Soccer spreads wing in yankeeland

Washington, June 9 (UNI) Soccer players may not enjoy the status of their illustrious counterparts in baseball and baskteball but football is spreading its wings and roots in the yankeeland with the United States team making it fifth consecutive appearance in the finals, whick kick off in Germany later today.

Ranked fifth, the US team is all set to kick-start its canmpaign with an encounter with Czech Republic on Monday.

They play Italy on June 17, followed by the game against Ghana on June 22.

While this is US team's fifth consecutive appearance in the World Cup finals, they also competed in 1930, 1934 and 1950.

The growing interest about soccer is quite palpable with major newspapers, such as the ''New York Times'' and the ''Washington Post'' devoting special sections for ''The Greatest Show on Earth', recognizing their readership's keen interest to follow the fate of the national team and that of other sides.

According to ''New York Times'', the New York city and surrounding area has a high percentage of football fans, especially those who are foreign-born.

It has deployed eight reporters to cover ''all aspects'' of the World Cup, including scribes from the Times-affiliated International Herald Tribune, and two Times' foreign correspondents based in Berlin.

''Washington Post'' has three reporters in Germany covering the World Cup. It is giving the Cup first-page placement due to the ''thriving football culture'' here.

UNI XC AY PC1015