2010 World Cup

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World Cup Ball to Suck Less This Year, Adidas Promises

It aims to improve on awful 2010 version

(Newser) - In 2010, players had a big complaint about the World Cup: The ball didn't move right. The Adidas Jabulani was engineered as a theoretical improvement over your standard, 32-panel ball. With just eight panels, it had fewer stitches, and that, supposedly, meant a less-turbulent flight through the air, Brian...

News Tops Celebs in 2010 Web Searches

BP, World Cup lead Yahoo! list

(Newser) - For the first time since Yahoo began releasing its annual “most-searched” list, news drew more queries than did celebrities, Reuters reports. The BP oil spill and the World Cup were the most searched items. Why? The spill “became an issue about so many things, such as the environment,...

RIP, Paul the Octopus
 RIP, Paul the Octopus 
Oct 26, 2010 6:53 AM CDT

RIP, Paul the Octopus

It was natural causes, German officials swear

(Newser) - Maybe he saw it coming: Paul the octopus, the unlikely hero of the 2010 World Cup, has been found dead in his German aquarium, reports Der Spiegel. Officials cite natural causes rather than angry German soccer fans, and say that the beloved psychic cephalopod will be cremated, not turned into...

Iran Prez Slams 'Decadent' Octopus

Pampered Paul Nonplussed

(Newser) - Paul the "psychic" octopus has already ticked off nations whose World Cup defeats he predicted, but now he's got a new enemy: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Iranian leader has denounced the octopus in several recent speeches, accusing him of being a symbol of decadence and of "western propaganda...

French Soccer Stars Held in Kid Hooker Probe

They 'didn't know she was underage,' says attorney

(Newser) - Two French soccer stars were grilled yesterday about sex with a teen prostitute by Paris officials investigating an underage sex ring operating out of nightclubs. A teen prostitute working for a Paris nightclub told police she had sex with the players, but attorneys for both Franck Ribéry, 27, and...

Germany to Spain: No Way You're Getting Paul

Psychic octopus transfer bid rejected

(Newser) - Paul the octopus' German hosts are less than impressed by the Madrid Zoo's offer to trade some coral or small sharks for the world-famous cephalopod oracle. Spain is eager to get its hands on the octopus that predicted its World Cup win, and has offered money if the Germans aren't...

Church Cries Foul on Dutch Soccer Mass

Pastor suspended after praying for Holland to beat Spain

(Newser) - A Dutch priest is in hot water for praying— in vain —that the Netherlands would defeat Spain at a Mass celebrated the day of the World Cup final, reports the BBC . Paul Vlaar decorated his church in the team color, orange; wore orange and white vestments; and played along...

World Cup Gambling Rings Busted in Asia

More than 5,000 arrested in China, Singapore, Thailand

(Newser) - Illegal gambling dens across Asia are being rolled up in a post-World Cup crackdown. Police in China, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore have found almost 800 illegal gambling dens, arrested more than 5,000 people, and seized almost $10 million in bets, the BBC reports . The establishments handled more than $155...

Gay Players Cost Germany World Cup: Soccer Agent

Comments spark uproar

(Newser) - The agent for the captain of Germany's national soccer team has blamed "gay players" for the nation's failure to capture a World Cup title, sparking a firestorm of criticism. Michael Becker, who represents captain Michael Ballack, scoffed at the "bunch of gays" on the World Cup team in...

Vengeful TV Host Throws Octopus Into Blender
 Vengeful TV Host 
 Throws Octopus 
 Into Blender  
world cup fallout
Jul 12, 2010 3:57 PM CDT

Vengeful TV Host Throws Octopus Into Blender

Relative of Paul the psychic cephalopod meets grisly end

(Newser) - And you thought the run on octopus recipes was bad—a relative of Paul the newly retired World Cup psychic wound up in a blender on Argentine TV, reports the UK Sun . "Adios," Roberto Pettinato croons to the "pulpo Nazi" as he takes shooting the messenger to...

Spain's Captain Seals World Cup Interview With a Kiss

Iker Casillas loses it while being questioned by girlfriend

(Newser) - Spain captain Iker Casillas' emotional post-match interview melts even the hardest soccer-hater, writes Brook Peck on his Yahoo sports blog. After Spain beat the Netherlands to take the World Cup, 1-0, he was interviewed by his reporter girlfriend Sara Carbonero. Carbonero, who was blamed by Spain for its earlier loss...

Joyous Spain Welcomes Home Her Heroes
 Joyous Spain 
 Welcomes 
 Champs 
world cup
Jul 12, 2010 1:20 PM CDT

Joyous Spain Welcomes Champs

World Cup victory overrides months of grinding economic, political woes

(Newser) - Spain set aside months of economic doldrums and fractious politics today to give a jubilant and resounding welcome home to its victorious World Cup team, reports the AP. The team was making the rounds with politicians and royalty, children and grateful cops alike ahead of an open-air parade through the...

64 Killed in Bomb Attack on World Cup Revelers

Somali militants suspected in twin blasts

(Newser) - At least 64 people were killed in twin blasts in Uganda targeting World Cup revelers. The explosions tore through a packed rugby club and a restaurant in the capital of Kampala as exuberant fans watched yesterday's final match. One American was among the dead. "I remember blacking out, hearing...

Spain Fans Party in the Streets
 Spain Fans Party in the Streets 
world cup
Jul 11, 2010 5:45 PM CDT

Spain Fans Party in the Streets

World Cup victory over the Netherlands sparks nationwide celebrations

(Newser) - Cries of "Viva Espana" are echoing through the streets of Spain as fans celebrate the national team's first World Cup title. "It's an extraordinary feeling, of happiness and nerves," one reveler in Madrid tells AFP . Says another: "We are very proud and very happy." Spotted...

Spain Wins First World Cup
 Spain Wins First 
 World Cup 
UPDATED
Jul 11, 2010 4:42 PM CDT

Spain Wins First World Cup

Decisive goal in 1-0 contest is latest ever in a final

(Newser) - Andres Iniesta scored with 4 minutes of extra time remaining to give Spain a 1-0 win over the Netherlands and its first World Cup title today in Johannesburg. With the teams facing a penalty shootout in a game of few clear chances, Iniesta collected a sliding pass from substitute Cesc...

Dutch, Spanish Awash in World Cup Fever

(Newser) - As the minutes wind down to the World Cup final, fans of Spain and the Netherlands are positively pulsating with anticipation. The displays ranged from a Dutch priest who decked his church out in orange and prayed for victory while kicking a soccer ball down the aisle, to the Spanish...

Germany Beats Uruguay for Third Place
 Germany Beats Uruguay 
 for Third Place 
world cup
Jul 10, 2010 3:52 PM CDT

Germany Beats Uruguay for Third Place

Championship between Spain, Holland is tomorrow

(Newser) - Sami Khedira scored late in the 82nd minute to give Germany a 3-2 victory over Uruguay and third place for the second straight World Cup. The game sets up tomorrow's championship match between the Netherlands and Spain. Khedira's header ended Uruguay's hopes of beating Germany for the first time in...

Why You Must Root for Spain
 Why You Must Root for Spain 
world cup final
Jul 10, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Why You Must Root for Spain

The Dutch are 'gorgeous losers,' so let's keep it that way

(Newser) - Brian Phillips is pulling for Spain to win Sunday's World Cup. Or, more precisely, he's pulling for the Netherlands to lose, for the good of the sport and its traditions. Holland's teams, he explains, "are soccer's most gorgeous losers." They earned this stamp in the 1970s, when their...

Octopus Predicts Spain Will Win World Cup

So go call your bookie

(Newser) - It's official: Spain is going to win the World Cup. Paul the Octopus has decreed it, the Daily Telegraph reports. The psychic cephalopod is 6 for 6 this World Cup, and went 4 for 5 in Euro 2008, missing only when he predicted his beloved Germans to defeat Spain in...

Germans Dine on Octopus After World Cup Loss

Cephalopod soccer prophet is 6 for 6

(Newser) - Paul the Octopus was proven right yet again when Spain ousted Germany from World Cup contention yesterday, but this time, Germans weren’t singing the cephalopod prophet’s praises. Instead, bitter fans are scouring the Internet for octopus recipes, Der Spiegel reports. “Hey Frank,” said one customer...

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