CommentaryEnglandNews The Wormburner: A Whole Lotta Questions (Fantasy Football, Draft)July 9, 2019 — by Rob Kirby
BrazilCommentaryHistoryPhotographyThe AmericasWorld Cup Dictators and Soccer: The Junta, Argentina 1978, Disappearings, Match Fixing and Early Deity Era Maradona (Argentina)July 11, 2014 — by Rob Kirby
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Video

World Cup Video Highlights: South Korea #KOR

June 26, 2010 — by Suman

Video highlights (courtesy of @footytube) from South Korea's 3 group matches collected below. Tues June 22 (Day 12): South Korea 2, Nigeria 2 An exciting and crucial match which could have swung either way.  Had Nigeria managed to win, they would have advanced to the Round of 16 instead of South Korea. Thurs June 17 (Day 7): Argentina 4, South Korea 1: Although their first goal came on an own goal by the South Koreans, Argentina finally showed the artistic attack everyone was waiting for, ultimately overpowering the resilient South Korean side in the 2nd half. Argentina did give up a goal on a very bad defensive mistake just before the half. Sat June 12 (Day 2): South Korea 2, Greece 0 South Korea dominated Greece in the first match of the tournament for both teams: Although Greece had an early chance off a corner kick that could/should have very

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Events

Our 1st Fan Giveaway! Uruguay v South Korea tix @iplaybeautiful

June 25, 2010 — by Suman — 1

Our first fan giveaway..our friend/fan Joyce has 2 reservations for tmrw morning's Uruguay v South Korean match at the PlayBeautiful NYC pop-up virtual stadium, located on Mulberry Street in Nolita NYC. Joyce is not going to use them (as she'd prefer a quieter place to concentrate on her Reds), and neither can we...so if anyone wants them comment to this post and they're yours! (We went there for Portugal-Brazil this morning, and it's a cool place to watch a game--stadium seating for 100 in front of a huge projection TV image, with concession stands serving coffee, tea, beer, snacks, etc. There was a good turnout of Brazilians this morning..we imagine the atmosphere will only be better for the 1st Round of 16 match!)

Live Blog

Liveblogging Chile v Spain

June 25, 2010 — by Sean — 3

The tournament's favorites before the start need a win today to ensure their passage to the knockout phases. Spain is sure to come hard and fast, and after that easy victory over the hapless Hondurans they may just have gotten back their swagger. They'll need it against a Chilean side that has looked confident in their two wins. Will La Roja be able to pierce the usually-solid Spanish defense, or will the star-studded front line of Spain tear apart the South Americans? Chile need at least a point to guarantee advancement – expect all guns a'blazin! Key men for Spain: every stinkin' one of them. Key men for Chile:  Matias Fernandez, and Carlos Carmona. Too bad they're both suspended with two yellows a piece. Jorge Valdivia (Al Ain, UAE) will stand in for Fernandez, and Rodrigo Millar (Colo Colo, CHI) is probable for the midfielder Carmona. All the action after the bump!

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MVH

And the Brazil v. Portugal Most Valuable Hottie is… Anyone but Ronaldo

June 25, 2010 — by Christine — 1

Wow! What a painfully boring game. To be fair, there were some great passes and fancy footwork and even a few nice upshort shots, but overall: weva. I was also sad to see Kaka on the sidelines. He's always fun to watch and I don't like seeing him in his 'street' clothes. When he's not in his kit, he looks kinda... girly. Sorry, Kaka, just keeping it real! Ok so back to the matter at hand: Most Valuable Hottie. UGH - it was kinda hard to pick one, what with CRISTIANO RONALDO hogging screentime for most of the game. (Yes, he's attractive... But the vanity! Arrogance! Perfectly shaped brows! BARF). But after careful consideration, I've decided that this match's MOST VALUABLE HOTTIE award goes to... Nilmar Honorato da Silva! Nilmar (born 14 July 1984 in Bandeirantes, Paraná), is a Brazilian forward, currently playing for Villareal. He's a cutie. Didn't do

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HistoryUnited States

Uniformly Unlovely

June 25, 2010 — by Tommy — 2

Sean's post with the pic of the Croatians in their pajamas triggered memories of the many spectacularly poor World Cup uniform choices the past 20+ years. Here are my (least) favorites. Click Here to View Worst Unis

Live Blog

Liveblogging Brazil v Portugal

June 25, 2010 — by Sean — 9

In what promises to be the most entertaining match of Group of Death play, the 5-time cup winners take on their mother nation in what is essentially a showcase (as both squads are sure for the next round, unless of course Portugal lose and Ivory Coast win by 9 goals). Lots of Portuguese being spit about the field, but we expect a pretty and clean game as Brazil are on the verge of finding their flair, while Portugal have quality peppered around the field, plus superstar gay icon Christiano Ronaldo. We'll cover the afternoon games as well, but for now, roubaram-me o relógio! Oops, we mean, aqui vamos nós! ____________________________________________ [liveblog]16[/liveblog]

Uncategorized

Brazil v Portugal – 1966 (via @NYTimesGoal)

June 25, 2010 — by Suman

Eusebio conquers Pele
Just came across this history lesson and video via the NYT Goal blog's entry for this morning's highly anticipated intra-lusophonal match: And now, a history lesson. The Seleção and Selecção never played each other until 1956, but since then they have met 18 times. Brazil emerged the winner 12 times, with 2 draws, though most of the games were played in Brazil. Yet how often do you think these sister nations have clashed in anger? Answer: only once, at the 1966 World Cup … and Portugal won, 3-1. That match at a packed Goodison Park in Liverpool — the meeting of the all-time greats Eusébio and Pelé — was the group finale for both teams, and it eliminated Brazil while sending Portugal on a path to the semifinals in their first World Cup appearance. Eusébio scored twice, but many remember the game for its

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Commentary

Hating on US Soccer—Bill Plaschke’s Sadly Simplistic Soccer Vision

June 25, 2010 — by Ryan — 1

Come on ... that was pretty good ..
So how big was the U.S. victory on Wednesday?  For most Generation Xers (like myself), is there any doubt that Landon Donovan’s goal might now be the most memorable in US soccer history?  But plenty of sportswriters didn’t attend high school in the 1980s or the early 1990s, never attended concerts by the Roots or Jane's Addiction, and hate Allen Iverson for questioning the efficacy of “practice” (never mind that NBA players are forced to ball 82 games a year, making practice fundamentally stupid in the regular season), meaning they fail to grasp the nuances of a sport that for much of their lives was viewed suspiciously.  Moreover, this willful ignorance fails to take into account the sport’s historical trajectory stateside. Take Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke. Now Plaske has made myopic soccer comments before.  For

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