So maybe this has been the worst World Cup ever. How many ties can there be before people just stop caring?  Well, that depends. I do not know if anyone cares at this point. I guess people will pay attention to the US game on Friday against Slovenia, but nobody will actually watch it. Friday at 10am is not the best time for a soccer game.

To the games:

Read more of this article »

Kaiju Big Battel ranks as one of the most absurd events I’ve ever attended, and I love it. I don’t know a lot about it, but it makes sense that I would enjoy it as it combines American professional wrestling with Japanese monster movies. It’s not shy about being over the top and if that description appeals to you on any level you should absolutely check it out. Read more of this article »

Saturday and Sunday’s World Cup games are in the books, six games with five winners.

June 12, 2010

So with Group A all knotted up at a boring one point, Saturday brought us something we were lacking:  A winner.

GROUP B – FIFA Rankings (#)

South Korea (47), Argentina (7), Nigeria (21), Greece (13)

South Korea 2 – 0 Greece

I’ll make sure I post the FIFA rankings for the first week of play, but after that… well, they don’t mean anything. Greece was dismantled and humbled by South Korea. Read more of this article »

Editor’s note: Since Ryan is the only one around here that knows a thing about soccer, we’ve enlisted him to keep us all up to speed on the World Cup. Teams are broken into groups of four and they play each other once. Wins are worth 3 points, ties 1, losses 0. The two teams with the most points (ties are settled by goal differential) in each group move on to a single elimination tournament, which does not feature ties (at least I hope not) and leads to a 2010 World Cup Champion. –ptb

Friday, June 11, 2010

GROUP A – FIFA Rankings (#)

France (9), Uruguay (16), Mexico (17), South Africa (83)

Game 1 – 10 AM

Mexico 1 – 1 South Africa

In terms of finding out what happened, you can read a match recap.

What I took from this match was that there is such a thing as home field advantage, or at least for one game the crowd can cause a team like Mexico fits. South Africa played about 8 men tight in the back (near the net) and left Mexico little space to take shots. It is a strategy that works if you score first or maintain a tie. If the opposing team scores first, then it makes a team like South Africa take chances. Do not expect a result like this against France or Uruguay. They will push hard for an early goal. Once South Africa gives up one expect more to follow. Their defense is not talented enough to play the opposing team when down a goal. I would bet that this is the only point South Africa gets in this group.

France 0 – 0 Uruguay

This match started off with so much promise. It was back and forth with more scoring chances in the first twenty minutes than the first game. You can tell that France has the most talent in the group, though Uruguay is quite good and comparable to Mexico in terms of scoring talent and passing. Anyway, back to the game: After halftime, both teams appeared to play for a tie. They would rather get one point and take their chances that they could beat South Africa and tie Mexico. First place could come down to which team beats South Africa by more goals. It is pure conjecture, but I see Mexico with a tie in all three games. There is no way France or Uruguay will play to win when all they have to do is beat South Africa and move on.

So, yeah.  Mexico is in trouble.

Something called the 2010 FIFA World Cup began yesterday… with both games ending in ties. The team representing the United States has their first… game? match? contest? (I’m sure there’s a proper term) today at 2:30PM EST against England. The World Cup is a global phenomenon that often goes unnoticed here at home. I know less about this stuff than I do about the NHL, so I’ve been doing some research online.

Here are some things you can do to get involved:

• Download the ESPN FIFA 2010 World Cup iPhone App
• Figure out what some of these three letter abbreviations mean
• Learn to chant
• Decide if you’re going to call it football or soccer
• Actually watch a game sometime in the next month

I’m sure we’ll be talking about the World Cup a lot more, but today we’ll be back at the Philadelphia Comic Con. Say hello if you find yourself there.