[EURO 2012] Defending champion Spain and Italy can clinch group titles in Euro 2012 qualifying and berths in next year’s finals with wins against Liechtensteinand Slovenia, respectively, on Tuesday. The Netherlands might clinch with its eighth win in eight games at Finland but would need some help from San Marino in its game against Sweden. […]
japan
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Casual keeper punished by astute striker
[VIDEO PICK] In J-League action, Kashima Antlers forward Yuzo Tashiro scored against Cerezo Osaka when he stole the ball from Cerezo Osakakeeper Jin-Hyeon Kim. Tashiro scored twice in the Antler’s 3-1 win. This is the one that headlined the highlight shows…
Posted inSection 2 Around the Net, Story
Struggling Japanese women's league may not get boost
Japanese women’s soccer faces the same problem women’s soccer faces in the United States: the popularity of the national team, which won the 2011 Women’s World Cup championship, and its players maynot translate into success for the domestic women’s league. “The [Women’s World Cup] boosted the brand value of Nadeshiko Japan, not the league teams,” […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Soccer 1-2 on tweet charts
[ONLINE WATCH] The Women’s World Cup set a new Twitter record for the tweets per second when the end of the USA-Japan final was drawing 7,196 tweets per second. And to show soccer’s popularity across the board, the end to the Brazil-Paraguay match is now second on the tweet charts with 7,166 TPS. The previous […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Winners & Losers
[WOMEN’S WORLD CUP SPOTLIGHT] By any criteria except goalscoring — down to 2.65 a game from 3.47 in 2007 — the 2011 Women’s World Cup was a huge success.Record crowds, some great individual performances and back-to-back-to-back, as good a trio of games as you’ll ever want to see in the USA’s three knockout games against […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
Japan shows off U.S. traits in victory
[WOMEN’S WORLD CUP SPOTLIGHT] Aside from committing a last-minute foul that robbed U.S. forward Alex Morgan of a chanceto win the game, Japan captured the 2011 Women’s World Cup final with heroism and determination. Unable for much of the match to ignite its flowing attacking style of cohesive,interconnected possessions spiced with an occasional long ball, […]
Posted inSoccer America Daily, Story
U.S. player ratings
[USA-JAPAN REPORT CARD] Megan Rapinoe and Alex Morgan were superb in an overall excellent U.S. performance, but it all wentfor naught as defensive errors proved costly. Soccer America’s Paul Kennedy grades the U.S. players … 6 Hope Solo(magicJack) 101/- Couldn’t do anything on two Japanese goals. Did her part to put the USA in a […]
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
Japan's resilience and Sawa's heroics prevail
[USA-JAPAN] Many storylines and subplots were played out as Japan beat the USA on penalty kicks (2-2, 3-1) in a electrifying Women’s World Cup finalSunday in Frankfurt, surely the most dramatic women’s international match ever played. Here are three thoughts in the aftermath of what might be the most dramatic women’sinternational match ever played: Pressure […]
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
Sawa sweeps Golden Ball and Golden Boot
[AWARDS] Playing in her fifth Women’s World Cup for Japan, Homare Sawa won the adidas Golden Ball as MVP and adidasGolden Boot as the leading scorer. American Abby Wambach won the Silver Ball as the runner-up in MVP balloting and Bronze Boot as third in thescoring race. Golden Ball nominees: Brazil: Marta France: Sonia Bompastor, […]
Posted inSpecial Edition, Story
USA-Japan rewind
[WOMEN’S WORLD CUP FINAL] Only nine minutes away from winning the World Cup in regulation and only three minutes away in overtime, the United States fell to Japan 3-1 in a shootout in the Women’s World Cup final when it missed its first three penalty kicks. Homare Sawa‘s goaloff a corner kick in the 117th […]