Since the start of the World Cup, USC Annenberg experts have been weighing the diplomatic and media implications of the international soccer tournament. Including editorials and quotes from the school's centers and programs, faculty and Ph.D students, here is a round-up of Annenberg's words on the Cup:

• The Annenberg Innovation Lab's post "Global Fans 'decoded' Through the Logistics of Engagement in FANS.PASSIONS.BRANDS Study" displays new research done in partnership with Havas Sports & Entertainment. It breaks down eight "Logics of Engagement" that connect fans with sports experiences.
• Agence France Presse quoted Professor Dan Durbin regarding the American fervor surrounding their hopes for the U.S. team's advance to the second round of play. Durbin said, "Interest is high partially because the US team has had some success. However, ESPN has used all its considerable resources to promote the World Cup and will continue to flood media with promotion. Durbin discussed the prominent American interest in the World Cup in relation to viewers' adaptability to new formats of live sports telecasts, given the lack of fragmentation in soccer games that differs from the constant timeouts of sports like football and basketball.
• Kimiya Shokoohi of the Center on Public Diplomacy wrote a blog for the center's website, "Soccer Diplomacy at the FIFA World Cup: Cross-Cultural Relations Redefined on the Pitch." Shokoohi writes about Steven Beitashour, the only American citizen on Iran's World Cup team. Beitashour had only been to Iran twice, as a child, before joining the team. "The political narrative is compelling. Imperative, even," Shokoohi writes. "Yet, what is most fascinating about Beitashour’s story is less that he is an actor in a one-man show of soccer diplomacy. Rather, it is that he is a portrait of the hyphenated Iranian."
• The USC Annenberg Institue of Sports, Media & Society's Twitter page (@AnnenbergSports) curates an ongoing stream of some of the best content focused on the World Cup.
• VIDEO: Center on Public Diplomacy hosted Michael Govan, CEO and director of the LACMA, for a discussion about the museum's exhibit "Fútbol: The Beautiful Game."