Four years of preparation come down to two friendlies.

Today's send off home match and one last tune up once the USMNT arrive in South Africa.

Then the finals, where a new beginning will trump everything past.

Write The Future

After a day in Barcelona dropping the boots off with Rafa, Yaya and Dani, the insider made the trip to Madrid to make sure Cristiano had his pair to dominate in South Africa.

The insider was keen to discuss with the players how their role in the elite series design had worked towards the boot they were holding.

Rafa was looking forward to trying the boot out, Dani Alves was a fan of the new colourway and Yaya had just two words: "c'est magnifique".

Explore the Elite Series

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The initial stop on the Nike Insider’s Elite Series world tour, Rooney, Evra, Essien, Walcott and Drogba were among the first athletes to get their hands on the Elite Series.

Player reactions:

Rooney likes the idea of taking weight out of the boot.

Evra likes the Carbon Fiber and the weight difference.

Drogba thinks the total orange will match his national team kit perfectly.

Essien on the boot’s look: "For me, it's perfect."

Explore the Elite Series





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With a week-long training camp complete, only 2 exhibition matches stand between the USMNT and South Africa.

Tonight the send off series begins in Connecticut for a 30-man squad needing to come down to 23.

It's time to impress, show your mettle, and fight for your national team life.

Want to go to South Africa?

Write The Future.

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One minute you are a football hero the next new best friends with Roger Fededer.

See Wayne Rooney give the tennis legend a lesson in the art of ping pong as he begins to Write The Future.

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Two trebles on the line.

Two teams looking for immortality.

Only one can Write The Future.

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The Nike Elite Series takes the Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II, CTR360 Maestri, Total90 Laser III, and Tiempo Legend and makes them faster, lighter, and sure to catch the eye.

Heavy-duty carbon fiber plates provide protection; intricate engineering keeps the boots ultra-light, and the Metallic Mach Purple and Total Orange ensure your team-mates won't miss a movement.

Don't just stand out: own the moment.

Pre-order your pair and join the Elite from May 20th.

Write The Future

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One blistering strike and Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo could go from every TV screen around the world to every cinema screen in Ronaldo: The Movie. But first he must Write The Future.

See it first.

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When your season and your pride is on the line, you don't think about winning.

You don't believe it will happen. You know it will happen.

Some teams wait for their moment; champions decide theirs.

Write The Future: http://go.nike.com/LaMasiasLegends

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You're 8. You make the assist. You know exactly where your teammate is. The fans run down from the stands. You celebrate the goal like it was the most important of your life.

You're 12. You control the ball in the midfield. You set up an epic attack of more than 15 touches. It's a textbook counterattack. You know how to do it. You know the movements of the players at your side. Together, you close in on victory. You leave the field feeling that this was a job well done.

You're 16. You fight for your team like it was your first day. You're not playing just to win, you're playing for the feeling. The whole team defends with all their might and attacks almost instinctively. The style of play that has been forged through the years now flows in everyone's blood.

You're 20. You make the same assist you made when you were 8. You celebrate the goal like it was the most important of your life. But this time you're playing in Camp Nou. You still have the same enthusiasm you had when you were 8. You play with the same team spirit you had when you were 12. You fight for your team the same way you did when you were 16.

Now, after years learning how victories are forged, the moment to make history has arrived. When the team you play for is truly your team, you never ease off, you know that everything is still there for the taking.

Write the future.

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One game. One player. And now the door is open. Just stepping on the field meant something.

Last night Clint Dempsey became the first American to play in a European cup final.

"I know if I am the first American," Dempsey told the UK's Daily Mail. "I won’t be the last."

Athletico Madrid took the inaugural European trophy from a late winner in the 116th minute, but Dempsey finished another strong year in Europe and now brings that confidence back home and into national team camp on May 17th when the team begins building toward South Africa where more chances to write the future beckon.

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Quadrado is the first step.

Acceleration, agility and control are the cornerstone of this drill.

Use sharp changes of direction and rapid cut moves with and without the ball will to cover the circuit.

Improve your agility, pure and simple.

The Brazilian Journey

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Final score: 4-0.
Landon Donovan: 1 goal. 3 assists.

In one of his last games before national team camp opens later this month, Landon Donovan was in total control and looking in form as South Africa approaches.

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Under the guidance of Corinthians’ back room staff, ‘O Brasileirao’ marks the transition from futsal street spirit to the blood, sweat and tears of the professional athlete.

A positive attitude and mental fortitude are required to conquer the intensity of the coaches’ speed and fitness drills.

The dream is to pull on the shirt of one of Brazil’s greatest clubs.

To make it a reality, the amateur mind has to be left behind.

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They've met many times before. And tonight they meet again.

Giallorossi and Nerazzurri take to the pitch tonight and will fight for the first seasonal trophy in Italy.

Stankovic and Vucinic put their confidence in their speed. They've already proven this year they can be deadly, and now they have to do it again.

But tonight, victory is not just sought on the field. The (NIKE)RED campaign, Lace Up Save Lives, is leveraging this game to help fight AIDS in Africa. The Olimpico stadium will turn red.

It's time to start balancing the books. Watch the game, get the laces, and join the battle to fight HIV/AIDS in Africa.

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When Teko Modise takes the field on June 11th for the home team in his homeland of South Africa, the mind of the midfielder will be singularly focused on breaking down Mexico's back line. In doing so, he'll be wearing his (NIKE)RED laces.

With a global platform and the attention of billions, this summer Modise's laces will be a silent symbol that brings the battle against the HIV/AIDS epidemic to the forefront along with soccer.

In partnership with (RED), Nike's Lace Up Save Lives campaign aims to use soccer in order to raise funds and awareness for The Global Fund To Fight AIDS. Together with (NIKE)RED ambassadors like Modise, Didier Drogba, and Guss Hiddink, you can join soccer's elite and help get the biggest victory of all.

Learn more about Lace Up Save Lives. Buy the laces to support the cause. Join the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Nothing in this sport is a given, and every athlete knows they will put their body on the line.

With South Africa just weeks away, the fiercest clashes await on the biggest stage of them all.

Some teams will head into battle with protection of Nike Pro Combat.

Some will be more prepared than others.

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With Robinho, Neymar, Paulo Henrique Ganso and Andre, the third generation of the Boys from the Vila made history.

Even with a 3-2 defeat on the second game of the final, the Boys from the Vila solidified a spectacular campaign in the Sao Paulo state championship by taking the title for their first time, the 18th for the club.

The young stars led an attack that scored more than 100 goals this season. Together, the boys scored 72 goals in 23 games, an average over 3 goals per game.

In 2009 the boys missed the net. But this year, with Robinho's arrival, no one could hold them back.

WRITE THE FUTURE

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2 goals in 18 minutes.

Edson Buddle's good start has turned great.

9 goals in 6 games.

He was on a tear.

Now he's on a mission. To South Africa. Is anyone in better form?

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