Group F pits three predominantly Islamic nations against one hardcore Catholic nation. It’s not quite Samuel Huntington’s Clash of Civilisations, but it’s close. Here’s how it’s going to play out. 1st place – Argentina Argentina are good at football. Their players have long hair and great phonetic names. Any seasoned football fan will understand these…
Read More TPA’s Wacky World Cup Previews: Group FUndisputedly the Group of Life, Belgium must have been quietly pleased when these bunch of easy-beats were pulled out alongside them. No doubt Russia felt entitled to an easy group and could possibly trump Belgium for the top spot, but I fear Algeria and Korea face being drowned in a bukkake of goals. Sure, Korea may…
Read More TPA’s Wacky World Cup Previews: Group H1st – Brazil ‘Brasil’, to football hipsters. ‘The Selecao’, to pretentious football hipsters. I can’t wait to watch The Selecao – at home, in a World Cup, with gold emblazoned shirts – playing dynamic, powerful, expressive, samba football. It really represents triple grade A purity from a sporting point of view. Really, they should win…
Read More TPA’s Wacky World Cup Previews: Group APREDICTIONS 1st – FRANCE (FIFA Ranking: 16. GDP: US$2.6 trillion) It is a given that France will progress through to the second round. Historically, France, unlike Switzerland, is a perfect example of a country tailor-made for football. Here’s why: 1) French intellectuals were pivotal in the European movement known as the Enlightenment; therefore the French have a…
Read More TPA’s Wacky World Cup Previews: Group E“Of all the groups in all the World (Cup), you had to walk into this one?” …is a sentence that none of the teams in Group C will be saying to one another. I see no footballing or historical rivalries in this group and quite frankly it disappoints me. Four countries from four completely different…
Read More TPA’s Wacky World Cup Previews: Group C