The knock out stage of the tournament is different than the group staging in that there must be a winner.  If the two teams are tied at the end of regular time, there are two 15-minute periods added to the game.  If there is still a tie, the game will come down to penalty kicks.  Each side will have 5 players participate.

Japan defeated Germany 1-0.  At the end of regular time, neither team had scored.  During the 108^th minute of the match, Maruyama gave the Japanese a 1-0 advantage.  The host nation could not find the equalizer to force penalty kicks.

Sweden defeated Australia 3-1. Sweden took a 1-0 advantage during the 11^th minute when Sjogran scored.  Five minutes later, Dahlkvist gave Sweden a 2 goal advantage. During the 40^th minute, Perry gave the Australian team their only goal of the match.  Sweden’s third and final goal came during the 52^nd minute with a goal from Schelin.

Japan and Sweden will meet in the semifinals.

France defeated England 4-3 on penalties. England went up 1-0 during the 59^th minute of the match, however France equalized during the 88^th minute with a goal from Bussaglia.

Here is a breakdown of the penalty shootout.

The USA defeated Brazil 3-5 on penalties. The match began with an own goal from Brazil’s Daiane during the 2^nd minute giving the American’s a 1-0 advantage.  The USA committed a foul during the 65^th minute which started a series of unfortunate events for the Americans.  Buehler receives a red card and is sent off for her foul leaving the American’s with only 10 players on the pitch. Brazil’s Marta lines up to take the penalty kick which is saved by keeper Hope Solo however the referee booked Solo with a yellow card for moving on the line before the ball is kicked.  This call was quite controversial for many fans and players alike since many keepers have been allowed to move way more than Solo did.  The ref allowed another penalty kick and Marta was able to convert the second attempt. However, the American’s never let this bother them as they played much better in various aspects of the game when they were down a player.  At the end of regular time the match was tied 1-1 forcing extra time.  A minute into the first extra time period, Brazil’s Marta scored her second goal although there should have been an offside penalty called disallowing the goal.

The American’s continued to push trying to find a goal to keep their World Cup journey alive. It wasn’t until stoppage time of the 2^nd extra period that Wambach scores squaring the match up at 2 goals each.  This equalizer forced the penalty shootout in which the American’s came out victoriously.

Here is a breakdown of the penalty shoot out

Hope Solo came up huge with her save during the penalty shootout.

France and the USA will meet in the semifinals.

The semifinals will take place on July 13^th.

The last leg of the group stages was full of action with 8 games in 2 days.

The host country, Germany, defeated France 4-2.  The first goal of the match came during the 25^th minute when Garefrekes scored for Germany.  Seven minutes later, Grings gave Germany a 2-0 advantage.  France scored its first goal of the match during the 56^th minute with a goal from Delie.  Germany is awarded a penalty kick and Grings converts the attempt during the 68^th minute giving Germany a 2-1 lead.  France scored during the 72^nd minute with a goal from Georges.  The last goal of the match came during the 89^th minute when Okoyino Da Mbabi of Germany scored.  With the win, Germany takes the top spot in group A, and France takes second place and both teams advance to the quarterfinals.

Nigeria defeated Canada 1-0. The only goal of that match came from Nkwocha during the 73^rd minute.  Nigeria finishes 3^rd Group A and Canada falls to last place ending both countries’ world cup run.

England defeated Japan 2-0.  The first goal of the match came during the 15^th minute from E. White, and England’s second goal came during the 66^th minute from Yankey.  England finishes in first place in Group B, and Japan takes second place to secure spots in the quarterfinals.

New Zealand and Mexico ended in a 2-2 draw.  Mexico took a 1-0 advantage with a goal from S. Mayor only 2 minutes into the match.  Their second goal came during the 29^th minute with a goal from m. Dominguez.  Both of New Zealand’s goals came very late in the match.  Smith scored during the 90^th minute, and Wilkinson scored during the 94^th minute.  Mexico finished 3^rd in Group B and New Zealand fell to last.

Australia defeated Norway 2-1.  The first half went scoreless; however both teams scored their first goals within a minute of each other.  Norway scored their first goal during the 56^th minute thanks to Thorsnes, and Australia’s Simon scored during the 57^th minute. Simon scored her second goal of the match during the 87^th minute giving Australia the advantage.  With the win, Australia finished 2^nd in Group D and Norway finished 3^rd.

Equatorial New Guinea lost 3-0 to Brazil.  Brazil’s first goal came during the 49^th minute from Erika.  Cristiane scored her first goal during the 54^th minute, and her second goal came from a penalty kick during the 93^rd minute.  Brazil finished first in Group D, and Equatorial New Guinea finished last in the group.

Sweden defeated the USA 2-1 in a decisive match to determine the seeding for Group C.  Sweden’s Dahlkvist converted a penalty kick during the 16^th minute and Fisher scored during the 35^th minute off of a free kick.  The USA scored during the 67^th minute with a goal from Wambach that seemed to have sparked the US side.  The defensive effort for the American’s was not as good as it has been and they will have to play much better if they want to keep their World Cup journey alive.  This win for Sweden secures the top spot in Group C and the USA takes second place.

Korea DPR and Colombia ended in a scoreless draw. Korea DPR ends up 3rd and Colombia fell to last place in Group C.

The quarterfinals begin July 9^th with England taking on France, and Germany taking on Japan.  The second leg of the quarterfinals will take place July 10^th with Brazil taking on the USA and Sweden facing Australia.

(source: fifa.com)

Week 16 kicked off with a match between Toronto FC and the Vancouver Whitecaps.  Toronto defeated Vancouver 1-0 with Nick Soolsma converting a penalty kick during the 54^th minute.  These two teams met again later in the week for the second leg of the Nutrilite Canadian Championship.  Toronto defeated the Whitecaps again 2-1.  Camilo scored the lone goal for Vancouver during the 21^st minute.  Joao Plata converted a penalty kick during the 51^st minute for Toronto and Mikael Yourassowky scored the second goal during the 61^st minute. Toronto won their 3rd straight NCC title.

D.C. United and the Philadelphia Union ended in a 2-2 draw.  Josh Wolff (44^th minute) and Andy Najar (58^th minute) scored for United.  The Union scored off of an own goal during the 48^th minute, and Carlos Ruiz scored during the 84^th minute.

FC Dallas defeated Columbus Crew 2-0.  Break Shea (58^th minute) and Jackson (76^th minute) scored.

Chivas USA and the Chicago Fire ended in a 1-1 draw.  Dominic Oduro scored for Chicago during the 26^th minute, and Nick LaBrocca scored for Chivas during the 46^th minute.

The San Jose Earthquakes and the New York Red Bulls ended in a 2-2 draw.  Joel Lindpere scored both goals for the Red Bulls (7^th and 85^th minute).  Khari Stephenson (37^th minute) and Steven Lenhart (68^th minute) scored for San Jose.

The Portland Timbers lost to Sporting Kansas City 2-1.  C.J. Sapong (15^th minute) and Aurelien Collin (19^th minute) scored for Kansas City.  Darlington Nagbe scored the only goal for Portland during the 45^th minute.

The Colorado Rapids and Houston Dynamo ended in a scoreless draw.

Real Salt Lake and the New England Revolution ended in a 3-3 draw. Rajko Lekic converted a penalty kick during the 4^th minute, Chris Tierney scored during the 16^th minute, and Shalrie Joseph scored during the 63^rd minute for the Revolution.  Will Johnson scored during the 24^th minute, Alvaro Saborio converted a penalty kick during the 56^th minute, and Fabian Espindola scored during the 83^rd minute for Real Salt Lake.

The L.A. Galaxy and the Seattle Sounders ended in a 0-0 draw.

The updated conference standings:

(source: mlssoccer.com)

This week’s MLS action:

(source: mlssoccer.com)

The 4^th day of the tournament began with Norway taking on Equatorial New Guinea.  Norway won 1-0 thanks to a goal from Emilie Haavi during the 84^th minute.

The day concluded with Brazil defeated Australia 1-0. Rosana scored the lone goal during the 54^th minute.

Day 5 began with Canada and France.  France dismantled Canada 4-0.  Gaetane Thiney scored two goals for the French (24^th & 60^th minute), Camille Abily scored during the 66^th minute, and Elodie Thomis scored the last goal of the 83^rd minute.

The day concluded with Germany defeating Nigeria 1-0 with Simone Laudehr scoring during the 54^th minute.

The 6^th day began with Japan defeating Mexico 4-0. Homare Sawa had a hat trick with goals during the 13^th, 39^th, and 80^th minutes of the match.  Shinobu Ohno scored during the 15^th minute.

New Zealand lost 2-1 against England to conclude the day.  Sarah Gregorius scored the only goal for New Zealand during the 18^th minute.  Jill Scott (63^rd minute) and Jessica Clarke (81^st minute) scored for England.

The 7^th day began with Sweden defeating Korea DPR 1-0.  Lisa Dahlkvist scored the only goal for Sweden during the 64^th minute.

USA concluded the day with a 3-0 victory over Colombia.  Heather O’Reilly (12^th minute), Megan Rapinoe (50^th minute), and Carli Lloyd (57^th minute) scored for the USA.

Day two of the FIFA Women’s World Cup featured matches between Japan, New Zealand, Mexico and England.

Japan defeated New Zealand 2-1 to begin the day’s matches.  Yuki Nagasato (Japan) scored first during the 6^th minute of the match.   Amber Hearn found the equalizer for England during the 12^th minute.  Japan’s game winning goal came during the 68^th minute off of a free kick.  Aya Miyama took the free kick for Japan.

Mexico and England concluded day two with a 1-1 draw.  Fara Williams of England scored first during the 21^st minute and Monica Ocampo tied the game during the 33^rd minute for Mexico.

Day three of the tournament began with Colombia taking on Sweden.  Sweden defeated Mexico 1-0 thanks to Jessica Landstrom during the 57^th minute.

Day three ended with the USA and Korea DPR.  The United States defeated the Koreans 2-0.  Lauren Cheney scored first during the 54^th minute and Rachel Buehler scored the second goal during the 76^th minute.

The next special edition of In the World of Futbol will recap the results of days 4-7.

This week started off with a match between the Seattle Sounders and the New York Red Bulls.  Seattle scored the first two goals of the match in a timespan of a minute.  Friberg (11^th minute) and Alonso (12^th minute) gave their club a 2-0 advantage.  NY scored their first goal during the 31^st minute (Richards) and they tied the game up off an own goal during the 58^th minute.  Seattle’s Levesque scored his first goal during the 67^th minute and his second during the 78^th minute sealing a 4-2 victory for the Sounders.

D.C. United and the Houston Dynamo ended in a 2-2 draw.  United scored first during the 31^st minute with a goal from Pontius.  10 minutes later Houston tied it up when Davis scored off of a penalty kick.  Davies gave United a 2-1 advantage during the 73^rd minute, but Ching found the equalizer during the 89^th minute for Houston.

The San Jose Earthquakes and the L.A. Galaxy ended in a scoreless draw.

The Philadelphia Union defeated Chivas USA 3-2. Umana scored first for Chivas during the 28^th minute.  Paunovic of Philadelphia scored their first goal during the 48^th minute, and Ruiz scored the second goal during the 69^th minute giving the Union a 2-1 lead.  Braun tied the game up for Chivas during the 77^th minute, and Mwanga scored the winning goal for Philadelphia during the 82^nd minute.

The Vancouver Whitecaps were defeated by Sporting Kansas City 2-1. Vancouver scored first during the 15^th minute with a goal from Camilo.  Omar Bravo (SKC) converted a penalty kick tying up the game. Cesar scored second for SKC during the 40^th minute.

FC Dallas defeated the Portland Timbers 4-0.  Loyd (33^rd minute) and John (38^th) minute scored the first half goals.  Shea (58^th minute) and Luna (85^th) minute scored during the second half.

Real Salt Lake defeated Toronto FC 3-1. Borchers scored first for RSL during the 39^th minute, three minutes later Saborio scored his first goal of the match for RSL.  His second goal came during the 60^th minute, and Santos (TOR) scored during the 66^th minute.

The Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls ended in a 1-1 draw. Lindpere (NY) scored during the 40^th minute and Pappa (CHI) scored during the 58^th minute.

The Seattle Sounders defeated the New England Revolution 2-1.  Nyassi scored the only goal for the Revolution.  Wahl (34^th minute) and Fernandez (40^th minute) scored for Seattle.

Columbus Crew defeated the Colorado Rapids 4-1. Colorado’s only goal came from Casey during the 5^th minute of the match.  Gavin (12^th minute), Mendoza (18^th & 48^th minutes), and Heinemann (57^th minute) scored for the Crew.

Conference Standings:

(source: mlssoccer.com)

This week’s MLS schedule:

(source: mlssoccer.com)

Women’s football (soccer, futbol, whatever you want to call it) isn’t taken very seriously; just like any other female sport is compared to their male counterparts. This is just a fact that we all should be aware or and many people probably aren’t even aware that the Women’s World Cup started today.

The tournament is divided into 4 groups which consist of four countries.  The group staging of the tournament will last until July 6^th with each country playing each member of their group and earning points to try to advance to the next round. The top two countries of each group will advance to the knockout rounds.

Here are the groups:

Group A:  France, Germany, Canada, Nigeria

Group B: Japan, New Zealand, Mexico, England

Group C: USA, Korea DPR, Colombia, Sweden

Group D: Brazil, Australia, Norway, Equatorial Guinea

The first match of the tournament had Nigeria facing France and the first goal of the tournament came from France (Marie-Laure Delie) during the 56^th minute of the match.  France held on to their lead to defeat the Nigerians.

The host country Germany concluded the day’s matches when they took on Canada.  Germany looked very composed and really sharp against the Canadians. The first half belonged to the Germans when they took a 2-0 lead going into halftime.  Garefrekes scored first during the 10^th minute, and Okoyino Da Mbabi scored during the 42^nd minute. Sinclair scored for Canada off a free-kick to give the Canadians some momentum, but it wasn’t enough to end the match with a draw.  Germany won 2-1.

An overview of the matches are as follows for each group (times are set to EST time, please check FIFA.com for your local time.

(source: fifa.com)

During the group stage, we will bring you coverage of all the matches in our Special Edition section of “In the World of Futbol”.  There will be a post after each of the USA matches (like we did for the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament).  For up to the moment results check out our twitter & facebook pages.

The CONCACAF Gold Cup has come to an end and Mexico was named the 2011 Champions. The United States took an early 2-0 lead in the first 23^rd minutes of the match.  Bradley scored first during the 8^th minute, and Donovan scored during the 23^rd minute.  After a great start it went downhill from there for the US.

Mexico, great on the attack, ripped apart the US defense scoring two goals to finish out the first half.  Barrera scored first during the 29^th minute, and Guardado scored second during the 36^th minute.  The second half started just as the first half concluded.  Barrera scored during the 50^th minute, and dos Santos scored during the 76^th minute sealing a 4-2 victory.

Mexico will also go on to play in the Copa America 2011 tournament, ‘the most important football event in Latin America’,  that takes place in Argentina from July 1^st to July 24^th.

The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived! The CONCACAF Gold Cup Final has been set! The US has reached their 4^th consecutive Gold Cup Final (8^th overall) with a 1-0 victory over Panama.  The game winning goal came from Clint Dempsey during the 76^th minute.  The goal was set up by Freddy Adu when he passed the ball to Landon Donovan who sent it into the box for Dempsey to score.

The US seems to be peaking at just the right time during the tournament and can hopefully carry the momentum to the final match.

The last match of the semi-finals between Honduras and Mexico ended in a 2-0 victory for Mexico in extra time. De Nigris scored the first goal during the 93^rd minute for Mexico and Chicharito scored the second goal during the 99^th minute.

The United States will take on Mexico for the chance to be named the Gold Cup Champions. You can watch on Univision or Univision.com.  I always find the Spanish announcers much more entertaining as they can even make missing a goal exciting.

In anticipation for this match up, I must show my support for the USA. Here is my newest graphic with Clint Dempsey in the spotlight.

If you will be watching the match please tweet your us thoughts on it for a chance to have your opinion in the next special edition of “In the World of Futbol”.  Also make sure you’re following 2Knuckleheadz for more great sports coverage and contests!