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 I'm happy for my man Raj Amit Kumar. This picture is many moons ago in Chicago around the time we wrote a move script together about Cricket (it's waiting to launch). Amit's new show Bindiya Ke Bahubali.   Is India in my book? Maybe. India needs the right soccer coach.
 It's an exciting time to be an American soccer fan. At some point, American soccer fans have to realize, accept, and embrace the fact that America is an underdog in the 2026 World Cup. That's a fact. A lot of people have given into that and it's turned into a great aspect of American soccer. Guess what? It's the only sport America is the underdog! It's exciting to finally be an underdog in a sport. Americans aren't used to that. Therefore, this might be the biggest story in American sports history if and when the USMNT finally wins the FIFA World Cup. What should you do if the USMNT loses this World Cup? Don't fret. It's a big maybe. We don't know, technically. What we don't know is something that, technically, hasn't happened yet...that being a distinct possibility the USMNT won't escape its group. In a sense, this awkward admission that it's up in the air is what we're used to. We've embraced that we're an underdog, whether we know it or not. It's been going on a long time, this realization, this acceptance. Over the years: Do we have great American players? Yes. Pat McBride, Al Trost, Ricky Davis...let's jump ahead...Clint Dempsey, Christian Pulisic. A lot. DO I THINK THE USMNT WILL WIN THE WORLD CUP SOMEDAY? YES. Just maybe not today. How can we win the World Cup? What can we do? Make me coach. I keep saying that. Is anybody listening? I will win the World Cup for America. I've been saying it for years. I'll tell you what, the team would look a lot different, that's for damn sure. You would see me at various places for new recruits. I know they're out there. By the way: I haven't wavered. My assistant coaches are mine and mine alone. No one can choose them. They are Shaquille O'Neal and Owen Wilson. It's been that way for a long time, I'm not changing. Shaq would double as backup goalie. Practices? When and where is up to me, not the system, man. Now stay with me here: The majority of practices would take place inside a basketball gym, at night. I'm not a morning person. There's a reason for that, actually. The court not nighttime. It fine-tunes your skills as a player. With the right focus, it brings together better dribbling and passing that can transcend to the outdoor field. See Why American Soccer Isn't There Yet. Futsal was great for my development as a player. Futsal, practicing on a basketball court, the right way, would only benefit American soccer. There exists a right way. I, with Shaq and Owen Wilson, will deliver a championship. Just not this World Cup for obvious reasons...that being I'm not coach yet. But get ready for a great World Cup and maybe the biggest story in American sports history: the saga of the USMNT trying to win a World Cup. The last sport we have for our trophy case. Imagine that.   The 2026 FIFA World Cup is gearing up to be epic. A milestone. Bigger than ever. It has to be: There are 3 hosts. That's a first. Predictions? Some are in the book. A top 5 right now: Brazil Argentina England France Germany Also included: star players, team histories, strategies, stadiums, and more. Much more around the corner! Books available with: Meyer & Meyer Sport (Europe) Cardinal Publishers Group (United States) Waterstones B&N 2018, 2022, 2026: Italy doesn't make the FIFA World Cup. Italy's a four-time World Cup champ, an all-time great. This is a tragedy. What's the best chance for Italy to get back in the World Cup? Putting in a bid to host. Solution: Get rid of Adidas. It just doesn't look right. I like Adidas, it's just not working for Italy. Get back to your roots. 1. Lotto 2. Diadora 3. Maybe Puma Let's start there. Italy out again. Wow. Enough said. I'm a big fan. I love some Italian soccer. Who doesn't? There might be a few. But there aren't that many haters. Italy is the quintessential World Cup favorite. It was. This is crazy. Literally crazy. Italy is fighting to make a World Cup? Do you hear yourself? Does that even make sense? Of course not. Italy is struggling, big time. This is odd. It's beyond odd. At this point, there's a problem. Italian fans have something to be concerned about. Because, for the most part, I thought for the last two World Cup failures (2018, 2022) Italy was just going through a bad streak like Brazil taking a 7-1 pounding in 2014 by Germany. It happens. No one's perfect. But now we're talking about three World Cups in a row for the amazing Azzurri which is something significant. Two was significant. Three is alarming. Three in a row is very un-Italian. Go figure. You know I look out for Italian soccer fans. I got your back. But this is pathetic. Do I have Italian coffee right now? Prefer French but, yeah, I have Italian right now. French is better. Still though, I'm gonna drink the coffee cause it's good. I should clarify: this is Starbucks Italian vs. Starbucks French. So it might be different with another brand. That's something that very well could be pointed out and was just pointed out. Forget about it, moving on. I love all things Italy. But I get the feeling this might not be over. Italy needs a generational shift in talent. Players like, I'm not mentioning Baggio because he's too obvious, Signori. That was a talent. You need that again, Italy. Find that times six. You need six guys on the field, like Signori, at once. Not one or two...six. The United States has a similar problem, for generations. The USMNT has always fielded two or three very talented players with the wrong dance partners. It's not a fair comparison, however, in terms of "fielding talent" there's a slight parallel in that Italy, like the US, needs to focus on shiftier, craftier, skillful, dynamic players that showcase dribbling skill that makes fans want to watch. Period. It starts with dribbling. Get to that and you'll be ok. For now, Italy is in a world of hurt with a need retuning in order to get its Ferrari revving again, which it's more than capable of.  FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifications The final 22 teams. Only 6 will qualify. Essentially, we have the following... UEFA Playoffs (Europe) March 26, 2026 March 31, 2026 Wales Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia Italy Italy Northern Ireland Ukraine Sweden Sweden Sweden Poland Poland Albania Slovakia Kosovo Kosovo Turkey Turkey Turkey Romania Czech Republic Czech Republic Republic of Ireland Czech Republic Denmark Denmark North Macedonia Inter-confederation Playoffs (North America, South America, Africa, Asia, Oceania) March 26, 2026 March 31, 2026 New Caledonia DR Congo DR Congo Jamaica Jamaica Bolivia Iraq Iraq Suriname Bolivia Qualifications for the FIFA World Cup can be extremely complicated. The process has been simplified above. There were many rounds leading up to this point. From these remaining 22 teams, 6 will go to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. For paperback and eBook, the qualification process has been included in Your Guide to the 2026 World Cup. (Subject to change. As games take place, check here for updates.) My personal choice: New Caledonia. I doubt they'll win but I want them to. Let's go! ...News flash: New Caledonia lost.   Image courtesy of Ryan Reinheimer. "Galaxy Spiral Theory" By Shane Stay First heard on KJFF radio, 1-27-2026 In studio | Festus, Missouri | the Heartland By studying pictures from Hubble, other, it becomes clear, here it is. (Starting from small upwards.) (1) Thanks to electromagnetic forces and gravity, during a proton-photon collision in a lab, strange little spirals occurred. (2) When water goes down your kitchen sink it goes in a spiral. (3) Tornados go in a spiral, hurricanes go in a spiral. (4) The planets in the solar system spiral (revolve) around the sun. (5) Our star and the others go in a spiral around the center of the galaxy. (6) My addition, the galaxies themselves go in a spiral. They go in a grand spiral. To what, that’s still a mystery, and I’m not at liberty to discuss it here. The galaxies seem to have separate groups that go in spirals; perhaps together, as a whole, they're all going to the same place. Though, all the little things we see, such as tornados going in a spiral, seem to be re-enacting how galaxies were formed, and so on. How did I come up with that? That’s aside the point.  Good time on KJFF, with Ryan Reinheimer, discussing a number of things, such as 100 American Soccer Legends, This Is Our CITY, the 2026 World Cup, Cahokia Mounds, galaxies, sports and more. Italy Incidentally, when Italy is in the FIFA World Cup things seem to "spiral" around it. Italy is a grand unifying force in the world of soccer. Hopefully the Italians are back in the World Cup. Stay tuned: In late March 2026 we'll know! USMNT players A few players covered: Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Christian Pulisic, Ricky Davis, Mike Sorber, Taylor Twellman and many more.
 A Brief Excerpt ('Things To Do List': Share this map!)  The 2026 FIFA World Cup cities map. Check out the middle part ;) The 2026 FIFA World Cup Cities Published with Cardinal Publishers Group, January 2, 2026 By Shane Stay Here you go soccer fans, the 2026 FIFA World Cup map: The 2026 FIFA World Cup could be the best one ever, literally. I’m looking forward to it. Over a billion—people and maybe well-trained pets—are looking forward to it. Hold on a sec. Let’s just go over a quick little slight thing…It’s just a second, it really won’t be that big-a-deal. It goes without saying, there’s something interesting with this map. Why’s there only one in the middle? Yeah, right. There’s 3 on the East Coast, where Bob Bradley is sipping tea, Princeton sweater on, with a painting of a yacht on the wall. Listen, listen to me yacht fella, put your tasty beverage down. “What?” Did you say what? Say what again! Say what again! I dare you, I double…And those 3 are right next to each other? Huh? What? You can scratch Boston or Philly from that list, duh. New York, Philly would work. Atlanta, yes. Miami, yes. Dallas and Houston? Pick one. I’d go with Dallas. Seattle, yes. SF, where I owned a restaurant, sure, I guess, it gives me a chance to mention Vine & Barrel. LA, where I grew up—in part—with family, I guess. But let’s go to the middle bit. Just Kansas City? Really? Really??? No Detroit, Chicago, or St. Louis as a second? Oh ok, yeah that makes sense. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense, no, I get it: Because St. Louis and Chicago have nothing to do with the history of soccer in America. They really don’t. Everyone knows that. Especially St. Louis, the capitol of soccer in America. Realistically, delete Houston—they might not notice—from the list and add either St. Louis or Chicago. No, I’m not saying this as a native of St. Louis and one who’s lived in Chicago. For argument’s sake, let’s just say I live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. I don’t but just imagine maybe I do…right by the place where Rockefeller had secret UFO meetings. When I buy groceries, I say hi to all the locals. Over there. Even then, I’d still be noticing one in the middle, because…it’s weird. As someone else told me, it’s weird. Only one in the middle? More at Cardinal Publishers Group.  The songs start out simple and addictive, talky, childlike, then it gets out of their control with mad scientist brilliance but completely in their control as they navigate through a masterpiece. I'm a music critic now? What decade am I in? Who's next, Sting? Sting, technically sound like a studio musician, perfect. Live? Sounds like you're in the studio. I'm told I'm the best DJ around. For more, see Song of the Day. Martha Quinn eat your heart out. Next up: EPMD, "B.E. the Green-Eyed Bandit." Something like that. Correct Prediction for:
2025 MLS Cup Champs: Inter Miami The prediction was made here, home page: "Current prediction: 2025 MLS Cup champs will be Inter Miami...prediction made here, 11-24-25." A FEW OF SHANE'S MIGHTY PREDICTIONS 2025 MLS Cup Champs: Inter Miami 2024 UEFA Euro Champs: Spain (Published: Cardinal Publishers Group, 2024) 2024 Copa America Champs: Argentina (Published: Cardinal Publishers Group, 2024) 2024 Champions League Champs: Real Madrid 2022 Champions League Champs: Real Madrid 2020-21 UEFA Euro Champs: Italy 2020 MLS Cup Champs: Portland 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup Champs: USWNT |
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