Germany coach Loew signs two-year extension

Soccer Betting Lines

07/20/2010 - Berlin, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany boss Joachim Loew signed a two-year extension Tuesday that will keep him with the team through Euro 2012.

Loew, who took over after the 2006 World Cup, has led Germany to second place in Euro 2008 and third place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. His contract expired in June, but the 50-year-old will stay on for at least two more years.

Assistant coach Hansi Flick, team manager Oliver Bierhoff and goalkeeper coach Andreas Kopke have also signed two-year extensions.

"We're all happy that we'll be continuing to work with the national side together. Our team has excellent prospects and it will be a great challenge for us after the success at the World Cup in South Africa to get down to tackling preparations for Euro 2012," Loew said.

Germany Football Association President Theo Zwanziger called signing Loew his "number one priority."

"The coach's signature is immensely important for this still-young national team, and that is why continuing to work with Joachim Loew and his staff was my number one priority all along," Zwanziger said.

Germany opens Euro 2010 qualifying on Sept. 3 at Belgium. Austria, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkey are also in Group A of qualifying.

Wwwcme Soccer Betting News

<< AL West: A's won't go down without a fight
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When it comes to predicting the American League West in recent years, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have done their best to eliminate any uncertainty by monopolizing the division for the past few seasons. Last year, t

<< Kovalchuk happy to return to New Jersey
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Devils made it official on Tuesday and re-introduced superstar left wing Ilya Kovalchuk, who agreed to a 17-year contract worth a reported $102 million on Monday. Kovalchuk was acquired by

<< Changes spice up SWAC competition
Birmingham, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Prairie View A&M quarterback K.J. Black remembers - rather painfully, perhaps - some of the blitzes that came his way during Southwestern Athletic Conference play last season. "It kind of woke me up," sa

<< Gerrard commits to Liverpool
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - England captain Steven Gerrard ended speculation about his future Tuesday, committing to Liverpool following a meeting with new coach Roy Hodgson. Gerrard and Spain striker Fernando Torres have

<< Monmouth Park welcomes Horse of the Year
Oceanport, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending Horse of the Year Rachel Alexandra has safely arrived at Monmouth Park in preparation of her start in Saturday's 1 1/8-mile Lady's Secret Stakes. The four-year-old champion filly was taken from h

Juve's Iaquinta sidelined with thigh injury >>
Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Juventus striker Vincenzo Iaquinta will miss nearly all of preseason training with a thigh injury, the Italian club said on its website Tuesday. Iaquinta was initially injured in the FIFA World Cup playing f

Westermann to leave Schalke for Hamburg >>
Gelsenkirchen, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany defender Heiko Westermann is set to leave Schalke for Hamburg, according to Schalke coach Felix Magath. Westermann missed the recent FIFA World Cup with injury and the 26-year-old wants st

Jets to add six names to new Ring of Honor >>
Florham Park, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Jets announced on Tuesday that six names associated with the franchise will be added to the club's new Ring of Honor this upcoming season. The initial class of inductees will include

Piniella to retire at the end of the season >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella has decided to retire at the conclusion of the 2010 season. Piniella is in his fourth season as Cubs manager. He guided the club to a winning record in each of his fir

Hamilton's Glenn highlights CFL Players of the Week >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hamilton quarterback Kevin Glenn, Edmonton linebacker Maurice Lloyd and kicker Noel Prefontaine, and Hamilton wide receiver Dave Stala were selected as the CFL's top performers for Week 3 of the 2010 seaso

Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.