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Spain embraces their champions

PAUL LOGOTHETIS

Associated Press

Latest comment posted at 12:13 PM EST 01/07/08

Euro2008 winners return home to a hero's welcome ...Read the full article

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  1. R Miller from Halifax, Canada writes: Greatest Euro Cup EVER...

    Congrats to Spain.
  2. B I from Toronto, Canada writes: I don't know about "ever" having only seen four of them in their entirety, but it was certainly the best of the four and the best since France won it in 2000. Between Spanish exemplary, Turkish bravery and Russian surprises, it was a great month to be a football fan.
  3. Mikey Gault from Pleasuring Angelina Jolie, Canada writes: How nice for Spain. This was a good Euro cup.

    But the Euro is just for bragging rights. The real glory is only won at the World Cup. Spain is still a choker on the biggest stage.
  4. M Samra from Toronto, ON, Canada writes: It's a dirty little secret in Football that the hardest tournament to win is the European Championships...not the World Cup.
  5. asdf asdf from Canada writes: I don't see how that's true when you need fewer games to win it and the best team historically - Brazil, isnt there
  6. B I from Toronto, Canada writes: Without Brazil and Argentina it's not a harder tournament to win than the World Cup. At least not much harder than the Copa America.
  7. Gerry Pankhurst from Westport Ontario, Canada writes: A bad NFL halftime show is better than a soccer game. Divers of the world unite.
  8. B I from Toronto, Canada writes: Gerry Pankhurst from Westport Ontario, Canada writes: A bad NFL halftime show is better than a soccer game. Divers of the world unite.

    As opposed to the NFL where the murderers and rapists of America unite. Thanks for your ignorance now go on, have a footlong hot dog and watch a 60 minute game take 3 hours to complete while you get more fat and useless thanks to overmarketing of needless crap every two minutes and distractions such as those prostitutes dressed as "cheerleaders" designed to make a boring, long drawn product seem glamourous. Yeah, that's real sporting isn't it?
  9. WorldCup 2010Soccer from Nauru writes: There was a study done why North Americans don't like soccer,however,prefer American Football or Hockey...

    It is because the NA culure is very violent,violence is glorified and so the average loser dreams about being violent as well and likes watching either hockey of AF...

    Soccer is too artistic and clean of a game,so it doesn't fit the "cultural context"....
  10. asdf asdf from Canada writes: A bad NFL halftime show is better than an NFL game. The average NFL game has 14 minutes of actual play.
  11. D M from Canada writes: Ah yes, a "study". Let me guess, you didn't remember where you read it... in that case, don't waste our time mentioning it, if it even exists.

    M Samra is not that far off when saying that the Euro is harder to win than the World Cup. Many consider it at least harder to QUALIFY for. (I know, the Euro has 16 teams, and the World Cup only 13, but the competition to get those spots is harder.)

    True, Brazil and Argentina can threaten, but why hasn't anybody mentioned anyone eles? Because there aren't any other threats outside of Europe.

    When people say that (the EC is harder to win), they are often referring to the fact that the worse teams in the Euro are often better than the worse teams at the World Cup. Also, the European teams on average are stronger. With 8 groups (WC) instead of 4 (EC) to spread them out in, the group stage in the WC is easier for the better teams. They can rest more players, take fewer cautions and have fewer suspensions, and are more likely to make it through. True, once to the semis and finals it might be harder, but then only the two names above would make it harder to win - if they are still there.
  12. B I from Toronto, Canada writes: D M from Canada writes: When people say that (the EC is harder to win), they are often referring to the fact that the worse teams in the Euro are often better than the worse teams at the World Cup. Also, the European teams on average are stronger. 1998: Not only did Brazil and Argentina win their groups, Chile, Mexico, Nigeria and Paraguay all made it to the Round of 16 ahead of European counterparts. 2002: Brazil, Senegal, Paraguay, Korea, U.S.A., Mexico and Japan all made it out ahead of European competition. 2006: Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador, Australia and Ghana all made it out of the groups again ahead of European clubs. What's unfair is that Europe floods the World Cup entry with its own mediocre clubs such as Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Slovenia in one year - a lot of these teams have no business being in the World Cup but get in because Europe is allowed more teams. So clearly if you play the odds more European clubs will get to the next stage of the WC. Most of the second tier European clubs don't have answers for the likes of Mexico and Paraguay. Once you take Germany, Italy and sometimes France out of the equation, the rest of Europe has traditionally been less than stellar when it counts.
  13. Gord Lewis from Canada writes: Well, my team did not win, but Spain satisfied my two criteria: a new winner and beautiful football. Best Euro Cup ever.

    Obviously a few of the regular anti-football trolls are here today. I don't know how anyone can claim to love sports and prefer the militaristic, bloated (3.5 hours long!) commercial orgy that is NFL football, to a game that flows uninterrupted for 45 minutes at a time, requires incredible fitness, and offers the chance for real artistry and creativity (like the NHL once offered). And tell me you really enjoy the last two minutes of a close NBA game -- it takes an eternity to get through. With football I can enjoy the gane and still have a life.

    For those who disagree that the Euros are harder to win than the WC . . . the way Brasil are playing at the moment, they would not have reached the semis of this tournament. Argentina is struggling too. If you take the top 16 sides in the world at any moment (NOT based on those cr@p FIFA rankings), more than half would be European.

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