Teams going to the World Cup announced expanded rosters today.
Most teams picked from 25 to 30 players, the last step before they get down to the 23 they will be able to take to South Africa 2010.
The Johannesburg Times has a list of the selections made by most teams. See it here.
In every country, debates are raging over who already isn't on the team. Who has been left out, and why? And which semi-anonymous guys who happen to have hit a hot patch are suddenly in the running for the final roster.
Among the biggest names:
Ronaldinho and Ronaldo not called in by Brazil. Not really a surprise in either case, but those are some big names, and the two gentlemen made clear they wanted to go ... but coach Dunga said "no thanks."
For France, Patrick Vieira and Karim Benzema were not invited. In England, Owen Hargreaves and Gary Neville are staying home.
The preliminary U.S. team is not on the Johannesburg Times list, at this writing.
So here is a link to a list of the 30 players called in by U.S. coach Bob Bradley.
Surprises there? Among the left out, Charlie Davies, nearly killed in a traffic accident last year; Conor Casey, who had some big moments during qualifying last year; Freddy Adu, considered the next great American player just a few years ago. Among the surprise called in, Edson Buddle, who at 29 has played in less than 15 minutes with the national side; Alejandro Bedoya, Robbie Findlay, Herculez Gomez, each with minimal histories with the U.S.
To recap: These lists are going to be further shaved in a few weeks, and the really hard cuts are ahead. For now, sure, plenty to talk about when it comes to your own national team. A little harder to get really interested in the Nos. 20-30 guys for other squads.
Read more!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Monday, May 10, 2010
Wada Gives Fifa Free Rein at WC2010
When it comes to the Olympics, to cycling ... the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) is ready to pounce. Test everyone. For everything. Penalize. Ban.
So it seems more than a little odd that Wada's president says, in essence, Fifa has this drug-testing thing handled and we won't be doing much of anything at South Africa 2010.
How does this work, exactly? Let's see, one of the selling points of performance-enhancing drugs is the ability to bounce back from exertion quickly. You think soccer players might not find that helpful, a little chemical help to help bring them around for another 90 minutes two days later?
Most of us associate drugs with big guys. Football players, rugby players ... and all those fast-twitch guys who need a little extra explosiveness. Like, oh, every world-class sprinter from the past three decades.
So why is Wada backing off from Fifa?
The Wada president, John Fahey, seems to suggest that the length of the World Cup (a full month) makes it too expensive for his group to be hanging around, doing what it might do at an Olympics.
Is that it? All of it?
Or does Wada just not care about the typically smallish soccer lads? Because they aren't all bulky and don't have the look of cheaters? And why does Wada let soccer get away with not following the "whereabouts" rule? (Letting Wada know where you are at all times so you can be tested randomly.)
Anyway, what are the odds -- I mean, really -- that Fifa's drug-testing crew will ever (ever) come up with a positive drug test for a player during the World Cup? Small. And in the case of latter rounds, nil.
Just sounds like a bad idea. Let's have an aggressive, omnipresent Wada hanging around the World Cup. Testing. Testing. Testing.
Just because soccer players aren't big doesn't mean they aren't juicing. Let's get the same sort of policing rigor into the World Cup that we have for other events. Read more!
So it seems more than a little odd that Wada's president says, in essence, Fifa has this drug-testing thing handled and we won't be doing much of anything at South Africa 2010.
How does this work, exactly? Let's see, one of the selling points of performance-enhancing drugs is the ability to bounce back from exertion quickly. You think soccer players might not find that helpful, a little chemical help to help bring them around for another 90 minutes two days later?
Most of us associate drugs with big guys. Football players, rugby players ... and all those fast-twitch guys who need a little extra explosiveness. Like, oh, every world-class sprinter from the past three decades.
So why is Wada backing off from Fifa?
The Wada president, John Fahey, seems to suggest that the length of the World Cup (a full month) makes it too expensive for his group to be hanging around, doing what it might do at an Olympics.
Is that it? All of it?
Or does Wada just not care about the typically smallish soccer lads? Because they aren't all bulky and don't have the look of cheaters? And why does Wada let soccer get away with not following the "whereabouts" rule? (Letting Wada know where you are at all times so you can be tested randomly.)
Anyway, what are the odds -- I mean, really -- that Fifa's drug-testing crew will ever (ever) come up with a positive drug test for a player during the World Cup? Small. And in the case of latter rounds, nil.
Just sounds like a bad idea. Let's have an aggressive, omnipresent Wada hanging around the World Cup. Testing. Testing. Testing.
Just because soccer players aren't big doesn't mean they aren't juicing. Let's get the same sort of policing rigor into the World Cup that we have for other events. Read more!
Sunday, May 9, 2010
World Cup Beefcake in Vanity Fair
The magazine Vanity Fair decided to get the World Cup onto its cover, and did so in a provocative way:
With, as the magazine puts it, the players wearing their nation's colors ... and not much else. Well, boxer shorts. Short boxer shorts.
Who is included?
In the first photo, in you followed the link are, from left Sully Muntari of Ghana, Landon Donovan of the U.S., Kaka of Brazil, Samuel Eto'o of Ivory Coast and Pato of Brazil.
On the cover, a bit further down on the Vanity Fair page, are Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal.
Inside (and if you watch the video at the bottom of the link, you can see most of them) but not available in a still photo on this link are Michael Ballack of Germany, Dejan Stankovic of Serbia, Gianluigi Buffon of Italy and Carlton Cole of England.
As the story details, photographer Annie Liebowitz flew all over the world to get these guys' photos. (Collecting them all together at one spot would have been massively expensive and probably impossible.)
So, there are your lads. Read more!
With, as the magazine puts it, the players wearing their nation's colors ... and not much else. Well, boxer shorts. Short boxer shorts.
Who is included?
In the first photo, in you followed the link are, from left Sully Muntari of Ghana, Landon Donovan of the U.S., Kaka of Brazil, Samuel Eto'o of Ivory Coast and Pato of Brazil.
On the cover, a bit further down on the Vanity Fair page, are Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast and Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal.
Inside (and if you watch the video at the bottom of the link, you can see most of them) but not available in a still photo on this link are Michael Ballack of Germany, Dejan Stankovic of Serbia, Gianluigi Buffon of Italy and Carlton Cole of England.
As the story details, photographer Annie Liebowitz flew all over the world to get these guys' photos. (Collecting them all together at one spot would have been massively expensive and probably impossible.)
So, there are your lads. Read more!
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Yankees Go Home! Obama Stay Home!
Not sure I can remember this happening, before a World Cup. A government official of high standing saying in a very public setting that his fondest wish is for a specific team to go home after the first round.
But that is what happened in South Africa on Friday.
South Africa's police commissioner said he hopes the United States is eliminated in group play. He wants the Yankees gone. Because it will make his job easier. Or maybe he doesn't like them, either.
This is remarkably bad form. Who knows what sort of ideas it puts in the heads of referees, for example? Who knows how it impacts how the U.S. team is treated by fans, by hoteliers, by officialdom, now that South Africa's top cop has singled out the Americans for "please leave" treatment.
If you didn't follow the link, here are the key statements made by Gen. Bheki Cele at a public parliamentary committee meeting:
"Our famous prayer is that the Americans don't make the second round. They get eliminated and they go home."
Presumably, that's mostly about the threat that American athletes always face when abroad. Targets of terror threat and all. The local cops have to put on a few extra men when the Americans are around. Hire some food-tasters. Etc. It's so tiresome, making sure your country is secure.
But some of this, the General indicated, is about the difficulties that would be presented by the arrival of U.S. president Barack Obama -- which could happen if the Americans get to the knockout phase.
The good general doesn't want to deal with Obama in the country.
Said Cele: "One challenge is the American president, who is coming, not coming, coming, not coming. It's 50-50 as we stand."
He added: "We are told if they go to the second or third stage, the American president might come. It's one big challenge that we will be facing." He also said that 43 heads of state will be going to South Africa next month, but that Obama would be a much bigger problem. "Those (other) 43 will be equal to this one operation," he said of the chore of keeping an eye on safety of the U.S. president.
I'm trying to remember any public pronouncements from organizers or host-country officials about their preferences for who advances and who does not. Ever.
And coming up empty.
The only vaguely similar concept I recall was a sentiment expressed by the chief organizer of the 1994 World Cup in the U.S.
Alan Rothenberg readily conceded that he was relieved when England was defeated in qualifying. The big difference being, Rothenberg made the statement after England was out of the running.
His concern was over the fans that would come with the English team; 1994 was not far past the peak of English soccer hooliganism. Rothenberg said it would require more money and manpower to keep England's thuggish fans from tearing up whatever city they happened to be in. (The violence and mayhem of the sort they perpetrated after a match in Marseille in the 1998 World Cup in France.)
I am certain he didn't say it while England was still in the running.
Rothenberg also may have been happy that Iran didn't qualify, as well as North Korea (each of which played in the famous six-nation Asian qualifying tournament at Doha, Qatar, in October of 1993 but failed to advance), but I have no recollection of that being enunciated. Perhaps assumed but not confirmed.
This is something new. A police chief telling us a month before the tournament that he wants one team gone, gone, gone.
Perhaps we can assume, then, that when the cops on the U.S. team's security detail tell the Yanks, "Break a leg!" ... they will be speaking literally. Read more!
But that is what happened in South Africa on Friday.
South Africa's police commissioner said he hopes the United States is eliminated in group play. He wants the Yankees gone. Because it will make his job easier. Or maybe he doesn't like them, either.
This is remarkably bad form. Who knows what sort of ideas it puts in the heads of referees, for example? Who knows how it impacts how the U.S. team is treated by fans, by hoteliers, by officialdom, now that South Africa's top cop has singled out the Americans for "please leave" treatment.
If you didn't follow the link, here are the key statements made by Gen. Bheki Cele at a public parliamentary committee meeting:
"Our famous prayer is that the Americans don't make the second round. They get eliminated and they go home."
Presumably, that's mostly about the threat that American athletes always face when abroad. Targets of terror threat and all. The local cops have to put on a few extra men when the Americans are around. Hire some food-tasters. Etc. It's so tiresome, making sure your country is secure.
But some of this, the General indicated, is about the difficulties that would be presented by the arrival of U.S. president Barack Obama -- which could happen if the Americans get to the knockout phase.
The good general doesn't want to deal with Obama in the country.
Said Cele: "One challenge is the American president, who is coming, not coming, coming, not coming. It's 50-50 as we stand."
He added: "We are told if they go to the second or third stage, the American president might come. It's one big challenge that we will be facing." He also said that 43 heads of state will be going to South Africa next month, but that Obama would be a much bigger problem. "Those (other) 43 will be equal to this one operation," he said of the chore of keeping an eye on safety of the U.S. president.
I'm trying to remember any public pronouncements from organizers or host-country officials about their preferences for who advances and who does not. Ever.
And coming up empty.
The only vaguely similar concept I recall was a sentiment expressed by the chief organizer of the 1994 World Cup in the U.S.
Alan Rothenberg readily conceded that he was relieved when England was defeated in qualifying. The big difference being, Rothenberg made the statement after England was out of the running.
His concern was over the fans that would come with the English team; 1994 was not far past the peak of English soccer hooliganism. Rothenberg said it would require more money and manpower to keep England's thuggish fans from tearing up whatever city they happened to be in. (The violence and mayhem of the sort they perpetrated after a match in Marseille in the 1998 World Cup in France.)
I am certain he didn't say it while England was still in the running.
Rothenberg also may have been happy that Iran didn't qualify, as well as North Korea (each of which played in the famous six-nation Asian qualifying tournament at Doha, Qatar, in October of 1993 but failed to advance), but I have no recollection of that being enunciated. Perhaps assumed but not confirmed.
This is something new. A police chief telling us a month before the tournament that he wants one team gone, gone, gone.
Perhaps we can assume, then, that when the cops on the U.S. team's security detail tell the Yanks, "Break a leg!" ... they will be speaking literally. Read more!
Friday, May 7, 2010
Germany's Team, Plus Four
Joachim Low today revealed the 27 finalists for the 23 slots on Germany's team.
This is important because the Germans are among the half-dozen teams who could actually win South Africa 2010.
Some of the highlights:
--Who's here? Michael Ballack, who was alternately hurt and ineffective this season at Chelsea. But don't you have to take the recognized leader of recent German teams? Until someone clearly has replaced him? Lukas Podolski is here after a shaky season. Miroslav Klose is hanging around. Seems as if he's scored a lot of clutch goals, doesn't it?
--Who isn't? Kevin Kuranyi, the forward who doesn't get along with Low, so Low apparently has decided he can get along without him. Will it hurt the Germans? We find out next month. Also, midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger, who helped the Germans qualify and midfielder Torsten Frings, who thinks he is anything but done; Low begs to differ. And top goalkeeper Rene Adler, who is injured.
--And the big surprises. The two guys off the Under-21 team, Bayern defender Holger Badstuben and Dennis Aogo.
--And the big surprise (not): Seven guys from Bayern Munich. Low likes the idea of players who are coming from successful club seasons, and it's hard to beat what Bayern is doing -- including that Champions League final date with Inter.
Fairly typically, the Germans don't look overpowering. But World Cup history is rife with German teams that didn't look like world beaters ... getting to the semis -- or to the VIP tribune to shake hands with the Fifa president after winning the whole shootin' match.
The Germans seem to be able to turn it up in the World Cup, combining supreme tactics with discipline and cohesion, and a sort of deep-seated confidence ... to get deep into nearly every tournament.
The consensus seems to be that Germany will score, and will get good play in goal, presumably from Manuel Neuen, but is shaky in the back, particularly in the middle, and not as dynamic in midfield as it was back when Ballack was in his prime.
The one-man consensus here is ... don't expect Germany to lose before the semifinals. Read more!
This is important because the Germans are among the half-dozen teams who could actually win South Africa 2010.
Some of the highlights:
--Who's here? Michael Ballack, who was alternately hurt and ineffective this season at Chelsea. But don't you have to take the recognized leader of recent German teams? Until someone clearly has replaced him? Lukas Podolski is here after a shaky season. Miroslav Klose is hanging around. Seems as if he's scored a lot of clutch goals, doesn't it?
--Who isn't? Kevin Kuranyi, the forward who doesn't get along with Low, so Low apparently has decided he can get along without him. Will it hurt the Germans? We find out next month. Also, midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger, who helped the Germans qualify and midfielder Torsten Frings, who thinks he is anything but done; Low begs to differ. And top goalkeeper Rene Adler, who is injured.
--And the big surprises. The two guys off the Under-21 team, Bayern defender Holger Badstuben and Dennis Aogo.
--And the big surprise (not): Seven guys from Bayern Munich. Low likes the idea of players who are coming from successful club seasons, and it's hard to beat what Bayern is doing -- including that Champions League final date with Inter.
Fairly typically, the Germans don't look overpowering. But World Cup history is rife with German teams that didn't look like world beaters ... getting to the semis -- or to the VIP tribune to shake hands with the Fifa president after winning the whole shootin' match.
The Germans seem to be able to turn it up in the World Cup, combining supreme tactics with discipline and cohesion, and a sort of deep-seated confidence ... to get deep into nearly every tournament.
The consensus seems to be that Germany will score, and will get good play in goal, presumably from Manuel Neuen, but is shaky in the back, particularly in the middle, and not as dynamic in midfield as it was back when Ballack was in his prime.
The one-man consensus here is ... don't expect Germany to lose before the semifinals. Read more!
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Cash Incentives for Bafana Bafana Bafana
An aside, up front. I am adding a Bafana to the name of the South Africa national soccer team. I mentioned this before. The theory being if Bafana Bafana is good, Bafana Bafana Bafana is better. I believe this should be embraced by everyone in South Africa. It's already redundant; let's take it to the next level.
(I also believe England should be known as the Four Lions. Why not?)
Speaking of embracing ... South Africa's national federation has come up with cash incentive plan for its team. Not that it is taking on any massive risk here.
Here is the plan:
One million rand for the team for each goal scored.
Well, let's break that down a bit.
--One million rand is ... $132,000. Less than a million of anything might sound like. And divided 23 ways (the number of players on a World Cup team), that comes to about $5,600 per man.
--South Africa has had enormous trouble scoring goals for the past two years. In the B-cubed's last 34 matches, it managed only 32 goals. Not quite one per game. At that rate -- and can we predict many more goals against world-class competition? -- that's three goals in Group A play, which is $392,000. Big deal.
--If South Africa actually starts scoring goals and gets to the second round, or even deeper, the team pays for itself with additional monies to the federation from the Fifa kitty. Add in the intangibles in terms of marketing and increased interest in the national side ... and again, it becomes a self-funding concept.
Also note that the South African federation has yet to indicate how much it will pay individuals for making the team and playing, etc.
I do like that they are offering goal money to the team and not just to the individual who scores. This emphasizes playing together.
What will be interesting in coming days is to see how much some of the other federations are going to pay its players, and what sort of bonus systems they will put in place. Read more!
(I also believe England should be known as the Four Lions. Why not?)
Speaking of embracing ... South Africa's national federation has come up with cash incentive plan for its team. Not that it is taking on any massive risk here.
Here is the plan:
One million rand for the team for each goal scored.
Well, let's break that down a bit.
--One million rand is ... $132,000. Less than a million of anything might sound like. And divided 23 ways (the number of players on a World Cup team), that comes to about $5,600 per man.
--South Africa has had enormous trouble scoring goals for the past two years. In the B-cubed's last 34 matches, it managed only 32 goals. Not quite one per game. At that rate -- and can we predict many more goals against world-class competition? -- that's three goals in Group A play, which is $392,000. Big deal.
--If South Africa actually starts scoring goals and gets to the second round, or even deeper, the team pays for itself with additional monies to the federation from the Fifa kitty. Add in the intangibles in terms of marketing and increased interest in the national side ... and again, it becomes a self-funding concept.
Also note that the South African federation has yet to indicate how much it will pay individuals for making the team and playing, etc.
I do like that they are offering goal money to the team and not just to the individual who scores. This emphasizes playing together.
What will be interesting in coming days is to see how much some of the other federations are going to pay its players, and what sort of bonus systems they will put in place. Read more!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
More Fear!
Crime. Racial tension. Terror. High prices. Dangerous highways ...
South Africa can be a dangerous place. (As can most of the world, if you work at it.)
But just when you perhaps thought you had heard it all ... we have something else to worry about ahead of next month's tournament.
What, you ask?
Well, of course: Rift Valley Fever.
The World Health Organization is advising World Cup visitors to be on the watch for Rift Valley Fever, the Daily Telegraph reports.
Well, OK. And how do we get it? At the airport? In the stadiums? In the hotels?
Actually, no. None of those places.
You can get it on farms, game preserves, from raw meat, from being in contact with the blood or organs of dead animals ...
Yes. Not exactly the sort of activities the typical World Cup fan is likely to seek out.
WHO says mosquitoes also can pass on the disease.
Espn.com writes that ...
The UN health agency is not advising any international travel restrictions, but a statement on its website reads: "WHO recommends that visitors to South Africa, especially those intending to visit farms and/or game reserves, avoid coming into contact with animal tissues or blood, avoid drinking unpasteurized or uncooked milk or eating raw meat.
"All travellers should take appropriate precautions against mosquito bites (use of mosquito nets, insect repellents)."
So, what if you get the dread disease, which has killed 15 this year? Well, it's like the flu.
Actually, I feel a bit bad for South Africa sometimes. It has issues. Some of them quite serious. But Rift Valley Fever?
Sounds exotic, sounds dangerous even ... but if Rift Valley Fever turns out to be the biggest worry at South Africa 2010 ... it will have been a very good World Cup. Read more!
South Africa can be a dangerous place. (As can most of the world, if you work at it.)
But just when you perhaps thought you had heard it all ... we have something else to worry about ahead of next month's tournament.
What, you ask?
Well, of course: Rift Valley Fever.
The World Health Organization is advising World Cup visitors to be on the watch for Rift Valley Fever, the Daily Telegraph reports.
Well, OK. And how do we get it? At the airport? In the stadiums? In the hotels?
Actually, no. None of those places.
You can get it on farms, game preserves, from raw meat, from being in contact with the blood or organs of dead animals ...
Yes. Not exactly the sort of activities the typical World Cup fan is likely to seek out.
WHO says mosquitoes also can pass on the disease.
Espn.com writes that ...
The UN health agency is not advising any international travel restrictions, but a statement on its website reads: "WHO recommends that visitors to South Africa, especially those intending to visit farms and/or game reserves, avoid coming into contact with animal tissues or blood, avoid drinking unpasteurized or uncooked milk or eating raw meat.
"All travellers should take appropriate precautions against mosquito bites (use of mosquito nets, insect repellents)."
So, what if you get the dread disease, which has killed 15 this year? Well, it's like the flu.
Actually, I feel a bit bad for South Africa sometimes. It has issues. Some of them quite serious. But Rift Valley Fever?
Sounds exotic, sounds dangerous even ... but if Rift Valley Fever turns out to be the biggest worry at South Africa 2010 ... it will have been a very good World Cup. Read more!
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