2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, ACC Championship: Georgia Tech
E.J. Manuel, who became just the seventh quarterback in school history to total over 3,000 yards, led the team in passing with 134 yards while recording one interception; James Wilder, Jr. led the team in rushing with 10 carries for 69 yards and two touchdowns; Rashad Greene led the team in receiving with 9 receptions for 82 yards. Rodney Smith tied the school record of 38 straight games with a reception. On special teams, no field goals were attempted and there were no punts returned for any touchdowns. James Wilder, Jr. was named the most-valuable player.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, ACC Championship: Georgia Tech
With this game, FSU rushed for over 2,500 yards and passed for over 3,000 yards on the season, becoming only the second FSU team to accomplish this. The Seminoles totaled 328 yards of offense in the game, with 194 rushing yards and 134 passing yards, while holding the Yellow Jackets and their triple option to 301 total yards of offense. This game set a record for the Seminoles as they scored 36 rushing touchdowns which was a new school record, beating the previous record of 35 set in 1995. The victory brought Florida State's all-time record against the Yellow Jackets to 13–9–1 and also gave Florida State its first Atlantic Coast Conference title since the 2005 season, as well as its first BCS bid since that season.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois
Florida State went to a bowl game for the 31st straight season, which is the current longest streak in the nation and the third longest streak in college football history. By virtue of winning the ACC championship, Florida State received an automatic bid to a BCS Bowl. This marks the Seminoles first BCS bowl appearance since the 2006 Orange Bowl, a game they lost in overtime. Florida State has a 1–5 record in BCS games and a 3–5 record in the Orange Bowl.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois
The Seminoles faced the Northern Illinois Huskies of the MAC. The Huskies received an automatic at-large bid because they finished ranked in the top 16 and ahead of an automatic qualifying conference champion, becoming the first non-automatic qualifying team to get a BCS bid with a loss. Florida State came into this game ranked thirteenth in the country, while Northern Illinois came into this game ranked sixteenth. Florida State was designated home team, while Northern Illinois was designated visiting team.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois
Florida State won its first Orange Bowl in twelve years with a 31–10 win over the Huskies of Northern Illinois. Florida State never trailed in the game. The Seminoles scored in the first quarter with a 60-yard touchdown run from eventual MVP Lonnie Pryor to give them an early seven to zero lead. Northern Illinois responded later in the first quarter with a 25-yard field goal from Matthew Sims to cut the lead to four. Late in the second quarter, Florida State built up their lead with a 6-yard touchdown pass from EJ Manuel to Rashad Greene. Florida State led by eleven at the half.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois
After halftime, Florida State made it a two possession game with a 25-yard field goal from Dustin Hopkins, making him the NCAA leader in field goals made with 88. The Huskies pulled to within one possession with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Jordan Lynch to Martel Moore. Going into the final quarter, the Seminoles held a seven-point lead. Florida State scored fourteen points in the fourth quarter courtesy of a 9-yard touchdown run from E.J. Manuel and a 37-yard touchdown run from Lonnie Pryor.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Schedule, Game summaries, Orange Bowl: Northern Illinois
E.J. Manuel led the team in passing with 291 yards and a touchdown as he became just the second quarterback in college football history to 4–0 in bowl games throughout a career; Lonnie Pryor led the team in rushing with 5 carries for 134 yards and two touchdowns; Kenny Shaw led the team in receiving with 6 receptions for 61 yards. Dustin Hopkins successfully completed one out of two field goals. The Seminoles totaled 534 yards of offense in the game, with 243 rushing yards and 291 passing yards, while holding the Huskies to 259 total yards of offense. This game brought Florida State's record in BCS games to 2–5. It brought their record in the Orange Bowl to 4–5.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Watchlists
In addition to pre-season watchlists, four Florida State players were added to the lists after the season began:


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors
Björn Werner, Chris Thompson, Cornellius Carradine, EJ Manuel, Menelik Watson, Lamarcus Joyner, Dustin Hopkins, Telvin Smith, Christian Jones, Ronald Darby, and Rashad Greene have all been honored with ACC Player of the Week recognitions for their respective games.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Sixteen players from Florida State were voted on for All-ACC selections.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Second Team OffenseEJ Manuel (QB)Chris Thompson (RB)Cameron Erving (OT)Tre' Jackson (OG)Bryan Stork (C)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
First Team DefenseBjörn Werner (DE)Cornellius Carradine (DE)Xavier Rhodes (CB)Lamarcus Joyner (S)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Honorable MentionsTimmy Jernigan (DT)Anthony McCloud (DT)Menelik Watson (OT)Vince Williams (LB)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Eighteen players from Florida State were voted on for Coaches All-ACC selections.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Second Team OffenseEJ Manuel (QB)Chris Thompson (RB)Tre' Jackson (G)Bryan Stork (C)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
Honorable Mentions (Offense)Rashad Greene (WR)Nick O'Leary (TE)Cameron Erving (T)Menelik Watson (T)Josue Matías (G)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-ACC teams
First Team DefenseCornellius Carradine  (DE)Björn Werner (DE)Xavier Rhodes (CB)Lamarcus Joyner (S)


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, Honors, All-Americans
Four Florida State players have been honored with All-American selections.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, NFL draft
Eleven players were drafted in the 2013 NFL Draft, which was the most for any university in the 2013 draft and the most in FSU history for a given year, besting the previous school record of 10 in 1995.


2012 Florida State Seminoles football team, Awards, NFL draft
Three more players signed as free agents: Lonnie Pryor signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars while Rodney Smith and Anthony McCloud signed with the Minnesota Vikings.


2012 Florida Tarpons season
The 2012 Florida Tarpons season was the first season for the Ultimate Indoor Football League (UIFL) franchise.


2012 Florida Tarpons season, Roster
Rookies in italics updated July 2, 201219 Active, 0 Inactive


2012 Food City 500
The 2012 Food City 500 was the fourth stock car race of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. It was held on March 18, 2012 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tennessee before a crowd of 102,000. The 500-lap race was won by Brad Keselowski of the Penske Racing team after he started from fifth position. Matt Kenseth finished second and Martin Truex, Jr. came in third.


2012 Food City 500
Greg Biffle won the pole position and maintained into the first corner, as A. J. Allmendinger, who started in the second position of the grid, was passed by Jeff Gordon on the first lap. After a competition caution that started on lap 40, Allmendinger became the leader of the race. After the final pitstops, Keselowski took over the first position from Matt Kenseth. He maintained the first position to lead the most laps of 231, and to win his first race of the 2012 season. There were five cautions and thirteen lead changes among seven different drivers during the course of the race.


2012 Food City 500
The race was Keselowski's first win of the season, and the fifth of his career. The result kept Biffle in the lead of the Drivers' Championship with 157 points, nine ahead of Kevin Harvick and twelve ahead of Kenseth. Ford took over the lead in the Manufacturers' Championship, and bumped Chevrolet to second place with 24 points. Toyota followed in third with 21 points, while Dodge remained in fourth with 18. The race attracted 7.307 million television viewers.


2012 Food City 500, Background
The 2012 Food City 500 was the fourth of thirty-six scheduled stock car races of the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. It took place on March 18, 2012, in Bristol, Tennessee, at Bristol Motor Speedway, a short track which holds NASCAR races. The standard track at Bristol Motor Speedway is a four-turn short track oval that is 0.533 miles (0.858 km) long. The track's turns are banked from twenty-four to thirty degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked from six to ten degrees. The back stretch also has banking from six to ten degrees.


2012 Food City 500, Background
One team chose to replace their regular driver with a substitute. Michael Waltrip Racing chose to replace Mark Martin with Brian Vickers for six races during the season. Team owner Michael Waltrip said, "Brian Vickers is a veteran driver with almost 10 years experience, but he hasn't even turned 30 yet. He's shown he can win at this level and we have every confidence he'll run well with us."


2012 Food City 500, Background
Before the race, Greg Biffle led the Drivers' Championship with 125 points, followed by Kevin Harvick on 113. Denny Hamlin was third in the Drivers' Championship with 113 points, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was fourth with 107 points, and Matt Kenseth was in fifth with 102 points. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Chevrolet was leading with 21 points, four points ahead of their rivals Ford for second place. Toyota, with 17 points, was eight points ahead of their rivals Dodge in the battle for third. Kyle Busch was the race's defending champion.


2012 Food City 500, Practice and qualifying
Three practice sessions were held before the Sunday race—one on Friday and two on Saturday. The first session lasted 90 minutes. The Saturday morning session lasted 45 minutes, and the final practice session lasted 60 minutes. During the first practice session, Carl Edwards was the fastest driver, placing ahead of A. J. Allmendinger in second and Marcos Ambrose in third. Joey Logano took fourth position and Ryan Newman placed fifth. Jeff Gordon, Regan Smith, Harvick, Martin Truex, Jr. and Kyle Busch rounded out the top ten fastest drivers in the session.


2012 Food City 500, Practice and qualifying
Forty-six drivers entered the qualifier on Friday afternoon; due to NASCAR's qualifying procedure, forty-three were allowed to race. Each driver ran two laps, with the starting order determined by their fastest lap times. Biffle clinched his first pole position of the season, with a time of 15.324. He was joined on the grid's front row by Allemdinger. Newman qualified third, Jeff Gordon took fourth, and Keselowski started fifth. The driver that failed to qualify was Timmy Hill, and Robby Gordon withdrew because of issues with his car's engine.


2012 Food City 500, Practice and qualifying
After the qualifier Biffle said, "I got in the gas fairly early [through Turns 1 and 2] and was a little worried about making the rest of the corner, It got loose up off of both ends because I went in the gas so early in the middle of the corner, just pushing the envelope as much as I could."


2012 Food City 500, Practice and qualifying
On Saturday morning, Allmendinger was fastest in the second practice session, ahead of Kyle Busch in second, and Newman in third. Biffle was fourth quickest, and Truex took fifth. Kahne managed sixth. Aric Almirola, Hamlin, Kenseth and Jeff Burton followed in the top ten. Jimmie Johnson spun during the session and Paul Menard hit the left-rear of Johnson, causing the Hendrick Motorsports driver to sustain light damage to his car. Later that day, Newman paced the final practice session, ahead of Kyle Busch in second and Reutimann in third. Keselowski was fourth fastest, ahead of Kahne and Ambrose. Clint Bowyer was seventh fastest, Truex eighth, Jeff Gordon ninth, and Johnson tenth. Towards the end of the session, Travis Kvapil hit the wall but avoided major damage to his car.


2012 Food City 500, Race
The race began at 1:00 p.m. EST and was televised live in the United States on Fox. Around the start of the race, weather conditions were overcast; an 80% chance of rain was also forecast, although some rain had fallen on the morning of the race. Mike Rife of the Vansant Church of Christ began pre-race ceremonies by giving the invocation. The McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base H4 Quartest performed the national anthem, and a group of Food City store managers gave the command for drivers to start their engines. NASCAR announced a competition caution would take place on lap 50.


2012 Food City 500, Race
Greg Biffle maintained the pole position lead into the first corner. Behind him, Jeff Gordon passed A. J. Allmendinger for second place. Ten laps later, Allmendinger passed Gordon to take the second position. By lap 14, Biffle had built up a 1.4-second lead. Four laps later, Ryan Newman moved up third after passing Gordon. The first caution came out on lap 24 for a multi-car crash on the front stretch that collected Kasey Kahne, Kevin Harvick, Marcos Ambrose, Carl Edwards, and Kyle Busch. Pit road was open on lap 40, taking the place of the competition caution. This allowed most of the leaders to make pit stops. Allmendinger took the lead during pit spots and held it on the lap 47 restart.


2012 Food City 500, Race
By lap 55, Allmendinger had a one-second lead over Truex. One lap later, Brian Vickers passed Truex for second. Allmendinger built his lead up to 1.4 seconds by lap 63. Twenty-two laps later, Truex passed Vickers to reclaim the second position. Vickers passed Truex on lap 92 to move back into that spot. Three laps later, Allmendinger, who was stuck behind Bobby Labonte, was passed by Vickers for the lead. On lap 104, Gordon moved up to third. Five laps later, Vickers maintained a half-second lead over Allmendinger. The third caution came on lap 116 when Ken Schrader hit the wall in turns 3 and 4. Under caution, all of the leaders opted to pit.


2012 Food City 500, Race
Vickers maintained the lead at the restart, ahead of Allmendinger and Gordon. By lap 130, Vickers now had a 1.6-second lead over Allmendinger. On lap 134, Keselowski had passed Allmendinger and Gordon for second. By lap 147, Keselowski had reduced Vickers' lead to 1.5-seconds. Eight laps later, Kahne returned to the race after the lap 24 crash. By lap 168, Vickers' lead was one second from Keselowski. After starting nineteenth, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. had moved up fourteen positions to fifth by lap 179. Two laps later, Allmendinger started suffering from an vibration in his car. On lap 217, Keselowski passed Vickers for the lead. Eleven laps later, Gordon passed Vickers for second. On lap 235, Allmendinger made a pit stop to allow his team to check his car.


2012 Food City 500, Race
Green flag pit stops began on lap 242 and Menard was the first to pit under green. Thirteen laps later, Matt Kenseth passed Keselowski to claim the lead. When green flag pit stops were over, Keselowski reclaimed the lead. On lap 340, the third caution waved when David Stremme made contact with the wall. During the caution, all of the leaders made pit stops. Keselowski led the field back up to speed at the restart. On lap 348, Kenseth took the lead from Keselowski. Eleven laps later, the fourth caution came out when Gordon and Earnhardt made contact on the backstretch, causing Gordon to suffer a flat left rear tire and spin sideways. None of the leaders made pit stops during the caution.


2012 Food City 500, Race
The race restarted on lap 371. Fourteen laps later, Keselowski retook the lead after passing Kenseth. By lap 415, he had built up a half second lead over Kenseth. Twenty-nine laps later, Earnhardt was told by his team to conserve fuel. On lap 468, Truex moved into fifth place. Ten laps later, the fifth and final caution waved when Tony Stewart made contact with the wall. During the caution, none of the leaders again opted to pit. Keselowski led at the restart, ahead of Kenseth and Vickers. During the final laps, he managed to maintain his lead to win the race. Kenseth finished second, ahead of Truex in third, Clint Bowyer in fourth, and Vickers in fifth, rounding out the Top 5.


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
"I told my crew before the race that this was the best car I ever had in [Sprint] Cup, and it showed. I just say what I think is real. It’s not about being cocky.”


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
Keselowski appeared in victory lane to celebrate his first win of the season in front of 102,000 people who attended the race. Keselowski also earned $186,770 in race winnings. Afterward, he said, "This car here, this brand-new car that Penske Racing built – everybody back at the shop did a phenomenal job. The last few races have been really good, and I knew we had a shot at winning one if we closed the deal. Matt didn't make it easy."


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
Kenseth, who finished second, said, "I was thinking I could run outside of him [after the restart], but he would roll through there so fast you could never get a run on him. I think he liked the bottom of [Turns] 1 and 2, but I could never get around on the bottom of [Turns] 1 and 2, so that was the right thing to do, to start on the top and leave me on the bottom – for him."


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
Truex was happy with his team's performance, "I'm so proud of the team – all the guys on the team and everybody at MWR. Clint (Bowyer) and Brian (Vickers) were up front all day long. This just says a lot about everything that everybody at MWR has done over the off season – working hard, giving us good race cars. We got off in the mid-part of the race, but had the race strategy at the end and a fast enough car to stay up there.”


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
Earnhardt regretted colliding with teammate Jeff Gordon, “I’m mad because I screwed myself on pit road speeding. I’m pretty upset about that. Otherwise, I feel bad about running into Jeff’s car. I had a good day other than that. I had a good time. … I feel bad about what happened with Jeff, but damn, we were just racing."


2012 Food City 500, Race, Post-race
The race result left Biffle leading the Drivers' Championship with 157 points. Harvick, who finished eleventh, was second on 148, three ahead of Kenseth and nine in front of Truex Hamlin dropped to fifth with 137 points. In the Manufacturers' Championship, Ford took over the lead with 25 points, Chevrolet, who were bumped to second, were on 24. Toyota remained third on 21, three points ahead of Dodge in fourth. 7.307 million people watched the race on television. The race took two hours, fifty-one minutes and fifty-two seconds to complete, and the margin of victory was 0.714 seconds.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final
The 2012 Football League Championship play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 19 May 2012 at Wembley Stadium, London, between West Ham United and Blackpool. The match was to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football, to the  Premier League.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final
The top two teams of the 2011–12 Football League Championship season gained automatic promotion to the Premier League, while the teams placed from third to sixth place in the table partook in play-off semi-finals; West Ham ended the season in third place while Blackpool had finished fifth. The winners of these semi-finals competed for the final place for the 2012–13 season in the Premier League.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final
The 2012 final, refereed by Howard Webb, was watched by a crowd of more than 78,000 people. West Ham United took the lead in the latter stages of the first half through Carlton Cole. Blackpool's Tom Ince scored the equaliser three minutes in the second half before Ricardo Vaz Tê's 87th minute strike secured victory and promotion for West Ham. It West Ham's second win in three play-off finals. Their defender, James Tomkins, was named man of the match.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final
West Ham ended the next season in mid-table in the Premier League. Blackpool finished the following season in 15th place, nine points outside the play-offs and five points above the relegation zone.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Route to the final
West Ham United finished the regular 2011–12 season in third place in the Football League Championship, the second tier of the English football league system, two places ahead of Blackpool. Both therefore missed out on the two automatic places for promotion to the Premier League and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the third promoted team. West Ham finished two points behind Southampton (who were promoted in second place) and three behind league winners Reading. Blackpool ended the season eleven points behind West Ham.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Route to the final
Blackpool faced Birmingham City in their play-off semi-finals, with the first leg being played at Bloomfield Road. A long-range shot from Tom Ince ricocheted off Birmingham defender Curtis Davies past Colin Doyle late in the first half. The match finished 1–0, securing Blackpool's tenth consecutive play-off victory. In the return leg, played five days later at St Andrew's, Stephen Dobbie extended Blackpool's aggregate lead on the stroke of half time. Matt Phillips scored soon after the break to make it 3–0 on aggregate to Blackpool before Birmingham's Nikola Žigić scored midway through the second half. Davies reduced Birmingham's deficit to a single goal but the match ended without further scoring, and Blackpool qualified for the final 3–2 on aggregate.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Route to the final
In the other play-off semi-final, West Ham United's opponents were Cardiff City, with the first leg being played at the Cardiff City Stadium. A first-half brace from Jack Collison ensured the London club took a 2–0 lead to the return leg at the Boleyn Ground. Goals from West Ham captain Kevin Nolan, Ricardo Vaz Tê and Nicky Maynard secured a 3–0 victory and an aggregate 5–0 win, and qualified the club for their first appearance at Wembley since the 1981 Football League Cup Final. Collison was taken to hospital as a precaution with a suspected dislocated shoulder.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Background
This was Blackpool's second appearance in the second tier play-off final, having beaten Cardiff City 3–2 in the 2010 Football League Championship play-off Final. Blackpool had also had beaten Yeovil Town at Wembley in the third-tier 2007 Football League One play-off Final. West Ham also had play-off final experience having lost the 2004 Football League First Division play-off Final against Crystal Palace but winning the following season's play-off final against Preston North End. During the regular season, West Ham dominated Blackpool, winning 4–0 at the Boleyn Ground in October 2011, and 4–1 at Bloomfield Road the following February.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Background
West Ham's Vaz Tê was the division's top scorer, with 22 goals to his name, including 10 while he was at Barnsley  earlier in the season. Blackpool's top scorer was Kevin Phillips who netted 16 times during the regular season. The referee for the final was Howard Webb, with assistant referees Peter Kirkup and Mike Mullarkey, and Kevin Friend acted as the fourth official.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Background
Blackpool went into the final without Gary Taylor-Fletcher whose injury during training prevented him from taking part. During Blackpool's regular season, he had contributed ten assists and eight goals;  Phillips started in his place, and Czech striker Roman Bednář was named amongst the substitutes. West Ham's Collinson was cleared to play, despite suffering a dislocated shoulder in the play-off semi-finals.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, First half
West Ham United kicked the game off around 3 p.m. in front of a Wembley crowd of 78,523. Almost immediately, the first chance fell to West Ham's Carlton Cole but Nolan's pass was too long and was picked up by the Blackpool goalkeeper Matt Gilks. At the other end, a mistake from Matthew Taylor allowed Dobbie to shoot but it was blocked by Green onto the post. Another chance for Blackpool came in the 14th minute: Matt Phillips was played in by Dobbie but he shot straight at Green who saved once again.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, First half
Four minutes later, Vaz Tê's shot hits the side netting after a pass from Mark Noble. Collison’s shot then sailed high and wide of Blackpool's goal. On the half-hour mark, a series of four consecutive corners for West Ham came to nothing, but in the 34th minute the deadlock was broken. Taylor made a cross-field pass to Cole who took one touch to control the ball before shooting past Gilks to make the score 1–0. Another shot went wide from Vaz Tê three minutes later, and after one minute of stoppage time, the half was brought to an end with West Ham leading by the single goal.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Second half
Two minutes into the second half, Ince scored the equaliser for Blackpool. Cole lost the ball near the half-way line and a Matt Phillips pass over Winston Reid fell to Ince whose first-time strike beat Green in the West Ham goal. Kevin Phillips then played Alex Baptiste in and his lob over Green was cleared off the line by Taylor. In the 54th minute, West Ham made the first substitution of the afternoon, with George McCartney coming on to replace Gary O'Neil. Shortly after, Guy Demel was injured and was replaced by Julien Faubert.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Second half
Taylor's cross was then headed high over the Blackpool bar by Collison. Vaz Tê's weak attempt was then cleared by Taylor before Gilks was forced to save a shot on the turn from Cole. In the 66th minutes, Dobbie's shot from the centre of the penalty area went wide, before Noble made a goal-line clearance to Baptiste, who struck the ball over the bar. Blackpool made their first substitution on 71 minutes, with Ludovic Sylvestre coming on to replace Kevin Phillips, and began to dominate possession.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Match, Second half
Green saved another Dobbie shot before West Ham's Nolan's volley struck the bar after Gilks' fingertip save. With three minutes to go Nolan passed to Cole who rode a challenge and collided with Gilks. Vaz Tê picked up the loose ball and hit it into the roof of the Blackpool goal, making it 2–1 to the London club. In the final minute of regular time, Dobbie and Ángel Martínez were replaced by Nouha Dicko and Bednář. Four minutes of injury time followed but with no change to the score, and West Ham were promoted back to the Premier League, one season after they were relegated.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Post-match
The West Ham manager Sam Allardyce said: "I told you it was going to be difficult ... Blackpool were equally as good as us today but it's about taking your chances and never more so than on a day like today." His captain, Nolan, agreed:  "Blackpool were fantastic today but there's always got to be one loser ... We didn't play our best today but I'm absolutely delighted for everyone here." Ian Holloway, the Blackpool manager, was downbeat: "We are left to regret the chances we missed. We have to get over it and bounce back." West Ham United's Tomkins was selected as man of the match.


2012 Football League Championship play-off Final, Post-match
West Ham ended the next season in mid-table in the Premier League, in tenth place and ten points clear of the relegation zone. Blackpool finished the following season in 15th place, nine points outside the play-offs and five above the relegation zone.


2012 Football League Cup Final
The 2012 Football League Cup Final was a football match between Cardiff City and Liverpool on 26 February 2012 at Wembley Stadium, London. It was the final match of the 2011–12 Football League Cup, the 52nd season of the Football League Cup, a football competition for the 92 teams in the Premier League and the Football League. Cardiff were appearing in their first final, while Liverpool were appearing in the final for the eleventh time; they had previously won seven and lost three finals.


2012 Football League Cup Final
As Cardiff were in the Football League, they played one more round than Liverpool who received a bye in the first round. Therefore, Cardiff progressed through six rounds to reach the final, whereas Liverpool progressed through five. Matches up to the semi-final were contested on a one-off basis with the exception of the semi-finals, which were contested over two-legs with a match at each team's home ground. Both Liverpool and Cardiff's matches were close affairs; their biggest margins of victory was by two goals. Liverpool beat Manchester City to reach the final, whereas Cardiff progressed via a penalty shoot-out against Crystal Palace.


2012 Football League Cup Final
Watched by a crowd of 89,041, Cardiff took the lead in the first half when Joe Mason scored. The score remained the same through half-time until Liverpool equalised in the 60th minute, when Martin Škrtel scored. With the score 1–1 at full-time, the match went to extra-time as neither side were able to score a second goal. The first half of extra-time was goalless, but three minutes into the second half Liverpool took the lead when Dirk Kuyt scored.


2012 Football League Cup Final
However two minutes before the end of extra-time Cardiff equalised to make the score 2–2, courtesy of a goal from Ben Turner. With the score at 2–2 at the end of extra-time the match went to a penalty shoot-out. Despite missing their first two penalties, Liverpool won the shoot-out 3–2 to win the League Cup for a record eighth time.


2012 Football League Cup Final
Liverpool's manager Kenny Dalglish stated in the aftermath, that the victory would lead to more trophies. The club reached the 2012 FA Cup Final, but were beaten 2–1 by Chelsea. Their league form faltered after the victory and they finished the season in 8th place. Despite this, victory in the final ensured Liverpool had qualified for the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League. Cardiff manager Malky Mackay was proud of his team despite their defeat. They finished the season in 6th place in the 2011–12 Football League Championship, reaching the playoffs where they were beaten by West Ham United over two-legs.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Cardiff entered the 2011–12 Football League Cup in the first round where they faced Oxford United. The match played at the Kassam Stadium saw Cardiff take the lead in the 10th minute when Craig Conway scored. Oxford equalised 20 minutes later courtesy of a Simon Clist goal. Neither side was able to score a winning goal during the remainder of the match, which went into extra-time at 1–1. Two goals from Peter Whittingham and Nathaniel Jarvis secured a 3–1 victory for Cardiff. Their opponents in the second round were Huddersfield Town.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Two goals in the first 16 minutes courtesy of Gabor Gyepes and Jon Parkin gave Cardiff an early 2–0 lead, which they held until the 55th minute when Huddersfield reduced the deficit to 2–1 courtesy of a Jordan Rhodes goal. Daniel Ward equalised for Huddersfield in the 69th minute before Rhodes scored his second goal of the match to give Huddersfield a 3–2 lead in the 87th minute. Cardiff equalised two minutes into stoppage time when Don Cowie headed the ball in from close range. With the score at 3–3 after 90 minutes the match went to extra-time. A goal each from Conway and Cowie gave Cardiff a 5–3 victory and progression to the third round.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Leicester City were the opponents in the third round. Cardiff playing at their home ground the Cardiff City Stadium took the lead in the 32nd minute when Cowie scored. Leicester equalised seven minutes later when Steve Howard scored from close range. Leicester then took the lead in the 65th minute courtesy of a Lloyd Dyer goal. Cardiff equalised when Rudy Gestede with nine minutes of the match remaining. The score remained 2–2 until full-time and throughout extra-time, which mean the match would be decided by a penalty shoot-out. Cardiff won the shoot-out 7–6 to progress to the fourth round.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Cardiff were drawn at home against Burnley in the fourth round. They won the match 1–0 courtesy of a Joe Mason goal in the first half. The result was the first time in the competition Cardiff's match did not go into extra-atime and it was the first they had reached the quarter-finals of the League Cup since 1965. Their opponents in the quarter-finals were Blackburn Rovers. Two goals from Kenny Miller and Anthony Gerrard secured a 2–0 victory for Cardiff and their progression to the semi-finals.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Crystal Palace were Cardiff's opponents in the semi-final which was played over two-legs. The first leg was played at Palace's home ground Selhurst Park. Cardiff started the match the better of the two sides but were unable to convert their chances. Palace took the lead in the 43rd minute when Anthony Gardner headed in Darren Ambrose's cross. Neither side scored again and the match ended 1–0. The second leg at the Cardiff City Stadium started well for Cardiff when they went ahead in the seventh minute after an own-goal from Palace defender Gardner, which levelled the aggregate score at 1–1.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Cardiff City
Palace were reduced to ten men in the second half when Paddy McCarthy was sent-off. Despite their numerical advantage Cardiff were unable to a second goal during the 90 minutes and extra-time and the tie went to a penalty shoot-out. Cardiff goalkeeper Tom Heaton saved two penalties as Cardiff won the shoot-out 3–1 to progress to their first League Cup final.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Liverpool
Liverpool entered the competition in the second round, as one of the twelve teams from the Premier League who were not involved in European competition during the season. They were drawn against Exeter City in the second round. The match, played at Exeter's home ground, St James Park was won by Liverpool; goals from Luis Suárez, Maxi Rodríguez and Andy Carroll helped the team win 3–1.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Liverpool
Liverpool's opponents in the third round were Brighton & Hove Albion. The match was played at Brighton's home ground, the Falmer Stadium. Liverpool took the lead in the 7th minute when Craig Bellamy scored. Dirk Kuyt extended the lead in the second half, scoring in the 82nd minute. Brighton pulled a goal back courtesy of an Ashley Barnes penalty kick, but were unable to score an equaliser; the match finished 2–1 to Liverpool.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Liverpool
Stoke City were Liverpool's opponents in the fourth round. The match, held at Stoke's home ground the Britannia Stadium saw Stoke take the lead towards the end of the first-half when Kenwyne Jones scored. Liverpool equalised in the 54th minute courtesy of a goal from Suárez, and he scored the winner in the 84th minute to give Liverpool a 2–1 victory and a place in the fifth round. Liverpool were drawn against Chelsea in the subsequent round. At Stamford Bridge, Carroll missed a penalty in a goalless first half. Despite this Liverpool scored twice after the interval, courtesy of goals from Maxi and Martin Kelly. They won the match 2–0 to reach the semi-finals.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Liverpool
Liverpool were drawn against Manchester City in the semi-finals which were held over two-legs. The first leg was at City's home ground, the Etihad stadium. Liverpool won the match 1–0, courtesy of a Steven Gerrard penalty. The second leg was held at Liverpool's home ground Anfield. City took the lead in the first half when Nigel de Jong scored, ten minutes later Gerrard equalised when he scored a penalty. At half-time, the score was 1–1 with Liverpool leading 2–1 on aggregate. City took the lead in the match when Edin Džeko scored in the 67th minute.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Route to the final, Liverpool
The goal meant the aggregate score was 2–2 but City would progress to the final if the score remained the same due to the away goals rule. Liverpool needed to find an equaliser, and seven minutes after Džeko's goal they did, when Bellamy scored. City tried to score an equaliser but to no avail, and the match finished 2–2, with Liverpool progressing to the final courtesy of a 3–2 aggregate victory.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
Cardiff were appearing in their first League Cup final; they had previously reached the semi-final of the competition in the 1965–66 season, when they were beaten by West Ham United 5–1 on aggregate. They were also the first team from outside the Premier League to reach the final since 2001, when Birmingham City lost to Liverpool. Liverpool were appearing in their eleventh final; they had won seven (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1995, 2001, 2003) and lost three (1978, 1987, 2005). The last meeting between the two teams was in the 2007–08 Football League Cup on 31 October 2007, Liverpool won 2–1 to progress to the fifth round.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
This was the fourth time in as many years that Cardiff City had played at Wembley Stadium. They played at the stadium twice during the 2007–08 FA Cup; they beat Barnsley 1–0 in the semi-final before losing 1–0 to Portsmouth in the final. Their last match at the stadium was the 2010 Championship play-off Final against Blackpool, which they lost 3–2. The final represented the first time Liverpool had visited the new Wembley Stadium; their previous appearances in the final in 2001, 2003 and 2005 had been played at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff while Wembley was being rebuilt. Their last visit to Wembley was in 1996 when they reached the final of the FA Cup, match they lost 1–0 to Manchester United at the old Wembley Stadium.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
A week before the final Cardiff played Ipswich Town in the 2011–12 Football League Championship – it was their last match before the final, which they lost 3–0. Cardiff had a few injury concerns ahead of the final. Captain Mark Hudson had a calf problem, while midfielder Stephen McPhail had missed Cardiff's last four matches as he was suffering from Sjögren's syndrome, an immune system disorder. Goalkeeper Heaton was also a doubt with a knock on his ankle, but he was considered likely to start the match.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
Cardiff manager Malky Mackay acknowledged that Liverpool went into the match as favourites, but he was confident his team could provide a shock: "Obviously we are underdogs but we have a chance in the final, Maybe only a one in 10 chance but that's still a chance if you turn up motivated, fit and organised and I think I can promise that."


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
Liverpool's last match before the final was against Brighton & Hove Albion in the FA Cup, which they won 6–1. Despite the margin of victory, Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish was adamant that the result meant nothing in regards to the final: "Defeating Brighton has got us to the next round, but it doesn't really help us in the Carling Cup, we've got a cup final but we won't get carried away." Despite missing the match against Brighton, Dalglish was confident that Daniel Agger and Craig Bellamy would be fit for the final.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
Going into the match Liverpool had not won a trophy since they beat West Ham United in the 2006 FA Cup Final. Dalglish stated that victory: "means a lot to me, more importantly it means a lot to a lot of people who have had to endure a few years when we've not been [to Wembley]."


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Background
Both clubs received an allocation of approximately 31,000 tickets. Cardiff fans would be housed in the East End of the stadium, while Liverpool fans were allocated the West End of the stadium. Ticket prices were increased from last year's final, with the most expensive tickets costing £90 up £4 from the previous year. The least expensive tickets cost £40, which was £2 more than last year. It was decided that before the match started national anthems would not be played. This decision was made to avoid spectators jeering the anthems, as happened during the 2008 FA Cup Final between Portsmouth and Cardiff.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, First-half
Cardiff set up in a 4–4–1–1 formation with Rudy Gestede in the striker position supported by Kenny Miller. Liverpool lined up in a 4–2–3–1 formation, with Andy Carroll starting as the lone striker, with Luis Suárez playing behind him and Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing either side. Cardiff kicked off, but Liverpool had the first chance of the match. Steven Gerrard passed the ball to Stewart Downing on the left hand side of the pitch, he passed to Glen Johnson whose shot hit the crossbar, the ball rebounded to Gerrard, but he sent his shot over the Cardiff goal.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, First-half
Liverpool had the best of the opening minutes of the match, with Cardiff unable to keep possession of the ball. Liverpool had another chance in the sixth minute; Downing went past Cardiff defender Kevin McNaughton down the left of the pitch and crossed the ball into the penalty area, which was cleared for a corner kick. The resulting corner found Andy Carroll, but his header was deflected out for another corner which was caught by Cardiff goalkeeper Tom Heaton.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, First-half
Cardiff began to exert themselves in the match and had their first chance in the tenth minute. Peter Whittingham and Aron Gunnarsson exchanged the ball before it was passed to Rudy Gestede, who found Kenny Miller in the Liverpool penalty area, however his resulting shot went over the Liverpool goal. Carroll had a chance to score in the 19th minute but his header was saved by Heaton. Cardiff immediately went on the attack and scored the first goal of the match.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, First-half
Martin Škrtel's clearance from McNaughton's initial cross went back to the Cardiff player who passed to Miller, he passed the ball to Joe Mason who had run onto the pass from the right hand side of the pitch. His subsequent shot went through the legs of Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina and into the Liverpool goal to give Cardiff a 1–0 lead. Liverpool responded by pushing men forward in an attempt to level the score.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, First-half
The first chance after Cardiff's goal saw defender Daniel Agger advance from his own half towards the Cardiff goal but his shot from 30 yards (27 m) was blocked and went out for a throw-in. Liverpool had another chance from a similar distance a few minutes later but Carroll sent his shot over the crossbar. Liverpool had a penalty appeal turned down in the 32nd minute when Ben Turner was adjudged not to have handled the ball. Immediately afterwards Johnson's cross was cleared by Mark Hudson, the ball fell to Charlie Adam who sent his shot just wide of the Cardiff goal. Just before half-time Liverpool had a chance to equalise, but Agger's header from Gerrard's free-kick was saved by Heaton.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Second-half
Liverpool had the first attack of the half when they were awarded a free-kick for foul on José Enrique. The subsequent free-kick was cleared by Whittingham only as far as Henderson whose shot was wide of the Cardiff goal. Two minutes later Cardiff had a chance to extend their lead; Whittingham went past Agger and passed to Don Cowie, who back heeled the ball to Miller, his subsequent shot went wide of the Liverpool goal. Henderson received the first yellow card of the match after his tackle on Mason was deemed to be too high.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Second-half
Cardiff had another chance in the 56th minute; a Gunnarsson long throw was punched away by Reina, but the clearance fell to Hudson, who headed the ball into the Liverpool penalty area to Gestede, his subsequent header was blocked by the Liverpool goalkeeper. Liverpool made the first substitution of the match a minute later when Henderson was replaced by Craig Bellamy. Two minutes after the substitution, Liverpool equalised. Downing took a corner kick, which was headed on by Carroll to Suárez, whose header hit the post, it rebounded to Škrtel; his shot went into the Cardiff goal to level the match at 1–1. Cardiff had the first chance after Liverpool's goal, but Mason's shot was saved by Reina.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Second-half
The minutes after Škrtel's goal saw Liverpool dominate, but they were unable to score a second goal despite a number of chances. Liverpool conceded a free-kick 22 yards (20 m) from their goal after Miller was fouled. Whittingham's subsequent shot hit Liverpool players and went out for a Cardiff throw-in. The resulting throw from Gunnarsson was flicked on by Gestede, but it was headed away by Liverpool. Minutes later, Cardiff had a chance to score, but Turner's header from Cowie's pass went wide of the Liverpool goal.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Second-half
Two minutes later, Liverpool had another chance to score, but Charlie Adam's shot was saved by Heaton. Liverpool made their second substitution of the match in the 87th minute when Jamie Carragher replaced Agger. Two minutes before the end of the match, Cardiff had a chance to score: Liverpool conceded a free-kick, which was passed to Miller, who was in space, but his went over the Liverpool goal. With the scores level at 1–1, the match went into extra time after the referee brought an end to the 90 minutes of play.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Extra time
Before the start of extra time Cardiff made their first substitution of the match, goalscorer Mason was replaced by Filip Kiss. Liverpool had the first chance to score in extra time, but Suárez's header was cleared off the line by Andrew Taylor. Cardiff appeared to be playing for a penalty shoot-out, as they were positioning the majority of their team behind the ball and in front of their goal. Cardiff captain Hudson was replaced in the 98th minute by Anthony Gerrard after suffering from cramp.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Extra time
Liverpool had another chance in the 101st minute, when a pass by Gerrard was cleared for a corner kick by Taylor. The resulting corner was met by Carroll, but his header was wide of the Cardiff goal. Immediately after the attack Carroll was replaced by Dirk Kuyt. Just before the end of the first half of extra time Liverpool had another chance. Bellamy went past two men down the left hand side of the pitch before exchanging passes with Kuyt, however his subsequent shot went wide.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Extra time
Just after the start of the second half of extra time Cardiff made their final substitution, replacing McNaughton with Darcy Blake. Two minutes later Kuyt made a run from deep in the Liverpool half, his initial shot was blocked, but the ball rebounded towards him. As the ball came back to him he shot again and the ball went past Heaton and into the Cardiff goal to give Liverpool a 2–1 lead. Cardiff were struggling after the goal with a number of their players suffering from cramp.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Extra time
Nevertheless, they had a chance in the 111th minute, when a Gunnarsson long throw was only half-cleared by Liverpool, but they were unable to convert the chance. Towards the end of the half Cardiff began to exert more pressure on Liverpool. Turner, who had been moved into the striker position won a corner for Cardiff, which was punched away by Reina for a throw-in. Cardiff won another from the throw, which found Kiss, whose shot was cleared off the line of the Liverpool goal by Kuyt for another corner.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Extra time
The subsequent corner was headed on by Gunnarsson to Turner, who beat Kuyt to the ball and put his shot past Reina into the Liverpool goal to level the score at 2–2. Turner was shown a yellow card for removing his shirt during the celebration of the goal. Liverpool won a corner with a minute remaining but they were unable to score and the referee brought extra time to an end with the scores level, resulting in a penalty shoot-out.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Penalty shoot-out
Liverpool were the first team to take a penalty, but Gerrard's effort was saved by Heaton. Cardiff's first penalty was taken by Miller, but he also missed with his shot hitting the post. Adam took the next penalty for Liverpool, he also missed, placing his shot over the Cardiff goal. Cowie took the next penalty for Cardiff and scored to give them a 1–0 lead. Liverpool also scored with their next penalty courtesy of Kuyt to level the shoot-out at 1–1. Gestede was next for Cardiff, but his penalty hit the post.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Match, Penalty shoot-out
Liverpool took the lead in the shoot-out when Downing converted his penalty. Whittingham was next for Cardiff and he scored to level the shoot-out at 2–2. Johnson took the next penalty for Liverpool and scored, to give Liverpool a 3–2 lead and leave Cardiff needing to score or Liverpool would win. The Cardiff penalty was taken by Anthony Gerrard, but he missed his penalty, which meant Liverpool won the shoot-out 3–2 and won their eighth League Cup.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Liverpool's victory meant they won the trophy for the eighth time, extending their record number of victories in the competition. Midfielder Stewart Downing was awarded the Alan Hardaker Trophy as the man of the match. Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish was delighted to have won the League Cup and was adamant that the club would continue to win trophies: "Although we have won something today, that is not us finished, we don't want to stop here. We want to keep going. We've won it and we are going to really enjoy it.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
I know how much the players have enjoyed it and it gives you a wee flavour to come back and do it again." The victory meant that Dalglish became the seventh manager to win all three major domestic trophies in English football. Goalscorer Dirk Kuyt was equally delighted to have won the competition: "We wanted this so desperately, this is why I came to Anfield. To get my first medal is great." Meanwhile, captain Steven Gerrard had mixed emotions, due to his cousin Anthony Gerrard missing the deciding penalty: "One of Anthony or I was going to be sad, one was going to be celebrating. It happens. I've got mixed emotions at the moment because I feel for Anthony and Cardiff."


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Cardiff manager Malky Mackay was proud of his players despite their defeat: "We wanted to come here and win today but the players have done the club proud, I think today we were playing against a top team and I think we have got a lot to be proud of." Anthony Gerrard, who missed the decisive penalty took to Twitter to apologise to Cardiff fans stating that the miss would "...haunt me for the rest of my days!"


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Despite Gerrard's apology, Cardiff goalkeeper Tom Heaton was adamant that none of the players should take the blame for the defeat: "There is definitely no blame attached to any of the lads who missed. They all had the strength of character to stand up and take a penalty in front of 90,000 people and the world watching in a pressure situation. They should be credited and congratulated for taking them. Sadly, it wasn’t our day.”


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Liverpool's first match after the final was against Arsenal, a match the club needed to win to stay in touch with the top four. Two goals from Robin van Persie, after Liverpool had scored in the first half meant that Liverpool lost 2–1 and were 10 points behind the team in 4th place, which would ensure qualification for the UEFA Champions League the following season. Liverpool's league form continued to falter after the final; they won four of their last thirteen matches and ended the season in eighth place.


2012 Football League Cup Final, Post-match
Despite their poor league form, Liverpool reached the final of the FA Cup against Chelsea. But they were unable to win a second trophy and lost 2–1. Cardiff played West Ham United in their first match after the final, which they lost 2–0. Despite the loss, they only needed to win one more in their remaining thirteen matches to finish in 6th place and qualify for the Championship playoffs. They faced third placed West Ham United, in the playoffs, which were contested over two-legs, with one at each team's home ground. Cardiff were unable to secure a second Wembley final, as West Ham United won 5–0 on aggregate.


2012 Football League One play-off Final
The 2012 Football League One play-off Final was an association football match which was played on 26 May 2012 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Huddersfield Town and Sheffield United to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from Football League One to the Football League Championship. The top two teams of the 2011–12 Football League One season, Charlton Athletic and Sheffield Wednesday, gained automatic promotion to the Championship, while the teams placed from third to sixth position in the table took part in play-offs. The winners of the play-off semi-finals competed for the final place for the 2012–13 season in the Championship.


2012 Football League One play-off Final
Roger East was the referee for the match which was played in front of 52,100 spectators. The match itself ended in a 0–0 draw and went into after extra time. With no goals in the additional period of play, the match had to be decided with a penalty shootout. Eight of the first ten penalties were missed or saved and the subsequent twelve were all scored. With the match level at 7–7, Huddersfield's goalkeeper Alex Smithies scored past his counterpart Steve Simonsen to give them the advantage. Simonsen then struck his penalty high over Smithies' crossbar and the shootout ended 8–7, with Huddersfield gaining promotion to the Championship.


2012 Football League One play-off Final
Sheffield United ended their next season in fifth position in League One and participated in the play-offs where the lost to Yeovil Town in the semi-final. Huddersfield Town's following season saw them finish in 19th place in the Championship, three positions and four points above the relegation zone.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Route to the final
Sheffield United finished the regular 2011–12 season in third place in Football League One, the third tier of the English football league system, one place ahead of Huddersfield Town. Both therefore missed out on the two automatic places for promotion to the Football League Championship and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the third promoted team. Sheffield United finished three points behind local rivals Sheffield Wednesday (who were promoted in second place) and eleven behind league winners Charlton Athletic. Huddersfield Town ended the season nine points behind Sheffield United.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Route to the final
Sheffield United's opponents for their play-off semi-final were Stevenage and the first match of the two-legged tie took place at Broadhall Way in Stevenage on 11 May 2012. Craig Reid hit the frame of the Sheffield United goal and Stevenage's goalkeeper was forced to make a save from Michael Bostwick, his own player, but the game ended goalless. The return leg was held three days later at Bramall Lane in Sheffield. The first half ended without a goal but late in the second half, Chris Porter scored for the home side with a header from a Matthew Lowton cross to secure a 1–0 victory and progression for Sheffield United to the final.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Route to the final
Huddersfield Town faced Milton Keynes Dons in the other play-off semi-final with the first leg being played at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes on 12 May 2012. Midway through the first half, Jordan Rhodes gave the visitors the lead when he scored with a header from Lee Novak's cross. In the second half, an exchange of passes between Jack Hunt and Kallum Higginbotham led to Hunt striking from inside the MK Dons penalty area past David Martin in goal to make it 2–0. The second leg took place at the Galpharm Stadium in Huddersfield three days later. Rhodes put the visitors ahead with a free kick before Daniel Powell equalised from around 18 yards (16 m). Alan Smith scored a late header to give MK Dons a 2–1 win but Huddersfield progressed to the final with a 3–2 aggregate victory.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Background
This match was Huddersfield Town's fourth play-off final, their previous three coming in 1995 (a 2–1 win over Bristol Rovers), 2004 (a 4–1 penalty shoot-out win over Mansfield Town) and 2011 (a 3–0 loss to Peterborough United), and completed their eighth Football League play-off campaign. Manager Simon Grayson had previously achieved promotion success as a manager from the Football League One play-offs with Blackpool in the 2007 final. Sheffield United had been involved in six previous play-off campaigns, but had never won a play-off final despite attempts in 1997, 2003 and 2009.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Background
The matches between the two teams during the regular season ended in an away win in both matches. Huddersfield secured a 3–0 victory away at Bramall Lane in September 2011, with goals from Oscar Gobern and a brace from Novak, while Sheffield United won 1–0 away at the Kirklees Stadium the following February with Neill Collins scoring the only goal. Ched Evans was top scorer for Sheffield United with 35 goals during the regular season (29 in the league, 5 in the FA Cup and 1 in the Football League Trophy). However he was unavailable for selection after being convicted of rape in April 2012;  the conviction was quashed four years later following a retrial. Huddersfield Town's leading scorer was Rhodes who had scored 36 league goals in 40 appearances and 2 in the League Cup.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Background
Huddersfield's goalkeeper Ian Bennett injured his hand during the semi-final second leg against MK Dons, with Alex Smithies on standby as his replacement. Scott Arfield had recovered from the ankle injury that forced him off in the semi-final first leg and later saw him to miss the home tie. Sheffield United's Kevin McDonald picked up a hamstring injury in their 1–0 win in the semi-final second leg, and missed the final. Richard Cresswell had recovered from an eye infection that caused him to miss the previous match, and was available for the final.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Background
The referee for the match was Roger East who was assisted by Harry Lennard and Matthew Wilkes. Danny McDermid acted as the fourth official while Mark Scholes was the reserve assistant referee. The match was broadcast live in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports. Huddersfield Town adopted a 4–4–2 formation while Sheffield United played as a 4–4–1–1.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Regular time
Sheffield United kicked off the match around 3 p.m. on 26 May 2012 at Wembley Stadium in front of a crowd of 52,100. In the 9th minute, Huddersfield's Hunt made a run down the right wing and crossed but Higginbotham's volley went wide of Sheffield United's goal. Two minutes later, a long pass deep into Huddersfield territory was mis-headed by Peter Clarke and allowed Cresswell to shoot but his attempt was blocked. On 17 minutes, Stephen Quinn headed a cross from Lowton but Huddersfield's goalkeeper Smithies punched it clear.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Regular time
Rhodes saw his header gathered by the Sheffield United goalkeeper Steve Simonsen in the 32nd minute. Three minutes later Smithies came out to clear a cross from Quinn but missed the ball which was cleared, before Matt Hill's goal-bound strike from the edge of the penalty area was blocked by Clarke. With six minutes of the half remaining, Hunt cut inside from the right wing and shot from 20 yards (18 m) but his strike was wide of the goal. In injury time of the first half, Huddersfield made a quick break following a Sheffield United corner, but Rhodes ran the ball off the pitch and the half ended 0–0.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Regular time
Neither side made any changes to their personnel during the interval. Two minutes into the second half, a poor clearance from Sheffield United found Danny Ward whose shot from the edge of the penalty area struck the top of the crossbar. In the 54th minute, Lowton won a corner for Sheffield United which Harry Maguire headed wide of the Huddersfield goal. Clarke then headed a Huddersfield corner wide before Higginbotham was shown the first yellow card of the match in the 62nd minute for a late tackle on Lowton.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Regular time
Seven minutes later, Rhodes passed to Higginbotham whose first-time volley missed the target. In the 79th minute, Huddersfield made their first substitution of the match with Gary Roberts coming on to replace Higginbotham. With seven minutes remaining, Huddersfield won a corner after Maguire cleared the ball behind, from which Tommy Miller's header was pushed out by Simonsen before Clarke's follow-up shot was cleared off the Sheffield United goal-line by Michael Doyle.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Regular time
Rhodes then headed a cross from Calum Woods wide of the goal before Sheffield United made their first change of the game with Porter coming on for Cresswell in the 85th minute. Porter's first contribution was to head the ball wide of the Huddersfield post. In the last minute of the match Roberts appeared to have been brought down in the Sheffield United penalty area by Ryan Flynn but no foul was awarded. The match ended 0–0 and went into extra time.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Extra time and penalty shootout
Huddersfield kicked off the first period of extra time and the first chance came in the fourth minute when Porter headed Quinn's cross goal-bound but it was blocked by Woods. In the 8th minute, Sean Morrison blocked Quinn's volley to keep the match goalless, and a minute later Alan Lee came on for Ward in Huddersfield's second substitution. In stoppage time in the first half of extra time, a run from Quinn ended with his low shot being pushed away by Smithies, before Maguire was booked. The half ended with the score still at 0–0.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Extra time and penalty shootout
Three minutes in the second period of extra time, Sheffield Untied's Michael O'Halloran replaced Flynn before Lee's strike from 6 yards (5.5 m) was saved by Simonsen. In the 112th minute, Nick Montgomery cleared Clarke's header off the Sheffield United goal-line. Soon after, Damien Johnson was booked for a foul on Quinn the edge of the Huddersfield penalty area but the resulting free kick from Lee Williamson was easily gathered by Smithies. With four minutes remaining, Scott Arfield came on to replace Novak and just before the final whistle, Andy Taylor was brought on for Montgomery, as the game went to a penalty shootout.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Match, Summary, Extra time and penalty shootout
The penalties were taken in front of the Huddersfield Town fans, with their side starting the shootout. Smith's strike was easily saved by Simonsen before Smithies pushed Williamson's spot kick away. Johnson's strike was wide of the goal before Collins opened the scoring after sending Smithies the wrong way. Lee then missed the target with his penalty before Lowton's strike was easily caught by Smithies. Clarke scored before Taylor's shot hit the post, making it 1–1 after four penalties each side. The next twelve spot kicks were scored and with the score at 7–7 after 20 penalties, only the goalkeepers remained. Smithies strike went in before Simonsen's shot was high over the crossbar. The final score was 8–7 to Huddersfield who were promoted to the Championship.


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Post-match
Grayson, the winning manager, conceded that there was little between the sides during the final: "There was nothing in the game whatsoever ... What an unbelievable end to the game and I really feel for Sheffield United. Hopefully they can come up next year ... The best way to get promoted is by winning at Wembley"  His counterpart Wilson refused to blame Simonsen for the defeat after his penalty miss: "To save the penalties like Steve did, who would have thought it would come down to that?


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Post-match
He nearly got his hand to two others but that's the way it goes sometimes. I don't know if that's fate but for him to miss the penalty, it's blameless". Montgomery revealed that Simonsen "was devastated" but that "there's no blame attached to him ... it's a heartbreaking way to end it, but we've just got to try and come back stronger next season".


2012 Football League One play-off Final, Post-match
Sheffield United ended their next season in fifth position in League One and participated in the play-offs where the lost to Yeovil Town in the semi-final. Huddersfield Town's following season saw their manager Grayson sacked in January 2013 after a 12-game winless streak. Mark Robins was appointed as his replacement the following month and he led Huddersfield to a 19th place finish in  the Championship, three positions and four points above the relegation zone.


2012 Football League Trophy Final
The 2012 Football League Trophy Final was the 29th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from Football Leagues One and Two, the Football League Trophy. The final was played at Wembley Stadium in London on 25 March 2012. The match was contested between Chesterfield from League One and Swindon Town from League Two. Chesterfield won the game 2–0.


2012 Football League Trophy Final, Post match
Chesterfield manager, John Sheridan spoke of his desire to keep Chesterfield in League One saying of the game "It's great for the fans and it's a trophy – I won't disrespect it. But I know where my loyalties lie and I'm desperate to stay in the division". Swindon manager, Paolo Di Canio described his players as mentally weak saying "Today we deserved to be a loser because we were all weak".


2012 Football League Two play-off Final
The 2012 Football League Two play-off Final was an association football match played on 27 May 2012 at Wembley Stadium, London, between Cheltenham Town and Crewe Alexandra. The match determined the fourth and final team to gain promotion from Football League Two, English football's fourth tier, to Football League One. The top three teams of the 2011–12 Football League Two season gained automatic promotion to League One, while those placed from fourth to seventh in the table took part in play-off semi-finals; the winners of these semi-finals competed for the final place for the 2012–13 season in League One. Cheltenham Town finished in sixth place while Crewe Alexandra ended the season in seventh position. Southend United and Torquay United were the losing semi-finalists, being defeated by Crewe and Cheltenham respectively.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final
The referee for the match was Craig Pawson which kicked off around 3 p.m. in front of a crowd of 24,029. In the 15th minute, Nick Powell scored to put Crewe 1–0 ahead: Kelvin Mellor found Powell, who beat a defender by flicking the ball up before striking a volley into the Cheltenham net from around 20 yards (18 m). Jeff Goulding's long-range shot then struck the Crewe crossbar before rebounding to Ben Burgess who missed the target. In the 25th minute, Goulding struck Burgess' flick-on into the Crewe net but the goal was disallowed for offside. Byron Moore's 81st minute shot was just wide of the Cheltenham's right-hand goalpost but a minute later his shot into the bottom-corner of the net after exchanged passes with A-Jay Leitch-Smith made it 2–0. Crewe won the match and gained promotion to League One.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final
Crewe ended their following season in thirteenth position in the League One table. Cheltenham finished in fifth place in League Two in their next season and qualified for the play-offs where they lost in the semi-finals to Northampton Town.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
Cheltenham Town finished the regular 2011–12 season in sixth place in Football League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system, one position ahead of Crewe Alexandra. Both therefore missed out on the three automatic places for promotion to Football League One and instead took part in the play-offs to determine the fourth promoted team. Cheltenham Town finished seven points behind Crawley Town (who were promoted in third place), eleven behind Shrewsbury Town (who were promoted in second place), and sixteen behind league winners Swindon Town.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
Crewe Alexandra ended the season one place and five points behind Cheltenham Town. Crewe Alexandra had lost the first four games of their season and were fifteenth in the league at its mid-point before going on a thirteen-match unbeaten run to qualify for the play-offs. In November 2011, Dario Gradi was replaced after 1,353 games as Crewe's manager by Steve Davis with the club in 18th position.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
Crewe Alexandra's opposition in the play-off semi-final was Southend United with the first match of the two-legged tie being played at Gresty Road on 12 May 2012. After a goalless first half, Adam Dugdale scored a header from a Ashley Westwood free kick early in the second half. Despite Southend having chances to score, the match ended 1–0 to Crewe. The second leg of the play-off semi-final took place four days later at Roots Hall in Southend-on-Sea. A-Jay Leitch-Smith put Crewe into the lead in the first half after striking a shot past Cameron Belford.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
Freddy Eastwood then saw his goal disallowed after he was adjudged to have been offside. Both he and Michael Timlin then struck the Crewe goalposts with shots before Neil Harris scored from a Chris Barker cross to level the game. Max Clayton made it 2–1 to Crewe before Barker himself scored. The game ended 2–2 and Crewe progressed to the final 3–2 on aggregate.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
The second play-off semi-final saw Cheltenham Town face Torquay United and the first leg took place at Whaddon Road in Cheltenham on 13 May 2012. Jermaine McGlashan put the home side ahead in the first half with a cross-cum-shot which went in off the post. Ben Burgess then doubled his side's lead in the second half, heading past Bobby Olejnik in the Torquay goal from a McGlashan cross. Torquay's closest chance came when Ryan Jarvis struck the Cheltenham crossbar with a header, but the match ended 2–0. The second semi-final leg took place at Plainmoor in Torquay four days later.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Route to the final
After a goalless first half, McGlashan extended Cheltenham's aggregate lead with a strike in the 75th minute after a Kaid Mohamed pass. Taiwo Atieno reduced the deficit for Torquay when he headed in Eunan O'Kane's corner. Marlon Pack then extended Cheltenham's lead with a 25-yard (23 m) free kick, and his team ended 4–1 aggregate winners, progressing to Wembley for the final.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Background
Cheltenham had played in two fourth tier play-off finals before 2012, winning them both. In 2002, they faced Rushden & Diamonds in the Third Division play-off final at the Millennium Stadium, winning 3–1. Four years later, Cheltenham secured promotion from the third tier of English football through the play-offs for a second time, beating Grimsby Town 1–0 in the final in Cardiff. Crewe had also appeared in two play-offs finals previously, both at the old Wembley Stadium.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Background
They lost the 1993 Football League Third Division play-off Final against York City in a penalty shootout, and defeated Brentford 1–0 in the 1997 Football League Second Division play-off Final. Both Cheltenham and Crewe had played in the fourth tier of English football since they were relegated in the 2008–09 season.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Background
Crewe won both matches played between the sides during the regular season, with a 1–0 victory at Whaddon Road in October 2011 followed by a 1–0 win at Gresty Road the following April. Nick Powell was Crewe's top scorer for the season with 14 goals (all in the league), while Darryl Duffy led the scoring charts for Cheltenham with 13 (11 in the league and 2 in the FA Cup). Crewe's manager Davis believed the contest would be even: "There's no favourites. If anything they'd be, as they finished above us. But the fact that they won more games than us doesn't count for anything now."


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Background
The referee for the match was Craig Pawson who was assisted by Steve Bratt and John Brooks. The fourth official was Nigel Miller while David Rock was the reserve assistant referee. Crewe made one change to their line-up from the play-off semi-final second leg with Luke Murphy replacing Lee Bell having recovered from a groin injury. Cheltenham made two changes: Keith Lowe and James Spencer were dropped from the Cheltenham side and were replaced by Luke Garbutt and Jeff Goulding. Both sides adopted a 4–4–2 formation. According to The Daily Telegraph the match was played in "blistering temperatures".


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Summary
The match kicked off around 3 p.m. on 27 May 2012 in front of a crowd of 24,029. The first shot of the match came in the third minute from Cheltenham's Mohamed but it was wide of the Crewe goal. Seven minutes later, Powell won the ball and passed to Murphy whose shot from the edge of the penalty area was saved by Scott Brown in the Cheltenham goal, before Leitch-Smith struck the ball wide of the goalpost. In the 12th minute McGlashan's strike was saved by Crewe goalkeeper Steve Phillips.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Summary
Three minutes later Powell scored to put Crewe 1–0 ahead: Kelvin Mellor found Powell, who beat a defender by flicking the ball up before striking a volley into the Cheltenham net from around 20 yards (18 m). Goulding's long-range shot then struck the Crewe crossbar before rebounding to Burgess who missed the target. In the 25th minute, Goulding struck Burgess' flick-on into the Crewe net but the goal was disallowed for offside. Mohamed's 27th minute shot went high over the Crewe goal before Goulding's strike was over the bar six minutes later. Powell then struck a shot from distance wide of the goal in the 36th minute before Mellor's close-range header went over Cheltenham's crossbar five minutes later. Phillips then saved from a Goulding header before the referee blew the whistle for half-time with Crewe leading 1–0.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Summary
Neither side made any change to their personnel during the interval. Six minutes into the second half, Pack's 20-yard (18 m) low strike was just wide of the Crewe goal. A mistake from Dugdale saw Mohamed run through on goal in the 54th minute, but Phillips made the save. A free kick from Westwood in the 71st minute found Dugdale in the Cheltenham penalty area but his control was poor and allowed Brown to block his shot. In the 75th minute, Cheltenham made their first substitution of the match with Duffy coming on to replace Goulding.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Match, Summary
Pack's long-range strike then went of Crewe's goal before Powell was substituted for Clayton. Byron Moore's 81st minute shot was just wide of the Cheltenham's right-hand goalpost but a minute later his shot into the bottom-corner of the net after exchanged passes with Leitch-Smith made it 2–0. In the 83rd minute, Cheltenham made a double-substitution, with Russell Penn and Spencer coming on for Pack and Burgess. Soon after Carl Martin came on for Leitch-Smith before Brown made saves from both Moore and Clayton. Deep into stoppage time, Bell came on for Moore and the final whistle was blown, Crewe winning 2–0 and gaining promotion to League One.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Post-match
Davis, the winning manager, recalled his chairman's instruction after taking over in November 2011: "Get us out of the bottom six. Just get us safe." His counterpart Yates was proud of his side: "They've been brilliant ... Today was just one step too far." Speaking of Powell's goal, he said: "It was a wonder strike from a prodigious talent and we couldn't do much about that one". Powell signed for Manchester United two weeks after the final. The defeat was Cheltenham's first in the play-offs, having won five and drawn three of their previous post-season matches.


2012 Football League Two play-off Final, Post-match
Crewe ended their following season in thirteenth position in the League One table. Cheltenham finished in fifth place in League Two in their next season and qualified for the play-offs where they lost in the semi-finals to Northampton Town.


2012 Football League play-offs
The Football League play-offs for the 2011–12 season were held in May 2012. All finals took place at Wembley Stadium in London.


2012 Football League play-offs
The play-off semi-finals were played over two legs, contested by the teams who finished in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place in the Football League Championship and League One and the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th-placed teams in the League Two table. The winners of the semi-finals went through to the finals, with the winner of the final gaining promotion for the following season.


2012 Football League play-offs
The semi-final matches were played from 3 to 17 May 2012. The finals were held between 19 and 27 May 2012.


2012 Football League play-offs, Background
The Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places.


2012 Football NSW season
The Football NSW 2012 season was the final season under the previous competition format in New South Wales. The competition consisted of four divisions across the State of New South Wales.


2012 Football NSW season, League Tables, 2012 NSW Premier League
The 2012 NSW Premier League season was played over 22 rounds, beginning on 31 March with the regular season concluding on 2 September 2012.


2012 Football NSW season, League Tables, 2012 NSW Super League
The 2012 NSW Super League season was played over 22 rounds, beginning on 17 March with the regular season concluding on 19 August 2012.


2012 Football NSW season, League Tables, 2012 NSW State League Division 1
The 2012 NSW State League Division 1 season was played over 22 rounds, beginning on 17 March with the regular season concluding on 19 August 2012.


2012 Football NSW season, League Tables, 2012 NSW State League Division 2
The 2012 NSW State League Division 2 season was played over 22 rounds, beginning on 17 March with the regular season concluding on 19 August 2012.


2012 Ford EcoBoost 400
The 2012 Ford EcoBoost 400 was a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stock car race held on  November 18, 2012 at Homestead Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida. Contested over 267 laps, it was the thirty-sixth in the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, as well as the final race in the ten-race Chase for the Sprint Cup, which ends the season. Jeff Gordon of Hendrick Motorsports won the race, his second win of the season and Hendrick's first win at Homestead Miami (and their 10th win of the season), while Clint Bowyer finished second and Ryan Newman finished third.


2012 Ford EcoBoost 400
The race was notable for three lasts: the last race for Dodge in the foreseeable future, the last race with the fifth-generation Sprint Cup car body, and the last for long-time Hendrick Motorsports sponsor DuPont with Jeff Gordon, as DuPont was leaving the #24 team at the end of the season following a spinoff of its automotive coatings division to The Carlyle Group.


2012 Ford EcoBoost 400, Report, Background
Homestead Miami Speedway is one of ten intermediate tracks to hold NASCAR races; the others are Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Chicagoland Speedway, Darlington Raceway, Texas Motor Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and Charlotte Motor Speedway. The race was held on the standard track at Homestead Miami Speedway; a four-turn oval track that is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long. The track's turns are banked from 18 to 20 degrees, while the front stretch, the location of the finish line, is banked at three degrees. The back stretch, opposite of the front, also has a three degree banking. The racetrack has seats for 65,000 spectators.


2012 Ford EcoBoost 400, Report, Background
Heading into the final race of the season, Brad Keselowski was leading the Drivers' Championship with 2,371 points while Jimmie Johnson was second with 2,351 points, twenty points behind Keselowski. A maximum of 48 points were available for the final race. Behind Keselowski and Johnson in the Drivers' Championship, Kasey Kahne was third with 2,321 points, three points ahead of Clint Bowyer and twelve ahead of Denny Hamlin in fourth and fifth. Matt Kenseth with 2,297 was four points ahead of Greg Biffle, as Kevin Harvick with 2,285 points, was one point ahead of Tony Stewart and twenty-five ahead of Martin Truex, Jr. Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was eleventh and twelfth with 2,256 and 2,211 points, respectively.


2012 Ford EcoBoost 400, Report, Background
Chevrolet had already secured the Manufacturer's Championship, and entered the race on 240 points, thirty-three points ahead of Toyota with 203 points, with a maximum of nine points available at the Ford EcoBoost 400. Ford was third with 170 points, seventeen ahead of Dodge. Stewart was the race's defending winner, after his victory at the 2011 race.


2012 Fordham Rams football team
The 2012 Fordham Rams football team represented Fordham University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by first year head coach Joe Moorhead and played their home games at Coffey Field. They are a member of the Patriot League.


2012 Fordham Rams football team
Fordham was not eligible for the Patriot League championship because they used scholarship players while the rest of the league's members do not.


2012 Fordham Rams football team
They finished the season 6–5, 3–3 in Patriot League play. However, their conference record will be officially recognized as 0–0.


2012 Formula 3 Brazil Open
The 2012 Formula 3 Brazil Open was the third Formula 3 Brazil Open race held at Autódromo José Carlos Pace from January 19–22, 2012. For this year the category presents a new regulation about the tyres. Made in Turkey, these compounds were used on main F-3 championships around the world, such as British series.


2012 Formula 3 Brazil Open
After a race with accidents, the Brazilian Lucas Foresti of the Cesário Fórmula was crowned his secondtitle. André Negrão competing for the Hitech Racing finished in second place, with class B winner Vinícius Alvarenga finished in third.


2012 Formula 3 Euro Series
The 2012 Formula 3 Euro Series season was the tenth and the last championship year of the Formula 3 Euro Series.


2012 Formula 3 Euro Series, Drivers and teams
Competition numbers 30 and higher are single-race entrants and are ineligible to score championship points.


2012 Formula 3 Euro Series, Championship standings
The third race at the Norisring was red-flagged after half the race had been completed due to torrential rain. As a result, series organisers only awarded half points to each of the classified finishers eligible to score points. Similarly, half-points were awarded in the second race at Zandvoort, as only five laps were completed within the allotted time limit for racing.


2012 Formula 3 Euro Series, Championship standings, Drivers' Championship
† — Drivers did not finish the race, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.


2012 Formula 3 Sudamericana season
The 2012 Formula 3 Sudamericana season was the 26th Formula 3 Sudamericana season. It began on 22 July 2012, at Autódromo Internacional de Curitiba, and ended on 2 December on the same circuit. After a year more complicated of the category, Formula 3 Sudamericana becomes organized by Vicar, the same of Stock Car Brasil and Brasileiro de Marcas.


2012 Formula 3 Sudamericana season
After winning the light class in 2010, Fernando Resende won the main class, the fourth successive title of Césario Fórmula team. On the light class Césario Fórmula driver Higor Hoffman won the championship. The 2012 season was marked by only three drivers racing in all rounds and with no driver and race outside Brazil.


2012 Formula Abarth season
The 2012 Formula Abarth season was the eighth season of the former Formula Azzurra, and the third under its guise of "Formula Abarth". The European Championship began on 31 March in Valencia, while the Italian Championship commenced on 10 June at Mugello. They finished together on 30 September at Monza.


2012 Formula Abarth season
Nicolas Costa, who drove for Euronova Racing by Fortec, won both series, taking four victories in the Italian series and six victories in the European championship. Costa won the Italian series by nineteen points and the European series by twenty points over runner-up Luca Ghiotto of the Prema Powerteam, with third place in the European championship taken by Ghiotto's teammate Bruno Bonifacio, while Costa's teammate Emanuele Zonzini finished third in the Italian championship.


2012 Formula BMW Talent Cup
The 2012 Formula BMW Talent Cup was the second Formula BMW Talent Cup season. The series champion received €297,500 sponsorship for 2013 in a higher-level single-seater racing series.


2012 Formula D season
The 2012 Formula D season (officially titled Formula Drift Pro Championship) was the ninth season of the Formula D series. The season began on April 6 in Long Beach and ended on October 13 at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale.


2012 Formula LO season
The 2012 Formula LO season was the inaugural Formula LO season and the thirteenth season of the former Formula Lista Junior. It began on 19 May at the Red Bull Ring and ended on 13 October at Autodromo Nazionale Monza after twelve races.


2012 Formula Nippon Championship
The 2012 Formula Nippon Championship was the 26th season of the premier Japanese open-wheel motor racing series. The series for Formula Nippon racing cars was contested over seven rounds with a non-championship final round at Fuji Speedway as part of the JAF Grand Prix. The two-time Le Mans winner André Lotterer was the defending champion.


2012 Formula Nippon Championship
This was also the final season run under the name Formula Nippon, the series would be renamed into Japanese Championship Super Formula, a name selected by public, in 2013.


2012 Formula Nippon Championship, Teams and drivers
Note:All drivers (except Yuhki Nakayama) also participated the non-Championship JAF Grand Prix.


2012 Formula One World Championship
The 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 66th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 63rd FIA Formula One World Championship, a motor racing series for Formula One cars, recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) – the governing body of motorsport – as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. The championship was contested over twenty rounds, which started in Australia on 18 March and ended in Brazil on 25 November. The 2012 season saw the return of the United States Grand Prix, which was held at the Circuit of the Americas, a purpose-built circuit in Austin, Texas. After being cancelled in 2011 due to civil protests, the Bahrain Grand Prix also returned to the calendar.


2012 Formula One World Championship
The early season was tumultuous, with seven different drivers winning the first seven races of the championship; a record for the series. It was not until the European Grand Prix in June that a driver, Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, won his second race of the year, and with it, emerged as a championship contender. Alonso maintained his hold on the championship lead for the next seven races, taking his third win in Germany and finishing on the podium in the United Kingdom, Italy and Singapore.


2012 Formula One World Championship
However, costly first-lap retirements in Belgium and Japan allowed his rivals to catch up, and defending World Champion Sebastian Vettel – like Alonso, a two-time title winner – took the lead in the sixteenth race of the season. Vettel, too, encountered difficulties throughout the season; contact with a backmarker left him to finish outside the points in Malaysia, while alternator failures at the European and Italian Grands Prix cost him valuable points and exclusion from qualifying in Abu Dhabi led him to start from the pit lane.


2012 Formula One World Championship
Vettel entered the final race of the season with a thirteen-point lead over Alonso. Alonso needed a podium finish to stand any chance of becoming World Drivers' Champion, but in a race of attrition that finished under the safety car, Vettel finished in sixth place, scoring enough points to win his third consecutive championship, becoming just the third driver in the sport's sixty-three-year history to do so. In the World Constructors' Championship, Red Bull Racing secured their third consecutive title when Sebastian Vettel finished second at the United States Grand Prix.


2012 Formula One World Championship
In addition to seeing seven different drivers win the first seven races, the 2012 season broke several records. The calendar for the season included twenty races, breaking the previous record of nineteen, which was first set in 2005. Six current or former World Drivers' Champions – Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Räikkönen, and Michael Schumacher – started the season, breaking the record of five established in 1970.


2012 Formula One World Championship
This was the last season for 7-times world champion, Michael Schumacher as he announced his retirement from Formula One for the second time, after the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers
The following twelve teams and twenty-five race drivers competed in the 2012 Formula One World Championship. The FIA published a provisional entry list on 30 November 2011, and the grid was finalised on 17 February. Teams competed with tyres supplied by Pirelli.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
At the November 2011 meeting of the Formula One Commission in Geneva, several teams were given permission to change their constructor names – the name recognised by the FIA as the entity that effectively owns the team, and to which all results for that team are credited – with final approval from the World Motor Sport Council granted in December of that year:


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
As a result of the name changes, Team Lotus and Lotus Renault GP declared that their ongoing dispute over the use of the Lotus name was over after they had reached an "amicable conclusion". Although the exact terms of the settlement were kept confidential, the joint statement detailed the transfer of the rights to the Lotus and Team Lotus names to Group Lotus's ownership.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
Williams announced that they would be using Renault engines for the 2012 and 2013 seasons, with an option to use Renault engines again in 2014 under the next generation of engine regulations. Renault had previously supplied engines to Williams from 1989 to 1997, when the team won four World Drivers' Championships and five World Constructors' Championships.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
Following their worst season in their thirty-year history – in which they finished ninth in the World Constructors' Championship with just five points – the team underwent a technical review, employing former McLaren designer Mike Coughlan (having served his suspension for his role in the 2007 Formula One espionage controversy) as Chief Designer, and promoting Jason Somerville to Head of Aerodynamics. Likewise, Marussia (then known as Virgin Racing) underwent a restructuring, splitting with Wirth Research mid-season after a technical review by Marussia Motors and the board of directors. The team also announced a technical partnership with McLaren that granted them access to McLaren's testing facilities as well as the purchase of Wirth Research facilities.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
In the week before the 2011 Indian Grand Prix, Force India announced that the Sahara Group had purchased a 42.5% stake in the team, valued at US$100 million. The investment gave the Sahara Group and team principal Vijay Mallya an equal stake in the team, with team director Michiel Mol controlling the remaining 15% of the team. Under the terms of the sale, the Sahara Group became Force India's naming-rights sponsor. Mercedes GP also changed the name of their team, announcing that they were to become known as Mercedes AMG. The new name originates from AMG, Mercedes-Benz's performance and luxury road car brand.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
HRT team principal Colin Kolles formally left his position, with the team citing the relocation of their headquarters to Spain as the reason for the separation. Former Minardi driver Luis Pérez-Sala took Kolles's place as team principal. In January 2012, the team relocated to a new facility in Valencia before settling at a permanent facility in Caja Mágica, Madrid.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Team changes
Peter Sauber formally stepped down from his position as team principal of Sauber F1 in the week before the Korean Grand Prix, appointing the team's CEO, Monisha Kaltenborn as his successor. Kaltenborn's appointment made her the first female team principal in the sport's sixty-three-year history.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
The 2012 season saw several driver changes. Lotus chose not to take up an option on Vitaly Petrov's contract, and did not offer Bruno Senna a new contract. Petrov and Senna were replaced by 2007 World Drivers' Champion Kimi Räikkönen – returning to the sport after two seasons competing in the World Rally Championship – and reigning GP2 Series champion Romain Grosjean, who also returned to the sport after a two-year absence.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
Petrov later replaced Jarno Trulli at Caterham; Trulli's replacement meant that the opening race of the season would be the first race since the 1973 German Grand Prix to take place without an Italian driver on the grid. Senna joined Williams, the team having previously attempted to secure Räikkönen for the season. Senna replaced Rubens Barrichello, who left Formula One after a record-breaking nineteen seasons. He later moved to IndyCar for the 2012 season, joining KV Racing Technology.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
Like Räikkönen and Grosjean, Nico Hülkenberg also returned to Formula One, joining Force India alongside Paul di Resta. Adrian Sutil left the team, having spent six years with both Force India and its previous incarnations, Spyker and Midland. He initially sought a drive with Williams, before negotiations collapsed in December 2011. Sutil was later the subject of criminal action, charged with grievous bodily harm after allegedly assaulting a senior Renault team member with a glass in a Shanghai nightclub following the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix. Sutil was found guilty, and was sentenced to an eighteen-month suspended jail sentence and ordered to pay a €200,000 fine. Despite this, Sutil rejoined Force India for the 2013 season.


2012 Formula One World Championship, Teams and drivers, Driver changes
Scuderia Toro Rosso did not retain Jaime Alguersuari or Sébastien Buemi, instead choosing to replace them with Daniel Ricciardo and 2011 Formula Renault 3.5 Series runner-up Jean-Éric Vergne. Ricciardo had previously served as the team's test and reserve driver before being placed at HRT for the 2011 British Grand Prix, while Vergne had completed a limited testing schedule for the team in the second half of the 2011 season. Sébastien Buemi became Red Bull Racing's testing and reserve driver contested the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Toyota, driving a TS030 Hybrid. Alguersuari was offered a seat at HRT, but turned it down and instead joined tyre supplier Pirelli as their test driver, developing tyre compounds for use in racing alongside former Virgin Racing driver Lucas di Grassi.