casual fan understand more. people need to be educated more. rob, as we part ways on this, what are the bets coming up for the game? this is a game that the u.s. could absolutely win or absolutely lose. this is a toss-up game. the teams ranked similarly. low scoring game and expect not to be surprised to see extra time here. i think the u.s. has a chance. i ll call the u.s. winning this on penalty kicks. that is my prediction here. tim howard, the u.s. goalie, stepping up for big saves in penalty kicks. nerve wracking! all right. wow. we ll hold you to that. bring me back. flog me if i m wrong. luke, thank you for showing up in full regalia. bruce and rob stay with us. amidst the fan fare we love, there s a big outcry happening about the safety of the sport. why some players are taking a stand and we re actually going to get into that issue with a
retired professional player on the 1990 world cup team and in the national soccer hall of fame and runs a soccer camp for kids in maryland. also ron simulcac and luke russe russert. appreciate you all being here. wow. you are really showing spirit, luke. luke takes this very, very seriously. i love america, ronan. can t apologize for this. look, look. i love america, too. there are some who disagree with the characterization of your pride in the sport being about loving america. ann coulter the beloved conservative fire brand. can we say beloved? let s go with beloved. she said america s national past time is hating soccer and, quote, any growing interest in soccer can only be a sign of the nation s moral decay. oh, ann, never change. luke, how do you respond to that? well, i saw recently that ann coulter defending the column from paris, france. i m sure today over in belgium enjoying the waffles because that was an anti-american column
he played the game. his kids are playing the game. mls is building soccer specific stadiums attracting more people, selling out games. david beckham taken over a team in miami as an owner. all the things point to the growth of soccer in the united states. luke, you know, even the casual soccer fan knows david beckham. but it s hard for a lot of americans to name others. do you think it s a sport in need of stars to resonate with americans? it needs more stars and elevate the play and mls. does that occur with giving perhaps bigger contracts, figuring out how to get the premier players to the united states? you see david beckham, come here in the twilight of the career. in europe and watch those games, the premier league games or laliga, that is some great sport. i mean, it is amazing to watch those athletes, competitive. like the world cup on speed the sbooir time. to bring that to the united states, i honestly think people watch it. not the degree of football or
alex? okay. thank you very much, luke russe russert. to front page politics and president obama is driving home his message of economic equality in his weekly address. we ve got to keep creating jobs that offer new opportunity. and make sure those jobs offer the wages and benefits that let you rebuild some security. we ve got more kids to educate. and families to get covered with health insurance. and an immigration system to fix. and we ve got to make sure this recovery leaves no one behind. and as the president pushes his populus message, republicans use their weekly address to continue their attack on the affordable care act. republicans in the senate think we should repeal or defund the program. because of its cost. and complexity. the law is not living up to the promises made by its supporters. and it is questionable whether the law will meet its fundamental purpose. and in washington, d.c., demonstrators holding a rally today, marking 12 years since
to other stores that they are in competition with like walmart, kohls, for example. they ll start going there. so not only are they losing the trust of the shopper, they re also losing sales, and they re losing revenue at a very crucial time for the store. absolutely. hitha, thank you for ironing it out for us. a state of emergency is in effect for the third day in parts of west virginia, where a chemical spill has made it unsafe to drink or use the water. nbc s luke russert is live in the capital of charleston. and luke, another day of major hassles, hasn t it? reporter: hey there, alex. 15% of the state s population at this time still does not have access to clean, safe tap water. something that, as you can imagine, is very problematic for folks. people not being able to shower, can t really cook, can t really clean anything. can t do so much as carry on with their daily lives. local officials here have been pretty good about having a lot of water distribution centers up over t