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A U. S. Soldier attempts to score a goal against Soldiers from Iraq during a soccer match on Camp White Horse near Contingency Operating Base Adder, recently. Photo by Sgt. Shannon Black, 1st Cavalry Division Public Affairs. COB ADDER — U.S. Soldiers with the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Rough Riders) recently challenged the Iraqi Army’s 10th Motorized Transport Regiment (MTR) to a friendly soccer match here at Camp White Horse.“Today is a very happy day for me because of our friends and brothers from the United States,� said Lt. Col. Hamid, a senior officer in the 10th MTR. “This memory...

PHOTO CAPTION: "A second al-Qaeda terror cell is believed to be planning carnage in the UK." SNIPPET: "Senior security sources last night revealed they are hunting extremists aiming to bomb a location such as a nightclub or shopping centre. They believe the cell will target London rather than the North- West, where 11 men were arrested on Wednesday, as the capital holds more "international significance"." Evidence gleaned from the arrests was revealed to Cobra, Whitehall's emergency committee of intelligence chiefs and ministers.

A referee ordered a penalty to be retaken in a Sunday league football game when an opposition player broke wind as the ball was kicked. The Chorlton Villa player got a yellow card for the noise which was classed as "ungentlemanly conduct". The team, who conceded a goal on the second take, went on to win the match 6-4 against International Manchester FC at Turn Moss in Stretford, Manchester. Villa manager Ian Treadwell said their conduct was "normally exemplary". "One of our players 'broke wind' and only the referee heard it and he booked the player," he said. "The other...

SCITUATE, Mass. - The coach of a soccer team for 6- and 7-year-old girls has resigned after receiving criticism for a season-opening e-mail sent to parents. Michael Kinahan wrote in his resignation letter to the board of the Scituate Youth Soccer League that people failed to see the humor in his e-mail, in which he said "losing is for losers" and encouraged parents to feed their daughters "undercooked red meat." Kinahan, who dubbed his team "Green Death," said the e-mail was meant to give parents a "chuckle."

At least 22 people were killed and 132 injured Sunday in a stampede before a World Cup of soccer qualifying match in Ivory Coast, the country's interior minister announced on state television. Desire Tagro said the main stadium in Abidjan was overrun with people who pushed against each other, setting off the panic that led to the stampede ahead of the Ivory Coast-Malawi game. The match went ahead despite the tragedy, with Ivory Coast defeating Malawi 5-0. "Lots of fans showed up," Tagro said. "They started pushing to get in because the match was about to start and each and...

Why is there no "March Madness" for soccer? Here are 6 Reasons. Now this is going to offend some of you. Too bad. I don't hate soccer. But sometimes the truth hurts. 6. The Capitalist/Socialist Theory. Basketball is...

(This classic Dave Barry column was originally published Nov. 28, 2004.) It's game night, and the Pinecrest Wolverettes are getting ready. The Wolverettes are my daughter's soccer team. They're all 4 years old, and they're all girls. They've been practicing under their coach, Susanna. They're learning the fundamentals of soccer, which are: 1. You're supposed to kick the ball. 2. You're not supposed to pick up the ball. 3. Even if you really really want to pick up the ball, you're not supposed to. 4. If you have to go potty, try to wait for a water break instead of...

How Soccer is Ruining America: A JeremiadBy Stephen H. WebbThursday, March 5, 2009, 12:00 AM Soccer is running America into the ground, and there is very little anyone can do about it. Social critics have long observed that we live in a therapeutic society that treats young people as if they can do no wrong. Every kid is a winner, and nobody is ever left behind, no matter how many times they watch the ball going the other way. Whether the dumbing down of America or soccer came first is hard to say, but soccer is clearly an important means...

U.S. players can't crack Europe's glass ceiling Monday, March 2, 2009 It was another lost weekend in Europe for the three most talented players the United States has ever produced. With the World Cup just 16 months away and Bob Bradley, like most managers, reluctant to call on players not receiving regular minutes at the club level, this situation could become a problem for the national team really soon. But I suspect the bigger issue for U.S. fans at present is the simple lack of respect afforded their biggest stars. I've never bought into the theory of a bias against...

Isn't everyone's latest complaint about the past 10-15 years is how every kid gets an award in soccer? ...just for showing up ..no need to actually perform well ..no one keeps score. Well now it's the adults turn ...keep your home even if you can't pay for it. It also occured to me that since the Senate and house has spent their entire budget and then some in one bill ...we should now lay them all off ...no severance packages, I doubt that's in their existing benefits package ...just let them all go! It's not like they are ogin to...

School officials are investigating a fight that broke out during a high school girls soccer match on Tuesday between Sanger and Reedley

And once again the US soccer team beats Mexico dos a cero. Hey Blockbuster... I guess those voodoo dolls and all didn't help very much did they. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=262260&cc=5901

A Mexican sports daily is pinning its hopes of beating the United States in a World Cup qualifying match on voodoo — with help from a U.S-based electronics chain. An advertisement in the sports daily Record on Tuesday invited fans to clip coupons and redeem them at their local Radio Shack store for a voodoo-doll likeness of a U.S. player. The hope was that a little black magic might help Mexico break a decade of futility on the road versus its northern neighbor. "Help end the losing streak so Mexico advances," the ad read. An illustration showed a pair of...

TEHRAN, Iran (AP)—The first mixed soccer game—females vs. males—since the 1979 Islamic revolution led to swift punishment Monday, as an Iranian soccer club said it had suspended three officials involved and handed out fines of up to $5,000.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 12, 2009 – A sports center reopened here Jan. 9 after an extensive refurbishing project that coalition forces and Iraqis undertook to improve the impoverished Qahira community, a Shiia enclave in the Iraqi capital’s Adhamiyah district. Army Capt. John Spencer gives a bag full of new soccer balls to Iraqi children Jan. 9, 2009, during the opening of a newly renovated sports complex, in Baghdad’s Adhamiyah district. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Whitney Houston  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “When we took over this area, we assessed all of the areas to see what nonlethal missions...

London - Amateur footballer David Pratt is being credited with earning the fastest ever red card after being sent off just three seconds into a game. The Chippenham striker made headlines Monday in England after getting the swift red card for lunging at Bashley's Chris Knowles in the seventh-tier Southern Premier Division over the weekend. "I felt hard done-to by the ref's decision but he thinks it was a red card so I have to take it," Pratt told local media. British media called Pratt's accomplishment a world record, although not all amateur leagues keep records of such feats. The...

A player from the Taji Soccer Club scores on a penalty kick during a soccer tournament in Taji, northwest of Baghdad, Dec. 26, 2008. Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Brian Addis, 25th Infantry Division. CAMP TAJI — Soccer players put on a display of footwork and skill during a Taji Qada soccer tournament at the stadium here, Dec. 26. Four teams, consisting of 11 players from Rekiya, Taji, and Hammiat, along with a fourth team from the Strykehorse Squadron, participated in the round-robin tournament.Staff Sgt. James Pepoon, an avid soccer player, said he came up with the idea to host...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) - Argentine soccer player Gaston Aguirre killed a pigeon with a single shot - right off his foot. Video: Pigeon killed An Argentine soccer player accidentally killed a pigeon, while attempting to clear the ball. See the video HERE. "I kicked the ball and, poor pigeon," the San Lorenzo defender said. "Now I will be remembered as the pigeon killer."

The Football Association have vowed to "take the strongest possible action'' against anyone found guilty of Islamophobic or racist chanting against Middlesbrough striker Mido. The Egyptian striker was targeted by Newcastle fans as he warmed up in the Tees-Tyne derby at the Riverside Stadium last weekend, and has called on the game's governing body to take stern measures. Mido suffered similar abuse during Newcastle's last visit to Boro a year ago, but an FA investigation then did not result in any banning orders due to difficulties in identifying culprits. However, two men, aged 49 and 23, have been arrested and...

France's sports minister, Bernard Laporte, warned on Thursday (27 November) that English football pre-eminence was getting out of hand and that Brussels needs to referee the situation. "We see European competitions between participants of two or three nations," he told a two-day summit of EU sports ministers. "Where is the uncertainty in such a sporting contest?" English clubs have been in the last four finals of the UEFA Champions League, winning twice and runners up three times. Critics in France and in UEFA complain that lax financial rules in the UK allow teams to borrow heavily to attract more top...

Congrats to the Columbus Crew. Defeats the New York Red Bulls 3- 1.

Congrats to The Columbus Crew.

Images from a Saudi flag on a soccer ball are drawing complaints from Muslims in South Africa, host of the 2010 World Cup.(CNSNews.com) – An Islamic clerics’ group in South Africa is protesting the appearance of Koranic text in advertising and promotional merchandise for the soccer World Cup, which the country is hosting in 2010. At issue are soccer balls featuring images of flags of the world, including those of Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq. All three flags include words from the Koran. The Council of Muslim Theologians, based in Johannesburg, said in a statement that the use of text...

Army Sgt. Freddy Valdez attempts to reach a soccer ball before an Iraqi Soldier can kick it away during a soccer match at Contingency Operations Base Adder in southern Iraq, Oct. 23, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Maj. Jesse Henderson. COB ADDER — As the sun began to set on the base’s soccer complex Oct. 23, 15 U.S. Soldiers warmed up for a big game here. The “Rough Rider� Soldiers of the 1st Cavalry Division’s 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, were set to play the Motorized Transportation Regiment of the 10th Iraqi Army Division in a partnership-building...

CONTINGENY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, Oct. 31, 2008 – As the sun began to set on the base’s soccer complex Oct. 23, 15 U.S. soldiers warmed up for a big game here. Army Sgt. Freddy Valdez attempts to reach a soccer ball before an Iraqi soldier can kick the ball away during a soccer match at Contingency Operations Base Adder in southern Iraq, Oct. 23, 2008. U.S. Army photo by Maj. Jesse Henderson  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. The “Rough Rider” soldiers of the 1st Cavalry Division’s 27th Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, were set to...

Now are rough times. For all of us. This is where we stand: Liechtenstein/Saudi Arabia: Business as usual, minor sources of irritation Venuzuela: INRI - IN a moRon CommunIst we trust, that'll do the trick! Germany/Switzerland/Austria: High tax, some captial, medium sized car, can't afford fuel, decent house, nothing left of our former empires. USA: Moderate tax, nice eating out, nice car, heavy debt, some capital, some fuel, no home. Japan: Small tax, microscopic car, no future Italy, Spain: Heavy tax, small car + vespas, Fascist tradition, government debt, Catholicism, nice food Norway: Heavy tax, small car, dried cod (lutefisk),...

MEXICO CITY, October 23, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Mexican-American movie star Eduardo Verastegui has begun campaigning against California's homosexual "marriage" law, and is incurring the wrath of Mexican homosexuals as a result. Following Verastegui's reported decision to lead the campaign for the Hispanic organization "Viva la Familia" (Long Live the Family) enraged members of "Tri Gay", Mexico's self-proclaimed "gay soccer selection" expressed their displeasure against the pro-life, pro-family actor and entertainer. At a press conference on October 22 in the offices of Mexico's Secretary of Health, the team denounced Verastegui. The vice-president of Tri Gay, Eduardo Velasquez, tore up a picture...

EMMITSBURG, Md. -- Chase Hilgenbrinck is alone in the middle of the field, just outside the goal box, with his back to it. He's facing his teammates, who are standing several yards away, split into two lines for pregame warm-ups. One by one -- left, then right -- they kick a soccer ball his way, and start jogging in his direction. Chase deftly deflects each ball off to the side with a flick of his foot, setting up each teammate to launch a shot on goal.It's been a couple months since he last put on a uniform. But it still...

FBI Warns of Potential Terror Attacks The FBI and Department of Homeland Security today issued an analytical "note" to U.S. law-enforcement officials cautioning that al-Qaida terrorists have in the past expressed interest in attacking public buildings using a dozen suicide bombers each carrying 20 kilograms of explosives. Authors with the U.S. Office of Intelligence and Analysis added that they have "no credible or specific information that terrorists are planning operations against public buildings in the United States." The FBI and DHS analysts said they were releasing the note because "it is important for local authorities and building owners and...

HARARE (Reuters) - A Zimbabwean soccer player drowned in a crocodile infested river during a ritual to cleanse his team of bad spirits before a match, a state newspaper said on Tuesday.

What's the difference between a bulldog and a soccer mom? In the case of Meleanie Hain, it's a loaded sidearm. On Sept. 11, Hain created a stir among other parents when she wore her weapon - a loaded Glock 26, about the size of an adult hand - in a holster to her 5-year-old daughter's soccer game at Optimist Park in Lebanon, also known as Southwest Park. Although she did not break a law by carrying the weapon openly, she is now facing the loss of her concealed-weapons permit. But she is not giving up without a fight. (snip)The end...

An Iraqi soccer player from the community of Abu T'shir tries to maneuver past a defender from the Risalah community during the championship soccer match for the Rashid Olympics Sept. 9, 2008 at the Jaza'ir Oil Refinery soccer field in the Rashid district of southern Baghdad. Photo by Staff Sgt. Brent Williams, 4th Infantry Division Public Affairs. BAGHDAD — The Rashid Olympics in southern Baghdad came to as end as more than 330 teams from 14 neighborhoods competed in friendly soccer games spanning the course of the summer. The Rashid District Sports and Youth Committee hosted the championship soccer match...

Players from the Immigration team and Dawa party team fight for the ball during a qualifying match of an Iraqi police sponsored soccer tournament in al Kut, Iraq, Sept. 18, 2008. Photo by Sgt. Daniel West, Multi-National Division-Central. FOB DELTA — Immigration defeated the Dawa party 2-0 in the qualifying match of a soccer tournament sponsored by al Kut Iraqi Police (IP) at their headquarters, Sept. 18. The tournament featured 32 teams from the area. Matches took place throughout the month of September and will culminate in a championship in early October. The winner will face the Iraqi security force’s...

Marcelo Bordon is a powerful bear of a man. In football, people like Bordon are known as towering defenders. He is sitting in the club restaurant owned by Schalke 04, the Bundesliga (German football league) team he plays for. With his slicked-back hair, muscular upper body and tattoos, he could easily pass for a prison guard in New Jersey. Yet he speaks softly, talking about the love that helps him when he is in distress, and about the one who has always been there for him, ever since he came into his life. Bordon is referring to the Holy Spirit....

Irish In Protest At Gers Chant Sep 16 2008 By Paul Drury AN IRISH diplomat has raised a complaint with the Scottish government over a song sung by Rangers fans at an Old Firm game. They were heard singing "The Famine Song" during the match at Ibrox a fortnight ago. It includes the line: "The famine is over, why don't you go home?", and refers to the Irish potato famine of 1845-49, in which more than a million people died. A Celtic fan protested to the Irish Embassy in London and Consul General Cliona Manahan raised the issue with...

LONDON: Manchester City's only distinction in British football is its long-term tenancy at the lower end of the league tables. But that has not stopped one of the richest Arab groups from buying out its ownership, making it perhaps the richest club on the planet. The sale catapults un-rated City to the top of the super-rich British club league, hitherto dominated by Chelsea and Manchester United. It also sparks off a war among the moneybag club owners as already evidenced on Monday when millions of pounds were spent by these clubs on a single day to sign in famous footballers....

During the EURO 2008, German director Detlev Buck and the YouTube community created the first fan movie made out of user generated videos. The movie was shown in cinemas across Germany. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxYzNpgaXa4

Iraqi and Coalition competitors finish up a friendly game of soccer, Aug. 1 at FOB Endeavor in Najaf. U.S. Army photo by Christopher Koym. FOB KALSU — The ‘Hope Tour 2008’ kicked off with a friendly game of soccer in Najaf, Aug. 1. Soldiers from the 30th Iraqi Army Brigade took on members of the 30th Military Transition Team, the Ugandan Guard Force team, the Najaf Provincial Reconstruction Team and Team Borlaug from Texas A&M. Soldiers from the 30th IA Bde. won five to one and received England soccer jerseys. Members of the FOB Endeavor soccer team received "HOPE Tour...

The trade of the week is not a multimillion-dollar transfer of Ronaldinho or Cristiano Ronaldo, but the move from the New England Revs to the Roman Catholic Church by Chase Hilgenbrinck. He has just given up his place on the New England roster to enter a six-year apprenticeship to become a priest. His soccer salary, a reported $36,000 a season, would not interest the gifted Brazilians who expect to earn that in a day. However, once Hilgenbrinck's story was out on The Associated Press wire on Monday, it was rapidly headlined from Latin America to Asia, Europe to the South...

San Francisco -- A member of a notoriously violent street gang was arrested and booked Wednesday on three counts of murder in the shootings of a San Francisco father and two sons in the city's Excelsior district that police believe stemmed from a minor traffic incident, authorities said. Edwin Ramos, 21, of El Sobrante was arrested at 12:05 a.m. at his home on the 4300 block of Hilltop Drive in the Sunday slayings of Tony Bologna, 48, and his sons Michael, 20, and Matthew, 16, authorities said. At 5 p.m., he was booked on the murder charges. Police recovered a...

West Ham, Crew fans brawl in stands Sunday, July 20, 2008 11:17 PM By Shawn Mitchell THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH From the southeastern corner of Crew Stadium came the West Ham United chants: “East! East! East Lon-don!” From the northeastern came the answer: “Co-lum-bus! Co-lum-bus!” Today’s war of words turned physical at halftime of the Crew’s exhibition match against West Ham, when a handful of West Ham fans ventured into the heart of the Crew’s supporters section. A scuffle broke out and stadium security quickly pulled the West Ham interlopers to the stadium concourse. The next few minutes were frantic. While...

LOS ANGELES -- American Airlines Flight 725, scheduled to fly nonstop from Boston to Los Angeles on Friday, was diverted to Oklahoma City after a disruptive passenger took his clothes off and had to be subdued.

Al-Qaeda Draws New Recruits Via Internet Al-Qaeda is using the Internet to recruit vulnerable young people to its terrorist network, according to a programme aired on Saudi Arabian TV late on Tuesday. Umm Osama, the founder of al-Qaeda's first women-only website, al-Khansa, joined several others on the programme to discuss how they renounced jihadist ideology. Among those who sought a response to this question was an imam from the Medina mosque, Saleh Ibn Awad al-Mudamsi, and the father of a young al-Qaeda suspect held in an Iraqi prison. Read More Qaeda Targets U.S. Oil Interests in North Africa U.S....

Shouket Ahmed Rahman, Mayor of Yethrib, Iraq, shakes the hand of a soccer player from Albu Faras during the opening ceremonies of the Yethrib nahi'a soccer tournament. For the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, the Yethrib District is holding a multi-village soccer tournament to commemorate the substantial progress that has been made in regards to security and stability in the Salah ad Din province. Photo by 1st Lt. Jonathan Springer. YETHRIB — For the people of Yethrib, Iraq, it has been a long five years. For over half a decade, the Balad and Yethrib areas have...

British and Iraqi Soldiers pose for a group photo following a soccer match at the Basra Operations Center June 26. The two forces work together every day maintaining security in the streets of Basra, Iraq. Royal Navy photo by Leading Airman Jan Hartmann. BASRA — Members of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards and members of the 4 Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland teamed up to take on Iraqi Soldiers from the 14th Iraqi Army Division in a friendly soccer game in Basra, Iraq, June 26. The Soldiers spend most of their days sweating it out in vehicles or on checkpoints...

BERLIN (Reuters) A woman trying to make "manure bombs" using stockings, slipped into a slurry tank and fled the scene naked, German police said Friday. Two women entered a farm in the northern village of Eberholzen Wednesday evening and started to fill the stockings with manure. "One of them slipped into the manure tank, right into the cow muck," said a spokesman for local police. "The other one helped her out. We found their clothes in a field. One seems to have run off completely naked, the other in her underwear." Police said it was unclear what the women had...

Germany coach Joachim Low generously praised Spain ahead of Sunday's Euro 2008 final in Vienna, pinpointing their consistency throughout the competition. "The Spaniards have been the most constant team here," said Low. "They have shown consistent levels of performance, they are flexible regarding their positioning and they are sure of the passes they make. ..."We have the experience of this kind of tournament. We believe we can win such games - we have a winner's mentality."

Brazil honoured the great Pele on Thursday and the other eight surviving players from its maiden FIFA World Cup™ triumph in 1958, a victory that put the nation on the football map and paved the way for four more titles. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva gave the nine men medals of honour at a banquet dedicated to their 5-2 final victory over hosts Sweden 50 years ago. "You helped us understand...we could make Brazil a winner," Lula told the players at the ceremony. Brazil, the most successful football nation with five FIFA World Cup titles, is now in a...

June 18 (UPI) -- Russian state television taunted Sweden with past military victories before the two countries vie for a place in the quarterfinals of Euro 2008, the continent's most prestigious soccer tournament. Vesti-24, the government's cable channel, played a commercial every half-hour today using Soviet-era movie footage of Russian soldiers killing Swedes during Peter the Great's victory over Charles XII in 1709 and Alexander Nevsky's defeat of invaders in 1240. Each scene was followed by a scorecard reading ``Russia 1 Sweden 0'' and accompanied by the theme to the movie ``Gladiator.'' ``It's part of a revival of Russian nationalism,''...

Whether it has any bearing on Monday's crunch Euro 2008 match between the two countries is debatable but Austria drew first blood on Sunday when their topless women's soccer team beat Germany 10-5. The traditional swapping of shirts afterwards was not an option as the six-a-side teams wore nothing but thongs, with the national colors painted on to their bare skin. The football may not have been of the highest quality but that did not temper the enthusiasm of a mostly male crowd boosted by a sizeable media presence only too happy to desert Euro 2008 training for an hour...