Brazil Rallies, Shocks US at Confed Cup

Koman Coulibaly of Mali stirs controversy by nullifying late goal

(NEWSER) - The most famous person in American soccer today isn't an American or a soccer player: He's Koman Coulibaly, a World Cup referee from Mali. In today's US-Slovenia match , a 2-2 draw, Coulibaly awarded a free kick on an obvious dive, then negated a goal that would have given the Americans a late 3-2 lead—and refused to tell the irate players what the infraction was. "I am gutted," said Landon Donovan, who set up what appeared to be Maurice Edu's game-winner. “I don’t know how they stole that third goal from us." More»

(AP) - American players danced in the locker room and swigged bubbly after a thrilling victory last night in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, earned the US soccer team a trip to South Africa and another chance to impress at the World Cup. In one of the most exciting end-to-end matches the US has played in many years, the Americans took a 3-1 lead before Honduras closed on Julio Cesar De Leon's second goal of the game in the 78th minute. More»

Brazilians not allowed to ban booze, soccer chief says

(NEWSER) - Banning beer at the 2014 World Cup is not an option, FIFA chief Jerome Valcke has warned Brazil. The world soccer kingpin, visiting the country for an inspection tour, says he isn't happy about the state of Brazil's infrastructure, the pace of construction at stadiums and, in particular, a government squabble over alcohol sales at the 12 venues that will host the World Cup, the BBC reports. More»

Obama, Jay-Z, Steve Jobs help win crown

(NEWSER) - When it comes to foreign policy, perhaps Americans aren’t the world’s favorite nationality. But the US has clearly cornered the market on coolness. Just ask the 30,000 people from 15 different countries polled by social networking site Badoo.com. When asked to choose the coolest country, America came first, Reuters reports. “We hear a lot in the media about anti-Americanism,” says a rep for the site. “But we sometimes forget how many people across the world consider Americans seriously cool.” More»

Bill Clinton, Morgan Freeman push US bid to FIFA

(NEWSER) - Soccer's governing body chooses the country to host the 2022 World Cup today and the US is widely expected to win—despite a somewhat shambolic presentation yesterday. Bill Clinton's speech was long and rambling and Morgan Freeman accidentally skipped a page in his script, but Team USA star Landon Donovan hit the right note, the Guardian reports. "The World Cup captivated our country and something special happened this summer in our love for the game," the player told FIFA officials. More»