Paraguay

World Cup 2010: PARAGUAY FIFA ranking: 23 Overall World Cup record: 6-9-7 Coach: Gerardo Martino Best performance: Second round, 1986, 1998, 2002 Overview: Paraguay, making its eighth consecutive World Cup appearance, reached the round of 16 in 1998 and 2002 and is coming off a qualifying campaign that saw it win a South American-best 10 games. But seven of those wins came in Paraguay and the World Cup won't be played there. Plus Argentine Coach Gerardo Martino will be missing play-making forward Salvador Cabanas, who is still recovering from a gunshot to the head in a Mexico City bar. -- Kevin Baxter

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward was arrested early Saturday outside Atlanta on a drunk driving charge, sheriff's officials said. The Super Bowl most valuable player and reigning "Dancing With the Stars" champion was booked into the DeKalb County jail in Decatur at 3:41 a.m. and charged with driving under the influence. A jail official said Ward was released on $1,300 bond, though the sheriff's office website said his bond was set at $1,000. The discrepancy couldn't be immediately resolved Saturday.

Municipal elections were held across the country Sunday for only the fourth time since dictator Alfredo Stroessner came to power 31 years ago. The vote took place amid opposition charges of fraud and a boycott by a dissident group.

Nick Watney capped an amazing weekend at Aronimink in Newtown Square, Pa., to win the AT&T National on Sunday, moving him to No. 10 in the world and atop the PGA Tour money list for the first time in his career. Watney followed his eight-under-par 62 on Saturday with a 66 on a steamy afternoon in the Philadelphia suburbs, making three big par saves and three birdies on the front nine to seize control. He then held off a late charge by K.J. Choi (67) for a two-shot victory.

Having tied Argentina, 1-1, in New Jersey on Saturday, the U.S. national soccer team had been expected to achieve a little more against less-powerful Paraguay in Nashville on Tuesday. Instead, it achieved a little less. A goal by Oscar Cardozo off a corner kick by Hernan Perez that the American defense failed to clear gave the South Americans a 1-0 victory in front of an LP Field crowd of 29,059, a record for soccer in Tennessee. Cardozo's goal came in the 18th minute, and Paraguay was able to make the slender lead hold up for the remaining 72 minutes.

*--* 11:30 p.m. (Fri.) at Seogwipo, South Korea TV: ESPN2, Ch. 34. Delayed: Ch.

Wind-blown fires scorching the parched Paraguayan countryside have scarred almost 3 million acres of forest, brush, pasture and farmland, officials said Friday, forcing the evacuation of 15,000 people and threatening nature reserves. A protracted drought and the common practice of burning land for agriculture have contributed to the disaster, which some authorities have called the worst fires in Paraguay's history.

SITE: Montpellier TIME: 5:30 a.m. TV: ESPN2, Channel 34. RADIO: KWKW (1330, Spanish) * ABOUT PARAGUAY: The man to look out for is goalkeeper Jose Luis Chilavert, a hulking figure prone to wearing a bulldog emblem on his jersey and an intimidating scowl on his face. He is also useful as the taker of free kicks and penalty kicks, having scored from both. * ABOUT BULGARIA: Hristo Stoitchkov and company peaked at World Cup '94 in the United States.

President Fernando Lugo dismissed the heads of Paraguay's army, navy and engineering corps for allowing nearly 1,000 Marxist youths to host a congress on military grounds, the government said. Paraguay's constitution prohibits the military from involvement in political activities. About 800 young Marxists from across Latin America gathered in Paraguay at the beginning of the month, flying flags with the image of leftist revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara from an engineering corps building during the three-day congress.

Looks as if the U.S. soccer team's trip to the Copa America in Venezuela may be short. Four days after being routed by a superior Argentina squad in their opener, the youthful Americans were humbled again Monday in a 3-1 loss to Paraguay at Barinas that put them on the brink of elimination. "We gave them too many easy chances. When you give good teams and good players easy chances, they're going to beat you," said Kasey Keller, the veteran U.S. goalkeeper.

Having tied Argentina, 1-1, in New Jersey on Saturday, the U.S. national soccer team had been expected to achieve a little more against less-powerful Paraguay in Nashville on Tuesday. Instead, it achieved a little less. A goal by Oscar Cardozo off a corner kick by Hernan Perez that the American defense failed to clear gave the South Americans a 1-0 victory in front of an LP Field crowd of 29,059, a record for soccer in Tennessee. Cardozo's goal came in the 18th minute, and Paraguay was able to make the slender lead hold up for the remaining 72 minutes.

Aries (March 21-April 19): Though your family treats you as a commoner, there are places in the world in which you would be received as a highly honored guest. Taurus (April 20-May 20): Family and friends have a different recollection of your shared history. Your memory serves you well, and theirs serves them too. Gemini (May 21-June 21): You are moving at a highly productive pace. You have to work when you don't want to. You want to work when you don't have to. Cancer (June 22-July 22)

Semifinal: GERMANY VS. SPAIN Where: Durban. Time: 11:30 a.m. PDT. TV: ESPN, ESPN Deportes, Univision. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5, KDLD-FM/KDLE-FM 103.1, KSPN-AM 710. The buzz: These teams met two years ago in the final of the European championships in a game Spain dominated despite winning just 1-0. But neither side expects there to be any carryover to this match. The young German side, especially, is completely different from the one the country fielded in 2008.

QUARTERFINALS: ARGENTINA VS. GERMANY Where: Cape Town. Time: 7 a.m. PDT. TV: ABC, ESPN Deportes, Univision. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5, KDLD-FM/KDLE-FM 103.1, KSPN-AM 710. The buzz: There is no love lost between these longtime rivals. In the 2006 World Cup quarterfinals, after Germany beat Argentina on penalty kicks, the teams brawled on the pitch. Argentina comes into this one with the better record at this World Cup, having won all four of its matches by a combined score of 10-2.

For decades Spain has approached the World Cup the same way most high school freshmen approach algebra. They'll go ahead and give it a try, but they don't expect great results. In the last 60 years, Spain has gone to the tournament 10 times. And seven times they came home after the first or second round. Once they entered as the reigning European champions yet managed to win only one game. But all that history is, well, just history now. Because after Saturday's hard-fought 1-0 win over stubborn Paraguay, Spain has advanced to the World Cup's final four for the first time since 1950, when the tournament had just 16 teams.

Reporting from Pretoria, South Africa — Physically, Salvador Cabanas was half a world away when Edgar Barreto prepared to take the penalty shot that would help decide Paraguay's World Cup future. Spiritually, however, Barreto said he felt like his former teammate was standing right behind him. "His spirit is with the team," Barreto said. "He's always close to us." Cabanas should have been on the field Tuesday as Paraguay, which defeated Japan, 5-3, on penalty kicks after a 0-0 draw, moved into the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time in its history.

Colorado Party veteran Nicanor Duarte Frutos easily defeated two challengers in Paraguay's presidential election Sunday, prolonging the party's half-century grip on power despite the worst economic crisis in decades. With 92% of ballots counted, Paraguay's Electoral Court said Duarte Frutos had just over 37% of the vote. Second place went to opposition leader Julio Cesar Franco with nearly 24%. Pedro Falud, a wealthy banker, placed third with 23%.

Lawmakers voted Thursday to begin impeachment hearings against President Luis Gonzalez Macchi, deepening political and economic turmoil in this troubled South American country. In a packed session of Paraguay's lower house, opponents of Gonzalez Macchi accused him of possessing a luxury automobile reported to be stolen and mishandling millions of dollars in state funds. The lower house approved the opening of hearings Thursday by a vote of 60 to 0, with 11 abstentions and nine lawmakers absent.

Group F: ITALY VS. SLOVAKIA Where: Ellis Park, Johannesburg. Time: 7 a.m. PDT. TV: ESPN, ESPN Deportes and TeleFutura. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5 and KDLD-FM 103.1. The buzz: With two indifferent performances behind it, defending world champion Italy cannot afford a third. The Azzurri have been tied by Paraguay, 1-1, and tied by New Zealand, 1-1. Italy's offense has yet to get on track and their defense has proved to be vulnerable to free kicks.