Downers Grove: A guy in an AC Milan shirt, walking out of a coffee shop. Caught a glimpse of him from the train. Ogilvie Station: "Rooney" on the back of a white England shirt. Evanston: A guy riding toward us on a bike, wearing a red Spain shirt. Union Station: I happened to [...]

With FIFA boss Blatter complicit, An out clause may now seem implicit. So a club can't enslave Guys like Crissy, poor knave. And his ass? They might as well kiss it. Many thanks to Steve, Soccer Orb's poet laureate. (I know it's not a sonnet, but I couldn't resist.  My apologies to Mrs. E.B. Browning ~ Susan).

I was surfing the web late the other night and stumbled on an interesting article in the New York Times. Entitled No Babies?, it is a lengthy and fascinating look at demographic trends in Europe. There was no mention of football or any other sport. Instead, the article's author examined the reasons [.

But his morning's Guardian tells us that Wayne Rooney is officially off the market. Don't lose all hope, though, as William Hill are offering 5/1 odds that the blessed union will last five years or less. Yes, it's true. At 10:30 a.m. local time, Wayne & Colleen were married in Santa Margherita Ligure, on [.

...but there'll be no new stadium for you. That is, if the powers-that-be listen to these twenty-six economists, there won't. After all, you'd probably only use it 20-30 times a year, according to one University of Alberta economist. He and the rest of them think that the funds would be better spent on schools, [.

The Netherlands beat Italy for the first time since the 1978 World Cup that's right, 30 years on goals by Ruud van Nistelrooy, Wesley Sneijder, and Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Have a look at the goals here. Though it was lopsided, the final score hinged on a controversial play, some Dutch magic, and poor finishing from Luca Toni.

Soccer Orb's resident statistician, Steve, shared an interesting bit of research with us a couple of days ago (See Premiership Ratings: Biggest Bang for the Buck from June 6). I'm going to swim into some dangerous waters and interpret his findings with my quasi-layperson's eyes. His model was simple, but very revealing.

We've all seen the recent figures on wages in the Premiership, but which clubs get the most for their money?  Here in the States we'd ask who's getting the best "bang for the buck".  In England, I don't know what they'd call it.  Quality for the quid?  Points for the pound?  Woot for the wedge?

Yesterday's Wall Street Journal included not one, but two pieces of football-related reporting. And you won't find either one on the sports page, either. (Yes, there is a sports page in every Friday's Weekend Journal ). I'll give you three guesses at what I find objectionable in Culture Clash: Soccer Fans, Art Elite [.

...and listening to our national anthem being tortured by a singer who stretched every syllable to include twenty more notes than Francis Scott Key ever intended. More to the point, wouldn't it have been just a bit more sly and fun if she'd sung "My Country Tis of Thee" instead of The Star-Spangled Banner?

Just for fun, try this quiz from the Guardian to check your knowledge of American soccer trivia. I'm not even sure that trivia accurately describes some of the questions. Many of you will ace this, but I admit that Questions 2 & 3 were stumbling blocks for me. Hmmm, I wonder just [...]

Columnist John Kass really gets soccer...

In the pub, you'll see why Europe is in a fever pitch

Too bad that the Trib's sports page was filled with coverage of yet another meaningless, early-season baseball game the day after Moscow.

{I've moved to soccerorb.wordpress.com}

I watched the Champions League final at Fado, a pub in downtown Chicago. I hadn't been there before, and didn't know anything about the number of screens, nor how easy it would be to get a table with a good view. So I recorded the game and, happily, remembered to set up the DVR to record two shows afterward.

I watched the Champions League final at Fado, a pub in downtown Chicago. I hadn't been there before and didn't know anything about the number of screens, nor how easy it would be to get a table near one of them. So I recorded the game and, happily, remembered to set up the [...]

"The top four next year will be the same top four as this year." That was Kevin Keegan's prediction after Newcastle United's loss to Chelsea in the penultimate game of the season. He grumbled that the league's evolution into an elite, uncrackable quartet plus sixteen also-rans meant that "boring" football was the inevitable result.