# 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [June 10, 2010, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677 "2010-06-10T17:32:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/241 "2010-06-13T00:00:42Z")
> [@ivan\_astikov](#): > > Having started to pay close attention to the phenomenon, it amazes me how many “world class” strikers kick or head the ball in the goalkeeper’s direction. I liked this line from The Guardian’s [match report](http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jun/12/england-usa-world-cup-group-c): > [@](#): > > …England must have felt it was not going to be their day, the more so when Wright-Phillips then Rooney hit shots straight at Howard. Shooting at the goalkeeper is a policy that only ever seems to pay off for England’s opponents. 😛 Anyway, I’ll certainly be supporting the USA in their next two matches. If they win both, then we can afford to draw at least one of ours and still go through. Not that we should, but England never seem to raise their game against lesser opponents. ---
**Author:** ![Gotterfunken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/58956e/32.png) [@Gotterfunken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gotterfunken)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/242 "2010-06-13T00:14:48Z")
> [@Parenchyma](#): > > So a possible answer to my earlier query (post [39](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=12564246&postcount=39)) about Univision announcer Bracamontes is that the mockery of Tshabalala’s name continued with mockery of African town and team names. This site says it is [racism](http://guanabee.com/2010/06/pablo-ramirez-tshabalala/) . Most of the games I’ll watch will be on Univision. Is that really how it will be all tournament? I agree with **RedFury** that it’s probably not racism, and I’ve been watching Univision’s coverage too. I heard someone suggest that the commentator is trying to sing Tshabalala’s name to the tune of Duran Duran’s “The Reflex” (the first few seconds of it, anyway). I think he’s just trying to be funny, and even though he isn’t, that won’t stop him from saying the player’s name that way for every South Africa game. Really, he’ll do it every chance he gets. A few years ago, when Brazil was playing in the Copa America (or it may have been the Confederation Cup; I can’t remember), Wagner Love was one the Brazilian players. Every time Wagner Love touched the ball, the Univision commentator (perhaps the same one) would say “Wagner… Luuuuuuuuuuuuv.” Every. single. time. So, yes, it will be that way for the entire tournament. As for the tournament so far, the most memorable moment has to be Green’s fumbling the ball across the goal-line. Truly horrific. But, while England probably should have won the game, this squad really doesn’t have the quality to win the World Cup. Rooney and Lampard (esp. the latter) went missing for long stretches, Carragher and Wright-Phillips were woeful. And it’s still an open question who should partner Terry in defense (doesn’t look like King is fit yet–guess it’ll have to be Upson or Dawson), and–in light of Green’s performance–who will be in goal. So I doubt England will make it far, though they should get out of their group and probably go on to lose in a penalty-shoot out in the knock-out stages. I also have doubts about Argentina. Messi is simply incredible, but he’s just one man. So long as he’s clicking, they’ll do well–but their defense is incredibly vulnerable, and a stronger team than Nigeria will surely exploit that vulnerability. Nigeria came very close to doing that themselves. I think the team that will win the World Cup hasn’t played yet–most likely Spain, although Brazil or Germany may have something to say about that. ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/243 "2010-06-13T00:21:05Z")
Thank God I’m not the only one who thought England’s performance was woeful. I’d been watching 60 minutes before I realised Lampard was still on the pitch. Wright-Phillips did nothing at all. Carragher nearly got sent off within 10 minutes of coming on. Johnson’s crossing, contrary to popular opinion, was terrible. Green had a nightmare: his “wonder save” nearly ended up with the ball in the net from the near post, never mind his Grobellar-style goalkeeping earlier. The only England player who looked like he turned up was Heskey. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/244 "2010-06-13T00:28:17Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > I was a little confused by the ABC announcers who kept saying the biggest USA strength is how well they work as a team. They really only got anything done when the other team screwed up, or there was a great individual effort. Howard bailed them out of loads of poor team defense with perfect fundamentals, ie get yourself in position to be able to reach the ball, and stop it cold whenever you can touch it. I think they came together for a bit after our goal, but I agree–I didn’t see well coordinated, smooth play. Without Howard, they would have been scored on several more times. IMO it was a very physical battle and we kept it to a tie by sheer staying power. I feel bad for the one guy who was gonna go in and the Ref blew the whistle to end the game. He must be gnashing his teeth… ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/245 "2010-06-13T01:01:38Z")
> [@eleanorigby](#): > > …I feel bad for the one guy who was gonna go in and the Ref blew the whistle to end the game. He must be gnashing his teeth… Don’t. It’s a tactical move designed to waste a few seconds (help run out the clock) normally done by the team who wants to keep the score as is. It just happened to work to perfection in that it wasn’t even needed. Obviously the sub knows this. * * * **Götterfunken**. Good post. I think you’ve encapsulated both issues (the racism charges and the teams we’ve seen vs the likely winners) quite well. I’ll just add that although I have the Univision feed, we have local commentators (the analyst is an Argentinian who’s single-handedly carried footy in this country for decades – but he still sucks big time as a broadcaster) and though of mixed races themselves, they go off on all sorts of tangents which would at least be labeled “controversial” in the US market. However you’ll hear nary a peep about them here – in this culture, it’s simply par for the course. As for Spain’s chances, the less _I_ talk about them, the better it is for me. Superstitious lot us footy fans. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/246 "2010-06-13T02:14:19Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Just got back home. Bit of a sickener, but I actually thought England played quite well. They just need to stop shooting straight at the keeper, and get a decent man between their own sticks, and they’ll be in with a shout. > > Glen Johnson was our best player by some distance. Heskey as usual was as much use as a fart in a hurricane. Heskey was much better than Rooney who was neutralized by Jay freaking Demerit. Didn’t he assist on the goal? I thought he was one of England’s best players. Like Findley for the US, his main asset isn’t scoring, which some people can’t accept from a forward. ---
**Author:** ![Enniaunus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b2d939/32.png) [@Enniaunus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enniaunus)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/247 "2010-06-13T02:33:19Z")
Is it just me, or does Ricardo Clark put on a perfectly anonymous performance for the US each and every time he steps on the pitch? It seems like he mostly chases the ball around midfield for 90 minutes without ever catching it, and the only time I really remember seeing him during the match was on the opening goal when Stevie G galloped right past him. Any insight as to why Bob Bradley consistently starts Clark in favor of the (IMHO) far superior Torres and Edu? ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/248 "2010-06-13T03:04:03Z")
I just happened upon [this thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=566636) started by **MichaelQReilly** \* which was shut due to its redundancy to this one. But in all fairness to him I’d like to re-post the link he had in his OP as I think it’s a great inspirational video – even if we come out on the losing end. So, without further ado, here it is: [**Don’t Tread On Me**](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShSbugoka7U&feature=player_embedde) Now, don’t think for a minute I am posting that video just for American fans – I also want it to be a reminder to our own team that there’s no such thing as a “small enemy.” Enjoy. \*No worries buddy. You beat us fair and square. But again, I’m all for a re-match. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/249 "2010-06-13T03:12:25Z")
> [@Xema](#): > > I overheard a guy saying that in top-level football, the team that scores the first goal rarely loses (except by a PK “shootout”). Anyone know theses percentages? : > > - team that scores the first goal wins 70% according to the Stats presented by ABC during the game. ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/250 "2010-06-13T03:14:01Z")
> [@Hawkeyeop](#): > > For world class players, they sure seem to have delicate psyches… Seems as if the more money you make, the more delicate you become – not that I’d know about that. Seriously though, team chemistry is really hard to achieve. And really easy to vaporize – it only takes _one_ intra squad squabble. Seen it happen many a time throughout the years. ---
**Author:** ![Mehitabel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mehitabel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mehitabel)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/251 "2010-06-13T03:14:05Z")
I watched most of the match down at South Street Seaport at the [Puma City](http://www.puma.com/stores/puma-city?source=pumacitycom_redirect), a bunch of exhibits and portable stores in the main aisle of the Seaport at Fulton St. The RED restaurant had a giant–well, OK, largish–two-sided TV that about 200 people were watching in the bar, outdoor cafe, and streets and sidewalks. It was great when we scored the goal and hearty shouts of U-S-A! U-S-A! rang out over the old cobblestones. Some England fans showed up (you could tell by the giant St. George’s cross-bedsheets they were wearing) and got a little ribbing but otherwise stood peacefully among us. There were even two or three vuvelezas, although to me they’re just those horns kids blow into on New Years and the Fourth of July. I kept my ipod Touch open and updated the BBC minute-by-minute website since even though the sound was turned up loud, the TV couldn’t compete with a crowd turned up to 11. The game ended and with some applause and waving of Old Glory, everybody left to find bars with some space in them. I walked around for a while and on every TV I saw, in bars and homes and electronic stores, was a bright green field with little guys running around. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/252 "2010-06-13T03:18:13Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > I listened to some of the game on AM ESPN radio. There was a constant buzzing, humming sound going on throughout the game that was pretty annoying. Was that the crowd? It didn’t sound like crowd noise. Yep. Thousands of vuvuzelas (horns) being blown throughout the match. I’m starting to like it. ---
**Author:** ![RedFury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ec9cab/32.png) [@RedFury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RedFury)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/253 "2010-06-13T03:22:57Z")
> [@Mehitabel](#): > > I watched most of the match down at South Street Seaport at the [Puma City](http://www.puma.com/stores/puma-city?source=pumacitycom_redirect), a bunch of exhibits and portable stores in the main aisle of the Seaport at Fulton St. The RED restaurant had a giant–well, OK, largish–two-sided TV that about 200 people were watching in the bar, outdoor cafe, and streets and sidewalks. It was great when we scored the goal and hearty shouts of U-S-A! U-S-A! rang out over the old cobblestones. Some England fans showed up (you could tell by the giant St. George’s cross-bedsheets they were wearing) and got a little ribbing but otherwise stood peacefully among us. There were even two or three vuvelezas, although to me they’re just those horns kids blow into on New Years and the Fourth of July. I kept my ipod Touch open and updated the BBC minute-by-minute website since even though the sound was turned up loud, the TV couldn’t compete with a crowd turned up to 11. > > The game ended and with some applause and waving of Old Glory, everybody left to find bars with some space in them. I walked around for a while and on every TV I saw, in bars and homes and electronic stores, was a bright green field with little guys running around. 😉 Great story, know the area well. It’s called “footy-fever” and it’s about time you (collective sense) catch it! ---
**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/254 "2010-06-13T04:44:00Z")
There were some interesting performances. Not much play out of some superstars: Donovan was held tight by Cole and Rooney was held down too. On the England side Heskey seemed to get possession constantly, but other than that one pass to Gerrard, did nothing of value. On team USA Bocanegra seemed completely absent, but my favorite footballer, Dempsey, played solidly even without the lucky score. Gooch and Tim played well too. Overall it was clear that England just wasn’t quite as together as USA. Though not reflected in the score, the game showed England the better team; it seemed USA was on the defensive for the entire second half, and just out of sheer will and good teamwork kept the ball out of the net. Considering the matchup, a draw is a great result for us, and a real morale booster. I’ve only been watching soccer for a few years now, mainly EPL (I’m a Fulham fan), but I have come to believe that psychological momentum is a big part of the sport, and as such a draw is a liability for England at this point. It was an exciting game in any case, can’t wait for more. As for the vuvuzelas, I hate them. It sounds like someone dropped a beehive in my living room. Give me some good ole chants anyday. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Understander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3da27b/32.png) [@The\_Understander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Understander)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/255 "2010-06-13T05:06:57Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Your team is horribly outmatched and is expected to be swept. The team manages to force a game 7. Are you pleased with how the series has gone so far? > > I’m guessing we agree, or you’re going to lie about it. Psst… check out post #93 to see the nose I’m tweaking here. But to answer your question, I’d be too psyched/nervous about Game 7 to even evaluate my feelings about the series to that point. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/256 "2010-06-13T05:29:06Z")
> [@RedFury](#): > > Seriously though, team chemistry is really hard to achieve. And really easy to vaporize – it only takes _one_ intra squad squabble. Seen it happen many a time throughout the years. Tis true. It’s like you can stick 4 world class musicians in a room together, but there’s no guarantee they’ll make a band. ---
**Author:** ![Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8c91f0/32.png) [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bam_Boo_Gut)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/257 "2010-06-13T11:24:30Z")
So … game on! Anybody watching? ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/258 "2010-06-13T11:49:32Z")
Of course. It’s the World Cup. Group C looks weak, don’t you think? If we can’t get out of this group, we don’t deserve to be there in the first place. Algeria the better team so far, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/259 "2010-06-13T12:14:33Z")
I thought this new ball was supposed to have erratic, unpredictable movement. I’m not seeing that, or else I don’t know that’s what I’m seeing. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2010, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677/260 "2010-06-13T12:17:39Z")
It seems a little weird to have the showcase of football introduce an unfamiliar ball and expect players to adapt to its differences immediately. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677.md?page=12) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2010-fifa-world-cup-south-africa/542677.md?page=14)