USA Soccer Opens World Cup Play Today

NATAL, Brazil (AP) _ The U.S. starts play in the World Cup later today. The
Americans are going to face Ghana, the nation which knocked the U.S. out of the
last two World Cups.

A two-day downpour has flooded some streets in the northeastern Brazilian beach
town of Natal, where the game is being played. While the skies started to clear
a bit Sunday, the forecast was unsettled for tonight’s game.  A total of 3.11
inches of rain fell Friday and 2.95 more Saturday.

Still, the field appeared firm during workouts Sunday at the new facility built
for the World Cup. It’s designed to resemble the nearby sand dunes.

History says the U.S. needs to win this game as the U.S. has never advanced
after starting with a loss.

Thousands of U.S. fans are expected as the U.S. Soccer Federation said it sold
its official allotment of about 2,000 tickets.

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