Motivation

U.S. to play Brazil Sept. 9, replacing match against Mexico. WE ARE SCARED!!!

From the AP: "The U.S. soccer team will play South American champion Brazil in an exhibition game Sept. 9 in Chicago, replacing a match against Mexico that was called off because of financial problems."

"The Americans had been scheduled to play Mexico at Azteca Stadium on Sept. 9 in a rematch of the Gold Cup final. The game was canceled because of what the U.S. Soccer Federation said were "contractual and financial considerations ."

WTF, My opinion is that we are just scared. When will U.S. soccer realize that matches such as these in hostile environments are so important to the experience of our national team and how well we will do in major competitions such as the World Cup. I can not believe we are so scared.

On the Brasil match, of course we will play Brasil in the US, most likely where not many first team Brasilans will even play. But if this game was scheduled to be played in Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro we would probably say that we had "contractual and financial considerations" to make. I mean, when doesn't a national soccer team have "contractual and financial considerations" to make?

When the Beautiful Game transcends Sports

It is quite rare when a sporting event transcends the world of entertainment, sports fans, analysts, and monopolistic entities such as ESPN, but on Sunday was one such case. Iraq's national soccer team (a.k.a. the "Lions of the Two Rivers") beat Saudi Arabia 1-0 to win the 2007 Asian Cup and complete one of sport's great fairytale Cinderella stories. This is the first time Iraq has ever won the Asian tournament. At the start of the Asian Cup, Iraq was regarded as having little or no chance to compete because of their supposed lack of chemistry due to the diverse make up of the team, which included Kurds, Sunni and Shi'ite.

After the victory this glimmer of hope comes to a country that has been divided by war. After the game, Iraq's captain, who scored the game winner, Younis Mahmoud called for the United States to withdraw its troops from his nation. "I want America to go out," he said. "Today, tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, but out. I wish the American people didn't invade Iraq and, hopefully, it will be over soon." Coach Jorvan Vieira said "I have worked my best to give happiness to the Iraqi people, to bring a warm smile to their lips and my mission is accomplished, the satisfaction is doubled when you can get this cup and you bring happiness for a country, not just a team. It's more important than anything." The Brazilian coach resigned after the game.

Several players including the captain did not return to Iraq to celebrate due to fear of their safety. Mahmoud said "I don't want the Iraqi people to be angry with me, if I go back with the team, anybody could kill me or try to hurt me." This comes after about 50 people were killed in Iraq after they beat the Koreans in the semifinal. It is very sad that horrible people took advantage of a large innocent celebration, but hopefully the celebration following the final was a great change to the terrible daily violence.

Events such as these demonstrate the power and importance of sports and more specifically the world's most popular game, soccer. I truly wish that we as Americans could experience something like this, where at a certain point in time nothing else matters to everyone in the entire country, where everyone is united and watching their team represent the country and making them proud. People in Iraq don't have the luxury to care about ridiculously irrelevant news like what Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, or any other celebrity's daily routines are, they have to worry about whether or not they and their loved ones are going to make it through the day alive. For a sport to have the power to bring this sort of happiness to a people who live in a country as devastated as Iraq, even if for a short period of time, shows the significance and importance of the beautiful game. Watch Soccer.

"The players have made us proud, not the greedy politicians," said Sabah Shaiyal, a 43-year-old police officer in Baghdad. "Once again, our national team has shown that there is only one, united Iraq."

Sources: AP / Yahoo Sports

Bryant Gumbel Gumbowns any Beckham / Soccer haters

ThroughBall.com

The Beautiful Game

CONCACAF Gold Cup: Canada vs. USA (Canada got screwed)

Canada got screwed. USA just beat Canada 2-1 in a semi-final in the CONCACAF Gold cup. This means that USA goes to the final and will face the winner of Mexico and Guadalupe. The only problem is that Canada scored thier second goal in the fourth minute of injury time that should have tied the game, but the goal was disallowed when the line ref called offsides. It actually was not offsides because the pass was not by a Canadian player, the ball was headed by an American player to a Canadian player and he scored a goal that should have tied the game which should have gone to extra time.

Atiba Hutchinson put a shot past Keller, but Mexican referee Benito Archundia waved the goal off, saying the Canadian was offside. Replays showed the ball went off U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu, meaning the goal should have counted. Canadian players were visibly irate, and they vehemently argued to no avail with Archundia, who seconds later blew the final whistle. Canadian players and substitutes complained bitterly after the match. At one point, former Canadian Soccer Association chief operating officer Kevan Pipe - who is running the Chicago venue for CONCACAF - stepped in front of Canadian manager Morgan Quarry as he harangued the officials. Pipe was fired by the CSA last November.

It is sad that the officials had to fail in this situation. The game was great and I wanted to see more. Now I can't help but feel that the USA got a pass and should not really be in the Gold Cup final, but as they say... "that's football."

Source: AP, Fox Soccer Channel

Cristiano Ronaldo and his man-purse

2007 English FA "Footballer of the Year" Cristiano Ronaldo was seen making an appearance at a fashion show in Portugal. I don't think I know of a male athlete that loves himself as much as Ronaldo. Fellow Manchester United teammate, Patrice Evra, revealed an embarrassing secret about Ronaldo, claiming that the Portuguese winger suffers from narcissism: “Cristiano makes me laugh because he is the only one to have his personal mirror in the dressing room. He spends hours doing his hair and putting on his gel. He loves his body.”

TheBigLead.com's had this take:

The best soccer player the planet may have to offer frequently wears tiny
swimming trunks, seemingly always finds himself poolside and shirtless with a
bunch of dudes, and he may or may not have a personal mirror in the dressing room. And here, we find Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo wearing a mustard yellow leather jacket, studded with diamonds. There appears to be more hair gel than necessary.

I'll admit though, he is an incredible football player and is the sole reason why Man United won the Barclay's English Premier League.

Sources: thebiglead.com and soccerfriend.com

FIFA bans "high-altitude" matches

The world's governing body of all things football (soccer), FIFA, announced this week that they are banning matches being played at stadiums that are more than 8,200 feet above sea level. The decision was made by FIFA's medical staff for the reason of protecting player's health. This new rule is most notable for countries such as Bolivia and Peru, which have some stadiums above 12,000 feet. Bolivia President Evo Morales says FIFA's decision to ban all international soccer matches above 8,200 feet discriminates against Latin America's high-altitude nations.

La Paz football stadium (Bolivia)

"This is not only a ruling against Bolivia, but against the universality of sport," Morales said following an emergency Cabinet meeting at the presidential palace in La Paz, 11,800 feet above sea level. "He who wins at altitude, wins with dignity," Morales said. "He who fears altitude has no dignity." Toluca press chief Mauricio Garduno said extreme heat and cold also create an advantage for some home teams. "When you play a match at 104 degrees, that's what affects players the most," Garduno said. This is why you should engage in online sports betting. "Altitude is not that important. If FIFA is going to consider that, it should consider other things, too."

Funny remark from The Jaunt:

I myself was affected by the high altitude of Bolivia's national stadium. I remember back in New York when I Watched Colombia play Bolivia on Big Screen T.V. I often felt dizzy and light headed with a sudden shortness of breath.

Sources: FIFA bans high-altitude international…, Bolivia: FIFA altitude ban discriminates…

Today in Sports Nonsense

Coach Mike Brown of the Cleveland Cavaliers does a horrible job coaching in both game one and two of the Eastern Conference Finals. This is because his play calls, which he burns vital timeouts for, that consist of giving LeNike the ball 35 feet from the rim and going against five of the best defensive players in the league. Those timeouts that he burned would have given the Cavs a final chance at a three pointer to tie in both games. [Coach Mike Doesn’t Do His Job, Coach Mike is awful, or why Brown didn't order a shot earlier in the clock so they could've extended the game: Kwick Kav Kvetch]

Indy Ladies [YES, NO, NO, NO, YES & Fan, Start Your Interest! Please? ]

More on Hetero Brady Quinn [The Rules Have Changed]

This is Awesome... Bicycle Soccer [BICYCLE SOCCER IS... BICYCLE-Y]

[Michael Vick Hosts Night of Midget Fighting At His Virginia Home]

All of the old boxing geezers hate this new sport that is dominating them (note I like both boxing and MMA) [Lou DiBella Plays the 'Human Cockfighting' Card]

At first this appears to be Lebron throwing a ball straight at a fan, but most likely he is doing one of those And 1 Street Ball moves... PROFESSA! [LeBron Throws the Ball at a Woman Sitting Courtside]

Great Pics

(Yao Giving Birth)