This morning the US Women were able to do something that FIFA never seems to be able to do themselves… deliver justice to a bunch of unsportsmanlike, phony, cheating soccer players. We can’t blame it all on the players though. Like we usually see in these huge games, the refs completely messed things up, consistently making horrible calls, while allowing the cheaters to do what they do best. We see it all too much and it’s a huge reason soccer is slow to gain popularity in the US. Despite a recent rise in interest in MLS and international play, the 3rd most populous country in the world still doesn’t give a crap about fútbol. The first 120 minutes of today’s game won’t help that. Hopefully the last 2 minutes will. Soccer’s all about patience.
The US was up 1-0 and were hanging in there up until it seemed the refs had enough of it all. That’s when Marta gets her MJ treatment and (1) draws the most insane red card of all time and (2) Hope Solo blocks the following PK then gets a ridiculous yellow and Brazil gets to retake it because she “came off” the line before the kick. 1-1 game. Now the US was playing with 10 women and Brazil was still getting all the help they needed from the refs. Inconsistent offsides calls led to, to be fair, an incredible goal by Marta, and Brazil was up 2-1 in extra time and it was going to take a miracle for the US to come back. Oh yeah, there was tons of flopping, time wasting and the fakest injury of all time but we know nothing will come of that because FIFA has no marbles.
Our miracle came though in the 122nd minute. With about 90 seconds to go in stoppage time, Abby Wambach headed in the most improbable header, took us to PKs, Hope got her revenge and the US Women’s team is moving on while the Brazil women can go take a class in ethics; right alongside those shady FIFA refs. This probably won’t be remembered as well as Brandi Chastain taking her top off after her cup winning PK in the ’99 Cup however it should be remembered as one of the greatest games ever, the most improbable comeback ever and some of the most perseverance any of us have ever seen in a sporting event. Just look at that header.
What I’m watching: Battlestar Galactica