GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!!!!!!

In the wake of NBA free agency, rooting against Lance Armstrong, and wondering yet again whether Favre will retire (how is this still a story?), everyone seems to have forgotten that soccer recently took over the sports world.

But not this girl.

Tonight I ventured to House Park in Central Austin to watch our hometown Austin Aztex take on the Miami FC.  Other than an alarmingly large number of unsupervised small children wandering around, it was an entertaining experience.  Here are a few snippets: 

Miami had a player, jersey #15 in blue on the left, named Le Petit.  This did not cease to entertain me at any point during the match. 

The Aztex, in red and white, provided their own entertainment by means of players like this firecracker Watson, jersey #6.

Despite a few small scuffles, it was over all very friendly - only 2 yellow cards given, and no red cards. 

Soccer skeptics will be disappointed to learn that there was little flopping as well.  Twice, the game paused as players addressed minor injuries, but all returned to play without whining or resorting to Tim Duncan eyes.

Oh, and ladies, there was plenty of stereotypical soccer eye candy as well. 

Ultimately, the Aztex won 3-1, claiming victory in the "Battle for the Willie Nelson Guitar," a rivalry trophy created for the season series.  

Only in Austin. 

Now, I know what you're thinking.  Yes, I intentionally neglected an important aspect of futbol culture until the end of this post.  To answer the question on everyone's mind... heck yes!  There absolutely were vuvuzelas!!  Ok, I enjoy the name of this noise-maker far more than I enjoy the sound they create.  They did allow me to relish a bit of nostalgia for a period of time in my life just a few weeks ago when the World Cup reigned the airwaves.

Ole!