2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa

BY SPORTS NETWORK

Spain has regained the top spot in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Rankings, which were released on Friday for the month of November.

Brazil was on top of the table since July, but they slipped to second this past month, with the Netherlands remaining in third and Italy in fourth.

Portugal (5th, up 5) and France (7th, up 2) both moved up the rankings thanks to wins in their respective UEFA qualification playoff matches, while qualified teams like Argentina (8th, down 2), and England (9th, down 2) both dropped slightly.

Cameroon (11th, up 3), Greece (12th, up 4) and Uruguay (19th, up 6) moved up, while only two teams inside the top 20, Croatia (10th, down 2) and Russia (13th, down 1), will not be heading to South Africa next summer.

Teams outside the top 20 who made significant improvement include Nigeria (22nd, up 10), Slovenia (33rd, up 16) and Ecuador (35th, up 9), while the Czech Republic (23rd, down 8), Paraguay (30th, down 9), Northern Ireland (39th, down 9), and Colombia (40th, down 10) each slipped down the table.

The final FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Rankings for 2009 will be released on Wednesday, December 16

The passion for Football is certainly sweeping everyone around the world, particularly the youth and sportsmen. In addition to conventional media like Radio, TV and Press, now it is the Internet, Football fans are going online to find all sorts of information about the matches, including multimedia content such as an extensive gallery of brief video clips of stars and highlights from matches from earlier championships. Many Internet sites have sprung up which are reporting about football fixtures and later about the matches covering every goal, foul, booking or other event out on the stadiums.

World Sports Network - an independent online football betting guide – offers in-depth reviews of major bookmakers , breaking football news, football fixtures, previews and the best livescore and odds coverage online for hundreds of competitions around the globe.

Have a look at the information and resource rich site and see what they are offering and how you can learn about some of the most sticking odds there. Given my own interest, I have bookmarked the site for my own future reading. World Sports Network is of the best places for football fans.

We are to witness now another exciting game schedules at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2009. This is the match between Nigeria vs Bahrain which is about to start in just a short while. See the spectacles and latest happenings now at Dubai, UAE.

The Swiss striker Dejan Stankovic previously stole the limelight with four goals against Nigeria. Meanwhile, Group rivals Bahrain and Nigeria square off with only a token victory at stake before both bid farewell to Dubai.

The much awaited live match will have a kick off time of 18:00 ET. So what are you waiting for, watch now the Nigeria vs Bahrain live stream at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Dubai 2009 before its too late.

Please standby for our latest updates with regards to the match results after the game.

Watching your favorite sport star in action in the field, screen star in theatre and or pop star in a concert is a fun and joy. But keeping track of the events and buying tickets is an overwhelming task. Sometime you have to wait or stand in long lines to get the ticket. Worst still, at times it becomes difficult to get the seat to watch the event. That is where ACheapSeat.com comes in to help.

ACheapSeat.com offers premium seating to events without waiting on hold or standing in line. Have look at the resource rich sit and see what all they are offering and how they give to their customers access to tickets that do not go on sale to the general public. Best thing is that you can browse through different seating sections and prices and secure seat you like.

Given my own interest, I tried Augusta National Golf Course Tickets and not only found schedule and of my favorite sport event but also a lot of useful information. I suggest fans must read through information before making a purchase. This will help you make informed decision. Similarly I looked for Michael Buble Tickets scheduled in May 2010. In addition to tickets for the event, ACheapSeat.com also offers peak into Michael Bublé's profile. Users can also find Air Canada Centre schedule and dates at ACheapSeat.com and buy Air Canada Centre Tickets there.

Explore the neatly laid out site and buy tickets online for your favorite events.

Egypt’s stunning, hard-fought, last-minute victory over Algeria on Saturday, marred by violence on the eve of the game, forces the North African rivals to face off in another “match of hate” to determine which team will advance to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

More to ensure fairness than to avoid violent attacks on players, the match will be played, under FIFA rules, at a neutral site determined by an oh-so-scientific method that employs scraps of paper and plastic balls.

“Algeria chose neighboring Tunisia as their preferred location and Egypt opted for Sudan,” according to FIFA’s Web site, “with FIFA General Secretary Jerome Valcke settling the matter by drawing the latter option out of the hat.”

The drawing of lots in Zurich means the Pharaohs and the Desert Foxes will play Wednesday in Sudan, at the Al-Merreikh stadium in Omdurman, a city on the western side of the Nile, across from Khartoum.

Will the neutral site help stem violent outbursts from fans, as was the case Saturday, or from players, as was the case in 1989 when the two teams last faced off for a spot in the World Cup? It remains to be seen, but no doubt emotions on and off the field, in Omdurman as well as Cairo and Algiers, will be running high.

Elizabeth Lambert was suspended Friday from the New Mexico Women’s college soccer team.

In a video first profiled on LALATE Friday, Lambert’s antics on the field against BYU’s Kassidy Shumway have sice become the biggest soccer replay video this month, bigger than an FIFA qualifying match, for all the wrong reasons. Now Monday, Lambert is unable to play, but her video is going viral, being replayed across sports tv broadcasts all weekend long.

On Friday, the video became the highlight clip of the moment on ESPN SportsCenter. By weekend, it became a YouTube sensation. Now Monday, the story still hasn’t died. In the end, Lambert’s team lost.

Lambert says she is sorry. “My actions were uncalled for. I let my emotions get the best of me in a heated situation…. This is no way indicative of my character or the soccer player I am.”

Online reaction included the following remarks:

I? am sure her parents are sooooo proud.

hey …. ever seen american football people get? paralyzed during games

her behavior was criminal. She brings shame to her school and her sport.?

She needs to be charged with assault. I wouldn’t let her? do that to me.

New Mexico coach Kit Vela issued the following words about Lambert Friday:

“Liz is a quality student athlete but in this instance her actions clearly crossed the line of fair play and good sportsmanship.” {#}

The young Italians ended the US U-17s’ run with a 2-1 victory in the first round of knockout stage play today in Kaduna, Nigeria. They will face the winner of Germany-Switzerland in the next round.

Italy scored on Giacomo Beretta’s goal in the 29th minute and Pietro Iemmello’s cannon in the 56th. The Italians took possession from US defenders throughout the match, and could have scored several more times with better finishing.

The Americans notched their lone goal in the 51st minute on a corner from Luis Gil, perfectly headed in by Nick Palodichuk.

Facing a strong Italian side, the US could not afford to miss chances. Jack McInerney failed to convert a penalty kick in the first half. In the second half, Stefan Jerome evaded at least four defenders to find McInerney in front of the goal, but his shot hit the crossbar (replays showed the Italian keeper may have gotten his fingertips on it). In the final minutes, Dominick Sarle set up Victor Chavez, but Chavez could not finish.

Regrettably, some of the Young Yanks seemed to lose their composure at the end of the match. In stoppage time, Eriq Zavaleta drew a red card for an elbow and McInerney got a yellow.

My US MVP for the tournament is Luis Gil. He was decisive and fluid with possession, played unselfishly, and seemed the most polished player on the American side. Gil has been on Arsenal’s radar for some time, and this tournament run will no doubt raise his stock further.

ESPN chose to air this match on its website ESPN360.com instead of on the channel ESPNU, where the US’s first three games of this tournament aired. So ESPN must have had something really important to air on ESPNU, right? Uh no, they aired a simulcast of Colin Cowherd’s radio show.

The US team continued their long travels around Nigeria for this match. After their first two games in Kano, in northern Nigeria, the Americans came south to Ijebu-Ode, near Lagos. Today’s contest was back in the north of the country, in Kaduna. And now they’ll have to come back south again to fly home. {#}