cc Page 453 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

College Football Preview: Avoiding Landmines Edition
Now that everyone knows exactly what's going to happen with the rest of the college football season, this is when something inevitably blows up. Because if there's one thing we know about the convoluted BCS system, it's this: nothing is certain with three weekends to go. Alabama still has to get pa...

Thursday Night Preview: Virginia Tech at Miami
Virginia Tech at Miami (-4)-Tonight Virginia Tech and Miami continue the trail of tears-esque march towards crowning an ACC Champion. Miami has won 4 in a row (3 of them ACC games) and hasn't played since November 1 when they won an overtime game at Virginia. Since that time, as evidenced by the ab...

The World Cup Is Closer Than You Think
Got an image you'd like to see in here first thing in the morning? Send it to [email protected]. Subject : Morning crap This unknown player for one of Turkey's national soccer teams (its World Cup roster lists Semih Şentürk, 25, a striker, as No. 9) can't be worried about FIFA politics; he's involve...

Stupid European Soccer Fan Just Pawn In Game Of Life
Due to it's huge backlog of horse assault cases, the English town of Bolton is only now getting around to passing sentence on Stoke City fan Shaun Allen, who was arrested for punching a police horse after a soccer game in August. Allen was drinking with 15 fellow Stoke fans outside Reebok Stadium af...

Look, I Haz Invizibul Handcuffs
Although there are nearly two months remaining, I'm closing nominations for Deadspin Asshat of the Year, European Division. With 80 percent of the precincts reporting, I'm calling the election for, Ipswich Town midfielder David Norris (applause). Norris is shown here making a "handcuff" gesture afte...

Hey, My Celebration Looked A Lot Like That
Michael Bertin writes regularly about soccer for Deadspin. There's only one person to blame for ruining Arsenal's 2-1 victory over United on Saturday: Wolfgang Puck. The catering arm of his food empire served the conference I was at last Thursday, the pains in my stomach a couple of hours after lun...

Caution: This Man Is Not 100 Percent Pure Beef
You may know Dave Wasser as the world's foremost collector of North American Soccer League game tapes (who doesn't?). But there is much, much more to the Austin, TX resident than that; he's a true Renaissance man. Just look at the photo above, and when your realize that he's not one of the chicks, i...

Salma Hayek Gets Stood Up For Ball-Juggling Lesson
Salma Hayek got a good priice for David Beckham, compared to what MLS paid for the British soccer star. All Selma's waiting for now is Becks to come through with a soccerball juggling lesson she paid for during a charity auction. One problem, Beckham has left for Europe, and nobody knows if he's ev...

The Deadspin Pub Is Up Early For Manchester-Arsenal
There's no questioning what the match of the weekend is this time around as two of England's big four meet at Emirates Stadium at a crucial point in the year. The Red Devils are clearly the team in form while the Gunners will be forced to go without the services of Emanuel Adebayor (injury) and Robi...

Chicago Fans Remain Classy Even When It Comes To Soccer
I'm not sure whether this represents a particular disdain for ESPN, or if Chicago fans just enjoy flipping the bird in general ... I'm guessing the latter. One thing we do know: The time of Boston sports dominance really does appear to be over. As I'm sure you're aware, Chicago beat New England on T...

No, I Give YOU The Yellow Card!
There has to be some way to get Andre Luis to the U.S., get him in a Dallas Cowboys ... or better yet, Cincinnati Bengals, uniform, and sit back and watch the fun. Here's my favorite video of the week so far, which shows the Botafogo defender objecting to receiving a yellow card in the Copa Sudameri...

Ohhh, Direct Hit! Soccer Player Down!
It's never been rocket science to be a European soccer fan, until now. These people are now armed with the latest technology. Here is Linfield's Conor Hagan being hit in the back with a rocket, just after his team's 2-1 loss to Cliftonville in the County Antrim Shield soccer final at Windsor Park in...

Soccer Historian Keeps Long-Abandoned Hope Alive
Are you now or have you ever been affiliated with the North American Soccer League? If so, you can stop boring your friends with tales of late-'70s "cleat parties" and actually do something useful. Like contacting NASL superfan Dave Wasser, who is amassing the world's largest collection of game tape...

The Church Of Maradona Makes Baby Jesus Cry
Most often-asked question by first-time visitors to the Church of Maradona: Is that a soccer ball with a crown of thorns? Why yes, it is. This holy procession honoring the Argentine soccer great also includes a replica World Cup trophy and a church with a tiny soccer ball steeple bell. No way this c...

And in Just a Few Hours We'll Find Out If There Is An College Football Playoff In Our Future....
Everybody knows what today is. The importance of it, what's at stake, all that. There's no way to avoid it. Whoever walks away with the most colored areas from the CNN map tonight, it'll be a good thing. Tomorrow we'll at least be able to look forward to something different in 2009. Those who did vo...

Meet Argentina's New National Soccer Coach (Burp!)
I see no possible way this ends badly. Argentina, which has been sent home ignominiously from the past four World Cup soccer tournaments, has turned to its largest celebrity in terms of land mass to return the nation to its glorious past. Diego Maradona, considered by many to be the greatest soccer ...

Election Night: An Excuse To Stay Up Past 8:30
Well, it's here. When I was a kid, Election Night was one of the few nights of the year I was allowed to stay up past 8:30. (Seriously, my bedtime was 8:30 until I was a freshman in high school. And you wonder why I still wet the bed.) I never knew who any of the candidates were, or even what the "...

See Look, I Can Still Blow Even In Such A Puffy Coat
Michael Bertin writes regularly about soccer for Deadspin So I was Superman for Halloween. And, once in costume, I had this great idea, I would start flying from east to west really, really fast. That would reverse the spin of the Earth and time would start moving backwards. I'd go until Wednesday—...

Spurs do Everyone a Favor, The Big Four Are Back In Place
Good God, you go and get drunk on Halloween and by the time you remember where you are you realize that Chelsea is back on top of the table thanks to Tottenham's humbling of Liverpool. In fact the entire big four of the English Premier League now sit in the top four positions for the first time this...

College Football Preview: The Jort-Out Is Coming
In a move reminiscent of the final rap contest between Rabbit and Papa Doc, Florida fans have embraced their greatest flaw: the you wear jorts insult that Georgia fans have been hurling for the better part of a decade. Yep, there's an organized movement afoot for Gator fans to show up in jorts for t...