World Cup 2010 - Copa Mundial

[Sjur Soleng]

Here it people! World Cup starts 2morrow morning! The largest spectator and most played sport in the world culminates every four years to prove which nation has the right to lift the FIFA world cup!

[Andrew McManus]

yay

[Karl Molitoris]

I thought the "largest spectator and most played sport in the world" was girl watching !

[Todd Lapham]

Cant wait. You guys fill out brackets on espn?

[Bård Soleng]

yup...I am in a $20 espn bracket predicter(sp)! I got espana winning!

[Steve Solbo]

I got the Dutch over the Spaniards in the Final.

[Steve Solbo]

yay

If this is sarcasm, try watching some real soccer, i.e. EPL, La Liga, Bundesligue (sp). These are some of the most talented athletes in the world and they do amazing things.

Only thing I wonder about is, what if the best athletes in the USA's major sports played soccer since they were 5 years old, where would the USA soccer program be? Imagine LeBron on Defense? Chris Johnson striking? Hell, Landon Donovan is good, but imagine if our major sports stars played soccer instead!

[Shawn Mullen]

A lot of them started playing soccer at age 5....they just smartened up before the rest of the world and realized there were a whole bunch of better sports out there. I'm a soccer hater ducking away from JeSsE

[Andrew McManus]

yay

If this is sarcasm, try watching some real soccer, i.e. EPL, La Liga, Bundesligue (sp). These are some of the most talented athletes in the world and they do amazing things.

Only thing I wonder about is, what if the best athletes in the USA's major sports played soccer since they were 5 years old, where would the USA soccer program be? Imagine LeBron on Defense? Chris Johnson striking? Hell, Landon Donovan is good, but imagine if our major sports stars played soccer instead!

I'll give it a shot Steve...I used to hate Curling, and now I can't get enough.

In all seriousness though, I'm sure its a spectacle worth watching..I'll be checkin it out.

[Craig Smolin]

someone on ESPN wrote something about Rajon Rondo being the most athletically perfect goalie in soccer ... long arms, big hands, quick feet ...

that's the rub ... the best athletes in the US play football, baseball, and basketball ... the best athletes in countries EVERYWHERE ELSE play soccer

[Bill Stewart]

someone on ESPN wrote something about Rajon Rondo being the most athletically perfect goalie in soccer ... long arms, big hands, quick feet ...

that's the rub ... the best athletes in the US play football, baseball, and basketball ... the best athletes in countries EVERYWHERE ELSE play soccer

Cause their lives suck compared to ours. That's why disc golf started here. Let go of the guilt...we have it better. Nice to pretend we're interested in soccer, but it's goddamn boring. Proof: Soccer had, what 20-30 years to try to close the gap with baseball in youth sports. Along comes Lacrosse, and bam! Ten years in, it's kicking both soccer and baseball's butt.

By the way, both my boys play soccer, so I have learned to respect it--a smidgen.

Outside the USA, I'm rooting for Argentina. My kids have 1 Messi jersey and 1 Maradonna Jersey.

It's nice to get excited and sound informed Solbo, but I know what you'll be watching Sunday night.....

[Todd Lapham]

A tie for the good old USA is huge for us. They looked good, let's go baby!

[Sjur Soleng]

I personally don't see how people could think soccer is boring. Football plays an average 4 minutes of action per game, baseball is just too long and drawn out with batters at-bat rituals for every pitch being abs. retarded. Soccer and Hockey players are true athletes that play a continuous game against the clock. No start stop stand still I'm offense I'm defense I'm a kicker BS. Ramble.

[Andrew McManus]

Strategy can be every bit as entertaining as athleticism, hence the popularity of baseball and football here in the US.

[Erik Siersdale]

How does a 0-0 tie qualify as an exciting game?

[Craig Smolin]

I'm not a soccer fan by any stretch, and nor am I ball golfer or play tennis ... BUT I am a true sports fan, and I will watch the best compete at what they do as long as it is at the highest possible level: like the Masters, US and British Opens in golf, Wimbledon and the US Open in tennis, the olympics, and now the world cup. I appreciate the athletes for what they are and what they're doing in competition. To me that is worth my time.

[Stephen Ditter]

Well said.

-sd

[Craig Smolin]

Additionally ... my father-in-law played soccer for Brown in the late 60s when they were REALLY good, my brother-in-law played for two years at Syracuse before tearing up his knee, and an uncle played goal for Columbia in the early 70s ... so I kind of feel obligated to watch so that I can talk to them about the World Cup intelligently. Especially since they make the effort to ask me about dg.

[Sjur Soleng]

The media in the USA also plays a big part in the lack-luster view of soccer.

[Dave McHale]

big soccer fan, played from when I was 4 right through high school.

but The Onion still makes me laugh http://www.theonion.com/video/soccer-of ... gay,17603/

[Manuel Trujillo]

Sad to say the only reason those top athletes go to other sports is one reason... $$$. If soccer in the US offered the riches that football(american), basketball and baseball provided, the US probably would have won the world cup by now.

I LOVE THE WC. Now with ESPN3, I've been able to watch almost every minute of it so far. FRIGGIN AWESOME.

I'm a huge Netherlands fan since the days of Gullet, Van Basten, Rijkaard etc. I think Spain has a great shot. I still hope Ivory Coast and Portugal can beat out Brazil to make it to the next round.

So how do all of you feel about the complaints regarding the ball?

[Karl Molitoris]

So now FIFA is "going after" (legal sanctions, penalties, etc.) a bunch of Dutch chicks dressed in short skirts who happen to be all wearing the same color clothing.

Reason is that 'you can't advertise unless you're a "partner" with FIFA'...(Bud is THE official beer, and the color somehow goes with some Dutch beer company) .

Real reason is 'you can't make money, only WE can make money (on this whole shtick) .

Pitiful .

Karl

[Manuel Trujillo]

what... they were wearing heinekn apparel... let dutch chicks dress however they want...!!!

[Manuel Trujillo]

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!

HOLY CRAP!
Can you believe that Spain-Switzerland Game??????

[Sjur Soleng]

Horrible! But it does happen... If Spain wins the WC i get $600, so needless to say, not happy.

[Todd Lapham]

You got to be [bleep] me. Fn Spain god damn you.

[Manuel Trujillo]

Seriously, that was insane... why the F did they not get Torres into the mix earlier. once he came in the dominated.

[Sjur Soleng]

WOW! what a great game today! USA makes epic comeback and then gets robbed of the game winner!!!!

[Manuel Trujillo]

THat was an AWESOME GAME!!! Definitely robbed. Now we need to come out and destroy Algeria to keep our hopes alive.

They need to not let in the early goal next game.

[Sjur Soleng]

Early goals are the biggest problem for the US team. They are a completely different team in the first 15min of every match so far.