The 2010 FIFA World Cup has arrived and on June 11 the tournament will kickoff. The world will anxiously awaiting the results of each match and entire countries will cheer or boo all at the same time as they watch their team play for a nation’s pride. The United States is in contention to take it all but the competition will be the absolute best of the best. Here are a couple things to make sure you’re ready for it all.
Here are a couple links you can use to get up to the minute information about everything going on in the tournament:
- The Official 2010 FIFA World Cup website
- Go to the Scores and Schedule for a complete listing of all matches and their results.
- For those of you who want, here is a printable Official Match Schedule
- For a complete listing of all teams and their rosters, click here.
Teams To Watch
- The United States - Will they be able to spark Soccer Fever in America with some brilliant play and wins? Soccer becomes huge every time the World Cup comes around but until the U.S. team can win a Cup and bring it home will American citizens be interested in the sport for any length of time. Will this year’s team be able to do it?
- South Africa -No host country has ever made it out of the Group Stage of play so the South African team has something going against them from the start. But if they can get some luck at their side and get some wins, perhaps they can bring some unity to a much needed part of the world. The odds are against them, but then again, every good story starts with a team no one believed in.
- England - The country that invented the sport only has one World Cup title to their resume and that was in 1966. Will this team be able to bring the Cup back home and restore honor to the country?
- Argentina -Football deity Diego Maradona is now coaching and has promised that if his team wins he will walk naked through the streets of Argentina. Mark my words, if Argentina does win he will not be the only one walking naked through the streets. If the U.S. gets knocked out early I will switch allegiance to Argentina just to see if he’ll go through with it.
Who To Watch
- Landon Donovan - Arguably the best American player but certainly the most popular. Can he lead this U.S. team to victory and prove to the world that the U.S. can play them at their own game?
- Cristiano Ronaldo – Probably the most popular player in the world because of his great abilities and high sex appeal for the ladies. He’s got looks, money and talent, who wouldn’t want to be this guy? But can he bring his home country of Portugal a World Cup championship?
- Kaká - He simply goes by one name and it is a name that is known across the world because of his superior play and skill level. It also helps playing for one of the best football countries in the world; Brazil. He’ll need to become a champion if he wants to go down as one of the best ever though.
- Lionel Messi – Lionel lead his country of Argentina through the qualification rounds and he’ll have to keep it up if he hopes to be at the top. Being one of the best in the world allows him to take over a game and will his team to victory. Will it be enough to take them all the way?
- Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez – His father quit his high profile coaching job to make sure he would be able to watch his son play in the World Cup. Chicharito already has the entire county of Mexico expecting greatness but now he has his father who will be in attendance only because he quit a job. Now THAT’S pressure.
Check out this video of World Cup highlights over the years:
