The first settlers of this country, the Pilgrams, not only brewed and drank their own beer, but they often witnessed violent and intense “soccer” played on the beach by natives at Jamestown.
More after the jump…
Is this:
A) The first completed stage of the WorldCup 2010 Plaza in Pretoria, SA?
B) The 2006 World Cup Fanzone in Leipzig, Germany?
C) The first completed building in Stratford, East London for the 2012 Olympic Games Park?
Answer and More pics after the jump…
The small college near Santa Barbara, devastated by last week’s Montecito fire, begins healing with help from upstart team’s 2-0 victory over defending NAIA champion Azusa Pacific.
“I couldn’t even believe we were here,” said Zach George, a freshman whose dorm room burned down, leaving him with nothing, not even his wallet or keys. “We had lost so much.”
Great story.
Image via LA Times
A cool run-down of the history of the game that spread through England, the British Empire, and the rest of the world and first codified in a little book of rules in 1863. By Melvin Bragg and ITV Britain. It was crazy back in the day…!
Part 2 after the jump…
An underdog supporters group inspired by “The Sons of Ben” in Philadelphia springs up in Detroit with the goal of getting an MLS team. Crazy? Maybe. A long shot? Certainly. But is the Sons of Ben story and the new Philadelphia team something that could happen again, this time in the Midwest? Are these the “Sons” of the “Sons of Ben”…?
Recently, amidst all the Bizjournal and MLS-rumors reportage on MLS expansion (Miami, Montreal, Portland, St. Louis, Atlanta, Ottowa, and Vancouver), I met a very different group of soccer supporters who are just as committed to being awarded an MLS team someday. Sure, this group isn’t a collection of wealthy investors, but these guys are rich in other ways, and they’ve already started building a grassroots soccer supporter movement inspired by the Sons of Ben that many cities would be envious of. These are the Motor City Supporters, and this is their funny, brave and inspiring story…
More after the jump
Actor Steven Berkoff (Beverly Hills Cop, Rambo II, Clockwork Orange), describes his new one-man show touring Australia, creatively titled ”One Man”. The show includes “Dog”, about a day in the life of an English football hooligan and his pit bull terrier, Roy.
Image via Big5
Declan Hill is an investigative journalist who has worked for the CBC, BBC, and on several “PBS Frontline” documentaries. He has just written a book called “The Fix: Soccer and Organized Crime” which tells the story of an investigative journalist who sets out to examine the world of match fixing in professional soccer.
Several news outlets have reviewed the book and reported the more explosive allegations, including the author’s assersion that the Brazil-Ghana World Cup 06 match was fixed (Ghana lost 3-0). An article in today’s Toronto newspaper features the author responding to the paper’s doubts about his claims. Whether all his assertions can be proved or not, this guy has the cajones to wade into some very dangerous waters, showing the dark side of the game (crime syndicates, “fixers”, agents, FIFA) and he’s upsetting plenty of people (the Ghanian FA is suing him). Compelling.
Image via DeclanHill
A few weeks ago we saw the MLS start a micro-site devoted to soccer pubs. Today, I see that US Soccer announced a similar program, the Official US Soccer Bar Program.
A good afternoon watching soccer at a quality pub with knowledgeable fans and an exciting atmosphere can take a person from a casual watcher of the game to a true obsessive. There is still a tremendous dearth of soccer-friendly pubs in this country, especially outside large US cities - places that will show the games even at odd hours with a minimum of anti-soccer rhetoric. I like that the USSF and MLS acknowledge this important part of soccer culture.
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