Brazil will be back on the field Tuesday against Mexico, so the stores will close and the streets will empty again. But the team we're most interested in is Belgium. The Belgians open against Algeria in Belo
Horizonte, Brazil, in Tuesday's first game (<a href=" http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/06/17/sports/worldcup/world-cup-belgium-vs-algeria.html">our
live blog is here</a>), and they are among the most fascinating teams in the field. James Montague, who <a href=" http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/21/sports/soccer/in-divided-belgium-sons-of-immigrants-unite-on-soccer-field.html?pagewanted=all&module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Ar&_r=0">has
spent considerable time around the team</a>, is here in Rio. He gave me the lowdown. Being around Belgium, he said, can be a bizarre experience. The team regularly holds dueling news conferences in Flemish and French to serve two distinct sets of reporters,
and Flemish-speaking players, like Thomas Vermaelen and Jan Vertonghen, have to resort to English learned in the Premier League to communicate with French-speaking teammates like Eden Hazard and Axel Witsel. "But then you have this new set of players with
Congolese and Moroccan heritage: Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku, Marouane Fellaini," Montague said. "They're not steeped in the past. "When I was there, every journalist I talked to told me, 'Thank God for Vincent Kompany.' He's the bridge. He speaks five
languages fluently, he's an incredible player -- a leader on and off the field. He's sort of knitted together something that in the past has always been kind of problematic." Belgium has not played in the World Cup since 2002, but many have pegged it as a
serious contender here. The Belgians also could be waiting for the United States in the second round, if the results fall that way. But first, Algeria.
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Brazil will be back on the field Tuesday against Mexico, so the stores will close and the streets will empty again. But the team we’re most interested in is Belgium.
The Belgians open against Algeria in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, in Tuesday’s first game (our
live blog is here), and they are among the most fascinating teams in the field. James Montague, who
has spent considerable ! time around the team, is here in Rio. He gave me the lowdown.
Being around Belgium, he said, can be a bizarre experience. The team regularly holds dueling news conferences in Flemish and French to serve two distinct sets of reporters, and Flemish-speaking players, like
Thomas Vermaelen and Jan Vertonghen, have to resort to English learned in the Premier League to communicate with French-speaking teammates like Eden Hazard and Axel Witsel.
“But then you have this new set of players with Congolese and Moroccan heritage: Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku, Marouane Fellaini,” Montague said. “They’re not steeped in the past.
“When I was there, every journalist I talked to told me, ‘Thank God for Vincent Kompany.’ He’s the bridge. He speaks five languages fluently, he’s an incredible player – a leader on and off the field. He’s sort
of knitted together something that in the past has always been kind of problematic.”
Belgium has not played in the World Cup since 2002, but many have pegged it as a serious contender here. The Belgians also could be waiting for the United States in the second round, if the results fall that
way. But first, Algeria.
For Your Viewing Pleasure
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By @NYTGraphics
An annotated diagram of the United States’ first goal, less than a minute into the match.
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By ANDREW KEH
Rafael Marquez became the first player in the history of the World Cup to have worn a captain’s armband at four straight tournaments, completing a stunning two-year turnaround.
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Müller x 3 + Head Butt = Germany Victory
Thomas Müller beat Portugal goalkeeper Rui Patrício from the penalty spot to give Germany a 1-0 lead. He added two more goals
for the first hat trick of the 2014 World Cup. (Francois Marit)
Here's What Your Tuesday Looks Like
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Belgium vs. Algeria
Noon in New York, 5 p.m. in Oran, 6 p.m. in Antwerp
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Brazil vs. Mexico
3 p.m. in New York, 2 p.m. in Oaxaca, 4 p.m. in Florianópolis.
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Russia vs. South Korea
6 p.m. in New York, 2 a.m. in Krasnodar, 7 a.m. in Pyeongtaek.
Soccer Over Baseball
The Los Angeles Dodgers watched the United States-Ghana match during batting practice on Monday. (Alex Gallardo/Associated Press)
Strength in Numbers
30
Number of ticketless fans, approximately, who
forced their way past security guards and through a gate into Rio de Janeiro’s Estádio do Maracanã, the tournament’s largest site, before Argentina played Bosnia and Herzegovina.
No Need to Worry
‘You think, if it goes 2-1 here, that’s catastrophic.’
— Tim Howard, the United States goalkeeper,
on what went through his mind after Ghana scored to tie the match in the 82nd minute.
Van Persie Update
I know you're not going to believe this, but he's still airborne. It's been, what, four days? And he's still just floating there, doing various things in the air. So strange. (Christophe Ena/European Pressphoto Agency)
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