worldcup Page 97 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Man Wins £125,000 On Bet His Infant Grandson Would Play For Wales
On Tuesday, 16-year-old Harry Wilson made his international debut for Wales in a World Cup qualifying match against Belgium. It was a big day for Wilson, but perhaps an even bigger day for his grandfather, who cashed in big time on a 15-year-old bet as soon as his grandson stepped onto the pitch....

UEFA's Stacked 8-Team Playoff Guarantees World Cup Heartbreak: A Guide
Yesterday, we saw 53 European World Cup hopefuls get cut down to just 17. Nine teams—Belgium, Italy, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, England, Switzerland, Bosnia, and Russia—advanced to next year's tournament in Brazil. There are still four spots up for grabs, to be fought for among the next eight ...

The USMNT Saves Mexico, And Mexico Is Eternally Grateful
Soccer can be a cruel even in victory. This photo is of the U.S.'s Terrence Boyd tearfully embracing Panama's Felipe Baloy, after two late goals from the USMNT officially eliminated Los Canaleros from the World Cup. But the sport can also be generous in defeat: the U.S.'s win singlehandedly kept ali...


Mexico Keeps World Cup Dreams Alive With Spectacular Bicycle Kick
This, from Mexico's Raúl Jiménez, came in the 85th minute, four minutes after Panama had just equalized and bummed all of Mexico out. Jimenez brought them all back to life with a bicycle kick laser that left Panama goalkeeper Jaime Penedo rooted to his spot. Look at him. Either it's going wide or, ...

With The World Cup Clinched, USMNT Players Must Now Fight For Spots
The United States men's national team is take on Jamaica this evening in what is, thankfully, a somewhat meaningless World Cup qualifying match. That's because the Americans already whooped Mexico, as well as everyone else in CONCACAF, to clinch a spot in next year's tournament in Brazil. So what's ...

English Soccer Is Dead, And It Deserves To Be
World Cup qualifying runs this week, and a lot of what's going on involves glorified exhibition play. Continental giants like the Netherlands and Italy are booked for Brazil, as is our great nation; other teams of interest, like Germany, Spain, Portugal, and France are more or less box-checking. The...

There's almost no way the USMNT can earn a top seed at the World Cup: The top eight seeds for Brazil will be decided by this month's FIFA rankings, where the U.S. currently sit 13th. Even if they win both matches this week, moving into the top seven (host Brazil are automatically in) would require s...

More Details About World Cup Host Qatar's Humanitarian Crisis
Yesterday, our attention was turned to the horrendous living and working conditions of Qatar's working class, a migrant population that will be responsible for building the infrastructure necessary for Qatar to host the 2022 World Cup. Today, an investigation by the Guardian paints an even clearer a...

The Qatar World Cup Is A Moral Shit Show, Too
The logistical problems that are already plaguing the 2022 World Cup in Qatar are myriad, but planning for the event presents even bigger problems than trying to figure out how to play soccer in 120-degree temperatures. Namely, the deaths of hundreds of migrant workers who are building infrastructur...

USMNT Moves Up To 13th In Latest FIFA World Rankings
FIFA's September world rankings were released this morning, and we found out that U.S. Soccer, after being ranked 19th just last month, jumped six more spots to 13th in the world. The Americans also were able to hold onto the top spot in CONCACAF. Mexico, second in the federation, fell one spot, and...

How USMNT Reduced A Fiery Mexican Side To Ashes
The United States of America are going to the 2014 World Cup. In the end, it was never in doubt. And in the end, how they booked their ticket to Brazil was perfect, poetic. The Americans clinched at home, in a storied, claustrophobic stadium in front of a raucous, unapologetically and overwhelmingly...

The USMNT Dances, Sings, And Chugs Beer After Victory Over Mexico
After clinching a World Cup berth with a 2-0 victory over Mexico, the USMNT came back out onto the field for some good old-fashioned celebrating, America style....

Stakes Are High In Tonight's USMNT Match Against Mexico
After 12 straight wins, which included improbable triumphs against world powers like Germany and Bosnia and dominant victories against all comers during the CONCACAF Gold Cup, the USMNT finally lost on Friday, 3-1, in a World Cup qualifier away to Costa Rica. Costa Rica, for some reason still seethi...

Blatter Admits Qatar World Cup May Be A Mistake, Throws Shit At Wall
Even if you ignore the rampant bribery allegations, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is already a massive clusterfuck. This is in part because the World Cup is set to take place in June or July, and summers in Qatar are really, really fucking hot. Like, way-too-fucking-hot-to-play-soccer hot. Now, FIFA p...

U.S. And Mexico Both Lose World Cup Qualifiers
This kid is everyone's spirit kid. He's pissed. And why not, everything about Friday night was a bummer. Before the U.S. men even dug themselves a 2-0 hole in the first 10 minutes, Michael Bradley went down with an injured ankle in the pre-game workout....

Jürgen Klinsmann Came From The Future To Save American Soccer
The United States are playing Costa Rica in a World Cup qualifier tonight, and it's a big deal. The USMNT is first in their group, and a win would all but guarantee their place in Brazil next year. If some other results go the the right way, they could even clinch this evening. They've never won a q...

The Only Qualified Drug Testing Lab In Brazil Just Lost Accreditation
Boy, this would really be a problem if Brazil were going to host any major international sporting events in the next, say, three years....

You Can't Play A World Cup In A Hospital: Brazil 2014, Argentina 1978
On June 30, Brazil dismantled Spain before a rapturous home crowd in the final of the Confederations Cup, the test run for next year's World Cup. The hosts' surprise win—and what it augurs for 2014—temporarily displaced massive protests as the story of the tournament. June saw hundreds of thousands...