The 2014 FIFA World Cup begins tomorrow with Brazil and Croatia facing off in the Group A opener, but the real fun doesn’t begin until Monday, when the United States plays Ghana in some hot, nasty Group G action, because that’s when we all get to crowd around the TV and shout “I Believe” over and over. At least, that’s what I’ve taken away from ESPN’s new American Outlaw ads for the USMNT, as the first one inspired some real red, white and blue goosebumps and now the latest version has some of our favorite celebrities leading us in the “I Believe” chant.
Included in this new ad are Jon Hamm, Ice Cube, Rajon Rondo, Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Kimmel, Hope Solo, Cam Newton, Abby Wambach, Andrew McCutchen, Barry Sanders, and Kevin Costner, who looked about as enthused to be participating in this as he did on the day he was at the ESPN studios and cursed on live TV. And if I’m handing out awards, I’ll give a three-way tie for enthusiasm to McCutchen, Ice Cube and Wambach, while Newton gets a participation certificate. Hamm gets a Most Handsome trophy, but that happens after everything he does.
