World Cup 2010 Blog: “South American Youth Championship Fixtures” plus 1 more

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South American Youth Championship Fixtures Posted: 18 Jan 2011 12:53 AM PST The following are the fixtures and results for the 2011 South American Youth Championships, currently being held in Peru. The first group stage began on January 16th, and will last until the 28th, when the top three teams from each group will advance to the final group stage. No knockouts in this one. The top four finishing teams qualify for the U-20 World Cup, and the top two book trips to the 2012 Olympics. Group A 16 Jan 2011: Argentina 2-1 Uruguay 16 Jan 2011: Peru 0-2 Chile 19 Jan 2011: Peru vs. Argentina 19 Jan 2011: Venezuela vs. Uruguay 22 Jan 2011: Argentina vs. Venezuela 22 Jan 2011: Chile vs. Uruguay 24 Jan 2011: Chile vs. Argentina 24 Jan 2011: Peru vs. Venezuela 27 Jan 2011: Chile vs. Venezuela 27 Jan 2011: Peru vs. Uruguay Group B 17 Jan 2011: Colombia 1-1 Ecuador 17 Jan 2011: Brazil 4-2 Paraguay 20 Jan 2011: Bolivia vs. Paraguay 20 Jan 2011: Colombia vs. Brazil 23 Jan 2011: Brazil vs. Bolivia 23 Jan 2011: Ecuador vs. Paraguay 25 Jan 2011: Colombia vs. Bolivia 25 Jan 2011: Ecuador vs. Brazil 28 Jan 2011: Ecuador vs. Bolivia 28 Jan 2011: Colombia vs. Paraguay The top three in each group move on to the final group stage: Final Group Stage 31 Jan 2011: A1 vs. B2 31 Jan 2011: A2 vs. B1 31 Jan 2011: A3 vs. B3 3 Feb 2011: B1 vs. B3 3 Feb 2011: A2 vs. A1 3 Feb 2011: A3 vs. B2 6 Feb 2011: A3 vs. A2 6 Feb 2011: B2 vs. B1 6 Feb 2011: B2 vs. B3 9 Feb 2011: B2 vs. B1 9 Feb 2011: A3 vs. A1 9 Feb 2011: B3 vs. A2 12 Feb 2011: B3 vs. A1 12 Feb 2011: B2 vs. A2 12 Feb 2011: A3 vs. B1

CONCACAF Bends FIFA’s Ear For Another World Cup Participant Posted: 17 Jan 2011 09:15 AM PST While FIFA’s busy shaking the very foundation of the sport and happily overturning traditions which were seemingly untouchable, CONCACAF thought they’d slyly slide in a request of their own while the suits in Zurich are feeling generous. Not the worst of ideas, really. Their request: a fourth spot in the 2014 World Cup – no 3.5, no playoff. Think it sounds ludicrous? That CONCACAF is simply not a good enough conference to have four World Cup spots at this point in time? That considering their example of the performance at World Cup 2010 (two Round of 16 knockouts is apparently something to write home about), their timing probably couldn’t be worse as the team that beat out potential CONCACAF member #4 finished #4 in the whole tournament? Well, that’s all logical and sound reasoning; enough to think that CONCACAF shouldn’t and won’t have a firm fourth spot in 2014. Save for one tiny detail… But CONCACAF President Jack Warner said on Sunday the region would press FIFA to give them four guaranteed places instead of the current 3.5. “We believe that CONCACAF deserves another full place at the World Cup finals due to the performances of our teams on the field and the actions of our confederation off it,” Warner said in a statement. “We are unified in our efforts to make this happen.” Do you suppose the official check is made out to J. W. or simple Cash?

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World Cup 2010 Blog: Ex-World Cup Ref Moreno Pleads Guilty to Heroin Smuggling

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Ex-World Cup Ref Moreno Pleads Guilty to Heroin Smuggling Posted: 15 Jan 2011 10:03 AM PST Byron Moreno can add up to 63 months of time in federal prison to his already long-ish list of controversies in his career.  Moreno, who was arrested at JFK in New York City in September, has admitted to smuggling heroin into the country from his flight home from Ecuador.  While the charge means he can face up to 63 months in prison, a sentencing date has yet to be set.  Until then, he will be watching games from  prison while being held without bail. And while Italy fans may joke that this explains his referring decisions, it is a pretty serious situation.  Something which Gianluigi Buffon pointed out when questioned about the subject… I think Moreno already had the [heroin] in 2002, but not in his underwear, in his body.  Joking aside, when sports people get involved in drug cases it means they’re scraping the bottom of the barrel. It also means they’ve lost the real meaning of the sport, which is also to save kids from the street and various dangers, like drugs.

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World Cup 2010 Blog: “Asian Cup Defending Proving Difficult, Awesome” plus 1 more

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Asian Cup Defending Proving Difficult, Awesome Posted: 13 Jan 2011 10:37 AM PST For the second time in three days, a path was created from the left-hand flank, or close to it, and the ball intended for the head of an attacker landed in the net without touching another soul. This little cross – even if Baha’a Abdulrahman would swear on his mother it was a shot – was the decisive goal which sent Saudi Arabia to their ultimate Asian Cup demise. Meanwhile, in the ultimate no-no for keepers, Eiji Kawashima cleared it right to a Syrian attacker, earning himself a nice red card and warm shower in the process, despite the consequences to the offside rule. As if you needed anything past reason number one to watch the Asian Cup. The only thing that beats great football is good football married to defensive imperfection.

FIFA World Rankings – January 2011 Posted: 13 Jan 2011 07:30 AM PST There are some months FIFA just has to punt their rankings. The cynics and wiseasses among us (aye) might say all of them, but it is at the very least the month of January, with December largely a barren thirty-one days. Evidence? The only two moves worth mentioning were Burundi and Lebanon, which dropped to 140th and 168th in the world, respectively. And then came a stumble into the abyss that is known as ‘Page 5′ on FIFA’s official rankings. ‘Page 5′ reads like more like a potential vacation listing than a list of nations with football relevance, which is precisely why they’re on Page 5. And with a tip of the cap to the master of maps like such, The Best Eleven, these are the locations of the world’s most rubbish national football teams. View FIFA’s Bottom Ranked Teams in a larger map (Quite like the subtle dig at the US too.) Oh, and here are the rest of ‘em:

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