Want to Be Like Kobe?

I remember the 'Be Like Mike' campaign way back when. Maybe I'm dating myself by admitting that, but it sure did compel me to get into NBA basketball.

Now, we're going to try something similar in order to bring in anyone who isn't yet a soccer fan.

Check out who is a soccer fan. If you guessed it by the title of this blog, then color yourself clever.

WARNING: Kobe playing soccer is about as pretty as MJ playing, yup, baseball. Anyone remember that horror?

Well, Kobe claims he got into soccer (and FC Barcelona) watching Ronaldinho, but I believe it's an homage to his new 7-foot teammate, Pao Gasol, who helped Bryant and his Lakers reach the NBA Finals last season, and who happens to have been born and bred in, yeah, Barcelona.

So, whatever your motivation, whether it's Kobe, Ronaldinho or even Pao Gasol, we hope you buy some FC Barcelona Jerseys or the

Booty-huggin' Shorts!

WSS-217 is Here

No, WSS217 is not a submarine or a license plate number, though I guess it could be either or.

So, what exactly is WSS217, you may be asking yourself right about now.

Glad you asked.

From January 28th until February 17 (it's starting to become clearer, eh?) WSS217 will save you lots of $$$ on all the greatest soccer gear on the planet! Which in turn will make you

:)

Okay, the coupon is for 10% off, but, if you buy lots of gear--which we're hopin', then you could indeed save lots and lots of green, and we ain't talkin' rain forests here. So, when you checkout on your next WorldSoccerShop.com purchase, just enter WSS217 in the special box and the savings will be instantly tabulated by our super smart computers, leaving you with more money to buy more stuff, like food or whatever.

And, don't forget, you have until February 17 to use it, so you can buy something nice for your boyfriend or girlfriend or wife or neighbor or whomever you want for Valentine's Day and even further.

HAPPY SHOPPING!

I Dream of Predator Fantasy

I have been querying adidas for several weeks now about the storyline on the new Predator Fantasy Football Boots. Yeah, they look really cool and are just as technologically swift as all the Pred predecessors (that’s a mouthful).

So today I get an email from our awesome adidas representative with this quaint but cool quote:

“I cant stop dreaming of all those crazy stadiums I have seen
all over the world…how would my fantasy stadium look like..
Damn….where is my damn scratch book again….”

Never has 500 Days Seemed so Near

That’s right, only 500 days remain until the biggest event in World Soccer – World Cup 2010 Finals

For us there’s nothing bigger and we can never do too much in preparation for it; that’s why we’ve got some special sections already made up, with a couple products thrown in, just to focus our energies, and pass along our growing World Cup fever.

World Cup 2010

World Cup 2010 Qualifying

This is only the beginning, however. We’ve got massive, ginormous plans for South Africa 2010 – the sky’s the limit. So keep checking in to see what we’ve got in store.

Ronaldo's New Car

After writing off his Ferrari, Ronaldo has found a new means of conveyance...

Fluminense Hooded Track Jacket – Keep Warm in Rio

Yeah, I know Rio is not a place where jackets of any kind, or staying warm, is really necessary, but this jacket is so cool you’ll want to wear it, no matter where you are.

The Fluminense Style Hoody Jacket is for everyone

You might not be able to hang out in Rio de Janeiro, where the high today is a balmy 80°, you can still rock this cool hoody jacket, with sweet Brazilian style. And if you happen to be from Brazil and miss your warm homeland, this jacket will take you back in spirit, and is sure to keep you warm.


It’s such a unique track top/hoody, that you could use for it for running, training, doing a remake of the Carmen Miranda hit That Night in Rio, or just to paint the town: BE SEEN IN TRICOLOR STYLE.

It runs a bit large, as I wore a large, with three layers underneath, as it was in the teens in Birmingham today.

The jacket was thicker than I expected, with a silky smooth material—the material inside the hood though, is especially soft on your head, nice for any bald men out there like me.

I love the Tricolor graphic on the back, which says ‘SOU TRICOLOR DE CORACAO’ (if you’re not fluent in Portuguese that means ‘I am Tricolor from the Heart) The three colors contrast underneath the shoulder stripes, flowing with the current style the young, hip kids are wearing, so this one won’t be around too long. I’d better take this one off and send it back quickly, though I’m real tempted to buy it.

Celebrate your 44th President

Whether you voted for him or not, one thing every American, or anyone living in the US can all stand behind is that we all want the country to improve and prosper. That's why we all stand behind Barack Obama and wish him - and the USA - all the best in the next four years.

That's why we made this special jersey to commemorate President Obama's historic inauguration in the best way we know how, by adding him to the squad of the USA National Soccer Team.

Get your USA Obama 44 Soccer Jersey

There's no better way to show your support for your country and your government than by wearing this amazing jersey, with authentic USA letters and numbers, to the next big USA match or to the White House!

GO USA!

MLS ’09 is (Almost) Here

So get your Gear!

Did you watch the big draft yesterday? Yes or no, here they go. Major League Soccer'sLucky 13th Season will kick off in March, but you can get (or pre-order, and have it shortly after February 10th) the new gear they’ll be wearing for it – NOW!

Only four teams, however—Colorado, Houston, NY and Toronto—have new home/away uniforms, with two others—both LA squads, Chivas and Galaxy, sporting something new for away games.

I am especially enamored by the new Red Bulls styles, which kind of look like rugby jerseys, with their sleek, mandarin collars.

The weather outside is frightful…

But Indoor Soccer is so Delightful

I was setting up my umpteenth indoor soccer shoe of the past couple weeks, when I decided to ask some of our real experts around here whether it was indoor soccer season. They said ‘of course, how could you be so ignorant?’. Okay, they didn’t say it quite like that but it’s how it hit me.

Well, pardon my ignorance, and check out the awesome new indoor offerings from every brand in soccer footwear. There’s some new stuff out there and some new colors in well-known and well-loved styles.

Let"s Get Messi

Sure there are players that have had exclusive boots - Just about every major soccer star endorses one style of boot or another, and Ronaldinho's 10R line has been the biggest ever in the world of soccer. But none of them have their name actually stitched on the boots. Especially in a cool graffiti style font.

Introducing the Leo Messi Soccer Boots from addias.

The Messi F30

The Messi F50 TUNIT

Juventus Training Jersey in High Demand (Apparently)

The Juventus Head Equipment Manager was arrested this week for stealing more than 2,000 of the pictured training tops. Adrian Roberto Oliva was caught smuggling the tops to Spain and selling them on the black market (note that none of the tops sold on our sites were obtained via the aforementioned black market). According to The Mail Online, he was getting £160 apiece for these babies, but you can get them for a steal (wink wink) at WorldSoccerShop.com for only $54.99.

[The Mail Online via Deadspin]