Sports Gift Guide for the Ultimate Fan!

Imagine a stress-free holiday season this year. Forget the pressure of last minute buys. Start early and reap the discounted rewards by shopping now. If you have a sports fan in your life, consider stopping by SportsMemorabilia.com for some great deals. Check out our top sport gifts that will undoubtedly be a hit for 2012 holiday gifts.

Baseball Display Case, $19.99 – Who can go wrong with a baseball display case. It adds decor to any room. It’s a great topic of conversation, and it helps preserve the signature quality and integrity of the baseball.

Aaron Rodgers Autographed Football, $397.50 – As the only player in NFL history to throw more than 45 touchdowns in a single season, Aaron Rodgers will forever be one of NFL’s greatest QBs. This is a gift every football fan will love.

Peyton Manning Signed Replica Helmet, $617.94 – It’s Peyton’s first season with the Denver Broncos! Get the newest Peyton Broncos memorabilia now while the dust is still settling.

Mike Trout Autographed Baseball, $189.99 – Mike Trout is the hottest player in baseball right now. The 22-year-old rookie has the highest batting average in the American League. The demand is high for this rookie, so time to make an investment while you can.

Tom Brady Autographed Jersey, $629.99 – Tom Brady is an iconic athlete, having lead the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl 5 times (only John Elway has done the same). This classic red, white, and blue jersey would look superb framed in anyone’s home or man cave. Brady is one of those players who will always be remembered as a great.

Top Sports Twitter Topics of 2011

#Twitter has become a reliable source of trending news worldwide in recent years. It now provides insight into what topics draw traffic, as opposed to what topics media outlets feed you. Ever wonder what the conversation is about when it comes to sports? According to What The Trend, a Hootsuite Media Company, the top Twitter trends surrounding sports in 2011 was the Women’s FIFA World Cup, ranked 2nd most tweeted topic overall, and the NBA Finals when the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat, ranked 4th overall. If you’re curious about #1, give it up for Justin Bieber. Mashable, the online social media and technology news source, also broke out the top Twitter sports topics by sport for 2011. For Soccer, the #1 most tweeted topic goes to Wayne Rooney, midfielder for Manchester United. Dallas Cowboys trended #1 for football, Rashard Lewis for basketball, and the Texas Rangers for baseball.

Manchester United and Usain Bolt?

The 2012 London Olympics have turned some of today’s athletes into rising superstars. Usain Bolt is one of them. The 25-year old Jamaican clocked a 9.63 seconds victory on Sunday and 20.39 seconds, easily, in the 200m preliminaries on Tuesday. Bolt will run the semi-finals on Wednesday, in hopes to become the only man to win 2 Olympic 200s. With another gold medal in reach, Bolt is already planning for his next challenge…to become a football star for MANU. How does Bolt really feel? Here’s what the World’s Fastest man had to say “I would not take up the challenge if I didn’t think I was good enough. I am a very accomplished player and know I could make a difference…I would be the fastest player in the team — but I can play as well.” Man United is Bolt’s favorite team and he first expressed interest in playing for the team in his 2010 autobiography. It seems Bolt is putting the feelers out. Has stardom and seconds gone to his head or should Alex Ferguson consider giving him a shot? Maybe when Ryan Giggs retires, Bolt will have a spot. For now, speed may prop his foot in the door, but it will take training to get him on the field.

The Problem with Soccer

The past two soccer matches (England v Italy, Portugal v Spain) really ruined what was shaping up to be a great 2012 Euro Cup. It picked up right after the NBA Finals, the games were played right around America’s lunch break, and an insane amount of headers were finding the back of the goal. Then all of a sudden, something happened. And no, many of us did not realize that we were rooting for countries other than the States. The Quarter Finals rolled around and the goals stopped showing up. England held Italy scoreless and for 120 minutes (yes, two hours) only to lose in penalty kicks. (a five minute spectacle) You can do the math. But OK, that’s one game. The English were notorious for having a more strengthened defense than offense going in, so this was acceptable. Fast forward a couple games to the semi-finals match. The Semis! Two of the four best teams in Europe! The score at the end of regulation? 0-0. Donuts. Zeroes. Blanks. Whatever you call it, the world just watched another 120 minutes of scoreless soccer. Spain and Portugal. Without doing my homework on these two teams we already know that one team has one the past two major tournaments and the other has arguably the best looking scorer in the world. Yet, the game was goalless until PKs and Spain advanced. To put this in perspective: Nobody holds Lebron scoreless. Nobody stops Tom Brady from throwing a touchdown. Now I know it’s not the same, but even when they lose, they still score or make a play. But not in this sport. And that right there is the problem. Why hasn’t the MLS caught on? Because there just isn’t the same excitement compared to basketball and football, heck even baseball. The sad part? Even with this major hole in such a big sport, I will still watch the Italy-Germany match, and the eventual final. Just because that is how the sports world is. As a parting note, the Olympics start in 29 days.

Samuel Eto’o becomes highest paid Soccer player

In a record breaking deal Inter Milan agreed to send Samuel Eto’o to Russian power house Anzhi Makhachkala. The transfer fee was for €25 millon paid to Inter. His salary, roughly $29 million dollars a year, makes Eto’o the highest paid soccer player in the world passing superstars Christiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Samuel Eto’o was a member of two champions league victories with Barcelona in 2006 and 2009, scoring in both finals. He is the all time goal leader for his country Cameroon. Samuel Eto’o will officially become a member of Anzhi Makhachkala after today pending a physical.

USA Falls Short of Title Dreams

Japan stunned the world yesterday beating the number one ranking team USA. Alex Morgan broke the 0-0 tie with an amazing left footed goal to take the lead in the 69th minute. Japan then took advantage of the United States’ poor defense to tie the game at 1-1 with 10 minutes remaining. Wambach would later set the U.S. record for World Cup goals at 13 with her go ahead goal in the 104th minute. Japan would once again rally from behind to tie the game at 2-2 to force penalties which turned out to be a nightmare for team USA. USA’s first attempt by Shannon Boxx was guessed correctly and then Lloyd’s shot sailed over the crossbar into the crowd. Japan would go ahead and win the 2011 World Cup 3-1 in penalty kicks. USA hasn’t lost to Japan in the previous 25 attempts, also has never lost a World Cup match after scoring first. This was a devastating lost to the United States but a bigger achievement for the country of Japan which still has aftermath affects of the tsunami that destroyed their country earlier this year. Up next for team USA is the Olympic women’s soccer tournament which begins next summer in London, England. “This will be difficult to get over, but we have to be philosophical and realize we are lucky that we get another chance to do something special in a year” Wambach stated shortly after the loss.

Women’s World Cup Final Set As USA And Japan Advance

Yesterday the US Women’s Team triumphed over France 3 goals to 1. Lauren Cheney scored first for the US in the opening minutes of the game. France’s Sonia Bompastor tied the match going into the second half. US star Abby Wambach did another impressive header to give the US team the lead and teammate Alex Morgan secured the win with another goal. Japan beat Sweden, also 3 goals to 1. Nahomi Kawasumi scored two goals and Homare Sawa one for Japan while Josefine Oqvist scored the only goal for Sweden. The World Cup final will take place this Sunday.

US Womens Soccer Team Looks To Advance To World Cup Final

After the amazing win over Brazil on Sunday the United States Women’s team is closer to winning the World Cup. Today they face France, which is in the semi-final for the first time in its history, and a win today places them in the final with a chance to get revenge on Sweden or play against Japan. Hope Solo and Abby Wambach have been the stars for the US but a team effort will be required to score the victory over France. Due to Rachel Buehler’s red-card suspension Becky Saurbraunn will get the start for the US in today’s game.

Recap Of Yesterdays Women’s World Cup Play

With a 4-2 victory over France yesterday Germany has won Group A. England won their match with Japan 2-0 to take group B. The US Women’s Team will play Sweden today to determine the group C winner while Brazil looks to be the favorite to win group D. In other World Cup action Colombia vs Korea DPR and Australia vs Norway will also take place today.

US Women’s Soccer Team Advances To Quarterfinals, Looks To Win Group C

On Saturday The United States Women’s Team were victorious over Colombia 3-0. The win assures the teams place into the World Cup quarterfinals. A tie or win vs Sweden gives team USA the group C title. So far US women’s team has had great all around team play with all five of their goals in the tournament so far coming from five different players and great defensive play from their goalkeeper. USA vs Sweden will take place this Wednesday.