okay now i know most people on this website could probably care less about the world cup but its almost here and i cant wait. i dont watch a lick of soccer except for the world cup. it is truly one of the greatest sporting events this world has to offer.
anyways if anybody wants a breif history lesson on each of the 32 teams participating in world cup 2006 go to fox sports go to world cup soccer and go to 32 teams in 32 days and maybe you could learn something today.

All you need to know is the US got screwed by the group assignments and they will still advance!

And I quote, "BEEEEELIEVE IT!" :)

Soccer is the sworn enemy of disc golf worldwide.

<font color="orange"> Go Holland!!! </font>

Soccer is the sworn enemy of disc golf worldwide.


Why?

BRAZIL all the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Because soccer takes over every square inch of grass covered parkland an also targets our disc golf courses for elimination for their expansionist hegemonic dreams.

Rhett, go start a negative thread somewhere else.

The world cup is an awesome event. Personally, I can't wait to set my alarm for 3 a.m. to watch England play some other world power in "the beautiful sport". Eight years ago when I wasn't working, I watched just about every game.

My brother and i will be in Stuttgard for the WORLD CUP....WHOOOOOOooooooooooooooo

Go Poland!

Because soccer takes over every square inch of grass covered parkland an also targets our disc golf courses for elimination for their expansionist hegemonic dreams.



Well sorry about your problems with the soccer fields, but it help me pay my way through COLLEGE, so I am greatfull for it. I have also got to travel the World because of that crappy/boring sport.

I cant wait for the WORLD CUP.

BRAZIL

Ditto on what soccer provided me along the way, though on a less global level.

I also experienced some of the greatest cultural/multicultural lessons and experiences through the sport, that have been valuable in other areas of life. Perhaps the coolest soccer experience for me, was being at the 1994 game at Giants stadium between Italy/Ireland. I sang and laughed until I lost my voice for a few days. I still have no idea what I was singing. :D

Speaking of World Cup 94 I got to see Brazil vs. Holland (my 2cd favotite team growing up) quarter final (should have been the final imo). We were 15 rows up behind the Brazil goal 2cd half. It was awsome. Before the game when the teams were coming out on the field, we were walking up the ramp and the security gaurds had made everyone leave, because you could see the players walking out on the field. We were overlooking Brazil, and my buddy and I started chantin Ole, Ole,ole, ect. and the Brazillian team looked up at us started dancing to a sort. It was un freckin belivable. We knew right then and ther we were in for the game of our life. PRICELESS

I have also got to travel the World because of that crappy/boring sport.


Who called it "crappy/boring"? Other than you, that is?

I wasnt being rude, that is just the perception in America is it not?

I got to see Pele' play when the New York Cosmos played the Dallas team. (Kicks?) Kyle Rote Jr. was playing for Dallas. That was a fun night.

thats the perception alright. just listen to the jim rome show.
i wonder how much better team usa could be if our top athletes played soccer. of course i dont really know how good we are now.
i could see reggie bush having success on the soccer field but maybe not lebron james. ladanian tomlinson but not ricky williams.

I used to have season seats for indoor soccer, and learned to appreciate and enjoy the outdoor game from that. (Hint to fellow Americans: a great play doesn't always, or even usually, result in a goal.)

But that doesn't change the status of soccer versus disc golf in America.

and for all i know reggie bush dreamed of being a proffesional soccer player but couldnt make the team

this post gotten my attention.

i often wonder about deion sanders and his penchance for PrimeTime to be used in soccer.

often good goaltenders end up going to the NBA :o(

I think soccer is a great prerequisite (sp?) for any sport at a young age. It will build the fundementals for any physicall sport.

I think soccer is a great prerequisite (sp?) for any sport at a young age. It will build the fundementals for any physicall sport.



Except for developing hand/eye coordination. :)

Did you see that goose egg on Brian McBride's head after he got head-butted by that Latvian? Uuuuuglyyyy! Then he scores the only goal of the game with a header! Awesome!

I played D1 soccer in college. All I had time to do was eat, sleep, study and play soccer. I now have so much more respect for college athletes. The world cup will be awesome. Go USA!

I think soccer is a great prerequisite (sp?) for any sport at a young age. It will build the fundementals for any physicall sport.



Except for developing hand/eye coordination. :)





What?
hand eye coordination does not apply explicitly to your hands (and what about the goalie), body eye coordination is just as critical, and maybe even more so as it applies to disc golf.

there is something i like to call "project 2010". in 2010 the usa will reach the finals of the world cup and maybe win. the up and coming players from the us are a different breed than any other generation. i have played with and against tons of them. i have gone to england and played some of their junior premier league teams and spanked them. if it doesnt happen this year just wait 4 more. it will definately be the one for usa fans to watch

/msgboard/images/graemlins/ooo.gif /msgboard/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

you like that bubba? :D

WORD

FIFA World Cup� Official Fantasy Game. (http://en.fifaworldcup.fantasysports.yahoo.com/)

It took about three times seeing it to understand that french accent, but the commercial they are running is actually pretty good. The one with the hated frenchy talking about a "football team", and he finishes by saying "America....zee wurrld nuh longa looks for-warr to playeeng yoo."

I think that commercial doesn't pack the punch that it could because too many people like me hear the french guy, see that it's soccer, and then zone out before the good line is delivered.

That "french guy" is Eric Cantona, one of the greatest players ever.

AND early adopter of the "jump in the stands & punch out the fans" strategy that NBA & MLB players have now appropriated.

here's a question for u all.......if you had a chance to go to a world cup match, would you go?
i would assume the answer would be yes!

but would you still go if:

1) the tickets were 100$ each.
2) you had to take your wife (would it be safe enough?).
3) you were limited on vacation time in a foreign country.
4)youve never been to that particular city/stadium (gelsenkirchen match 59)
5) you dont know who the teams will be.

now ive never been to a world cup event and this may be my only chance, so im wondering if this should be a "must do" while visiting.
thanks in advance for your replies.
martinb.

go to the game without a doubt. people around the world are crazy about soccer it will be a great experience no matter who plays. but if you have a choice brazils the ticket. also spain, netherlands, czech republic, italy vs the us.
the worldcup only comes along every 4 years sometimes alot longer then that for a particular region. everything else is there all the time.
as for the danger element well it is their yes but too a much less extent then if you went to a regular match. they will have lots of security to prevent rioting, stampeding, you know things of that nature.

Joga Bonito - Play Beautiful

Here's the whole ad campaign, via YouTube. Some of these are awesome!

http://youtube.com/results?search=joga+bonito&search_type=search_videos&search=Search

Joga Bonito - Play Beautiful

Here's the whole ad campaign, via YouTube. Some of these are awesome!

http://youtube.com/results?search=joga+bonito&search_type=search_videos&search=Search



:D

Match 59? Quarterfinals?!?!?! :eek:

If you DON'T go to the game, at least buy the tickets and sell them to me! I'm sure I can catch a train to Gelsenkirchen with a buddy for that match - I don't even care who's playing!

I made up a World Cup pool yesterday. We have 8 guys and we randomly selected 4 teams each from some cards I made. With a modest entry fee of 5 bones, it's winner-take-all and will be more fun to follow the tourney. It's World Cup Eve!!

yeah, well, i went on line to get tickets......ALL tickets are sold out to ALL matches from the world cup site. however, :eek: you can get tickets to match 59 for 1000$ and up....from ticket scalpers, uh, i imean ticket vendors. i think ill find a sports bar, spend a 100$ on food and drink and watch it there, at least it will be in a foreign country :D

Germany vs Costa Rica to kick things off today on the deuce.

Germany vs Costa Rica to kick things off today on the deuce.



And XM Satellite Radio. I'm mad I forgot to bring my home antenna to work today. I'll be eating lunch in my car while I listen to the match. :cool:

i think i'll take an early and extended lunch to watch the first half of germany costa rica. well off to lunch.

Your really going to just listen to a soccer match? You better Tivo it or your going to fall asleep during your break!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!

Sorry, I couldn't help myself. :D

"I'd like to hear the guy that calls mexican soccer call golf. it's rollin it's rolling its in the hooooollllllle!" hooooooolllllllle!" robin williams

England vs. Paraguay at 9 a.m. EST on ABC on Saturday...I'll have to crack open a Hobgoblin Ale for this one! :D

Time to paint the face and yell like mad !!! :cool:

Odds on the Paraguaian (?) who "scored" getting whacked back home after the World Cup?
Remember it happened to a Colombian a couple of Cups ago...


Prediction tomorrow...
USA 2
Czech Republic 1
Believe it!

So I have a business lunch/meeting at a British Pub today when the US plays. I didn't invite anyone else for the meeting. :D

Aussie...Aussie...Aussie.

Brazil is next /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

That was sick. I thought Japan was gonna win 1-0, and the Australians scored three times in the last ten minutes!

Japan gave up!



GO USA!

We look like ASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSStroids

3-0 time to get back to work.

Prediction was a little off there... :p

Talk about FLATTTTTTTTTT

we had what 2 maybe 3 legit scoring chance's.....we were in our own end way to much :eek:

Prediction was a little off there... :p



I'm now glad I had to be in an all-day meeting. Were they as bad as everyone is saying? This could be 1998 all over again.

It's 1998 all over again. The Italy game will be just as bad a blowout, and after that, the last game will be meaningless.

Any good early games to watch tomorrow morning whilst drinking coffee and not wanting to go to work? The Japan give-away to the Himings today was more interesting than any Mavs win...

The Japan give-away to the Himings today was more interesting than any Mavs win...



The Japanese didn't give it away, Australia just showed that Aussie spirit of never giving up.

Also notice how none of the Aussies went down crying of broken legs etc after getting barely touched like so many other teams will.

Can't wait to watch the Brazil vs Australia match. Win or loose it will be fun.

Aussie...Aussie...Aussie.

Here's my favorite thing about the world cup: ;)

http://www.futuremovement.org/img/images/Louay/argentina03.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6278/olyfullgettyfblwc2006match06sc.jpg
http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/6447/122jpeg5gq.jpg
http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/4021/711715939ju.jpg

When is the next Argentina game on? I watched the first one, but didn't see those fans!

I guess it's Togo versus [South/North?] Korea tomorrow morning while drinking coffee. The HD feeds are really good.

http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/fifa/gen/afp/20060611/i/9796435.jpg
http://www.worldcup-06.co.uk/images/portugal_fan.jpg
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40891000/jpg/_40891324_ecuador203.jpg
http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/fifa/gen/afp/20060609/i/3995784157.jpg

^^^ Supermodel Claudia Schiffer ^^^

At least in 98 we had defenders that would mark people. We would have been better off with Lalas and Agoos playing. Our new defenders are horrible! Getting that yellow card in the first 4 minutes was pitiful, and let the Czech's know we can't defend them. Ghana looks like they will tear us apart as well.

Ya know, you've got to be at one with your manliness to throw pink discs. So the Koreans must be really at one with their collective manliness to wear that cute pink and white kit. The only way I could see them improving that outfit of pink shirt and pink knee-high socks would be to put a big "Hello Kitty" logo on the butt of the white shorts.

:D :D:D

But it was good game.

I hate to admit it, but the morning routine of getting up at 6 and watching the first half, showering at halftime, and then watching the second half before leaving for work at 8 is working for me. :p

http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcber12406131835.wcup_world_cup_soccer_brazil _croatia_wcber124.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcstu12306131557.wcup_world_cup_soccer_france _switzerland_wcstu123.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcber12906131856.wcup_world_cup_soccer_brazil _croatia_wcber129.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.bf494b6eae754b34ab5e2c558f8ee2fb.brazil_world _cup_wcup_xsi104.jpg

This is so much better than online live scoring! :D

What a great finish in the germany game.

dupas

Soccer fans are wild !!!!!
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcber12406131835.wcup_world_cup_soccer_brazil _croatia_wcber124.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcstu12306131557.wcup_world_cup_soccer_france _switzerland_wcstu123.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.wcber12906131856.wcup_world_cup_soccer_brazil _croatia_wcber129.jpg
http://us.news2.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20060613/capt.bf494b6eae754b34ab5e2c558f8ee2fb.brazil_world _cup_wcup_xsi104.jpgquote]http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/fifa/gen/afp/20060611/i/9796435.jpg
http://www.worldcup-06.co.uk/images/portugal_fan.jpg
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/40891000/jpg/_40891324_ecuador203.jpg
http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/fifa/gen/afp/20060609/i/3995784157.jpghttp://www.futuremovement.org/img/images/Louay/argentina03.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6278/olyfullgettyfblwc2006match06sc.jpg
http://img121.imageshack.us/img121/6447/122jpeg5gq.jpg
http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/4021/711715939ju.jpg

Borac, Poland's goalie, was incredible. Tough loss. Sucks to be down a man for 15 minutes.

Oh joy. "Terrell Owens Syndrome" is alive and well in the world of international kick-ball. :(

Had it been a Nacho Libre mask it might've been kind of funny, but Spiderman was pretty lame.

Somebody should ask that guy "How'd that smell?"

It was a tribute to his dead countryman. :o

If he scores again and busts out a sharpie, I'll be worried even more. You know that won't just sit in his drawers like the mask. :o

Once again, we discover bad officiating is a worldwide problem...

how did that guy become a WORLD CUP official?? this is the world cup and USA just had to draw that guy to officiate the game, what are the odds of that crap. Jorge (the ref) was suspended over 8 years ago and wasnt able to officiate last world cup do to some irregularities in previous matches, so how is it hes all ofa sudden back? didnt this guy have some kind of probation period and time where his games since his last incidance where watched and critiqued? I cant see how this moron is a world cup ref. ive had better officiating in my games when i was 14. Judging by all his terrible terrible calls i was getting away with murder back in my day.

jorge should be officiating in the nba he'd do well.
jorge should be thankful the americans didnt give him an accidental shove, or kick to the crouch. its pretty much what he did to us.

lets go italy take it to the czechs

The US needs to beat Ghana first. Ghana looked like the better team against the Czechs.

Looks like my World Cup watching bonanza is over. I've gotten up at 6 AM every day and watched the early game whilst drinking coffee, but starting tomorrow the games go off at 7 AM local time. Getting to work around 9 AM is pushing it, but 10 is out of the question. :(

Very smart of them to broadcast every single game in glorius HD; they look fantastic. And after enduring so much of the dreaded "45 minutes to play the last 3 minutes and change" that is the NBA playoffs, it's refreshing to watch the clock progress to the 90 minute mark unabated and know for a fact that there is no more three or four minutes of real-time left in the game.

It's probably a good thing soccer is a flop in the U.S. or else they would've found a way to stop the game for commercials by now...

Ghana will be without their top two scoring threats. plus the u.s. played very poorly against the czechs. ghana also got to play the czech republic without the czechs best player Jan Koller.

should be a great game with both teams giving it all they have.
but ghanas players have sounded over confident to me and that could be their downfall.

i think 3-1 sounds about right, but every now and then i am wrong i have to admit. :D

Looks like my World Cup watching bonanza is over. I've gotten up at 6 AM every day and watched the early game whilst drinking coffee, but starting tomorrow the games go off at 7 AM local time. Getting to work around 9 AM is pushing it, but 10 is out of the question. :(



Consider going to a pizza place or bar over lunch to watch a game. I've been watching the noon game at a pizza place near work from noon until 1:45 PM, and then staying a little later at work.

From now on there will be games at 2000 BST which is 11 AM California time, right? You could watch the whole game during your lunch break.

poland wins 2-1. doh may piva. :D

Consider going to a pizza place or bar over lunch to watch a game. I've been watching the noon game at a pizza place near work from noon until 1:45 PM, and then staying a little later at work.


A worthwhile suggestion, except a big part of the allure of these international kick-ball matches is how great they look on my 60" SXRD at home. :D

I've got a 61" but i'm ready for an upgrade!

61"? That makes it a Samsung, doesn't it?

Get the SXRD. The Sonys scale the non-HD stuff the best, even if you cheap-out and get a 3-LCD model. :)

I've got a 61" but i'm ready for an upgrade!



HD? You looking to sell it cheap?

somehow over half these threads turn into swap n shops....anyways, cant wait to see if USA can pull some kind of miracle and acually score a goal on their own this world cup, cause we need 4 this game. and if Italy can somehow tie czeck or better, we will be golden like a shower

all we need is 1 goal for a 1-0 win... as long as the I-talians beat the czechs

without a doubt the best game I have seen was yesterdays england swedan match, I really thought England was going to snap the streak and beat Sweden but those crafty swedes found a way to put it in both times they needed to. Looking forward to seeing what they can do against Germany.

usa will need to muster more than 1 shot.... jeez one shot in two games... we can't score unless the other team boots it in for us.

61"? That makes it a Samsung, doesn't it?

Get the SXRD. The Sonys scale the non-HD stuff the best, even if you cheap-out and get a 3-LCD model. :)



Mine is a piece of crap! Sony is definetly the way to go.

usa will need to muster more than 1 shot .... jeez one shot in two games...

goal?

usa will need to muster more than 1 shot .... jeez one shot in two games...

goal?



SHOT - one lousy SOG (http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/w/stats/detail.html?section=ta) vs. czech --- none v. italy (own goal)

that's good for worst in the tourney if anyone is keeping track... /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

A USA loss is guarrenteed as I have afflicted some of my cow-orkers with "Fev�r de la Copa Mundial" and we will be watching the game whilst having breakfast.

i guess it depends where you get your information (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/stats/teams?league=fifa.world&year=2006&cat=shotsOnGoal&cc=5901)... still anemic though

yeah i noticed that too... good thing only stats that matter is goals.... except tiebreakers - i'm rooting they have to draw lots to see who goes on - that'd be classic.

id check out the sports book before the game starts, gettn pretty good odds if u bet USA to win straight up vs Ghana... and they acually have the Italians as the fav, which i dont think they are the better team, that czech team looks goooood, i just cant put money on em if im rootn for em to lose, so i made a wager on the US game only. hvae fun and enjoy the games tomorrow.

anywhere to stream the game online for free?

Thank God its almost overt and no more talk about silly futbol

Its OVER!!!!

Its a boat race now.

Soccer will be dead once again in about 1 hr...
It is an embarrasing sport in which we are still alive and we haven't even score a goal....
We are getting owned by a country that is the size of Kansas...PATHETIC!

Did the Ghana player score for us or something

We finally scored a goal, woo-hoo!!!

But Ghana scored again. We stink. :(

that was a terrible call giving them a penalty kick gooch didnt do anything wrong. anyways i still have faith we are creating not quite as good as ghana though. and demarcus finally showed up. lets get some more goals. go usa go italy. we want brazil

it is very difficult to stop a penalty kick so you do it they didnt even deserve a penalty kick basically the ref awarded ghana a goal for us not fouling :mad:

no we scored the goal ourselves.

now i dont know too much about anything but i do know we will be back in four years.

__________________________________________________ _
It is an embarrasing sport in which we are still alive and we haven't even score a goal....
__________________________________________________ _

yeah its just as embarrasing as having homefield advantage decided by the allstar game, or nebraska getting crushed in the big 12 championship game then still getting to go on to play in the national championship. or how bout oklahoma a couple years back getting straight up demolished by usc when there was a perfectly good LSU squad USC could have tangled with. the biggest joke of all is the BCS. anybody who says soccer is more boring than baseball is on crack baseball sucks how many games does each team play a year like a thousand or something then after all those games only 4 get invited to the playoffs. heres why hockey sucks i cant see the dang puck but it is awesome to watch live. now theres no need for anybody too tell me why soccer sucks cuase i live in america and people tell me all the time.

Ole' Ole' Ole', Ole' we suck.

We are getting owned by a country that is the size of Kansas...PATHETIC!



like getting waxed by Puerto Rico in USA hoops or getting ousted by Mexico in the WBC? interesting comparison (http://www.forbes.com/2004/04/13/cz_kb_0413match.html)

I guess this really was The Group of Death.

We kaint score.

We did manage to play in the offensive box quite a bit, but we stink because we couldn't even get decent chance with possession in the box. :(

I guess this really was The Group of Death.



It definitely was. The US is good (not great, but better than they've played this year - before and during the Cup). Ghana was the best African team. The Czechs were good (but proved to be too old and slow). And Italy is, well, still royalty in soccer, despite the world ranking. World-ranking wise, #2 and #5 go home. #13 and #48 advance.

Meanwhile Mexico lucks into advancing, because they got a seed, and put into an extremely soft group. Although they tried to throw it away...

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie...

Tough Aussies never give up :cool:

Italy vs. Australia will be a good game also as besides Croatians in Australia we also have lots of Italians. As they said before this game, family vs. family...this is getting good.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie :D

At least now I can cheer for the Aussies without feeling like I'm abandoning our team....GO AUSSIES! (just cause Himing's so cool)

the penalty kick was definatly a terrible call by the ref and was a total gift, HOWEVER, you cant blame it entirely on the ref. How many of you here played serious competitive soccer? i was on a full ride scholarship so i know a thing or two, and one thing i know is taught to every soccer player from ages 8 and up, when the ball is in the back field like that, the very last thing you do is kick it straight up on towards the middle of the field, ALWAYS go outside with the ball, and give them a throw in, he made the a stupid #$*&$! play and the ball got inside the 18 where it should never have even been close to. USA played like total crap, except for the Italy game, other than that, it was an utter embarassment, the players didnt want this, and the coach is a moron, i could go on, but theres way to much to type. Wynalda for new US COACH!!!

I agree. I also noticed a consistent inability for our defenders to mark bodies. We gave up way too much space for all of our opponents to pick us apart. If you play the body more, you run the risk of fouls, but you eliminate missed lunges and opportunities to capitalize. If I know you have better ball skills than me, are faster, etc., it's even more reason to play the body. Reyna made a huge mistake, and very unlike him from what I have seen over the past decade plus. I am still more dissapointed with our defense. If Reyna was the only back to be able to receive the ball from the keeper, that is a problem in itself.

espn.com is airing the italy austrailia game. just go to the left of roger federers head and click on the two itilian players. it will give you a couple of minutes of advertising the take you to the game. it's half time right now so holdoff a little while.

portugal vs netherlands they say the ref was terrible but whats a ref to do. this game was very dirty resembling football more then soccer. figo got a headbutt in when the ref wasnt looking it was pretty much chaotic after halftime. england sucks and will probably lose to portugal even though half of portugals team will be suspended.

Whoa! Horrible way to lose Australia, sorry Himing. I think it was the "dive" of the cup thus far for sure! :mad:

yeah that was bs.

And thanks Barkley for helping me figure out how to watch it at work! :mad::D;)

it was definitely a dive, but all appearances represented a foul. i think it was a good call by the ref. i wanted to see the aussies advance, but how far can you hope to go when you're known as the soccer-oos

I heard an interesting comment this week when they were discussing potential coaching changes for the U.S. Essentially, they are saying that we need a coach to come in and more closely mimic what is going on in Europe. This question has been asked before, but why in the world do we want to mimic the Europeans? There is a reason that Brazil consistantly dominates the rest of the world. They have a different style and approach to the game. Why wouldn't we want to take a look to the South and skip what they're doing in Europe. That style has gotten us exactly nowhere in World Cup competition (yes I know where we ended up in the last Cup but had the impression that was as much luck as anything).

Alright you experts, lets hear it.

Separate from the lack of scoring, this sport has a severe problem just from a game design standpoint when more goals are scored off of penalty situations, that rely more on the officials, than goals scored in the normal flow of play. At least in hockey, most of the time with a penalty you don't have a free shot penalty but have to earn the point with an extra man for a few minutes. If there were lots of goals scored in regular play, then the penalty scenario wouldn't stand out as THE pivotal and many times ONLY play of the game. Whereas taking an OB penalty in DG is one shot out of 50; it's relatively minor in the game design.

Soccer's just a weak game design regardless of the arguments about the beauty of the individual footwork battles. Seems like the essence is how to be as dirty as possible without the ref seeing you. Now, maybe that's why lots of the world seems to like it - getting away with stuff because no one calls you on it. The U.S. is criticized for not playing that way. I say just bail from the lame sport and let the world have at it.

Apparently Chuck was cut from his high school team. :D

Lettered in track, football and chess...

i read that the most likley replacement for bruce arena is the head coach of germany Juergen Klinsmann. He resides in california already and the germans dont like the fact that he chooses not to live in germany. but yes model us after southamerican play it seems to be more exciting then the european style. however we dont have anybody the likes of ronaldinho, ronaldo, kaka, or even fred to play the way we do. maybe franky ado will be that player or maybe we will never have a player that good. the chosen one in america could very well be playing another sprot right now and we will never know who he is.

wow. soccer is a weak game design. who would have thought that. i guess we better go tell the rest of the world that since the game they've been playing all these years does not meet the sensibilities of a disc golfer in wisconsin they need to get their act together :)

pretty funny coming from a sport that says its totally OK to move your disc with no penalty from where it ended up if you want a better lie

Before Arena took over in 1998, we were trying to mimic the Euro's, except we weren't good. Arena took over and (initially) promoted a more offensive, "American"-style game. I remember seeing games where the team would push early to score, then defend the lead late. Then, this Cup, he shelled the attacking game for a stupid 1 attacker/defense first set. Not sure what happened there...

Brazil has magicians. Players who literally have spent as much time with a ball as they have with their families. Our organized soccer leagues tend to promote structure, discipline, etc. over their creativity (which almost reaches hotdogging). Plus our kids don't spend time outside organized events playing the game (the same thing is affecting baseball--no one plays sandlot ball all day anymore), so their skills aren't mutated to be more flowing, more creative, more perfect with the basic skills. The Dutch passing was beautiful in the first half against Portugal--it seemed every ball was in right position. I never saw the US do that in consecutive passes.

US Soccer needs a real midfield capable of creating. Donovan looked lost at even strength. He needs to play in Europe and run with the big boys to learn what it means to be a world class midfielder. Otherwise we will be waiting for another to take on that role.

This column from John Lopez at Houston Chronicle (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/lopez/3997524.html) is spot-on IMO of the problem with developing US talent, cultural overtones aside.

No one has refuted my claims about the game. Seems like very little regular play scoring. Officials essentially determine outcome not the players in many cases except some who are the best "actors." Prove me wrong. What are the stats on regular versus penalty related goals including corner kicks?

why would you include corner kicks with penalty kicks? the ref has little power when it comes to corner kicks. as for goals scored on true penalty kicks its probably around 5 or 6 for this world cup. true penalty kicks being the striker vs. the goalie and no one else. as for penalty kicks outside the box i know david beckham scored on a sweet shot but other then that i cant say but i'm willing to bet their have been more goals scored in live play then their has been goals scored thru penalties. unless you count the penalty shootout thats going on right now between switzerland and the ukraine.

OK - here is my attempt at refuting your claim:

Did you see Beckham's free kick? Do not tell me that the ref scored that goal!

Set plays are indeed a big part of soccer. PK's are the only real gimme's that the refs hand out (and they are not completely gimme's either). There are way less PK's scored than other goals. The risk of defending hard within 20-25 yards of the goal adds a ton of tension to both the players and the fans (at least the more sophisticated fans that enjoy more than seeing the ball going into the net).

If you bemoan set plays and that is a big part of your definition of a bad sport, you knock out the top 3 team sports in the US. Football and baseball are set plays every single play. Basketball by its nature also has tons of set plays (all plays other than fast breaks and the scrambling under the net).

I guess that leaves hockey as the most pure form of team sport. I will not argue with you there! Its my favorite by a long shot. (Ultimate is tied with hockey in my book as a great team sport).

of course if your from switzerland you cant shoot penalty kicks worth a dagnab anyways. or was that just good goalkeeping?

The set plays in sports like baseball, football and basketball aren't mostly a result of penalties but regular play. Beckham's shot was great but how legit was the penalty that produced his opportunity (I didn't see that part)? If that's how you are supposed to score, then it seems like the whole game is trying to figure out how to get a set play from a penalty. Makes little sense.

If more scoring occurred as a result of the flow of play with players running around rather than standing there in walls hoping for a lucky bounce, then the game would be much better. It's sad when the highlights of the game are the 8 yellow cards and one goal. You could argue that the only important part of a football or basketball game is the last 2 minutes (that sometimes last 30). But those 120 seconds are still 10-20 times longer than watching a single goal which may be as a result of an official's judgment possibly a third of the time. Whoopee!

Now maybe it's fun to run around and play it as good exercise. Certainly more fun than just jogging. But all you're doing is adding a little kicking, jabbing and jostling (tackling) to running to add some spice to watching joggers who stop to take a break every so often to kick a ball.

The set plays in sports like baseball, football and basketball aren't mostly a result of penalties but regular play.



I haven't spent much time pondering the societal/cultural forces that make the acceptance of sports, so maybe this is old news or maybe it is off the mark. But, I am wondering if in the US where freedom is the supreme value that we have more of an aversion to interference by "authority" than other cultures might.

Culturally, we also prefer subjective over objective. Fact (points being scored and loads of stats - ala baseball and football) is preferred over beauty (athleticism, flow of play, free-flowing teamwork). Calling penalties is objective. No one likes penalties to decide the game, but maybe less subjective-oriented societies find that part of the game easier to swallow.

You have not responded to the aspect of corner kicks (and throw-ins in the attacking 1/3). They are the most frequent set plays that are scored off of and they are not determined by the ref's (for the most part).

I think your argument has some merit but is still pretty weak. Penalties result is free throws in basketball. Free throw percentage is what wins and looses most games. Major amounts of yardage and game-changing situations in football are determined by refs. The strike zone in baseball....well you get the point.

Chess is all set plays. At least the ref's don't muck things up is that sport. :p

It's the percentage of game winning scoring generated by a single penalty that seems to be my problem. With basketball, there are 15-20 fouls that mostly result in points scored on the same basis as regular points. Since there are so many in a game that result in points, you can't point to just a single foul at the end of the game or penalty in football that determined the game's outcome. Those penalties are magnified in fans eyes because they are at the end but each one is essentially the same value. If you didn't get those points with 10 minutes to go, it's just as bad as mssing them at the end. Just like the first putt you miss costs as much as the last putt you miss.

If soccer goals had varying value for how far out the kick came from and whether a penalty produced it, then it might really be strategic. If a pure flow goal was worth 3 points inside the box and 2 points outside and a PK was worth 1 point then the bias would move toward scoring off of regular play. The way it is, a goal is so valuable how ever you get it that regular play value is diminished such that refs and penalties determine outcomes more than they should for any competition, not just soccer.

Sounds like there were quite a number of OB penalties in Japan. If throw and distance gets included, there's a point where certain hole designs have to be brought into question which Harold has monitored closely for the USDGC designs over the years. No more 17s on 17 anymore for example.

chuck we have enough donkeys like you in the US griping about soccer for this that and the other. you dont truly understand the game, so go to a hockey forum and talk about the stanley cup, not the world cup. it gets way to lame and old to have to constantly defend this game against american sports fans that think baseball is a great and exciting game. and Football, come on, is that sport really that fun to watch?? ummm, no not really, its acually quite boring, unless you like beer commercials. how many people in the world watch the superbowl for the football (not the commercials)??
Do you guys get sick and tired of the american view on soccer as i do? I've had to deal with it ever since I've been playing the game. I wish i was brought up in a thriving soccer country, brazil woulda been pimp, specially with the hottest women in the world residing there.

Hey, I'm dissing soccer on technical merits not just the typical whine that it has little scoring. If you can't defend it on technical merits then you're just as bad as those ignoring it on an emotional basis. I'm not even defending those other American sports as better but there's a better balance of offense and defense that gets represented in the score based on skill and not officiating. Sounds like they're even afraid to use instant replay in soccer to show how fake some of the "fouls" are.

Chess was mentioned and it has a simple win-lose-draw format but the "scoring" during the match has different piece point values and no official is penalizing the knight for an illegal tackle giving him an extra move.

Are all you guys arguing with Chuck new to the board or something? He just likes to stir things up for no other reason than arguing. You should simply ignore his inflammatory comments and get back to your more productive discussions of International Kick-Ball. :)

I think I'll be going to work late on Friday....

just because this is the only soccer experiance youve had and know, doesnt mean all games are this foul happy. the refs are way too tight this year, diving is a small part in the game, just like faking an injury in football late in the 4th, its just sumthn u have to accapt. and to say most goals come from PKs is the most ignorant thing you could say, PKs are pretty rare in any soccer game, and to also catogorize corners with PKs just further more shows your ignorance. stick to disc golf and chess. musta sucked being last picked in all the sports growing up, how many times did the slightly retarded kid get picked up before you?

Well, this is the world stage that many Americans are watching and they're putting on a poor show for justifying much effort to support soccer down the road. My cousin was a star HS goaltender and played for Indiana until he got injured, and I played club soccer, so I may be less ignorant than you think. It was hard to get picked last when I usually was a captain picking the teams in several sports back in the day (the ones better than soccer) /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif.

You seem to prefer personal attacks than actually supplying some factual information regarding scoring and the circumstances in which they happen in flow versus set plays. If that info isn't easily available, then fine. Enjoy watching the guys try to out "Riverdance" each other until the refs force a few breaks for set scoring plays whether deserved or not.

The Aussies got delt a new one. That was a horabile call. In the las fieve seconds of stopage time to make that call when nothing happend. You would think that the Refs hate the Aussies as much as the USA.

chuck i would respond with some more factual information but i am to sure you will find a way to make an argument were your right no matter how wrong you actually are. a bad call at the end of a basketball game is way more signifacant then a bad one at the begining of a game. just like a bad call at the end of a football or soccer game is more signifacant then a bad call at the begining.

What I want to know is how someone letters in CHESS...

I guess it's fitting, I lettered in the Spelling Bee, Science Fair and Mathletics.

What I want to know is how someone letters in CHESS...



It's five letters, of course... :eek:

actually only 4 letters -- one's repeated

Wow !!!! Some great games !!!!!

I hope to see Brazil vs Germany !!!!! :eek: :D

I'll be watching 3 of the 4 games in the next round of IKB. :)

I'll only get to see one of the 2 semis, and I'll be in the middle of the last round of the Tahoe Open when the final goes off. :(

Use a portable XM radio and listen to it live while your playing the final round. :D

Wow !!!! Some great games !!!!!

I hope to see Brazil vs Germany !!!!! :eek: :D


That would be cool! (Brazil has the hottest women I've ever seen!!)

FWIW, I was in Germany (with my high school symphonic band) in '80 when West Germany won it all...my host family and I opened a few bottles of Champagne and poured them into an empty fish bowl and then added a coupla cans of pineapple chunks...we then skewered the pineapple and proceed to live it up - German-style! Man, that country was PUMPED!! I was 17 & living it up!!

Germany advances. Now Brazil's turn. :cool:

It's too bad Portugal advanced. Their over-reliance on "the dive" as an offensive strategy is going to give us another crappy game in the semis. If they advance to the finals, then that game will be weak, too.

Boo diving.

I thought it was Jogo Bonita, not Mergulho Bonito.

France looked really good against Brazil. It's looking like World War III for the final: Germany versus France.

Between that performance and Alizee, it's almost enough to make one quit hating the french.

Almost. :)

I was in Germany last week on a work related trip and the WC fever is amazing. I watched the Germany-Argentina game at a small soccer club near Staufen and the crowd was crazy energetic. I spent later that night in Freiburg and the downtown area was a frenzy of patriotic energy. It was cool to be a part of it.

I would be shocked if the home country doesn't win it all.

Germany will win then !!!!!! How about that german crowd in the stands !!!!!

FRANCE!
theyve gotten better every game. their my pick. FRANCE!

Here's why --- ZIDANE that man is bad coldblooded :cool:

portugal is way better than england. they dive about as much as everybody else. oh i'm hurt i'm dying what theirs no one around me i'm only kidding :D

portugal is way better than england. they dive about as much as everybody else. oh i'm hurt i'm dying what theirs no one around me i'm only kidding :D


I've watched a lot of games and Portugal was a lot worse than the rest yesterday. I watched one of their group games and they weren't as bad, but yesterday was down right despicable. I know you drop and cry on contact to try for the card, but they woul drop and cry any time they lost the ball. It got so bad with them faking when England had an attack building that the English ignored the guy rolling on the ground and kept playing, and I'm pretty sure the crowd booing was for the faker and not for unsportsmanlike play from the English.

you would be correct ^^

Well , if Germany does play France......................Has France ever won a war by themselves ?

French people are more rude to Americans than German folks. Why are they so bitter ?

That's OK ................they let all those Muslims in and will control that stink hole anyway. /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

Yeah, all the Muslims in France should be destroyed.

We need to watch how Italy destroys France in the world cup, and use that information to annihilate Iraq, Iran, Palestine, and any other friggin Moslem country.

But first, let's watch Italy wipe out France.

Wipe em out I say.

Germany looked like the better side, but they couldn't finish. Or more precisely, they couldn't seem to create many good chances out of a lot of good possessions.

Italy did it when it counted with an awesome goal. Like the announcer said, there tweren't no mistake by Alimania, it was just a super effort by the blue-ies.

The garbage time goal to make it 2-0 doesn't really count since Germany had to press with only a minute left.

Tough defense all the way through by the Italians, though. It was a good game to watch, too.

well.....condisering italy isn't as good as you think they are whoever whins the france - portugal game has about a 90% chance of winning

Right. That will be France. We already have passed that point.

So who wants to start placing bets on this years champs. Italy or France?

I say the paisanos will win. $5 says so.

Italy dominated the Germans. Just like they did earlier in the year when they beat them 4-1. The Germans looked good for about the first 10 minutes of the game. That was it for them. Italia created all kinds of chances for scores. Sweet passes for both goals.
I'm taking France in tomorrow's semi game. 3-0.
Italia win it all on Sunday.

how can u score against italy when all they do is play defense, waht are they playin, like a 5-4-1? I wouldnt shoe in France just yet, they are a **** fine team, but portugal is pretty good as well... they may not have looked as great against england, but they where also missing thier best player. i look forward to watchn the game tomorrow, but could care less about who wins any game. US is out, so whats the point, kinda sucks knowing that it coulda been us in the final instead of Italy.

well considering the italians have been fixing matches.....anyone here follow anything besides the world cup? i dont think anyone that has to do with italy soccer deserves to win a world cup...

the friendly between germany and italy has no relevence....i mean italy just tied the united states. apparently it isn't that hard to score on them.

France is anything but a shoe in, Portugal is in the semi's for a reason. they are and awesome team....but france is definately stacked. gonna be a good game.

US is out, so whats the point, kinda sucks knowing that it coulda been us in the final instead of Italy.


what???

u R high, dude.

Greetings from Napoli,Italy.
Let me tell you i have never seen this much devotion to soccer than i have while i've been in Italy this past week,last night was C R A Z Y
This town was up all night long,try to think how it sounds at a football or basketball game or in my case a WWE match now imagin a whole coutry creaming and cheering for about 6 hrs.
I can't wait to see what happens if they win this sunday :eek: :eek: :eek:
This sunday i'll be watching the game from the Plaza with a bunch of crazy people :D

This sunday I'll be watching the game from the bar of a local pizza parlor, drinking Italian wine and listening to Sinatra/Prima/Dean Martin, pinky ring, chain around my hairy chest, polyester shirt, and fulfilling every stereotype you ever heard of NY guidos. I can't wait.

Viva Italia!!!!!! Oh Madon.

it was a good game thought for sure it was gonna be settled on penalty kicks then with just a couple a minutes left boom italy scores game over.

i agree with rhetts take that germany had better possesions just couldnt capitalize. as for italy's defense they were only okay they were exposed on more than a few occasions.they did a better job as the game went on however. i didnt care for the paisanos offense most of the time. lob up the ball and hope your guy timed the run up right but that worked like once the rest of the time offsides.

portugal france should be a good game but whos the best team portugal has faced so far mexico or england. france has beaten brazil and spain in dominant fashion and will now do the same to portugal.

like i said on my last post FRANCE will win the world cup. i like there chances even better now that the host nation wont be standing in there way. zidane will break down the mighty italian D. france 2-0

the ref also did a great job he actually got the players to stop diving.

I'll be playing the 3rd round of the Tahoe Open. Will there be a replay Sunday night?

yes rett i am high, but that doesnt mean i dont know what im talking about. had we beatn Italy, like we should have (cage, we where down to 9 guys and it was an own goal, TOTALLY different game), we could have won our group and been the team that plays Ukraine, then we would have had a hard fought battle vs Germany, we win that, BOOM GOES THE DYNOMITE, were heads up vs those stinky frenchies.

yup, and the Padres should've won the World Series last year.

In case you forgot, we got stomped at kick ball by Czech Republic and by Ghana. The Italy defense kept us from scoring. I followed group play (and the rest of this tourney) far more than I thought I would, so I know that two stompings and a failure to score means we deserved to come home after group play.

Looks like France vs Italy.

i am not debating whether or not the us should go on or not.....they were the biggest disappointment of the world cup. alot of talent.....horrible coach. too many old guys. this country just has to get some of its young players in and we will be the best.....i guarantee. but i know for a fact....italy will not win.

you know for a fact huh? what if it goes to PKs?

:D Italy has some great players and a excellent defense.

Zidane is Hot right now and France wants to Win Bad !!!!!!

Should be a Excellent Finals !!!!!! :D

Third place game looks to be good too !!!!

no chance of pk's

How long will Codage be Codagae isn't it time to move on to something your own.

Yea quit being coda's *^&$%......j/k :D

well tokyo i will let you talk when you can play....

as for bubba. "cb2?" :D

I m just giving u prop's for moving past just a codagae I think it is time for you to make your own name. The past few tourny's you have earned it.

:eek: I didn't give myself that name and I defiantly don't represent it.

Aren't you CB1

Are you gonna caddy for me at World's on your day's off?

i didn't give myself any names either....

i will definately caddy for you if i am there.

it's almost gone anyway....

Well then your BB2 and Coda is BB1

lol.....only if you are top 2!!! in the world

I will be top1 in the world in Jr's.

I thought that we established that that does not count.

well there you go. don't count it yet though.

LOL it's a rap. :D

it definately counts. do you have a world title tokyo??? does a masters world title count?

exactly - just because he is good and young doesnt mean you should tell him a world title is worthless. he can play in an age protected division, and i dont see the problem in him doing it

Not if you can still be playing open and compete at the top level! Then you are just a sandbagger.

go talk to devan about that. he has played longer than me and bubba both. and he played juniors.

If I ever see him I wil let him know, but I havent seen him.

Not if you can still be playing open and compete at the top level! Then you are just a sandbagger.

And who would you be talking about playing open and competing at the top level?

Brad Hammock, Dean Tannock, Gunner, Mitch Mac..... those type of people.

Any of those guys Italian or French ?

Not sure anyone would favor Italy over France.

without France we would not have won the war of Independence.

without France, no Statue of Liberty

France was our ally in WWII; Italy was our enemy.

the only reason i can figure we'd be mad at France is that they were right not to support our hasty invasion of Iraq over alleged WMD's... **** French /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

kidding aside, the French team is a lot of old guys. Go Masters! Kick It!

coda, you donkey, stick with throwing a piece of plastic around the course. Glad i put my money on Italy with those odds, hope youre not a gambler coda

Sweet headbutt. Wonder what that guy said to make Zidane do that?

i am not coda.....

Zidane blew the game....single handedly

Not sure anyone would favor Italy over France.

without France we would not have won the war of Independence.

without France, no Statue of Liberty
How much did that cost the United States ?

France was our ally in WWII; Italy was our enemy.

the only reason i can figure we'd be mad at France is that they were right not to support our hasty invasion of Iraq over alleged WMD's... **** French /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

kidding aside, the French team is a lot of old guys. Go Masters! Kick It!



You had stated....
"Not sure anyone would favor Italy over France."

Well for myself , I grew up in a Italian neighborhood and they were always very cool to me. And watched my back.

My experiences with the French people has been less than social. They were rude and said they hate Americans. :mad:

I never did or say anything to the French folks when I was growing up , so why the Hate ? :confused:

Anyways.........
I just won $ 2,567.00 because Italy KICKED some French buttt.

Typical French , win a battle , but lose the War !!!! /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
The French did sell weapons to the Insurgents !!! :mad:
That's why they could not support us when we asked for their help !!!! :eek:

Besides , Italian food is way better than French food.

And French's best player , Zidane was red carded and was not able to step up to the podium with his team mates to except his second place medal. :eek:

How embarrassing is that on your final game with France !!!! :eek:

He does look alot like Jason Stratham ( Transporter 1 &amp; 2 ) from the movies though !!!!

Also thanks to Germany for winning the third place game !!!!

coda = codage, didnt realize i had to spell the entire name out, no wonder you had no clue about the game.

my name is jared pennington. and i know alot more about soccer than most of the people on this board. i have played for almost 15 years.

my name is jared pennington. and i know alot more about soccer than most of the people on this board



Easy there killer :D

haha, well the guy's implying that i dont know what i'm talking about. :Dwhere were you today for the soccer game by the way? we won by one. i had a rip that hit the pole inside the goal and they didnt call it a goal.

my name is jared pennington. and i know alot more about soccer than most of the people on this board. i have played for almost 15 years.

15 year's?? You were playing soccer when you were 4 year's old?

haha, well the guy's implying that i dont know what i'm talking about. :Dwhere were you today for the soccer game by the way? we won by one. i had a rip that hit the pole inside the goal and they didnt call it a goal.

Did you think he is going to watch you play soccer when the World Cup was on?? :D:)

no but he plays on the team with me....JERK

and actually yes...i was playing soccer when i was 4. is that hard to believe?? :D:eek:

welllllllllllllllllllll.............Did you think he was gonna come play soccer with you when the World Cup was on? :D :eek: :) :cool::D :p ;)

well kyle and the rest of the team didn't seem to have a problem. stop being difficult you little bastard :D:D

well kyle and the rest of the team didn't seem to have a problem. stop being difficult you little B!TCH :D:D

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo There's a 1 month ban there. :D

ya maybe for you.....i didn't say anything wrong :D:o

What time was your game, because I was at Dolese around 4:30pm and he was there?

it was at 2. i played another one after it. then went and saw pirates of the caribbean

Well, (you know what) is another one of those word's that will get ya a ban.

If you have been playing for 15 year's then why aren't you playing in the World Cup for U.S.A ?

lol....not that easy

i was suppose to be at your game? by the way, MR 15 years of soccer, just because the ball hit the inside post of the goal doesnt mean its a goal. just like out of bounds, the entire ball has to cross the entire line and pole, so the ref was right saying that it was not a goal, my full ride soccer scholarship taught me that.

i was suppose to be at your game? by the way, MR 15 years of soccer, just because the ball hit the inside post of the goal doesnt mean its a goal. just like out of bounds, the entire ball has to cross the entire line and pole, so the ref was right saying that it was not a goal, my full ride soccer scholarship taught me that.

Come on now dude use some common sense, why would he tell you that you were suppose to be at his game??? And who the hell are you suppose to be the guru of soccer?

well i was the the one talkn trash to him, and yes, i am the soccer guru, how may i help you?

Greeting from Napoli
Well that was on crazy night last night the streets of Napoli,Italy. were on fire last night,i watched the game from the town plaza on a big teletron sceen.Everyone had a great time and it was amazing just to be here and wittness the whole thing first hand.

Can someone tell me why Zidane got sent off? It's not like he used his hands or anything.

Well, he wasn't using his head...

Zidane blew the game....single handedly



How did Zidane lose it single-handedly?? Doubtful France would have scored in the remaining time in overtime.... TREZEGUET would still probably had his shot (and missed).


but i know for a fact....italy will not win.

Nice call!

the donkey also said, " i know for a fact, it wont go to PKs"

well then you must have seen a goal with some depth right, im not an expert but i am pretty sure there is a pole in there too..... http://eprentice.sdsu.edu:16080/portfolio/lshyu/Images/soccer%20goal3.jpg

lol.....i know zidane didnt lose the game single handedly, i was just #$*&$! off at the time. i just can't justify the fact that italy is the best in the world...apparently so. they played as well as they needed to each game. anything said previously is just trash talk....

congrats on your full ride scholarship. i am sure you deserved it. i have been there too. but you aren't the only disc golfer in the world who has played soccer. it's been my life since i was 3

are you telling me that would count as a goal in your picture or not?

i am showing you the pole inside the goal. the one that comes off of the cross bar and creates depth. i hit that and it didnt count.

Viva la Headbutt! (Huh huh)

Viva la Headbutt! (Huh huh)



Try this !!!! :D
http://www.addictinggames.com/zidaneheadbuttgame.html

Or try loading the game from here.
http://www.addictinggames.com

I watched the Under-20 World Cup match against Brazil last Friday night and it was AWESOME! Freddy Adu set up two goals in the match and the USA beat Brazil 2-1. Against Poland ealier in group play, he had a had trick.

The USA is in the knockout round this Wednesday night 7/11 vs. Uruguay at 7:30 PM EDT.

Not the World Cup, but did anyone see the Dutch CRUSH the Italians 3-0 today in the Euro 2008 tournament? :eek:

Yup, and it was niiiiiiiice.

Saw it and loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I root against the Italians unless they are playing the French or Argentinians and then I usually root for a tie. /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

Van Nistelrooy was about 2 meters offside when he made the first goal. As it turns out, it didn't matter. The Dutch simply outplayed the Italians - better passing, better movment off the ball, more hustle.

So far the teams that have impressed are the Germans, the Portuguese, the Dutch and, believe it or not, the Swiss. Although Switzerland loss to the Czechs 1-0, it was one of those freak things where no matter what they did, it didn't work out. Now, we're in a must win situation against Turkey on Wednesday. Even if we win, we'll have to at least tie the Portuguese and hope the Turks beat the Czechs. Hey, anything is possible - Greece is the defending champion!!!

(For Americans that just don't get it, there is nothing that beats the atmosphere of the Euro or the World Cup - not the Super Bowl, not the World Series, not the NBA Finals.)

As hosts, I liked the Swiss team a lot coming into the tournament but without Frei I think they are doomed.

I also liked Croatia heading into the tourny but was not impressed with their first match - they were fortunate to get a penalty kick early on and got outplayed badly by the Austrians in the 2nd half.

I didn't think our chances were that good coming into the tournament. We haven't played well in our friendlies over the last year and we had a few injury/fitness questions (Barnetta, Degen, M�ller).

I agree with you about the injury to Frei. You could hear the collective groan all across Switzerland when he went down. We all knew what it meant. Although, Yakin did a pretty good job in replacing him. The problem with Yakin is that he doesn't mix well with the team and really tampers with the chemistry. I think he's almost as good as Frei but doesn't have nearly the leadership qualities.

Jeff,

Where are you watching the matches? They're all on TV here (multiple channels - multiple languages!) but, I'm going to be in the States during the semi-finals and finals.

espn360 has them
watched it on my comp

I just got home from work and watched the game which I had DVRed. The second goal of the game by Wesley Sneijder was easily the best of the tournament so far. EASILY. Just a brilliant setup by Dirk Kuyt and strike by Sneijder. :cool:

Dan,
The Semi-finals on Wednesday, June 25, 2008 and Thursday, June 26, 2008 are on ESPN and the finals on Sunday, June 29, 2008 are on ABC so you will have absolutely no problems whatsoever watching the matches.

<font color="orange"> Nistelrooy</font> was not offsides when he scored the first goal yesterday. The <font color="blue"> Italian</font> defender, <font color="blue"> Panucci</font>, had collided with <font color="blue"> Buffon</font> (the goalie) shortly before the goal and was laying on the ground over the goal line.

According to the rules, he still counts as the second player for determination of offsides unless he specifically tells the referee he is out of the play. Since <font color="blue"> Panucci</font> did not tell the referee he was out of the play - obviously - he was counted and <font color="orange"> Nistelrooy</font> was onsides.

I thought this was true when I saw the play, but the <font color="red"> Swiss</font> announcers did not know the rule and claimed that this was one of the worst non-calls they had ever seen. Like a fool, I expected the announcers to know the rules and accepted their explanation.

Here's a link to UEFA's explanation:

Nistelrooy's goal explained (http://en.euro2008.uefa.com/news/kind=1/newsid=711341.html#uefa+supports+dutch+goal+decisi on)

Some Interesting facts:

1) <font color="blue"> Italy's</font> first loss to <font color="orange"> The Netherlands</font> since 1978!
2) <font color="blue"> Italy's</font> worst Euro defeat ever!
3) <font color="blue">Italy's </font> first opening game loss in a tournament in 14 years!

It was so beautiful to look at the paper this morning and see <font color="blue"> Italy</font> at the bottom of the table!

Spain came out HOT!! IF they keep this pace up, there could be 4 or 5 goals.

I went out to lunch with some Russian co-workers to watch the game and they were none too pleased about the breakdown in defense by their countrymen. They just have no answer for Villa and Torres.

or cesc. the french need to play their younger players if they want to compete.

So after every team has played one game it looks like...

The Good: Spain, Netherlands, Germany, Portugal, Sweden

The Decent: France (should rebound), Croatia, Czech Rep, Romania

The Bad: Italy (wow), Switzerland, Turkey, Austria, Poland, Greece, Russia

The only part about <font color="red">Switzerland</font> that looked bad was their inability to finish.

Well, that and <font color="red"> Alex Frei's</font> knee! :mad:

<font color="red">Hopp Schweiz! </font>

And I'm still not sure if <font color="yellow">Sweden</font> really looked good, or <font color="white">Greece </font> really sucked!

Three hours until kick-off between <font color="red">Switzerland </font> and <font color="red">Turkey </font>. I'm skipping the first game to go play a little disc golf. I'll be home by 8:30 and at least on my second beer before the match starts! The loser can't advance to the knock-out round. Exciting!

<font color="red">Hopp Schweiz! </font>

Apparently the Swiss goalkeep Benaglio gave up a very easy goal.