by Ethan Johnson
July 7, 2006

Here it is, the final weekend of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Sadly, it's an all-EU weekend, which is kind of like an all-California Super Bowl, especially if you don't particularly care about California teams. However, real NFL fans watch the Super Bowl anyway, and I suspect that fan interest will be high in the World Cup Final regardless of who is playing. Here are my ill-informed predictions:

3rd-Place Game: Germany vs Portugal: Now that Portugal's winning streak is over, I'm compelled to again say that this is a home game for Germany and it would be pretty sad if they lost this match as well, after blowing a shot at the Final. I'm picking Germany, but I'm thinking that Jurgen Klinsmann is on the ropes anyway, regardless of the outcome. I'm just guessing at this, but I'm sure the sports press/fans in Germany aren't thrilled with the "no appearance in the Final" thing.

Final: Italy vs France: Italy can hurt you quickly after long patches of nothing doing. Still, France is my pick to win it all, if for no other reason than avenging the racist taunts made by the Spain side a few weeks ago. It's already sweet that Spain is watching this at home, but it has to be utterly gratifying to hoist the trophy and show Spain who has the better team. France is a bit squidgy offensively and I don't like them beating Portugal 1-0 based on a direct penalty kick. France will need to score aggressively if they are to beat Italy. Whatever happens, please God, no penalty kicks to decide the game. That's all I really ask.

Here's to a thrilling conclusion to this year's World Cup! I'm already looking forward to 2010. <EM>