World Cup predictions

For the record, I had this post ready to go Friday morning, before any of the matches kicked off. (You know, Blogger always seems to have issues with publishing at really bad times.) That is to say, that all my predictions were made pre-Cup play. (And C - you know who you are - I really did make that prediction about your team advancing, and after seeing the results and clips from their first match, I still stand by it even more.)

I know this is an MLS blog, but you have got to be kidding if you think I am going to ignore the greatest soccer event on the planet. In fact, I normally ignore MLS during the Cup (regardless of whether any of my teams make it far), and this year is the first year that I plan to at least follow the MLS scores and standings during the duration of the Cup.

I have to keep reminding myself why I decided to register for summer classes and ask for more hours at work - during World Cup year. I keep having to remind myself that I want to a) graduate with and b) pay for my MA. I keep telling myself it's worth it.

If you haven't yet played around the official FIFA World Cup site, you really should. You can check out the standings, match schedule, video highlights after each game, down load all sorts of screensavers and wallpapers to dress up your desktop, etc. If my memory serves me right, in '02 they added new wallpapers after each round, so it wouldn't hurt to keep checking back to see if they've uploaded anything else.

My predictions for the teams to make it out of group play:
Group A: Germany and Ecuador
Group B: England and Trinidad
Group C: Argentina and the Netherlands
Group D: Mexico and Portugal
Group E: USA (yes, I'm biased) and Italy
Group F: Brazil and Croatia
Group G: France and Korea
Group H: Spain and Tunisia

I see Germany as being a very serious contendor. I expect them to make it to the final, or if they play badly, to the third place match. They have the home country and continent advantage. (Only once has a South American team won in Europe, or vice versa, and that was decades ago when Pele played for Brazil). I do see Brazil easily making it to the final, though history is against them winning it. The last time the Cup was in Europe (France '98), Brazil made it to the final and lost to the host country. I wouldn't be surprised to see a repeat of that performance.

The US has made significant progress since the '98 debacle. They placed 8th four years ago, and I expect them to make it that far again this year. Then again, coming out of their horrible performance in France, they had the element of suprise in '02. That element has diminished, though I argue that it's still there. After all, few people expect the US to make it to the top four. Here's to hoping they don't screw up.

All of that said, the World Cup has been known to surprise us. Few people expected the USMNT to beat Portugal and place 8th four years ago. Few people expected to see Croatia place 3rd 8 years ago. Suprises do happen, and I'm excited to see what surprises are in store for us this year.

Every World Cup (from '94 to the present), I pick 3 or 4 countries to closely follow and cheer on. The USMNT is a given. The other countries I'm plugging for this year are England, Germany, and the Ivory Coast. Yes, I really am cheering on a team that I don't expect to make it out of group play. Remember what I said about surprises? I always pick a team that I consider to be an underdog, and my usual pick didn't qualify this year, so the Ivory Coast is my next best choice. I'm going for England, simply because I always have. Now mind you that if any one of these three end up playing the USMNT at any point, my loyalties to the USMNT are far stronger. If two of the three (England, Germany, and the Ivory Coast) end up playing each other, then I'll be happy regardless of the outcome. It'll be even more interesting if it happens in the final. In '98, two of my teams happened to be France and Brazil, and so that was definitely an interesting final for me to watch.

A few final words: Go USA!