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[b]Friendly rivalry pits U.S. vs. German astronauts on space station[/b] NASA's Reid Wiseman and Steve Swanson and the European Space Agency's Alexander Gerst are cheering on their home countries' World Cup 2014 teams, but will the post-goal celebrations be as uplifting as those on Earth? The astronauts have trained for years to work together as a unified crew, so they're already 260 miles above Earth aboard the International Space Station. But U.S. astronauts Swanson and Wiseman and their German crewmate Gerst are feeling the friendly competition more keenly Thursday (June 26), as their home countries play against each other for a chance to advance. Either or both could advance out of Group G under different scenarios possible in this year's World Cup matches. USA and Germany faced off at 11 a.m. CDT at Arena Pernambuco in Recife, Brazil. Wiseman kidded his colleagues in orbit that the stronger U.S. team spirit aboard the space station is a sign the U.S. will be stronger on the field too. "I believe we will win. It's two against one up here, so I think the U.S. chances are pretty good," Wiseman said during an in-flight interview with ESPN on June 24. Gerst is optimistic that the two teams will meet again. "I hope we kick their butt a little bit, but I'm going to hope it's going to be at the final game, not at this game on Thursday," Gerst said. It may be just a friendly competition among the crew members, but that doesn't mean there aren’t stakes involved. "If the U.S. wins, these guys are going to draw a little U.S. flag on my head, but I think if Germany wins these guys should have to shave their heads. Either way I'm looking forward to the game. It's going to be fun," Gerst said.
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