An ugly ball for the beautiful game.

This hideous monstrousity is the official ball for World Cup '06 in Germany. It also definitively proves that Germans have no taste.

One of the great mystery's of modern life is how the US has escaped the nearly psychotic passion for soccer that grips the rest of the planet. I don't know how or why it happened, but it did. As the rest of the Earth gears up for the World Cup, America will greet the world's most important sporting event with indifference, bordering on hostility. Even while the Olympics were running in Italy; most Italians were more interested in the African Cup. Celtic vs. Rangers, Tottenham vs. Arsenal, A.C. Milan vs. Inter Milan - these are epic, monumental events in the lives of their fans. The Old Firm, as Celtic vs. Rangers is known, is basically a religious war for Glascow, fought on the pitch. People get killed for wearing the wrong jersey in the opponent's section. Tottenham vs. Arsenal is a battle for the hearts and minds of North London. AC and Inter share a stadium, are the two most successful teams in Italian history, and their fans HATE each other. It is a perpetual turf war fought for the same piece of ground year after year after year. Imagine if the Red Sox and Yankees share a stadium, now multiply by 10.

I must admit to being a pretty big fan (for an American) of the beautiful game. During the last Cup, my brother and I would wake up at 4 am to watch the action from Korea/Japan. Fearing that I would wake the wife, I desperately tried to stiffle shouts, screams, and curses as the US beat Portugal. That victory put the US back into the constellation of world class teams after 50 years in the wilderness. It was great to see. And while I think that team was better than this year's side, I think we will have a pretty respectable showing. So ugly ball aside, everyone should at least try to watch a game. Consider it is your patriotic duty.