One of Buenos Aires’s revered soccer teams, River Plate, has now gone ten straight games without winning, putting them at the bottom of the rankings in the Apertura tournament.According to Goal, their most recent game was this week against Newell’s Old Boys at the Monumental stadium de Nunez; they tied 1-1.Ten non-victories in a row equals the worst slump in the history of the team.With one win this season, loyal fans are still turning up to games, though at the end of the last match they booed their team as the left the field.River Plate’s only hope for rescuing their dignity this season is a win in the Copa Sudamericana, which will be hard, seeing as they have already lost of the first of two games to current opponent Chivas de Guadalajara.

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October 30th, 2008 by A World Vacationer

Vikings Story Contest Submission by Rick H.

I’ve been a Viking fan for as long as I can remember … I grew up watching Tarkenton, Page, and all the other great Viking players of the past. I had never been to a Vikings game, but in 1990 I decided that it was high time that I went to a game. I didn’t care when, or who we played, I just had to get to a game. I bought tickets and went with my stepdad. We had a wonderful time, as the Vikings took care of the Bears 41 - 13. From there, the Viking game became a tradition of sorts as my stepdad and I would make the trek north from Southeast Iowa, every year, to watch our beloved Vikings.

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On Friday night at 2am in Argentina, the Argentine men’s soccer team took on Nigeria for the Olympic Gold Medal and won, 1-0. Their victory gave them their second gold medal in a row (they won the gold in Athens in 2004) and it also erased their loss to Nigeria in the finals of the 1996 games in Atlanta.According to Reuters UK, Argentina’s victory can be attributed in large part to the country’s ability to produce talented young players, like Lionel Messi.  Argentina has been very successful in the Olympics, which is a under-23 tournament with each team getting three exceptions. They have also won five of the last seven World under-20 Championships.Now, Argentina’s coach is looking ahead to the World Cup in 2010, for many the ultimate prize in soccer, even above a gold medal.

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The long controversy over whether or not Lionel Messi would play soccer in the Olympics or stay with his club team Barcelona is over.Messi announced yesterday that he would be joining Argentina.His decision came after a decision by FIFA against Barcelona; a judge said that Barcelona must act according to FIFA rules that require all under-23-year-old players to be released for the Olympics.Barcelona is contesting the decision, taking it to the Court for Arbitration of Sport.For the moment, Messi plans on joining the Argentine team where they are training in Japan, preparing for the upcoming Olympics games.He says that if FIFA says it is the right decision, he will abide by their ruling and be thrilled to play for his country.

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Star Argentine soccer player Lionel Messi has been in the middle of a controversy about whether Barcelona will release him to play in the Olympics for Argentina this August.According to FIFA rules, soccer clubs must release all under-23 players who wish to play in the Olympics for their native country.However, Barcelona has been resisting because they feel they need Messi during that time to play in Champions League qualifier matches.So the pressure is on Messi to decide whether he wants to play for Argentina in the Olympics, as Argentina Olympic coach Sergio Batista says he does, or whether he will decide to stay with Barcelona for the important qualifier matches.

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