61 Days until the World Cup - Answering some questions for casual fans

It's only 61 days until the 2014 World Cup kicks off in Brazil (I knew that without looking it up online, BTW). During the 2010 World Cup, I posted several blogs intended for non-soccer fanatics who were getting swept up in the tournament. I got some very positive feedback 4 years ago, so I'm giving it another go this year.

Here are a few questions casual soccer fans often ask me about the World Cup.

Why do we call it soccer in the US when the rest of the world calls it football (or futbol)?

Brian Phillips wrote a great piece in Slate 4 years ago answering this question. If you don't want to read the whole thing, here's the short answer from the article:

It's an abbreviation of association football. Both soccer and American football come from the same set of precursor sports, which became popular in upper-class English schools in the early 19th century and spread across the Atlantic. All these games involved advancing a ball through an opponent's territory and scoring at the far end, but the rules varied from place to place. Ultimately, the version adopted as standard in the United Kingdom came to be known as association football, while another set of rules won out in the United States. Thus the Americans took to calling their gridiron variety football, and referred to the British sport by the slang term soccer, derived from the soc in association.

Who is the US playing in the World Cup?

The US is playing in what most commentators are calling the "Group of Death." That's a hyperbolic way of saying the US is in the toughest group on the tournament. Their opponents are:

• Ghana - Ranked 38th in the world, but Ghana have knocked the US out of the last 2 World Cups. 
• Portugal - Ranked 3rd in the world, they boast arguably the best player in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo.
• Germany - Ranked 2nd in the world, they have won the World Cup 3 times (only Italy and Brazil have won it more).

The US are ranked 13th. So you can see why this is called the Group of Death. Keep in mind, however, that part of the reason it's considered the most difficult group is because it includes the US. Portugal and Germany would feel a lot better about advancing if, say, Australia (g'day, mates!) were in this group instead of the US.

Can the US advance out of their group?

Yes, if they can earn 4 points. (In soccer, you get 3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie and 0 points for a loss.)

Here's how the results could break the Yanks' way:

Germany ties Portugal
US beats Ghana

US ties Portugal
Germany beats Ghana

Germany beats US
Ghana ties Portugal

That would leave Germany with 7 points, the US with 4, Portugal with 3 and Ghana with 1. The top 2 teams advance, meaning the US and Germany would proceed to the knockout stages.

Who is favored to win the World Cup?

As the host, Brazil are the safest bet. The other favorites are Spain, Germany and Argentina. After that, you could make a case for France, Belgium, Italy, Columbia, Holland and Portugal having a chance.

What other questions do you have about the World Cup or the US team? Post in the comments below.

8 Years Ago

US Soccer has posted a video with highlights from the US/Mexico match of 2001. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this was a significant turning point in the history between these two teams.

2-0

2-0. Or, in Spanish, "dos a cero." That has been the score of the last two US-Mexico qualifying matches played in Columbus, Ohio (the site of Wednesday's game). The US also defeated Mexico by that score in the 2002 World Cup, knocking "El Tri" out of the tournament.

For more on the recent history of US/Mexico games, as well as a primer on the US players to watch, read Ives Galacrep's column on ESPN.com.
The photo above is of Oguchi Onyewu, a US defender, staring down one Mexico's former star players, Jared Borgetti, in 2005. This image is a favorite of US fans as Onyewu completely owned Borgetti in that game.

"But there is no hate."

ESPN.com has a column with a little more background on the US/Mexico rivalry. The piece closes with a comment from U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati: "But there is no hate."

Having watched nearly every US/Mexico match from the last decade, either in person or on TV, I have to ask Sunil: Have you been hanging around with Michael Phelps?

The Mexicans were the top dog in North American soccer for decades and futbol is the most popular sport in Mexico. Throw in the very complicated cultural, historical, economic and political relationship between the US and Mexico and you've got a combustible mix.

Bottom line: The Mexican players hate losing to the US. And their fans hate it even more. And despite recent US dominance (there's no other way to describe the last 10 years) the Mexican players still think they are the superior team. But the US seems to have Mexico's number these days and that drives the Mexican players and their fans totally loco.

The road to South Africa

During the 2006 World Cup, I created a blog for friends and family to read my commentary on the games, the US team, and other soccer related news. (I'm using a different blog program b/c I wasn't crazy about Yahoo's tool.)

As the US starts gearing up the final round of qualification for the 2010 World Cup, I've decided to start a new blog to follow the team along its journey.

The road to South Africa and World Cup 2010 starts next week as the US takes on Mexico in the final round of qualifying matches.

Now, some say Duke vs. UNC.

Others prefer Yankees vs. Red Sox.

Still others will offer Cowboys vs. Redskins.

But for my money, the single best rivalry in all of sport is in soccer: US vs. Mexico. There is palpable hatred present at all of these matches. And there are no butt slaps before the games, no hugging or praying afterward. Just two teams that openly despise each other.

And the latest battle is coming up in less than a week on Wednesday, February 11 at 7 pm ET on ESPN2. If you're a sports fan, there's not reason not to watch this. NFL season is over. Baseball hasn't started yet. The NBA is stuck in the middle if its Bataan-Death March of a regular season (which will be followed by a nearly-as-long post-season). March Madness is still weeks away.

For a little background, the US was the whipping boy of Mexico for decades. Then, things started to turn in the 1990s. Perhaps the most significant game came in 2001 as the US and Mexico played in a World Cup qualifying match in Columbus, Ohio.

Mexico entered the typically confident -- even arrogant. But the temperature at kick-off was in the 20s and the Mexican players didn't come out for pre-game warm ups.

Typically, the game was pretty rough and two US vets (Brian McBride and Claudio Reyna) went out with injuries in the first half. But the two subs, Josh Wolff and Clint Mathis, rallied the US 2-0 past a shocked Mexico team.

That game, of course, let do the US qualifying for the 2002 World Cup where they met Mexico again in the elimination round in S. Korea. More about that game later.