CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Former German great Franz Beckenbauer on Monday said one reason this year's World Cup team has played so well is because it has benefited from a blend of players from different cultures.
Eleven of Germany's 23 players would have been eligible to play for other countries, including Polish-born forwards Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski and 21-year-old Turkish playmaker Mesut Ozil.
"There are players that are not born in the country but of course they have German passports and maybe that's another reason the German team is playing so well," Beckenbauer, who won World Cups as both a player and coach for Germany, told the Associated Press.
Beckenbauer praised German coach Joachim Loew for trusting in a promising batch of young players.
"He was brave enough to give the young players the chance to challenge and play in the German national team," Beckenbauer said. "The style they are playing is surprising everybody, even in Germany. They have a good chance of winning the World Cup."
But first they must get by Spain on Wednesday in a World Cup semifinal.
Nigeria backs off suspension: Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has dropped a threat to suspend the country's soccer program because of its poor World Cup showing, a person with knowledge of the situation has told AP.
If Jonathan had made good on his threat, FIFA said it would have banned Nigeria because its rules forbid governments from interfering in football's affairs.
Nigeria had a loss and two ties in the World Cup, finishing last in its group.
Paraguay coach, striker leaving team: After reaching the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time, the Paraguayan team returned home to a heroes' welcome Monday, then immediately found out it would have to start rebuilding.
Coach Gerardo Martino, whose four-year contract is up, and star striker Roque Santa Cruz both said they would not be back.
Thousands of fans, including President Fernando Lugo, greeted the team at the airport in Asuncion, where Lugo presented the team members with medals for their service.
Dionisio Cabanas, the father of Salvador Cabanas, received a medal for his son.
The younger Cabanas probably would have been a starter on the Paraguay team but was shot in the head in a Mexico City bar in January. He is continuing his recovery at a rehabilitation clinic.
FIFA chooses officiating crews: The FIFA Referees Committee has chosen 10 referee trios to remain in South Africa for the semifinals, a third-place match and Sunday's final.
Among them is the Mexican team of referee Marco Antonio Rodriguez and assistants Jose Luis Camargo and Alberto Morin, and the British threesome headed by referee Howard Webb. In a World Cup stained by poor officiating, Webb has drawn widespread praise and is considered a probable choice to work the final.
Tribune news services contributed to this report.
Tuesday's semifinal: Netherlands vs. Uruguay
TV: 2:30 p.m., ESPN, ESPN Deportes, Univision
The skinny: The Uruguayans have not been to the World Cup final since their victory over host Brazil in 1950. "We still hold those champions as idols," said Coach Oscar Tabarez. The Dutch have not been there since 1978 and have never won the tournament. "This is a very dangerous game, they are fighters and we have to be very focused," said Netherlands Coach Bert van Marwijk. Tabarez will be without suspended striker Luis Suarez, whose handball save against Ghana in the quarterfinals kept the South American team alive at the cost of his own reputation. The Dutch are missing a couple of defensive players to injury. Each team has a forward chasing the golden boot award that goes to the tournament's top goal scorer. Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder has four goals, one behind leader David Villa of Spain, and Uruguayan forward Diego Forlan has three. Grahame L. Jones