Stephen A Smith has never been hesitant about admitting that he doesn’t pay as much attention to some sports as others. Sure, talking about the NBA or NFL is perfectly up Smith’s alley, and he enjoys breaking down boxing events, but there are a lot other sports out there, and despite the fact that he appears to be gone for 27 hours every day, Smith’s attention isn’t always on a few of them.
Smith, for example, isn’t exactly up to date on everything going on in soccer, but with ESPN broadcasting the European Championship this summer, he’s jumping in head first. Smith stated on his ESPN+ show Stephen A’s World that he is willing to select a team for Euro 2020 if they meet five criteria:
The following were the criteria, in order: 1. Must have star power; 2. Must have a rabid fan base; 3. Past success is not required; 4. 4. No obnoxious uniforms! Coach from back in the day. In the video, he goes over all of them briefly before enlisting ESPN soccer analyst Taylor Twellman to guide him through the process. Twellman walks Smith through a trio of teams — France, Belgium, and England — before Smith decides on the French. The full segment with Twellman starts at the 13:09 mark right here, but for those of you who do not have ESPN+, Twellman walks him through a trio of teams — France, Belgium, and England — before Smith ultimately decides on the French.
“I already broke down Belgium, I mean, you broke down Belgium and I told you why I didn’t want them,” Smith said. “You just told me England reminds me of the Cowboys, I damn sure ain’t rooting for them. Which leaves me with no other choice but France. I’ma have to roll with France, Taylor. I’ma have to run with France.”
Twellman then stated that France is “100%” going to win Euros and that he would be “shocked” if they did not win the entire tournament, which, while anything can happen in a knockout event, is quite likely. Anyway, Stephen A, if you’re reading this and want to pick someone else, please think about my favorite Italians, who beat Turkey 3-0 in the Euro 2020 opener on Friday.
