The report said the tunnel went down 3 meters below the prison cell in the Political Security Headquarters in San’a, Yemen, and then continued for 44 meters before ending in the women’s bathroom of the nearby al-Awaqaf Mosque.

The Yemeni government report said digging tools included four soccer balls and shovels made from broomsticks and fan parts.

The prisoners made mud from the dirt, and hid it in different ways throughout their cells.

“One of the inmate bathrooms was filled with dirt to the ceiling,” the report said. “The accumulation of dirt in the prisoners’ cells demonstrated the negligence and disregard of some of the detention center officials, because they failed to routinely search the prison cells.”

The report

The Adidas Telstar soccer ball became the basis for many recreational balls that followed and Adidas kept improving upon its design. Adidas followed with the first waterproof synthetic-leather Soccer ball in 1986 and the Questra in 1994.

In 1998, Adidas introduced the Tricolore in France. The soccer ball used a gas-filled synthetic foam under the covering. The new design delivered a more responsive surface and added stability.

In 2002, Adidas used that same technology in the Adidas Fevernova ball. The Adidas Fevernova was the official ball of the 2002 Japan / Korea finals. The Adidas Fevernova, abandoned the ball design that was used for over 2 decades and replaced it with a more colorful design

The Adidas Fevernova went on to become one of the most popular balls in play for many years to come. Up untill 2006, the Fevernova was the Adis premier ball.

pictures of the Adidas Fevernova and other Adidas balls

Adidas Fevernova

Adidas Euro 2008

Euro Italia

Buckminster Soccer Ball or BuckyBall as it is also called is a ball exterior that is made up of a series of hexagons, pentagons and triangles. These Buckyball Geometric shapes can actually be sewn together to make a round surface when inflated. The modern football is essentially a Buckminster Ball consisting of 20 hexagonal and 12 pentagonal surfaces. After the geometric shapes get sewn together and the inside inflated, we get the round soccer ball we are so used to.

In 2006, the hammers ran into a problem and ran into a slump but after changing managers, they seemed to bounce back. The West Ham United new manager Alan Curbishley took the reigns and the hammers escaped relegation on the very last day of the season. Curbishley backed that up with a 10th place finish in the 2007/08 campaign in what was seen as a season of consolidation.

West Ham have never played outside football’s top two divisions since joining the Football League in 1919.

Some more history on the club… In 1980, West Ham upset Arsenal to win the FA Cup. They won promotion in 1981 and spent eight seasons in the top flight – including a club-best finish of third in 1986 – before getting relegated in 1989.

Recent history of West Ham United
1992/93 – Join Premier League
1994/95 – Harry Redknapp replaces Billy Bonds as manager
2001/02 – Glenn Roeder becomes manager
2002/03 – Trevor Brooking installed as caretaker manager
2002/03 – Relegated from Barclaycard Premiership
2003/04 – Alan Pardew appointed manager
2004/05 – Promoted to Barclays Premiership via play-offs
2005/06 – Reach FA Cup final losing on penalties to Liverpool after 3-3 draw
2006/07 – An Icelandic consortium fronted by Eggert Magnusson buys the club
2006/07 – Alan Curbishley takes charge
2007/08 – Magnusson sells his stake in the club and Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson takes over as Chairma

All the hype and glitz… but they end up loaning him out to Italy? O.K. lets check it out. Seems Dave may be pre-occupied with other things since in 2 seasons he has only managed to get 5 goals for the team and… the team has not done all that well.

However, I do hear he may have a great underwear modeling career ahead of him as David Beckham posed in his tighty whities for for a well known designer.

LOS ANGELES (Oct 30)

The LA Galaxy and AC Milan announced an agreement late today which, among other things, will send England star David Beckham to the Italian club beginning January of next year.

Despite setting records in the league for transfer fee and compensation, Beckham’s two seasons with the Galaxy have produced just 5 goals and 10 assists. The Galaxy have also failed to make the league playoffs in both years.

Today, I can’t even remember the last time I saw an interview, in the US that is.

So is David Beckham fever dying a slow death? hmmm.

Recently in New Zealand..

International football star David Beckham and his LA Galaxy team were greeted by hundreds of cheering fans and a traditional Maori welcome when they arrived in New Zealand on Wednesday.

A tired-looking Beckham, 33, signed shirts, posters and footballs after the team were welcomed by about 200 fans in Auckland ahead of an exhibition match against an Oceania All Stars team.

Beckham fever appeared to be at a lower pitch than on the Galaxy’s first visit to New Zealand last year. Really? yeah, I guess Dave may need to get out more.

More than 31,000 fans saw the US team beat the Wellington Phoenix 4-1 in a friendly and 15,000 turned up to watch the team train in New Zealand’s capital.

I guess David Beckham is not selling as many tickets as he used to. I know New Zealand is not known for its population, but only 200 fans? wow… what is going on.

11:30 Singapore – S L. Young Lions – DPMM FC 2.10 3.40 3.50
12:30 Israel – Division 2 Hap Kfar Saba – Hapoel Jm 2.40 3.00 3.10
12:30 Israel – Division 2 Hap Beer Sheva – Hapoel Acco 2.40 2.95 3.10
12:30 Israel – Division 2 Mac Herzlia – M. Ahi Natzeret 2.70 3.00 2.75
13:45 Qatar – Division 1 Al Wakra – Al Sailiya 1.55 3.75 5.50
14:00 Friendly Inter. Odd Grenland – Ham Kam 2.20 3.35 3.25
15:45 Qatar – Division 1 Al Garrafa – Al Khuraitiat 1.17 6.00 13.01
16:00 Ukraine – Premier Met. Donetsk – Kryvbas K Rog 1.45 4.20 8.20
16:45 Poland – Ekstraklasa Polonia Bytom – Wisła Kraków 7.20 4.20 1.59
17:00 Germany – Bundes. 2 Nurnberg – Mainz 2.37 3.45 3.35
17:00 Germany – Bundes. 2 Wehen – Freiburg 3.90 3.55 2.14
17:00 Germany – Bundes. 2 Hansa Rostock – RW Ahlen 1.85 3.80 5.40
17:00 Romania – Divizia A Poli Lasi – Uni. Craiova 3.35 3.45 2.40
17:30 Finland – Cup HJK Helsinki – Honka 2.65 3.40 2.90
18:00 Germany – Bundes. 3 Braunschweig – Stuttgart 2 2.00 3.55 4.20
18:00 Turkey – Super Lig Besiktas – Buyuksehirspor 1.43 4.70 10.50
18:30 Austria – Bundesliga Altach – Austria Vienna 4.60 3.80 1.93
18:45 Swiss – Challenge L. Stade Nyonnais – Locarno 2.12 3.45 3.45
18:45 Romania – Divizia A Steaua B. – Vaslui 1.57 4.00 7.20
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Bastia – Boulogne 2.15 3.25 4.10
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Brest – Amiens 2.06 3.25 4.55
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Chateauroux – Tours 2.28 3.22 3.85
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Clermont Foot – Ajaccio 2.06 3.30 4.46
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Dijon – Guingamp 2.35 3.05 3.85
19:00 France – Ligue 2 Sedan – Montpellier 2.50 3.15 3.49
19:00 France – National Laval – Sannois SG 1.50 3.50 8.50
19:00 France – National Cannes – Gueugnon 2.11 3.20 4.40
19:00 France – National Libourne – Paris FC 2.66 2.90 2.73
19:00 Holland – Jupiler Excelsior – EVV Eindhoven 1.58 4.30 6.60
19:00 Holland – Jupiler Den Bosch – Haarlem 1.87 3.70 4.80

Juergen Klinsmann of Bayern Munich had this to say…
“That was an impressive performance and nice to watch, but I am sure we will keep our feet on the ground and not over-estimate this result”.

From Soccernews.com we get this piece of soccer ball excitement
Rafael Benitez enjoyed an unforgettable Madrid homecoming as a late Youssi Benayoun header helped Liverpool defeat Real Madrid 1-0 in the first leg of their last 16 Champions League duel at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.

The pros use balls that are hand-sewn for stronger, tougher seams. They are commonly stitched with 5-ply twisted polyester thread although some top soccer ball brands also use Kevlar® reinforced polyester stitching.
The common 32-panel “Buckminster Ball” ball is the type used in professional soccer. A Buckminster Ball consists of 20 six sided and 12 five sided panels. American architect Buckminster Fuller invented the 32-panel design while constructing dome-type buildings in the ‘60’s.

When 32-panels of tough synthetic leather are sewn together the Buckminster shape makes an almost perfect sphere – and a perfect soccer ball.  By 1970, a Bucky-style ball (made by Adidas) was first used as the Fédération Internationale de Football Association’s (FIFA) official world cup soccer ball. The alternating light and dark panels were added to help players detect the direction of the spin of the ball.
Professional Match Soccer Balls are designed and tested with exact specifications and guaranteed to deliver consistent accuracy, speed and control. International match soccer balls all have an FIFA imprint right on the ball. The balls used by the soccer ball stars are all tested to make sure they deliver consistent shape, balance and bounce.

The balls used in professional international World Cup matches meet all Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) requirements and are imprinted with the organization’s logo on the ball. They are also the most expensive type of soccer ball. In the midrange of cost are the match balls used in college and high school competition. Recreational and training balls fill out the least expensive category. Commemorative balls, collectible balls and team balls can be found in any category, but will always cost more than comparable plain balls of the same type.

Good all-around soccer balls are relatively affordable, ranging from $20 to $80 and good practice balls can be purchased for as little as $15 in many cases. The price goes up for specialty balls though, with a Nike Mia Hamm autographed match ball retailing for over $200. For most young players, an inexpensive training ball is usually sufficient.