Cricket or Football
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Pakistan's cricket squad left for Sri Lanka Saturday to compete in the Asia Cup, optimistic that the event will not be upstaged by the football World Cup now under way in South Africa.
“Football is huge, but I hope after the 90 minutes of excitement (of a World Cup game) fans will give cricket its due attention and follow the Asia Cup,” Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi told AFP before his team left for Colombo.
The tenth Asia Cup will be played from June 15-24 in Dambulla, in central Sri Lanka, about 150 kilometres northeast of Colombo, coinciding with the month-long football tournament that opened in South Africa Friday.
Besides Pakistan, the Asia Cup will also include India, Bangladesh and hosts and defending champions Sri Lanka.
Afridi said that his team will follow the football World Cup while in Sri Lanka, but mostly on rest days.
“Like millions of Asians I also follow football and my favorite team is Brazil, so like my teammates I will follow World Cup matches as and when we have time, but the focus remains the Asia Cup,” said Afridi.
The 13-man team first flew to Dubai from where they will reach Colombo later Saturday. Fast bowler Mohammad Asif will fly via Doha, Qatar because of a ban on visiting the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over a drug offence.
Asif was deported from the UAE in June 2008 after a 19-day detention for possession of a banned drug while returning home from league cricket in India.
Pakistan all-rounder Abdul Razzaq will travel to Colombo from England, where he is playing county cricket.
Afridi said he hoped his team will be in form after a turbulent three months for Pakistan cricket which saw senior players banned and fined for disciplinary violations and poor performance.
“What happened in the past is behind us,” said Afridi, who was made captain for all three forms of the game last month. “We have a blend of seniors and juniors who all know their duty well.”In March the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) banned and fined seven players, including Afridi, following their December-January tour of Australia.
They lost all three Tests, five one-day internationals and the only Twenty20 match of the tour, which was also marred by discipline violations.
However, the board later lifted the bans on former captain Younus Khan and Shoaib Malik and reduced the fines on appeals. Afridi's three-million-rupee (35,000-US-dollar) fine for ball-tampering was revoked.
Another former captain, Mohammad Yousuf, did not appeal and instead retired in protest. All-rounder Rana Naved-ul-Hasan's appeal against a one-year ban and fine is pending.
Malik was recalled for the Asia Cup squad, while Younus is favourite to return for the tour of England which follows the Asia Cup.
Afridi said both the Asia Cup and England tour would be important for the revival of the Pakistani team.
“It is a good chance for the players to turn the fortunes of the team, so this is very important phase for our cricket,” said Afridi.
Express paceman Shoaib Akhtar is also back in the team after being sidelined since May last year because of a knee injury.— AFP
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 6:57 PM,
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Let The Game Begin
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 10:16 PM,
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World Cup A to Z
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
A: Africa's World Cup
Much has already been made about this World Cup being the first on African soil. The continent, as well as the country of South Africa, has a lot riding on the event.
B: Brazil:
Always entertaining to watch, Brazil will go into this World Cup as a popular favorite. Despite being more defensive now, Dunga's side will certainly be one to watch.
C: Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo will need to show the world he truly is one of the greatest players on the planet.
D: Diego Maradona
The eccentric manager of Argentina has promised to run around naked in Buenos Aires if Argentina wins the World Cup.
E: Extra Time
An important part of any World Cup match that lasts more than 90 minutes. Will we see any crucial goals after the 90-minute mark?
F: France
France was "handed" a place in the World Cup after a controversial no-call hand ball against Ireland. Now the challenge for France will be to see if they advance from Group A.
G: Group of Death
Group G has Brazil, Portugal and the Ivory Coast along with North Korea. Who will join North Korea and get eliminated in the group stage of the World Cup?
H: Honduras
After Honduras got into the World Cup on a late goal from U.S. defender Jonathan Bornstein, it will be interesting to see how the team will do in Group H. But no matter what, they have the best World Cup qualification story in quite some time.
I: Ivory Coast
Considered by many to be the primary African nation that could win this World Cup, the Ivory Coast have a difficult journey out of Group G. But with players such as Didier Drogba, the Toure brothers and Salomon Kalou, anything can happen for the Elephants.
J: Jabulani
The official match ball for the World Cup, the Jabulani has come under some extreme criticism over the last week. Now, how will the players adjust to this ball, and how big a story will it be come June 11th?
K: Korea
This will be the first World Cup in which both North and South Korea will be competing.
L: Landon Donovan
The star American, Landon Donovan is expected by many to help the Americans advance from the group stage. So, will 2010 Donovan play like he did in 2002 or 2006?
M: Messi
The best player in the world, Lionel Messi seems destined to have a great World Cup after his great season for FC Barcelona.
N: Nelson Mandela
It’s still unknown whether the great South African statesman will be able to go to the World Cup because of health issues, but hopefully we’ll get to see the legendary 91-year-old.
O: Oranje
This is the nickname of the Netherlands squad that is expected to have a great World Cup. Can this team reach the final?
P: Portugal
Led by Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal is not considered to be a strong favorite for this World Cup. But after a run to the semifinals in 2006, anything is possible.
Q: Quick play
In every World Cup, there’s always some incredible quick play. Which nation will be the fastest in South Africa?
R: Royal Bafokeng Stadium
This is the stadium that’s hosting the USA versus England match on June 12th. It’s probably the quietest stadium in the World Cup, which is a good thing.
S: Soccer City
The stadium that is hosting the opening ceremonies on June 11th and the World Cup final on July 11th, this stadium will get very, very loud.
T: Thierry Henry
After his hand ball got France into the World Cup, Thierry Henry has seen a fall from grace. Will one of the greatest French players ever rebound in South Africa?
U: USA vs. England
The first great match of the World Cup, this is a match that will get all Americans and Englishmen fired up for the tournament.
V: Vuvuzela noise
These are the loud trumpets blown by South African soccer fans that make people furious. How much vuvezela noise can you take before you go mad?
W: Wayne Rooney
England's latest hope, Wayne Rooney had a great year with Manchester United, and is expected to be a major player over the next month.
X: X-Factors
In every World Cup, there are always x-factors. So, what impact will weather, the fans or any other force have in South Africa?
Y: Young Stars
With players such as the U.S.'s Jozy Altidore and Argentina's Angel di Maria, there will be some fantastic young players to watch.
Z: Zaniness
Every World Cup has eccentric characters that go down in history. Who will be the zany characters this year? [Via]
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 11:46 AM,
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Cameroon World Cup Chances
Thursday, June 3, 2010
After an excellent showing in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, Cameroon have since faded somewhat – and this is widely attributed to the older members of the team during the “glory years” going into retirement. However, this year, the side are rejuvenated and could definitely be the ones to watch during the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa and even worth a World Cup bet.
They are now the top ranked African team according to the FIFA, and have been busy developing a new generation of young starlets including Roger Millas and Francois Omam-Biyiks. The team qualified for the 2010 World Cup relatively comfortably despite a slow start. It is Samuel Eto’o who is undoubtedly the side’s best player, and the team will be concentrating all their efforts in providing the ex-Barcelona man with as much service as possible come South Africa. If he can escape the world-class defenses on show, then he is unlikely to fail in front of goal.
The potentially world class Pierre Webo is another threat for opposition defenses to worry about, and his creative through balls to Eto’o will be on the minds of the opposition. The battling midfield trio of Jean Makoun, Stephane Mbia, and Alexandre Song are unlikely to give much possession away and were consistently strong during qualifying.
Their World Cup finals draw could have been easier, with the Africans set to meet the excellent Holland, Japan – who have impressed in recent competitions – and Denmark, who are unlikely to pose much of a threat. If Cameroon can pick up points against the latter two sides, it should be themselves and the Netherlands who progress. For more World Cup odds vist Betfair World Cup betting.[Via]
posted @ 10:58 AM,
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Who Will Wind the World Cup?
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Algeria – The one thing that would make Egypt's non-qualification hurt even more would be an Algerian triumph. I'm not saying that's Algeria's only motivation. But it has to be in there somewhere. Beating France in the final wouldn't hurt either.
Australia – Soccer currently lags behind cricket, rugby, the other football and probably some other sports we’ve never even heard of. A World Cup win could change all that.
Argentina – No wins since Diego Maradona led them to glory in 1986. In that nearly quarter of a century Argentina has consistently been one of the best teams in the world. But no more World Cup trophies. The big narrative for the team in 2010 is Diego Maradona once again. He’s back, he’s as crazy as ever, and he’s in charge of picking the team. But just think how good/mental would it be to see Diego Maradona lift that trophy, and join Franz Beckenbauer and Mário Zagallo as the only men to win the World Cup as both player and coach.
Brazil – Obviously Brazil always wants to win it, and often that’s exactly what happens. They already have five wins, but 2006 was supposed to be the year they made it six. They didn’t. Despite the weight of expectation, I have a feeling most Brazil fans would admit they’d much prefer a win in 2014 when they host the World Cup. Or maybe they want both.
Cameroon – The first African team to make the World Cup quarterfinals in 1990, and the only team until 2002 when Senegal matched them. So first World Cup on Africa soil + Samuel Eto’o = First African World Cup winners?
Chile – The 2010 earthquake destroyed infrastructure and killed over 500 people. The country needs cheering up.
Cote d’Ivoire – This is a country still divided, between rebels and government. But I’m sure pretty much everyone there would agree with the sight of Didier Drogba holding the trophy aloft on July 11th in Soccer City Stadium.
Denmark – Morten Olsen has been the Denmark manager for a about a decade. In international management that’s a lifetime. Maybe two lifetimes. In terms of commitment and time invested in a team, this man deserves a World Cup.
England – Oh, they want it. That one win in 1966 gave England a big drink of glory. Now, 44 years later, they’re very very thirsty. The English Football Association has gone all out and hired the best coach money could buy in Fabio Capello, and with key players like Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand and John Terry all either at or around that 30 years old mark, this is the last chance for a certain generation who keep promising to deliver.
France – Like England, France have the blessing/albatross of having won the World Cup, but only at home. Winning it on foreign soil is the big next step that both countries need to take. However, I get the feeling that most in France are more interested in waving goodbye to Raymond Domenech than in winning the trophy in 2010.
Germany – Believe it or not, it’s been a while. Germany hasn’t won a World Cup since 1990. If Michael Ballack was in the squad, then there’d be a an argument for his determination to stop winning runner up medals on the big stage. That same argument can be made for this whole team though, as the majority of this squad lost out to Spain in the final of Euro 2008.
Ghana – If an Africa team is going to win the first World Cup on African soil, then Ghana might be the most likely. Even without Michael Essien, they seem to have the deepest squad. A continent’s hopes rest on you Black Stars.
Greece – The economoy is in the toilet. The people have been rioting in disgust at austerity measures. Nothing is going right. If Otto Rehhagel can repeat his Euro 2004 trick then Greece would be a much happier place in July 2010, if only temporarily.
Honduras – The country is in a bit of a political crisis. A World Cup win wouldn’t necessarily solve the problem. But it would make everyone feel a whole lot better.
Italy – Brazil has won five. Italy four. So the Azzurri are very much the junior partner in the Derby della Mondo right now. But just one more World Cup win would see them level with Brazil as the joint most successful international team of all time.
Japan – We’ve been laughing at coach Takeshi Okada a little, for his semi-final prediction and his I want to quit outburst/misquote this week. But the reason Okada is managing Japan at all is that the man who was supposed to lead them to South Africa – Bosnian coach Ivica Osim – suffered a stroke in 2007 and had to step away. It’s been three years but I imagine a Japanese win will be dedicated to coach Osim.
Mexico – At 37 years old and carrying some extra timber, Cuauhtémoc Blanco does not look like he should be playing international football. But he’s been a great player and deserves a big sendoff. I imagine winning a World Cup would do nicely. Plus it would end the “who’s the best team in CONCACAF” argument with America pretty conclusively.
Nigeria – The Super Eagles win Olymic Gold in 1996, becoming the first African team to do so. Being the first African team to win the World Cup would be a decent follow up.
Netherlands – Total World Cup finals: two (1974, 1978). Total World Cup wins: zero. It’s time the Dutch team won a World Cup.
New Zealand – Because it would upset Australia. Also because – despite their dominance – the New Zealand rugby team has not won the Rugby World Cup since they co-hosted in 1987. They host again in 2011 and expectation is high. But imagine if the soccer team beat them to it and won the World Cup the year before?
North Korea – Because if they win, then North Korean television can show the actual real full actual games on television, rather than the rumoured edited version.
Paraguay – Striker Salvador Cabañas was shot in the head in January 2010. He somehow survived, and was determined to recover in time for the World Cup, but had a bullet lodged in his brain and so won’t be playing in South Africa. His teammates winning the World Cup would be a fitting tribute to his determination.
Portugal – We know Cristiano Ronaldo wants it. It would complete his trophy haul. But maybe the most compelling story is Carlos Queiroz and his quest to convince the world that he’s a proper manager and not just an assistant who’s been overpromoted.
Serbia – First time at the World Cup for Serbia as an individual nation. The 2006 Serbia & Monetenegro adventure didn’t count. So a win would mean a 100% record.
Slovakia – Again, World Cup virgins. And seems like former partners the Czech Republic have had all the glory so far.
Slovenia – I like Slovenia. I’ve even been there. But in this tournament, I – like many others I’m sure – often get confused about exactly which one they are. For the record they’re the team with mountains on the jerseys. If they win this tournament, everyone will remember them forever.
Spain – No World Cup wins to date. But the Euro 2008 victory has finally taken Spain to another level. You can see the confidence as they pass the ball around tac-tac-tac. This is surely Spain’s best ever chance to finally win the World Cup, but also their chance to shed that underachiever tag once and for all. Or to have it etched even deeper. The stakes are high.
South Africa – The hosts. The much maligned hosts. Never before has a nation’s ability to host a tournament been questioned so openly. If the team went all the way and won it, that would be karma in action. Also, would be nice to see the events of the 1995 Rugby World Cup repeated on the soccer field. Though I doubt we’ll see a South Africa vs New Zealand final in 2010.
South Korea – Recently confirmed that North Korea sank one of their ships. So I imagine national pride is a little wounded. Park Ji-Sung and friends could restore it with a trophy.
Switzerland – Border and language sharing nations France, Germany and Italy all have a World Cup. It’s time Switzerland got one too.
USA – American soccer faces the same problem as Australia, in that it still lags behind other sports. America loves a winner, so a World Cup win would be a big help in attracting the patriotic but non-soccer loving sports fan. I also get the feeling that though genuine American soccer fans are happy with the progress from 1990 to present, they’re itching to take that next step up and lift the trophy.
Uruguay – When you look at the list of World Cup winners, Uruguay seems to be on there by mistake. First World Cup winners. Repeat winners in 1950. Then nothing for 60 years. I’m sure they’d love to rejoin the big boys.
posted @ 7:56 PM,
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Anti-doping tests before World Cup
FIFA will be testing eight players from each of the 32 teams during out-of-competition controls ahead of the World Cup.
By the time the cup is held aloft on July 11, the total of tests should stand at 512, and medical chief Michel D’Hooghe is confident he can oversee a clean World Cup.
D’Hooghe said Wednesday that on top of those 256 pre-tournament checks, the same number of urine and blood tests will be conducted during the tournament itself.
Two players from each team will be selected for tests after each of the 64 matches. D’Hooghe said the 512 tests overall represent “an impressive total.”
The World Cup has been relatively free of doping scandals. The only big exception was the 1994 World Cup, when Argentina forward Diego Maradona was kicked out of the tournament for using a cocktail of banned substances.
“It was one of my toughest moments,” D’Hooghe said of the decision to expel Maradona.
The former playmaker will be back as coach for Argentina, which has already subscribed to FIFA’s memorandum for a doping-free tournament.
Even though football occasionally gets mentioned in drug scandals in Italy or Spain, D’Hooghe is convinced there is no doping culture among the world’s 260 million football players. He said that of the 35,000 doping controls annually, only 0.3 percent test positive. And even in that case, the overwhelming majority are for social drugs like marijuana and cocaine.
Samples at the World Cup will be tested at the World Anti-Doping Agency-accredited lab in Bloemfontein, about 400 kilometres (250 miles) south of Johannesburg.
Players are currently exposed to an ever increasing regimen of games, played at an ever more furious pace compared to a generation ago, but D’Hooghe said that the improvement in injury prevention and medical care have partly offset the impact of that.—AP
Labels: Anti-doping, World Cup
posted @ 10:16 AM,
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USA optimistic of bids to host World Cup in 2018 or 2022
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
As the U.S. men's soccer team prepares to play in the World Cup, other Americans are competing to bring that tournament back to their homeland.
The USA joins 10 other nations bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. FIFA, soccer's international governing body, will announce the sites for both events Dec. 2.
Being chosen "would be the ultimate verification that we, in fact, are a powerful and passionate soccer country," said MLS Commissioner Don Garber, one of the bid committee's 22 board members.
The USA played host to the 1994 World Cup amid international skepticism because the USA had not qualified between 1950 and 1990 and had no professional league. But the event set records for total attendance (more than 3.5 million) and average attendance (68,991) and became pivotal to soccer's development in the USA, said U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati, the bid committee's chairman who helped bring the 1994 event to the USA.
"Before, we didn't have a men's or a women's professional league," Gulati said. "We didn't have any soccer-specific stadiums. We didn't have the sort of interest in the World Cup in the American sports community as now.
"The World Cup provided a great impetus to make those things happen more quickly."
The USA faces competition from England, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Australia and Qatar. Spain and Portugal are bidding as a unit, as are Belgium and the Netherlands.
Europe holds the advantage in securing the 2018 bid.
The last World Cup held on the continent was in Germany in 2006. Since 1950, when the event has been staged every four years, Europe has never gone more than eight years between hosting.
The 2014 World Cup will be held in Brazil. FIFA President Joseph "Sepp" Blatter said in January that only European candidates would be considered for the 2018 host.
"I don't think it's a foregone conclusion," Gulati said. "But I think a number of members of the (FIFA) executive committee have indicated that 2018 should go to Europe."
The USA's bid emphasizes the nation's established transportation and telecommunications systems as well as stadiums that can accommodate large crowds for big events.
Among the 21 stadiums included in the bid are the Rose Bowl, Cowboys Stadium, FedEx Field, Lucas Oil Stadium, Meadowlands Stadium, Reliant Stadium and Qwest Field.
"All the infrastructure for a World Cup exists," Gulati said. "That's not necessarily the case for an Olympics in one city. We've got extraordinary infrastructure already built."
The USA will make its case in a 1,000-page bid book that will feature preliminary budgets, profit projections and signed contracts with hotels, stadiums and broadcasters.
FIFA will receive all bids May 14 and will inspect the sites in the fall.
Supporting the U.S. bid are Henry Kissinger, Drew Carey, Oscar De La Hoya, Spike Lee, Mia Hamm and Donna Shalala, all of whom belong to the bid committee's board.
MLS provides logistical support. Soccer United Marketing, which the league operates, manages sponsorship sales.
"I consider this one of my biggest priorities, for sure," Garber said. "We're going to do everything we can to help, from utilizing our creative resources internally to our influence in our local markets."
Garber hopes a successful bid will be a boon to MLS.
"We're going to be able to capitalize on all that interest and excitement in the decade leading up to the tournament," Garber said.
"There's probably no single thing that could drive the interest and popularity of our league more than the World Cup." [Via]
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 9:40 AM,
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African Teams at the 2010 World Cup
Saturday, May 8, 2010
By T.O. Whenham
Get more World Cup betting information including betting bonuses, World Cup odds and our famous World Cup picks, which in 2006 earned $100 bettors over ten times their initial investment. ($100 bettors earned $1,820 click here for details)
John Obi of Nigeria
A lot has been made of the fact that this year's World Cup is the first to be played in Africa. It's about time that that happens, just like it's about time that the tournament returns to South America in 2014 for the first time since 1978.
As people have talked about the prospect of playing in Africa for the first time, they have talked about what impact that could have on the 'home teams'. That doesn't just mean South Africa, but also Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria. The South African fans are likely to be supportive of all of the African teams - especially once their local squad inevitably gets bounced after the preliminary round. That inevitably has led people to think about the home continent advantage, and what impact it will have on these six teams. Will the extra fan attention give one or more of these teams the boost needed to climb further than they typically would?
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Before we look at how the home continent advantage has helped teams in recent tournaments there is one thing that needs to be considered about Africa - something that will temper the expectations of any possible boost at this tournament. There have been a lot of issues with tickets for this tournament. First, there are still as many as 250,000 tickets that aren't sold. That means that there will likely be some games that aren't completely full. There are also real questions about how many African fans will be in the stands. The tickets are very expensive, and a credit card was needed to order the tickets online, so a large portion of the continent's population hasn't had access to tickets. That makes it quite likely that we won't see the support for the local teams at this tournament that we have seen in recent years.
2006
Germany narrowly beat out South Africa to host the 2006 event. The European teams did very well in the event - six of the eight quarter-finalists, and all four semifinalists, were within an easy train ride of Germany.
Of those, France's upset of Brazil and Portugal's upset of the Netherlands had strong partisan crowds as at least a factor in the win. The hosts ended up finishing third in the tournament - a result that was definitely on the high end of expectations. Italy had increasingly massive crowds following them as they went all the way. There's little doubt that the location was a big factor in this tournament. European teams would still have been strong regardless of where it was played because they always are, but this was well beyond expectations.
2002
Korea and Japan co-hosted this event. This is a much better comparison to this year's tournament than 2006 was because the hosts and the teams nearby aren't nearly as strong as the teams close to Germany are.
There's absolutely no doubt that the location of this tournament had a huge impact on the outcome. Japan upset the Russians in the preliminary round to become the surprise winners of their group and move on to the elimination round. They lost their first playoff game to Turkey.
The real surprise of the tournament, though, was the Koreans. South Korea had played in five World Cup tournaments before they played host, but they had never won a single game. They broke that streak in their first game when they beat Poland. They next earned a draw against the U.S., and then stunned Portugal. Making the second round was a massive success for the team, but they were far from done. They beat the Italians with a goal in extra time, shocked the Spanish with a win by penalty kicks, and then narrowly lost to Germany in the semifinals. They wound up fourth in the tournament - about 20 places higher than they were reasonably expected to finish.
1998
France hosted the tournament and they won it, so the home field advantage isn't hard to establish here. As in 2006 there were six teams in the quarterfinals within an easy train ride of France - compared to just three in 2002 - so the location had to be a factor.
The only flaw in the argument that this tournament provides is that Spain, France's neighbors, was knocked out in the first round though they were playing in a group that shouldn't have been a particular challenge for them.
1994
The American version of the World Cup was by far the least compelling in terms of this argument. The two most popular teams on the continent - the Americans and Mexico - both made it into the elimination rounds, but neither put up much of a fight once they got there. The comparison here isn't as strong as in other tournaments, though - there aren't nearly as many teams close by, and soccer just isn't as important to Americans as it is to the other hosts.
posted @ 9:55 AM,
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Who Will Win 2010 FIFA World Cup?
Friday, May 7, 2010
World Football Insider continues its unrivalled coverage of South Africa 2010 with profiles of the 32 teams taking part in the first ever World Cup on African soil.
World Football Insider will provide facts, figures and analysis of all 32 teams set to do battle in their quest to be crowned world champions. The series of profiles begin next week. Participating teams were divided into eight groups of four at the World Cup draw in Cape Town last December.
"WFI's strength lies in the depth of its editorial team, and this series is one more example of what makes WFI the go-to source for business news about football,” said Publisher Sheila Scott Hula.
WFI’s Editor Mark Bisson is responsible for the daily editorial content of World Football Insider. James Corbett, WFI correspondent, is an expert on the business of football across Europe.
“Our readers know they will get accurate, original reporting, and analysis and insights they can't find anywhere else," said Scott Hula.
World Cup host South Africa will open the finals against Mexico at Soccer City in Johannesburg on June 11. World Cup 2006 winners Italy start their defence of the trophy against Paraguay at Cape Town’s Green Point Stadium; New Zealand and Slovakia are their other opponents in Group F.
Brazil have the toughest draw and find themselves in the 'Group of death'. They must see off the challenge of North Korea, Portugal and Ivory Coast in Group G to make the latter stages of the World Cup. The draw also did not favor Germany. They face Australia, Ghana, the best African team in 2006, and Serbia in Group D.
Of the big teams playing at the World Cup, England have arguably the easiest draw. USA, Algeria and Slovenia are not expected to provide a serious threat in Group C.
Spain, the Euro 2008 champions and pre-tournament favorites, take on Switzerland, Honduras and Chile in Group H.
Later in May, WFI will provide our global readership with detailed profiles on the nine stadia and 10 cities hosting the World Cup.
In last week's WFI's poll, 53 percent said Lionel Messi could become the greatest player of all time.
Our new poll launched today is sure to divide opinion. WFI asks "Should FIFA award the 2018 World Cup to a European bid?"
FIFA president Sepp Blatter has not publicly confirmed that the 2018 World Cup will be headed to Europe, but he has dropped hints and the general consensus is that it will be a straight fight between England, Russia, Holland-Belgium and Spain-Portugal. This would leave Australia, Japan, Qatar, South Korea and the USA to battle it out for the 2022 tournament.
Have your say on the World Cup bidding contest by voting and leaving a comment on the WFI website.
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 6:25 PM,
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Top Ten World Cup Shocks
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
With fans of the All Whites hoping that their team will be able to cause a massive upset at the 2010 World Cup, tvnz.co.nz continues it Top 10 build-up to the tournament by taking a look back at the some of the biggest World Cup shocks
Senegal vs France 2002 - The defending champions had taken the 2000 European Championships and had a tough, experienced squad. But they were stunned by Cup debutants Senegal in the opening game and never recovered, failing to progress beyond the group stages and crashing out of the tournament without scoring a single goal.
Cameroon vs Argentina 1990 - Cameroon had never played in a World Cup before and their inexperience and nerves showed with a series of rash, even crude tackles that saw them end the contest with nine men. But still they somehow ended up on the right side of the ledger, beating the Diego Maradona captained South American side by a single goal.
North Korea vs Italy 1966 - It was David versus Golitah as the squad from the East took on double World Champions Italy in Middlesbrough. The North Koreans were 1000-1 outsiders at the start of the tournament but their against-the-odds victory took them into the quarter-finals where they notched three goals before eventually losing to a Eusebio - inspired Portugal.
Spain vs Denmark 1986 - Denmark looked like one of the teams to beat after the first round of the 1986 World Cup. Pitched into the group of death with Scotland, West Germany and Uruguay they dismantled their opposition with ease and drew comparisons with Holland's total football of the 1970's. Spain were set to be tough opposition but nobody expected the 5-1 hammering that was dished out, with Emilie Burtageno grabbing four goals.
West Germany vs Hungary 1954 - This match is still celebrated to this day in Germany as the miracle of Berne. A Hungary star-studded team - featuring one of the game's true immortals in Fernc Puskas - had beaten their European rivals 8-3 in the group stages. In the final Hungary were 2-0 up after ten minutes before a stunning comeback which eventually resulted in the unheralded Germans winning 3-2 to take the match and the World Cup.
Ireland vs Italy 1994 - Jack Charlton's Irish side had gone all the way to the quarter finals of the 1990 World Cup and arrived in the United States four years later in fine fettle. But this team of journeyman, assembled from across Britain were not expected trouble the Italian team featuring football icons such as Roberto Baggio and Roberto Donadoni. But a brilliant long range goal from Roy Houghton and some dogged defending saw the men in Emerald Green hang on for a memorable 1-0 truimph over one of the pre-tournament favourites.
USA vs England 1950 - England were making their World Cup debut in Brazil, after deigning not to enter the previous three editions. They boasted a formidable post-war record and the world's best player in Stanley Matthews while the American side consisted of semi-professional players. England were 3-1 favourites to win the World Cup but somehow lost to the USA (500-1 rank outsiders) who scored with their only chance of the match. With the loss England failed to progress beyond the first round while the USA would not be sighted again at a World Cup until 1990
Argentina vs Italy 1990 - Not the strict recipe of a minnow beating a superpower, but a result that no one dared to predict. Diego Maradona and Argentina had been entirely unconvincing in their road to the last four, needing more than their fair share of luck to advance. The Azzurri on the other hand had set the tournament alight and the host nation were riding a wave of fanatical support. Italy led early but could not consolidate and the South Americans grabbed a late equaliser before prevailing in the penalty shoot out.
South Korea vs Italy 2002 - The World Cup had never seen celebrations like this. The Asian side, expertly coached by Guus Hiddink, had performed way above expectations at their home World Cup. They were definitely aided by some woeful officiating in their victories over both Spain and Italy, but nevertheless produced an incredible performance of skill and energy to defeat a star-studded Italian team.
Germany vs Bulgaria 1994 - After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1991, this was the first tournament played with a unified Germany. The defending champions had retained most of their squad from 1990 and were red-hot favourites to defeat the men from the Balkans. Hristov Stoickhov netted a sensational free kick from 30 yards to equalise and when Iordan Letchkov stooped to score a header the 72,000 crowd at Giants Stadium knew they were witnessing one of the great World Cup boilovers of all time. {@}
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 8:59 AM,
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Australia Punished Pakistan Team
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Shane Watson top-scored with 81 as Australia punished lax Pakistan fielding to win their opening World Twenty20 match by a convincing 34 run margin here on Sunday Man-of-the-match Watson's innings was the cornerstone of Australia's 191 all out, made after captain Michael Clarke won the toss.
But the all-rounder was dropped twice and Watson made defending champions Pakistan pay by striking four sixes and seven fours in his blistering 49-ball innings. Together with David Hussey, he put on 98 in under nine overs for the third wicket. Hussey dropped on 18 at long-off by Salman Butt, a relatively easy chance, went on to make 53 off 29 balls with five sixes and two fours.
Hussey was especially severe on seamer Mohammad Sami, striking him for 28 runs in the 16th over with the batsman striking four sixes, including three in a row. Pakistan lost Kamran Akmal for nought to the first legitimate ball of their reply when he sliced Dirk Nannes to Steven Smith at short third man.
Salman Butt (15) miscued an attempted hook off fast bowler Shaun Tait and was caught by David Hussey before left-arm quick Mitchell Johnson's second ball proved too much for Mohammad Hafeez, who pulled straight to deep square leg. Australia, holding their catches, had reduced Pakistan to 34 for three inside five overs and they never looked like recovering from such a start.
Tait then had the satisfaction of bowling Pakistan captain and hard-hitting batsman Shahid Afridi for 33 before finishing the match by bowling Saeed Ajmal off the last ball. Misbah-ul-Haq top-scored for Pakistan with 41 but that was never going to be enough by itself.
Labels: Australia, Cricket, Pakistan, T20, World Cup
posted @ 1:26 PM,
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World Cup Preparations
Friday, April 30, 2010
We are now just 61 days away from the opening game of the World Cup between South Africa and Mexico. So how do Cameroon plan to use these final two months to prepare the real thing?
Well the Cameroon Football Association has announced that they will hold a camp from April 12-16 in Yaoundé made up of 24 locally based players in a last ditch attempt to find possible new talent worthy of donning the Cameroon shirt in South Africa. It is somewhat doubtful whether any of the 24 men given this chance have a realistic opportunity at winning a place. This late in the game would seem to rule out any actual chance, but it does at least show that Paul Le Guen and is staff are willing to look at a large number of players in an attempt to piece together the best possible squad.
Cameroon will then set up camp in the Parisian suburb of Val d’Oise and train in the Michel Hidalgo Stadium. From France they will then travel to Germany as they begin the run-in to the World Cup with a series of friendlies starting on May 29th against fellow World Cup qualifiers Slovakia. This match will take place in the city of Klagenfurt. Following that on the June 1st they will face Portugal who have also qualified for the World Cup. This match will take place in the Portuguese city of Covilhã. And finally a week before the start of the tournament Cameroon will take part in their final friendly on June 5th against Serbia in Belgrade.
So Cameroon will be facing off against three World Cup teams from Europe. The Cameroon football association has done a top notch job of scheduling friendlies in the build up for the World Cup. They have already done battle with Italy and now get three more World Cup teams. Serbia and Portugal will be hoping that Cameroon serve as a bit of a barometer for their own African opposition of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire respectively meanwhile Slovakia will just be looking to test themselves as they are in a group without African opposition.
The friendlies will be a great test to see how Cameroon handle world class attacking players such Marek Hamšík of Slovakia and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal. And it will be interesting to see if the Cameroon attack can get the better of defenders such as Ricardo Carvalho, Branislav Ivanović and Nemanja Vidić of Serbia.
These friendlies should prepare Cameroon’s 23 man squad for the matches that actually count against Denmark, Japan and The Netherlands starting with Japan June 14 in Bloemfontein. {#}
posted @ 11:59 AM,
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Winning FIFA World Cup
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Well, I did it. Sitting at my desk in downtown San Francisco, I just won the World Cup with the United States. I know, it sounds unlikely considering I live in California and all, but given the celebratory sequence I was just treated to in 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, I really can't imagine winning the real thing feels much better.
It should be of no surprise that I played as the underdog United States squad. No one really expects them to do well, even despite their amazingly favorable group that consists of England, Slovenia and Algeria. With two teams from every group emerging into the main World Cup draw, many expect the United States to make it to the big show for the first time in quite awhile, and that's exactly what I set out to do today.
The first thing that will strike you when you hop into a real World Cup game in 2010 FIFA World Cup is that the presentation is fitting of the scale of the event. There are streamers and fireworks shooting through the air, fans are blowing whistles and dawning face paint and hats, and Andy Gray and Clive Tyldelsly provide great quips to push the introductions along. It also doesn't hurt that they now have every nation's actual national anthem in the game. It's a small detail, but it's cool to see, especially when you make it to the finals and see some emotion streaming across the players' faces.
Click above to watch two goals straight from the final.The group stage of the World Cup went relatively smoothly for the Americans, despite my chosen difficulty of professional. The opening match against England proved to be one of the easier competitions of the opening round robin. The US took it 2-0, but wound up coming out of groups behind England thanks to two ties against Slovenia (2-2) and Algeria (0-0). The artificial intelligence on professional proved to be a real challenge. They move with laser-like accuracy on the field and sometimes seem as though they're possessed and destined to score a goal. Talk about unstoppable. Thankfully my record of 1-2-0 was good enough to advance.
The Round of 16 match against Germany proved to be a real test. The game was knotted at zero-zero for all but the last three minutes. I wasn't without my chances, though. Several headers and outside shots clanged off the posts, which would then bring a shot of disappointed German fans or a pissed off Bob Bradley (the American coach). It was in the 87th minute that Jozy Altidore broke away from his defender and nailed one into the upper-90. Argentina followed in the next round and played exactly as I expected. USA went up 2-0 on a pair of goals from Brian Ching. Messi was able to put one in for Argentina before the end, but it wasn't enough to stop the USA from advancing on to play Italy in one of the most exciting semifinals I've ever seen. Real or virtual.
The core gameplay that I had experienced through the quarterfinals was vintage FIFA 10 for the most part. The subtle refinements are evident when you feel the players moving around the field, but most of what you'll play is the same. Luckily that's nowhere close to a bad thing. Players feel like they have genuine size and momentum, just as they have before. While they sell themselves wonderfully as real physical beings, it's their mental veracity that still needed work in my preview build. There were always one or two instances per game when a player wouldn't try for a ball that was painfully close to them. Sometimes it resulted in a missed scoring chance. Hopefully they've been tightening that aspect since I received this build last week.
Italy is always a contender for the best soccer team in the world, and according to 2010 FIFA World Cup, this year is no different. We met in the semis and proceeded to duel our way to a 2-1 American advantage with 89 minutes left. As luck would have it, the skilled Italians were able to slice their way through my defense, ending their run with an effortlessly lobbed thru ball that floated its way over the heads of my sprinting defenders and landed at the feet of Gilardino. The play turned into a one-touch goal before I knew what hit me. Regulation ended tied at 2-2. Extra time proved to bring as much scoring as the regular game, but in much less time. With the score at 4-3, I figured my victory was assured. Imagine my surprise when Gilardino once again placed one just out of my goalie's reach in the 120th minute. Next up was a penalty shootout, which brought a new gameplay element to the mix.
Click above to watch the awesome celebration.The shootout mechanic is much easier than the old penalty kick, but it manages to simplify itself without becoming to arcadey. There's a concentration meter with a roving arrow that must be centered for strong accuracy, then it's up to you to feather the left analog stick in order to aim your shot. Push it too far in any direction and your shot is sure to go astray. You can also tap the shot button again to stutter step or press and hold the left bumper while shooting to lob it over the keeper. As the keeper, diving is on the right stick and standard movement is on the left. I was able to slap away their last shot and finish things off with Clint Dempsey to claim the semifinal. The announcers did a good job of conveying the weight of the victory and the celebration on the field was fitting.
The storybook final was set: USA and England in a rematch of the first game of the World Cup. The United States came out clearly invigorated by their previous victory and absolutely trounced the Brits 4-1. Maybe I had simply gotten the hang of how to beat the English team, but it was a great feeling to kick the crap out of them in the final of the world's biggest soccer tournament (and you can see every goal of the final right here. The celebration that followed was one of the greatest I've seen in a sports videogame. The folks who make Madden could really learn from a display like this. It blew the joyous events after the semifinals right out of the water. The announcers deliver wonderful USA-specific commentary that really made me feel like I had accomplished something and seeing Michael Bradley (the coach's son) be the first to hug Bob Bradley, whether it was intentional of the developers or not, was great. If the USA does win the World Cup, I'm sure it'll make this look like small potatoes, but for virtual renditions it doesn't get much better than this.
We'll have more coverage on 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, including an exclusive video that details the Story of Qualifying mode this Friday, all leading up to the review on April 27th.{#}
posted @ 9:41 AM,
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World Cup Venues Ready
Saturday, March 27, 2010
South Africa declared it was "all systems go" Friday when it announced the 10 World Cup venues were ready for June's football tournament following a final FIFA inspection tour.
"We can say with confidence we have delivered on our promise of 10 world-class stadiums and delivered them months before the tournament even starts," local Organising Committee chief executive officer Danny Jordaan said Friday.
He was speaking at the end of the 10-day inspection of the venues across nine South African cities.
"We have certainly travelled a long road since the first stadium inspection tour in 2005. With each inspection we have seen the stadiums develop from an idea on a piece of paper in an architect's office to the magnificent football arenas that we see before us today."
Six new venues have been built for the month-long tournament and a further four renovated, with Jordaan saying it was "all systems go" for the opening match in Johannesburg on June 11.
He added the focus would now turn to "the final detail."
"No longer are we inspecting where a particular wall will be built but where team buses will park, ensuring that security arrangements are nailed down and making sure the fans will be provided with correct signage to take them to their seat," he said.
Organisers had to deal with years of media speculation that FIFA might move the tournament away from South Africa, as well as repeated concerns over accommodation, transport and security.
(Editing by Sonia Oxley)
Labels: FIFA, South Africa, World Cup
posted @ 10:18 AM,
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South Africa Ready for World Cup
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
South Africa is ready to host this year's World Cup, said a top official, countering what she described as "known and unknown sources that are hell-bent" on sullying the nation's image ahead of the massive sporting event.
Nomvula Paula Mokonyane, the premier of South Africa's powerful Gauteng province, rejected recent criticisms of South Africa, saying that negative reports about its readiness for the World Cup came from opposition politicians as well as journalists inside and outside the country. These people fail to recognize the progress that has put South Africa on par with previous hosts, according to the government official.
"Who is besmirching South Africa? We've got a number of South Africans doing that," she told a group of foreign reporters Tuesday. "We think we're on a world standard, like other places."
With only 79 days to go, South Africa is racing to ensure a smooth World Cup and allay concerns that could scare off soccer fans and tourists.
The monthlong event, to be held at venues around the country, is the first time an African nation has hosted the world soccer championship. But South Africa is struggling to complete roads and venues on time; set aside sufficient electricity for stadiums; tamp down violent crime and minimize potential terrorism threats.
Meanwhile, the Gauteng government is also dealing with disruptive protests over the lack of water and power in some outlying areas as well as strikes and shootings by informal mini-bus operators who oppose a new high-speed bus system. "We aren't concerned about protests— we are living in a vibrant multi-racial democracy," said Ms. Mokonyane. "The concern is when protests are accompanied by violence."
Coupled with the global economic downturn, such concerns pose challenges to ticket sales. After three of five sales phases, about two-thirds of the available tickets for the World Cup have been sold, according to global soccer body FIFA. Officials at FIFA have repeatedly expressed confidence in its World Cup host.
"Now it is time for the whole world to put its trust in South Africa's ability to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup," the organization's president, Joseph S. Blatter, said earlier this month.
The capital of Gauteng, Johannesburg, will be front-and-center during the World Cup. The city will host the opening and closing ceremonies as well as the first game June 11 and the championship July 11. It will also serve as the main point of entry for foreign tourists arriving in South Africa for the World Cup.
Gauteng province is home to mining conglomerates and banks, and accounts for about two-thirds of South Africa's economic output—as well as one tenth of Africa's total. Some government critics say the predominant role South African business plays in the country improves the prospects for a successful World Cup. The event's sponsors, building contractors and hotel operators are largely private and unburdened by government's problems with efficiency, says Moeletsi Mbeki, a businessman, author and the brother of former president Thabo Mbeki.
"The South African World Cup will be delivered by the private sector," he said.
Ms. Mokonyane, Gauteng's top official, said her government has assumed a central role in World Cup preparation. She's been fielding requests from backpacker groups eager to travel the country and Christian evangelists eager to speak to large crowds of soccer fans. She said the province has shown it can stage global sporting events in rugby and cricket, and isn't daunted by what awaits with the largest of them all: the World Cup.
"We sound very ambitious, but that's because we are a very ambitious nation," she said.
Write to Peter Wonacott at peter.wonacott@wsj.com
Labels: South Africa, World Cup
posted @ 9:51 PM,
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World Cup, 100 Days Away
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
By Marine Veith
FIFA on Tuesday brushed aside lingering doubts about South Africa's readiness for the World Cup, as cities across the nation staged street parties to launch the 100-day countdown.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter insisted the nation was ready, and said he was bothered by naysayers who worry South Africa won't pull off the June 11 to July 11 tournament.
"It's not so much that there's pessimism, but that it's always being thrown into doubt. It's bad, because when there's doubt, there's no confidence. For me and FIFA, that bothers us sometimes," Blatter told a news conference in Durban's new stadium.
"There is no doubt, no doubt," he said. "Let's go now, let's have this World Cup, and then we will discuss end of July."
He spoke after a tour of South Africa's 10 stadiums that will host the month-long tournament. Construction is complete at all the stadiums, and only two have yet to host games to try out the new facilities.
"We are on track, we are ready to make this World Cup and this is the main message following this inspection tour," FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke said.
The 100-day countdown dominated South African media Tuesday, but only a few hundred revellers joined the celebrations that were mostly held in downtown districts, far from the townships where most football fans live.
Ella Matlhare, a 65-year-old from Sebokeng township 65 kilometres (40 miles) south of Johannesburg, said she took two mini-buses on a two-hour journey to join about 300 people at a street party in the posh Sandton business district.
"I was supposed to be doing my washing, but I will do it some other time. My mind is on soccer,"
she said. "I am so excited, everyone has been talking about the World Cup, now it is here. There is no turning back."
In Cape Town, a helicopter carrying the South African flag flew past the landmark Table Mountain, while schoolchildren prepared for lessons in the "diski" -- a dance inspired by football movements.
In Durban, about 1,000 people blew vuvuzela trumpets -- mandatory accessories for South African fans -- and danced to drumbeats outside City Hall. Amid the cheering, some fans said they were disappointed that they wouldn't be able to attend World Cup matches, even with heavily discounted tickets for locals.
"It's a dream come true for South Africa, but I can't afford a ticket," said Pretty Soni, an mother of two who like millions of South Africans has no job in a country where unemployment is officially at 24.3 percent but believed much higher.
South Africa has poured 33 billion rand (3.9 billion dollars, 3.2 billion euros) into preparations for the tournament.
In addition to the stadiums, major upgrades to airports in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Bloemfontein are complete, while Durban's new airport is set to open on May 1.
FIFA says that 2.2 of the 2.9 million tickets have already been sold, even though fewer foreign fans are expected to attend.
South Africa is banking on 450,000 foreign visitors, though the actual number could be lower, with many fans overseas still recovering from the shock of the global recession.
The country is seizing the publicity around the 100-day to try to reassure foreigners about visiting South Africa, which has one of the highest crime rates in the world, averaging 50 murders each day.
South Africa has spent more than 2.4 billion rand on security, recruiting 41,000 additional police and buying hi-tech equipment for the competition.
Overall, South Africans are increasingly optimistic about the World Cup. A survey out on Monday found that 85 percent believe the nation will ready for the games.
The public was less rosy about the hot-and-cold fortunes of Bafana Bafana - only 55 percent said they thought the national team was ready to compete.
posted @ 9:52 AM,
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FIFA Fears
Monday, February 22, 2010
By Rob Harris
FIFA is concerned that players at the World Cup could use undetectable stimulants derived from traditional African medicines that aren't currently banned substances.
FIFA medical committee chairman Michel D'Hooghe told The Associated Press on Sunday that he wants the World Anti-Doping Agency to analyze some African plants that could give athletes an unfair advantage.
"I have a big concern - and I can confess that. We were learning a lot about the traditional African medicines and we are not sure what all of these products contain," D'Hooghe said. "I think some products are not detectable. This makes it difficult. They can deliver stimulation and diuretic activity."
D'Hooghe said he became aware of the extent of the issue at FIFA's medical conference this weekend in Sun City ahead of the World Cup in South Africa, which starts June 11.
"We received a lot of examples, going from things that we know but also going into absolutely unknown things for me. If I don't know the names, how can I know what they contain," D'Hooghe said of the plants. "This is certainly a challenge for WADA ... this could be a big challenge for football because we try to live in a football world without doping.
"If we don't have control over these specific traditional medicines, then we can't say we have control over all the medication in football."
In many African countries, plants provide the main source of medicine. Umhlabelo, made of dried leaves from the Nidorella plant, can help heal bones and muscles. The Hoodia plant is used as an appetite suppressant but also provides an energy boost.
"More and more governments are legalizing the use of traditional medicines, and that will compound the situation much further." warned Gurcharan Singh, a member of FIFA's medical committee.
South African team doctor Ntlopi Mogoru says some plants, usually found in tropical African countries like Ghana, can produce steroid byproducts that are not on WADA's list and aren't picked up in doping tests.
"There is no way of knowing. That's where the problem is," Mogoru said.
"In Africa, a lot of players use traditional medicines and, unfortunately because of WADA, there are no tests to detect those things and it becomes a bit of a problem for doping in the whole world. It's from the players' cultural backgrounds.
"Some cultures will believe if you take one of these traditional medicines it enhances your performances. Some of them might be taking this medication knowing that the side-effects enhance performances, but the primary intention was just to heal, for example, hemorrhoids. They can't be detected by the tests and they are not illegal."
Cameroon team doctor Prof. Guillaume Atchou advises his players not to take them but believes it is a challenge for all sports.
"The athletes think eating traditional medicines and taking traditional plants is a very good thing and we have no way to control these practices," Atchou said. "They shouldn't take them because I know these doping substances aren't right for them, but how do we find these substances in African plants. They are not detectable."
D'Hooghe thinks the US$30 million spent annually on 33,000 doping tests could be better spent on youth education since there are only about 10 positive results.
D'Hooghe said he believes there is "no doping culture" among the 260 million footballers worldwide.
Labels: Medicines, Stimulants, World Cup
posted @ 10:18 PM,
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WorldCup Tickets
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Tickets for the World Cup semi-finals and final, as well as two of England's first round matches in South Africa, have sold out, FIFA said on Friday.
FIFA said there were no more tickets for England's matches against the United States in Rustenburg on June 12 and Slovenia in Port Elizabeth on June 23.
Tickets for the match between world champions Italy and Paraguay in Cape Town on June 11 and Brazil and Portugal in Durban a fortnight later have also sold out.
The final phase of World Cup tickets sales will open on Tuesday with more than 400,000 seats still available.
Fans have until April 7 to bid for tickets for 53 of the 64 matches at the tournament, which runs from June 11-July 11.
The fourth phase of sales is again to be conducted over the internet, and also for South African residents at bank branches, but this time will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
World soccer's governing body said it had sold 585,175 tickets, some 70 percent to local residents, in its third sales phase, which closed last month and which was drawn on a lottery basis and allocated this week.
(Reporting by Mark Gleeson; Editing by Justin Palmer)
posted @ 11:08 AM,
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FIFA World Cup 2010 Screens — Team Italia
Friday, January 29, 2010
EA’s released a set of four new screenshots today highlighting the Italian soccer team in their upcoming World Cup game, FIFA World Cup 2010 South Africa. What more is there to say? They’re Italian, they wear blue, they won the last World Cup.
Check out the screenshots at the gallery .
posted @ 8:47 AM,
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World Cup
Monday, January 25, 2010
World Cup is a type of sporting competition.
World Cup commonly refers to:
* FIFA World Cup (men's football)
* Cricket World Cup
* Rugby World Cup (rugby union)
World Cup can also refer to:
* Alpine Skiing World Cup
* AMF World Cup (ten-pin bowling)
* Artistic Gymnastics World Cup
* Australian Football International Cup
* Baseball World Cup
* Biathlon World Cup
* Bobsleigh World Cup
* Boxing World Cup
* Davis Cup (tennis)
* Dubai World Cup (horse racing)
* Fed Cup (women's tennis)
* FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup
* FIFA Club World Cup (men's football)
* FIFA Futsal World Cup (indoor football)
* FIFA Women's World Cup (women's football)
* FIFA Women's Club World Cup (women's football)
* FINA Diving World Cup
* FINA Swimming World Cup
* FINA Water Polo World Cup
* FIS Cross-Country World Cup
* FIS Nordic Combined World Cup
* FIS Ski Jumping World Cup
* FIS Snowboard World Cup
* Hockey World Cup
* IAAF World Cup in Athletics
* ICC World Twenty20 (cricket)
* IFAF World Cup (American football)
* Indoor Cricket World Cup
* ISSF World Cup (shooting)
* ITU Triathlon World Cup
* Luge World Cup
* Orienteering World Cup
* Paralympic World Cup (multiple sports)
* PBR World Cup (bull riding)
* Rowing World Cup
* Rugby League World Cup
* Rugby World Cup Sevens
* Short Track Speed Skating World Cup
* Show Jumping World Cup (equestrian)
* Skeleton World Cup (toboggan)
* Speed Skating World Cup
* Speedway World Cup (motorcycle)
* Touch Football World Cup
* UCI World Cup (various cycling world cups)
* VIVA World Cup (non-FIFA nations football)
* Volleyball World Cup
* Women's Baseball World Cup
* Women's Cricket World Cup
* Women's Rugby League World Cup
* Women's Rugby World Cup
* Women's Hockey World Cup
* Women's World Cup of Golf
* World Cup (men's golf)
* World Cup in Ski Orienteering
* World Cup of Hockey (ice hockey)
* World Cup of Pool
* World Cup of Softball
* World Team Cup (tennis)
* World X Cup (professional wrestling)
Labels: World Cup
posted @ 11:04 AM,
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