Pre-match soccer enthusiasm warming in Tianjin

Have two humiliating defeats in Tianjin for China's men's soccer squad in their World Cup qualifying efforts dampened enthusiasm to watch matches in the co-host city for the Beijing Olympics?

Definitely not, say the city's sports officials. Tianjin, only an hour's drive from Beijing, is fully geared up to host Olympic matches.

"We do not think sports enthusiasts blame Tianjin for the matches. They were actually organized well and proved Tianjin's ability to host major sports games. As to the final score - it is beyond our control," Xie Delong, deputy head of Tianjin Sports Bureau, told China Daily.