Welcome back to Kick It, the AJC’s newsletter for all things World Cup. We’re still basking in the afterglow of Atlanta’s first World Cup match, and the second is right around the corner. Plus, Team USA is rolling. Soccer, y’all. It’s here.
Let’s get to it.
MATCH PREVIEW: GOTTA WIN IT TO STAY IN IT
By now, all 48 teams have played their opening World Cup matches. Among the tangle of wins, draws and heartbreaking losses, teams with either of the latter results are looking for salvation. Two of them will do so in Atlanta on Thursday.
A reminder of how the group stage works:
- There are 12 groups of four teams each. Every team in a group plays each other in the group stage.
- That’s three games for each team, which means three chances to get points on the board.
- Wins are worth 3 points, draws are 1 and losses are zero.
- At the end of the group stage, the three teams with the most points in every group goes on to the next round. (Ties will be decided on which team scored more goals.)
What’s at stake
With that in mind, the Czech Republic and South Africa are going to be battling to keep out of the basement of Group A, which they share with Mexico and South Korea.
- South Africa suffered a disappointing 2-0 loss to Mexico in the tournament opener last week. In all fairness, the match was played in glorious Mexico City, in front of countless jubilant Mexico fans. Sad for South Africa, but a great opener for one of the host countries. One simply can’t hate.
- The Czech Republic, meanwhile, lost2-1 to South Korea.
- Basically, whichever team loses this game is probably out of the tournament after the group stage. This match might as well be played on a campground, because it will be in-tents.
MATCH DETAILS
- Time: Match begins at noon at Atlanta Stadium. Doors open at 9 a.m.
- Forecast: A high of 79 degrees with a high chance of rain. Don’t be fooled by the temperature, it will be humid and gross enough to feel much hotter. If you’re headed to any outdoor festivities, bring a poncho.
- Traffic sitch: For all we expected traffic to be a nightmare (Because really, major international sporting events in the middle of a weekday? It has to happen, but we don’t have to like it.), reports on the ground from Monday’s match showed things weren’t as dire as all that. We’ll see.
CHECKING IN WITH TEAM USA
- Good news for the U.S. men’s national team: After coming off the field during the USMNT’s opening victory over Paraguay, star Christian Pulisic will reportedly be ready to play when the team faces Australia on Friday in Seattle.
- Bad news: They still look like a group of Where’s Waldos in those striped jerseys. Or very confused gondoliers. If it helps them win, so be it!
We're American. We don't take s---.
USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino may be Argentine, but he’s got that Yank in ‘em. He has fired up the team with some fiery American rhetoric, and midfielder Sebastian Berhalter says it’s working.
“Even though he’s Argentinian, he has that mindset of, like, ‘Look, this is what we do, and this is who we are, and this is what America is about.’ So I think he just, you know, even from an outside perspective, he showed us Americans what we’re about.”
An Argentinian reminding Americans what they’re about? Frankly, that’s pretty American in and of itself.
⚽ READ MORE: How Pochettino is instilling the winning attitude
HALFTIME QUIZ!
Two players share the record for most goals scored by one player over their World Cup career. Can you name either one, and how many goals have they each scored? Answer in match notes
HOW ABOUT THAT FIRST ATLANTA GAME?
Atlanta showed the world it knows how to party. Our fair city’s first hosted match was a rollicking success. Underdogs and World Cup newbies Cape Verde kept pace with soccer giant Spain for an electrifying 0-0 draw Monday.
AJC reporter Gavin Godfrey was at the match as a neutral fan, and he said he was blown away by the energy and passion.
In his beautiful article recounting the event, he describes in words a feeling every sports fan knows deep in their heart:
“You see, I thought passion was my love for the 2016 Falcons. … I thought passion was tears I shed in Mercedes-Benz Stadium watching Atlanta United win the MLS Cup in 2018. … None of those moments felt quite like this. This was bigger."
While it was an international moment, Godfrey said the city felt revived.
“After the match, outside felt like 1996 all over again. Street vendors lined Centennial Olympic Park Drive outside The Center. Fans flocked to the FIFA Fan Fest. Downtown Atlanta felt like the bustling downtown it aspires to be.”
⚽ READ MORE: I went to Atlanta’s first World Cup match. I’m still not over it
OTHER THINGS TO KNOW
🎭 Heading to Atlanta’s World Cup cultural hub? Here are five arts events to check out.
💸 It may be called FIFA Fan Fest, but FIFA didn’t provide any funding for the monthlong downtown party.
🍗 Restaurant guide: Where to eat near Atlanta Stadium
MATCH NOTES
- The top all-time World Cup goal scorers are Miroslav Klose from Germany, whose last appearance was in 2014, and Argentina soccer god Lionel Messi, whose last appearance was Tuesday. They’ve both scored 16 World Cup goals, and Messi will undoubtedly surpass that record during the tournament.
- Messi scored a hat trick during Argentina’s 3-0 win over Algeria. A hat trick is three goals in the same game by the same player; an amazing feat that’s also a very Lionel Messi way to break into a new echelon of World Cup history.
If you think your city loves their sports team, they have nothing on Argentina and soccer.
⚽ Next Kick It comes to you Saturday, with a preview of Spain vs. Saudi Arabia and a look at how Atlanta’s doing so far with its host duties.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of Kick It. Questions, comments, ideas? Drop us a line! Until next time.