Bring On Beckham! U.S. Gets Favorable World Cup Draw

Dec. 4, 2009 -- The United States soccer team will kick off this summer's World Cup in South Africa against a formidable foe -- former world champions England.

But the group in which the Americans were placed during Friday's draw in Cape Town also features two more manageable opponents in Slovenia and Algeria -- neither a traditional world soccer power.

The top two teams in each of the eight opening-round groups advance to the tournaments knock-out stages, with the goal of being crowned world champions.

Sam's Army -- the unofficial rabid fan club of the U.S. national soccer teams -- will see the squad in action starting June 12 in Rustenberg against England, a rematch of the the U.S. team's 1-0 victory over England in the 1950 World Cup. Sixteen years later, England won the world title.

The U.S.-England match-up could pit club teammates Landon Donovan and David Beckham against one another, a pair who have already squared off in media headlines.

Donovan and Beckham have played together with Major League Soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy the past three seasons, but their relationship was strained by critical comments Donovan made in Grant Wahl's book, "The Beckham Experiment."

Beckham, the former England captain, attended Friday's draw.

Former U.S. national team player and ESPN Soccer Analyst Alexi Lalas said the Americans should be ecstatic about a draw that features relative lightweights Algeria and Slovenia.

"It's awesome. I can't believe it," Lalas said on ESPN. "You knew you were going to get somebody big, but I thought you'd get two big teams."

Instead, the only world power in the Americans' group is England.

It was Lalas who -- as the Galaxy general manager -- brought Donovan and Beckham together in Los Angeles. After patching up their off-the-filed differences, the duo failed in their bid to win the MLS title this year, losing the championship game on penalty kicks to Real Salt Lake.