I don't care much about the Confederations Cup. And most people who aren't dedicated soccer fans don't know what the Confederations Cup is. These people should read the next paragraph to learn what the Confeds Cup is. Those who know or don't care should skip the next paragraph. And to those who don't like soccer, all I can say is "why have you read any of this?"
The Confeds Cup is a small tournament involving 8 teams: the latest World Cup champ (Italy), the host country (South Africa), and the 6 champions of the various continental soccer confederations. So, for instance, Spain qualified as champions of Europe. Egypt won the African championship, and so on.
Here was the situation: Brazil had already clinched a spot in the next round. And Italy had all sorts of tie-breakers over the US. USA would have to beat Egypt by 3+ goals. Moreover, Italy would have to lose by 3+ goals.
That's like winning a baseball game by 10 runs, or a football game by 35 points. It happens, but rarely. And for it to happen twice on the same day is INSANE.
That's precisely what happened. USA beat Egypt 3-0. Brazil beat Italy 3-0. Italy and the US had the same goal differential, but the Americans scored 1 more goal than the Italians, and that allowed them to advance.
For the record, Italy trampled the US 3-1 last week. But in a Texas/Oklahoma style scenario, the head-to-head game between them meant nothing.
This doesn't mean much. Spain will destroy the US Wednesday afternoon. I just think it's crazy.
-The Commodore
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