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.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.