Uruguay leads South Korea 1-0 at halftime

Luis Suarez's early goal has Uruguay leading South Korea 1-0 at halftime in the teams' World Cup second round match.

Suarez shot first-time from a tight angle in the eighth minute, after Diego Forlan's cross from the left flank was allowed to bounce untouched to the far post.

Suarez's header in the 39th was easily saved by goalkeeper Jung Sung-ryong.

Uruguay is defending well and breaking quickly, with the Koreans failing to use greater possession.

South Korean forward Park Chu-young struck the post in the fifth with a curled free kick, and was just wide from distance in the 32nd.

Defender Cha Du-ri missed a long-range shot in the 41st.

The winner plays a quarterfinal against the United States or Ghana.

Sports Ghana maintains Africa's hopes at World Cup

Africa is still at the World Cup party after Ghana realized the hopes of a success-starved continent by reaching the quarterfinals for the first time on Saturday.
The poor showing of African nations had cast a pall over South Africa 2010, with the hosts and four others exiting at the group stage of the continent's first World Cup.
"We've made everybody proud - not Ghana alone, but all of Africa," said striker Asamoah Gyan, whose extra-time goal clinched a 2-1 victory over the United States in the second round.
The win, which set up a quarterfinal against Uruguay, took Ghana one stage further than at the team's World Cup debut four years ago, when it was also the last African contender.
"Me and my colleagues were very disappointed there were no African teams with us," forward Dede Ayew said. "Now we are lucky to be here, we must fight, not just for us, but for the other teams that are not here.
"We feel we have a continent behind us and the whole of Africa behind us and that's given us a lot of energy to fight more."
And what energy Ghana had. Kevin-Prince Boateng tore through the American defense to score after just five minutes at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium, while a compact defense thwarted the American resistance.
While Landon Donovan equalized with a second-half penalty, the Black Stars shone as the U.S. wilted and Asamoah Gyan volleyed in the winner early in extra time.
"In the end we needed strength and we had that strength," coach Milan Rajevac said. "Ghana is now among the best eight teams in the world."
And the players see no reason they can't be the best. First they must conquer Uruguay in Friday's quarterfinal in Johannesburg.
"After Uruguay we stand a chance of being in the final," defender John Pantsil said. "Having Africa's support adds a bit of pressure on us, but we have to put the pressure outside and go outside and play our normal football."
The signs that Ghana could progress far at the World Cup have been there for some time.
Three of the starters in Rustenburg on Saturday also featured last year as Ghana became the first African team to win the Under-20 World Cup, prevailing over runaway favorite Brazil in a penalty shootout.
And Ghana was only denied a fifth African title earlier this year by Egypt in a tight final in Angola.
"It was important the youth team taking the cup and the whole of Ghana was happy," Pantsil said. "And since Angola when we were in the final we have shown we are progressing and there is more to come."
Back home they are ready for more celebrations. On Saturday night, dancing fans swarmed onto the streets, while car horns were honked across the nation.
Abena Serwa, a 34-year-old street vendor, said Ghana had beaten "one of the world's big powers."
"The whole continent was looking up to them to show that Africa was not in the tournament just to keep the numbers," said Mohammed Abu, a 17-year-old celebrating in the streets of Ghana's capital, Accra.
The elation was witnessed across the continent. Mozambicans celebrated in the streets of their capital, and South Africa's governing African National Congress issued a statement calling the Black Stars "our pride."
"We are very confident that having gone this far, you are indeed heading for the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals on our soil," the ANC said.

Lampard wary of spirited but stricken Portsmouth

Rob Harris, Associated Press, London | Fri, 05/14/2010 6:57 PM | Sports

After seeing Portsmouth upset Tottenham to reach Saturday's FA Cup final, Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard knows his side cannot afford to be complacent against a financially struggling opponent which now stands in the way of a league and cup double.

Portsmouth has defied the odds by reaching a second final in three seasons, amid an off-field meltdown that saw the 2008 FA Cup winners recently seek bankruptcy protection before being relegated from the Premier League.

In contrast, Chelsea's free-flowing attacking football produced a first championship crown since 2006.

Lampard says that "it would be a shame to not focus on the last game."

Lampard accepts Portsmouth had "a very spirited end to the season even with the difficult circumstances."

Federer, Nadal through to Madrid quarters

he Associated Press, Madrid | Fri, 05/14/2010 7:14 AM | Sports

No sweat: Roger Federer from Switzerland returns the ball during the match against Stanislas Wawrinka from Switzerland at the Madrid Open Tennis Tournament in Madrid, on Thursday. AP/Andres Kudacki
Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal comfortably reached the quarterfinals of the Madrid Masters on Thursday.

The top-ranked Federer beat Swiss countryman Stanislas Wawrinka 6-3, 6-1 and second-ranked Nadal saw off big-serving John Isner of the United States 7-5, 6-4.

Defending champion Federer never looked troubled against Wawrinka, and appears to be shaking off the dip in form that saw him lose in the semifinals in Estoril and the second round in Rome recently. In the quarterfinals he'll play Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, who beat him in Rome.

Isner, who reached the clay final in Belgrade last weekend, held his own against Nadal before losing his serve in the 11th game of the first set, during which he received treatment to his arm.

Nadal served out for the set and broke the American early in the second before holding his service for victory.

"It was a very dangerous and difficult match and I played well, and when I had chances with the return I took them," said Nadal. "For me it was a very important victory."

Nadal came into the Madrid Masters on the back of tournament wins in Monte Carlo and Rome. The 2005 champion and 2009 finalist hopes to extend the record for Masters titles of 17 he shares with Andre Agassi.

Another favorite to win the tournament, third-seeded Andy Murray, had little trouble beating Victor Hanescu of Romania 6-2, 6-1.

Two breaks of serve in each set saw the Scot stroll to victory, setting up a quarterfinal with David Ferrer, who beat Marin Cilic of Croatia 6-3, 6-2.

Murray hadn't won two matches in a row since Indian Wells in March and he was pleased.

"Hanescu isn't an out-and-out clay-court player so it was a different match than you normally get, but I felt comfortable," Murray said.

"I know that against the clay-courters I'll have to play more aggressively and will have to improve."

Earlier, Fernando Verdasco's 7-5, 6-3 third-round loss to Jurgen Melzer of Austria left only three of the top eight seeds in the tournament.

With the center court's retractable roof closed due to rain, the sixth-seeded Verdasco looked well below his best and had treatment on his right ankle after the first set.

Melzer broke early in the second set before Verdasco broke back for 3-3. Melzer took the next three games to clinch victory over Verdasco for the second time in seven attempts and reach his fifth quarterfinal this season.

A frustrated Verdasco said his ankle was hurting after he injured it in the previous round against Ivo Karlovic, although he said the match conditions also bothered him.

"I haven't played indoors for months and I've never had the opportunity to train here with the roof closed - I think it gave him the advantage," he said. "He's more of an indoor player than an outdoor player, which also went against me. The court also wasn't in the best condition, which made me miss certain shots that were very important."

Melzer will next play Nicolas Almagro of Spain, ensuring there will be at least one unseeded player in the semifinals. Almagro beat Juan Monaco of Argentina 6-4, 6-1.

In the women's third round, eighth-seeded Samantha Stosur of Australia beat Patty Schnyder of Switzerland 7-6 (3), 6-2 to set up a quarterfinal with Venus Williams.

"It's Venus so you have to expect a good match," Stosur said. "Clay probably isn't her favorite surface. We've played a few times and I've never been able to win so it's one of those times when I have to go out there and give it my best shot."

Seventh-seeded Jelena Jankovic of Serbia cruised through against Anabel Medina Garrigues of Spain, 6-2, 6-0, while Aravane Rezai of France beat Andrea Petkovic of Germany, 6-4, 7-6 (8).

Li Na of China beat Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-3, 6-4 and Shahar Peer of Israel defeated Arantxa Parra Santonja of Spain 7-5, 6-2.

FIFA World Cup bodes well for apparel makers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 04/26/2010 12:11 PM | Business


The much anticipated 2010 FIFA World Cup, which will run from June 11 to July 11 in South Africa, is creating new opportunities for Indonesian firms to produce and sell football apparel.
"We are producing the apparel in large volumes and with competitive quality and design both for the domestic and foreign markets," Benny Soetrisno, the former chairman of the Indonesian Textile Association (API), said Thursday.
The demands for the products from Asia, Africa, Europe and the US were very high, he said.
The World Cup continues to be the largest draw for football fans around the world and even attracts those who have no knowledge of the game.
Apart from the hoots and cheers that will echo throughout bars, homes and even street hawker stalls during the tournament, there are already signs of soccer fever season manifested through the sudden uptake in people sporting World Cup-themed attire and accessories.
The euphoria of the tournament clearly benefits manufacturers since it sparks great demand for souvenirs and apparel.
"The Indonesian national side did not make it to the World Cup, but Indonesians will still celebrate the tournament by wearing the kit of their favorite teams," Benny said.
He acknowledged that local garment manufacturers benefited from the tournament by producing replica playing kits of the teams in the event.
The World Cup arguably has a great impact on the Indonesian textile industry, unlike other major sporting events such as the Olympics.
"Every country has its own national team with its own kit," API chairman Ade Sudradjat told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
"Each of us has a favorite team and player, and we show our support through buying the official merchandise," he said.
He said the global excitement surrounding the World Cup helped increase global demand for locally produced garments, including T-shirts and shoes.
"We make products not only for the official brands but also for unofficial brands, which are of lower quality," Ade said.
The sales of World Cup merchandise, he said, would help increase the country's textile exports to US$10.6 billion. Textile exports last year reached $9.3 billion, a drop from $10.3 billion in 2008.
Ade said strong demand for World Cup merchandise showed that while local producers could still compete with garment products from other Asian countries including Vietnam, Bangladesh, Thailand and China, the domestic industry still needed to be strengthened.
"Textile exports have been stagnant in the last few years due to a lack of improvement in machinery and erratic energy supply," Industry Minister MS Hidayat said Thursday on the sidelines of the API's national meeting.
He said that more than 80 percent of textile machinery was older than 20 years, resulting in production inefficiency.
Hidayat said the government would take steps to help modernize the industry.
He added that the government was committed to increasing electricity supply by prioritizing the construction of new power plants. (ebf)

US organizers sharpen pitch for World Cup return

The Associated Press, New York, U.S. | Tue, 05/11/2010 7:09 AM | Sports

 The hopes of the U.S. football community were shipped to Switzerland in two packing crates, filled with 30 five-volume sets of the official bid plus 94 binders containing contracts and copies.

Those 1,940 pounds (880 kilograms) of documents will be handed over Friday to FIFA president Sepp Blatter ahead of the Dec. 2 vote that determine whether the World Cup returns to the United States for a second time in 2018 or 2022.

Each five-volume bid book totals 1,250 pages. The colorful photo and graphic filled-set lists the 18 proposed host cities announced in January, plus 64 base camps and 54 venue-specific training sites.

Stadiums, mostly built for NFL teams, average 76,000 in capacity. Organizers project record attendance over 5 million and revenue in excess of $1 billion.

England announces 1st game against Thailand

The Associated Press, Wembley, London | Mon, 05/10/2010 5:33 PM | Sports


England has announced a first ever game against Thailand, which is coached by former captain Bryan Robson.
The match will take place in June next year, after England's European Championship qualifying game against Switzerland at Wembley on June 4.
The Football Association said Monday the occasion is to celebrate the 65th anniversary of King Bhumibol's accession to the Thai throne. But the announcement of the game could also help England gain support in the region for its bid to host the 2018 World Cup.
Robson played 90 matches for England between 1980-91. Although he has a poor record as a coach, he was renowned as one of English football's most inspirational players.