Wild World of Wednesday - August 12, 2009

Wow, mid-August...where is this year going? How many posts have I started with a line like that?

Gamers As Athletes: Well, not really but they can pretend. GameStop is hosting a tournament with the new Madden 2010. The Battle of the Gridiron starts on August 22:

GameStop announced that it will host Madden NFL 10 video game tournaments at more than 2,900 of its U.S. locations on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2009. Madden fans will battle through three rounds of tough competition in the in-store, tiered tournament. Many of the participating GameStop locations will begin round one of their tournaments at 2 p.m. local time; however, customers are encouraged to contact their local store to confirm the exact start time. The top four players from each participating first round location will advance to the second round on Aug. 29; where the top two players of each of these competitions will advance to the Regional Finals, which will take place on Sept. 12. The top 16 Regional finalists will advance to the championship event, to be held on Nov. 1 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Phoenix, AZ. Finalists will receive round-trip airfare to Phoenix, hotel accommodations, $200 in spending money, and tickets to the Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers game that afternoon. Finalists will take their stance on the Great Lawn for four, three-minute quarters against the competition on Madden NFL 10 until one player is left standing. The Grand Prize winner will receive $5,000. For additional tournament details and to obtain a list of official rules, visit a local GameStop retail location or the website.

World Cup Implications: The US soccer team faces the team from Mexico today in a game with World Cup implications. Oddly, it is a must-win for the Mexican squad. If the US loses, it can still get in. This is important enough to be televised.


Today in Sports History

1994 - First NFL game on Fox Network is televised, a preseason match with SF vs Denver.

1994 - Members of the Major League Baseball Players Association strike (again)