The World Cup All Name Team

Essentially, in order to play for a country in the World Cup, you need to be a citizen of that country. It's not that cut and dry as the rules are a little more complex and have changed in recent years after Qatar started handing out citizenship to a bunch of Brazilian players (smart move). Regardless, unless you are dealing with North Korea where no one has ever been let in or out, you sometimes, although not always, will get some unexpected players and names on World Cup rosters.

So here are your starting 11 players for the Wild Card team. Try and guess the country they play for and even the country of origin (Answers are below).

1. Nikita Rukavytsya

2. Jean Beausejour

3. Hans Sarpei

4. Georgie Welcome

5. Blaise N'Kufo

6. Xherdan Shaqiri

7. Benny Feilhaber

8. Taye Taiwo

9. Alex Song

10. Khalid Boulahrouz

11. Steve Mandanda


Answers:

1. Nikita Rukavytsya: Forward, Australia(shown in the left). Born in the Ukraine. Moved to Australia at 14.

2. Jean Beausejour: Midfielder, Chile. Haitian father and Chilean mother.

3. Hans Sarpei: Defender, Ghana. Born in Ghana, raised in Germany.

4. Georgie Welcome: Forward, Honduras (pictured to the right). This gets my vote for best name in the tournament. Who knew "Welcome" was a Latin word?


5. Blaise N'Kufo: Forward, Switzerland. Born in Zaire.

6. Xherdan Shaqiri: Midfielder, Switzerland. Born in Yugolsavia. Those Swiss are pulling in players from all over the world. Typical.

7. Benny Feilhaber: Midfielder, United States. Benny was born in Brazil and came to the US when he was six. You might have guessed American, but I didn't think Feilhaber was a Portuguese or Brazilian name.

8. Taye Taiwo: Defender, Nigeria. Taiwo seemed more, well, Taiwanese to me. However, it could very well be a "classic" Nigerian name. I must admit that I'm not too familiar with common Nigerian names. It just didn't quite sound as "Nigerian" as Obafemi Martins or Dickson Etuhu.

9. Alex Song: Midfielder, Cameroon. Granted, if I had put his whole name, Alexandre Song Billong, some people may have guessed his country. I'm not sure if the full name is a common Cameroon name or sounds like it's from Cameroon. But it seems closer than Alex Song.

10. Khalid Boulahrouz: Defender, Netherlands (pictured). Although he was born in the Netherlands, he's a Dutch-Muslim and his parents are from Morroco.

11. Steve Mandanda: Goalie, France. Mandanda was born in Congo but moved to France at a young age. Even though French is the official language in Congo, this doesn't sound French at all.






Just for fun, here are the starting 11 for the Classic Names Team. (Note: I'm operating on complete name stereotypes here.)

1. Bastian Schweinsteiger: Midfielder, Germany. The Captain of the team. It's every cliche German sound all rolled into one last name. Plus his first name is Bastian.

2. Grafite: Forward, Brazil. A great Brazilian soccer name. His full name is Batista Libanio Edinaldo. I'm not sure if all Brazilians go by one name or if it's an honor you get once you make the national team. There were a lot of other candidates like Kaka or Robinho. But it's hard passing up Grafite.

3. Sokratis Papastathopoulos: Defender, Greece (pictured on the right). Classic Greek name. Or so I think at least. You need a K and P somewhere in there and the last name has to be at least 15 letters long and completely unpronounceable.

4. Antonio Di Natale: Forward, Italy. One of those names where you can't help but sound Italian and even sing a little bit while saying it. You might even hold up one of your hands and touch all your fingers together as you say it.

5. Keisuke Honda: Midfielder, Japan. For an admittedly ignorant American playing the stereotype card, this is as good as it gets. The only way it could have been better was if his name was Sony Godzilla.

6. Zdravko Kuzmanovic: Midfielder, Serbia. I'm honestly not sure how uniquely Serbian this name is, but it seems to fit with things like the "Zd" combo. Actually born in Switzerland, but parents are from Serbia, so that is why he played for Serbia.

7. Kim Jung-Woo: Midfielder, South Korea. A seemingly simple and predictable Korean name.

8. Andre-Pierre Gignac: Forward, France. If someone told me to think of three French names I would have said Jacques, Andre and Pierre. This guy has two of them in his first name. Not to mention a last name that I'm sure I would completely butcher as I doubt you pronounce it how an American would read it.

9. Rafael Van der Vaart: Midfielder, Netherlands. This is more of the Dutch name you think of versus Khalid Boulahrouz. You can't get any more classic than Van der Vaart.

10. Pedro: Forward, Spain. His name is actually Pedro Rodriguez which is just about as common as John Smith.

11. Jesper Christiansen: Goalie, Denmark. I picture Jesper cruising out in the morning with his buddies Lars and Soren and grabbing a pastry.

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Mexico v. South Africa - The Kickoff Game: Quick Hits

So Mexico and South Africa have started things off with a 1-1 tie. Here's a couple of quick thoughts on the opening game:

1. Man those vuvuzelas are annoying. I don't know who invented them, but the person should be tortured along with the person that invented the "boom sticks." They should be sentenced to a small room where their inventions are either smacked together or blown loudly until the person goes insane. They are so annoying. Just listen to the video. It's amazing that the noise is constant throughout the game. At any given point during the game there are at least a dozen 10 year old boys just blowing their lungs out on those things. I much prefer the singing.

2. Somewhat inexplicably, Mexico subbed in this guy: Cuauhtémoc Blanco. I say somewhat because he is clearly skilled. When he got the ball, he made some pretty precise passes. However, he didn't get the ball that much because they guy is 37 years old and at least 20 pounds overweight. It was actually really entertaining watching him play. He looked like every old man playing pick up soccer in your local park. Every time he ran or attempted to run, he looked like he was laboring quite a bit with a bad hip and or two bad knees. Apparently he's a legend for the Mexican soccer team. He played in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups. I'm glad Mexico is honoring their elders, but at some point the guy becomes a liability because he's so slow and out of shape.

3. South Africa has some legit forwards. They are fast. South Africa didn't have many chances, but they played the long ball well and had some great fastbreaks. And they took advantage of one of them. What a great first goal to the cup. Just a beauty.

4. I know a tie is boring, but in this group, it's great. If Mexico had won they would likely go through as they could probably tie or beat France and Uruguay. But with a tie, it just adds to the unpredictability of this group. I guess we'll know more once France plays. Who knows what team will show up there. They could be brilliant or dismal. So with a tie in this game and bi-polar France, it sets up for a lot of fun drama. Which is always great.

Here is the goal, and the vuvuzelas:

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2010 World Cup - Ultimate Music Preview - Group A

We here at Fastbreak like to mix thing up and entertain all of our readers while also informing them about the wonderful world of futbol. Thus, we thought the best way to get everyone geared up for the Cup and informed on all of the teams, would be to compare each team with the band or artist that they most closely resemble. If you want to see the entire list of all teams and groups, you can click on the link on the left. You can also jump to each group by clicking on the group on the left.

Without further ado, here's your 2010 World Cup preview:

Group A

France: Green Day

Green Day burst onto the music scene with their Dookie album. It was a massive hit. There's no escaping that album as songs from it are still played on the radio. The album had huge hits: "Longview" "She" "When I Come Around" (aka "uhwhen I come uhrouhound") and so on. After Dookie, Green Day sort of fell off the earth. Sure they had the Nimrod album and the Time of Your Life single, but it was nothing compared with Dookie success. Everyone had forgotten about Green Day and cast them off as old and has-beens until....American Idiot, where they once again blew up the music scene and radio stations across the world overplayed their songs so much it was practically impossible not to get sick of Green Day.

Similar to Green Day, France launched into the world soccer scene in 1998. They didn't even qualify for the previous two World Cups. However, they were the host country and just dominated the competition and won the Cup in one of the more convincing finals victories ever. After 1998 however, they went MIA. They were horrible in the 2002 World Cup. They didn't score a goal and were bounced in the first round. By the time 2006 rolled around, they were old and no one expected much of them after a dismal 2002. However, like Green Day, when everyone had cast them off, they came out of nowhere and went to the finals. The media loved it like the DJ's loved Green Day. The Zidane coverage was ridiculous. Especially after the headbutt. Remember the headbutt? That headbutt by Zidane? Yeah, he headbutted a guy. It was a big deal and big headbutt. People couldn't stop talking about the headbutt. Headbutt.

So what can we expect this year? Who knows. France only qualified for the World Cup because of a very controversial hand ball. Thus, the karma gods are against them. They do have a talented team with Franck Ribery, Nicolas Anelka, Patrice Evra, Erick Abidal, and many others. But they have looked terrible, can't find team chemistry and only seem to play well when the World Cup is in Europe. I don't expect much and I'd say that you should count them out, but like Green Day, they have proven you just can't say they are done. Although I'm sure that France would love for me to count them out so that they could prove me wrong - stupid American Idiot.

Uruguay: Beck

Do you know who won the first World Cup in 1930? Do you care? If you answered "No" to both of those questions, then your are probably happy to learn that Uruguay won the first ever World Cup in 1930 and then again in 1950. Since then, well, they have at least been a part of the tournament. The had mild success in the Cups in the 60s and 70s and have slowly been tapering off since then.

Beck is Uruguay. He dominated when he first came into the music scene. Everyone of course knows the song Loser, but he also had great albums with Mellow Gold, Odelay and Mutations. Even when he changed his style for Sea Change, people still loved it. Guero was even great, but like Uruguay, he's sort of been fading as of late. His last couple of albums have been completely forgettable. However Uruguay, like Beck, has lots of talent. They also have a great striker named Diego Forlan who has awesome golden locks like Beck. Just look at that sweet hair (I would have put up a picture of Beck running as well so you could see his beauty in motion, but I'm not sure Beck has ever run in his life). Like Beck, the potential is there with Uruguay. Will it actually come out this summer? With such a weak group, its definitely possible.



South Africa: Janet Jackson

On one hand, you could say that Janet Jackson is only famous because of her older brothers. That statement would probably upset a lot of people, but she was born into a music family and she had to become a musician. You could easily argue that she wouldn't have been a part of the music scene without the success of the Jackson 5. The thing is, you can argue with the statement, or you can just say, "who cares how she got into the industry, she is legit. And that's all that matters." Which is very true. Maybe she didn't have to work as hard to get into the spotlight, but once she was there, she held her own.

That's South Africa in the World Cup. They are the host nation. They get an automatic bid. Because they aren't a soccer powerhouse, it's easy to think they are only here for that reason. But there are a few reasons to believe South Africa is actually legit and could do well even though they didn't have to work to get here. First of all, in the Confederations Cup last summer, South Africa held their own against Spain and Brazil - the two best teams in the world right now. South Africa was surprisingly strong. Also, South Africa has a weak group. Who knows what you are getting from France. Mexico is decent but not amazing and Uruguay is a complete wild card. Plus, South Africa is playing at home. That's a huge advantage. They may not have worked hard to get here, but don't be surprised if South Africa holds their own and at least makes it out o the group stage.


Mexico: Phish

Phish has been around for a few decades now. They have never really been a mainstream band but they have a huge cult following. Phish fans will always tell you how amazing Phish songs are and especially how incredible Phish is in concert. They will go on and on about those concerts.

This is Mexico. Mexico has never really been a country that has obtained a huge following apart from their own citizens. On top of that, they have never been that good. They have consistently been decent, but never a serious Cup contender. They always make the World Cup, but never make much of an impact. For the past 5 World Cups, they have been eliminated in the round of 16. They are a strong, decent team. And this year is no different. It won't be surprising to see them make it out of this group because this group is weak, but they won't do much more than that. Like Phish, they'll never make it to the top and win the Cup, but they'll always be around and always have a strong, loyal following.

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2010 World Cup - Ultimate Music Preview - Group B

Group B

Argentina: Nirvana

Way back in the 90s, Generation X was young and full of angst. They looked to Seattle for leadership and found flannel shirts, grunge music, and Nirvana. Nirvana was led by a volatile genius whose music resonated with an entire generation fed up with hair bands and heavy metal. Curt Cobain was the drug addicted leader of one of the most talented bands of his generation, which included Dave Grohl, a genius in his own right who went on to form Foo Fighters (played every instrument on the debut album).

Way back about a year ago, Argentina’s national team needed a new leader. Apparently, all of the sane people were too busy, so they turned to the Curt Cobain of the Argentine soccer scene, Diego Maradona, a brilliant footballer who had led his country to the pinnacle of success and then thrown it all away for drugs. He nearly killed himself a few years ago and now is the manager of one of the world’s best soccer nations. So here we have an incredibly talented group, lead by a brilliant psycho who could self-destruct at any time and destroy the team. Hopefully, players like Leo Messi, Diego Milito, Javier Mascherano, Gonzalo Higuain, Walter Samuel, and Javier Zanetti (scratch that one from the list, Diego dumped him and Esteban Cambiasso), the team will avoid self-destruction.

Argentina will advance, but no one really knows how long they can keep it together. They have the potential to be one of the greatest of all time but could easily self-destruct like Nirvana. That's the risk when you are led by a madman.

Greece: Daniel Powter

Back when credit was easy and the European Union was strong, Greece won the European Championship, a tournament many consider harder to win than the World Cup itself. It was 2004 when Greece took down Portugal (in Portugal) to win the European Championship. Many consider it to be the greatest upset of all time. Two years later, they did not qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Sort of an ominous foreshadowing of the country’s economic situation in 2010 as the bubble has burst and they are now straddled with debt burdens that they can never pay off. They were a true one-hit wonder.

This is the list of the greatest one hit wonders of all time. These bands made it all the way to #1 on the charts and then faded out. Despite the fact that Greece hasn’t disappeared completely from the soccer scene, it just seems right to declare the team as the greatest one hit wonder of all time. We're guessing that they’ll win another major tournament about the time when they get their national debt paid off (is there a U.S. parallel here?). They are a gritty hard nosed team that looks for penalties and set pieces to win. I would save your time and only watch highlights of these guys. To us, they don’t play like any of these bands sound but it just seems right, given the current events over there that we should dub them Daniel Powter because “Bad Day” just fits. We know. Daniel Powter is not a band. It’s one dude. It just fits, all right?

Nigeria: Sufjan Stevens

The Super Eagles have are a decent but boring team. Their biggest advantage is that they are playing on their home continent. We're honestly not sure why that is such a great advantage unless the South Africans decide to adopt every other African nation in this tournament. Are Nigerians going to pour into South Africa to support their team? No. They’re not. Nigeria will rely on defense and counter-attacks (fastbreak futbol!) to advance.

This is Sufjan Stevens. Hi, Sufjan. Your music is enjoyable but gets a little boring. Chicago is your most famous song and, we like it. We're giving this song to Nigeria in hopes that it propels them to surpass their performance in 1998, when they advanced to the knock-out rounds. All things grow, all things grow. Nigeria, like Sufjan, you’re a decent but slightly boring team.





South Korea: Sublime

We somehow managed to make suicide the overarching theme for this group. South Korea doesn’t have a psycho at the reigns but they are a bit of a one trick pony. Without Manchester United’s Ji Sung Park, this team doesn’t pack much of a punch and might as well be North Korea and the Long Beach Dub All Stars. Hopefully Ji-Sung doesn’t kill himself in the meantime.

Our favorite South Korea moment of the past, well, ever, was when they hosted the 2002 World Cup and got sweet short track speed skating revenge on the U.S. That’s right. Short-track speed skating is very important over there. In the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, U.S. speedskater, Apollo Anton Ohno was awarded the Gold Medal in the 1500 m race after South Korean Kim Dong-Sung was disqualified blocking Ohno, who made an exaggerated motion to show that Dong-Sung had blocked him. It was short-track speed skating’s version of the dive. Fast forward to the World Cup that summer. South Korean Ahn Jung-Hwan scored a goal against the U.S. In his celebration he imitates Ohno’s exaggerated motion. Most Americans were confused and then shocked that it meant so much to them.

Enjoy the video of the celebration.

And Sublime:

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2010 World Cup - Ultimate Music Preview - Group C

Group C

Algeria: Taylor Hicks

Taylor who? Exactly. Taylor Hicks. Apparently he won American Idol a few years ago and then fell off the map. In a way, Algeria shouldn't even be in the tournament. It should be Egypt. Egypt beat Algeria in the African Cup of Nations final, but Algeria later shocked Egypt in the final World Cup qualifier. Egypt is the better team and should be in the Cup.

Taylor Hicks is like every other Idol winner that went on to sell 12 records and end up singing the National Anthem at WNBA and minor league baseball games. Surely there was a better singer in the competition, but for whatever reason, Taylor Hicks won. Will you remember Algeria in the World Cup? It's about as likely as you remembering Taylor Hicks by the end of the next paragraph.


England: Kanye West

Oh Kanye. What a guy. Few would argue that he is wildly talented. Some may justifiably argue that he is the most talented rapper in the world. The man is brilliant, but also pretty crazy. You never know what you are going to get with Kanye. You could brilliance like the albums Late Registration or Graduation with songs like "Jesus Walks" or "Stronger". Or you could get things like his most recent album: 808s & Heartbreak. Which was average at best. And this is just his music. Need we even mention his unpredictable behavior in public? Sure. Why not. Here. Here. And my favorite here (the 1:40 moment is just golden).

England is like Kanye. They are incredibly talented. They have a stacked team led by the fearless Wayne Rooney. He's a beast. Although not really a sexy beast. But he's a workhorse and has amazing ability. Couple that with a strong midfield and England could win it all. Unfortunately, England is also like Kanye in that they are wildly dramatic and unpredictable. They didn't even qualify for the most recent Euro Cup in 2008. In the World Cups they always seem to underperform and finish with mediocre results. Plus, there is always team drama. In past World Cups it was controversial red cards from Beckham and Rooney. This year, one of the players slept with another player's ex-girlfriend. It was a tabloid frenzy in England.

This summer Kanye is supposed to release another album. Just like England this summer, we know Kayne has the talent and the potential to come up with something brilliant. Will the album be Graduation brilliant or 808 mediocre? Will England be brilliant or fall apart like past cups? There's no way of really knowing. Just be sure to watch because no matter what happens, it's guaranteed to be entertaining.

Slovenia: Dead Weather

Slovenia is yet another country formed from the former Yugolsavia. Yugoslavia is essentially like Jack White with all of his many break off bands. Serbia, as noted, is the Jack White off all of the break off since they are essentially the talent base. Dead Weather is Jack White's latest project, but it's relatively unknown, at least compared to other projects. That doesn't mean its not good, just not receiving as much publicity.

Slovenia is the relatively unknown break off country. They qualified for the 2002 World Cup but lost all three of their round-robin games. They failed to qualify for 2006 and surprised almost everyone when they qualified for 2010 by beating Russia - a surprise omission this year. So they have talent. Again though, they are overshadowed in their group by the US and England. Those two teams are the heavy favorites as everyone expects them to advance out of the group. While that is likely, don't count out Slovenia. Remember they are a "Jack White" break off. You may not have given much attention to Dead Weather, but that doesn't mean it isn't quality. Slovenia plays the US on June 18. The US could be coming off a loss from England and will need a victory to stay alive. Don't sleep on Slovenia. If the US does, they could be Dead in the W(e)at(h)er.

USA: MGMT

It's a pretty simple comparison here. MGMT is one of the best bands of the past couple of years. Are they the greatest band around today? Probably not. Are they in the conversation for the greatest band of all time? Definitely not. But they are really good and talented and there are high hopes for them. Which is pretty much where you find the US right now. The US team is talented. More and more of their players are playing for some of the top clubs in Europe. Like MGMT they are a legit team and they should advance out of this group and maybe even win a game or two in the knock out rounds. But the US is still young and still at least 8-12 years (2-3 World Cups) from being a serious contender. We'll know in the next decade if MGMT is a legitimately talented group that has staying power. Which is probably about the earliest we'll actually see the US making a serious run in the World Cup. In the meantime, enjoy the good music. It's very entertaining, just not timeless yet.

A US National Team video to get you pumped

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2010 World Cup - Ultimate Music Preview - Group D

Group D

Australia: Phoenix

The Australian National Team is really very European. Like most competitive countries, they have a large contingent of players making a living in Europe. They were a joke in the world of international soccer until they imported European football by hiring a Dutch manager, Guus Hiddink. In 2006, he led the team into the second round, where they were knocked out by eventual champions, Italy. Phoenix, like the Australian team, has a European feel, probably due to the fact that they're a French band. Their sound has an electronic and indie air to it. We like their music and we like the Australian team, and, while we re more than content to listen to a few of their songs, we'd be hard pressed to label them as the next best thing. Australia has a few strong players in Tim Cahill and Mark Schwarzer. They play with a lot of heart, and despite still having a Dutch manager, we'll be very surprised if they get to the second round. Like Phoenix, they aren't the next big thing.

Germany: Coldplay

With Germany and Coldplay, you know what to expect. Germany is a great footballing nation that will probably make it to the quarterfinals or semifinals by simply stepping onto the pitch, playing teams to a draw, and then efficiently destroying their opponents in penalty shoot-outs. They have flashes of brilliance and an awesome history. Coldplay is the same in a lot of ways. We basically know we're going to get from Coldplay at this point. It's good music but it's not going to change the industry. Germany won the World Cup in 1954, 1974, and 1990 but hasn't won since reunification and definitely hasn't been able to keep pace with Italy and Brazil as far as winning major tournaments the past 10 years. Still they have a lot of talent and could easily advance deep into the World Cup. The story here is that they lost captain Michael Ballack for the tournament after a member of the Ghana national team made an ugly tackle at the end of the Premier League season. Everyone is waiting to see what happens to Kevin Prince-Boateng when Germany and Ghana play in the first round.

Big questions marks are still lingering over this team because they don't have a great striker. Miroslav Klose has been relegated to the bench at Bayern Munich with Mario Gomez. Lucas Podolski scored two goals this year. They have to hope that Bastien Schweinsteiger makes up the difference from midfield along with 13 year old German captain, Philip Lahm.  The lead up to this World Cup is reminiscent of lead up to Coldplay's release of Viva la Vida.  Fans were excited for the new album but no one was really sure what to expect.  Would they go for a harder sound?  Would they regain their form from years past?  The result was an album that was universally respected.  We expect a similar result for Germany in the World Cup.

Ghana: Poison

Ghana's best player, Michael Essien, is out of the World Cup. We'd use U2 due to Bono's injured back, but that's way too much of a compliment for Ghana. So, Poison, with Michael Essien playing the part of Bret Michaels, it is. Ghana is a good but not great footballing country. They have talent and have won the African Cup of Nations four times, the latest back in the 80s. Not much has happened with them lately though. We expect them to park the bus, but their chances of advancing out this group are about as good as Poison's chances of winning a Grammy next year. Slim to none.



Serbia: Jack White

When the White Stripes broke up, Jack White took most of the creative talent with him, just like Serbia took most of the footballing talent when Yugoslavia broke apart. Like Jack White, Serbia is legit. They're line up includes players from Chelsea, Manchester United, Inter Milan, and a host of German sides. They have a hard edge to them due to the presence of Nemanja Vidic and Branislav Ivanovic. Jack White's reputation proceeds him and when he finds the right combination of people around him, his work is brilliant. It remains to be seen whether or not Serbia has found the right mix. They were on the losing end of a 6-1 drubbing from Argentina back in 2006 but they also have a long history of getting to the second round.  They have matured as a team since the last World Cup and we expect them to advance to the knock out stages.

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2010 World Cup - Ultimate Music Preview - Group E

Group E

Netherlands: Radiohead

In the 1970s, the Netherlands was suddenly the only team that mattered. They created a style that departed from mainstream soccer in Total Football and changed the game. They were the greatest of their time and still produce many of the world's best players and the best football. If you aren't a soccer fan, watch them play and you'll be converted. They're the neurotic geniuses who changed the game forever, importing their style to the world. Despite all of their genius, they have only one Championship trophy with their name on it; the 1988 European Cup. How is it possible that they have never won the World Cup? It's all in their heads. They reached the final match in both 1974 and 1978, at their peak. They dominated the final against Germany in 1974 but lost the mind games. In Neurotic Orange, the author explains that after scoring the first goal, Netherlands wanted to embarass West Germany by passing the ball around and dominating possession. It became a game of skill instead of a game of goals. When West Germany, tied up the game, the Netherlands could not mentally recover.

Radiohead departed from mainstream rock and roll with OK Computer. The Bends was the next step in the evolution of grunge, but OK Computer was something totally new. They changed everything. OK Computer is described as "a spooky, atmospheric, intense and paranoid rumination on modern life—the kind of thing that would be insufferable if it didn't float along on a procession of gorgeous melodies" by Time magazine. When Radiohead went out to promote the album, critics raved and the fans loved it, but the band nearly fell apart in the process. Thom Yorke was nearly undone by that voice inside his head. Like the Netherlands losing to West Germany at their peak, Radiohead lost out to Bob Dylan for Album of the Year in 1998. Despite all that, they remain a force in music.

To football purists, the Netherlands always ranks as a favorite to watch. In this group, like Radiohead in music, they're the only team the matters.

The debut of Total Football:



No Surprises:



Cameroon: The Killers

In 1990, only their second World Cup appearance, Cameroon became the first African Team to reach the Quarterfinals of the World Cup. Since then, Cameroon has only missed one World Cup and looks pretty much the same from year to year. Like Cameroon, The Killers debut was fantastic. Since then, they've given us bunch of albums that sound the same and are basically forgettable. Sam's Town was over after the first round and Day & Age is best known for the song Human. We all want The Killers sound from the debut album but they either don't want to go back to that sound or can't find it. Everyone wants one of the African Nations to go deep into the knock-out rounds of this tournament. Cameroon has a lot of talent and everyone will be rooting for them but we're just not sure that they can get back to their best.



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Denmark: Boyz II Men

Why is Denmark the "Boyz II Men" of the World Cup? Because both peaked in 1992 and then disappeared after that. Despite the fact that both are still hanging around, no one takes them very seriously. Denmark played it's first international friendly back in 1906 but didn't qualify for the World Cup until 1986. They quickly peaked in 1992, when they won the European Championship and have kind of hung around ever since. They aren't the same team that they were in the 90s but have enough history and talent to potentially make some noise. We won't be too surprised if they make it to the second round due to their relatively easy group, but can't see them going anywhere after that.


Japan: Spice Girls

Trendy and below average, Japan and the Spice Girls have quite a bit in common. Both love David Beckham. Both showed up in the 1990s, Japan in 1998 and the Spice Girls in 1994. Nothing powerful is going to come from Japan's football team but they'll have a few fun moments this tournament. Japan's version of David Beckham is Shunsuke Nakamura, who played in Scotland for Celtic and was known for his set piece prowess. In the end, Japan is a pop team like the Spice Girls are a pop group.

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