Before the World Cup began, Spain had an 89% probability of advancing from Group B, while Chile had a 40% chance. Against Spain, Chile beat the odds with a fantastic first half performance in front of tens of thousands of cheering fans at the Maracana Stadium. But what specific tactics did Chile employ to prevent […]

[Scene: September 2018. Living room of Jurgen Klinsman, with the coach and a New York Times reporter present] The United States men’s national team coach sits back in his chair and looks longingly out the window. The reporter begins this interview in the wake of the end of another interesting World Cup, this time in […]

The United States defeated Ghana 2-1 on Monday night in Natal but the American midfield performance was anything but convincing. The midfield diamond that showed so much promise in three friendlies before the World Cup was largely dysfunctional. The formation was vetted by Jürgen Klinsmann largely with the hope of maximizing Michael Bradley’s touches and […]

Tuesday's telecast of Mexico against Brazil in the 2014 FIFA World Cup was viewed by 6.8 million people on Univision Deportes, which beat ESPN's coverage of the same game by 61%, and 4.2 million people on ESPN. Through yesterday, Univision's viewing numbers for the 2014 World Cup are 54% greater than in World Cup 2010 […]

Croatia ripped Cameroon to pieces on Wednesday evening by a 4-0 scoreline. Mario Mandzukic who was suspended for the opening match of the competition which Croatia lost 3-1 to the host nation Brazil, struck twice, while Ivica Olic and Ivan Perisic also found themselves on the score sheet. Cameroon was reduced to 10 men late […]

The next time a World Cup hater complains about 0-0 soccer scorelines, show them highlights of yesterday’s Brazil-Mexico scorcher. It was non-stop action defined by Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa acrobatically stonewalling the relentless Yellow-and-Green attack. Sometimes a draw is as historic as a victory. The Mexican media on both sides of the border treated […]

Every four years, MLS ties itself as close as possible to the U.S. Men’s National Team in the hopes that the warm glow and newfound soccer fans turn to the domestic league to watch more of the sport. The 2014 FIFA World Cup has seen MLS double-down on this strategy as many of the team’s […]

“Change” and “stability,” while obviously completely contrasting concepts, are both vital in soccer. Most would agree with the notion that a successful team is built upon the appropriate amount of each, but it’s a precarious balance to strike. After all, too much change and the players will lack familiarity and cohesion. Too little and a […]

Today's third clash brings Croatia and Cameroon together in a game where the loser will be out of the World Cup. Where to watch? For viewers in the United States, here's where you can watch the game between Cameroon and Croatia (6pm ET/3pm PT) • English language: ESPN and WatchESPN • Spanish language: Univision, Univision Deportes Network […]

Chile convincingly defeated a tired and mistake-prone Spain 2-0 today, to knock the defending World champion out of the World Cup. With the victory, Chile has now qualified for the Knockout Round along with the Netherlands. The two teams will now battle it out in the third game in the group to determine who will […]

U.S. Men’s National Team captain Clint Dempsey released a new single today with fellow rapper XO entitled “It’s Poppin.” Dempsey, aka Deuce, has been working on a 13-track album with XO and told the Wall Street Journal that “We were just having fun with it and it ended up being an album.” Spending two weeks in Los Angeles working […]

After Brazil and Mexico played out a 0-0 draw leaving both with four points, Croatia and Cameroon has become an even more important fixture, especially for Croatia who have already played Brazil and thus gotten their toughest group match out of the way. Should Croatia beat Cameroon by anything less than three goals, it would […]

Today's second clash brings Group B's Spain and Chile together, with both the teams chasing their individual respective targets – Where to watch? For viewers in the United States, here's where you can watch the game between Spain and Chile (3pm ET/Noon PT) English language: ESPN and WatchESPN Spanish language: Univision, Univision Deportes Network and Univision online Portuguese […]

The significance of the fact that the 2014 FIFA World Cup is being held in Brazil should not be understated. Brazil is the most decorated national team in history with five World Cups to its name and it seems that no-one has a passion for flair-driven entertaining football like the Brazilians. This point illustrated by […]

Soccer fans are in heaven right now with the quality and quantity of games available on television and online. But the sheer number of options available can be overwhelming at times, especially when you're trying to figure out what channel each game will be on. To make things easier, World Soccer Talk has created a […]