Soccer Watch

A respectable 2-1 loss to archrival Mexico, and a game against Guatemala, Wednesday night too late for press time, are what the U.S. men have to show for their efforts on the first serious week of World Cup Qualifying. No disgrace losing in Mexico City; assuming the Guatemala game goes okay, the U.S. is still on track to qualify for next summer's Finals in Germany.

Elsewhere around the world, there were some 77 WCQ games on all five continents, but only a few mild surprises – Japan and South Korea each losing in Asia, North Korea being essentially eliminated with home losses to Iran and Bahrain, Israel holding its own in draws against Ireland and France – while the heavyweights stayed the course with relative ease. See "Soccer Watch Online" for complete results and continental standings.

MLS in Austin. The rain held off until after the game, and more than 1,000 fans were on hand to see FC Dallas (née Dallas Burn) nail two late goals to edge the Colorado Rapids, 2-1, Saturday night at Nelson Field, in what was billed as the first MLS game ever played in Austin. The MLS regular season kicks off this coming weekend, with defending champs DC United visiting the expansion Chivas USA, sister club to the popular Mexican league team. It's live on ABC, Saturday, April 2, at 2pm.

The Champions League Quarterfinals start this week as well; the ESPN game of the week is Juventus at Liverpool – the first time the two European giants have met since the infamous 1985 European Cup final at Heysel Stadium in Belgium, when 39 spectators were killed in the stands. It's at 1:30pm Tuesday, April 5, on ESPN2.