LSU Soccer 2010 World Cup Pick’em
The World Cup — the most popular tournament in the world — takes place between June 11 and July 11 in South Africa. This year, the LSU soccer coaching staff, players, the sports information guru and a couple of special guests take part in a “World Cup Pick’em.”
Each picked the first and second place teams in each of eight groups (lettered A-H), along with the overall World Cup winner. LSUsports.net will keep track of their picks and declare a winner on July 11.
Enjoy the World Cup!
- World Cup Homepage
- Connect with LSU Soccer: Twitter | Facebook
Pool Play/World Cup Winner
|
Group |
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
E
|
F
|
G
|
H
|
Winner
|
|
 Brian LeeHead Coach |
1st |  FRA |
 ARG |
 ENG |
 GER |
 NED |
 ITA |
 BRA |
 ESP |
ARG |
| 2nd |  URU |
 NGA |
 USA |
 SRB |
 CMR |
 PAR |
 POR |
 CHI |
||
| B. LEE: “I will be cheering for England (and the USA!), Spain are the best team, and at least one of the African teams will make a deep run….but…World Cups are easy to predict. There will be upsets on the way, but the usual suspects will prevail in the end. A couple fast facts – at least one of four teams has played in every final (Germany, Italy, Brazil, and Argentina) and that foursome has won 14 of the 18 tournaments. In the last 60 years only England (1966) and France (1998), both playing at home, have broken the big four stranglehold on the trophy. Add to that – European teams don’t win World Cups in the Southern Hemisphere. That leaves Argentina and Brazil as potential winners. I will take the brilliance of Messi and the passion (and general good luck) of Maradona to lead Argentina to victory in South Africa.” | ||||||||||
|
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
E
|
F
|
G
|
H
|
Winner
|
||
 Debbie HensleyAsst. Coach |
1st | FRA |
ARG |
ENG |
GER |
NED |
ITA |
BRA |
ESP |
ESP |
| 2nd |  MEX |
 GRE |
USA |
 AUS |
CMR |
PAR |
POR |
CHI |
||
| HENSLEY: “La furia roja va a ganar la copa del mundo.” | ||||||||||
|
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
E
|
F
|
G
|
H
|
Winner
|
||
 Daniel BrizardFormer Asst. Coach |
1st | FRA |
ARG |
ENG |
GER |
NED |
ITA |
BRA |
ESP |
ITA |
| 2nd | MEX |
 KOR |
USA |
 GHA |
 JAP |
PAR |
POR |
CHI |
||
| BRIZARD: “Italy will win the World Cup because they have the deepest side, and instead of just one or two high profile players, they have a team of champions.” | ||||||||||
|
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
E
|
F
|
G
|
H
|
Winner
|
||
 Will StaffordSport Information |
1st |
FRA |
ARG |
ENG |
GER |
NED |
ITA |
BRA |
ESP |
ESP |
| 2nd |
MEX |
NGA |
USA |
SRB |
CMR |
 SVK |
POR |
 SUI |
||
| STAFFORD: “It’s hard for me to go against the most talented team in the world. Spain are relentless in the variety of ways they can break down opposing defenses. They’re deadly up front and have the deepest midfield in the world. I think they are going to score a lot of goals. I also think they have a favorable draw on their side if they win their group. My concern is Spain’s success, or lack thereof, in international competition. They haven’t advanced beyond the World Cup quarterfinals in over half a century. But in the end, I think the European champions from 2008 will add the World Cup title to their trophy case.” | ||||||||||
Group
Aiden Lee
Head Coach’s Son
1st
FRA
ARG
USA
GER
JAP
ITA
BRA
ESP
ESP
2nd
RSA
GRE
ENG
AUS
CMR
PAR
CIV
SUI
A. LEE: “Spain rocks!”
Group
Nathan Minion
Soccer Manager
1st
FRA
NGA
USA
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
GER
2nd
RSA
ARG
ENG
GHA
DEN
PAR
POR
CHI
MINION: “The tournament is really wide open this summer. The usual teams are going to be in contention. It looks like Germany will have one of the easier draws, so i think they have a great chance to win it all.”
Willie Davis
Volunteer Coach
1st
URU
ARG
ENG
GER
NED
PAR
BRA
ESP
ESP
2nd
FRA
KOR
USA
AUS
DEN
ITA
POR
CHI
DAVIS: “Spain has finally found a way to win a major competition, and with so many championship winners in it’s side, I see great things in the cards for Spain. Even though I really want the U.S. and and Italy to play in the final.”
Amanda Carreno
Former Player
1st
FRA
ARG
ENG
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
ESP
2nd
MEX
KOR
USA
AUS
JAP
PAR
POR
CHI
CARRENO: “I think Spain will win the World Cup because they have a balance of offensive players and defensive players that play well with each other. They also have some of the best midfielders in the world that are hard workers when they have the ball or don’t have the ball.”
Taryne Boudreau
Junior Midfielder
1st
FRA
ARG
ENG
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
NED
2nd
MEX
GRE
USA
SRB
DEN
PAR
POR
CHI
BOUDREAU: “They da bomb!”
Alex Ramsey
Freshman F/M
1st
FRA
ARG
USA
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
ESP
2nd
RSA
GRE
ENG
GHA
JAP
SVK
POR
SUI
RAMSEY: “Spain will be crowned World Cup Champions for multiple reasons. The grueling defending of players such as Sergio Ramos and Joan Capdevilla to protect the goal and send it forward really starts the attack from the back. The famous names of Francesc Fabregas and Andres Iniesta bring their experience and skill into the midfield. Finally, the speed and headstrong mindset of Fernando Torres and David Villa up top will work to create the icing on the cake for the hard work of the talented and quick-footed Spanish team.”
Special Guest Pickers
Richard Thompson
Former Track & Field All-American
2-time Olympic Silver Medalist
Cascade, Trinidad & Tobago
1st
FRA
ARG
ENG
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
BRA
2nd
RSA
NGA
USA
GHA
DEN
PAR
POR
CHI
THOMPSON: “I chose Brazil as the World Cup champs because they are simply the most dominant football nation in World Cup history and they enter yet another World Cup with a more than competent team. After losing to France in the quarterfinal in 2006, I think they’ll be more hungry and less complacent this time around.”
Gabriel Mvumvure
Track & Field All-American
Harare, Zimbabwe
1st
FRA
ARG
ENG
GHA
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
ARG
2nd
URU
NGA
ALG
GER
CMR
SVK
POR
SUI
MVUMVURE: “Argentina is going to win the World Cup!!!”
Neal Skupski
Men’s Tennis All-American
Liverpool, England
1st
FRA
ARG
ENG
GER
NED
ITA
BRA
ESP
ESP
2nd
MEX
NGA
USA
SRB
DEN
PAR
POR
CHI
SKUPSKI: “I think Spain is going to win the World Cup because they have a great spine down the middle from goalie to strikers. Their wide players are also world class. Fernando Torres is going to win the golden boot, and being up top with David Villa is going to be unstoppable!”
Bracket Play Picks
Brian Lee’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, NED, BRA, GER, ARG, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, BRA, ARG, ESP
Semifinal Winners: BRA, ARG
Third-Place Winner: ENG
World Cup Champion: Argentina
Debbie Hensley’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, DEN, BRA, GER, ARG, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, BRA, GER, ESP
Semifinal Winners: BRA, ESP
Third-Place Winner: GER
World Cup Champion: Spain
Daniel Brizard’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, NED, BRA, GER, ARG, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, BRA, ARG, ITA
Semifinal Winners: BRA, ITA
Third-Place Winner: ARG
World Cup Champion: Italy
Will Stafford’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: ENG, FRA, BRA, NED, ARG, GER, ESP, ITA
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, NED, GER, ESP
Semifinal Winners: ENG, ESP
Third-Place Winner: NED
World Cup Champion: Spain
Aiden Lee’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, USA, JAP, BRA, ENG, ARG, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: FRA, BRA, ENG, ESP
Semifinal Winners: ESP, FRA
Third-Place Winner: ENG
World Cup Champion: Spain
Nathan Minion’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: ARG, USA, NED, BRA, GER, RSA, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ARG, NED, GER, ESP
Semifinal Winners: ARG, GER
Third-Place Winner: NED
World Cup Champion: Germany
Willie Davis’ Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: URU, ENG, NED, BRA, GER, FRA, DEN, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, NED, FRA, ESP
Semifinal Winners: NED, ESP
Third-Place Winner: FRA
World Cup Champion: Spain
Amanda Carreno’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, NED, POR, GER, MEX, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, POR, MEX, ESP
Semifinal Winners: POR, ESP
Third-Place Winner: MEX
World Cup Champion: Spain
Taryne Boudreau’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, NED, BRA, GER, MEX, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, NED, GER, ESP
Semifinal Winners: NED, ESP
Third-Place Winner: ENG
World Cup Champion: The Netherlands
Alex Ramsey’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, USA, NED, POR, GER, ARG, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: USA, NED, ARG, ESP
Semifinal Winners: NED, ESP
Third-Place Winner: ARG
World Cup Champion: Spain
Special Guests’ Bracket Play Picks
Richard Thompson’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: ENG, FRA, BRA, NED, ARG, GER, ESP, ITA
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, BRA, ARG, ESP
Semifinal Winners: BRA, ESP
Third-Place Winner: ARG
World Cup Champion: Brazil
Gabriel Mvumvure’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, NED, BRA, GHA, ARG, CMR, POR
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, BRA, ARG, CMR
Semifinal Winners: ENG, ARG
Third-Place Winner: CMR
World Cup Champion: Argentina
Neal Skupski’s Bracket Play Picks
Round of 16 Winners: FRA, ENG, GER, ARG, NED, BRA, ITA, ESP
Quarterfinal Winners: ENG, ARG, BRA, ESP
Semifinal Winners: ARG, ESP
Third-Place Winner: BRA
World Cup Champion: Spain
Algeria Australia Chile Denmark Ghana Greece
Honduras Ivory Coast Japan
New Zealand
North Korea Paraguay
Slovenia South Africa South Korea Uruguay