Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Love's Got The World In Motion


Running the fastest he did all day, Ronaldo hears the ice cream man driving past the stadium

I'm not sure if this year's world cup is a cracker or a damp squib; "watching" the games via BBC text updates because ESPN was too stingy to stump for the online broadcast rights is ok but it doesn't convey any of the excitement or mood of the games. Due to an early morning meeting I was able to slip home early tonight and catch the second half of Brazil versus Croatia, but the commentary team and camera crew seemed more interested in the flare-chucking high jinks of the Croatian ultras in the stands than the action on the pitch. "You don't see this sort of passion in America" was the parroted refrain, from two commentators who apparently had never seen an Oakland Raiders' game.

If ESPN's passive-aggressive "we don't want to show this effete crap but it was part of the deal that brought the world cup to the US in 94 for Coke and Nike" coverage isn't cutting it for you, there is some interesting jibber jabber on the blogosphere for those you wanting to go a litttle deeper behind the crap "Americans Bounced by Czechs" headlines:

A couple more days and Listmaker will be singing "10 German Bombers" outside wurst shops in Brooklyn;

Maine Jim considers getting deeper into the beautiful game;

Mondale channels Sir Alf Ramsey;

Dr. Vee ponders the economic models of football success as well as game theory and penalties;

And finally, the ever reliable, ever opinionated Can't Stop The Bleeding has a plethora of footie stories, constantly updated. Considering he's a QPR fan he knows a surprising amount about the game.

In non-world cup news, two mad scientists in Buckfield, Maine have managed to recreate the fountains of Las Vegas's Bellagio in their back yard with several bottles of diet coke and some mentoes (link via All Things Maine). When I lived in Buckfield a decade ago the locals would have attempted the same thing with Allen's coffee brandy and slim jims. Oh, how times have changed.

4 comments:

Mondale said...

It's yet to become a cracker but it's far from a damp squib.
your problem has to be not watching all the games on TV. As of tomorrow my schedule eases up significantly so i should get in at least two gaems a day for the remainder of the group stage. AT the moment I've been snatching the second half of the 3pm games. Bloody Germans!
These tournaments always start slowly, who remembers the group games in 1990?

Wisdom Weasel said...

"Bloody Germans!"

Oh how quickly we forget the agreed use of non-result-spoiling code words...

Good thing I already knew the result, eh? Remember- "Jimmy" then wait for "Greaves".

I agree about the group games; all I ever seem to remember about them is frustration about how poor teams look (unless we are talking about England vs. Argentina in 2002, then I remember nothing except waking up the next day thinking I had lost a kidney). Even second round games can be piss-poor; do you recall how dire it looked for England vs. Belgium in 1990 until Platt pulled one out?

Radio silence on England vs. Trinidad, please- I'm trying to decide whether to follow it with online text or wait for the replay when I get home.

Joe said...

The Bellagio video is awesome. Having grown up the next (much larger) town over from Buckfield, I was always afraid that something like this would happen there.

T. Oklahoma Bandwagon said...

Nice offhand New Order reference. I mentioned something about this song to some Angloplile soccer (or Soccer-file English, as it were ...) friends of mind and they had no idea of that which I spoke. I blame Oasis ...

I have been too wracked with anxiety about the Red Sox, elections, and various anciliary concerns to catch much of the Cup beyond ESPN/NESN highlights. But I promise to pick-up a bit more as things move forward.

Check out my latest post, re: the Pay Per Bag Ordinance repeal vote when you get a chance.

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