Brilliant New SportsCenter Commercial Makes Fun Of Soccer's Strangest Tradition

ESPN released a World Cup-themed SportsCenter commercial starring Michael Bradley, the U.S. men's national team's best player.

It's great. It pokes fun at a tradition that consistently baffles Americans: players walking onto the field hand-in-hand with little kids before huge soccer games.

These kids, called "mascots" in England, get picked in a variety of ways - from paying for a junior membership to winning contests to knowing a higher-up in the club. It's a promotional tool more than anything else.

The latest addition of ESPN's "This Is SportsCenter" campaign imagines what it'd be like if Bradley had to walk around with his mascot all day.

Genius: