Total Futbol

Torres out...

Spain starting lineup announced: Pedro starts in place of Torres.

Mandela Moment!

Nelson Mandela went out onto the field in a golf cart, wearing a black coat and his gentle smile, and waved to the crowd. The civil rights icon and former South African president turns 92 next week and is very frail, so major effort for him to be here . Poignant moment, although it would have been better without the vuvuzelas, but I guess that is how they celebrate here, so maybe it was ok. Hope you all got to see it!

Pre-game scene!

This is the scene at Nelson Mandela Square in Johannesburg...a few hours before game time. Rafael Nadal was in the square, and word is Nelson Mandela could come to the game tonight. 15 African heads of state will be there, also Dutch Prime Minister and Queen Sofia of Spain. Other celebs: Shakira, Placido Domingo, Morgan Freeman, Katarina Witt.

Go Holland!

Que Viva Espana!

 
I guess I'll be safe at the stadium....

Poll: Who will win today?

Who will win World Cup?
	Spain
	Netherlands
	LeBron James
pollcode.com free polls

Final musings on South Africa..

Biggest winner today? Spain? Portugal?

No, it's South Africa, and here's why...

Prison soccer league gave inmates dignity

Here is a story I wrote about Robben Island, the prison in which Nelson Mandela spent 18 years, and where inmates formed a very organized, high-level soccer league as a way to escape the horrors of their daily existence...

Poll: Germany or Uruguay?

Who will finish 3rd?
	Germany
	Uruguay
	LeBron James
pollcode.com free polls

Meaningless 3rd-place game?

You think 3rd-place match between Germany and Uruguay is meaningless? Try telling that to them...

German flu...

Flu bug hit German camp..Coach Joachim Low has it bad, Philipp Lahm, and Lukas Podolski all under the weather. Miroslav Klose, one goal from Ronaldo's record 15, has an aching back and is questionable for the 3rd-place game tomorrow.

Germany won third place game four years ago, but will be tougher this time against a tough Uruguay team eager to go home on a happy note.

Do you like having a third-place game? You think fans care?

Meanwhile..in the Cape Flats...

Yesterday was my most memorable day of this World Cup, and it had nothing to do with soccer. My family joined me in Cape Town for the past week and we went on a very personal and moving tour of the Cape Flats, a sprawling ghetto of 3 million people that makes America's inner cities look like Gables by the Sea...Met some AMAZING and INSPIRING people doing good work in there...Here is my column

And here are some photos...