November 6th, 2008 - UEFA Championship league

The group stages of the UEFA Championship league has been going on since mid September but has been settled yet. This tournament is the ultimate clashing of titans. The group stage ends in on the 10th of December, so this is a perfect midway point to scout out what's happening in the groups. Below is a tidbit about the leaders of the groups and what to look for.

Group A
Chelsea - The club still leads their group by 1 point, despite the loss to Roma last game. The defeat was only their second loss under Luiz Felipe Scolari and the first loss for an English club in the tournament. Chelsea was not to keep their composure and confidence during the match. They're going to need to keep their frustrations in control if they still plan on clinching the leading spot in the group. Roma is just one point down from the leaders, and with the win on Tuesday they could have the confidence to pass up Chelsea.

Group B
Internazionale- Although Internazionale is the current top club in group B (and rightfully so), it may not last for long. Any one of the clubs could ultimately win the group. The matchups have ended in multiple ties, and wins and losses for all clubs. Internazionale's tie with Anorthosis this past Tuesday shows that even though Internazionale is the leader right now, the winning position could ultimately go to anyone.

Group C
Barcelona- Throughout group play so far two teams have dominated, Barcelona and Sporting. Both teams have consistently won matchups on the pitch against Bael and Shakhtar. I project that Barcelona and Sporting will finish in their standings at the moment, with Barcelona winning the group. Barcelona beat Sporting in an earlier game 3-1. Unless Sporting wins their next game against Barcelona standings will be staying as is.

Group D
Atletico and Liverpool - Both squads are tied for first with the same record. When the two teams met earlier this they tied 1-1 in both games. It's hard to say which team will win because they are so evenly matched, however I think Liverpool will lead the group. Torres is out, but when he comes back he will give Liverpool the push they need to win.

Group E
Man. United and Villarreal - It will come down to the game on the 25th for a winner to emerge. The two teams have consistently beaten their opponents and tied 0-0 in their first matchup against one another. My gut tells me that Man. U will come out on top due to their experience in the Championship League, however I'm secretly cheering for Villarreal. I'd like to see a new team come out on top for once and Villareal is very deserving.

Group F
Lyon and Bayern - Like many other groups there is a tie for the lead. I have to say I'm a bit surprised that Bayern has done as well as they are, but I'm glad Lyon is getting a bit more competition. The two play each other again (they tied in their first meeting) on December 12th.

Group G
Arsenal - Arsenal is leading but the group is in a tight race for the lead. I'd expected Arsenal to do better than they have, but their big players haven't delivered as much as they should have. They've made good opportunities for themselves, however they haven't been able to capitalize. I think they'll inevitably win the group, but they need to pull their team together.

Group H
Juventus - The standings in this group are really surprising to me. I expected Real Madrid to be closer in points to Juventus or even flip flopped, but not 4 points down. The fact that Real Madrid lost twice to Juventus shows just how overrated they really are. In the end Del Piero is just too good. I'm surprised that things played out how they did, but I can't say I'm not pleased.

October 28th, 2008 - Top 10 Soccer Commericals

I have major issues with procrastination. Homework and housework are always put off until the last possible minute, while I bide my time doing more important things...like surfing youtube. I've seriously got a disease. I look at one video and I can't stop myself. It's like chocolate. So as a tribute to my problem, I decided to grace you all with my top 10 favorite soccer commercials. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

10. Kung fu Soccer - 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup
The top 10 list was supposed to be a list of just men's soccer videos, but I couldn't resist.



9. It's a whole new ballgame - Gatorade
I've always liked this one because of the cool footage that goes along with it. Whenever you typically see soccer advertisements they're full of fast pace moves. This one takes a step away from that and it really works.



8. Airport scene - Nike
Typical soccer ad, but it's amazing just the same.



7. Never Grow Up - Joga TV
For some weird reason I like the creepy old narrator. I don't know if it's his accent or the message that he's sending, but I enjoy it. There's actually a series of Joga TV videos with him as the narrator and they're pretty good to.



6. Beckham's Bad Day - Pepsi
There are a couple of ads with this kid knocking Beckham, but this is my favorite. You think the kid is going to give Beckham this huge compliment, and instead he plays dirty.



5. Henry's House - Nike
Henry is one of those quiet, humble guys that you don't see in a ton of commercials, which is why I like this one so much. He's one of my favorite players. I just go into a daze watching this.



4. Touch of Gold - Nike
I've put this ad up on my blog before, but it's in my top 10 none-the-less. He's amazing, period.



3. Take it to the Next Level - Nike
The way this ad is shot is my favorite part. It puts you in this person's spot and makes you live their life. You smile with "you" do something good and frown when "you" do something bad. Nice work Nike. I clearly like you the best.



2. One Game Changes Everything - 2006 FIFA World Cup
A really good feel good promo for the games and soccer in general. It truly is the world's sport.



1. Jose +10 - Adidas
My favorite soccer commercial of all time. Hands down.


Which one's your favorite?

October 25th, 2008 - Celebrate!

Why futbol celebrations are better than football celebrations:

October 24th, 2008 - Wayne Rooney

Fourth player review - Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney has always been one of my favorite players. He's young, extremely talented and has slowly worked his way up to the top of one of Europe's most known clubs, Manchester United.

Rooney was signed by Everton on schoolboy terms at the age of ten (he was on the Youth team and playing for 80 Euro a week). After moving up to the professional league, Rooney was celebrated as the stand out star of his team. Although Everton didn't want to give him up, over time Rooney wanted to move on to clubs that were more competitive. At age 19, he debuted for his current club Manchester United, scoring a hat trick and an assist.

With his explosive talent also came his immense immaturity. Rooney is famous for his sarcastic comments to coaches, referees and players, making him both hated and loved. His cocky attitude has quitted down in the last couple of years, which is necessary if he wants to gain the respect that his talent deserves. No one likes a player who thinks he never makes a mistake. It's good that he's finally manning up.

Most recently Rooney has really stepped up into the leader position for both club and country. His goal against Celtic FC on Wednesday was his ninth in his last seven appearances for both teams. If Rooney keeps playing well up top with teammate Dimitar Berbatov, Man U will be a sure competitor in the Championship League.

October 24th, 2008 - International Blind Sports Federation

While browsing uefa.com an unusual soccer headline caught my eye.

Blind futsal seminars a success

First thing I did after reading the article was look up what the heck futsal was. Futsal is basically indoor soccer with a different setup and rules than American indoor soccer. It does not have walls or boards, has limited lines, and uses a smaller, less bouncy ball.

The article was about recent seminars for coaches and referees in futsal for the blind and the partially sighted. The seminars were part of the UEFA-funded International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) Futsal Development Project Europe. The conferences were composed of hypothetical and realistic sessions in blind futsal. The seminar was the biggest IBSA blind futsal conference in history.

The article triggered an interest in blind and partially sighted soccer and other athletics. I've never heard of it before, and to be frank, I've never even thought of it before.

After going onto IBSA's website at http://www.ibsa.es/eng/, I found out that they are the legitimate representatives of sport for the blind within the sporting community. IBSA develops and promotes all kinds of sports for the blind and visually impaired. Some of these sports are judo, skiing (different kinds), baseball, futsal, and golfing, among many others.

This is absolutely fascinating to me. It 's hard to play sports as it is, and it takes tremendous skill. To be able to play them while missing a sense that everyone else relies on is amazingly impressive. I give mad kudos to the people that established the IBSA in the 1980's and have continued improving it until today.

Players, coaches, referees, and the organizations should be respected everywhere for their dedication to the cause and the courage to stick up for it.

Click here to view the full article.

December 16th, 2008 - Famous Sporting Families

My final article is on Deidre Freeman, a diver at the University of Iowa. Deidre's dream is to become an Olympic diver. She's already making waves in her sport (excuse the pun). Her freshman year at Iowa she led the team in one-meter and three-meter dives and recorded eight top-five finishes. As a sophomore she ranked eighth all-time at Iowa in one-meter diving and fifth all-time in three-meter diving. She was also an academic all-Big Ten letterwinner. Needless to say, she's holding her own in her family.

Although her dream to become an Olympian is an amazing feat, it only seems natural to her because both her parents went to the Olympic trials. Her mom competed in the high jump at the Canadian Olympic trials before the 1972 and 1976 Olympics. Her dad competed in U.S. pole vaulting trials in those years as well.

In celebration of this sporting family phenomenon I'm doing my blog component on famous kids of famous athlete parents. First I'll name off some famous father-son duos, next father-daughter and last, kids of famous athlete parents.
I also added on a few athete couples who are looking to have kids in the near future.

Like father like son-
1. Felipe Alou and Moises Alou (Baseball - MLB)
2. Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds (Baseball - MLB)
3. Ralph Earnhardt, Dale Earnhardt and Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Racing - NASCAR)
4. Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey Jr. (Baseball - MLB)
5. Gordie Howe and Mark Howe (Hoceky - NHL & WHA)
6. Archie Manning, Peyton Manning and Eli Manning (Football - NFL)
7. Ken Norton and Ken Norton Jr. (Boxing)
8. Gilles Villeneuve and Jacques Villeneuve (Racing - F1)
9. Boby Hull and (Hockey - NHL)
10. Al Unser and (Racing - Indy Car)
11. Calvin Hill and Grant Hill (Football - NFL)
12. Yannick Noah and Joakim Noah (Tennis)
13. In Wright, Bradley Wright-Phillips and Shaun Wright (Soccer - PREM)
14. Yogi Berra, Dale Berra and Tim Berra (Baseball - MLB, Football - NFL)
15. Bill Walton and Luke Walton(Basketball - NBA)
16. Mario Andretti, Michael Andretti and Marco Andretti (Racing - Indy Car)
17. Lee Petty and Richard Petty (Racing - NASCAR)
18. Man o' War and War Admiral (Horse Racing)
19. Jimmy Walker and Jalen Rose (Basketball - NBA)
20. Bob Greise and Brian Greise (Football - NFL)
21. Joe Bryant and Kobe Bryant (Basketball)

Like father like daughter-
1. Muhammad Ali and Laila Ali (Boxing)
2. Nate Williams and Natalie Williams (Basketball - NBA & WNBA)
3. Valeri Liukin and Anna Kotchneva Liukin - Nastia Liukin (Gymnastics)
4. Michael Carter and Michelle Carter (Shot put)
5. Robbie Nay and Meagen Nay (Swimming)

Children of famous athletes -
1. Nancy Chaffee (Tennis) and Ralph Kiner (Baseball) - had three children before divorcing
2. Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner (Gymnastics) - had a baby boy in 2006
3. Steffi Graf and Andre Agassi (Tennis) - have two children, Jaden Gil and Jaz
4. Mia Hamm (Soccer) and Nomar Garciaparra (Baseball) - gave birth to twin girls in 2007
5. Julianne McNamara (Gymnastics) and Todd Zeile (Baseball) - have four children
6. Ann Meyers (Basketball) and Don Drysdale (Baseball)- had three children
7. Kristi Yamaguchi (Ice Skating) and Bret Hedican (Hockey) - have two daughters
8. Sara Renner (Cross Country Skiing) and Thomas Grandi (Technical Skiing) - have a baby daughter named Aria
9. Gabrielle Reece (Volleyball) and Laird Hamilton (Surfing) - have a daughter named Reece
10. Jennie Finch (Softball) and Casey Daigle (Baseball) - have a young son called Ace

Kids soon...maybe -
1. Misty May (Volleyball) and Matt Treanor (Baseball)
2. Kerri Walsh and Casey Jennings (Volleyball)

October 18th, 2008 - Mascot Anyone?

Earlier this week I began to think about mascots. More specifically mascots and soccer. The majority of professional sports teams have these creepy oversized emblems, who's sole purpose is to annoy fans with stupid cheers and weird antics.



The West Virginia Power Pack (above), from Minor League Baseball is exactly why I cringe every time a mascot comes around (http://xrl.us/oucf6).

I think they're strange and unnecessary elements of the games. My roommate Sam agrees.


"They freak me out! They can see through their mouths!" Besides the fact that they apparently "eat people", they're seemingly synonymous with sports.





The NBA, MLB and even the NHL have them. So why doesn't soccer?


The massive amounts of fans make their own fun without the need of any unnatural looking creatures. These soccer fans entertain themselves with flags, drums and non-stop chants. There's never a dull moment, so there's no need for a mascot to pump up the crowd.


Can you imagine a red speckled dinosaur dancing around on the sidelines of an AC Milan game? I daresay they would get no attention from both the fans and the camera.