Some World Cup fans get a Dutch treat

About 1,000 Dutch fans lost their pants at the World Cup — and they weren't even betting.

Seems they showed up for Friday's game against Ivory Coast in their traditional bright-orange trousers that bore a Dutch brewery's name and logo — a big no-no, since Budweiser is the exclusive beer of the World Cup — so FIFA officials gave the fans two choices: Lose the pants or don't enter the stadium. "So," the BBC reported, "the male fans promptly removed the trousers and watched the game in underpants."

Oddsmakers, looking ahead to the next Netherlands match, immediately set the over-under line at 1,500.

Oiling the presses

It won't make anybody forget the "Dewey Defeats Truman" headline, but Beckett Hockey prematurely went to press with 60,000 of its magazine covers proclaiming " 'Canes capture the Cup!" after Carolina won 5-0 to take a 2-0 lead over Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Final.

Alas, a stirring Oilers comeback has pushed the series to a deciding Game 7 tonight.

"It was a calculated risk," Beckett Hockey editor Al Muir told the Edmonton Sun. "At that point in time, it didn't look too risky. The funny thing is: I'm getting calls from Carolina, and they're all worried that I'm screwing with their karma."

Bumper snicker

"Fearless prediction," wrote Dan Daly of the Washington Times. "By the end of the month, the hottest-selling items in Pittsburgh will be 'I Brake For Ben Roethlisberger' bumper stickers."

Paging Dick Cheney

The world's funniest joke, as chosen by 350,000 online voters for a scientific survey conducted by Prof. Richard Wiseman of England's University of Hertfordshire:

"Two hunters are out in the woods in New Jersey when one of them collapses. He doesn't seem to be breathing, and his eyes are glazed.

"The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. He gasps, 'My friend is dead! What can I do?'

"The operator says: 'Calm down, I can help. First, let's make sure he's dead.'

"There is a silence, then a shot is heard.

"Back on the phone, the guy says, 'OK, now what?' "

Pool report

David Thomas of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, on the A's oft-injured Frank Thomas landing back on the disabled list last week: "If you had June 15 in the Big Hurt DL Pool, please report to the front desk to claim your prize."

Cutting the mustard

Fans at Detroit's Comerica Park are voting for the stadium's best hot-dog vendor in a monthlong "Higher Authority Hawker Challenge," with the people's choice to be announced July 21.

The selection format, no doubt, is wiener-take-all.

Dwight Perry: 206-464-8250 or dperry@seattletimes.com