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"STANFORD, California \u2014 Kyle Beckerman says he and the 29 young men with him \"feel like we go to Stanford right now.\" They do spend most of their time at this idyllic Northern California university. And it's true that he and the other soccer players who make up the United States Men's National Team (USMNT) can be seen in campus gyms and cafeterias.\nBut, while most of the actual students here worry about evaluations in computer science or economics, history or psychology, Beckerman and his compatriots are steeling themselves for a different sort of test: the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.\nSee also: Inside Mavericks, big-wave surfing's gnarliest contest\nMost mornings for the past week, since World Cup training camp officially began here on May 14, the players have woken up early and gone for half-hour runs on empty stomachs. Then it's breakfast and a shower, followed by a practice session on Stanford's football or soccer field. They eat lunch in a campus dining hall, alongside the students. After lunch, a second practice session. Dinner comes around 7 p.m. \"There's a little bit of ping pong being played,\" Beckerman admits with a sly smile \u2014 followed by precious sleep before another grueling day.\nAnticipation builds for the greatest event in sports \u2014 but it comes with an edge. USMNT coach Jurgen Klinsmann invited 30 players to camp. They've come from across the United States, from professional teams in Mexico and Europe, as well as from other countries that \u2014 if hard pressed \u2014 they'd likely call home. This Wednesday's arrival of German-American midfielder Jermaine Jones marks the first time all 30 have been together.\nBut only 23 can make the trip to Brazil. Klinsmann must name his final roster by June 2, and there are painful cuts to come.\n\"You've made a lot of sacrifices and you've done everything you can to get to this stage, so now you want to cross that final finish line,\" says Maurice Edu, a member of the 2010 World Cup team but no sure thing for Brazil. \"But in saying that, I think it's important just to focus on what you've done to get here ... not only will you show well for yourself, but you're going to make this team a lot stronger as well.\"\n\nUnited States midfielder Kyle Beckerman talks to the media before practice at Stanford University on May 21, 2014. Image:  Sam Laird,  MashableBeckerman is another player whose ticket to Brazil isn't guaranteed. The 32-year-old fell in love with soccer during the 1990 World Cup, when his mom found the TV schedule and he taped all the games. He remembers seeing Klinsmann, now his coach, lead West Germany to the title. Now he's on the doorstep of his first World Cup, a feeling he calls \"really cool.\"\nOn Wednesday, Beckerman's road to Brazil (hopefully) includes fielding pre-practice questions inside Stanford Stadium \u2014 home of the 2013 Pacific-12 Conference football champions \u2014 from local and national media. Red, white and blue U.S. Soccer banners ringing the stadium drive home the same slogan in English, Spanish and Portuguese:\n\n\"One nation. One team.\"\n\"Una naci\u00F3n. Un equipo.\"\n\"Uma na\u00E7\u00E3o. Uma equipe.\"\n\nThen it's over to Cagan Stadium, which the Stanford soccer team calls home. Beckerman warms up with several other players, including Landon Donovan, Jozy Altidore and DaMarcus Beasley. Laughs and hearty choruses of \"Ohhhh\" burst forth as the group kicks a ball around in a tight circle. Before Altidore joins the circle, he kneels to tie his cleats and Klinsmann saunters up for a private moment.\nKlinsmann calls all the players together before media is dismissed. At the Cagan Stadium gate, an usher dressed in red makes sure curious passersby don't peek in for too long.\n\nUnited States soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann has a chat with Jozy Altidore, far left, as the forward ties his shoe before practice at Stanford University on May 21, 2014. Image:  Sam Laird,  MashableNone of the American players are global icons like Argentina's Lionel Messi or Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, the latter of whom the USMNT will face in group play. But many are celebrities in their own rights, world-class professionals who have traded elbows and knees with the game's greats. Some are millionaires many times over.\nBut this being Stanford \u2014 where Chelsea Clinton attended while her father ruled the free world, where Tiger Woods attended while ascending as a sports icon \u2014 most students aren't too preoccupied with the spectacle.\n\"I think in general it's not a huge part of campus consciousness,\" says Jana Persky, a student and editor at the Stanford Daily. \"We get a lot of people and teams and things coming around and people have so many varying interests. There are some people who think this is the absolute coolest thing ever and some who couldn't care less because they're studying for their CS midterm.\"\nBut many of the players \u2014 particularly those who grew up in Europe and never attended college \u2014 see it differently.\n\"It's funny just because it's so random,\" a laughing German-American forward Terrence Boyd says of lunching next to students in campus cafeterias. \"I feel like I'm in a high school movie. You're just standing there with your food like, 'Hey, is there some space? Alright. Cool, cool.'\"\n\nU.S. men's soccer team members embrace during training in preparation for the World Cup, Wednesday, May 21, 2014, in Stanford, Calif.Image: Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated PressOf course, Boyd says all this in his heavily accented English. The 23-year-old was raised in Germany by his German mother after she separated from his American father. That background \u2014 not exactly Johnny Hayseed who grew up kicking the pigskin on the Nebraska prairie \u2014 isn't unusual on the American team here at Stanford.\nBoyd, Jones, Fabian Johnson, Julian Green and Timmy Chandler are all German-American. Mikkel Diskerud played for Norway's youth teams before committing his future to the USMNT. Omar Gonzalez and Joe Corona both chose to play for the U.S. over Mexico. Aron Johannsson was raised in Iceland after being born in Alabama. And don't forget Klinsmann, the USMNT coach who's a soccer hero in Germany.\nAccording to Johannsson, however, fitting in among such a mixed group is no problem at all.\n\"I think that's a strength of this team\" he says, \"That no matter where you're coming from, you come into the team and you're already a part of the team after a few days.\"\nWhen you're packed together 24/7 like a bunch of college freshman on campus for orientation week, it's either form a bond or combust at the seams. The training helps, suffering together under the sun and Klinsmann's sharp gaze. But so does the downtime, the ping pong battles where third-string goalie Nick Rimando has \"been on fire,\" Beckerman says.\nBut, Beckerman adds, those games don't go too late: \"This first week it's been really intense so a lot of it's just getting a little bit of shut-eye to try and get the body ready.\"\nWhether from Germany, Norway, Iceland or the States, all USMNT hopes point to one final destination: Brazil, a dream that can't be achieved without some sleep.\nBONUS: 'Denim' and Depraved: Never Forget the USMNT's 1994 Kits\n\n\nNever Forget the USMNT's 1994 World Cup Kits\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n1. Known as \"the Denim Kit,\" the jerseys were made to look like denim. Yes, denim. Why? Because denim signifies America, of course. \nShown here: United States national team forward Eric Wynalda (11), right, is congratulated by teammates after scoring the first USMNT goal in a 1994 World Cup group-play match against Switzerland, on June 18, 1994. The match ended in a 1-1 tie. \n\nImage: Lennox McLendon/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n2. These things have become major collectors' items for some, and have the high price tags to go with that status. Here's a relatively uninspired-looking replica listed for $185 on eBay. Here's a purportedly game-worn authentic one listed for $500.\nShown here: United States forward Ernie Stewart, second from left, joins teammates Tab Ramos (9) and Thomas Dooley, left, to celebrate Stewart's goal as Colombia goalkeeper Oscar Cordoba, right, watches the ball roll into the net during a World Cup group-play match on June 22, 1994. The United States defeated Colombia 2-1. \n\nImage: Lois Bernstein/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n3. The kits were designed by Adidas. But, before settling on the denim versions, a tie-dye concept was considered, according to a 2011 interview with Adidas product manager Drew Gardner. \nThat. Would. Have. Been. Awesome.\nShown here: United States defender Thomas Dooley, right, hits a header off a corner kick over two Romanian players during a World Cup group-pay match on Sunday, June 26, 1994. Romania defeated the United States 1-0. \n\nImage: Lois Bernstein/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n4. These jerseys were the perfect complement to ginger defender Alexi Lalas' wild hair-and-beard combo. \nShown here: United States defender Alexi Lalas jubilates after the United States upset Colombia 2-1 in a World Cup group-play match on June 22, 1994. \n\nImage: Eric Draper/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n5. The 1994 home versions were a bit more understated. But, because the United States hosted in '94, the USMNT only wore the starry away numbers once, for its Round of 16 elimination loss to Brazil on July 4. Now, was that sad result just a simple coincidence? You be the judge.\nShown here: Frank Klopas of the United States attempts a header against Estonia in a pre-World Cup exhibition match on May 7, 1994. \n\nImage: Eric Draper/Associated Press\n\n\n\n\n"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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