As 2011 draws to a close, we’re taking a look back at another exciting year for the Unofficial Football World Championships. The UFWC was dominated in 2011 by one team – Japan. The Blue Samurai held the UFWC title at the start of the year, and retained it all the way through until November, when a shock result saw new, very unlikely, unofficial football world champions emerge…

New to the UFWC? Read our Beginner’s Guide.

Japan began 2011 as UFWC champions, having taken the title from Argentina in the previous October. January 2011 saw Japan take their title into Asian Cup tournament in Qatar. The group stage began with an unimpressive 1-1 draw with Jordan, followed by a narrow 2-1 win over Syria. But qualification from the group was easily secured with a comprehensive 5-0 thrashing of Saudi Arabia. Shinji Okazaki scored a hat-trick in that match, and Japan progressed to the quarter finals.

Qatar were Japan’s quarter final opposition, and the tournament hosts twice took the lead, only for the Blue Samurai to grab equalisers, both from Shinji Kagawa. Despite having Maya Yoshida sent off, Japan pushed forward, and, in the 90th minute, Masahiko Inoha pounced on the loose ball to score a late winner.

Japan then played out an amazing semi-final match against South Korea. The score was 1-1 after 90 minutes, and 2-2 after extra time, with Ryoichi Maeda and Hajime Hosogai scoring for Japan, and Hwang Jae-Won grabbing a 120th-minute equaliser for South Korea. Japan won the penalty shoot-out 3-0, with Eiji Kawashima saving two South Korean spot kicks.

Then came the Asian Cup final against Australia, another epic match of narrow margins, eventually settled by an extra-time goal from Tadanari Lee. As 1-0 winners, Japan became official Asian champions, as well as remaining unofficial world champions.

The next UFWC fixture should have seen Japan defend their title against Montenegro in March. However, that all changed, and football was forced to take a back seat following the tragic events of 11 March. The devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan that day will be remembered around the world as the defining event of the year. Almost 20,000 people lost their lives, and, as 2011 draws to a close, around 80,000 remain displaced from their homes.

In addition to cancelling friendly matches and suspending its domestic league programme, Japan was forced to pull out of the Copa America, which they were due to participate in as a guest nation. Football did return at the end of March, with the Japanese national side playing a charity game against a J-League all-star team – a non-UFWC match that ended 2-1 to the Blue Samurai.

After a hiatus of more than four months, Japan returned to competitive in June, action, and the UFWC competition resumed. A pair of friendly matches, against Peru and the Czech Republic, both finished 0-0. Than, in August, Japan rediscovered its scoring touch, beating South Korea for the second time this year, this time 3-0, with Kagawa scoring twice.

September saw Japan begin its World Cup 2014 qualifying campaign with the first of two matches against North Korea. This game ended 1-0 to Japan, courtesy of an injury-time winner from Maya Yoshida. But North Korea had proven to be difficult opponents. A 1-1 draw with Uzbekistan was followed by a 1-0 win over Vietnam. Then came two much higher scoring games.

Return World Cup qualifying fixtures against Tajikistan in October and November brought 12 goals – all for Japan. The first, in Osaka, was won 8-0, making it one of the biggest UFWC victories in the modern era. Okazaki, Kagawa and Mike Havenaar all scored braces in that game. Then, in Dushanbe, Japan won 4-0, with Okazaki grabbing another brace. Okazaki scored 8 goals for Japan in 2011, making him the UFWC’s top scorer in 2011.

But Japan’s reign as UFWC champions couldn’t last forever. The Blue Samurai had held the UFWC title for 16 matches, over more than 12 months, winning 11, drawing 5, and scoring 33 goals along the way. On 15 November, the long reign came to an end.

It was the return World Cup qualifying fixture against North Korea that changed the direction of the UFWC. Japan had already reached the next WC qualification stage, while North Korea had already been eliminated, but there was still plenty at stake. The match pitted Japan against dangerous opponents, in a hostile atmosphere, and on a plastic pitch, and, despite their best efforts, the Blue Samurai lost their grip on the UFWC title.

North Korea fought hard, and deserved their victory, with Pak Nam-Chol scoring a second-half goal to make the final score 1-0. The match was shown in full on state television so that the North Korean population could enjoy their triumph. As unlikely as it may seem, North Korea were the new unofficial football world champions.

The full list of UFWC title match results for 2011 is as follows (click for match reports):

09/01/11 JAPAN 1-1 JORDAN Asian Cup, Doha
13/01/11 SYRIA 1-2 JAPAN Asian Cup, Doha
17/01/11 SAUDI ARABIA 0-5 JAPAN Asian Cup, Al Rayyan
21/01/11 JAPAN 3-2 QATAR Asian Cup, Doha
25/01/11 JAPAN 2-2 SOUTH KOREA (JAPAN WIN ON PENS) Asian Cup, Doha
29/01/11 JAPAN 1-0 AUSTRALIA Asian Cup Final, Doha
01/06/11 JAPAN 0-0 PERU Friendly, Niigata
07/06/11 JAPAN 0-0 CZECH REPUBLIC Friendly, Kanagawa
10/08/11 JAPAN 3-0 SOUTH KOREA Friendly, Sapporo
02/09/11 JAPAN 1-0 NORTH KOREA World Cup Qualifier, Saitama
06/09/11 UZBEKISTAN 1-1 JAPAN World Cup Qualifier, Tashkent
07/10/11 JAPAN 1-0 VIETNAM FR Kobe
11/10/11 JAPAN 8-0 TAJIKISTAN WCQ Osaka
11/11/11 TAJIKISTAN 0-4 JAPAN WCQ Dushanbe
15/11/11 NORTH KOREA 1-0 JAPAN WCQ Pyongyang

Japan’s long reign as champions has altered the UFWC rankings, with the Blue Samurai climbing into the top 20. The UFWC ranking table for the end of 2011 reads:

Away from the pitch, 2011 saw the launch of the UFWC book, Unofficial Football World Champions. The book traces the history of the UFWC from the very first international match in 1872 via more than 800 title matches, involving legendary teams and footballing minnows, classic finals and forgotten friendlies, celebrated players and unsung heroes. It focusses on 100 key matches, uncovering some amazing stories, many of which are ignored in official football histories. FourFourTwo called the book ‘a fascinating history of football’ and awarded it five stars.

Unofficial Football World Champions is available in paperback and on Kindle from Amazon.co.uk and other Amazon stores worldwide. If you already have the book, you can get a free ‘North Korea’ update here. There’s also a Japanese language edition, available from Amazon.co.jp. You can read more about the book, and read reviews, here.

So that was the Unofficial Football World Championships in 2011: 15 matches, 40 goals, 2 champions. Japan lost the UFWC title, but gained friends and respect. North Korea lost a Dear Leader (Kim Jong-il died in December), but gained the UFWC title. North Korea’s next scheduled match is against Tajikistan on 29 February. It looks like 2012 is going to be a very interesting one for the UFWC, and we hope you’ll join us to find out what happens.

You can keep up with all things UFWC by following us on Twitter or liking us on Facebook. (You can also follow me on Twitter, @paulbrownUK.)

If you’re lucky enough to have a copy of the Unofficial Football World Champions book you’ll know it tells the complete story of the UFWC, from the first ever international football match in 1872, right up to the beginning of 2011. A lot has happened during 2011, so we’re pleased to present a downloadable update to bring the book right up to date for the start of 2012.

Japan began 2011 as Unofficial Football World Champions, having taken the UFWC title from Argentina in the previous October. The Blue Samurai took the title into the Asian Cup Finals in Qatar, and successfully defended it all the way to the final, where they beat Australia to become official Asian champions as well as unofficial world champions.

The devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March 2011 placed football into perspective and put the UFWC on hold. But Japan recovered, and football resumed, with the Blue Samurai extending their reign as champions to 16 games. Finally, in November, the unofficial title was prised out of Japanese hands by one of the most unlikely champions in UFWC history – North Korea.

There were 15 title matches, 40 goals and two champions in 2011. This update covers the most notable games, and includes a complete list of title match results. It’s presented as a downloadable PDF file, which can be printed out and inserted into your book (print on A4 paper, two pages per sheet, and fold down the middle). You can get the update by clicking on the link below (right click to ‘save as’):

Unofficial Football World Champions book 2011 update (PDF)

If you don’t already have a copy of Unofficial Football World Champions, it’s available in paperback and on Kindle from Amazon.co.uk and other Amazon stores worldwide. There’s also a Japanese language edition, available from Amazon.co.jp. You can read more about the book here.

It’s December, and for many of us Christmas shopping is becoming increasingly unavoidable. Luckily, the UFWC is here to solve all your gift-buying conundrums. The Unofficial Football World Champions book and our range of UFWC T-shirts are perfect for any football fan’s Christmas stocking. So, in a shameless act of promotion, here’s a quick run-down of UFWC gift ideas:

The official UFWC book, Unofficial Football World Champions, is available from all good book shops, including Amazon.co.uk and other Amazon stores worldwide. It’s available in paperback and on Kindle, which means it can be read on PCs and mobile devices, and you can download a free sample before you buy.

The book traces the history of the UFWC from the very first international match in 1872 via more than 800 title matches, involving legendary teams and footballing minnows, classic finals and forgotten friendlies, celebrated players and unsung heroes. It focusses on 100 key matches, uncovering some amazing stories, many of which are ignored in official football histories. FourFourTwo called the book “a fascinating history of football” and awarded it five stars. You can read more about the book and see more reviews here.

There’s also a Japanese language edition of the book, available from Amazon.co.jp. You can find more information on the Japanese language edition at the Asuka Shinsha website, and read an article about the book (in Japanese) from Yukan Fuji.

Our official UFWC T-shirts are a great way to show your support for the Unofficial Football World Championships, and your national team. The full range is available right now at the UFWC T-Shirt Store. We’ve got T-shirts featuring the CW Alcock Cup and Hughie the Mascot, plus special designs for some notable former champions including Japan, Scotland, the Netherlands and Argentina. All shirts are 100% cotton, and they come in six sizes – small, medium, large, XL, XXL, and XXXL if you need a particularly roomy shirt.

Get your UFWC T-shirts, including Japan mascot and trophy, at our T-shirt shop

You can also create your own UFWC T-shirt using your favourite colours or the colours of your team. Just click on your favourite design, and then select the colour you’d like. You can choose from 18 different colours, and there are also white T-shirts available if that’s what you’d prefer. That’s a great way to make a unique Christmas gift.

The T-shirts are swiftly printed to order by our friends at Spreadshirt, and are shipped within a day or two. They’ll ship them around the world, too. So they’ll arrive in plenty of time for Christmas. For more details and to choose your T-shirts visit the UFWC T-Shirt Store.

One thing we can’t offer you this Christmas is any football, with the next UFWC title match (Tajikistan vs current champions North Korea) not scheduled until 29 February 2012. However, we do have a few treats lined up, including a bonus for anyone who has purchased the UFWC book, and a look back at a memorable year of UFWC action. They’ll be coming up right here over the next few weeks.