While Alex and I could spend the day boasting about how we told exactly what was going to happen on Thursday in college football and the NBA Finals... We're yielding the floor to our favorite European and soccer expert, AC! But just know that when we open our mouths, the world listens!
AC says...
Mashup
Last Minute Details That Will Help You Look Like You Know Something About World Cup Soccer
If you are planning on being one of the 750 million people to watch the 2010 South African World Cup, you are going to need to know a few important things.
First, let me set the stage for the readers. Here in America, we will get our TV coverage from the ESPN and ABC family. It is fabulous that ESPN has aggressively ramped up its involvement with world soccer over the past few years. This year’s World Cup will by far be the greatest undertaking the station has ever attempted to perform outside of the U.S. In comparison to the 2006 World Cup where ESPN commentators viewed one third of the games from sound stages in the states, the 2010 production will be fully covered by over 300 staff members in South Africa. ESPN is placing a large bet that Americans will jump on the world’s game bandwagon and bring the station tremendous success for its hard work. However, be aware that production goal is not to educate novice soccer watchers, but to whet the appetite of the well-informed fan. Jed Drake, executive producer for ESPN's World Cup coverage, has clearly stated that "We really have targeted our presentation now for a knowledgeable soccer audience." To prove this point, ESPN has dumped the lineup of all American commentators and has hired on several seasoned British announcers to bring depth of knowledge and flair to the TV coverage. An estimated total of 230 hours of live programming will fill the cable boxes of viewers during the one month period from June 11 to July 11. Just over half of that time will be devoted to actual matches, while the other half will help fans with analysis, recaps, and highlights.
For your viewing pleasure I have linked here ESPN’s official 2010 FIFA World Cup TV Schedule. And, do not worry if you missed a few of the important games due to work, school, or scheduling conflicts. Many of the matches will be re-aired on ESPN Classic each day.
World Cup Format
If you’re familiar with the 2006 World Cup format, you won’t have any homework to do before the 2010 World Cup starts in South Africa, as it’s unchanged. If you have never seen a World Cup, please allow me to be your docent on a tour of World Cup structure.
We’ll see 32 teams participate from six different FIFA confederations (CAF, CONMEBOL, UEFA, AFC, OFC, CONCACAF); the tournament will run from June 11 to July 11. A few months before the tournament a draw was done in Cape Town, the 32 teams were separated into eight different groups.
The group stage (June 11 to 25) is a round robin in which each team in a group plays each other once. Wins give you three points, draws are one point, and you receive zero points for a loss. After each team plays three games, the top two from each group advances to the next round. In the event of a tie, goal difference will be the deciding factor. Meaning, all the goals scored against a team will be subtracted from how many goals the team scored. The team with the highest number wins the tiebreaker.
The round of 16 (June 27 to 29) follows the group stage and kicks off the one-game elimination rounds, followed by the quarterfinals (July 2 to 3), semifinals (July 6 to 7) and final on July 11. Drawn matches during elimination rounds go to extra time and then shootouts if necessary.
Injury Problems
It is a sad fact of life that a few players have their World Cup dreams smashed by injury leading up to the start of the tournament. This year is no different. Even before a ball has been kicked at the World Cup in South Africa, several of the game's biggest stars have been struck down by injury.
DAVID BECKHAM (England, Achilles)
Mr. Golden Balls was all set to become the first England player to appear at four World Cups having forced himself back into Fabio Capello's squad. Unfortunately, disaster struck during AC Milan's 1-0 win over Chievo as Beckham broke down with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
RIO FERDINAND (England, knee)
During England’s first training session in South Africa, Ferdinand suffered a knee injury during a challenge with Emile Heskey and will take no part in the World Cup. For me, this is all the more reason why Heskey should be ousted from the team and deported to some faraway place like the frozen tundra of Siberia.
MICHAEL BALLACK (Germany, ankle)
German captain Ballack hobbled off at Wembley following a challenge by Portsmouth's Kevin-Prince Boateng during the FA Cup final, and his worst fears were confirmed when scans revealed ligament damage, denying the 33-year-old Chelsea midfielder the opportunity of a third World Cup appearance. To add insult to injury, Chelsea released Ballack this week.
MICHAEL ESSIEN (Ghana, knee)
Essien had not played for Chelsea since December because of a knee problem, and so looked doubtful to be involved in the Black Stars' World Cup campaign. The Bison’s absence is a major blow to the Black Star’s hopes of progressing from Group D which also includes Germany, Australia and Serbia.
NANI (Portugal, collar bone)
This winger, who came to life for Manchester United during the domestic season, damaged his collar bone after attempting an acrobatic shot in training and thusly was ruled out of the tournament. Nani had the fire to partner alongside Cristiano Ronaldo. His absence will weaken Portugal's attacking options.
JOHN OBI MIKEL (Nigeria, knee)
The third of Chelsea's World Cup crocks also suffered a knee problem, and underwent minor surgery in May. Although he joined up with the squad in South Africa, the 23-year-old decided he would not be fit enough to take part, and pulled out of the tournament.
DIDIER DROGBA (Ivory Coast, broken arm)
Ivory Coast boss Sven-Goran Eriksson will be praying Drogba can fend off Chelsea's injury jinx after suffering a broken bone in his arm during a friendly against Japan - leaving the striker in a race against time to be fit to play in South Africa, when Ivory Coast will face Brazil, Portugal and North Korea in the 'Group of Death'. Drogba was touted to be a leading contender for the Golden Boot this year.
ARJEN ROBBEN (Holland, hamstring)
Winger Robben, the star of Bayern Munich's run to the Champions League final, has vowed to do everything possible to play at the World Cup, despite suffering a torn hamstring in the 6-1 friendly win over Hungary. The player himself admits the injury would normally take up to six weeks to heal, so his participation still looks in doubt. Throughout his career Robben has been accused of being fragile and this latest injury does not improve that image.
ANDREA PIRLO (Italy, calf)
The AC Milan star suffered a calf injury last week and will definitely not be available for the team's World Cup 2010 opener on Monday against Paraguay. Pirlo is aptly nicknamed The Architect and is a crucial cog in the Italian winning machine.
USA vs. England – Psychological Warfare
On June 12, USA and England will face-off to replay a match dubbed the “Miracle on Grass”. At the 1950 World Cup in Brazil, a band of American amateurs pulled off a stunning upset to bring down Goliaths of world football, England. It took just one goal to make history and team USA hope to have a repeat performance this year.
The first shot over the bow was actually produced by the English tabloids. Shortly after the World Cup draw all of the media outlets grasped on to the idea that England was a sure shot to advance out of the group stage. Simply put, EASY. England, Algeria, Slovenia, and Yanks. The glory is already in their eyes and I am hoping our Yanks can knock England off their high horse.
America’s counter offensive has been quite clever. By accepting the role of the underdog, team USA has put all the pressure on the Three Lions to win. Anything less than a convincing win for England will be no good. If the USA achieves a shock win or plausible draw, then the English people will unleash hellish fury on their players.
The secret weapon for our Yanks is the jerseys. Team USA will be sporting throwback jerseys that resemble the shirts worn on that fateful day in 1950. The English team wore blue for that match and have only worn that color once since, and lost again. Therefore, blue has unofficially been banned as a primary color for England’s jerseys. Cross your fingers that our clothing choice will tip the scale in the psychological battle.
Last Chance Links
Official World Cup Theme Song, Waka Waka by Shakira
Check out these World Cup soccer babes. I give you Eng vs. USA.
Fill out a World Cup bracket
AC says...
Mashup
Last Minute Details That Will Help You Look Like You Know Something About World Cup Soccer
If you are planning on being one of the 750 million people to watch the 2010 South African World Cup, you are going to need to know a few important things.
First, let me set the stage for the readers. Here in America, we will get our TV coverage from the ESPN and ABC family. It is fabulous that ESPN has aggressively ramped up its involvement with world soccer over the past few years. This year’s World Cup will by far be the greatest undertaking the station has ever attempted to perform outside of the U.S. In comparison to the 2006 World Cup where ESPN commentators viewed one third of the games from sound stages in the states, the 2010 production will be fully covered by over 300 staff members in South Africa. ESPN is placing a large bet that Americans will jump on the world’s game bandwagon and bring the station tremendous success for its hard work. However, be aware that production goal is not to educate novice soccer watchers, but to whet the appetite of the well-informed fan. Jed Drake, executive producer for ESPN's World Cup coverage, has clearly stated that "We really have targeted our presentation now for a knowledgeable soccer audience." To prove this point, ESPN has dumped the lineup of all American commentators and has hired on several seasoned British announcers to bring depth of knowledge and flair to the TV coverage. An estimated total of 230 hours of live programming will fill the cable boxes of viewers during the one month period from June 11 to July 11. Just over half of that time will be devoted to actual matches, while the other half will help fans with analysis, recaps, and highlights.
For your viewing pleasure I have linked here ESPN’s official 2010 FIFA World Cup TV Schedule. And, do not worry if you missed a few of the important games due to work, school, or scheduling conflicts. Many of the matches will be re-aired on ESPN Classic each day.
World Cup Format
If you’re familiar with the 2006 World Cup format, you won’t have any homework to do before the 2010 World Cup starts in South Africa, as it’s unchanged. If you have never seen a World Cup, please allow me to be your docent on a tour of World Cup structure.
We’ll see 32 teams participate from six different FIFA confederations (CAF, CONMEBOL, UEFA, AFC, OFC, CONCACAF); the tournament will run from June 11 to July 11. A few months before the tournament a draw was done in Cape Town, the 32 teams were separated into eight different groups.
The group stage (June 11 to 25) is a round robin in which each team in a group plays each other once. Wins give you three points, draws are one point, and you receive zero points for a loss. After each team plays three games, the top two from each group advances to the next round. In the event of a tie, goal difference will be the deciding factor. Meaning, all the goals scored against a team will be subtracted from how many goals the team scored. The team with the highest number wins the tiebreaker.
The round of 16 (June 27 to 29) follows the group stage and kicks off the one-game elimination rounds, followed by the quarterfinals (July 2 to 3), semifinals (July 6 to 7) and final on July 11. Drawn matches during elimination rounds go to extra time and then shootouts if necessary.
Injury Problems
It is a sad fact of life that a few players have their World Cup dreams smashed by injury leading up to the start of the tournament. This year is no different. Even before a ball has been kicked at the World Cup in South Africa, several of the game's biggest stars have been struck down by injury.
DAVID BECKHAM (England, Achilles)
Mr. Golden Balls was all set to become the first England player to appear at four World Cups having forced himself back into Fabio Capello's squad. Unfortunately, disaster struck during AC Milan's 1-0 win over Chievo as Beckham broke down with a ruptured Achilles tendon.
RIO FERDINAND (England, knee)
During England’s first training session in South Africa, Ferdinand suffered a knee injury during a challenge with Emile Heskey and will take no part in the World Cup. For me, this is all the more reason why Heskey should be ousted from the team and deported to some faraway place like the frozen tundra of Siberia.
MICHAEL BALLACK (Germany, ankle)
German captain Ballack hobbled off at Wembley following a challenge by Portsmouth's Kevin-Prince Boateng during the FA Cup final, and his worst fears were confirmed when scans revealed ligament damage, denying the 33-year-old Chelsea midfielder the opportunity of a third World Cup appearance. To add insult to injury, Chelsea released Ballack this week.
MICHAEL ESSIEN (Ghana, knee)
Essien had not played for Chelsea since December because of a knee problem, and so looked doubtful to be involved in the Black Stars' World Cup campaign. The Bison’s absence is a major blow to the Black Star’s hopes of progressing from Group D which also includes Germany, Australia and Serbia.
NANI (Portugal, collar bone)
This winger, who came to life for Manchester United during the domestic season, damaged his collar bone after attempting an acrobatic shot in training and thusly was ruled out of the tournament. Nani had the fire to partner alongside Cristiano Ronaldo. His absence will weaken Portugal's attacking options.
JOHN OBI MIKEL (Nigeria, knee)
The third of Chelsea's World Cup crocks also suffered a knee problem, and underwent minor surgery in May. Although he joined up with the squad in South Africa, the 23-year-old decided he would not be fit enough to take part, and pulled out of the tournament.
DIDIER DROGBA (Ivory Coast, broken arm)
Ivory Coast boss Sven-Goran Eriksson will be praying Drogba can fend off Chelsea's injury jinx after suffering a broken bone in his arm during a friendly against Japan - leaving the striker in a race against time to be fit to play in South Africa, when Ivory Coast will face Brazil, Portugal and North Korea in the 'Group of Death'. Drogba was touted to be a leading contender for the Golden Boot this year.
ARJEN ROBBEN (Holland, hamstring)
Winger Robben, the star of Bayern Munich's run to the Champions League final, has vowed to do everything possible to play at the World Cup, despite suffering a torn hamstring in the 6-1 friendly win over Hungary. The player himself admits the injury would normally take up to six weeks to heal, so his participation still looks in doubt. Throughout his career Robben has been accused of being fragile and this latest injury does not improve that image.
ANDREA PIRLO (Italy, calf)
The AC Milan star suffered a calf injury last week and will definitely not be available for the team's World Cup 2010 opener on Monday against Paraguay. Pirlo is aptly nicknamed The Architect and is a crucial cog in the Italian winning machine.
USA vs. England – Psychological Warfare
On June 12, USA and England will face-off to replay a match dubbed the “Miracle on Grass”. At the 1950 World Cup in Brazil, a band of American amateurs pulled off a stunning upset to bring down Goliaths of world football, England. It took just one goal to make history and team USA hope to have a repeat performance this year.
The first shot over the bow was actually produced by the English tabloids. Shortly after the World Cup draw all of the media outlets grasped on to the idea that England was a sure shot to advance out of the group stage. Simply put, EASY. England, Algeria, Slovenia, and Yanks. The glory is already in their eyes and I am hoping our Yanks can knock England off their high horse.
America’s counter offensive has been quite clever. By accepting the role of the underdog, team USA has put all the pressure on the Three Lions to win. Anything less than a convincing win for England will be no good. If the USA achieves a shock win or plausible draw, then the English people will unleash hellish fury on their players.
The secret weapon for our Yanks is the jerseys. Team USA will be sporting throwback jerseys that resemble the shirts worn on that fateful day in 1950. The English team wore blue for that match and have only worn that color once since, and lost again. Therefore, blue has unofficially been banned as a primary color for England’s jerseys. Cross your fingers that our clothing choice will tip the scale in the psychological battle.
Last Chance Links
Official World Cup Theme Song, Waka Waka by Shakira
Check out these World Cup soccer babes. I give you Eng vs. USA.
Fill out a World Cup bracket
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1 comment:
Just an added warning...other countries take soccer more than seriously. USA played against Costa Rica wile I was there and they wouldn't help us in the mall and literally told us to go home. We walked by a bar on the way home and they pretty much hated even looking at us. I'm pretty sure we were cussed at the whole way home. Be careful traveling Americans :)
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