■ Beer
Brewery toasts German run
German fans are excited over their team's run to the World Cup quarterfinals, and the owner of three major breweries has another reason to celebrate. The Oetker Gruppe, which owns three breweries, said that its keg beer sales have been up by 30 to 40 percent during the tournament. "We're selling 7.5 million liters of beer every day," breweries manager Ulrich Kallmeyer said. "If the German team gets through to the next round, the volume is up 10 percent each time."
■ Fans
Henry slams Spanish fans
France striker Thierry Henry said he was upset that Spanish fans whistled during the French national anthem before Tuesday's second-round World Cup match, which France won 3-1. "I think it's a shame that Spanish fans booed our national anthem. That's something we should talk about," the Arsenal striker told reporters after the game. "I haven't heard something like that before. We didn't boo their national anthem." The main section of red-clad Spanish fans whistled and booed when the Marseillaise was piped over the sound system, with both teams standing at the center of the field.
■ Thailand
Cup causes power surge
The soccer-mad are spending millions of dollars more on electricity this month as they stay up through the night to watch World Cup matches, the nation's biggest utility said yesterday. In the first 19 days of the World Cup, Thailand spent an extra 304.4 million baht (US$7.9 million) on power compared with average use during the year, the Electricity Generating Authority said. The company said it believed the most-watched match so far was the second-round clash between Germany and Sweden, when electricity use spiked to the highest level of the month.
■ Italy
Cannavaro swears by sex
Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro has put his excellent World Cup form down to a good diet, plenty of sleep and a healthy sex life. The 32-year-old Juventus defender was outstanding in their 1-0 second round win over Australia on Monday when Italy had to play with 10 men for almost the entire second half after Marco Materazzi was sent off. "For an athlete it's as important how you behave off the pitch as you do on it," Cannavaro said at Tuesday's press conference. "Eating well, getting plenty of sleep and having sex -- all of these things are important." Asked how often he has sex, Cannavaro replied: "Whenever I want to, it helps me."
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
The lights dimmed and the crowd hushed as Karoline Kristensen entered for her performance. However, this was no ordinary Dutch theater: The temperature was 80°C and the audience naked apart from a towel. Dressed in a swimsuit and to the tune of emotional music, the 21-year-old Kristensen started her routine, performed inside a large sauna, with a bed of hot rocks in the middle. For a week this month, a group of wellness practitioners, called “sauna masters,” are gathering at a picturesque health resort in the Netherlands to compete in this year’s Aufguss world sauna championships. The practice takes its name from a
Japanese players are moving to English soccer in record numbers and more look set to follow with clubs attracted by their quality, strong work ethic and value for money. Kaoru Mitoma is the standout talent of five Japanese players in the English Premier League, with eight more in the Championship and two in League One. Liverpool midfielder Wataru Endo, the captain of Japan, believes his compatriots are “being held in higher esteem” by English clubs compared with the past. “The staff at Liverpool ask me about lots of Japanese players, not necessarily with a view to a transfer, but just saying this or
Taiwan yesterday survived Bosnia and Herzegovina to win their Davis Cup World Group I tie at the Taipei Tennis Center. The tight series started on Saturday with world No. 123 Jason Tseng losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 to Mirza Basic in the opening singles matchup. However, teammate Tony Wu kept the tie even, dominating world No. 86 Damir Dzumhur 6-2, 6-1. Yesterday, 24-year-old Ray Ho and partner 25-year-old Hsu Yu-hsiou kept up the momentum, making short work of Basic and Nerman Fatic, winning 6-3, 6-4. Tseng then suffered another defeat, losing 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 to Dzumhur in a brutal match that lasted more than two