Good morning, America. Turn on the TV and set the dial to the quarterfinals of the World Cup on ESPN: The Americans are in the house!

Don't dally with Katie and Matt or Diane and Charlie. At 7:30 a.m. today, Team USA takes the field against Germany. It shouldn't be missed.

You can bet all of England, the home of soccer, was tuned in this morning when its national team faced off against Brazil. The country was shut down -- and proud of it.

Around the world, this game known to everyone else as football is beyond a pastime -- it's an obsession. Americans haven't yet embraced the game in the same way, but the proliferation of soccer moms and the ever-increasing number of kids in soccer leagues is changing that.

No one expected the U.S. players to get this far, despite the team's 13th world ranking, and especially after their dismal last- place finish in 1998.

Folks are taking notice now, though. President Bush called American coach Bruce Arena before the U.S.-Mexico match Monday, a 2-0 rout that led the Americans to today's historic quarterfinals.

What a difference a match makes.

At Pete Caringi's All Maryland Soccer Camp at Essex Community College, the kids are clamoring to represent the United States in their World Cup -- not Brazil or Italy. Mr. Caringi, a former pro soccer player who kicked his first ball as a Highlandtown boy, knows the significance of America's quarterfinal berth, even if he didn't expect it this year.

He'll be watching the match this morning. And from what he's heard, quite a few other fans will be going into work late, too. Or not at all.