《中英對照讀新聞》England's Wives and Girlfriends take Germany by storm 英格蘭娘子軍團「狂掃」德國

◎胡立宗

They're getting more attention in the British papers than the England team. They're the WAGS--wives and girlfriends of the World Cup players.

她們比英格蘭國家足球隊還受英國報紙矚目。她們是WAGS娘子兵團──世界盃參賽球員的老婆和女友。

Newspapers report breathlessly on their outfits, shopping outings, drinking sprees, dinner reservations and competitive habits. The women have won over a press that remains skeptical after England's tepid 1-0 win over Paraguay on Saturday.

報紙對她們的一舉一動緊追不捨，如衣著、血拼、狂飲、奢宴，以及爭風吃醋。雖然英格蘭隊週六僅僅以1-0 贏了巴拉圭，媒體報以懷疑的態度，她們的表現卻備受「肯定」。

"They have the stamina and spending power that showed England have a team to take on the world--in shopping," The Daily Telegraph said.

每日電訊報說，「她們以無窮精力和購買力，告訴世人一個事實：英國有一支獨步全球的隊伍──血拼隊。」

Coleen McLoughlin, Wayne Rooney's girlfriend and renowned shopaholic, spent 900 pounds in 10 minutes on Gucci, Dior, and Dolce and Gabbana shoes, shirts, and blouses, the papers reported.

據報紙報導，英國隊前鋒魯尼的女朋友、出了名的「血拼達人」柯琳．麥克勞林，在10分鐘內花掉900鎊，買了Gucci、Dior、Dolce、Gabbana等名牌鞋子、上衣和短衫。

The WAGS found themselves in the middle of a spat between British and German tabloids. German newspaper Bild branded David Beckham's sister, Joanne, "fat" and said his mother, Sandra, "had the smile of a peasant."

娘子軍團發現，她們置身英、德大眾報間的口水戰火下。德國畫報批評貝克漢的妹妹喬安納「肥胖」，他媽媽珊卓「笑起來跟鄉巴佬一樣」。

"How dare the Germans attack Becks' birds？" The Sun splashed across its front page, with a picture of Beckham's wife, Victoria, labeled "The Beaut," next to a portly, lederhosen-clad German bar maid called "Das Boot."

「德國人好大的膽子，居然找麻煩找到小貝家的小妞頭上了！」英國太陽報在頭版反擊，並附上貝克漢老婆辣妹維多利亞的照片，標題是「美人胚子！」旁邊則是一名胖胖的、穿皮褲的德國酒吧女侍，標題是「好一條船！」

新聞辭典

A get more attention than B︰A比B更受注意。His appearance gets more attention than his performance in the field. （他的外表比他在場上的表現還引人注意。）

The Beaut；Das Boot：beaut，美好的東西或美人；Boot，德文，船。英國報紙用發音相近的 Beaut和 Boot 相對比，充滿挖苦意味。