"Sawubona."

That means "hello" in Zulu, South Africa's most widely spoken language.

That's what Austin Ripmaster of Boulder, Colo., said when he picked up the phone in South Africa as he begins taking part in the "Bud House," an online reality show sponsored by Budweiser.

During the monthlong 2010 World Cup, 32 fans -- of various ages, genders and ethnicities -- from the 32 countries in the tournament will live under one roof. They will watch every soccer match, and the public can vote on various challenges and see how it all plays out at the Bud House website. The first episode will air Friday.

As the real soccer team is eliminated from the tournament, so will the fan representative be. The eventual fan winner will go to the final match and present the Budweiser Man of the Match award to the most valuable player.

"This is the world's game, and soccer has been part of my life from the beginning," said U.S. representative Ripmaster, who now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. "Now that I've stopped playing, I can just enjoy the game."

Ripmaster grew up in Colorado and is the state's all-time leading scorer with 120 goals and 82 assists while in high school. He went on to play college soccer at the University of California, then briefly on the U.S. national team. His girlfriend filmed his promo video, and he filled out an application and was selected to represent the United States.

With his Patrick Dempsey good looks and his high-on-life mentality, he's a natural for the Web series.

"People in this house are serious about the game, and I obviously want the United States to win," said Ripmaster, who is in the pro sports relocation business, "but when this is over, I want to keep soccer in my life. If I could do that, I forever would be a happy man."