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World Cup Soccer 2006

Iran hope for non-political World Cup

Iran's soccer coach is confident his team will not be distracted by politics during next month's World Cup in Germany. Speaking to Reuters at a training camp in Switzerland, Croatian Branko Ivankovic said he would not ban his players from answering political questions but expected them to be fully focused once the finals start on June 9. "Obviously people can ask the players about anything that they want - we don't have any restrictions - but I would rather people built a clear wall between sport and politics," he said. "Of course it is hard for the players to switch off completely from what is going on with Iran, but we have a young ambitious squad who I am convinced will only be thinking about the football." Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sparked controversy for remarks that Israel "should be wiped off the map" and questioning whether six million Jews were killed by the Nazis in the Holocaust. Iran has also refused to renounce its nuclear activity. Ahmadinejad is not expected to travel to Germany for the month-long World Cup. Ivankovic said he would not comment on Iran's nuclear ambitions or the resulting threat of sanctions, saying he did not give opinions on Croatian politics during his time as assistant coach to his own national side. WOMEN BANNED The 52-year-old trainer was more forthcoming on the issue of Iran's women supporters, who have since 1979 been banned from attending football matches in their homeland. Having declared a lifting of that ban last month, Ahmadinejad this week reversed his decision following disapproval from the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. "I haven't heard about the latest decision but I am sure this issue will be discussed again. "All I can say is that the women in Iran are crazy about football - they are always coming up to me and asking why I didn't choose a particular player or why I don't use a particular formation. "When some women made it into our match against Bahrain a year ago the atmosphere was excellent. FIFA have said they want football to be for everybody and I completely agree with that." Ivankovic says he hopes to steer Iran to at least the second round at the finals. They are in Group D with Euro 2004 runners-up Portugal, Mexico and debutants Angola, in their third World Cup appearance. "The expectations are always incredibly high in Iran, but I think we do have the strength to get through even if Portugal and Mexico will be clear favourites. "I was already impressed by the Iran team that reached the 1998 World Cup when I was working with the Croatian team, but I believe this side is even stronger - particularly because of the international experience that a lot of our players now have." TOP PLAYERS Currently staying at the same Swiss hotel from which Germany launched their first World Cup triumph in 1954, Ivankovic and his squad are having to prepare without many top players. Germany-based players Ali Karimi, Mehdi Mahdavikia, Vahid Hashemian and Fereydoon Zandi, plus FC Messina defender Rahman Rezael, will join up with the team on May 20 in Tehran. Ivankovic has to name his squad by May 15 and has organised three friendly matches against lower league Swiss teams to help him make up his mind. The first of these nearly ended in embarrassment on Tuesday, with Iran needing two late goals to salvage a 2-1 win over the amateurs of Lyss. "We have a lot of young players and some of them are nervous because they still don't know if they will make the World Cup squad," Ivankovic said. "It was in any case good to remind the players that there are no easy games anymore and that everybody knows how to organise their sides."

posted by: wcsblog at 20:52 | link | comments (1) |

Stroll through History in SS Soccer Series

The Kicks & Corners series that forms part of SuperSport’s extensive World Cup soccer package looks at the seven countries that have won the trophy at least once.

In the first episode, Uruguay, who won the inaugural event in 1930, are the focus of attention. Their victory was probably due to the fact that, with Europe in the throes of an economic crisis, many European teams did not take part. In the end, 13 nations entered, including four European teams, eight from South America and a representative side from the US.

Episode two looks at Argentina, winners of the trophy in 1978 and 1986. Many of Argentina’s current players are interviewed about what they remember from those triumphs and the side’s prospects in 2006 are examined.

The third episode is about England’s victory in 1966, with footage of their 4-2 final win over West Germany and Geoff Hurst’s historic hat trick. Again, famous players are asked what they remember about that final.

In the fourth episode, three-times winners of the World Cup, Italy (1934, 1938 and 1982) are in the spotlight. Their victory in 1938, with World War II imminent, was probably due to the fact that a number of top teams decided not to take part.

In episode five, German and Dutch players talk about 2006 host Germany, who won the trophy in 1954, 1974 and 1990. There is also a look at the World Cup mascot and logo and an examination of some of the new stadiums in Germany.

The final episode, fittingly, features Brazil, five-times winners of the World Cup (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002). It has footage of Pele at his best in 1958, and past and present players are asked about Brazil’s chances of winning for a sixth time this year.

The series will be broadcast on SuperSport 3 during the World Cup. SuperSport 3 will be a dedicated World Cup channel for the duration of the tournament (June 9 to July 9).

posted by: wcsblog at 20:51 | link | comments |

Is Brazil World Cup Favorite?

Only a few weeks before 2006 FIFA World Cup kicks off, speculations about who will win this year's competition are multiplying around the world. In Brazil, well known as "soccer's country," the national sentiment reflects an anticipation of victory. In fact, last month, many of the global soccer community's personalities told the press that Brazil is the favorite to win this edition of the World Cup, including Franz Beckenbauer, president of the World Cup Organization Committee.

"Ronaldinho Gaucho will be the best soccer player of the competition," Beckenbauer said. Even Spain's Sergio Ramos Zagueiro of Real Madrid admitted he favors the Brazilian team. Sports analysts such as Marcelo Oliva, editor of "Soccer Guide on the Internet," affirmed his confidence in the team in yellow jerseys: "No other team possesses players with the individual talent as the ones on the Brazilian team, not even Argentina."

According to research done by Chile's Futuro Foundation, 46 percent of Chileans think Brazil will be the winner for the sixth time.

How about Brazilians? Are they absolutely certain their delegates will take it all?

One group of Brazilians believes their country will lose. More than 300 men and women who share this feeling meet regularly through an online community powered by Orkut. Some of them say the trophy will go to either Germany or Argentina. Iran Gomes da Silva, 28, is sure Argentina will win because they have prepared well.

Vinicius de Souza Barreira, 40, a systems analyst, bets on Germany. According to Barreira, there is a "conspiracy theory" that can explain Germany as the favorite. Analyzing all the results of the previous World Cups, whenever South America or Europe take the lead in all-time World Cups won, the other continent wins the next tournament to even the score:

1930: Uruguay (South America 1, Europe 0)
1934: Italy (South America 1 x 1 Europe) * TIE *
1938: Italy (South America 1, Europe 2)
1950: Uruguay (South America 2, Europe 2) * TIE *
1954: Germany (South America 2, Europe 3)
1958: Brazil (South America 3, Europe 3) * TIE *
1962: Brazil (South America 4, Europe 3)
1966: England (South America 4, Europe 4) * TIE *
1970: Brazil (South America 5, Europe 4)
1974: Germany (South America 5, Europe 5) * TIE *
1978: Argentina (South America 6, Europe 5)
1982: Italy (South America 6, Europe 6) * TIE *
1986: Argentina (South America 7, Europe 6)
1990: Germany (South America 7, Europe 7) * TIE *
1994: Brazil (South America 8, Europe 7)
1998: France (South America 8, Europe 8) * TIE *
2002: Brazil (South America 9, Europe 8)

This mathematical way to understand the World Cup's results makes some Brazilians believe that a European country will win the competition. Numbers aside, one Iranian sees Brazil's confidence as spoiling its chances. "Brazil will enter the championship thinking they already are the winners, which to their surprise, won't happen."

The potential clash of egos belonging to superstar players such as Ronaldinho Gaucho, Ronaldi, Caca, and Robinho is another reason for a possible failure of the Brazilian team. Also, soccer referee Edilson Carvalho was detained after authorities learned he received money to manipulate results of matches in a Brazilian championship.

Of 170 million Brazilians, this online community is too small to represent a trend in the nation's thinking. But at this point, no one knows exactly who will be the real winner.

posted by: wcsblog at 18:25 | link | comments |

posted by: wcsblog at 20:21 | link | comments |

Brazil wants to organize 2014 soccer World Cup

Brazil's soccer federation (CBF) said on Tuesday that it wants to host the 2014 World Cup soccer finals and that the country's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had called CBF chief Ricardo Teixeira to support the idea.

    Da Silva had said that a country where football is the nation'smain passion should host the next soccer World Cup to be held in South America: after Europe's 2006 World Cup in Germany and Africa's 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Brazil last hosted the Cup in 1950, when it lost in the final to Uruguay.

    Da Silva said that it was incredible that a country that had won the tournament five times and has had the best team in the world for decades has only organized the Cup once.

    The CBF submitted its application to world soccer chief Joseph Blatter, at a ceremony where Blatter formally thanked the Brazil government for all its work against racism in football.

    Teixeira said da Silva is the only head of state that has bothered to tackle racism in Brazilian sport. Enditem

posted by: wcsblog at 18:44 | link | comments |

U.S. Warms Up in Snow, Tops Poland

The U.S. men's national team wasn't counting on a blizzard in its World Cup tuneup game yesterday in Kaiserslautern, Germany.

In a scene more befitting Lambeau Field than a soccer field, Clint Dempsey scored the only goal off a misplay by Poland's goalkeeper in the 48th minute, and the Americans survived the elements in a 1-0 victory.

"I never played in a game when that much snow came in at the same time," Dempsey said. "The ball kept bouncing around here and there."

It bounced perfectly on Dempsey's goal. Eddie Lewis made a superb pass from the left wing into the penalty area. Goalkeeper Artur Boruc , who had entered to start the second half, tried to punch it away. Instead, the ball deflected off the head of U.S. forward Taylor Twellman and directly to Dempsey.

All Dempsey had to do was head it into a gaping net.

"I'm not sure the snow was an advantage for anybody," U.S. Coach Bruce Arena said. "We have been training in California, our domestic players, for seven weeks."

A crowd of 13,395 -- many of them Americans from nearby Ramstein Air Base -- saw the United States improve to 4-0-1 this year and 2-7-2 in Europe under Arena, with both wins coming over Poland. . . .

Joe Cole scored in the second minute of injury time as host England rallied to beat Uruguay, 2-1, in a World Cup warmup game.

Uruguay, which failed to qualify for the World Cup, went ahead in the 26th minute on a goal from Omar Pouso .

Peter Crouch tied the game when he scored off Cole's cross in the 75th minute, and Cole got the winner when he curled an angled, one-time shot off of Shaun Wright-Phillips 's cross from the right wing. . . .

Alberto Gilardino , Luca Toni , Daniele De Rossi and Alessandro Del Piero each scored as host Italy routed Germany, 4-1.

Italy, which plays the United States in the first round of the World Cup on June 17, was missing injured playmaker Francesco Totti , whose status for the tournament is uncertain following ankle surgery. . . .

Dario Simic scored on a header in second-half injury time, giving Croatia a 3-2 win over Argentina in an exhibition game between a pair of World Cup-bound teams in Basel, Switzerland. . . .

Slovakia ended France's 17-game unbeaten streak, winning 2-1 behind Jozef Valachovic 's goal in the 80th minute.

posted by: wcsblog at 20:36 | link | comments |

Dempsey Building Case for Cup Slot

New England Revolution midfielder Clint Dempsey, who has made life miserable for a lot of midfielders and defenders in his first two MLS seasons, has made life a little tougher for his coach, Bruce Arena.

But that's in a good way.

Demspey's recent performances in U.S. national team games could very well have Arena stamp his World Cup passport. Dempsey is on the bubble to go to Germany as part of the 23-man roster in June. And on Wednesday night, the 22-year-old made sure he wasn't going to let anything happen to pop his bubble, scoring the lone goal in the USA's 1-0 World Cup warmup victory over Poland.

"Clint continues to build a solid argument to make the World Cup team," Arena said. "He's certainly making it difficult for me to make some tough decisions."

Arena has been pleased with the man who was MLS Rookie of the Year in 2004. He been encouraged by Dempsey's progress since the Nacogdoches, Texas, native made his international debut in the 1-1 World Cup qualifying draw with Jamaica on Nov. 17, 2004.

"Last year was pretty rough for him," Arena said. "He learned from his experience in the offseason. He worked hard in the offseason and prepared himself. He's had a very good run.

"He has had a steady climb. Hopefully, he will be a player we can count on."

That well could be when the USA returns to the Fritz-Walter Stadion in Kaiserslautern, for the game on June 19 against Italy.

Dempsey, for one, isn't assuming anything. He realizes his selection to the team is far from assured.

"It definitely doesn't hurt," Dempsey said. "We've got a few more friendlies and so far, so good.

"The most important thing for me this year was to make sure I was in the mix come time for the World Cup. Obviously, you want to aim higher and want to be a starter on the team for the World Cup. Right now my main goal is just to be a part of the team. That would be a dream come true.

"I think tonight definitely helped my chances. But you can't say one or two games solidifies a spot," he said.

Scoring for the second consecutive match certainly didn't hurt Dempsey's chances of returning for the March 22 match against host Germany in Dortmund (The Germans were routed 4-1 by Italy on Wednesday night).

"I think he's trying get more domestic players to come out here," Dempsey said of Arena. "So I think that's a good indication that we have a chance of coming."

Dempsey scored his second international goal in as many matches on a fluke play in the 48th minute. Defender Eddie Lewis sent in a left-wing cross that second-half goalkeeper Artur Boruc tried to punch out of harm's way. It bounded off the head of Revolution teammate Taylor Twellman to Dempsey, who nodded it home from three yards on the right side.

"It was anticipation, really," Dempsey said. "You keep hoping that the ball will end up in your area. What are the chances that the 'keeper would have hit the ball off of Taylor Twellman's back of his head, right in front of the goalmouth? It was wishful thinking and I was at the right place at the right time. So far this year, I've done well to put it in the back of the net."

The U.S. is undefeated in 2006 with a 4-0-1 record.

"Each game is important," Dempsey said. "Confidence is a big thing. It's part of your game and it helps you perform better. The more games you win, the more confident you feel. The more confident you are, the more comfortable you are when it comes time to play in those games and you do better. So, to come overseas to get a win against Poland is definitely good for us. It shows where we are. Obviously, tonight wasn't our best performance."

The U.S. struggled early as Poland took the game to them in the opening 30 minutes.

"For the first part, we were just kicking the ball up the field and weren't doing too well to keep possession," Dempsey said. "It was a matter of getting your composure and calming down. Once we started stringing some passes together here and there, we started to get more confidence on the ball. We started to make better decisions."

After Dempsey tallied, the snow took center stage in the second half. He admitted he had never played in such conditions, even when growing up playing youth soccer in Texas.

"When that situation happened, we didn't even play," he said. "We wound up having just a shootout because no one was really used to those conditions. It's never something I've played in or that much snow has come on all at the same time. That was pretty incredible to see how a little flurry turned into that massive amount of snow. It was pretty crazy."

posted by: wcsblog at 20:31 | link | comments |

Germany Stunned by Italy, Next Faces U.S.

 

German soccer fans are in shock 99 days before their nation hosts the World Cup, trying to comprehend a 4-1 exhibition loss to Italy.

Ever-optimistic German coach Juergen Klinsmann is not deterred by the stunning loss Wednesday in Florence. In fact, he says he'll make no roster changes for the next match -- a World Cup tuneup against the United States later this month.

"We fully believe in this team. All the players who were there last night will be called back for the match against the United States," Klinsmann told reporters in Frankfurt after the team's return on Thursday. "They will get the chance to make amends."

Captain Michael Ballack promised as much.

"You will see a different Germany in Dortmund," he said, referring to the March 22 game against the U.S.

The Americans also played Wednesday, beating Poland 1-0 on a snowy night in Kaiserslautern. One of the Americans' group rivals at the World Cup is Italy, while Germany has Poland in its group.

Klinsmann said his team never recovered after conceding two goals in the first 7 minutes.

"But there are no excuses. You can lose against Italy, but we expect redemption, we want to see a reaction against the United States," Klinsmann said. "This team is strong enough to overcome such setbacks. It's stable enough to put it behind. With positive thinking, there will be no problems. We have to look ahead."

Klinsmann said one of the reasons for his team's poor performance was that some of the players are not starters for their foreign clubs. He said tactical errors can be fixed when Germany goes into training camp before the World Cup.

"We firmly believe that we will be in the tournament until the end," Klinsmann said.

But in the media, there was no talk about another title for the three-time champion.

"Shuddering," commented the mass-circulation newspaper Bild.

"Mamma mia, we are bad," said the influential newspaper, which has been critical of Klinsmann, especially his decision to continue to live in California.

"With 100 days left until the World Cup, we wanted to know what's hiding in our team. The shocking 4-1 loss in Florence gave us the brutal answer: nothing," Bild said.

Bild rated all German players with the lowest-possible mark of six -- equivalent to "not having earned their pay."

The Kicker magazine called the game a "disaster" for Germany and said it had been humiliated. It also called Klinsmann's defensive game plan "naive" -- saying the defenders were playing too far up front.

Defense has been Klinsmann's problem for a long time. Klinsmann ruled out a return for experienced Borussia Dortmund defender Christian Woerns.

"No. He was disrespectful to the coach," Klinsmann said.

Woerns criticized Klinsmann after being left out of the squad to face Italy and the coach later said he wouldn't be called up again.

Germany has not won against a top-class team for more than five years.

"Germany shrinks to a soccer dwarf," wrote the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper.

posted by: wcsblog at 20:26 | link | comments |