For the Love of Sport

I like the idea of soccer. I respect the notion that soccer players, for the most part, don't get any timeouts, that there are few substitutions, and that soccer fans are so insanely dedicated that countries like Brazil can build stadiums holding 100,000 people that still sellout. Besides, everytime I see some major league baseball player rounding third with his gut flabbing back and forth and a curdle of tobacco-filled drool sliding down his chin, I can't help but think that those guys aren't real athletes.

But for all my love of the ideal of soccer, it doesn't mean I know anything about the game. I tried to learn a few things last week with my latest article, which you can access online at: http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0512/p07s01-woam.html.