My daughter and I walked onto the front porch around 9:30 last night, and the entire block was filled with smoke from all the fireworks.That's how it should be with the 250th birthday celebration.
While the fireworks were bursting, the bets were going up in flames as I lost both my World Cup plays from yesterday.Today we get another pair of games, and they could be fantastic.
Let's try to make them enjoyable either way with some wins.Stale Solbakken, head coach of Norway, celebrates after Norway's 3-2 win against Senegal during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group I match at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on June 22, 2026.(Patrick Smith/FIFA/Getty Images)The first game on the slate features two very strong teams.
One of them probably is a better team (Brazil), and the other has one of the best goal scorers in the game (Norway).That's a clash that you really don't want to miss! After starting with a draw against Morocco, who won yesterday and looks like one of the better teams in the league, Brazil has won three straight.
They beat Haiti and Scotland 3-0 in the two remaining games of the Group Stage.In the Round of 32, they escaped with a tough 2-1 win over Japan.
I think one of my favorite things about this team is that they have a good balance of being aggressive, but also a strong defense.Brazil will need a strong defense against Norway and its attack.The team relies heavily on their forward Erling Haaland.
He has five goals already this World Cup and has scored in each of the games he has played.They started their World Cup with a win over Iraq, a game that saw Haaland find the net twice.
Then in the next match against Senegal, it was a tougher opponent, but Norway still prevailed at 3-2.Against France, Norway had nothing to gain, so they sat their starters and lost 4-1.The Ivory Coast made Norway sweat a bit as they tied the game late before a Haaland goal gave them a 2-1 lead for good.
I think there is some value on Norway at +350, but I...