World Cup news stories on Newser

Skier Wins World Cup Race on Single Ski

Kate Schwartz — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 10:18:16 CST

Impressive: Being America's first World Cup champion in cross-country skiing since 1982. Way more impressive: Winning the title after racing on one ski. That's what Kikkan Randall managed to do yesterday in Drammen, Norway. The Anchorage native has been the World Cup sprint leader this season, and managed to finish...

FIFA: World Cup Must Have Beer

Rob Quinn — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 04:00:14 CST

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...

Special Skier's Underwear Banned at World Cup

Dustin Lushing — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 16:37:10 CST

The newest suspicions of cheating in sports come not from the use of performance enhancing drugs but from the wearing of special underwear. Professional skiers who will compete in the upcoming World Cup in Switzerland were bluntly told by officials they cannot don a "full-bodied, plastic-neoprene hybrid sheath" worn under...

N. Koreans Fail Steroids Test, Blame Lightning (Again)

John Johnson — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 11:27:12 CDT

Boy, that was some lightning strike. When North Korea's women's soccer team lost to USA , it blamed the lingering effects of a lightning strike from earlier in the month. Now that five of its players have tested positive for steroids at the World Cup, the team is pulling out the...

Wambach Again! USA Advances to World Cup Final

John Johnson — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 12:52:05 CDT

One more win for the World Cup: The US women's soccer team beat France 3-1 today to advance to the finals on Sunday. With the game tied 1-1, Abby Wambach headed in a goal (again! ) to give USA the lead with about 10 minutes left. Alex Morgan made it...

North Korea Blames Lightning Strike for Loss to US

John Johnson — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 17:07:45 CDT

The USA women's soccer team started the World Cup with a 2-0 victory today thanks to goals by Lauren Cheney and Rachel Buehler and, er, a lightning strike on June 8. Or so says the North Korean coach, who claims five of his players were hospitalized earlier this month when...

Meet the Best Women's Soccer Player in the World

John Johnson — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 16:40:44 CDT

The male stars of soccer are worldwide celebrities, but the top female player is a relative unknown. Marta Vieira da Silva—she goes by Marta—is a 25-year-old Brazilian who plays in the fledgling women's pro league in the US. Her team is the Western New York Flash of suburban...

FIFA Prez Slammed Over World Cup Gay Joke

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 11:13:46 CST

Sepp Blatter will probably think a bit longer before he speaks next time: The FIFA president is being criticized for an ill-advised joke he made while discussing the World Cup in Qatar . Blatter was asked about the potential problems inherent in hosting the competition in the Middle East for the...

Qatar, Russia Picked to Host World Cups

Kevin Spak — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 10:03:13 CST

FIFA shocked the world today by selecting Russia and Qatar to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, respectively. The US was widely considered the favorite to host in 2022, reports the AP, while Russia was considered a long shot against England, Spain-Portugal and Belgium-Netherlands. Vladimir Putin, who was heralded...