2006 FIFA World Cup Soccer News and Blog

Brazil presents its 2014 World Cup bid to FIFA (Sports Illustrated)
With little pomp and fanfare, lone candidate Brazil submitted its bid Tuesday to host the 2014 World Cup.

SOCCER: Sketchy on details, Brazil offers bid for 2014 World Cup (International Herald Tribune)
Brazil’s soccer association, CBF, formally submitted its plans for staging the 2014 World Cup on Tuesday, but kept the details close to its chest.

U.S. women whip Japan in tune-up They put together a tidy 4-1 exhibition victory in preparation for the World Cup. (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
SAN JOSE, Calif. - Shannon Boxx and Kristine Lilly scored, and the U.S. women’s soccer team used its size and experience to coast to a 4-1 victory over Japan at San Jose State last night in a World Cup tune-up.

Brazil, the only candidate, presents its 2014 World Cup bid to FIFA (San Diego Union-Tribune)
ZURICH, Switzerland Brazil is not assured of hosting the 2014 World Cup even though it is the only bidder for the soccer showcase. FIFA president Sepp Blatter said there is still work to do and reminded the delegation that a deal was far from closed.

PartyBets.com backs Homeless World Cup (Casino City Times)
GIBRALTAR — (PRESS RELEASE) — PartyBets.com has announced that they will be taking bets on teams participating in the Homeless World Cup football tournament and will donate all proceeds of this market to the Homeless World Cup organisation.

Europe not a lock to host 2018 World Cup (Long Beach Press-Telegram)
Soccer: FIFA president may consider U.S. for international event. JAKARTA, Indonesia - Not so fast, Europe. The president of soccer’s world governing body thinks Asia or North and Central America - including possibly the United States - could put on just as good a World Cup in 2018.

The Goal: Play Good Soccer First One Lowell World Cup raising money for immigrant organization (Lowell Sun)
LOWELL — When 29-year-old Quincy resident Chris Njogu heard about the first ONE Lowell World Cup soccer tournament, he jumped at the chance to enter the event.

Access Card should be ordered off the field for good
On Line Opinion - The Access Card debate so far has all the drama of Australia s shattered 2006 World Cup Soccer hopes when Italy was awarded the controversial penalty in the dying seconds of the game that saw the Italians seize victory. Although it looks like the

U.S. women’s soccer team beats Japan 4-1 in pre women’s World Cup tuneup (Slam! Sports)
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Shannon Boxx and Kristine Lilly scored as the U.S. women’s soccer team used its size and experience to coast to a 4-1 victory over Japan at San Jose State University’s Spartan Stadium on Saturday night in a World Cup tuneup.

Soccer: Verbeek quits after leading S. Korea to 3rd at Asian Cup (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News)
_ Pim Verbeek on Saturday announced his decision to step down as head coach of South Korea, despite leading the 2002 World Cup semifinalists to third-placed finish at the Asian Cup after a 6-5 penalty shootout win over bitter rivals Japan.

Soccer Win Brings Joy To Iraq, For A Day (CBS News)
Victory at a soccer championship delivered a rare instance of unified jubilation to Iraq, but a new report illustrates the myriad challenges facing the war-torn country’s population, and why days filled with joy are so rare.

SOCCER: U.S. women beat Japan in World Cup tuneup (Tacoma News Tribune)
Shannon Boxx and Kristine Lilly scored, and the U.S. women s soccer team used its size and experience to coast to a 4-1 victory over Japan on Saturday in a World Cup tuneup in San Jose, Calif.

Soccer: Japan to begin World Cup campaign in Asian 3rd round (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News)
_ Japan are likely to begin their campaign for the 2010 World Cup finals in the third round of Asian qualifiers next year after receiving byes in the earlier rounds, Asian Football Confederation sources said Sunday.

Indonesia: Asian Cup: Coach Verbeek Quits After Taking South Korea To Third (Sinchew)
JAKARTA, INDONESIA: Pim Verbeek quit as South Korea’s soccer coach after the team finished in third place at the 2007 Asian Cup through a penalty shootout win over Japan.

PartyBets.com backs Homeless World Cup (Casino City Times)
GIBRALTAR — (PRESS RELEASE) — PartyBets.com has announced that they will be taking bets on teams participating in the Homeless World Cup football tournament and will donate all proceeds of this market to the Homeless World Cup organisation.

Befica poised to sign Adu (FIFA)
Freddy Adu, one of the most recognisable names in the Major League Soccer, is poised to sign a five-year deal with Portuguese side Benfica. The 18-year-old, born in Ghana, was twice named an MLS All-Star - in 2004 and 2006 - and helped DC United capture the 2004 MLS Cup during his maiden season.

Europe not a lock to host 2018 World Cup (Long Beach Press-Telegram)
Soccer: FIFA president may consider U.S. for international event. JAKARTA, Indonesia - Not so fast, Europe. The president of soccer’s world governing body thinks Asia or North and Central America - including possibly the United States - could put on just as good a World Cup in 2018.

Iraqis Unite Over a Big Soccer Win (Time Magazine)
Iraqi supporters celebrate the victory of their country’s football team against Saudi Arabia for the final of the Asian Football Cup on July 29 in the Shi’ite holy city of Najaf.

Iraq Earns Asian Cup Soccer Title (R News)
Iraq celebrated its first Asian Cup soccer title amid stepped-up security in the capital city Sunday. The 1-0 win was met with celebratory gunfire in Baghdad. The victory also prompted a curfew in Baghdad in an effort to prevent the violence related to the team’s earlier wins.

Europe not a lock to host 2018 World Cup (Long Beach Press-Telegram)
Soccer: FIFA president may consider U.S. for international event. JAKARTA, Indonesia - Not so fast, Europe. The president of soccer’s world governing body thinks Asia or North and Central America - including possibly the United States - could put on just as good a World Cup in 2018.

Scotland U20 1-2 Costa Rica U20
Worldnews.com - Costa Rica hopes out hope after defeating Tartan Army Canada Dot Com BURNABY, B.C. - There is still life - however faint - for Costa Rica at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup soccer tournament. Forward Jonathan McDonald’s goal in the dying seconds of extra time

WORTH NOTING
Biloxi Sun Herald - Twenty-first Annual World Cup Soccer Camp; July 23-26, Biloxi Sportsplex; 8:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. Ankle Biters ages 4-7 ($70); 8:30-11:30 a.m. Kickers ages 8 and up ($85); 5:30- 7:30 p.m. Advanced Players ($90); Doug Stovall doug@stovall.ms or 604-1145.

U.S. women’s soccer team notches 4-1 win over Japan (Inside Bay Area)
SAN JOSE The U.S. women’s soccer team used size and experience to coast to a 4-1 victory over Japan’s national squad at San Jose State on Saturday night in a Women’s World Cup tuneup.

Soccer: Verbeek quits after leading S. Korea to 3rd at Asian Cup (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News)
_ Pim Verbeek on Saturday announced his decision to step down as head coach of South Korea, despite leading the 2002 World Cup semifinalists to third-placed finish at the Asian Cup after a 6-5 penalty shootout win over bitter rivals Japan.

Blatter snubs Europe about 2018 (News 24 South Africa)
Europe has no right to believe it is the natural host of the 2018 soccer World Cup, said Fifa president Sepp Blatter.

PartyBets.com Backs Homeless World Cup (PRWeb)
PartyBets.com has announced that they will be taking bets on teams participating in the Homeless World Cup and will donate all proceeds of this market to the Homeless World Cup organisation.This is the fifth time that the annual tournament has taken place and it runs from 29 July- 4 August in Copenhagen, with 500 players from across the globe, who are currently excluded and homeless taking their …

Former Santa Clara midfielder Osborne prepares for women’s World Cup (San Diego Union-Tribune)
SAN JOSE For Leslie Osborne, the sting of being one of the final cuts from the U.S. Olympic team three years ago was so deep that she contemplated giving up her dream of playing for the national women’s soccer team.

Namibia: Big Issue Team to World Cup Tournament (AllAfrica.com)
THE Big Issue Namibia football team will compete in its fourth Homeless World Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark, which starts this weekend. The competition runs until early August and will see more than 50 teams from various countries taking each other on.

Access Card should be ordered off the field for good
On Line Opinion - The Access Card debate so far has all the drama of Australia s shattered 2006 World Cup Soccer hopes when Italy was awarded the controversial penalty in the dying seconds of the game that saw the Italians seize victory. Although it looks like the

Novato couple’s patriotic apparel business booming
Marin Independent Journal - That year, World Cup soccer came to the United States and speed skater Dan Jansen won an Olympic gold medal in Norway - and Ansanelli’s bold bomber-style jacket was seen around the world. “World Cup games rotated around the country, so my jacket, at

Today in Entertainment History
KVIA.com - In 1994, the Three Tenors — Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras — reunited the night before the World Cup soccer final for a concert. It drew an estimated 1.3 billion TV viewers. In 1995, rapper Queen Latifah’s bodyguard was shot

The Skinny
WRAL - From Formula 1 racing to the Beijing Olympics, the NBA to World Cup Soccer, Lenovo is marketing heavily to draw attention. While HP and Dell remain the dominant PC sellers worldwide, Lenovo is gaining traction. Research firms IDC and Garnter both

Soccer league needed (The Nassau Guardian)
The game of soccer has long been hailed as the world’s most popular sport. It is played all over the world, with millions of people regularly attending games and billions more watching on television.

Soccer: Crew climbs above .500, aims higher (The Columbus Dispatch)
Sigi Schmid has done a little writing in his past, authoring stories for the Major League Soccer Web site and other publications before being hired by the Crew in 2005.

PM Address: Rugby World Cup 2011 Offices Opening (Scoop.co.nz)
It s great to be here to celebrate this important milestone in New Zealand s preparations to host the 2011 Rugby World Cup. An enormous amount of work has been done already to secure our hosting rights and to prepare for what is a fantastic opportunity to showcase our country to the world.

Soccer: Aussies face tough battle for World Cup berth, says Aloisi (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News)
_ John Aloisi says Australia can view Saturday’s Asian Cup quarterfinal exit as part of a learning curve but admitted the Socceroos face an uphill battle in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Soccer Brief (New London Day)
Iraq moved into its first Asian Cup final, beating South Korea 4-3 on penalty kicks Wednesday night after a 0-0 tie. At least 50 fans were killed by car bombs during postgame celebrations in Baghdad.

Canada’s women’s soccer team takes Pan Am bronze (The Globe and Mail)
Squad secures positive ending to disappointing pre-World Cup tournament

India all set for Soccer WC for Homeless (NDTV)
The Homeless Soccer World Cup was started in 2003 with the view of boosting the moral of the unprivileged. Starting July 29 eight player hailing mostly from Central India and Maharashtra, will take on 60 teams from various countries to fullfil their dreams of becoming world champions.

Soccer: Aussies face tough battle for World Cup berth, says Aloisi (Kyodo via Yahoo! Asia News)
_ John Aloisi says Australia can view Saturday’s Asian Cup quarterfinal exit as part of a learning curve but admitted the Socceroos face an uphill battle in qualifying for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

USA-Mexico rivalry expands (USA Today)
The USA-Mexico soccer rivalry, honed through years of continental clashes and a 2002 World Cup showdown, won 2-0 by the USA, added another dimension this week with the debut of SuperLiga, a competition for Mexican and Major League Soccer teams. The championship is Aug. 29.

Namibia: Big Issue Team to World Cup Tournament (AllAfrica.com)
THE Big Issue Namibia football team will compete in its fourth Homeless World Cup in Copenhagen, Denmark, which starts this weekend. The competition runs until early August and will see more than 50 teams from various countries taking each other on.

CORNER KICKS (Los Angeles Times)
1 In a repeat of the gold-medal game at the 2004 Athens Olympics, the United States will play Brazil on Thursday for the women’s soccer championship of the 2007 Pan American Games at Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.