World Cup Fever

In 1950, the US soccer team overcame incredible odds to beat England in the race for the World Cup. The American's were a rag-tag team of mostly first generation immigrants, and they shocked the world with their nearly-impossible victory. Tonight on the Front Porch, we'll talk with the man who wrote their story. Geoffrey Douglas' book "The Game of Their Lives" later became a movie of the same name.

We'll also learn about modern day immigrants who are willing to face deportation just to play soccer. Producer Adam Allington tells us this story of migrant farm workers in Michigan who maintain a sense of community through the sport. This story comes to us by way of the Public Radio Exchange.

Last week on the Front Porch, we explored the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which would require passports from everyone entering the states from Canada. A listener wrote to us after the show, asking why passports are so expensive to begin with. Tonight, we'll call Frank Moss, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Passport Services at the U.S. State Department, to find out.