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Are You Ready For Some Football?

Jun 4, 2010 | Filed Under: General News   Share

On 11 June South Africa and Mexico will literally kick off the 19th FIFA World Cup, the most prolific sporting event in the world. Half a million fans will pour into South Africa for the month long competition and more than one billion are expected to view the broadcasts.  Thirty two football teams will compete for one of the grandest prizes in all of sport, the golden World Cup Trophy.
While the spectacle of the World Cup is well known the history of the competition may not be.  In 1929 the then FIFA President Jules Rimet floated the idea for an international competition and largely through his efforts the historic vote was cast in favor of the tournament.  The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930 with Uruguay becoming the first ever champions, beating Argentina 4-2 in front of, at the time, an inconceivable 93,000 people in Montevideo.  Since then there have been 17 World Cups – there was a twelve year hiatus during the Second Word War – and amazingly only seven nations have hoisted the trophy.  Brazil has won five times, and behind the greatness of Pele captured an unprecedented 3 championships (58, 62 and 70) in the span of 12 years.  The Italians have won four times, the Germans, before unification, triumphed three times (a unified Germany is yet to win), Uruguay and Argentina have won twice, and France and England have won one each.
World Cup 2010 will feature 32 teams divided into eight groups. Each team earned its place in the draw after a lengthy qualification process that was played out over a three year period.  Each nation will play three matches and the top two teams in each group will advance to the pre-quarter finals.  From there the tournament will enter the knock-out phase with the winner advancing and the loser going home.  Group A consists of South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay and 1998 champions France; Group B consists of two-time champions Argentina and its rising superstar Lionel Messi, Nigeria, Korea and Greece; Group C has 1966 winners England, United States, Algeria and Slovenia; Group D is perhaps the most competitive grouping with Germany, Australia, Serbia and Ghana.  Group E consists of The Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, and Cameroon; Group F features defending champion Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, and Slovakia; Group G consists of five-time champions Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Coast and Portugal; and finally Group H with Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, and Chili.
Passion, competition, spectacle, and celebration.  The 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

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