World Cup 2014

I'm a bit late on this one.  Eleven days ago, the 2014 World Cup began in Brazil.  Running for a month, and happening only once every four years, the World Cup is perhaps the most-watched venue on television today- 3.2 billion people watched the last world cup (2010, in South Africa), which makes it about 30x more popular than the Super Bowl (according to this website).  Like it or not, my fellow Americans, soccer really is the world's sport, and every country wants to see their team represented on the world stage.

The tournament consists of 32 national teams, chosen from qualifiers held in the two years leading up to the contest.  The teams are separated into groups of four, and play three games each (vs. everyone else in their group).  After these three games (called the "group stage"), the top two teams in each group (decided by their overall point total- 3 for a win, 1 for a tie, and 0 for a loss) advance to the 16-team elimination round.  This round is a standard tournament structure, with single elimination and each team advancing only with a win (ties are broken by penalty kicks).

Team USA

Whether or not you're into soccer, I recommend tuning in to the World Cup.  Living in Europe heightened my appreciation for this great tournament, and I wish at least some of the enthusiasm they displayed would carry over to the USA.  In Germany in particular, every town had a big-screen TV set up in their walking area, around which the residents would congregate to eat, drink, and be merry while watching their nation play.  And if Germany won a game?  Look out!  Horns honking, people screaming, automobiles stopping on the highway . . . it was bedlam, but joyous bedlam.  We don't really get that much excitement in the US . . . we're too big, too spread out, and too varied in our athletic interests.  That's a shame, though, and I wish it would change.  So do your part- go out somewhere public, watch the game, and have a great time.  After all, it's only once every four years.