Brief thought exercise: does the United States even ‘deserve’ to win the World Cup?

This is all pretty much a moot point, since assuming the United States will beat Belgium and Argentina in its next two games is a wide stretch. But … think about it. Anything is possible. There’s a lot of consternation around legitimate… Continue Reading

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Is Luis Suarez now officially the third-best soccer player in the world? (And is he about to be No. 2?)

Conventional logic says Messi 1, Ronaldo 2 … so is Suarez 3? Twitter seems to think so. The only consolation from last night is that the magician #LuisSuarez is ours. The third best player in the world. #LFC — Sam… Continue Reading

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Here are the various YouTubes you need to remember June 17, 1994, O.J. Simpson, and the Bronco chase

Let’s get it going. “I’ll give you me. I’ll give you my whole body.” Bob Costas = conflicted. Kenny “The Jet” talking about Game 5 during the O.J. chase. Here’s 53 minutes of the chase: Here’s the “suicide note” from… Continue Reading

Brief thought exercise: where would the O.J. Simpson white Ford Bronco chase have ranked as a Twitter event?

Think about this: if 20 years ago tomorrow was, instead, tomorrow — the Internet might break in half. You’d be in the middle of the World Cup — already poised to be the most-tweeted event in history — and you’d… Continue Reading

Gregg Popovich and the lesson of sticking with someone (or sticking with it)

For better or worse, we live in an instant gratification society right now. This is evident in a few walks of life, from the emergence of social media (cited by everyone) to business (focus on quarter-by-quarter results, which ultimately tell you… Continue Reading

Google Trends Newsroom is here for the World Cup; could that model essentially become the future of journalism?

Check this out: Google Trends Newsroom, with 20 or so employees, keeping track of search trends around World Cup games and really helping you tap into the mood and spirit of different countries (and/or the world). If you go there… Continue Reading

46% of the 736 World Cup 2014 players play in England, Italy, Germany or Spain during the year

Got World Cup fever yet? I bet — even if you are an American. (“That first game is a must-win,” you’re now breathlessly telling all your friends.) Chances are you’ll watch at least a couple of games during this World Cup, see… Continue Reading

Sorry, New York Rangers — the only time a team came back from 0-3 in the Stanley Cup Finals was 1942, and a ref got punched in the face in the process

We don’t think of 0-3 in a big spot as totally insurmountable anymore because of the 2004 Red Sox (and other examples), but on hockey’s grandest stage, it really is. There are only four examples of a team down 3-0 coming back… Continue Reading