GOOOAAALLLL!

The sound could be ringing out in workplaces all over the globe during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, set to begin at 9 a.m. Friday and run through July 11.

The matches this year, all of which will be available live, streaming over the Internet on ESPN3.com, begin in the morning and mid-afternoon hours, smack dab in the middle of the workday here in the United States; the event is being hosted by South Africa.

Yet even as soccer, the world’s most popular sport, continues to grow in popularity in the United States, the impact on businesses at home is expected to be less than dramatic, according to global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.

“Soccer simply has not caught on with the majority of American sports fans, ” said John Challenger, the company’s CEO, in a release. “However, the World Cup is a unique event and could attract a lot of viewers who might not typically go out of the way to watch a match.”

But not nearly as many Americans will switch their eyes from spreadsheets to soccer as those whose productivity was sapped during the madness that is March. The annual NCAA college basketball tournament was expected to drain $1.8 billion in unproductive wages from U.S. businesses in 2010, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

But across the pond in England, the problem is a bit more prevalent. According to a survey conducted by Eclipse, an Internet service provider in the United Kingdom, 54 percent of respondents said they would watch games on their computers while at work.

Team USA plays powerhouse England at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the first premier game of the tournament.

A tough break for the United States, but a lucky one for businesses.