World Cup 2010 Blog: “The Underrated Files – Gonzalo Higuaín.” plus 9 more

---

• The Underrated Files – Gonzalo Higuaín.
• World Cup Moments: Jurgen Klinsmann Does Gymnastics, 1990.
• 10 World Cup Questions: France
• Daily Dose: May 17th, 2010 – Jozy Altidore Shirt Swap Edition
• World Cup Moments: Yordan Letchkov Proves Bald Is Better, 1994.
• Beginners’ Guide to the World Cup
• World Cup 2010 Jerseys: Portugal.
• The 2010 World Cup Bracket Contest
• Japan 2022: World Cup Gone ‘Avatar’.
• What Channels are Showing the World Cup? (Worldwide)

The Underrated Files – Gonzalo Higuaín. Posted: 18 May 2010 02:10 AM PDT Name: Gonzalo Higuaín Age: 22 Country: Argentina Other country: France Club: Real Madrid Position: Forward Height: 184cm Vital stats: 8-22-27 Strengths: Finishing, pace, football ability, Gonzalo Higuain. Weaknesses: Diego Maradona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ramon Calderon, no one likes him. Nickname: El Pipita (The Little Pipe) Expectations: TBD If Gonzalo Higuain were bought by The Florentino Perez Regime, he would be the cat’s pajamas; instead, he’s the dog’s smoking jacket: highly productive, highly skilled and entirely underrated. Gonzalo was born of Argentine parents in France, and thus with the birth-defect known as dualinternationaleligibilityitis, a crippling and confusing disorder which is often miraculously cured by a team of doctors in the country with the better football team. Despite calls by his papa to play for Les Bleus, Higuain chose to play for the country of his blood, Argentina. But before that happened, Gonzalo grew up playing in Argentina; he played for River Plate, one half of Argentina’s great Clasico rivalry with Boca Juniors. Before his twentieth birthday he was snapped up in a double Argie coup with Fernando “Lady” Gago by the General Calderon-led Real Madrid for €13m. At this time he was one of world football’s premier talents. The first two seasons displayed moderate success before his personal Big Bang occurred in 2008-09 with 22 goals. At this point he was one of the premier players in world football, at 21. In the summer of 2009 Florentino Perez wrastled control of the team from General Calderon’s army and embarked on his second Galactico Quest, forsaking football for shirt sales; in came Cristiano Ronaldo (€€€€), Kaka (€€€€), Xabi Alonso (€€€), Karim Benzema (€€€), Raul Albiol (€€) and Alvaro Arbeloa (€). As the rumors continued to pile on, so too did the goals. Gonzalo was not, you see, a Perez buy, and this is something of a taboo at the Santiago Bernabeu; Florentino’s vision must always remain supreme. Rumors of more big name signings – bigger, sexier names – and bigger shirt sales ran amok while rumors of a Higuain exit remain lurking around the corner, occasionally popping out a curious look. The goals continued to pile in, 27 at year’s end, while the rumors did too – his final day was marked by ambiguity over his future. Entirely productive, entirely underrated. Despite these goals, it took Diego Maradona – playing great, coaching buffoon – until October of 2009 to give Gonzalo his first cap, despite giving most of Argentina a free cap already and with qualification for World Cup 2010 very much up in the air. Four caps later, he has two goals, including the one in a one-nil Munich victory over Germany. That’s one in two; or: a 12.6% better return rate than Maradona Himself. (Diego’s moonlighting as our copy editor.) At World Cup 2010, he may or may not feature much, but was it assured is that he should. And if not, ship him to France under FIFA’s new Idiocy Rule, which allows underappreciated players with alternate eligibility to explore greener pastures. Like sexual curiosity, but without horrifying flashbacks. Gonzalo Higuain: the cat’s pajamas, even if no one knows it. |Part of our series A Casual Guide to World Cup 2010|

World Cup Moments: Jurgen Klinsmann Does Gymnastics, 1990. Posted: 17 May 2010 11:40 PM PDT One needn’t be a rubbish player to resort to diving – many of the greats have done it. Drogba does it, Cristiano Ronaldo does it, and Pele probably did it too. Jurgen Klinsmann, on one summer night in 1990, did it perhaps better than anyone else in World Cup final history. (He might’ve done it a couple of other times as well…) To a degree, it’s hard to fault Jurgen – Pedro Monzon was coming fashionably late to the party at Klinsmann’s feet with bad intentions, earning his red card, and the chances for losing an appendage were very real, so he had to jump. But then he…Jurgen just lurched into the Grim Reaper’s grasp right there on the Stadio Olimpico pitch. The moment itself is equally as important to the ramification it had on the game – Monzon was sent off in the 65th (the first red in a World Cup final) and Argentina were forced down to ten, and later nine. There would be no penalty this time, but five minutes from ninety there was another debated foul, this time in the box, and Germany won 1-0. Back to the good stuff: the dive. It’s not the trans-Atlantic flight he took from ground-to-ground, but the aftershock. Surely he wasn’t feeling great, but surely that was a bit much, yeah? He was a finishing back flip away from making the German rhythmic gymnastics team at Barcelona ‘92. And the lurch deserved a red, if only for the offense to good TV viewing, which might make it the only “foul” in World Cup history in which two players deserved red despite there being (almost?) no contact whatsoever. That’s awfully impressive when you think about it. But at least in an event so often defined by its life or death seriousness, Jurgen provided some timeless comedy. Unless you’re Argentina, who…well, I don’t think they like Jurgen yet. Maybe they like him even less now.

10 World Cup Questions: France Posted: 17 May 2010 10:10 PM PDT If you're unfamiliar with World Cup Blog, then allow me to explain: The blog you're reading now is the front page, but the core of WCB is the multitude of team specific blogs, including one for each of the World Cup 2010 teams. The authors of these team blogs have forgotten more about their sides than I'll ever know, so I decided to tap that knowledge by asking each of them a set of 10 questions. Today it's the turn of (in order of when I received their answers…) Laurie, Jean-François, Jeff, Sarah and Inara from France World Cup Blog. Read on for the Raymond Domenech love-a-thon… 1. Who is France’s best player? Laurie: This question is tough. There’s tons of individual talent on this team that doesn’t always show itself in NT play. Nearly everybody went invisible at some point during qualifying. I guess I’ll go with Thierry Henry despite the age, the lack of current club form, and the handball controversy, just because he’s Titi. And Hugo Lloris has the potential to be a standout goalkeeper eventually. Jean-François: France has a lot of talent, but I must say that Yoann Gourcuff is France’s best player, or at least our most influential player. Other players that will play a key role in 2010 are Hugo Lloris, Thierry Henry, Patrice Evra, and Franck Ribery. Jeff: Ribery. I wish this category were more hotly contested. Ribery is France’s only attacking player who is able to always maintain a respectable level of performance playing for France. Even when France are playing disgracefully, if Ribery is in there he’s at least creating chances. He has pace with the ball at his feet, and he gets beyond defenders and puts in dangerous crosses. For a given match, Gourcuff, Toulalan, Anelka, Henry, Gignac, even Benzema once upon a time, might be France’s best player, but all of these guys suffer from some kind of mental block, not helped by Doms, that sometimes, or often, keeps them from playing well. Sarah: Hugo Lloris. He is the man, the boss and our only hope (at this point) for a successful World Cup campaign. If he can do this every game, he can take France to the semi-finals (at least)- just like he did for Lyon this season in the Champions League! Inara: Based on form, probably Franck Ribery and Hugo Lloris. Both of them have been on fire recently. On potential, Yoann Gourcuff, but he just hasn’t been at his best for club or country in the past few months. 2. What do you think of coach Raymond Domenech? Laurie: Pfffftttbbblllltt Jean-François: Not many think highly of Raymond Domenech, he has no talent as a coach. He insists on playing 2 Defensive Midfielders even with all of the amazing players Les Bleus have in the offence. Fans were amazed and disgusted that Domenech was resigned after his awful appearance at the 2008 UEFA Euro competition. Jeff: Doms is a mediocrity. An average supporter picked at random would be better. Sarah: ohh, Rayray – how I despise thee! I can tolerate your unibrow and pension for romantic proposals at inappropriate moments – I could have even learned to appreciate these eccentricities had it not been for your horrible selection choices (famous omissions include Malouda, Cheyrou, Valbuena, Flamini, Clichy, Mexes, the list goes on and on) and bizarre strategic choices (Boumsong Boum Boum? No Scorpios?). However, it hasn’t all been bad. He did choose to promote Lloris over Mandanda, and called-up a whole new generation of French talent (Gourcuff, Nasri, Benzema, Ben Arfa, etc). Though, Gourcuff really hasn’t been the same since your love affair began… Can’t think of another positive thing in his 8 year term… Inara: Until recently, I was one of the few who supported Domenech (well, more like tolerated). He’s a quirky guy who has no tact, but I can deal with that. His tactics haven’t been the greatest, but many of his players are egotistical underachievers who think they deserve to play based on their media hype and past glories. I get that it’s hard to find the perfect formation with players that you only see ten days out of the year, but I kept hoping that eventually, he’d find the winning formula. However, his refusal to budge from ineffective tactics (like using two DMs no matter the opponent) and his squad selection are really frustrating, and I’ll be happy to see a change in the management of Les Bleus. NOTE: The FFF have announced that Laurent Blanc will replace Raymond Domenech after World Cup 2010. 3. What do you think of France’s World Cup 2010 kits? Laurie: Don’t hate them, but won’t be buying one either. I liked the 2006 kits better. Jean-François: France’s Home kits are a modern twist on the 1998 Jerseys, I absolutly love them! The Navy Blue that they were is very nice and goes well with their white shorts and red socks. The away ones are white, and since so many other teams are going with black away kits, France will be unique. This should be the last of the Adidas French Jerseys, as France signed a contract with Nike to start in 2011. Jeff: The white away kits are pretty decent, and the blue home kits less so. If I could get one of the white kits for my five year old with his name and age on the back, I would. Sarah: Our players wear a giant cock on their breast, ’nuff said. For a more thorough critique of both the home and away jersey – please refer to this link. Inara: I like the white kit. I think it’s very elegant, and well, French. However, the blue kit with the red claw marks – or should I say streaks – over the rib cage make the players look like they just got mauled by wild animals. 4. What is France’s biggest strength? Laurie: An ability to do the unexpected. (Even when the unexpected is “qualify for major tournaments where your players’ talents should have made them a shoo-in.”) Jean-François: By far France’s biggest strength is the vast abundance of world class players, substuting players is never a problem with Les Bleus. Every player on the Starting XI and the bench are very influential for their club teams. Jeff: In the last qualifier against Ireland it was Lloris in goal, but going into the tournament, if there’s going to be a strength, it’s probably France’s self-belief. There’s a vague feeling that this sputtering team could kick into gear. Sarah: Hugo Lloris – Seeing him in action this season for Lyon both in Ligue 1 and the Champions League should be enough to give any France fan hope for the World Cup. He carried Lyon on his back all season – why not Les Bleus? France is very fortunate to be extremely deep in the goalkeeper position – as both Mandanda and Carraso would be first choices in most teams. It’s clear how spoiled we are when Frey isn’t even getting called up…. Inara: Their depth. France has so much talent in nearly every position (except RB and CB, where they are a little lightweight). How many other NTs can say that they don’t even have room for guys like Sebastien Frey and Mathieu Flamini? 5. …and biggest weakness? Laurie: Raymond Domenech and his insistence on formulas and formations that don’t match the talents of his players, not to mention his inability to pick a team that plays well together. Jean-François: France’s biggest weakness is, sadly, lack of desire and optimism. France do not seem to be determined to do well this summer. People believe that Domenech is largely responsable for this, that he can not motivate his players to strive for success. Jeff: The manager. Any success this team has is in spite of the manager. He’s a liability, but there could be enough talent among the players to overcome that. Sarah: Please see my answer to question #2. But Domenech isn’t the only obstacle France will have to overcome to redeem ourselves after our Euro 2008 debacle (ya know, where we didn’t win a single game). Our captain, Thierry Henry, has become one of the most hated figures in football after handballing France into the World Cup finals. On top of that – all of our regular strikers (Henry, Anelka, Benzema, Gignac) are probably in the worst form of their lives all at the same time. We are in a bit of defensive crisis with our regular center backs (Gallas, Abidal) both recovering from longterm injuries. But, even with all those injuries – there are tons of extremely talented players to replace them. France has never been at a loss of talented individuals, but we have struggled to make all those individuals work together as a team. We have a bunch of egos- the biggest of all belonging to Rayray Domenech. Inara: Despite having an impressive array of attacking options, France are not threatening in front of the goal. They have all this possession and are great at build up play, but once they get near the penalty area, their targeting skills totally fail. Maybe they should play more video games. 6. If you could steal one player from any other World Cup 2010 team, then who would it be and why? Laurie: Xavi, because he makes things happen. France desperately needs that. Jean-François: Most people would ask for someone like Lionel Messi or Wayne Rooney. If I could steal any player from another team it would be Gonzalo Higuain of Argentina. Not only for his skills and techinical abilities, he was born and raised in France and I was really expecting him to play for the French National Team. Domenech offered him a spot on the team, but he eventually turned us down for Argentina. Jeff: Messi. Sarah: I’m going to avoid the obvious and pass on Messi, Xavi and Rooney. We have a strong crop of talented individual players-but we don’t really have a strong leader to help bring all these players together and show the younger generation how to play with pride, grit and determination… I can only think of two players who might fulfill this criteria: Mascherano or Puyol. Inara: Xavi, probably. It would be nice to have a midfield player who could actually make things happen. 7. Tell us one thing about your team that the rest of the world might not know… Laurie: Raymond Domenech’s baby momma (the one he proposed to after Euros) is rather shockingly easy on the eyes. And there are unsubstantiated rumors that two former NT players fell permanently out of favor after they hit on her. Jean-François: One player that many do not know about is Hugo Lloris. Hugo is France’s newly established #1 goalkeeper, and he is very good. In the past year Lloris has gone from a standard keeper to a world class player. People are reconizing his talent now, especially those watching him in the Champions’ League. Jeff: There’s a lot of depth among France players. There was a statistic bouncing around about the number of French players in teams that reached the last 8 of the UEFA Champions League, and it was maybe double the number of the next most represented nation. France could take an entire 23 of uncapped players and be competitive. Players like Steed Malbranque, for example. Sarah: There is a lot of talk about the older members of our team (Henry, Anelka, Vieira etc), but the bigger gamble for France is how Yoann Gourcuff and Hugo Lloris will play given that this will be their first major tournament. Despite all of the focus on Yoann Gourcuff in World Cup Qualification, this will be his first major tournament with France at the senior level since he did not receive his first call-up until August 2008. The same is true of Hugo Lloris, who did not win the #1 spot from Steve Mandanda until November 2008. Inara: Sidney Govou, who seems to inspire no confidence in fans of Les Bleus, has scored 10 goals in 43 matches. That’s only four less than Nicolas Anelka, who has 20 more appearances than Govou. 8. What would you consider success/failure for France at World Cup 2010? Laurie Everybody else is saying anything short of the quarters would be failure. Jean-François: If France do not get into the quarter-finals I believe that this will be a complete failure of a World Cup for France. France are the current runners-up and they have to prove the world that they are still amongst the top teams. Jeff: The only real success would be winning the tournament. We made the final the last time, and that was somewhat of a consolation, and some of the wins along the way (Togo, Spain, Brazil) were fantastic, but on balance it was a disappointment because we were slaughtered in the penalty shootout in the final. Sarah: The French Football Federation has set a goal of “at least” semis – so anything less than that will be a failure. Given our form, anything better than that is just gravy…Plus, we saw the worst in 2008 – nothing can be worse than that Euro atrocity for a fan- except of course the day the FFF announced that Domenech would be staying on as the coach. We already know that won’t happen after this World Cup – so it can only get better from here… Inara: I would be thrilled if Les Bleus made it to the quarterfinals. It would be horrible if we didn’t even make it out of the group stages, like in Euro 2008. 9. What are you most exited about at World Cup 2010? Laurie: Aside from general excitement, I’m looking forward to it being over so France can get a new coach and fans can start looking toward 2014! Jean-François: There isn’t much about the World Cup that I am not looking forward too. I believe that most french fans are looking forward to the end of the World Cup. The end of the world cup will mean a new coach and less pressure on Les Bleus. A clean slate for the Euro 2012 competition. Jeff: Seeing what will happen. Sarah: Its sink or swim time for the team. After four years of justifying and tolerating sub-par performances and disappointing results, the possibility of this team finally playing like the group of talented players that we all know they are is exhilarating! Plus, when its all over – its au revoir to Domenech- making the end of this tournament a win-win regardless of the results! Inara: I can’t wait to see Hugo Lloris in action. He’s been terrific all year for Lyon in both the Champions League and in Ligue 1, and he’s been very reliable for Les Bleus. The World Cup is going to be his first major tournament, and we’ll all finally get to see what he’s made of. This is especially interesting because last fall, he was behind Steve Mandanda in the pecking order. Even in November, no one thought Lloris would be starting for France this summer. 10. Who do you think will win World Cup 2010? Laurie: I think this is Spain’s year, but it could also be a return to Brazilian dominance. Jean-François: My heart wants me to say that France can win the World Cup. Logic tells me that Brazil will be champions for the 6th time. Jeff: France. Sarah: I think we have a shot – Germany and Italy won because of the stunning goalkeeping display by Kahn and Buffon. France has always been known for winning in the midfield or with beautiful goals. Times have changed – and so have our strengths. So while people may underestimate us because we are playing differently – I wont be shocked if we are the ones lifting the trophy this summer! Inara: pain. They may not have Lionel Messi, but they still have a lot of talent, and more importantly, they play like a team. Plus they are easier to like than all the other teams. More at France World Cup Blog.

Daily Dose: May 17th, 2010 – Jozy Altidore Shirt Swap Edition Posted: 17 May 2010 08:40 PM PDT The USA striker will take the shirt off your back… What would a U.S.S.R national team look like today? (The Best Eleven) Oguchi Onyewu to play for free (Calciomercato) Remembering the 1974 World Cup (BBC Blogs) World Cup beer (Japan World Cup Blog) Blue Square Premier tougher than the other Premier League (Unprofessional Foul) Bill Clinton joins USA World Cup bid (Soccernet) As Lord Triesman leaves England bid (The Independent)

World Cup Moments: Yordan Letchkov Proves Bald Is Better, 1994. Posted: 17 May 2010 07:10 PM PDT In 1994, the Bulgarian team is largely remembered for one man, and with good reason. Hristo Stoichkov led his side to the semifinals, co-leading the tournament in goals and taking the European Footballer of the Year trophy at the end of the year. But he was not the only one, particularly on that road to the semifinals. There is a man of less acclaim and much less hair: that man is Yordan Letchkov. With the game even in the quarterfinals against Germany, the defending champions, he flew into the ball, the ball flew right into the net, and Bulgaria flew right past the Germans into the semis. The minute was seventy-eight, only three ticks after Stoichkov had rocketed Bulgaria back into the game with a rocket of his own. A cross was sent in, Yordan tucked inside and launched himself into the ball, unknowingly launching into World Cup infamy. It’s almost as though he began the move as Clark Kent and finished, mid-air, with a red cape and blue bodysuit. But the goal is only half the story; the other half is the iconic celebration beginning with that unmistakable bald held running away from the net, arms aloft, having just defeated the Germans, proving that when it comes to Superman headers, bald is better. (Just ask Henri…nevermind.)

Beginners’ Guide to the World Cup Posted: 17 May 2010 05:40 PM PDT Regular World Cup Blog readers are soccer-savvy. I know this because they keep correcting me when I get things wrong. So I know they know all about the World Cup. However, the great thing about the World Cup is that it’s not just for the serious football fan. As a global event (maybe THE global event?), the World Cup attracts the attention of those who aren’t usually fans of the beautiful game. Bless their hearts. So, based on a couple of conversations I’ve had with non-football fans who will be watching, this post is a Beginners’ Guide to the World Cup. It’s a series of questions about the big event. Slightly tongue-in-cheek, but hopefully informative too. Read on for the questions, and the answers. When is the World Cup? Soon. June 11th to July 11th. Where is the World Cup? South Africa. It’s the first World Cup to be hosted by an African country. Is South Africa the Nelson Mandela country? Yes, it is. Will the World Cup be on TV? Of course it will. Find out what channel is showing the World Cup in your country. US viewers can check out ESPN’s World Cup schedule, UK viewers can watch the World Cup in HD. How many teams are in the World Cup? There will be 32 teams in the World Cup. Click that link to see who they are. How many World Cup games per day? Three, to begin with. Who’s favorite to win the World Cup? Spain and Brazil are the teams with the shortest odds. Can I bet on it? Yes you can. Go to Bet World Cup Blog for more details. How does this World Cup work then? The 32 teams are divided into eight groups of four. Each group plays round robin with three points for a win, one point for a draw, zero for a loss. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout round. From there it’s single elimination. Check out the World Cup 2010 schedule and our World Cup wall chart for more. Wait… single elimination? Isn’t football full of draws? Not in the knockout rounds. From the Second Round of the World Cup onwards, the teams play 90 minutes. If the score is level, they play 30 minutes of “extra time”. If scores are still level, it’s penalty kicks to decide the winner. The victor moves forward, the loser goes home. Will David Beckham be playing in the World Cup ? No. He’s injured. How about Pele? No. He’s retired. How about that headbutt guy from last time? Zinedine Zidane? No, he retired from football after the 2006 World Cup. So… no Beckham, no Pele, no headbutt guy. Which players are worth watching at this World Cup then? Leo Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Kaka, Samuel Eto’o, Didier Drogba, Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery, Xavi Hernandez. Take your pick. Who should I support at the World Cup? We can’t tell you that. But once you decide, you should buy a World Cup jersey to show that you’re a fan. Which World Cup games should I watch? Everything from the Second Round onwards has the potential for heart-stopping drama. In the group stage, the games to watch are the opener: South Africa vs Mexico (June 11th), the colonial revenge matches: USA vs England (June 12th), Portugal vs Brazil (June 25th), and anything involving Argentina, because Diego Maradona is the coach and Leo Messi is the star player. Are there any Colombian singers involved in all of this? What an odd question. But yes, as it happens, Shakira is singing the official song of World Cup 2010. Are you a World Cup beginner? If so, do you have any questions you want answering? Post them in the comments.

World Cup 2010 Jerseys: Portugal. Posted: 17 May 2010 04:10 PM PDT Not all fashion tasks are created equal, like mankinis for the obese, fur coats for dogs and Canadian tuxedos. Nike was posed one of these difficult problems when handed the sketching pads for Porgual’s World Cup 2010 kit: how not to make red, white and green look like Christmas. Well, that was the first part. The second part was to create something which distracts from Nani’s Jheri curl and Cristiano Ronaldo’s toxic volumes of hairgel. It appears Nike has succeeded on both fronts – no ho, ho, ho here. Although managing to market it with anyone but Cristiano Ronaldo…that didn’t go quite as well. Want one? Buy the Portugal World Cup home shirt in our store. Outside of the chest, this shirt has so little going on outside of the torso block – few seams, no color shades, no slight alterations – the green additions on the sleeve (and there’s one on the back which is otherwise entirely red) feels as though they could’ve been forcibly planted there simply to spice it up. And really, what’s the Portuguese NT without a little flair? But that block on the chest is a wonderful little, or not so little, addition to a home kit which is so often so bland – plain red. It’s your basic rectangle in Portuguese green, but with lines of red stitching that makes it seem based in design rather than “we’ll just throw this here” (a tried and true tactic from a few World Cups). The only problem is it’s right in the middle of the torso – why not run the dazzle up the sides like a proper Portuguese team? Want one? Buy the Portugal World Cup away shirt in our store. Ah yes, the Portuguese away, an early personal favorite. It’s the standard away white, but that white easily defers to the home red (or maroon) and green making a prominent appearance in the center, draped down like a royal banner in a castle hall. These two simple stripes, though outlined, are essentially the entire kit, with those green bars, Nike swoosh and Portuguese crest the mandatory additions to what would normally be a white t-shirt. No collar, no ringed sleeves, no color changes again; basic, aside for what’s running right through the middle. You have to wonder if Carlos Queiroz had any input on these kits, and if so, whether or not he might be giving something away…

The 2010 World Cup Bracket Contest Posted: 17 May 2010 02:52 PM PDT With the World Cup less than a month away, and squad lists being finalized, it’s time to start thinking about who might be holding the trophy in Johannesburg on July 11th. We asked you last week which sides could realistically win the World Cup – now we’re going to ask you to back up your opinions, with our World Cup bracket contest. If you’ve been reading WorldCupBlog for a while, you’ll know we ran a bracket-style contest to pick the winners of Euro 2008. Over 1,000 people entered their picks and it was Chris, of Hamburg Offside blogging fame, who won it all. This year, with the big event on the horizon, we’re hoping for even more interest. Entry is free, and you can enter by going to http://bracket.worldcupblog.org. There you can pick the order you think each team will finish the group stage, then how far each team will advance. Since there is some shuffling after the group stage, we can’t make it a single-elimination bracket, but this way, even if the groups don’t go quite as you expected, you can still make up those points later on if you pick the right teams to go deep into the tournament. When you’ve entered your picks, they will be displayed on the screen so you can print or save them and keep track of how your teams are doing. Prizes are still to be announced, but will include one grand prize for the overall winner and three other prizes for the next three finishers. Prizes will include jerseys, vouchers and more from our partner sites, and will be announced soon. Get your picks in before June 11th, 2010 – once the matches start, the contest is closed. Also, please only submit one bracket per person. We will be monitoring for cheating, and reserve the right to eliminate a contestant if we have good reason to believe they have entered more than once. We will also be reporting on the standings as the tournament goes on, so stay tuned to see how you did. And if you want your opinions to count for more than bragging rights, check our Betting section to put your pounds, Euros, etc where your mouth is.

Japan 2022: World Cup Gone ‘Avatar’. Posted: 17 May 2010 01:40 PM PDT I wasn’t all that impressed by Avatar, but I suppose it’s better than the realism of Vietnam. Japan, on the other hand, were impressed, so they’ve blown their attempt for World Cup 2022 into the ‘Avatar’ of World Cup bids, though that title may be unofficial, and they may not even want it. (So maybe they’re not fans of Avatar after all?) The Avatar thing is more about the futuristic nature of the bid: they still have to actually “develop the technology” to make it happen. Well that’s just absurd. “We figure it will take about 12 years to fully develop these technologies,” said professor Jun Murai, Dean of the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies at Keio University. “Basically we’ve finished the research phase and by 2016 these technologies should be available for use.” It’s so audacious they should be given the chance to make it happen, but it also leaves very little leeway should things run over – figuring everything out in 13 years isn’t of much use to FIFA. Though you can bet the 2023 J. League season would be positively boffo. These are a few of the ‘actual’ technologies: Among the high-tech projects being developed is a broadcast system that uses 200 high-definition cameras to capture the movement of the ball and every player on the pitch from all angles in an attempt to put the viewer in the middle of the action. A 3D vision system will allow viewers to see the game in 3D on large flatscreens without the use of goggles. Fans will receive digital match tickets and be able to navigate their way around stadiums with a GPS system in a hand-held device. That first one sounds awfully frightening, while the third one sounds awfully Big Brother. In fact thinking about the possibilities of technologies in the next 12 years makes a second go-around in the African spine sound slightly more palatable. Their bid book – 7.3 kilograms worth of what is mostly papyrus – includes a built-in Playstation and a lower-tech pop-up collage might just tip the scales in their favor, but here’s another proposal, damn the logistics: Japan-Qatar 2022.

What Channels are Showing the World Cup? (Worldwide) Posted: 17 May 2010 12:20 PM PDT The World Cup will be broadcast on televisions around the world next month. One big question many people will have in the run up: On which channel or channels exactly? Below you’ll find a list of what television channel is showing the World Cup in 84 different countries. Hopefully including yours. If your country isn’t listed below, and you know which channel is showing the World Cup in your country, then please share in the comments. Algeria – Al Jazeera Sports Argentina – Canal 7, Telefe, TyC Sports, DirecTV Australia – SBS Austria – ORF Bangladesh – ESS Belgium – VRT, RTBF Brazil – Rede Globo, Rede Bandeirantes, SporTV, BandSports, ESPN Brasil Bulgaria – BNT Cameroon – CRTV, Supersport Canada – CBC, TLN Chile – TVN, DirecTV China – CCTV Colombia – Caracol Television, S.A. Cote d’Ivoire – RTI, Supersport Croatia – HRT Cyprus – CyBC Czech Republic – ČT Denmark – DR, TV2, Canal 9 Ecuador – Gama, TC, DirecTV Egypt – Al Jazeera Sports Finland – YLE France – TF1, France Télévisions, Canal+ Germany – ARD, ZDF, RTL, Sky Deutschland Ghana – GTV, Metro TV, TV3, Supersport (but apparently there’s some dispute) Greece – ERT Honduras – Compañia Televisora Hondureña, Corporacion Centroamericana de Comunicacion, Telesistema Hondureña Hong Kong – TVB, ATV, Cable TV Hong Kong Hungary – MTV Iceland – RÚV, Stöð 2 Sport India – Doordarshan, ESPN STAR Sports Indonesia – RCTI, Global TV Iran – Al Jazeera Sports Ireland – RTÉ Israel – Channel 1 Italy – RAI, SKY Italia Jamaica – (Please share if you know) Japan – NHK, NTV, Fuji TV, TBS, TV Asahi, TV Tokyo, Sky PerfecTV! Jordan – Al Jazeera Sports Kenya – Supersport Kuwait – Al Jazeera Sports Lebanon – Al Jazeera Sports Macedonia – MRTV Malaysia – RTM, Astro Maldives – ESPN STAR Sports Malta – PBS Mauritius – MBC Mexico – TV Azteca, Televisa, Sky Latin America Morocco – Al Jazeera Sports Nepal – NTV, ESPN STAR Sports Netherlands – NOS New Zealand – TVNZ, Sky Nigeria – Supersport North Korea – SBS Norway – TV2, Viasat 4, Viasat Football Pakistan – ESPN STAR Sports Paraguay – SNT Peru – ATV, DirecTV Philippines – ABS-CBN Poland – TVP Portugal – RTP, SIC, SportTV Qatar – Al Jazeera Sports Romania – TVR Russia – Channel One, Russia 1 Saudi Arabia – Al Jazeera Sports Serbia – RTS Singapore – MediaCorp Channel 5,StarHub TV, mio TV Slovakia – STV Slovenia – RTVS South Africa – SABC, Supersport South Korea – SBS, SBS Sports Channel Spain – Telecino, Cuatro, Canal+ Sweden – SVT, TV4 Switzerland – SRG-SSR Taiwan – (let us know?) Thailand – TV3, TV7, TrueVisions Trinidad & Tobago – ? (please share in comments if you know) Tunisia – Al Jazeera Sports Turkey – TRT United Kingdom – BBC, ITV (Watch the World Cup in HD) Ukraine – UT1, ICTV United Arab Emirates – Al Jazeera Sports Uruguay – Montecarlo, Sociedad Televisora Larrañaga, Saeta United States of Ameria – ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 (English – See ESPN’s World Cup 2010 TV Schedule) – Univision, Telefutura, Galavision (Spanish) Venezuela – Meridiano, Venevisión, DirecTV Vietnam – VTV Sources: FIFA, Wikipedia One thing stands out after reading the list: Certain companies are coming to dominate the market. ESPN has rights in several countries, especially in Asia, Al Jazeera rules the market in the Middle East, Supersport is all over Africa and Sky seems to have some form of rights in most European countries (though not the UK) while DirecTV pops up a lot too. If you have any corrections or additions for this list of World Cup 2010 broadcasters, please share in the comments.

You are subscribed to email updates from World Cup Soccer - South Africa 2010 To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610