Amazing win for the US...the 2nd goal was lucky, but I'll take. Nice win over a team that hasn't lost in 35 straight games!

After a very strong first half against Italy and the win today, things look promising for a good World Cup in 2010.

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Mason
Member, Redeemer Presbyterian Church (PCA)
New York, NY

"Come now, and let us reason together," says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool." - Isaiah 1:18

Thanks for the update, truthfully I was predicting Spain would win 3-0.

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James N. Walling
Center Grove Presbyterian Church (PCA)
IL

κύριος Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς

View some of my photography at http://www.puritanboard.com/members/...s-my-life.html

I saw the game.
U.S. has good games like these where they shine, but in general they are not a powerful force. They generally will get lucky and win a good game and then lose the next one. We'll see how they do against Brazil (or S.A. if they win).

Still, at was an impressive game. Don't really see U.S. play as smart as they have today.

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Claudiu
Reformed Baptist
attending Immanuel Baptist Church
Sacramento, CA

Woooh!

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Benjamin P. Glaser, M. Div, Licentiate, Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church
Member Fairmount ARP Church
Pittsburgh, PA

Deo Vindice

Amazing. Couldn't believe the result - just watched the game. Well done - for (the majority of?) PBers, you shouldn't underestimate what an outstanding result this was. Spain were unbeaten in 35 games before this.

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Jon
London, UK
Ex-Redeemer PCA, Manhattan
(Now All Souls' Langham Place, London)

Yeah, I agree. The US has always struggled with consistently performing on the big stage. However, the one thing they had today that they've lacked in the past is the athleticism to compete. Technically Spain has better individual talent, but the US players were just as fast and just as strong (and on the first goal, stronger). Remember, they were up 1-0 on Italy at the half and played the 2nd with only 10 men, and couldn't hold off the Italians. I was down on the US after their last World Cup showing, but they are certainly heading in the right direction based on this tournament...

The athleticism can certainly be noticed. I am happy that they are performing stronger than in the past appearances. I hope they succeed - and the way they are playing, if they continue and play consistently at this level, they will be one of the teams to watch out for.

My jaw dropped when I heard they won. Im sure they ( USA team) cant believe it also.

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"I thank Thee that many of my prayers have been refused. I have asked amiss and do not have, I have prayed from lusts and been rejected, I have longed for Egypt and been given a wilderness".-Unknown

Julio, Amaya
Clifton, NewJersey
Reformed Baptist Church of North Bergen

I'm glad, they improve every year. I have seen them lose or tie against crappy teams before it's so hard to try to guess how they will do in their next game. I remember when they tied Guatemala a while ago I could'nt believe it. Guatemala sucks...I can say that because I'm Guatemalan and a fan.

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Julio Perez
Visting Branch of Hope OPC hoping this will be my home church.....


“No…we are all priests. Your vocation and your contentment in your vocation should not be dependent upon your being in vocational ministry or in being a figure of public acclaim. If God wills that fine…if He does not do that, you ought to still do what he has granted you to do to the glory of God.”

-Martin Luther

Yea Guatemala is terrible. lol. Im Colombian, maybe I shouldnt open my mouth.

Be careful about them football rivalries in South America...


Theognome

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Bill Cunningham
Covenant Reformed Church, URC
Kansas City
There are three kinds of people- those who can count, and those who can't.

Who was your man of the match in today's US v Spain Confederations Cup Semi-Final? I'm split between Dempsey, Demerit and Howard.

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Rangerus
Southern Baptist
Austin, TX
Teacher and Volunteer
1689 LBCF & BF&M 2000

Takes a socialist nation to beat a socialist nation

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Jonathan
College Student
Grace Family Fellowship {SBC}
Kentucky

... yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live.

1 Corinthians 8:6

I was disappointed in the result, and surprised. I had been hoping the Spanish would continue their winning ways through this tournament; there are a fair few players in their team that I like.

Two points struck me from the game:

Awful Spanish defending for both USA goals. Spain's defence is their weakest area, though usually they manage to keep possession well enough for it not to be exploited.

Torres and Villa don't play well together. Each is naturally a sole centre forward. Again, against weaker teams they can usually get away with two mismatched players, but the USA played sufficiently well to expose them. There has been some talk of Torres wanting Villa to join him at Liverpool; I have long thought this would be an unwise use of money by Liverpool.

As regards the USA, they've had athletic football teams for as long as I can remember. Sometimes they also manage to put together the tactical element, sometimes not; in this match they did.

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T W Hopper
Member, Presbyterian Reformed Church
Currently between churches since PRC closed here - attending Crossroads Christian Church.
Canberra, Australia.

Another very plucky performance by the US in the final itself. At half-time they were leading 2-0 but Brazil came back to nick it 3-2 in the end up. Very creditable display by the US against top opposition.

Are you guys talking about that sport where guys kick around that black and white checkered ball for, like, three hours and maybe actually get it into the goal by the end of the game?

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That's the one, except it's usually ninety minutes. And, as often as not, a goal-less soccer game is more interesting than a basketball game where both teams score 70+ points!

The US actually has a decent international team - it's just a shame soccer is over-shadowed by more inward-looking sports, such as American football, which have a much more limited international appeal.

(Just opened up myself to a whole lot of abuse there!)

Consider this abuse!

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Curt Lovelace
Pastor, Covenant Baptist Church (CBA)
Acton, Maine
Director, Lifework Forum
Sermons at SermonAudio.com/CBCActon
Blogging at Coffee with Curt

I thought so! Isn't it the sport where the fans throw batteries and plastic bags of urine at the players and routinely trample each other? Honestly, what is more exciting to watch at a soccer match, the players or the fans?

As much as I love soccer, American football is an unparalleled sport, IMO. The fans are MORE passionate than soccer fans (especially college fans), the stadiums are bigger, the atmopshere more intense, the rules more complex, the variety of required skills and athleticism greater, and the team aspect is crucial by design.

Having said that, I doubt American football will ever catch on worldwide the way basketball has, and soccer will never catch on in the US the way it has in the rest of the world. There are many apsects of soccer that just don't jive with American culture, namely the frequent lack of intensity (real or perceived), the dives, and subjective and inconsistent officiating, and the contentment with tie scores.

Still, I'm glad the US national team is improving - hopefully they will have a good showing in 2010.

Rugby > American Football.

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Andrew DeShazo
Husband of Kathryn
Father of Phillip-Giles B. DeShazo
Deacon
Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, Memphis, TN
"From out of the depth of unbroken Infinfity arose the Question, "Who am I?" And to that Question there is the answer, "I am God!" -Meher Baba, died 1969.

"I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Christ, died 33 AD, ressurected three days later.

I have to disagree with you on several of those points.
1) American football fans are NOT more passionate. I don't see what you could be basing that on. Soccer fans in Europe, South America, and Africa live and breathe soccer. The team I support, Liverpool, is known for its die-hard working-class fans. They spend all of their money on tickets and apparel, and upon death many have had their ashes scattered on the home pitch.

2)The atmosphere is NOT more intense in American football. Soccer fans never stop cheering during games. They don't need cheerleaders or a jumbotron to instruct them when to cheer. It is nonstop standing, singing, and cheering for the full 90 minutes.

3) I'll grant you that the rules are more complex in American football, but since when is that a good thing?

4) While the variety of skills in American football might be greater, it is a variety spread across several positions, not just one player. I don't see how that is an argument for football. And I don't buy for a second that the amount of athleticism is greater. The quickness, endurance, and balance required in soccer is no lesser (if not greater) than in American football. I'll admit that strength plays a larger role in football, but I think all the other areas favor soccer.

You are right that soccer will likely never catch on here. The time for that has passed, and a lot of it does have to do with our culture. I think the biggest strike against soccer is that it is not concerned with stats. Americans love stats. They like completion percentages, avg rebounds, and ERAs. Soccer is all about the end result.
I'll grant you that the dives are a negative, but it's no different than the NBA. The nature of both sets of rules encourage some acting for a beneficial call. But at least soccer has started penalizing players (via bookings) for diving.
As for ties, it's not really a contentment. It's all about what you needed going into the match. League play is not about wins and losses but rather points accumulated. The goal is not to have the best record but rather the best position in the table. A tie is worth something in soccer.

I'm not trying to argue that soccer is better than everything else, but I definitely don't think it is lesser. There are many flaws in the American professional sport system that would be alleviated if they were done like soccer.

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Daniel
PCA
Memphis, TN

In the past I might have agreed with you, but having been to multiple EPL and La Liga games over the years, along with World Cup and Olympic elimination games, the fans are not as passionate as American football fans are (in general). Last year I saw a Champions League Spanish team play another good Spanish team, and the 55,000 seat stadium in downtown Madrid was maybe 2/3 full. This year 95,000 fans showed up for Ohio State's practice Spring game! Sure Liverpool and other teams have their extremely loyal and passionate fans, but are you telling me they are any more die-hard than Green Bay Packers or Pittsburgh Steelers or NY Jets fans, all of which are very blue collar? The Jets have a 10,000 person waiting list for season tickets! And that's not even considering big-time college football fans, which are the most passionate of all.

Yeah, soccer fans sing and cheer, but it's not directed at the action on the field unless a goal is scored. Football fans are quiet when their team has the ball, but make tons of noise when the opposing team has the ball - much more focused and impactful on the game (hence the term "12th man").

American football requires much more strategy and pre-game prep - coaches watch hours and hours of films to prepare for their opponents. It's simply a more sophisticated game.

Soccer has some amazing athletes, without question. But soccer doesn't require a 6'5" 250 lb man to be agile and quick the way football does. I agree that individual skill level is spread across a football team.

I agree, which is one of the reasons the NBA continues to dwindle in terms of popularity - as global following rises, American following falls.

But that's the problem! Americans never celebrate a tie in football (on the rare instance it happens). It's all about winning each individual game, not jockeying for position on a table. Barcelona's extra-time goal that tied the game yet secured their advancement to the Champions League final only highlights that. Americans would never celebrate a tie in football with such elation.

I love soccer and played it through college, but it has plenty of flaws, many of which could be alleviated by adapting them to a more American system such as getting rid of ties, allowing for timeouts, more liberal substitutions, etc. And don't get me started on officiating, which needs to be completely overhauled.

I know we're getting off-topic, but this is a fun conversation! Many Americans assume soccer fans are more passionate because they see the hooliganism and what-not, but going to professional games in Europe it has become obvious American football fans are equally if not more rabid...