Futbol!

Now that the silly winter-sports finals are over, we can finally get into the world-sports groove. We find out today, for instance, that Salzburg, Austria; Pyeongchang, Korea; and Sochi, Russia, made the shortlist for the 2014 Winter Games. Like Almaty, Kazakhstan; Borjomi, Georgia; and Jaca, Spain, Hoth did not advance, probably owing to the long commute from earth and the difficulty of preparing competition venues on the war-torn planet.

Shortly, my eyes will turn to the summer's major event, the Tour de France, which starts on July 1. The first post-Armstong race should be a good one: no one has really dominated the spring races, so le grand Tour will probably be wide open. Allez allez allez!

First, though, we have to get through the football World Cup, which is hitting a fever pitch with two big matches this morning, including the US vs. Ghana and Italy vs. the Czech Republic. As the New York Times' great WC blog puts it, "Good Morning. The Apocalypse Is Here." Though draws will complicate things, outright winners of the matches will advance to the knockout round of the tournament. You can follow the USA-GHA match online on the Times blog - if the servers don't crash as 300 million Americans (plus or minus) log in, trying to overcome the crushing heartbreak of our earlier loss to the Czechs.

Much as I'd like to see the Americans win and advance, I think Ghana has done a better job of raising the rhetorical and mortal stakes. On the Times blog, we find that Ghana's president has told the team,

"I have no doubt that you are capable and will cross this last group hurdle into the next stage of the competition to make Ghana and Africa proud... I pray to God that He will give you the energy and strategy to accomplish that which he predestined you and our dear nation to achieve before the beginning of time."

Very "England expects," frankly. As if divine interest in men kicking balls into nets isn't enough,

The Black Stars’ Serbian coach, Ratomir Dujkovic, has [said] this as part of his tactical preparation for the game. “The Americans will suffer to be able to match us,” he said on Monday. “We are prepared for any team and the boys are more than willing and ready to die for a good result."

How would that work, anyhow? A midfielder kicks his leg right off in making a long pass to an onside attacker? A striker's cranium explodes when he heads the ball past Casey Keller for a stoppage-time winner? Can't wait to find out!