Tim Neumann found the eventual World Cup champion when his standing needed a jolt. Spain supplied 78 to a 138-point pool, and the card tied for 8th with 243 placement points.
The surge had a real base. The Dodgers helped baseball reach 21st, his NBA card hit three totals and shared 22nd, and Seattle's title carried the NFL Playoffs card into a share of 37th. Those scores absorbed a college football collapse at a tie for 235th.
Spain changed the pace of the season, but it rewarded work that had already made the recovery possible. The closing charge gained 31 places; Neumann's 1531 points secured 46th.