Azzurri

ok, that's cool. in the end, it's only a soccer game anyway. although i must confess that, come Sunday, it will feel much more than that...i guess that's what makes it such a great sport.

well, my parents are from Italy, and we were brought up speaking Italian. my sister moved back to live there years ago. so i am italian-american, but not in the way you probably think. i know the difference that you are talking about. some people think they are italian simply because their great grandmother used to make meatballs, or because they know what calamari is. when somebody insults the italian soccer team, i feel like they are insulting the culture and the type of people they are. i know i shouldn't take it that way, but i do.

did you see any flopping/collapsing in Italy's game against Germany? it was actually the Germans who were screaming for calls that were not there. Portugal are the worst offenders. truly hideous, especially that little scum Ronaldo. what have you got against italians, anyway?

Italy is much stronger in defense and in goal. and Pirlo in midfield is playing just as well as Zidane. France might have the edge up top with Henry. but it's as even a final as can be. i hope Italy wins it, but the french seem to have all the luck against them.

that was an incredible game!!!! two great goals within the span of two minutes. Italy deserved to win though - except for some of the second half, they controlled the play and had great opportunities. the defense is just class. we had about 20 people watching the game at my brother's house, and we almost shattered windows with the sound of our celebration when they scored. my sister called me from italy after the game, and you could hear the chaos in the streets through the telephone.

Italy and bad luck go hand in hand. Look at the last four world cups: '90: Loss on penalties to Argentina '94: Loss on penalties to Brazil '98: Loss on penalties to France '02: Bullshit loss to South Korea. Italy was due for some good fortune. The call was borderline - it could have went either way. The red card against Materazzi was a terrible call, so it all balances out. And the Aussies were enjoyable to watch? Italy had a ton more chances, even with a man down most of the match.

bullshit. every team in the World Cup can be guilty of the same thing. FORZA ITALIA.

he was also probably the best player i have ever seen, even though he was coked up most of the time. some say better than Pele.

this country's indifference to the World Cup bothers me a little. the sports talk radio geeks and media always mock people's passion for the game and have this arrogant, snobbish attitude which seems to say, "Well, if were not into it, it's not a legitimate competition..." the attitue mirrors America's world politics and agenda. cue Team America song: "America, fuck yeah...."

i was born here, but my parents were born in Italy. i grew up speaking italian in the household, and i have a lot of family in italy. so between USA and Italy in soccer, i support Italy. don't call me a traitor. my situation is a little different.

well, if you've ever played soccer, you know it's anything but non-contact. it has this reputation as being a wussy sport, but no other major sport, in my opinion, requires more stamina and mental toughness.