U.S. soccer team stuns Spain -- and a few of its own countrymen

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I feel like a bum.

The U.S. men’s national soccer team had one of its greatest upsets in history and I decided to go to lunch. The new Hawaiian BBQ pizza at CPK was nice, but not historic like the red-white-and-blue BBQ of Spain. Thank goodness for TiVo.

I was in the stands cheering for the U.S. during the 1994 World Cup. I didn’t sleep much in 2002, but it was worth it for the games -- and the surreal experience of hitting 35 consecutive green lights on Wilshire Boulevard at daybreak.

But I totally wrote off the team against Spain, which had its own surreal streak of 35 -- consecutive games without a loss, equaling Brazil’s international record.

U.S.A. 2, Spain 0, me -347.

I should have listened to defender Jonathan Bornstein after the U.S. knocked off Egypt, 3-0, and saw Brazil pummel Italy, 3-0, completing a necessary six-goal swing to let the Americans advance. ‘It’s like that quote from ‘Dumb and Dumber,’’ he told reporters. ‘So you’re telling me there’s a chance.’

There’s a chance it could get even more interesting. The top team in North America (U.S.A.) has just knocked off the top teams from Europe (Spain) and Africa (Egypt), and may soon face the top team from South America (Brazil) unless South Africa pulls an America against it today.

I’ve been trying to put this whole thing in perspective, especially for friends who don’t follow soccer. Some on Facebook have suggested the upset compares to UCLA’s victory over USC (13-9) in 2006, the Washington Generals’ over the Harlem Globetrotters (100-99) in 1971, or Northwestern’s over USC (historically inaccurate). But I’m going with Stanford’s over USC (24-23) in 2007.

Spain and USC both entered their games ranked No. 1.

Stanford and the U.S. were heavy underdogs with respectable but underwhelming legacies. Both had been embarrassed in recent consecutive games. Stanford fell by a combined 96-34 against Oregon and Arizona State, and the U.S. fell by a combined 6-1 against Italy and Brazil.

Sure, it’s not a perfect analogy. The U.S. had that wild win over Egypt in the previous game; Stanford was a 41-point underdog. But do you have a better comparison? Let’s hear it.

-- Adam Rose

Top photo: Ricardo Clark, Benny Feilhaber and Jonathan Bornstein celebrate their victory at the FIFA Confederations Cup semifinal match between Spain and the U.S. in South Africa. Credit: Jamie McDonald / Getty Images.