The U.S. soccer team’s exciting, patriotic run toward the quarterfinals of the World Cup came to an emphatic and devastating end in Seattle on Monday, courtesy of Belgium’s dominating 4-1 victory over our American footballers.
Perhaps the pressure of becoming the first U.S. team to advance past the quarterfinals proved to be too much. Belgium scored first and appeared to be the more talented and better-prepared team, taking advantage of every U.S. miscue, including errant passes and poor defense, en route to the convincing victory. It was a flat and uninspired performance for the USMNT, which had been outstanding for much of the World Cup on its home soil. Even the reinstatement of Folarin Balogun, who had been suspended following a highly controversial call in the previous win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, proved futile as the entire team played its worst match of the tournament.
Soccer, on the world stage for the USMNT, has improved dramatically, and the future appears promising.
With the MLB All-Star Game rapidly approaching, the Miami Marlins have positioned themselves to be contenders. In the NL East, they trail the division-leading Atlanta Braves and the second-place Philadelphia Phillies by three and four games, respectively, after winning nine of their previous 12 games and compiling an overall 49-42 record. The consistent play of All-Star shortstop Otto Lopez and the pitching of Eury Pérez have been key. Pérez pitched seven perfect innings against the Oakland Athletics before Marlins manager Clayton McCullough removed him from the game. The A’s nearly completed a miraculous comeback before falling 9-8, raising the question of whether Pérez should have been allowed to remain in the game. Pay attention to the Marlins in the second half of the season.
The Miami Heat officially signed Giannis Antetokounmpo. Soon afterward, another controversy over jersey sales ensued. No. 34 jerseys were flying off the shelves, but Giannis will be wearing No. 7. Question: If you purchased a No. 34 jersey, would you return it, if possible, or would you simply purchase a No. 7 jersey and keep both? Myriad fans will have to make that decision.
In previous columns, I’ve opined that for Coco Gauff to be truly great, she must win major championships. Well, she appears to be on her way, as she dispatched Jessica Pegula to reach the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and it’s very likely that she will meet another great minority player, Naomi Osaka, at some point.
Politically, 47 is doing anything and everything to make America a dictatorship with minimal pushback. The lower courts have denied his desire to rename the Kennedy Center after himself, though the WPB airport probably won’t be so fortunate. And in Mississippi, the alleged accidental drowning of an 18-year-old Black male athlete who was out with friends—all of them white—has raised troubling questions. He goes missing, and no one knows what happened? Strange fruit, my friends in Trump’s America.