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We're nearly there. The 2014 World Cup in Brazil will see Brazil and Croatia open the tournament on June 12th at 4 PM EST. THAT'S NEXT THURSDAY, so be sure to get all your BS sorted before noon on Thursday so you can take an extended lunch that just ends up being a weekend of World Cup watching. We have an incredible month ahead— Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo need a Cup title to pimp out their resumes, Americans have something to be proud of again, and best of all: there's really no clear favorite. But you don't have to be a cynic to have reservations about this year's World Cup. For one, the stadiums and airports aren't totally complete yet, superstars are getting bodied in training every week, and match-fixing is a real thing. Go through both sides in 10 Reasons Why We're Both Worried and Excited For the 2014 World Cup.
Worried: The United States might not win a game.
Group G is the the group that 28 other nations are happy that they're not in. Germany is the favorite European team to win it all, Portugal has the best player breathing right now, Ghana has been one tough son-of-a-bitching out over the years, and the U.S. (Donovan or not) is still fielding the best 23 players in its history. There should be no easy results in this Group, and the two teams that advance through will likely be heading into the Round of 16 as serious contenders—even if they're currently looking-in from outside of the elite.
Excited: It's the one thing in every nation in the world (except North Korea) cares about every four years.
It's cliche and kind of sappy, but it's true. The World Cup is bigger than the Super Bowl. This World Cup will, quite literally, be the most meaningful A.D. event. At what other point in human history has one moment been a part of the lives of this many people? Who do I even ask for an accurate answer to that question? According to FIFA (obviously the best entity to ask concerning soccer truths), that number was at least one billion people. The highest estimate of the amount of people killed in the most destructive wars and disasters doesn't sniff one hundred million. That may settle that.
Worried: Romario doesn't want the World Cup.
Why does Romario's opinion matter? Because he's a Brazilian soccer player (keyword: Brazilian) whose titles include: 1994 FIFA World Cup Champion, 1994 World Player of the Year, FIFA World 100 member, Second Highest Scorer in World Soccer History, and elected official. That's why. If there's a man who understands soccer and politics in Brazil, it's Romario. He's been publicly against the entire 2014 World Cup since 2011, once it became clear that the spending to build new soccer infrastructure was hurting the advancement of health, education, and poverty reforms. Here's how Romario's been feeling:
October 11th, 2011: Romario tweets, "Brazil needs to stop this business of becoming a slave of Fifa" and that "It is not going to be a World Cup for the Brazilian people."
October 17, 2013: Speaks out in support of recent protests, but ties the World Cup into them. He was effectively splitting the protests and World Cup into two for or against camps. He said: "If you spend 30% less on the stadiums, they'd be able to improve the other things that actually matter."
June 21, 2013: Rogue report surfaces online that (only the highest quality of sources here at Complex Sports) Romario tells Pele to "shut his mouth" even though Pele isn't there.
June 23, 2013: Pens blog in The Guardian admitting that while he "supported the bid because it promised to generate employment and income, promote tourism and strengthen the country's image," he was now against the whole tournament. Playing up the immense cost of hosting against the public's need for social programming support, Romario wrote, "My fear is that this mega event will only deepen the problems we already have."
April 8th, 2014: More doom and gloom quotes from him on BBC: "I can't see anything positive from this World Cup."
May 30th, 2014: It's reported that during a congressional hearing by Brazil's tourism and sports commission, Romario lost his shit: "We can't expect anything from FIFA, where we have a blackmailer called [General Secretary Jerome] Valcke and a corrupt thief and son-of-a-bitch called [President Sepp] Blatter."
Excited: It's in Brazil.
Bro, Brazil in Brazil. They haven't lost a competitive match on home soil since 1975. Their nation's identity revolves around soccer. Neymar is one of their most hyped players ever. If the scenes at last year's Confederation's Cup weren't sweet enough of a teaser for you, then you don't love soccer. Not to mention that you won't need to wake up at owl hours for matches.
Worried: Everyone is now an expert on international soccer.
You'll see real people and websites do this. See, there are two types of bandwagon fan: the one who anticipates to blend in and fake early adoption, or the one who'll blindly throw himself to a cause if it involves day drinking, sports, and feeling like a part of something larger. Websites copy the tactic. Whether it's for likes, togetherness and national pride, for the clicks, or for those who value social and Internet currency/ad revenue, the World Cup will be brought up at every possible instance. It's happening now, everyone fucking plays FIFA and apparently hipsters love it. Even the simple SportsCenter fan will be barking up your timeline about how nobody really knows what constitutes a foul. Let it go, noob.
Excited: Landon Donovan isn't there.
Jürgen Klinsmann has some stones man. Even though this year is now centered on whether Landon Donovan should've been on the team, and is probably doomed to, "Yeah, we what we did in 2018 and 2022 really wasn't impacted by including a few younger players. Landycakes should've gone to Brazil," all of that uncertainty is fun.
It makes the team more interesting to analyze, and has cemented Klinsmann as not a visionary quite yet, but a man who's enacting a total makeover of United States soccer. He has a plan, and Landon Donovan wasn't in them. A contract that runs through the next World Cup cycle will embolden a man to do as he pleases, but we can't be convinced quite yet that any long-term planning that doesn't include a 32-year-old who was most recently a very productive 31-year-old attacker and 2013 Gold Cup MVP, who also doubles as the greatest American soccer player of all-time.
Worried: The injuries are piling up.
The names piling up on the pre-World Cup injury list are troubling. The best on attackers Spain, France, Colombia, and Uruguay are all either out or in jeopardy of not lacing up. All of those countries had decent to very likely chances of winning the damn thing before their star forwards got injured. Diego Costa, Franck Ribery, Radamel Falcao, and Luis Suarez are four of the Top 15 players in the world, and their absences will likely lead to a longer vacation for their respective teams. And that's already on top of Christian Benteke and Theo Walcott missing out with long-term injuries.
Excited: Some premier match-ups are during Happy Hour.
Brazil-Croatia on June 12 at 4:00 p.m., Spain-Netherlands on June 13 at 3:00 p.m. (for you bosses out there) followed by England-Italy at 6:00 p.m., Ghana-U.S. on June 16th at 6:00 p.m., Brazil-Mexico on June 17 at 3:00 p.m. (bosses only, again), Spain-Chile on June 18th at 6:00 p.m., Uruguay-England on June 19 at 6:00 p.m., U.S.-Portugal on June 22 at 6:00 p.m.. Bookmark this page.
Worried: Noon kick-offs make the work week awkward.
There are plenty of awesome matches kicking off at noon EST, which means either A) Extended lunch meetings or B) Streaming that bitch on your second screen at work and not using headphones so your boss knows how you feel about not being three pints in with the footy bros. For west coasters, please don't watch Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Iran on the Watch ESPN app while driving to work. Get ready to make noon moves to watch Germany-Portugal on June 16, Colombia-Ivory Coast on June 19, Belgium-Russia on June 22, Netherlands-Chile on June 23, Italy-Uruguay on June 24, U.S.-Germany on June 26.
Excited: There's no clear favorite.
Spain has won the last three major international tournaments (Euro 2008, World Cup 2010, and Euro 2012), but they're not the clear favorites. How crazy is that? Xavi and Iniesta are still ticking, Cesc Fabregas and David Silva are fully joining the party, and for the first time since Euro 2008, they have an elite #9 in Diego Costa (if he plays). But a European nation has never won the World Cup on South American soil, and simply put, there might be three—even four—Cup-worthy South American teams. Not to mention, Germany, France, and Italy all stand to send their best squads in years. There's too much going against Spain here.
Worried: People are on edge about crime and violence in Brazil because of misleading news reports.
Brian Phillips explained this point on Grantland in November 2013 more masterfully than I could ever spit out, but here's the main idea: Prominent media outlets such as CNN, USA Today, and Bleacher Report were pushing the connection between the high crime rate and Oberyn Martell-style deaths and the World Cup, and that traveling tourists should be fearful. Brazil's social unrest and the World Cup, while related because of high government spending to prepare for the tournament, are not endemic of each other on violence. Phillips pointed to this headline in the wake of a notable decapitation: "This Horrific Video Will Completely Change Your View of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil." That smells like irresponsible journalism. Because Brazil is foreign and sexy and Justin Bieber hits up brothels there and they're down in South America, headlines like that capitalize on that American exceptionalist-based doubt in countries like Brazil.
If the United States won a World Cup bid, and Chicago was one of the playing cities, would European papers start printing headlines like "Another Gang Shooting In Chicago Raises Fears Over World Cup"? Worriers are making easily worried people worried about the foreign World Cup by using coded scare tactics. Instead, the media should be empowering these still easily influenced folk to demand answers over World Cup stadium funding corruption, or men getting killed for poking around too much.
Excited: Ian Darke is on the call.
The man has the perfect soccer announcer's voice. Some may prefer Martin Tyler's posh stylings, but Ian Darke delivers that excitable, pub-like emotion. He keeps it real, isn't afraid to interject and immediately assert his opinion, and has some folksiness to him, all while maintaining a gentlemanly presence. He's the best man for an American audience because he brings so much energy to a game that can be dry for long stretches of play. Look for Darke on ESPN all June.
Worried: England might surprise in spite of Roy Hodgson, and we're not prepared for that.
What's a World Cup post without a forced mention of England? I wouldn't be a proper observer of the game if England wasn't given my over-examination at least once. But seriously, this England team might turn a few heads. The skeleton of this team had a respectable run at Euro 2012, and they've since added a new Golden Generation. Daniel Sturridge, Ross Barkley, Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling, Gary Cahill, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Leighton Baines, Adam Lallana, Jack Wilshere—this looks like a dope English Premier League squad.
Veterans Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, James Milner, and Frank Lampard will look to negotiate a medium between Manager Roy Hodgson's static "Hodg-ball" and the technically, tactically, and athletically gifted youngsters with ample Premiership experience. Should this crop mature ahead of schedule, the English dailies will immediately raise expectations to sensationalist heights, only to tear down a premature set of talent. That's just what happens in English soccer.
Excited: This is the strongest South American field in recent memory.
Brazil (it's in Brazil), Argentina (Messi has help), Uruguay (devastating attack), and, if you're so inclined, a Falcao-less Colombia and Chile. All of these teams have a legitimate case for winning the World Cup on South American soil. No European invader has ever lifted the Cup in South America. Why not one of these potential international dynasties?
Worried: The matches could possibly be fixed.
Just last week, FIFA released a report on a powerful South African match-fixing syndacite that had over $1,000,000 invested. Europol reported on 680 potentially fixed matches from 2008 to 2011, including one match played by Liverpool at Anfield. If gamblers and match-fixers were able to get as high as Liverpool, they probably have a higher glass ceiling by now. Match-fixing won't be a pressing issue during the World Cup—after all, we want to enjoy the thing—but at this point, it's akin to steroids, racism, senseless civilian violence, and Game of Thrones season 4 murder scenes: nobody's really all that surprised anymore if something does indeed happen. It's expected. Like they say: Death, taxes, and England losing on penalties.
Excited: Spain might become the greatest team of all-time, if they aren't already.
Yeah, we don't think Spain has the best shot at becoming the first back-to-back World Cup winners since Brazil in 1958 and 1962, but they're still in the conversation. Should they triumph over a difficult field, they'll have to be considered one of, if not the greatest sports team ever; up there with your choice of Yankees' dynasty, the second Bulls three-peat, John Wooden's UCLA, Bill Russell's Celtics, Bill Walsh's 49ers, and that last Brazil team. A six-year period of sustained championship level of play—actually tho—in the world's sport needs to be taken seriously in any conversation, even in our NFL-centric domesticated sporting culture.
Worried: You'll find any place with a liquor license re-brand themselves as a "soccer bar."
If you haven't noticed a few colorfully dressed, 10 a.m. Guinness drinkers, chanting and screaming at your favorite brunch spot on weekends, then bless you: Your favorite weekend morning bar/restaurant/bodega hasn't been forcibly converted into a soccer bar by a lazy cash-grabbing owner. And when that happens fans get sucked in to a lame viewing experience, and fail to really feel what the World Cup can do to people. Do your research, and watch games at bars that already have footy street cred.
Don't be the lame who goes to Johnny Utah's in midtown for a match. I got sucked in to going there with a friend for the Champions League Final. That cavernous, hollow tourist-trap is around the corner from the Rockefeller Center and Radio City Musical Hall, and is within a hungry man's walking distance of Times Square. This cowboy-themed bar—and ones of similar motives—should be avoided at all costs, even if I can totally see Clint Dempsey riding the mechanical bull there.
Excited: Our generation's two biggest stars are still chasing that winner's medal.
If you think about the undisputed best soccer players of all-time before Ronaldo and Messi became Ronaldo and Messi, that Top 5 is: Pele, Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane, Johan Cruyff, and Brazilian Ronaldo. All of those players have won at least one World Cup, and because Cruyff didn't, he's not in the discussion for the Top 2. If Cruyff had just won one World Cup, he'd likely be considered the best ever. Kind of like how Peyton Manning will probably retire with one ring but still might go down as the greatest ever.
Ronaldo and Messi have won every meaningful trophy in international club soccer except for the game's biggest prize. Similar to every year from here to infinity, every season is a referendum on LeBron James' legacy, every World Cup is a referendum on theirs. Win this, and you're No. 1. Decent money on either actually doing it this year.
Worried: Kick-off is in eight days, and stadiums and airports aren't ready.
In eight days, the 2014 FIFA World Cup should kick-off. Brazil vs. Croatia in the brand fucking new—it'll be like the first shit in a new Japanese toilet—$985 million Arena Corinthians in Sao Paolo. Problem is, Arena Corinthians is still under construction. It's not unreasonable to expect that Brazil's premier World Cup venue would be done a week before the actual World Cup, so they could like, break it in or something. See where more security might be needed on match day. Analyze how the structure of the stadium and its organization responds to max capacity. Insure that everything will be spot-on.
Right now, FIFA can't deliver that, because Brazil delivered the stadium for limited testing about five months late. Additionally, the Amazon's $289,463,600 Arena da Amazônia, the Fortaleza airport, and São Paulo international terminal are still construction sites. Eight people have died at World Cup construction sites. Brazil needs to get their shit together.
Excited: Patriotism is cool again.
No, you are not "patriotic" just because you have a tank top with the U.S. flag on it. You're following a trend. In actuality, millions of Americans of all ages have plenty to be discontent about in this country. People are unhappy and disillusioned by their government and their own lack of urgency to enact meaningful change on either side of the aisle. The World Cup changes that.
It makes people are statistically happier because of their country, not in spite of it. Besides Olympic hockey games and the 2001 World Series, there aren't many public outbursts of patriotism. The World Cup is an exception though. Reuters may say that two in three Americans won't follow the World Cup, but that doesn't mean they won't be exposed to it, or even not watch it.
