Well the biggest sporting event in the world is over for another four years. The past month has certainly been filled with ups and downs, highs and lows, and all sorts in between.
Obviously only one team really won, but many of the other 31 teams also did a lot that they should be proud of and some of them…well there’s always 2014.
Here are my thoughts on the biggest winners and losers of the event.
WINNER: Spain — I’ll get the easy one one out of the way here. Spain outlasted every other team and earned the right to be called champions of the world for the next four years. But this is not Brazil or Italy winning their eleventy billionth titles, this is Spain, the world’s greatest underachievers doing it in grand fashion. The Spanish hadn’t even made it to the semi-finals since 1950, despite generations of talent in between. Two years ago they got the big monkey off their back and won the European Championship, so there were obviously some very high expectations. However, after their opening loss it looked like it would be same old, same old for the Spanish. Unshaken, they came back and won all of their remaining games and are now only the 8th nation to win the tournament, joining Uruguay, Italy, (West) Germany, Brazil, England, Argentina, and France in very elite company.
LOSER: France and Itlay — I’m going to lump both of the 2006 Finalists as one here. Both sides looked utterly disappointing in groups that they both should have easily won. The French spent more time arguing than trying to win, and the Italians somehow managed to only draw against New Zealand, in one of the worse showing ever, especially for the defending champions. These two really brought down the standard of play in the early stages of the tournament and we were all better off not having them around anymore.
WINNER: USA — Sure they have made it farther in the past, but there was something special about this team. They started out great with a shocking draw against the English, and followed it up with great showings against Slovenia and Algeria. Of course, they lost in the Round of16 to Ghana, but they seemed like, for the first time, that they had the attention of the entire country. The ratings for these games were the highest that they have ever been in the US, and Landon Donovan seemed like he may just be a big star in the making for a nation that needs big name athletes. A country as wealthy and well populated as the US should be able to field a very strong threat, and I think that the interest that this team gained could make that a possibility in the future.
LOSER: Wayne Rooney – This was supposed to be his stage to prove that he is the best in the world at what he does. He failed, miserably. He showed a really lack of class on and off the pitch. For a team full of underachievers and disappointments, he is in a class all to himself.
WINNER: Ghana – The only African nation to advance beyond the group stages got the support of the entire continent. After South Africa, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Algeria were eliminated the “Black Stars” became the easy hometown favourites. They stunned the US and were denied a chance to be the most successful African team at the World Cup by cheating and a stupid rule. They nonetheless became the team du jour and should hopefully serve as a good source of inspiration for Africa to finally find a way to make the final four next time.
LOSER: The Officials – While bad calls are pretty common in sports, some of these really take the cake. The US was denied against Slovenia for no reason, England somehow wasn’t given a goal that should have counted, and of course there was poor Ghana. FIFA really needs to look into replays at some point, I know that it slows the game down, but there is so much riding on these games that sometimes it just needs to be right.
WINNER: The Fans – Sure the tournament started a little boring, but damn did it ever get awesome in no time. The coverage of this event was fantastic and the play was great. It featured an amazing end with the best team winning. As a sports fan, there isn’t much more to ask. Bring on 2014!
Until next time,
G
Tags: 17 posts, Soccer, sports that aren't hockey
