This year brought triumph and tragedy in equal measure, from the highs in Canada and a fabulous Women's World Cup to the grim night in Paris that saw 128 people killed by terrorists and the Stade de France attacked.

JAN. 10 -- JUNIOR MALANDA KILLED IN AUTO CRASH

The new year started on a grim note for world football, as sparkling Wolfsburg youngster Malanda lost his life on a slippery autobahn. The Belgian international was due to fly to a club training camp but was killed when the car he was a passenger in rolled over in wet conditions. About 1,000 people attended his memorial service.

JAN. 12 -- CRISTIANO RONALDO, NADINE KESSLER TAKE TOP HONORS

Real Madrid’s Ronaldo and Wolfsburg’s Kessler collected soccer’s top individual honors in a glittering ceremony. CR7 beat out Barcelona rival Lionel Messi and Bayern’s Manuel Neuer in the FIFA Ballon d’Or voting. Kessler topped Brazil legend Marta and USWNT forward Abby Wambach. It was Kessler’s first FIFA World Player of the Year win, and Ronaldo’s second FIFA Ballon d’Or (his third overall Ballon d’Or) since the Ballon d’Or merged with the FIFA Player of the Year in 2010.

JAN. 21 -- US SOCCER SUSPENDS HOPE SOLO FOR 30 DAYS

Troubled national team keeper Solo was suspended for 30 days after an incident involving a team vehicle that saw her husband, Jerramy Stevens, charged with DUI. Solo also had faced accusations of domestic violence in a high-profile court case that is still open.

FEB. 8 -- COTE D’IVOIRE WIN THE CUP OF NATIONS

Cote D’Ivoire won the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time on Feb. 8, after the tournament was moved from Morocco to Equatorial Guinea amid fears over the Ebola outbreak. Boubacar Barry scored the critical penalty in the tiebreak after the Ivoriens drew Ghana 0-0 in full time to give them a 9-8 shootout win.

MARCH 18 -- PARMA DECLARED BANKRUPT

Parma’s sad spiral hit a new low with the arrest of owner Giampietro Manenti on money laundering charges. The club was subsequently declared bankrupt and closed shop, ending 101 years of existence.

MARCH 19 -- FIFA APPROVES DECEMBER WORLD CUP FINAL FOR 2022

In a major step toward hosting this controversial World Cup in Qatar, FIFA announced the 2022 World Cup final will be held Dec. 18. The move ensures the World Cup will disrupt the schedules of domestic European clubs.

MAY 3 -- CHELSEA WIN PREMIER LEAGUE WITH THREE GAMES TO SPARE

The Blues wrapped up their fifth overall top-flight title with three games to spare, beating Crystal Palace and sparking wild celebrations. Manchester City would dominate the season-ending awards, however, as Sergio Aguero won the Golden Boot and Joe Hart was named keeper of the year for a record fourth time

MAY 17 -- BARCELONA WIN LA LIGA FOR THE SEVENTH TIME IN 10 SEASONS

The Catalonians wrapped up their 23rd title of all time with a big win over Atletico Madrid. In truth, the outcome was never in doubt as Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi combined for a 122 goals on the season, a Spanish football record.

MAY 27 -- FIFA IMPLODES

The end of May saw the biggest story in world football as FIFA’s offices were raided by the US Department of Justice, which seized files and handing down indictments. American Chuck Blazer confessed to malfeasance and turned state’s evidence as well, as the scandal enveloped nearly every major figure in the world game. President Sepp Blatter showed defiance in the face of the charges …

JUNE 2 -- BLATTER SUDDENLY RESIGNS AMID FIFA SCANDAL

Until June 2, when Blatter suddenly announced he was stepping down as the head of the embattled governing body. Elections would be scheduled, Blatter would be hospitalized, and it became clear that that FIFA’s dealings had been spectacularly dirty. December saw more arrests and guilty pleas as the probe continued to roil FIFA.

JUNE 6 -- BARCELONA BEAT JUVENTUS TO LIFT CHAMPIONS LEAGUE TROPHY, REPEAT THE TREBLE

In a game that felt anti-climactic, Barcelona thoroughly outplayed Juventus in a 3-1 win to become only the second European team to repeat the treble (domestic league, domestic cup and Champions League). Ivan Rakitic scored after just four minutes to set the tone in Berlin, but it was Luiz Suarez who netted the winner, sending Andrea Pirlo out of Italian football on a sour note.

JULY 4 -- CHILE BEAT MESSI, ARGENTINA TO WIN COPA AMERICA

Hosts Chile stunned heavily favored Argentina in a penalty shootout following a 0-0 draw to hoist their first ever Copa America. Ever Banega and Gonzalo Higuain blew their attempts from the spot to allow Alexis Sanchez to clinch the trophy for Chile as the shootout ended 4-1.

JULY 5 -- CARLI LLOYD LEADS USA TO THIRD WORLD CUP TRIUMPH

Forget the turf, forget the lawsuits, and forget the FIFA scandal: the Women’s World Cup turned out to be a fantastic show in Canada, and the USA stormed to the title behind a determined show by Lloyd. She scored a hat trick in just 16 minutes to lead the Americans past China 5-2 in a game that wasn’t even that close.

JULY 22 -- USA CRASH OUT OF GOLD CUP 2-1 TO JAMAICA

While the American women were winning, the men were struggling. The USA blew a chance to clinch an automatic berth in the 2017 Confederations Cup, falling 2-1 to Jamaica in the Gold Cup semifinals. The result put the Americans into a tailspin from which they have yet to fully recover.

JULY 26 -- MEXICO WIN THE GOLD CUP FOR THE TENTH TIME …

Shaking off the controversy, Mexico promptly put Jamaica to the sword, 3-1 in the Gold Cup final, with Andres Guardado leading the charge

AUG. 9 -- THE CURSE OF CARNEIRO?

This date may go down as the day when Chelsea’s title defense came off the rails. In a bizarre incident, manager Jose Mourinho berated club doctor Eva Carneiro for treating the injured Eden Hazard after she was waved onto the field by the referee. Carneiro was never allowed to work again at Chelsea, and subsequently filed a lawsuit against Mourinho and the club. Chelsea went into a tailspin they have yet to fully recover from.

dres Guardado leading the charge.

SEPT. 22 -- ROBERT LEWANDOWSKI SCORES FIVE GOALS INSIDE 10 MINUTES

The Bundesliga has been a dead rubber since week four, with Bayern Munich simply annihilating all comers. But one moment will stand out for years to come. Entering a game as a sub against Wolfsburg with Bayern trailing 1-0, Lewandowski exploded for five goals – each better than the last – in nine minutes.

NOV. 13 -- PARIS HIT BY TERROR, TRAGEDY

The video from Nov. 13 is eerie: as France’s players take the ball downfield at the Stade de France against Germany, dull thumps are suddenly heard throughout the ground. They are explosions, from attackers attempting to enter the stadium as part of a coordinated attack across the capital that would leave 128 people dead. The repercussions of the attack are still being felt, but what is sure is that world football may never be the same.

NOV. 21 -- BARCELONA BLOW BY REAL MADRID

Barcelona put Real Madrid to the sword in the first clasico of the season behind sparkling shows from Neymar and Luis Suarez. The 4-0 scoreline was no illusion – it could have been even greater – and the result piled more pressure on embattled manager Rafa Benitez. Real were whistled off the field by their own fans.

DEC. 6 -- PORTLAND STOP COLUMBUS TO WIN MLS CUP

It wasn’t pretty, but Cascadia won’t care: Portland scored inside the first minute to go on to a 2-1 win and raise their first trophy in their 40 year history. The match was no ad for the American game, but so what? It was exciting if error-strewn, and the city of Portland – which had not won anything since the Trail Blazers took the NBA title 1977 – partied like mad in celebration.

DEC.17—JOSE MOURINHO FIREDBY CHELSEA

Chelsea have revealed that Jose Mourinho was sacked on Thursday(DEC.17) because of a rift with the players