[VIDEO] U.S. Women's Team Does Party in the USA

After all the hype of "Call Me Maybe" this summer, the US Women's team decided to go a different direction in having a little fun before the 2012 London Olympics:

Neymar: The Brazilian Promise?

It's a slow Thursday morning, scouting the internet for something, came across these Neymar fan videos:

Hero: The Official Film of the 1986 World Cup

Here's a little something for you to watch as you wait for today's Euro match - Hero: The Official Documentary of the 1986 World Cup.

The 1986 World Cup finals, which were held in Mexico, is best known for Maradona's "Hand of God Goal" against England in the quarterfinals as well as being known for the birth of the "Mexican Wave." Here's the official documentary, which is narrated by Michael Caine. Not sure how long these videos will be up on YouTube, so watch it now if you've never seen it.

Houston Dynamo Take Fans on Roller Coaster Ride While Picking up 4 Points

One can forgive Houston Dynamo fans if they're feeling rode hard and put away wet this morning, it's been a long, emotional week for them, and the week isn't even over yet.

This long week began on Saturday when the Dynamo hosted their rivals from North Texas, F.C. Dallas, at BBVA Compass Stadium. This was Dallas' first visit to the new Dynamo stadium and the only match between these two clubs this season.

The Dynamo got off to a quick start thanks to a Will Bruin goal in the 3rd minute. In light of the rough season that Dallas has had, many fans, especially Dynamo fans, suspected that the early Dynamo goal would demoralize the Dallas players, and it did for the rest of the first half.

Schellas Hyndman must of fired up his players with a good halftime speech, because Dallas started the second half like it was a whole new game. When Jackson picked up the Dallas equalizer in the 59th minute, there was a sense that Dallas was not going to be content to leave Houston with a draw and one point.

Any plans Dallas had for picking up the win pretty much died in the 63rd minute when Jair Benítez picked up a red card for an off the ball elbow to Colin Clark. Then, in the 76th minute, Adam Moffat scored a goal from distance, giving the Dynamo the win and bragging rights.

Last night, Toronto FC paid its first visit to BBVA Compass Stadium and, despite sitting at the bottom of the Eastern Conference table, started the match like a team determined to win the league. In a chaotic first 22 minutes Toronto went top first with a goal by Jeremy Hall in the first minute. Bobby Boswell managed to tie things up for Houston with a lovely header in the 20th minute, but then Danny Koevermans put Toronto ahead in the 22nd minute. Thanks to second Koevermans goal in the 45th minute, Toronto had a 3-1 lead over the home side at the half.

Those of use who grew up Houston sports fans are used to our professional teams playing to their competition - putting up great performances against top teams while losing to the bottom feeders they should easily beat. But, based on twitter, it seems that many Dynamo fans are not familiar with or used to that Houston sports dynamic, because their tweets during halftime suggested that the world was coming to an end, that this was the worst Dynamo match ever, and the season was over. I was almost surprised I didn't see any fire Dom tweets during the half.

For the second half, it seems that the Dynamo managed to channel their inner 1993-1994 Houston Rockets, the team that turned Houston from Choke City into Clutch City, and decided that Toronto was not going to leave Houston with 3 points. Will Bruin ended up playing the role of Houston hero by picking up goals in the 73rd and 90th minutes, giving Houston a 3-3 draw.

The Dynamo's week is not over, they head north of the border to face Montreal on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The match will be broadcast on Fox Sports Houston.

It's A Good Thing: Ireland Fans Sing Even When Losing

Let's face it, the off-pitch news swirling around Euro 2012 has not been pretty. Before the matches started there was a huge focus on how much racism players would face in the Eastern European countries hosting the games, Ukraine and Poland. Then there were the violent clashes between Poland and Russia fans the other day, which have raised concerns about the specter of hooliganism at the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia.

Despite all this bad press concerning football fans, yesterday one group of fans acquitted themselves quite well, serving as an example of why and how football fandom can be fun, should be fun. Despite the economic situation in their country and despite the fact that their team lost to Spain 4-0 and previously lost to Croatia, 3-1, the Ireland fans stayed for the full match, serenading their team, their country with The Fields of Athenry.

The cynic can easily, and rightly, point out that Euro 2012 was Ireland's first appearance in a major tournament since the 2002 World Cup Finals; therefore, its fans have low expectations and can frivolously enjoy just being at the Euros. On the other hand, I think that the fans of more "serious" teams (England, Russia, etc.) would do well to take a moment and try to learn something from the Ireland fans, because, when all is said and done, football is just a game and sometimes you don't need to win to feel good about your country, and to feel good about yourself.

Thug Life: Nigel De Jong Is Now Fouling Children

Nigel De Jong has a reputation of being something of a thug on the pitch, willing to commit a hard foul with no remorse. Now De Jong, who is with The Netherlands side in Poland for Euro 2012, has extended his attitude to a friendly match against a group of children:

Here's some of De Jong's "Greatest Hits":

[VIDEO] All of Clint Dempsey's Goals for Fulham in 2011-2012

This week Texan footballer Clint Dempsey was named Fulham's Player of the Season, this is the second straight year that the 29 year old has received this honor. Here's a look at all 23 of the Deuce's goals for Fulham in 2011-2012:

Mario Balotelli Gets a Haircut Because His Time is Now

As Euro 2012 approaches, Italian striker Mario Balotelli has made the news because of his reasonable response to the potential racist atmosphere in Poland and the Ukraine and now he's featured in the new Nike line of Football commercials - My Time is Now:

Neymar & Brazil Beat USA 4-1

Last night a crowd of 67,619 was on hand at FedEx Field in suburban D.C. to watch the United States host Brazil in a friendly, the second friendly for the US as it prepares for CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers. After a 5-1 drubbing of Scotland in Jacksonville on Saturday night, the US entered Wednesday's match with a little extra momentum, but Brazil is Brazil and they picked up two goals early in the first half, one of which was a penalty kick converted by Neymar in the 12th minute.

The US gained some ground at the end of the first half when Herculez Gomez, with some help from Michael Bradley and Fabian Johnson, scored for the US.

The US played strong in the second half, with numerous shots barely missing goal or being heroically saved by Brazil's keeper Rafael, but the US was not able to pick up another goal, let alone enough goals to beat Brazil. Brazil, which was primarily fielding a U-23 Olympic squad, managed to add two more goals thanks to Marcelo in the 52nd minute and Pato in the 87th minute.

While last night's match against Brazil marked the 16th time that the US has lost to the South American powerhouse, the US side acquitted itself well. The 4-1 loss to Brazil is a small stumble in the Juergen Klinsmann era, but Wednesday's match evidenced both growth and the further need for growth by the US national team. The never die, never quit attitude of last night's US side was refreshing to see and definitely sets this squad apart from the Bruce Arena side that played in Germany in 2006. On the other hand, the US needs to learn how to defend better against sides like Brazil and needs to learn how to finish some of those excellent goal scoring opportunities that they had last night.

One thing seems clear after last night, Michael Bradly and Herculez Gomez have secured national team roster spots for the foreseeable future.

Up next for the US is a friendly against Canada on Sunday June 3rd. Meanwhile, Brazil faces Mexico at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, Texas on Sunday June 3rd.

PRESS RELEASE: Scorpions Prepare To Take on Dynamo of Major League Soccer

Since it's a holiday, I'm going to be lazy and post a press release I received from the San Antonio Scorpions regarding Tuesday night's US Open Cup Match with the Houston Dynamo:

SAN ANTONIO, TX (May 28, 2012) - The San Antonio Scorpions will face off with the two-time Major League Soccer champion Houston Dynamo in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on Tuesday, May 29 at Heroes Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

This matchup will be the first time the San Antonio Scorpions take on a team from Major League Soccer.

A win against the Dynamo would set up a fourth round matchup at Heroes Satidum with either FC Dallas of MLS or the Charlotte Eagles of USL-PRO (Third Division). The potential match would be played on June 5 at 7:30 p.m.

The Scorpions are making their U.S. Open Cup debut this year, which is the oldest soccer competition in the United States.

Tickets are still available for the match and can be purchased at https://www.sanantonioscorpionstickets.com/vsHoustonDynamo.

SCOUTING HOUSTON

The Dynamo currently find themselves in the middle of the pack of the MLS Eastern Conference standings with 16 points, good for sixth place in the conference. With a 2-1-0 record in their new home, Houston remains unbeaten at BBVA Compass Stadium. But the road has been less friendly for the Dynamo, who have just two wins in eight road matches this season.

Offensively, Houston has struggled to find the back of the net, scoring 12 goals in 11 games this season. Only three MLS teams (Chivas USA, Toronto FC, Philadelphia Union) have scored less than the Dynamo this season. Forward Will Bruin leads all Dynamo scorers with five goals so far this season.

But on the defensive side of the ball, Houston has been solid, allowing just 12 goals this season. Only Kansas City and Seattle have allowed fewer goals this season.

Originally the first edition of the San Jose Earthquakes, the current Houston team was dubbed the Dynamo in 2005.

This will be first match of the U.S. Open Cup for the Dynamo in 2012. Since becoming the Dynamo, Houston is 2-2 in third round games and has advanced to the semi-finals twice, but never farther.

Houston has been one of the most successful teams in the MLS since they started playing in 2005. The Dynamo won consecutive the championships in 2006 and 2007. Last year, the Dynamo lost 1-0 to the 2011 MLS Champions Los Angeles Galaxy. They are currently seventh in Eastern Conference.

LAST TIME OUT

The San Antonio Scorpions extended their unbeaten match streak to six games by earning a draw at Edmonton on Sunday, May 27. The Scorpions overcame an early two goal deficient to earn a crucial point in the road trip, keeping them within striking distance of the first place Puerto Rico Islanders.

The Scorpions fell behind when Edmonton midfielder Yashir Pinto scored a goal in the 37th minute off a header from well-crossed ball from Shaun Saiko.

Saiko scored for the Eddies in the 54th minute as he blasted a shot past the Scorpions keeper to push Edmonton's lead to 2-0. San Antonio finally got back into the game off a Josue Soto goal in the 61st minute, who delivered a strike from just outside of the box.

The Scropions never gave up and Aaron Pitchkolan earned his second goal of the year, knocking in a free kick from Hans Denissen with a header to tie the game at 2-2 with less than 10 minutes to play.

BUILDING MOMENTUM

The Scorpions are one of the hottest teams in the NASL, riding a six-game unbeaten streak and have not lost a game since their April 15 home loss to the Puerto Rico Islanders. San Antonio has steadily risen in the NASL standings and after Sunday's draw the Scorpions find themselves in third place, but just two points behind first-place Puerto Rico Islanders. STRONG BACKLINE

The Scorpions have been one of the stronger defensive teams in the league this season, allowing just one goal per contest and posting four shutouts this season. San Antonio is third in the NASL in goals allowed this season (9), allowing just over one goal per contest.

SATTLER STILL UNBEATEN

Daryl Sattler is 4-1-0 this season as a starter in NASL play and has only allowed three goals during that span for the Scorpions to go along with three shutout performances.

His 0.60 goals against average is among the best of all NASL goalkeepers.

COACH HANKINSON FACES FORMER PLAYERS

Scorpions Head Coach Tim Hankinson will face a couple of his former players in a coaching battle. Houston Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear and assistant coach Steve Ralston both played under Hankinson when he coached the Tampa Bay Mutiny in the late 90s and early 2000s.

SCORPIONS WITH MLS EXPERIENCE

Although this will be the Scorpions' first-ever match against an MLS team, there is no lack of MLS experience from the Scorpions. Seven players on the current San Antonio roster have played for various teams in MLS.

Defenders Greg Janicki, Blake Wagner, Ryan Cochrane and Wes Knight, midfielders Matt Gold and Kevin Harmse, and forward Pablo Campos all played with MLS teams prior to coming to San Antonio.

Cochrane played in Houston's inaugural MLS season in 2006 when the team originally moved from San Jose and played there until 2007. Harmse also had a brief stint with Houston in 2010, but never played due to injury.

ABOUT THE U.S. OPEN CUP

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is the oldest cup competition in United States and is among the oldest in the world, beginning action in 1914. The tournament is open to all affiliated amateur and professional teams in the country, and U.S.-based NASL teams will be competing for the first time ever in 2012.

This year's edition of the U.S. Open Cup, which features teams from professional and amateur level soccer in the United States, features a modern era record 64 teams that includes all U.S.-based MLS, NASL and USL PRO teams for the first time ever.

The first four rounds of the tournament will take place in back-to-back weeks from May 15 all the way through June 5. The quarterfinals will be held on June 26 and the semifinals are set for July 10.

The tournament final will be played on Aug. 7 or 8 and the winner of the tournament earns a CONCACAF Champions League berth.

The Seattle Sounders of MLS have won the tournament each of the past three years and defeated the Chicago Fire in the U.S. Open Cup Final in 2011 by a score of 2-0.

COMING UP

The Scorpions will return to NASL play this weekend when they face the defending NASL-champion Minnesota Stars FC on Saturday, June 2 at Heroes Stadium. San Antonio sits just one point behind the second-place Stars, and could potentially jump to the top of the NASL table with a victory.

For those of you can't make it to San Antonio for the match, you can listen to it on Sports Talk 790 in Houston - Click here for the online stream for Sports Talk 790.