Jérôme Valcke, outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s second-in-command, is currently under investigation by soccer’s governing body concerning allegations that he was involved in a scheme to resell World Cup tickets for grossly inflated prices.
In May I was at a bar in Portland, Ore., with two of my brothers, watching the U.S. women’s national soccer team play the first of a series of pre-World Cup tune-ups. At first, we were the only people there—it was Mother’s Day, around brunchtime. A little after halftime, an older couple sat down at the other end of…
One of the major concerns of the Brazilian people in the run-up to last summer’s World Cup was the prudence of a financially-troubled nation spending hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars on stadiums. The stadiums were criticized for their opulence, their number, and their location. As it turns out, the critics…
USA players covered an average of 77.17 miles per match over their four matches at the World Cup. That's more per match than any other nation, which is something to be proud of, right?
I guess it's true what they say. Success can really change a man.
Yes, we all know FIFA's rankings are bad and pointless and the formula is arbitrary and flawed. But if there's one thing we (the human race) can't resist, it's things, ranked.
American championship parades may feature unexpected swearing and goofy-ass dancing from time to time, but we really don't have shit on the Germans. When they celebrate a championship, they pull out all the stops.
Christopher Kramer wasn't supposed to play in the World Cup final. The young midfielder was told just minutes before kick-off that he'd be replacing the injured Sami Khedira. So you could forgive him if that's why the whole thing seems like a blur to him, but really it's just because of the brain trauma.
Yesterday, Germany beat Argentina in extra time to win the 2014 World Cup, and the only surprise is how many onlookers thought their victory was anything but inevitable.
Daniel McDonnell of the Irish Independent tweeted out this list of VVIPs and heads of state in attendance at yesterday's World Cup final:
Rihanna was on the scene in Brazil for last night's final between Germany and Argentina. Because she's Rihanna, she also got to stick around and party with the Germans after their victory.
Lionel Messi was awarded FIFA's Golden Ball, as best player of the World Cup, and it was sort of a cruel selection. Not only did it highlight that the world's undisputed best player became increasingly less visible as the tournament wore on, but it forced Messi to receive his trophy on the pitch, when he sounded like…
Hey, casual soccer fan! You're likely going to remember Mario Götze as the guy who won the 2014 World Cup for Germany, but you should know that he was famous long before he scored last night's deciding goal. That's because he once got a big ol' boner while hanging out on a boat with a lady.
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Viewers in southern New York and northern Pennsylvania missed the ending of today's World Cup final when Elmira ABC affiliate WENY cut away from the action with six minutes left to cover a tornado warning.
Soccer can be cruel, kids. Learn this lesson, as this small Argentina fan did after Germany's Mario Götze scored in extra time.
Mario Götze found net in the 113th minute to deliver Germany its fourth world cup. Above is the goal as called on German TV broadcaster Das Erste; below is the despondent call from Argentinian TV Pública.
