a 3–0 home loss to Bournemouth.[17]

2018–19 season

Following an impressive 2018–19 pre-season under the newly appointed Maurizio Sarri, the Italian announced that Hudson-Odoi would stay with the Chelsea first-team squad for the forthcoming campaign.[18] Following this, Hudson-Odoi was handed the number 20 jersey. On 5 August 2018, Hudson-Odoi made his first start for the club during their FA Community Shield defeat to Manchester City, featuring for 59 minutes in the 2–0 loss.[19] In his first Europa League start against PAOK, he scored his first goal for the senior team, which went on to win 4–0 at Stamford Bridge on 29 November.[20]

On 5 January 2019, in Chelsea's FA Cup third-round opener against Nottingham Forest, he assisted both of Álvaro Morata's goals in a 2–0 win.[21] During the January transfer window Hudson-Odoi was reportedly the subject of multiple transfer bids from Bayern Munich, with Chelsea's assistant manager Gianfranco Zola and Bayern's director of sport Hasan Salihamidžić both confirming the interest.[22][23][24] Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri criticised Bayern Munich's public conduct.[25] On 26 January 2019, it was announced that Hudson-Odoi had put in an official transfer request.[26] However, he was selected for Chelsea's next match the following day, a home tie in the FA Cup against Sheffield Wednesday. Hudson-Odoi played 90 minutes, scoring in a 3–0 win.[27] Two days later, Sarri confirmed that Hudson-Odoi would be staying at the club.[28]

In March 2019, Chelsea complained about alleged racism aimed at Hudson-Odoi during a match against Dynamo Kiev.[29] He was later offered counselling for the incident.[30] On 3 April, he made his first league start for Chelsea and assisted Olivier Giroud for the opening goal in a 3–0 win over Brighton. In doing so, he became the youngest player to assist a goal on his first start for the club in the Premier League era, aged 18 years and 146 days.[31] On 22 April 2019, Hudson-Odoi was removed in the first half of a match against Burnley with an injury to his Achilles tendon, ruling him out for the rest of the season.[32][33]

2019–20 season

In July 2019, after Frank Lampard was appointed as Chelsea head coach, Lampard said of Hudson-Odoi: "He can show, right here at Chelsea, the team he came through the academy at, that he is going to be a world-class player – because I truly believe that."[34] Following much speculation about Hudson-Odoi's future,[35][36] he signed a new five-year contract with Chelsea on 20 September 2019.[37][38] In October 2019 he said he had made the right choice in staying with the club,[39] and in November 2019 he said he was convinced to stay following a conversation with Lampard.[40]

Hudson-Odoi netted the opener in a 2–0 home win against Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup third round on 5 January.[41] On 11 January, he scored his first-ever Premier League goal in Chelsea's 3–0 home win against Burnley.[42]

On 13 March 2020 it was announced by Chelsea that he had tested positive for COVID-19 amid the pandemic in the UK.[43]

International career

Eligible for both England and Ghana, Hudson-Odoi has represented England at every age group from under-16 to under-19 level. In April 2017, he was included in the squad for the 2017 UEFA European Under-17 Championship.[44] He scored in the semi-final against Turkey and again in the final, although England eventually lost to Spain on a penalty shoot-out.[45][46] His performances led to him being included in the team of the tournament.[47] Hudson-Odoi was also an influential figure during England's 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup campaign, netting once in seven appearances and featuring for the entire 90 minutes during their 5–2 final victory over Spain.[48]

In March 2018, Hudson-Odoi scored for England under-18 in a match against Belarus.[49] In September 2018 he scored for the England under-19 team against Belgium.[50]

He was called-up by the England under-21 team for the first time in March 2019.[51] A few days later, following injury to some of the senior squad players, he was called up to Gareth Southgate's senior squad for UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Czech Republic and Montenegro. Upon receiving his maiden call-up, Hudson-Odoi said he was "shocked" and described it as "a dream come true".[52][53] He made his debut on 22 March as a 70th-minute substitute in a 5–0 win over the Czech Republic at Wembley Stadium.[54] Upon doing so, he became the youngest-ever player to make his debut in a competitive match for England, aged 18 years and 135 days, breaking the record set by Duncan Edwards in 1955 by 40 days.[55]

Three days later, he made his first competitive start for England and impressed in a 5–1 win over Montenegro, registering an assist for one of Chelsea teammate Ross Barkley's two goals. Upon making his full debut, he became the second youngest ever player to start a competitive match for England, after Wayne Rooney in April 2003, and following the match manager Gareth Southgate praised him for his application.[56][57]

On 11 October 2019, Hudson-Odoi made his England U-21 debut during a 2–2 draw against the Slovenia U-21s in Maribor

Justin Trudeau

Justin Trudeau

Justin Pierre James Trudeau (About this soundlisten) PC MP (/ˈtruːdoʊ, truːˈdoʊ/; French: [ʒystɛ̃ tʁydo]; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who has served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada since 2015 and has been the leader of the Liberal Party since 2013.[2][3] Trudeau is the second-youngest Canadian prime minister after Joe Clark; he is also the first to be related to a previous holder of the post, as the eldest son of Pierre Trudeau.[4][5]

Born in Ottawa, Trudeau attended Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf, graduated from McGill University in 1994, and then the University of British Columbia in 1998. He has a bachelor of arts degree in literature and a bachelor of education degree. After graduating, he worked as a teacher in Vancouver, British Columbia.[6] He started studying engineering at Montreal's École Polytechnique in 2002 but dropped out in 2003.[7][8] Beginning in 2004, he took one year of a master's program in environmental geography at McGill University but, again, left without graduating in 2005.[9][8][7] He has also held jobs including camp counselor,[10] nightclub bouncer,[11][12][10] and snowboard instructor.[10][13]

In the 2008 federal election, he was elected to represent the riding of Papineau in the House of Commons. In 2009, he was appointed the Liberal Party's critic for youth and multiculturalism, and the following year, became critic for citizenship and immigration. In 2011, he was appointed as critic for secondary education and sport. Trudeau won the leadership of the Liberal Party in April 2013 and led his party to victory in the 2015 federal election, moving the third-placed Liberals from 36 seats to 184 seats, the largest-ever numerical increase by a party in a Canadian federal election.[14][15] As Prime Minister, major government initiatives he undertook during his first term included legalizing recreational marijuana through the Cannabis Act, attempting Senate appointment reform by establishing the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments and negotiating trade deals such as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, while also grappling with controversies surrounding the SNC-Lavalin affair.

Winning the most seats (157) in the 2019 federal election, the Liberals formed a minority government while losing the popular vote, despite receiving the lowest percentage of the national popular vote of any governing party in Canadian history

arly life

Ancestry and birth

On June 23, 1971, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) announced that Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau's wife of four months, the former Margaret Sinclair,[17] was pregnant and due in December.[18][19] Justin Trudeau was born on Christmas Day 1971 at 9:27 pm EST at the Ottawa Civic Hospital.[20] He is the second child in Canadian history to be born to a prime minister in office; the first was John A. Macdonald's daughter Margaret Mary Theodora Macdonald (February 8, 1869 – January 28, 1933). Trudeau's younger brothers Alexandre (Sacha) (born December 25, 1973) and Michel (October 2, 1975 – November 13, 1998) were the third and fourth.[21][22]

Trudeau is predominantly of Scottish and French Canadian descent. His grandfathers were businessman Charles-Émile Trudeau[23] and Scottish-born James Sinclair,[24] who served as Minister of Fisheries in the cabinet of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent.[25] Trudeau's maternal great-grandfather Thomas Bernard was born in Makassar[26] and immigrated to Penticton, British Columbia, in 1906 at age 15 with his family.[27] Through the Bernard family, kinsmen of the Earls of Bandon,[28][29][30] Trudeau is the 5th-great-grandson of Major-General William Farquhar,[31] a leader in the founding of modern Singapore; Trudeau also has remote ethnic Malaccan[32][33] and Ono Niha[34][35][36] ancestry.

Trudeau was baptized with his father's niece Anne Rouleau-Danis as godmother and his mother's brother-in-law Thomas Walker as godfather[37][38] at Ottawa's Notre Dame Basilica on the afternoon of January 16, 1972, which marked his first public appearance

On April 14, 1972, Trudeau's father and mother hosted a gala at the National Arts Centre, at which visiting U.S. president Richard M. Nixon said, "I'd like to toast the future prime minister of Canada, to Justin Pierre Trudeau" to which Pierre Elliott Trudeau responded that should his son ever assume the role, he hoped he would have "the grace and skill of the president".[40] Earlier that same day U.S. first lady Pat Nixon had come to see him in his nursery to deliver a gift, a stuffed toy Snoopy.[41][42] Nixon's White House audio tapes later revealed Nixon referred to that visit as "wasting three days up there. That trip we needed like a hole in the head."[43][44]

Childhood

His parents publicly announced their separation on May 27, 1977,[45][46] when Trudeau was five years old, with his father having custody. There had been repeated rumours of a reconciliation in the public for many years afterwards,[47] but his mother's attorney Michael Levine[48] filed in Toronto to the Supreme Court of Ontario for a no-fault divorce on November 16, 1983,[49] and finalized on April 2, 1984,[50] with his father publicly announcing his intention to retire as prime minister on February 29 of that year.[51] Eventually his parents came to an amicable joint-custody arrangement and learned to get along quite well. Interviewed in October 1979, his nanny Dianne Lavergne was quoted, "Justin is a mommy's boy, so it's not easy, but children's hurts mend very quickly. And they're lucky kids, anyway."[52] Of his mother and father's marriage, Trudeau said in 2009, "They loved each other incredibly, passionately, completely. But there was 30 years between them and my mom never was an equal partner in what encompassed my father's life, his duty, his country."[53] Trudeau has three half-siblings, Kyle and Alicia, from his mother's remarriage to Fried Kemper,[54] and Sarah, from his father's relationship with Deborah Coyne.[55]

Trudeau lived at 24 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, the official residence of Canada's prime minister, from his birth until his father's government was defeated in the federal election on May 22, 1979. The Trudeaus were expected to move into the residence of the Leader of the Official Opposition, Stornoway, at 541 Acacia Avenue in Rockcliffe Park, but because of flooding in the basement, prime minister Joe Clark offered them Harrington Lake, the prime minister's official country retreat in Gatineau Park, with the expectation they would move into Stornoway at the start of July.[56] However, the repairs were not complete so Pierre Trudeau took a prolonged vacation with his sons to the Nova Scotia summer home of his friend, MP Don Johnston, and later sent his sons to stay with their maternal grandparents in North Vancouver for the rest of the summer while he slept at his friend's Ottawa apartment. Justin and his brothers returned to Ottawa for the start of the school year, but lived only on the top floor of Stornoway while repairs continued on the bottom floor.[57] His mother purchased and moved into a new home nearby at 95 Queen Victoria Avenue in Ottawa's New Edinburgh in September 1979.[58][59] The Trudeaus returned to the prime minister's official residence in February 1980 after the election that returned his father to the Prime Minister's Office.[60]

His father had intended Trudeau to begin his formal education at a French Lycée, but Trudeau's mother convinced his father of the importance of sending their sons to a public school.[61] In the end, Trudeau was enrolled in 1976 in the French immersion program at Rockcliffe Park Public School, the same school his mother had attended for 2 years when her family relocated to Rockcliffe Park while her father served as a federal Cabinet minister.[62] He could have been dropped off by limousine, but his parents elected he take the school bus albeit with a Royal Canadian Mounted Police car following.[63][64][65][66] This was followed by one year at the private Lycée Claudel d'Ottawa\

After his father's retirement in June 1984, his mother remained at her New Edinburgh home while the rest of the family moved into his father's home at 1418 Pine Avenue, Montreal known as Cormier House[69] where the following autumn he began attending the private Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf, his father's alma mater. The school had begun as a Jesuit school but was non-denominational by the time Justin matriculated.[70][71] In 2008, Trudeau said that of all his early family outings he enjoyed camping with his father the most, because "that was where our father got to be just our father – a dad in the woods".[72] During the summers his father would send him and his brothers to Camp Ahmek, on Canoe Lake, in Algonquin Provincial Park, where he would later work in his first paid employment as a camp counselor.[68][73][74][75][76]

Trudeau and his brothers were given shares in a numbered trust fund by their father, from which they receive regular dividends. As of August 2011, Trudeau's company had assets of $1.2 million.[77]

University and early career

Trudeau has a bachelor of arts degree in literature from McGill University and a bachelor of education degree from the University of British Columbia. In his first year at McGill, Trudeau became acquainted with his future Principal Secretary Gerald Butts, through their mutual friend, Jonathan Ablett.[78] Butts invited Trudeau to join the McGill Debating Union.[79] They bonded while driving back to Montreal after a debate tournament at Princeton University[78] in which the Princeton team included Ted Cruz, a U.S. Senator, who was a candidate for the U.S. Republican Party's presidential nomination in 2016.[80] After graduation, Trudeau stayed in Vancouver where he became a substitute teacher at local schools and worked permanently as a French and math teacher at the private West Point Grey Academy. He became a roommate at the Douglas Lodge[81] with fellow West Point Grey Academy faculty member and friend Christopher Ingvaldson.[78][82] From 2002 to 2004, he studied engineering at the École Polytechnique de Montréal, a part of the Université de Montréal.[83] He started a master's degree in environmental geography at McGill, but withdrew from the program to seek public office among other reasons.[84]

In August 2000, Justin Trudeau attended the Kokanee Summit in Creston, British Columbia, to raise funds in honour of his brother Michel Trudeau and other avalanche victims. After the event, an unsigned editorial in the Creston Valley Advance (a local newspaper) accused Trudeau of having groped an unnamed female reporter while at the music festival. The editorial stated Trudeau provided a "day-late" apology to the reporter, saying, "If I had known you were reporting for a national paper, I never would have been so forward".[85][86] In 2018, Trudeau was questioned about the groping incident but said he did not remember any negative incidents from that time. His apology and later statement about the event have been described as hypocritical, while responses to the story have been described as a witch hunt or non-story.[87]

Trudeau, then 28, emerged as a prominent figure in October 2000, after delivering a eulogy at his father's state funeral.[88][89][90] The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) received numerous calls to rebroadcast the speech after its initial transmission, and leading Quebec politician Claude Ryan described it as "perhaps ... the first manifestation of a dynasty".[91] A book issued by the CBC in 2003 included the speech in its list of significant Canadian events from the past fifty years.[92]

In 2007, Trudeau starred in the two-part CBC Television miniseries The Great War, which gave an account of Canada's participation in the First World War. He portrayed his fifth cousin, twice removed,[93] Major Talbot Mercer Papineau, who was killed on October 30, 1917, during the Battle of Passchendaele.[94] Trudeau is one of several children of former prime ministers who have become Canadian media personalities. The others are Ben Mulroney (son of Brian Mulroney), Catherine Clark (daughter of Joe Clark), and Trudeau's younger brother, Alexandre.[95] Ben Mulroney was a guest at Trudeau's wedding.[96]

Advocacy

Trudeau and his family started the Kokanee Glacier Alpine Campaign for winter sports safety in 2000, two years after his brother Michel died in an avalanche during a ski trip.[97] In 2002, Trudeau criticized the Government of British Columbia's decision to stop its funding for a public avalanche warning system

Cheltenham Gold Cup

Cheltenham Gold Cup

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlongs (3 miles 2 furlongs and 70 yards, or 5,294 m), and during its running there are 22 fences to be jumped. The race takes place each year during the Cheltenham Festival in March.

The steeplechase, which is open to horses aged five years and over, is the most prestigious of all National Hunt events and it is sometimes referred to as the Blue Riband of jump-racing. Its roll of honour features the names of such chasers as Arkle, Best Mate, Golden Miller, Kauto Star, Denman and Mill House. The Gold Cup is the most valuable non-handicap chase in Britain, and in 2019 it offered a total prize fund of £625,000.

History

Early years

The first horse race known as the Cheltenham Gold Cup took place in July 1819. It was a flat race, and it was contested over 3 miles on Cleeve Hill, which overlooks the present venue. The inaugural winner, Spectre, won a prize of 100 guineas for his owner Mr Bodenham.

The Cheltenham Gold Cup was first run as a jumps race on 12 March 1924. The race was covered by Pathe News.[1] A prize of £685 was awarded to the owner of the winning horse. The event originally took place on what is now the "Old Course" at Cheltenham. In its early years it was overshadowed at the Festival by another race, the National Hunt Chase and was worth less in prize money than the County Handicap Hurdle which had a purse of £1,000.[2]

The Gold Cup was abandoned in 1931 (because of frost) and 1937 (flooding), but the five intervening years saw the emergence of the most successful horse in the event's history. All five races from 1932 to 1936 were won by Golden Miller, who also won the Grand National in 1934.

During World War II, the Gold Cup was cancelled twice, in 1943 and 1944. The first multiple winner in the post-war era was Cottage Rake, who won the three runnings from 1948 to 1950. Cottage Rake was trained in Ireland by Vincent O'Brien, and his successes helped to popularise the Gold Cup, and the Festival itself, with the Irish public.

Modern era

The Gold Cup was switched to the "New Course" in 1959, and this remains the regular track used for the event. In the mid-1960s, the race was dominated by Arkle, who won three consecutive runnings from 1964 to 1966. Such was Arkle's perceived superiority before the last of these victories that he was given a starting price of 1/10 (a £10 bet would have won £1). He remains the shortest-priced winner in the race's history.

The first commercial sponsorship of the race was by Piper Champagne, which began supporting the event in 1972. The Tote (now known as Totesport) became the sponsor in 1980.

The most remarkable feat in the Gold Cup by a trainer came in 1983, when Michael Dickinson was responsible for all of the first five horses to finish – Bregawn, Captain John, Wayward Lad, Silver Buck and Ashley House. The 1986 winner, Dawn Run, is the only horse to have ever won both this race and the leading hurdle event, the Champion Hurdle. One of the most popular horses to win the Gold Cup was Desert Orchid, a grey who won the event in 1989. The following year's running was won by Norton's Coin, whose starting price of 100/1 represents the race's longest ever winning price.

The entire Cheltenham Festival was cancelled in 2001 because of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. A replacement for the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the Gold Trophy Chase, was contested at Sandown in late April, but the Racing Post stated that this "lacked any strength in depth and was no substitute for the Gold Cup".[3] The next three runnings were all won by Best Mate, who is the most recent of the four horses to have won the race three or more times.

In 2009, Kauto Star became the first horse to regain the Gold Cup. He overcame his stablemate and conqueror in 2008, Denman, who had recovered from a heart condition to take his place in the race.[4] Timeform spokesperson Kieran Packman said of Kauto Star's performance, "it is the best Gold Cup-winning figure since the Arkle era in the mid-1960s".[5]

One of the cups, a different one being awarded each year, was reported stolen on 14 July 2010 after a burglary at a home in Wormington, Gloucestershire.[6]

Cheltenham Racecourse announced in September 2018 that it had been reunited with the original Cheltenham Gold Cup trophy, dating back to 1924, and will present it to the winner of the 2019 race. First awarded to five-year-old Red Splash, owned by Major Humphrey Wyndham, trained by Fred Withington and ridden by Dick Rees, it will now be re-introduced as a perpetual trophy, presented to the winning connections of the 2019 race and in future years.[7]

Records

Most successful horse (5 wins):

Golden Miller – 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936

Leading jockey (4 wins):

Pat Taaffe – Arkle (1964, 1965, 1966), Fort Leney (1968)

Leading trainer (5 wins):

Tom Dreaper – Prince Regent (1946), Arkle (1964, 1965, 1966), Fort Leney (1968)

Leading owner (7 wins):

Dorothy Paget – Golden Miller (1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936), Roman Hackle (1940), Mont Tremblant (1952)

Disneyland Paris

Disneyland Paris

Disneyland Paris, formerly Euro Disney Resort, is an entertainment resort in Chessy, France, a new town located 32 km (20 mi) east of the centre of Paris. It encompasses two theme parks, many resort hotels, Disney Nature Resorts, a shopping, dining, and entertainment complex, and a golf course, in addition to several additional recreational and entertainment venues. Disneyland Park is the original theme park of the complex, opening with the resort on 12 April 1992. A second theme park, Walt Disney Studios Park, opened in 2002, 10 years after the original park. Disneyland Paris celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2017. Within 25 years of opening, 320 million people visited Disneyland Paris, making it the most visited theme park in Europe.[1] The Parisian resort is the second Disney park to open outside the United States following the opening of the Tokyo Disney Resort in 1983 and is the largest Disney resort to open outside of the United States. Disneyland Paris is also the only Disney resort outside of the United States to be completely owned by The Walt Disney Company.

Ownership

Walt Disney announced a €1 billion ($1.25 billion) bailout plan to rescue its subsidiary Disneyland Paris, the Financial Times reported on 6 October 2014.[2] The park is burdened by its debt, which is calculated at about €1.75 billion ($2.20 billion) and roughly 15 times its gross average earnings.

Until June 2017, Disney only held a minority stake in the resort, when they bought the remaining shares. In 2017, The Walt Disney Company offered an informal takeover of Euro Disney S.C.A., buying 9% of the company from Kingdom Holding and an open offer of 2 euros per share for the remaining stock. This brought The Walt Disney Company's total ownership to 85.7%. The Walt Disney company will also invest an additional 1.5 Billion euros to strengthen the company.[3]

History

Seeking a location for a European resort

Following the success of Disneyland in California and Walt Disney World in Florida, plans to build a similar theme park in Europe emerged In 1972. Under the leadership of E. Cardon Walker, Tokyo Disneyland opened in 1983 in Japan with instant success, forming a catalyst for international expansion. In late 1984 the heads of Disney's theme park division, Dick Nunis and Jim Cora, presented a list of approximately 1,200 possible European locations for the park. Britain, France, Italy and Spain were all considered. However, Britain and Italy were dropped from the list due to both lacking a suitable expanse of flat land. By March 1985, the number of possible locations for the park had been reduced to four; two in France and two in Spain. Both nations saw the potential economic advantages of a Disney theme park and offered competing financing deals to Disney.

Both Spanish sites were located near the Mediterranean and offered a subtropical climate similar to Disney's parks in California and Florida. Disney had asked each site to provide average temperatures for every month for the previous 40 years, which proved a complicated endeavour as none of the records were computerised and were registered on paper.[4] The site in Pego, Alicante became the front-runner, but the location was controversial as it would have meant the destruction of Marjal de Pego-Oliva marshlands, a site of natural beauty and one of the last homes of the almost extinct Samaruc or Valencia Toothcarp, so there was some local outcry among environmentalists.[5] Disney had also shown interest in a site near Toulon in southern France, not far from Marseille. The pleasing landscape of that region, as well as its climate, made the location a top competitor for what would be called Euro Disneyland. However, shallow bedrock was encountered beneath the site, which would have rendered construction too difficult. Finally, a site in the rural town of Marne-la-Vallée was chosen because of its proximity to Paris and its central location in Western Europe. This location was estimated to be no more than a four-hour drive for 68 million people and no more than a two-hour flight for a further 300 million.

Michael Eisner, Disney's CEO at the time, signed the first letter of agreement with the French government for the 20-square-kilometre (4,940-acre) site on 18 December 1985, and the first financial contracts were drawn up during the following spring. The final contract was signed by the leaders of the Walt Disney Company and the French government and territorial collectivities on 24 March 1987.[6] Construction began in August 1988, and in December 1990, an information centre named "Espace Euro Disney" was opened to show the public what was being constructed. Plans for a theme park next to Euro Disneyland based on the entertainment industry, Disney-MGM Studios Europe, quickly went into development, scheduled to open in 1996 with a construction budget of US$2.3 billion.[7] The construction manager was Bovis.[8]

Anniversary list

Disneyland Paris – 5th Anniversary (1997–1998)

Disneyland Paris – 10th Anniversary (2002–2003)

Disneyland Paris – 15th Anniversary (2007–2008)

Disneyland Paris – 20th Anniversary (2012–2013)

Disneyland Paris – 25th Anniversary (2017–2018)

Disneyland Paris – 30th Anniversary (2022–2023)

Design and construction

In order to provide lodging to patrons, it was decided that 5,200 Disney-owned hotel rooms would be built within the complex. In March 1988, Disney and a council of architects (Frank Gehry, Michael Graves, Robert A.M. Stern, Stanley Tigerman, and Robert Venturi) decided on an exclusively American theme in which each hotel would depict a region of the United States. At the time of the opening in April 1992, seven hotels collectively housing 5,800[9] rooms had been built.

An entertainment, shopping, and dining complex based on Walt Disney World's Downtown Disney was designed by Frank Gehry.

With its towers of oxidised silver and bronze-coloured stainless steel under a canopy of lights, it opened as Festival Disney.[10] For a projected daily attendance of 55,000, Euro Disney planned to serve an estimated 14,000 people per hour inside the Euro Disneyland park. In order to accomplish this, 29 restaurants were built inside the park (with a further 11 restaurants built at the Euro Disney resort hotels and five at Festival Disney). Menus and prices were varied with an American flavour predominant and Disney's precedent of serving alcoholic beverages was continued in the park.

2,300 patio seats (30% of park seating) were installed to satisfy Europeans' expected preference of eating outdoors in good weather. In test kitchens at Walt Disney World, recipes were adapted for European tastes. Walter Meyer, executive chef for menu development at Euro Disney and executive chef of food projects development at Walt Disney World noted, "A few things we did need to change, but most of the time people kept telling us, 'Do your own thing. Do what's American'."[11]

Recruitment/employment

Unlike Disney's American theme parks, Euro Disney aimed for permanent employees (an estimated requirement of 12,000 for the theme park itself), as opposed to seasonal and temporary part-time employees. Casting centres were set up in Paris, London, and Amsterdam. However, it was understood by the French government and Disney that "a concentrated effort would be made to tap into the local French labour market".[12] Disney sought workers with sufficient communication skills, who spoke two European languages (French and one other), and were socially outgoing. Following precedent, Euro Disney set up its own Disney University to train workers. 24,000 people had applied by November 1991.[12]

Controversies

The prospect of a Disney park in France was a subject of debate and controversy. Critics, who included prominent French intellectuals, denounced what they considered to be the cultural imperialism of Euro Disney and felt it would encourage an unhealthy American type of consumerism in France.[13] On 28 June 1992, a group of French farmers blockaded Euro Disney in protest of farm policies supported at the time by the United States.[14]

A journalist at the centre-right French newspaper Le Figaro wrote, "I wish with all my heart that the rebels would set fire to [Euro] Disneyland."[15] Ariane Mnouchkine, a Parisian stage director, named the concept a "cultural Chernobyl",[16] a phrase which would be echoed in the media during Euro Disney's initial years.

In response, French philosopher Michel Serres noted, "It is not America that is invading us. It is we who adore it, who adopt its fashions and above all, its words." Euro Disney S.C.A.'s then-chairman Robert Fitzpatrick responded, "We didn't come in and say O.K., we're going to put a beret and a baguette on Mickey Mouse. We are who we are."[12]

Topics of controversy also included Disney's American managers requiring English to be spoken at all meetings and Disney's appearance code for members of staff, which listed regulations and limitations for the use of makeup, facial hair, tattoos, jewellery, and more.

French labour unions mounted protests against the appearance code, which they saw as "an attack on individual liberty". Others criticised Disney as being insensitive to French culture, individualism, and privacy, because restrictions on individual or collective liberties were illegal under French law, unless it could be demonstrated that the restrictions are requisite to the job and do not exceed what is necessary.

Disney countered by saying that a ruling that barred them from imposing such an employment standard could threaten the image and long-term success of the park. "For us, the appearance code has a great effect from a product identification standpoint," said Thor Degelmann, Euro Disney's personnel director. "Without it we couldn't be presenting the Disney product that people would be expecting."[17]

Opening day and early years

Euro Disney opened for employee preview and testing in March 1992. During this time visitors were mostly park employees and their family members, who tested facilities and operations. The press were able to visit the day before the park's opening day on 12 April.

On 12 April 1992, Euro Disney Resort and its theme park, Euro Disneyland, officially opened (on the same date that Mediaset's La Cinq closed down permanently).[18] Visitors were warned of chaos on the roads. A government survey indicated that half a million people carried by 90,000 cars might attempt to enter the complex. French radio warned traffic to avoid the area. By midday, the car park was approximately half full, suggesting an attendance level below 25,000. Explanations of the lower-than-expected turnout included speculation that people heeded the advice to stay away and that the one-day strike that cut the direct RER railway connection to Euro Disney from the centre of Paris made the park inaccessible.[15] Due to the European recession that August, the park faced financial difficulties as there were a lack of things to do and an overabundance of hotels, leading to underperformance.[19]

A new Indiana Jones roller-coaster ride was opened at Euro Disney in 1993. A few weeks after the ride opened there were problems with the emergency brakes which resulted in guest injuries.[20]

In 1994, the company was still having financial difficulties. There were rumours that Euro Disney was getting close to having to file for bankruptcy. The banks and the backers had meetings to work out some of the financial problems facing Euro Disney. In March 1994 Team Disney went into negotiations with the banks so that they could get some help for their debt. As a last resort, the Walt Disney Company threatened to close the Disneyland Paris park, leaving the banks with the land.[19]

Financial, attendance and employment struggles

In May 1992, entertainment magazine The Hollywood Reporter reported that about 25% of Euro Disney's workforce – approximately 3,000 people – had resigned from their jobs because of unacceptable working conditions. It also reported that the park's attendance was far behind expectations. The disappointing attendance can be at least partly explained by the recession and increased unemployment, which was affecting France and most of the rest of the developed world at this time; when construction of the resort began, the economy was still on an upswing.[21]

Euro Disney S.C.A. responded in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, in which Robert Fitzpatrick claimed only 1,000 people had left their jobs. In response to the financial situation, Fitzpatrick ordered that the Disney-MGM Studios Europe project would be put on hiatus until a further decision could be made. Prices at the hotels were reduced.

Despite these efforts in May 1992, park attendance was around 25,000 (some reports give a figure of 30,000) instead of the predicted 60,000. The Euro Disney Company stock price spiralled downwards and on 23 July 1992, Euro Disney announced an expected net loss in its first year of operation of approximately 300 million French francs. During Euro Disney's first winter, hotel occupancy was so low that it was decided to close the Newport Bay Club hotel during the season.

Initial hopes were that each visitor would spend around US$33 per day, but near the end of 1992, analysts found spending to be around 12% lower.[22] Efforts to improve attendance included serving alcoholic beverages with meals inside the Euro Disneyland park, in response to a presumed European demand, which began 12 June 1993.[23]

By the summer of 1994, Euro Disney was burdened with $3 billion worth of debt. Disney CFO Richard Nanula and Wall Street financier Steve Norris worked with Alwaleed's business advisor Mustafa Al Hejailan to rescue the overleveraged company. In that deal, the Walt Disney Corporation's 49 percent stake was reduced to 39 percent, the banks agreed to forego interest payments until 1997, Disney wrote off royalties and fees until 1999, and Alwaleed agreed to pay $345 million for a 24 percent stake in Euro Disney.[24]

1995 turnaround

On 1 October 1994, Euro Disney changed its name to Disneyland Paris. On 31 May 1995, a new attraction opened at the theme park. Space Mountain: De la Terre à la Lune had been planned since the inception of Euro Disneyland under the name Discovery Mountain, but was reserved for a revival of public interest. With a redesign of the attraction (which had premiered as Space Mountain at the Walt Disney World Resort's Magic Kingdom in 1975)[25] including a "cannon launch" system, inversions, and an on-ride soundtrack, the US$100 million attraction was dedicated in a ceremony attended by celebrities such as Elton John, Claudia Schiffer, and Buzz Aldrin.

On 25 July 1995, Euro Disney S.C.A. reported its first quarterly profit of US$35.3 million.[26] On 15 November 1995, the results for the fiscal year ending 30 September 1995, were released; in one year the theme park's attendance had climbed from 8.8 million to 10.7 million – an increase of 21%. Hotel occupancy had also climbed from 60 to 68.5%.[27] After debt payments, Disneyland Paris ended the year with a net profit of US$22.8 million.[28]

2000 onwards

As of March 2002, Disneyland Paris underwent a second name change to Disneyland Resort Paris. In 2002, Euro Disney S.C.A. and the Walt Disney Company announced another annual profit for Disneyland Paris. However, it then incurred a net loss in the three years following.[29] By March 2004, the Walt Disney Company had agreed to write off all debt that Euro Disney S.C.A. owed to the Walt Disney Company.[30] On 1 December 2003, Euro Disney S.C.A launched the 'Need Magic' campaign, which lasted until March 2006 to bring new, first-time European visitors to the resort. And by 2005, having been open fewer than fifteen years, Disneyland Paris had become the number one tourist destination for Europe, outselling the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.[31]

In March 2006, Disneyland Resort Paris launched the advertising campaign, "believe in your dreams" and paired with the TGV East European Line to encourage European family attendance to the resort.[31][32] Shortly after announcing a 12% increase in revenues for the fiscal year of 2007,[33] Euro Disney S.C.A. implemented a "reverse split" consolidation of shares of 100 to 1.[34] August 2008 brought the resort's 200 millionth visitor,[35] and made for the third consecutive year of growth in revenues for the resort as well as record a record of 15.3 million visitors in attendance.[36]

In 2009, the resort demonstrated dedication to the recruitment of new employment positions, especially for the Christmas and summer seasons,[37] which continued in 2010 and 2011 when 2,000 and 3,000 employment contracts being offered, respectively.[38][39] The 2009 fiscal year saw a decrease in revenues by 7% and a net loss of 63 million[40] followed by stable revenues at 1.2 billion in fiscal 2010.[41] Euro Disney S.C.A. refinanced their debt to Walt Disney Company again for 1.3 billion euros in September 2012.[42]

A study done by the Inter-ministerial Delegation reviewing Disneyland Paris' contribution to the French economy was released in time for the Resort's 20th anniversary in March 2012. It found that despite the resort's financial hardships, it has generated "37 billion euros in tourism-related revenues over twenty years," supports on average 55,000 jobs in France annually, and that one job at Disneyland Paris generates nearly three jobs elsewhere in France.[43]

For the first time in the resort's history, both the Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park closed from 14 to 17 November 2015, as part of France's national days of mourning following the November 2015 Paris attacks.[44]

On 19 June 2017, the resort's operating company, Euro Disney S.C.A, was acquired by The Walt Disney Company, in the process, giving them full control of the resort. In December 2018, Natacha Rafalski took over as CEO.[45] On 1 September 2017 the resort's second nature resort opened as Les Villages Nature Paris.

On 27 February 2018, Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger announced that company would invest €2 billion into the Disneyland Paris resort. The Walt Disney Studios Park will be expanded with three new areas based upon Marvel, Frozen and Star Wars. In addition to the three new areas, the expansion includes a new lake, which will be the focal point for entertainment experiences and will also connect each of the new park areas. The first phase of the expansion will be completed in 2021.[46] In April 2019, the location hosted a Dota 2 esports tournament.[47]

On 1 June 2019, Disneyland Paris sponsored the Magical Pride Party, an LGBTQ celebration.[48] Previous similar events have taken place at the park since 2014, but were not officially sponsored by Disney