RIP Gary Speed

Condolences to his family and friends.

Kodoto

Since my last post on Kodoto's range, a few new figures have been added to the collection:

• Oliver Kahn - Bayern Munich
• Cesc Fabregas - Barcelona (Qatar Foundation)
• Mesut Ozil - Germany

My top 10 wishlist for 2012?

1. Mario Balotelli - Man City (with a 'Why Always Me?' variation)
2. David Silva - Man City
3. Sergio Aguero - Man City
4. Pazzini - Inter Milan
5. Juan Mata - Chelsea
6. Andre Villas Boas - Chelsea
7. Edinson Cavani - Napoli
8. Lavezzi - Napoli
9. Jack Wilshere - Arsenal
10. Gerard Pique - Barcelona

What about yours? Let me know in the comments below. 

Napoli FC action figures

Napoli's superstar attack force of Lavezzi, Cavani and Hamsik have been given the Microstar treatment in recent years but now the club has put out FT Champs-style (15cm-ish) action figures of Lavezzi and Hamsik (I can't seem to find anything about a Cavani figure anywhere). Whoever produced these figures did a nice job of player tattoos as you'll see from the photo below.

Each player has been produced in strictly limited quantities and comes in 2 poses. You can purchase the Hamsik figure from the club's official online store and will set you back around 20 euros (good luck with the shipping costs though).

Image courtesy of Napoli's Online Store

New Kodoto Figures: Robben, Fabregas, Buffon

Kodoto have just released the following new figures:

• Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich kit)
• Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona Kit - Qatar Foundation)
• Gigi Buffon (Juventus Kit)

Try searching ebay.co.uk or order direct from Taobao. 

Stop Motion Microstars Match

Minigols

If you like football I'd hazard a strong guess that you've played on a foosball table in your lifetime. Proyectum Sport, a Spanish company, has come up with a range of products which may just induce nirvana for foosball and figure lovers: Minigols. These figures, roughly the same height as a Bandai figure but much thinner, come with a detachable base and a detachable chunk of their back which allows them to connect to the poles on foosball tables. 

So far they've released figures for the Spanish World Cup winning side and the 2009-10 and 2010-11 Barcelona and Real Madrid squads. Proyectum Sport also lists license agreements for Atletico de Madrid, Boca Juniors, Juventus and Manchester United on their website so we may see squads released for those teams in the not too distant future. 

Check out the figures on the official Minigols website. You can purchase them on Ebay via Proyectum's ebay store. 

Trailer for Barca Minigols

Trailer for Real Madrid Minigols

Trailer for Spanish national squad

Selección Argentina

Argentina’s 2010 World Cup campaign came to a screeching halt after a German mauling despite an attack force which included Messi, Tevez, Higuain, Kun and, er, Martin Palermo. Maradona’s controversial reign as the national manager ended soon after and it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing ever since for the Argentineans: their early departure from the 2011 Copa America (thanks to Uruguay) surprised many who thought they were a lock for the finals on home turf (turns out it will be Paraguay versus Uruguay).

At least the pre-tournament hype for 2010’s World Cup led to the production of 24 figures of Argentina’s squad. Roughly 10cm in height and equipped with green base and ball, these figures were produced by a company called Sticker Design who also specialise in comics, trading cards, stickers and figurines.

I don't have a list available of all 24 figures but here are some:

• Messi
• Higuain
• Palermo
• Mascherano
• Tevez
• Romero
• Gutierrez
• Maradona
• De Michelis
• Heinze
• Riquelme
• Veron
• Maxi Rodriguez
• Kun Aguero

There was also a set of 17cm figures made of selected members of the squad and Maradona as manager and these came in small plastic bags whereas the 10cm figures came in boxes. These are virtually impossible to find outside of Argentina and the company doesn't sell them anymore online (This is Sticker Design's website). 

You can see product images of the figures by visiting http://mercadolibre.com.ar and typing in "Selección Argentina Muñecos" or a combination of those words in different order.