BizPunkMitch Lasky's blog

December 03, 2010

World Cup 2018 & 2022 Bids

Football

Well, the mandarins at FIFA, one of the world's most venal and corrupt bureaucracies, have selected Russia and Qatar, respectively, as the sites for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

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November 23, 2010

MLS Cup Final

Football

At one point late in the second half of the dreadful MLS Cup Final, with both of these mediocre teams protecting the 1-1 scoreline and heading to extra-time, I was actually tempted to flip over to watch the LA Lakers-Golden State Warriors NBA game, despite the fact that LA was up by 30 at the time. Seemed like it might be more compelling.

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November 08, 2010

MLS Conference Finals Set

Football

It was a bizarre weekend in the MLS playoffs. With the exception of LA (more on that later), every higher seed lost their first round series. New York Red Bull crashed and burned against San Jose. Columbus went down on penalties to Colorado after a regular time stalemate. And Dallas convincingly held Real Salt Lake to a draw at Rio Tinto, allowing them through on aggregate after their 2-1 win at home last week.

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November 01, 2010

Seattle Sounders 0:1 Los Angeles Galaxy

Football

So, LA Galaxy went to Seattle, into one of the best (and, for LA, most hostile) atmospheres in the history of MLS playoffs, and came away with a one goal victory. Despite all of the pre-match hype about Seattle's pace, and midfield possession, and wing play, and how hot they were down the stretch, as I predicted, the Galaxy dictated the flow of the match and go back to Home Depot Center in the driver's seat.

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October 08, 2010

MLS Playoffs

Football

With only a couple of games left in the MLS season, the playoff picture is relatively clear. And a large part of that clarity is just how fucked up and unfair the MLS playoff format truly is.

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September 15, 2010

Plate o’ Shrimp

Culture

Sometimes, you see an idea and suddenly you start seeing it everywhere. Sometimes that synchronicity is so sharp, it's kind of uncanny.

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September 12, 2010

Fulham 2:1 Wolves

Football

It's kind of an odd year for a Fulham supporter. After last season's magical run through the Europa League -- and believe me, as a Fulham fan it was truly magical -- there's an air of let-down about the team this year.

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July 12, 2010

Final Thoughts

Football

Well, the World Cup is over and Spain are champions. Good. Balance is restored to the universe. The best team playing the best style managed to win.

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July 11, 2010

Good Reads on Eve of Final

Football

The New York Times has a piece on the Cruyff connection. Jonathan Wilson at The Guardian dissects the prevalence of the 4-2-3-1 formation at the World Cup, and contrasts the two examples of the formation on display in the final.

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July 10, 2010

The Final

Football

While I am delighted that Spain and Holland are in the final, I'm personally a bit conflicted about who to support.

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July 06, 2010

World Cup Up For Grabs?

Football

I'm very excited about the semi-finals, because I think this World Cup hangs in the balance. There's less inevitability about these four teams than any cup I can remember. Any of these teams could win it. I'd put the Germans first on current form, fitness, and national football character; the Spaniards second on talent and guile; the Dutch third on efficiency and good luck; and the Uruguayans fourth, well, for a lot of reasons.

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June 29, 2010

What to Watch For in WC Quarter-Finals

Football

I got four things very wrong in my pre-tournament predictions. First, I vastly over-estimated the quality of the old European powers outside Europe (even though I explicitly discounted for their tendency not to travel well). I guess I thought that they would ultimately suck it up and perform on the big stage. I picked 6 European teams to make the Round of 16, and in fact 6 made it. While I got the trend right, I missed that France, Italy and England were far weaker than I suspected, and the youthful Germany far stronger.

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June 27, 2010

Thoughts on Weekend WC Matches

Football

Uruguay 2:1 South Korea -- actually a pretty good match. Uruguay took the game over in the 8th minute with a crazy play. Forlan sent a low cross through the penalty area behind the Korean back four, who all turned around and watched as the ball drifted through.

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June 23, 2010

LD’s Goal

Football

I'm kind of sick of the whole "what it means for US soccer" meme. It means we are through to the final 16 of the World Cup. As group winners, over England. If that's not enough, I don't know what's going to do it.

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June 22, 2010

Tristesse

Football

"Le Meltdown" as it's being called in the press -- the French disaster at the World Cup -- has received more than its fair share of snarky coverage, but this, from around 25:30 to 29:00, is both poignant and very interesting.

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June 21, 2010

Why are the big European teams struggling?

Football

As of the end of the second round of group stage matches, the five major European teams -- those that received one of FIFA's coveted #1 seeds -- are a combined 4W-4D-2L. That's England, Germany, Holland, Italy and Spain. They've taken only 16 of a possible 30 points. They have dropped points from matches against the likes of New Zealand, Algeria, and Switzerland, among others.

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June 21, 2010

The Last Match Days of the World Cup Group Stage

Football

One of the great things about the FIFA World Cup format is the last match days of the group stage. It's unusual for a group to be completely settled prior to the last day, so there's frequently a good bit of drama.

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June 19, 2010

A Thinking-Person’s Guide to World Cup Analysis

Football

"Football is a simple game," Gary Lineker famously said after England's 1990 defeat in the World Cup semi-final (on penalties, of course). "22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans win."

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June 14, 2010

Group A-D: The First Matches

Football

Mexico 1:1 South Africa -- I had a feeling that the home support was going to be worth a goal and that the Bafana Bafana might possibly see a result from this match, so I was not surprised by the draw. Mexico looked the better team in the first half, but all credit to South Africa for a tremendous first goal on the counterattack which sent the fans into ecstasy.

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June 03, 2010

World Cup Preview

Football

"Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that."

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This is the private blog of Mitch Lasky. The opinions are my own and are not endorsed by my current or former employers or colleagues.

  • Tune Yards – Powa
  • Going Places – Kid Creole & the Coconuts
  • Mesmerizing – Liz Phair
  • Skinny Love – Bon Iver
  • At Home He's A Tourist – Gang of Four
  • Myth – Beach House
  • Headlines – Drake