Three months from now, soccer will be the biggest deal in the world as the World Cup gets underway. In order for you to catch up and not have to talk out of your ass when you are watching the U.S play England on June 12, I composed a list of things you must know about the World Cup.
Host country: South Africa. First african nation to ever host the WC. Could become first host nation to be ousted in the first round in the history of the competition. They could lose all three matches in the group stage, they are that bad. Worst. Host. Team. Ever.
How it works: The World Cup is composed of 32 national teams separated into eight groups of four teams each. The four teams in each group play each other in a round-robin format, and the top two teams from each group advance to the Round of 16.
The favorites:
Spain: Has lost only one of their past 36 matches (to the United States) and is the reigning European champion. Opposing teams (ahem...France) are actually scared of their relentless style of play..but they have never been world champions.
Brazil-: They can always score at will, and now they have Julio Cesar, the best goalie in the world, to boot. The Brazilians have not been eliminated before the quarterfinals since 1990.
Netherlands: Another team that plays great soccer but has never won anything big. They can beat anybody, anywhere, but they have the tendency to choke in big moments. They look perfect at first sight, but look closer and you will see that their offensive mindset, which is their main strength, is also their worst flaw.
England: Another team with severe choking tendencies. They invented soccer, yet they have only won the World Cup once as hosts in 1966. They boast having the best midfield in the world and their striker Wayne Rooney is on fire with 28 goals in 35 matches this year.
The Dark Horses:
Chile: Marcelo Bielsa's squad is coming back to the World Cup after missing the dance in 2006. They finished in second place in South American qualifying and have a strong team identity that keeps them in every game.
Ivory Coast and Cameroon: One of these two teams will reach the semifinals of the tournament in African soil. Cameroon's star forward Samuel Eto'o and Ivory Coast's top striker Didier Drogba will make their mark and take their teams farther than most think.
United States : If they can manage to defeat England, the Americans will win Group C and would set itself up for a potential showdown with France, Mexico or Uruguay in the quarterfinals.
My predictions:
Champion: Netherlands
Runner-up: Spain
3rd place: Ivory Coast
Top scorer: Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina)
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