Soccer Watch

All eyes are on Athens this week, where the Olympic quarterfinals are now set. Pleasant surprise: It appears that all the games from here on out are being broadcast live on MSNBC and CNBC. Women: Germany and the U.S. are again the class of the field; China slumped home early after a 0-8(!) opening loss. Longtime U.S. defender and emotional leader Brandi Chastain appears to be out of favor with coach April Heinrichs; she's the only field player who didn't play a minute of the first round. Quarterfinals: Fri., Aug. 20, MSNBC (10am: USA – Japan; Germany – Nigeria; 1pm: Mexico – Brazil; Sweden – Australia) Semifinals: Mon., Aug. 23, 10am & 1pm, MSNBC (U.S. would play at 1pm, if qualified) Championship: Thu., Aug. 26, 1pm, NBC (Third Place game 10am, MSNBC) Men: Argentina looks unbeatable; Mali and Iraq were surprise group winners in the first round. Quarterfinals: Sat., Aug. 21, CNBC (10am: Mali – Italy; Iraq – Australia; 1pm: Argentina – Costa Rica; Paraguay – S. Korea) Semifinals: Tue., Aug. 24, 10am & 1pm, MSNBC; Third Place: Fri., Aug. 27, 12:30pm, MSNBC Championship: Sat., Aug. 28, 2am, CNBC (rebroadcast at 2pm on MSNBC)

Meanwhile, the European season has already begun, as both the English Premier League and the Champions League third round kicked off last week. Details next week.

World Cup qualifying is ramping up as well; the U.S. men opened their second round Wednesday night on the road in Kingston against a very good Jamaica team. Too late for press time, but check "Soccer Watch Online" for an update.

Players: The fall season is upon us. Team registration deadlines are just past, but there's still time for individuals to hook up with a team before the seasons begin Sept. 4-5 (women and men) and Sept. 11 (coed). See awsl.org, soccerenterprise.com, and acsasoccer.org (respectively) for more info.