The 2014 World Cup Final Has Been Set

32 teams spent 18 months qualifying and only 2 teams are left to compete for the glory of being world champions for the next 4 years this coming Sunday. 

*Except Brazil as the host nation - the hosting nation gets to opt out of all qualifying matches. 

Argentina & Messi vs The German Machine.

I know some of you are curious as to who I am picking, so here is a synopsis of what I think. 

Neither team has lost a match this tournament. Germany have been good at their worst, and excellent at their best, most of which has been since the start of the knock out rounds. Whereas Argentina has been consistent, but not as compelling as I think they should have been or as good as I know they can be. They have won all of their games by a single goal. And Germany, all I need to say on the goal scoring/winning topic is one word........Brazil. And ok, maybe one more......Portugal.

The German National team has had the same coach for 3 WC cycles now. The first being an assistant to our Juergen Klinsmann. Almost all of the players play in the Bundesliga (The German Top Flight league) and more specifically, they play on the two best teams. So when it comes to playing with teammates, think about this. You play for your club in European leagues 9 months of the year. 38 league games and some tournaments spread in. During league breaks is when the Internationals will then come together for maybe a week, a couple training sessions and a match. It's not a lot of time. The Argentina players are more spread out across a lot of leagues, so they don't play together as much as the Germans do but they have great talent on this team.

I wasn't kidding when I said the machine of Germany. They all have a vested interest and understand the concept of team and unity above individualism. And they play like it. They are too solidified as a unit. They have the desire, determination and they have been on fire. Germany is a 3x World Cup champion and they have reached 10 of the last 13 semifinals. Argentina a 2x champion. But then there is Messi. A 4 time winner of the Balloon D'Or award = The World's Best Player. And did I mention he just turned 27. At the age of 11 he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. However, FC Barcelona scouted him and agreed to pay for his medical bills and to move his family if he signed with them. He has been playing for them ever since and achieved a lot of trophies as a result. At 5"6 he is an example that you don't have to physically be the biggest to succeed in this sport. 

I want Argentina to win. Why? 2 reasons.....

1. Raise your hand if you feel passionately about Germans. Yeah that's what I thought.

2. I want Messi to get the Maradonna stigma off his back. I want the world to move on from Maradonna. Why? Because he is a poor example of a quality human being. Because he was a cheater, in more ways than one. Because he thinks he is god. He is the antithesis of Messi. Messi is a humble person. Grateful for all that has been given to him and all that he has achieved. He recently said he would rather win a World Cup than the Baloon D'Or, because it's something as a youngster you dream about. It's a team award, not a personal one. Messi, the guy who agreed to be on the cover of ESPN before the World Cup.....for free. For more on Maradonna, Wikipedia him, or google his name with words as "hand of god" "coke" "tax evasion" etc. But I think you get the point. 

With that said, I think Germany IS going to win. Only if Messi has the game of his life, and Argentina find a way to contain the German offense will Argentina pull this out. 

3-1 Germany is my prediction. But go Argentina and Lionel Messi.

My Opening World Cup Ramble

The World Cup. It happens only once every 4 years. The road to get there is laden with qualification matches out of a region that covers an 18 month period. Some people think that soccer or footy as I like to call it is boring. Low scoring, possession, and the 2 halves of 45 minutes with no stoppages in play. But what the World Cup represents is something greater. Soccer has always been one of those sports that you only need to speak one language in order to play with others....the language of footy. The fact you can have two teams who DON'T speak the same language competing against each other is what makes the World Cup a beautiful thing. It represents the best players of a nation coming together to play against the best teams in the world. It allows all of us to feel a kinsman-ship with our fellow countrymen over nationalistic pride. Something that often is not part of our daily meandering as we go about life. But the World Cup allows us for a moment in time to be excited about something. Excited about our heritage, our nationality, and a reminder of all the things that have affected us throughout the years as a nation of people. 

Yes, it can also bring out negative emotions and thoughts when country against country is pitted against each other in a sporting competition; depending on the past political, religious and actions of countrymen and their leaders. Pride is on the line as well as bragging rights, and no one enjoys being on the losing end of that. But it is also a chance to look at it for what it is. A game. One that requires perseverance, persistence, determination, skill and tactical acumen. While we often are fixated on sporting contests within our country, here is a chance for all Americans to embrace the 23 men (or women in a women's World Cup) as the face of US. The hope and belief resting on their shoulders on a global setting viewed by the world. 

For me, it represents what every person who loves a sport feels. The ability in itself to feel. Feel passion, anxiety, hope, excitement, anger, joy, frustration. Even those negative feelings are ones that remind us that we are human. And that when we feel, it is deeply. And for 90 minutes, we can forgot the reality of our life....good or bad. We can fall into this emotional roller coaster ride to which the result is not predetermined, that anything at any time can happen. Even in the dying moments of a game when hope is starting to feel lost and you are pondering flipping the channel or leaving the stadium. That it can in moments be resurrected and a surge of euphoria will overwhelm you. I can honestly say I don't ever feel euphoria when I go to work. But with footy....I do, I have, and I know I will continue to feel it until I die. Maybe not with very game, but with the ones that are important to me I do. I can honestly say there have been times where I am so on the edge of  an exciting moment about to happen, that I realize I have been holding my breath for at least 10 seconds. Unintentionally of course. 

Of course there are ugly facets to this game. The federation leadership (FIFA) being run by the Sith lord, the corruption, match fixing, violence because fans have taken things too far. I can't change any of that other than to not be a fan that contributes to that type of behavior. And I fully understand the root cause of those problems. As a result I choose to dwell on the purity of the game itself. To believe that despite obstacles, the actual game being played by the 22 individuals on the pitch is clean.  Maybe this is idealistic. Maybe naive, but it is how I view the game. How I want to view it, and how I want to illustrate to my child how I love the game.

There are 32 national teams that have descended upon Brazil over the next month in which one nation will lift the cup and be declared the best in the world. For that, I am truly excited to see how it all shakes out. There will be some surprises, some outcomes entirely predictable, but nothing is guaranteed. It's why you play the game. You have to work at it, for it, in order to deserve it. So what you will see is 32 teams whose players grew up one day dreaming to be part of their national team. Dreaming of one day lifting the cup for their country and earning that star on their national team jersey for years to come. 32 teams giving their all and leaving it on the pitch at the end. 

So even if you don't like soccer, embrace and support the 23 men who have been chosen to represent  the 314 MILLION Americans on the global stage. We are......One nation. One Team. #1N1T