2014 World Cup in Brazil

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Mistryss Nite

Mistryss Nite

Is back from Beijing, China! ^.^
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So, the 2014 World Cup hosted by Brazil will start on June 12, and the group stages have been decided.

Group A: Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon
Group B: Spain, The Netherlands, Chile, Australia
Group C: Columbia, Greece, Cote d'Ivorie, Japan
Group D: Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy
Group E: Switzerland, Ecuador, France, Honduras
Group F: Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria
Group G (Group of death): Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA
Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia, South Korea

So, who do you think or hope will win each bracket?
Who do you think or hope will win the tournament?
Who do you think will win the Golden Boot (highest scorer), Golden Ball (MVP), Golden Glove (best goalkeeper), Best Young Player, FIFA Fair Play Trophy, Most Entertaining Team, and All-Star Team?
Do you think there will be a lot of red and yellow cards this time around?
What are the teams to watch?
Who are you surprised that made it to the WC?
Who do you think should have made it?
Will you be watching every game?
Will you be going to Brazil for the WC?
Will there be events in your area that will be celebrating or hosting?
Have you watched the World Cup before?
What are your thoughts about it being hosted in Brazil?
Who are your favorite teams or players?
Who has retired that you want brought back for these games?
Who is the best coach?
What will you do to celebrate if your team wins?

You can also list any news related to the World Cup, like if a player gets injured. I will try to update the list with airing dates as the games get closer. I will post mine in a bit.
 
So, who do you think or hope will win each bracket?
A: Brazil & Mexico
B: Spain & The Netherlands
C: Japan & Greece
D: England & Italy
E: France & Switzerland
F: Argentina & Unsure
G: Germany & Portugal (sorry America)
H: South Korea & Belgium
Unsure of the next rounds

Who do you think or hope will win the tournament?
I really want Germany to win. Spain, Japan, or South Korea would also be good.

Who do you think will win the Golden Boot (highest scorer), Golden Ball (MVP), Golden Glove (best goalkeeper), Best Young Player, FIFA Fair Play Trophy, Most Entertaining Team, and All-Star Team?
Hmmm…I’m not sure. When the matches start, I will know.

Do you think there will be a lot of red and yellow cards this time around?
Naturally!

What are the teams to watch?
Germany, Spain, The Netherlands, Japan, and South Korea could all do very well.

Who are you surprised that made it to the WC?
I don’t know much about their teams, but probably Belgium, Greece, and a few others.

Who do you think should have made it?
I am surprised that Sweden and North Korea (just kidding ^.^) didn’t make it.

Will you be watching every game?
I will try to, or at least watch the replays.

Will you be going to Brazil for the WC?
No. I will probably be at home, glued to my TV ^.^

Will there be events in your area that will be celebrating or hosting?
Yes, many of the bars usually have the games on. A few British pubs should be hosting the British matches.

Have you watched the World Cup before?
Yes, the 2006 and 2010 WCs.

What are your thoughts about it being hosted in Brazil?
They could have picked a better location. I have more thoughts on this, but I probably shouldn’t share it.

Who are your favorite teams or players?
Germany, Spain, South Korea, and Japan are my favorite teams. Fernando Torres has been a long time favorite. I also like Cesc Fabregas, Mesut Ozil, David Villa, Lukas Podolski, and Bastian Schweinsteiger.

Who has retired that you want brought back for these games?
Michael Ballack!

Who is the best coach?
Unsure….I don’t know who will be coaching the teams. Jurgen Klinsmann should be okay.

What will you do to celebrate if your team wins?
Be happy and tell everyone that my team won!
 
I didn't really start following the World Cup until 2010 when my husband (then my boyfriend) was visiting me in the States while some of the final matches were taking place and he was talking to my dad about it. My dad is a huge sports guy, but he never really followed outdoor soccer/football. They both had a fun time watching the Netherlands' matches and I joined in. Of course, we lost to Spain that year, but I do plan on following along again.

I'm not really a super fan or anything; I couldn't name a single player on any of the teams, or even know which teams are playing. But I do plan on watching the Netherlands matches again this year and cheering for my home team. Now that my dad has a team to cheer for (and an oranje jersey to wear that I got him for his birthday), he'll likely be watching along too. :D

I wonder how much of a big deal it will be around here. Back in the States, not a lot of people that I knew seemed to care, and the US team has never done particularly well anyway. But (non-American) football is much much more popular over here, and the Netherlands seems to have a good team, so it should be exciting and a lot of fun.
 
Group A: Brazil and Mexico or Cameroon. Mexico's decent but Cameroon's had a decent showing the past few tournaments.
Group B: Spain, The Netherlands. Chile's good but these two are just better. Sorry Australia, you got put in a death group.
Group C: Columbia and Japan. This group is probably not gonna have either of them go past the Round of 16 but we'll see
Group D: Uruguay and Italy. England's not been great lately iirc while Uruguay and Italy are two of the best.
Group E: France and Ecuador or Honduras. Switzerland's okay so I could see them doing well, but France is a given.
Group F: Argentina's the only definite here. The other three are all about equal, although it'll probably be Bosnia.
Group G (Group of death): Germany and Ghana or USA. Portugal's right screwed.
Group H: South Korea definitely. Probably also Russia.

I'm a big fan of the World Cup, though mostly for dorky geopolitical reasons. I couldn't tell you anything about the players though
go germany woo
 
Group A: Brazil, Mexico, Cameroon, Croatia
Group B: Spain, Chile, Netherlands, Australia
Group C: Japan, Colombia, Ivory Coast, Greece
Group D: Italy, England, Uruguay, Costa Rica
Group E: Switzerland, France, Ecuador, Honduras
Group F: Argentina, Bosnia, Nigeria, Iran
Group G: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA
Group H: Belgium, Russia, South Korea, Algeria

Tournament winners will be either Brazil, Germany or Argentina. Spain are an ageing team and have been "found out". per se in terms of the style they play; they're now pretty easy to counter. Brazil are clear favourites atm but they have a lot of pressure on them and the qualty of their players is a little lower than both Argentina or Germany.
Golden Boot: Neymar ;)
Teams to Watch: Belgium who have an easy passage into the final 16, and have some top top players with Fellani, Lukaku and Hazard among them. Chile play some great football and could provide a shock in Group B. Japan have Honda and some real quality. Mexico, if they decide to turn up on the day, could do well. Oh, and Portugal or Switzerland may be the surprise factor.

I'm surprised that Iran and Algeria (and perhaps Greece) made it to the World Cup, their quality is lacking. While Greece isn't as bad as say, Australia, Australia have some easy games to play to qualify and so I'm not surprised by them being in the tournament. Bosnia are proving to be real stars by getting to the World Cup; the next question is whether they can perform on the big stage.

Sweden should've made it ;_; The lack of Denmark and Serbia also surprise me. (And Paraguay!). I can't complain too much though, since this looks like a World Cup with lotsa quality teams (certainly more than 2010 or 2006).
 
I am reviving this thread due to the World Cup starting next week. Feel free to answer the above questions or just discuss anything about the World Cup.

Anyone else getting excited that it is finally about to start?

The first match will be Brazil vs Croatia on Thursday, June 12 at 17:00 Brazil time. Who do think or hope will win? Why?

I think that it is obvious that Brazil should win. It is home territory, and they are often considered one of the best teams. If they do not win the opening match, then there is a problem.
 
Brazil is SO unready for this. The last I heard, the stadium will not be ready till a month after the World Cup is done.
 
Well, what can you do...
Anyway, I feel like Brazil has to win this one. It's home territory after all, and I don't like the suicides that rack up after every defeat. Plus, for once half the Brazil team isn't made of stars from Europe teams, so I guess it will be interesting to see them.
 
http://www.examiner.com/article/another-214-mile-traffic-jam-among-brazil-s-world-cup-festering-nightmare-woes said:
Another 214 mile traffic jam among Brazil's World Cup festering nightmare woes?


Brazil is hosting the World Cup, which is the biggest single sporting tournament in the world, and the day before the opening game, things are a mess. From traffic jams to a roof missing from a stadium, the country is not prepared. When Brazil won the bid to host the 2014 World Cup many anticipated the big event, but today more than half polled wish that the World Cup wasn't in Brazil, they are far from ready and still too unorganized to host this event, suggests NBC News on June 11.

When the subway workers went on strike, a 214 mile traffic jam choked the country as all the preparations were underway for the World Cup. Today the subways are running but a strike is looming for opening day, which is tomorrow, Thursday June 12. If the transit workers don't come to an agreement with management by Wednesday, the strike is back on for Thursday.

Just how worried are the teams and the players about the possibility of another traffic jam bringing Sao Paulo to a grinding halt? Apparently very worried, as Marc Wilmots, the Belgium team manager, may cancel the warm-up match between Belgium and the USMNT on Thursday set to go off behind closed doors in Sao Paulo. He does not want to sit in hours and hours of traffic if the strike is on. Even without a strike the traffic is horrific.

People are questioning the World Cup Committee's decision allowing Brazil to host this event. Out of the 12 stadiums erected for the event, five are not finished and workers are scrambling to try and get them done. One is without a roof and will probably have to stay that way.

Just recently clearance was received from the fire department for the temporary seating to hold 20,000 fans, but worries grow as the seats have never been tested during a full game. The country is not anywhere near ready or prepared to host this event. The projects, such as the stadiums, were due to be finished last December and they are still under construction.

The people in Brazil are not happy with the way things have unfolded. Evidence of this is clear when a recent poll showed that six out of ten Brazilians believe that the World Cup is bad for Brazil. The death toll for workers while building the stadiums is at three and another worker died Monday after an accident on the monorail project in Sao Paulo, which was one of the highlights for the World Cup games, but it is not done in time for the games.

As of today, eight men have lost their lives working on the dozen grounds getting prepared for the World Cup including the three working on the stadiums and the worker on the monorail. Much of what was promised from the organizers has fallen by the wayside. From roads to the rail systems, things aren't like they were promised. Only five of the 35 planned urban mobility rail schemes are complete.

The promised metro lines are now replaced by taxis and buses. Much of what is in place for the fans and players coming to Brazil is not complete. The people of the country are furious with the amount of money spent on this event as poverty is plentiful in the country.

That 214 mile traffic jam occurred in Sao Paula last month, which is the city that will be used for many of the World Cup events. This 214 mile traffic jam was the biggest the country has ever seen. Traffic went down to a "stand-still" reports NBC Sports News today. The second biggest traffic jam was in November of 2013 when 192 miles were at a stand still on the highways as people tried to travel for a national holiday.

What can a player or fan expect arriving in Brazil for the World Cup 2014? NBC puts it in a nutshell for you:

"Brazil will welcome the players and fans to unfinished airports, drive them past uncompleted transport systems, through streets that have been clogged with rioters protesting the cost of the tournament and into stadiums that have cost lives to build and haven’t all been finished."
The traffic is expected to be horrific and if the railway workers strike, which is a possibility, the 214 mile traffic jam from last month will probably look like a picnic in the park in comparison. A railway strike resulting in all those cars taking to the roads along with the added traffic from the World Cup could build a traffic jam of epic proportions. Even without a strike the traffic coming due to the World Cup morphed into the already congested roadways is a recipe for a nightmare.
Click to expand...
 
The moment when Brazil made a goal on their own side... >.>

I wasn't too happy by the way Brazil was playing during the first half, but at least Neymar managed to get the team back up especially thanks to the penalty kick.
 
This whole stadium thing is basically an exact repeat of the Maracanã of 1950. Sao Paolo was involved in that one too lol.
Fun Fact: the Maracanazo (a soccer game) is often compared to the bombing of Hiroshima in terms of devastation to the country
If Brazil really gets another huge upset (because let's be honest they are kind of the favorite to win), I expect a similar situation.
 
Brazilians love football. Even with all the stuff omaha posted, they still support their team. Incidents of suicides when Brazil lost in the previous years were common, and I'm afraid that if their team doesn't dominate, the death toll will be much higher.
But anyway, the first match is completed. The World Cup is on, with all the problems and goos times it brings. Guess we'll have to wait and see.
 
So, Spain had a very disappointing performance, with a bad defense and a Casillas who made more mistakes than he has made in his entire career.
Meanwhile, Chile had an easy victory against Australia.
The Cup seems plagued by wrong referee decisions, unfortunately. I certainly hope we won't remember it for this.
 
I thought that it was M.A.A.D AF when the Netherlands went all ham on 5-pa1n. I've never seen so much! It was really cool and now I really like watching soccer and now I am going to watch more soccer and now soccer is really fun to me.
 
I watched part of the Oranje game with my husband, but really, with the incredibly loud cheering coming from all directions whenever we scored, we didn't even really need to watch! After Spain beat us in the final back in 2010, this felt like much needed vengeance.

The only downside is that music was blaring into the night (the match started at 9pm our time) loud enough to give me a headache. They were kind enough to turn it down a bit after after midnight, but I still had a hard time getting to sleep when we finally shuffled off to bed at 1am.
 
Switzerland won against Ecuador (2-1)

It was during overtime (~20 seconds remaining) when Switzerland made the winning goal. Ecuador had a clear opportunity to score, but they ended up messing up when they didn't take the chance to shoot, eventually letting the other team get possession. Switzerland took the ball and zoomed through the field with little defense remaining for Ecuador.

One thing that both teams struggled with was staying organized, especially when they got to the other goals, but oh well, it was a pretty good game to watch. It was quite exiting to watch Switzerland make their final goal (their passing was impressive).

France and Honduras play next.
 
Up until now, the cup is quite interesting. We have seen at least three goals per match (with the exception of Mexico vs Cameroun, but that was because of a stupid linesman). That's the kind of football I like to see.
 
How come no one talked about yesterday's Costa Rica 3-1 Uruguay? :p Italy and England, you better watch out, Los Ticos are coming, and are the first in the D-eath Group. :D What I enjoyed seeing was both the Uruguayan and International press talking wonders about Costa Rica and Joel Campbell after a week ago everyone though they were, and I quote, "3 easy points".
 
Yay, I was carried away by today's match Ghana VS USA, I was rooting for America's national Soccer squad, and it was unforgettable match, a match worth to watch. I'm beyond elated that USA has won their first match. Congrats to our American fellows. :)
 
U.S made their first goal in the first 30 seconds of the game!

https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/478660902628384768

This currently stands to be one of my favorite matches so far. Both teams did very well, but US clearly showed that they weren't messing around.
 
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