Jurgen Klinsmann is playing a dangerous game with his latest roster of U.S. national team call-ups. If Klinsmann doesn't get the results needed in the next trio of World Cup qualifiers, everything—Klinsmann's entire tenure as manager—will hinge on one decision.

Why is Landon Donovan not in camp?

It's one thing to leave Donovan off the list of players for the next round of World Cup qualifiers because you think he isn't fit. It is entirely another thing to not include one of the greatest players in American soccer history out of stubbornness and spite.

Look at the players Klinsmann chose in the midfield instead of Donovan. The list is less than inspiring: Michael Bradley, Joe Corona, Brad Davis, Maurice Edu, Stuart Holden, Jermaine Jones, Sacha Kljestan, Brek Shea, Danny Williams and Graham Zusi.

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Mario Balotelli is fed up with racism. He should be. 

Talking exclusively to CNN International, the dynamic Italian striker said that he will walk off the field the next time he experiences racism.

Good for him.

If FIFA isn’t going to do enough to change the culture of international football, the players­­­—Balotelli being one of the most high-profile—need to take a stand, even if that means walking off the field.

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Today is my daughter's sixth birthday. We watch soccer together—mostly English Premier League soccer—every weekend. I'm honestly not sure how much she pays attention, other than to root for Everton because of Tim Howard—also from New Jersey—and that guy with the big hair she likes a lot. 

I told her about Sir Alex Ferguson's departure from Manchester United, explaining that sometimes when people get older and have an amazing run of success as a coach, they call it quits to enjoy life away from the game. To be fair, I think I snuck in a line like, "He's even a better coach than I am for your team," which really seemed to illustrate the point of how good Sir Alex was in her six-year old brain. Better than dad? Wow, he must be good.

I didn't have the heart to tell her the new Manchester United manager is David Moyes, who has managed Everton for twice her existence on this planet. She's six, after all, so I know she probably doesn't understand what a good manager does for a team. Unless Moyes plays goalkeeper or has eye-catchingly fluffy hair in the midfield, his departure from Goodison Park won't be as Earth-shattering to one of Everton's youngest fans as it may be to some of their more seasoned supporters.

Still, those moves make a lot of sense. Sir Alex's retirement has been a decade in the making and the appointment of Moyes is one of the more logical managerial moves in recent years. 

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Tiger Woods walked up to the 17th tee at the TPC at Sawgrass on Sunday, tied for the lead at The Players Championship with Sergio Garcia after both birdied the previous hole. He placed his ball on the tee and calmly smacked it into the heart of the island green, safe and dry.

Woods two-putted the 17th and the 18th to win his second Players Championship—the 78th victory in his 300th career start. It was the fourth victory in seven starts this season for Woods, who is clearly the favorite heading into the U.S. Open. 

Booooooring. 

When Garcia stepped up to the 17th tee in the final pairing, tied for the lead with two holes to play, something clicked in his brain. Something only Sergio might think to do in that situation: He decided to go at the pin.

Drink.

That's where Garcia's ball landed: in the drink. Needing to stick his re-tee lest he fall even further back from Woods heading into the final hole of the tournament, Garcia had no choice but to aim for the pin again.

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The FA Cup final between Manchester City and Wigan will be live on Saturday, May 11, with coverage in America on Fox—not the soon-to-be-rebranded Fox Soccer Channel, and not on FX, which the network often uses for big soccer matches. This match will be on Fox's mother ship, and Gus Johnson will be doing the play-by-play.

Johnson is good at calling a lot of things*. Soccer is not one of them.

Fox either doesn't agree or doesn't care. Either way, the network is wrong, and the attempt to grow an American audience by using Johnson as its lead voice has so fabulously backfired, it's actually driving viewers away.

Johnson has been calling a growing number of big games—mostly top English Premier League matches and a selection of noteworthy UEFA Champions League knockout-stage matches—since Fox's big announcement in February that he would be joining their footy coverage in a play-by-play capacity.

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Whenever a great coach or manager retires from his respective sport, it seemingly becomes our job to try to put his greatness into categorical perspective.

How we define greatness in sports—specifically for the men and women who lead those teams from the sidelines—is by victories and championships. 

Sir Alex Ferguson will retire from the helm of Manchester United after 27 illustrious years in charge, after leading United through yet another championship season in England's top flight of football.

This year's crown makes 13 Premier League titles in Ferguson's 27 seasons—a number that looks even better after considering the Premier League, as it's currently structured, has only been in existence for 21 years. Ferguson has won 49 trophies in his career as a football manager, most of which came in the last quarter century at Old Trafford.

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The 34th Annual Sports Emmy Awards were held on Tuesday night in New York City, honoring the best and brightest in sports for a year that ended more than five months ago. 

Yes, the nature of grandiose awards shows makes it difficult to remember the reasons why someone won an award in May, 2013, for an event that was held in January, 2012, but darn it if there is a trophy to be given out for something, who cares how long it takes between the event and the plaudit.

As long ago as 2012 seems in the sports world, it should come as little surprise that 23 of the 51 awards were given to NBC Sports, with 10 going specifically to NBC. 

2012 was, after all, an Olympic year.

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Roy Halladay gave up five runs on two hits in the first inning of the Philadelphia Phillies' 14-2 loss to the Miami Marlins on Sunday. After a clean second inning, Halladay allowed another four runs to cross in the third, leaving the game after surrendering nine runs while only recording seven outs.

After the game, Halladay admitted he has been battling shoulder soreness. Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro told reporters the Phillies will have no choice but to put Halladay on the disabled list.

Per Phillies.com:

Phillies beat writer Todd Zolecki confirmed the news on Monday.  

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