Barcelona

Barcelona (/bɑːrsəˈloʊnə/, Catalan: [bəɾsəˈlonə], Spanish: [barθeˈlona]) is the capital city of the autonomous community of Catalonia in Spain and Spain's second most populated city, with a population of 1.6 million within its administrative limits. Its urban area extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of around 4.7 million people, being the seventh-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, Madrid, the Ruhr area, Berlin and Milan. It is the largest metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea, located on the coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs, and bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola mountain range, the tallest peak of which is 512 metres (1,680 ft) high.

Founded as a Roman city, in the Middle Ages Barcelona became the capital of the County of Barcelona. After merging with the Kingdom of Aragon, Barcelona continued to be an important city in the Crown of Aragon as an economical and administrative center of this Crown and the capital of the Principality of Catalonia. Besieged several times during its history, Barcelona has a rich cultural heritage and is today an important cultural center and a major tourist destination. Particularly renowned are the architectural works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner, which have been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean is located in Barcelona. The city is known for hosting the 1992 Summer Olympics as well as world-class conferences and expositions and also many international sport tournaments.

Philippe Coutinho

Philippe Coutinho Correia (Brazilian Portuguese: [fiˈlipi kowˈtʃĩj̃u]; born 12 June 1992), known as Philippe Coutinho, or simply Coutinho, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for English club Liverpool and the Brazil national team as an attacking midfielder or winger.

He began his club career at Vasco da Gama in Brazil before moving to Inter Milan in Italy, who loaned him to Spanish side Espanyol in 2012. In January 2013, he was signed by Premier League club Liverpool for £8.5 million. His vision, passing, dribbling and long-range strikes have earned him the nickname Little Magician by Liverpool fans and teammates. Brazilian great Pelé tipped Coutinho for a "great future", after he was named in the 2015 PFA Team of the Year.

At the age of 18, Coutinho made his senior international debut for Brazil in 2010. He represented the nation at the 2015 Copa América.

Early life

The third and youngest son of architect José Carlos, Coutinho was born in Rio de Janeiro, and raised in its northern Rocha district, in between an old shanty town and industrial warehouses. He followed his elder brothers Cristiano and Leandro to a local concrete football pitch, where he first began playing futsal. With space restricted and the need for skill and improvisation heightened, the diminutive Coutinho thrived. After joining a local football academy on the insistence of his grandmother, his father was later approached at a tournament by youth coaches at Vasco da Gama, where he attended a trial and joined their youth system.

Liverpool

Liverpool (/ˈlɪvərpuːl/) is a city in Merseyside, England. A borough from 1207 and a city from 1880, in 2014 the city local government district had a population of 470,537 and the Liverpool/Birkenhead metropolitan area had a population of 2,241,000.

Liverpool is in the south west of the historic county of Lancashire in North West England, on the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. The town historically lay within the ancient Lancashire division of West Derby known as a "hundred".

The urbanisation and expansion of the city were largely brought about by its advantageous location during the industrial revolution status that led to its growth as a major port, which included its participation in the Atlantic slave trade. Liverpool was the port of registry of the ocean liner RMS Titanic, and many other Cunard and White Star ocean liners such as the RMS Lusitania, Queen Mary, and Olympic. Liverpool's status as a port city has contributed to its diverse population, which, historically, was drawn from a wide range of peoples, cultures, and religions, particularly those from Ireland. The city is also home to the oldest Black African community in the country and the oldest Chinese community in Europe.

Liverpool F.C.

Liverpool Football Club (/ˈlɪvərpuːl/) is a Premier League football club based in Liverpool, England. The club has won more European and domestic trophies than any other English team with five European Cups, three UEFA Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, 18 League titles, seven FA Cups, a record eight League Cups, and 15 FA Community Shields.

The club was founded in 1892 and joined the Football League the following year. The club has played at Anfield since its formation. Liverpool established itself as a major force in both English and European football during the 1970s and '80s when Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley led the club to 11 League titles and seven European trophies. Under the management of Rafa Benítez and captained by Steven Gerrard Liverpool re-emerged as European champions once again, winning the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final against Milan in spite of being 3–0 down at half time.

Liverpool was the ninth highest-earning football club in the world for 2013–14, with an annual revenue of €306 million, and the world's eighth most valuable football club in 2015, valued at $982 million. The club holds many long-standing rivalries, most notably with Manchester United and the Merseyside derby with Everton.

Premier League

The Premier League is an English professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Football League. Welsh clubs that compete in the English football league system can also qualify.

The Premier League is a corporation in which the 20 member clubs act as shareholders. Seasons run from August to May. Teams play 38 matches each (playing each team in the league twice, home and away), totalling 380 matches in the season. Most games are played on Saturday and Sunday afternoons; others during weekday evenings. It is currently sponsored by Barclays Bank and thus officially known as the Barclays Premier League and is colloquially known as the Premiership. Outside the UK it is commonly referred to as the English Premier League (EPL).

The competition formed as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992 following the decision of clubs in the Football League First Division to break away from the Football League, which was originally founded in 1888, and take advantage of a lucrative television rights deal. The deal was worth £1 billion a year domestically as of 2013–14, with BSkyB and BT Group securing the domestic rights to broadcast 116 and 38 games respectively. The league generates €2.2 billion per year in domestic and international television rights. In 2014/15, teams were apportioned revenues of £1.6 billion.