Well Done, Italy! :) (OT)

No kidding. If you gals weren't watching at least SOME of the WC, here's a great article about what you were missing...

Jaimee Rose Arizona Republic June 27, 2006

So, the United States is out of the World Cup. Boohoo. Now, let's go to espn.com and find pictures of David Beckham whipping off his shirt.

All week, many American women have been playing wink-wink with the World Cup, coyly pretending to be caught up in the global celebration of international sport. Sure, Honey, you can watch the game. Let me sit next to you and we'll watch together. Let me hold your beer. Let me rub your feet.

All along, this passion has been about something else entirely: watching the international festival of six-packs and reveling in soccer-player lust.

The Americans were just a distraction. It's as if the gods of the universe rounded up all the pretty men on the planet, plunked them in Germany and put them in shorts. Why don't we live in Ghana? Croatia? Serbia and Montenegro? And oh, Lordy, have you seen the Italians?

All these brawny boys on the screen, chiseled and muscled and universally bronzed - it's like the Mr. Universe pageant, with sweat and no words. What more can you ask for from your TV?

There's even all that heated shirt removal, which seems to be what footballers do to cool off instead of pouring water over their heads. For this alone, soccer is the best sport of all time. Just try to find a photo of Argentina's Javier Saviola where he's not running about, indulging his habit of yanking up his shirt every time he gets mad-happy-overheated, and in turn giving the world a glimpse of some serious abdominal achievement. At a bridal shower in between bites of dainty white-frosted cupcakes, Beth Scheall of Chandler, Ariz., and a gaggle of girls skipped the dress chatter and got down to the nitty-gritties: discussing the varied loveliness of the Mexican and Italian soccer teams.

"The physique and athletic build was just amazing to us," says Scheall, 25. "I don't think I've ever met a soccer player that wasn't hot - outside of my brother. They just have the best bodies."

And did you catch the replays of Mexican President Vicente Fox doing a very weird dance to celebrate goals, with his wife, Marta Sahagun, looking ever so chipper by his side?

In soccer, there is nothing to impede the view. No football helmets or baseball caps. No shoulder pads. No hockey masks.

Tell us again why this sport isn't more popular in the United States, because women of the world are onto this and have done excellent work virtually scrapbooking soccer beauty.

If Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is your fave, you can go to buffononline.com and download screen savers, or click into the chat room to bond with other soccer lovahs, who'll go dig up and post pics of "new hottie" Luis Garcia, if you ask.

At

learn that Brazil's Ronaldo has a preferred method for gearing up for a big game: a lovey-dovey bedroom session with his wife. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what's called "rubbing it in."

Get a little Googly with Italy's Francesco Totti, and you can discover he "likes girls with dark hair and dark skin," and that "when he is with his girl, he forgets all the problems, difficulties and controversies of everything. He comes back to (being) a normal boy." Oh, Francesco, how we'd love to help.

God bless the constantly updated photos on espn.com.

Hehehehe...

I have to admit to being profoundly uninterested in footie and the World Cup, and still less in the tennis. I was cheering Scotland in the Six Nations, earlier in the year. I prefer rugby players: better legs and bigger shoulders! And generally less temperamental.

Ditto -- I think that was hysterical!

*nodnodnod* Yeah, I can't say I'm any sort of fan. But I did watch a couple of the World Cup games with the husband (he's not a big football fan either, but he'll watch a few of the "big" games), and was rightfully amazed at some of the footwork.

After watching some of these games -- Portugal-Italy comes to mind, not to mention Zidane's disgraceful headbutt last night -- I've been wanting to see a bit more rugby to see if the saying is true: "Soccer, a gentleman's game played by hoodlums; rugby, a hoodlum's game played by gentlemen." I was rather dismayed at some of the poor sportsmanship -- this is, on a lesser scale, why I don't watch ice hockey. Just play the game! Err, anyway ...

I really like sumo wrestling, too. :)

-j

Have you ever seen 'Bend it like Beckham'? Great film - even if it is about girl's footie! Our Mr Beckham if famous for his footwork as well as his looks.

Can't share that one, but a good Budo match... :) James can hardly wait to get to grammar school and try rugby and hockey. He does love his football, but I feel with his size he may be better suited to Rugby.

Count yourself lucky to be able to watch it at a reasonable hour - kick off was at 5.00am for us in Sydney. Thanks to Australia qualifying for only the second time, it's been mandatory viewing and in the first round matches were on all thro the night. It was easy to spot the football fans by the bags under their eyes!

Personally I would have preferred to see France win (my mum is French) but I'm glad it went to the country that beat Australia. Anyway I think the headbutt meant they deserved to lose. I'm sick of evil sports stars who are paid obscene amounts of money but can't behave/

Loved it. Women athletes are grossly undervalued. It's interesting to me that in DK, it's the *women's* handball team that gets all of the attention. :)

I can't get around the fact that he's married to "Posh". *eyeroll* [...] Okay, I've excised my caustic remarks. I don't care for her -- saw her on Parkinson a while back and she just comes across as completely vapid (and she can't sing :P).

My taste in men runs more to slightly older with perhaps a sprinkling of gray hair ... like this one, maybe:

(Hm, slightly less gray hair than I remember ... :))

I had to look that one up (shame on me, 'cause I've read _The Art of War_ and _The Book of Five Rings). I don't think I've seen much in the way of serious matches; all we seem to get on whichever sports network we get is no-rules kickboxing stuff, which I don't care for (same with boxing).

Brave you -- I think I would've been inordinately worried if I'd had a child who wanted to play rugby, hockey or any other serious contact sport ... but that's mostly fear based in ignorance. I was never a team-sport player as a child, so I don't know enough to make an educated decision as to what's really age-appropriate for children. So I continue to think it's a good thing I didn't have children (I'll get to it *next* time around :)).

-j

:) indeed!

Thee & me both! Becks is OK until he opens his mouth, at which point he displays.. errr... Nothing!

Hehehe! This one's more my style: file:///F|/Data/Website/Walking/Pole_position/Step2.JPG

James is a member of the International Budo Federation/British Sombo Association, the governing body for his Judo. I watch him compete occasionally.

Dad was a rugby player (had an ear almost ripped off once, and re-attached with VERY neat stitches in the changing room at Murray Field, but a racecourse vet! He always said it was the best stitching he ever had! :D ): DH was a climber and still hill walks, and small bore rifle shooter, I played hockey, climbed and walked a bit, and swim. James does or will do all these and more between scouting and school activities. I'm more concerned about him hurting others when he crashes into them!

Ooh, look! A sewing reference! ;P

Actually, no offense, but we don't care.

You obviously missed the point of the article.

At least with hockey, you KNOW there are going to be fights, that's the whole point!!

ps

WC sounds like a serious rival to watching the pipers play in their kilts. I'm going to have to look into this. Sharon

Nah... The pipers have better legs and you get music rather than swearing and spitting!