Ronaldo Masterclass, France Revival, Mexico Cruise, Croatian Pro-Nazi Chants, Orlando City SC, The World Cup Is Nothing Without The Zlatan

What an afternoon, eh? Goodness gracious. We've got to begin with the Ronaldo hat-trick that sent Portugal to Brazil and left the Swedes sulking. SSN's man in Lisbon, Pedro Santos, is over the moon and faxed this lovely piece over the interwebs to SSN Headquarters this morning. Obviously, the finishing is top-notch. But, the passes. Oh, the passes! As you might expect, The Zlatan has taken the defeat quite well. He and Kanye should hang out. This link has his comments along with highlights, thoughts, etc.

Yup

Don't fret, France. You're on the plane. A highly dubious no-call allowed Benzema to score from an offside position but Les Bleus deserved their victory and the restored confidence that is the result of their impressive comeback. Amy Lawrence is talking about some sort of "new dawn" for the French. We must admit. We were rooting for France.

Croatia will travel this summer, as well. They ended the Icelandic dream with a 2-0 win at home. And then they celebrated with pro-Nazi chants. Good times. Check out the video below.

In the fourth UEFA match, the Greeks kept the formula the same and grabbed a draw in Romania to win 4-2 on aggregate. Here's a report. And here are some UEFA Playoff Thoughts to think about. Whoa! And here are ten things we learned from the internationals.

Down in Africa, Bob Bradley's Egypt won at home but Ghana advanced, and Algeria will hit the caipirinhas after their win over Burkina Faso.

Major League Soccer announced its 21st franchise. It'll be in Orlando. Florida. Central Florida. Congrats, Orlandoans. Orlandos? Orlandites? Anyway, look for the purple team to hit the pitch in 2015.

Croatian defender Joe Simunic gets the party started in Zagreb. Dick.

Right. No surprise that Mexico have made the big dance. Otra vez: De Nada, Chicos! Sorry. Yes, they won 4-2 down in Kiwi-land and Mexicans everywhere breathed a big sigh of relief. Andrea Canales takes a look.

You probably know that England lost to Germany at Wembley. And...we've got nothing.

The Zlatan is certainly not the only big name who won't be in Brazil this summer. Check out this Best European XI of players who will also miss out.

Finally, The United States were in action in Vienna. And they lost. They played, however, better than they did against Scotland. Here are three thoughts.

We are now up to speed.

Onward!!

-SSN