U.S. Men’s National Team
2006 FIFA World Cup Update
Hamburg, Germany
June 9, 2006

ACHTUNG, FERTIG, LOS!: It’s been a long eight months since 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying ended for the CONCACAF region, but the wait is over. The U.S. Men’s National Team arrived in Hamburg, Germany, on Friday, June 2 to begin their final preparations for the World Cup and the anxiety has been building in anticipation of the prestigious tournament. The wait, for some teams at least, is over as the World Cup got underway on Friday, June 9, in Munich, with host Germany defeating Costa Rica, 4-2, and Ecuador surprising Poland, 2-0. The U.S. Men have to wait to kick off their 2006 FIFA World Cup campaign, as they face the Czech Republic in Gelsenkirchen on Monday, June 12, at 12 p.m. ET, live on ESPN2 and Univision. Fans can also follow the action live on ussoccer.com’s MatchTracker.

STUDIO 90: Hamburg has not only hosted the U.S. Men’s National Team for the last week. It has also been the home of ussoccer.com’s Studio 90, the daily web show that brings you all the news from the U.S. camp. The show’s first week featured in-studio interviews with Jimmy Conrad, Steve Cherundolo, Oguchi Onyewu, Landon Donovan, Carlos Bocanegra and roommates Bobby Convey and Eddie Pope. Studio 90 also brings you behind-the-scenes access to the team, with highlights from training as well as venturing out into the city. In Thursday’s show, host Neil Buethe took to the streets to see if Germans recognize the latest member of the U.S. MNT. Compare how many people can correctly identify Steve Cherundolo and how many can identify….David Hasselhoff? Select excerpts from Studio 90 are available for download and/or purchase at Google video.

BITS, LAUGHS OUTTAKES…GERMANY: ussoccer.com brings you photo galleries, videos, podcasts and even a daily web show, but there are still some things that slip through the cracks. For those moments, ussoccer.com brings you “Bits, Laughs, Outtakes…Germany,” the 24-hour-a-day blog that brings you those moments when the camera isn’t rolling. Find out which U.S. player has the Tarzan yell as his cell phone ring tone and which players rocked out backstage at a Tool concert, and keep checking back often to get the latest update about the MNT’s journey through the World Cup.

PHOTO GALLERIES FROM HAMBURG: U.S. Soccer continues the tradition of bringing you the best sights of the U.S. MNT camp in Germany. Check out ussoccer.com’s photo galleries for the best pictures of the U.S. Men as they prepare for their first match against the Czech Republic.

PODCASTS: Hear all about how the U.S. Men are fairing in Germany straight from the coaches and players themselves in ussoccer.com’s podcasts. Listen as U.S. Manager Bruce Arena, Landon Donovan and Pablo Mastroeni address the media. Also hear from Marcus Hahnemann as he speaks to the German press about his Hamburg family ties.

U.S. MNT WORLD CUP FEATURES: Besides seeing the U.S. MNT interviews on Studio 90, pouring through ussoccer.com’s BLOG and tuning in to the players and coaches on the ussoccer.com podcasts, but there’s even more information available for you at ussoccer.com’s USA Information Center. Read about Marcus Hahnemann’s career path to the U.S. MNT. Also, join Kasey Keller as he prepares to take part in his fourth World Cup.