FIFA Club World Cup

In continuing the theme of 2017 being a sh*t year for U.S. soccer, the lone American at the Club World Cup was at fault for the goal that knocked Mexico’s Pachuca out of the competition on Tuesday at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in the UAE. Gremio’s Everton turned Omar Gonzalez inside out before curling in a wonderful shot to give the Brazilian side a 1-0 victory in extra time.

Gonzalez apparently thought he was still playing for the USMNT, perhaps against Trinidad and Tobago. 

Grêmio claimed its third Copa Libertadores title with a 2-1 victory (3-1 aggregate) over Lanús on Wednesday. The Gremio Copa Libertadores victory sparked a wild celebration back home as the Brazilian club rounded out the field for the FIFA Club World Cup, which begins next week.

Fernandinho and Luan both scored in the first half for Grêmio, which held on despite a red card to Ramiro in the 83rd minute. 

FIFA wants to do away with the limited-appeal Confederations Cup. Perhaps enamored by the financial success of the Avengers movies, FIFA wants to follow suit with a 24-team Super Club World Cup. The summer tournament would bring in the best clubs from around the world every four years like some sort of Infinity War, because super heroes are better than regular, old, boring heroes. 

Pelé may be 77 years old, but he’s still winning. On Friday, Pelé won two club world championships.

In a match that took place very early in the morning Sunday in Europe, and VERY early in the morning Sunday in the United States, Real Madrid took down Japanese champions Kashima Antlers 4-2 in the Club World Cup final.

Football has long been obstinate in its opposition to video technology, going so far as to appoint fifth and sixth officials to stand behind the goals doing absolutely nothing as opposed to implementing any kind of instant replay system. 

Goal-line technology has, in recent times, been successfully used at the highest levels of the game, but this only came about because of legitimate instances of robbery at the pinnacle of the sport.

If you are a Real Madrid or Club America fan you better fear the deer, and I’m not talking about the Milwaukee Bucks. 

Since the dawn of the FIFA Club World Cup over a decade ago, there have seldom been semi-final upsets. In most Club World Cups, the decision of who takes the trophy has featured the UEFA Champions League winner and the Copa Libertadores champion. 

Still, Japanese side Kashima Antlers just joined Congo’s TP Mazembe and Morocco’s Raja Casablanca as the only three teams to knock out a South American representative in the semifinals. 

The surreal run of Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle almost came to an end in Quito on Wednesday. There’s still another leg to play in Medellin, but a loss at home would’ve almost certainly doomed del Valle. That wasn’t in the cards — the fairy tale added another chapter when Arturo Mina Meza snatched an 87th minute equalizer against Colombia’s Atletico Nacional. 

The first leg draw means that del Valle need a win in regular time, extra time or penalties in Colombia to be crowned Copa Libertadores champions. 

Barcelona star midfielder Ivan Rakitic was a big hit at the Club World Cup in Japan this month, but not for the reason you might think. Sure, he played well and Barcelona tournament, but the reason fans flocked to Rakitic is because he looks like Goku, the protagonist in the popular anime show "Dragon Ball Z."

Goku is beloved in Japan, and, because of that, now Rakitic is beloved in Japan.