Just getting warmed up

Admissions of failure, chants of praise and even random gibberish become more and more common as World Cup proceeds.

The 2014 Fifa World Cup may just be getting warmed up but several players have already packed up their luggage, along with their expectations, and are now headed home. Spain, the defending champions, became the fourth holders in World Cup history to crash out during the first round. This spectacular upset, however, does not take the shine off Chile’s moment of pride as they gear up for the second round of the mega event.

The next phase will see the number of competitors chopped into half. Admissions of failure, chants of praise and even random gibberish become more and more common as the World Cup proceeds. Couple these with the higher stakes and nerve-wracking drama, both on and off the field, amid fans and players alike and it makes the package all the more tempting. If one isn’t following the World Cup these days, he or she is missing out.

Pakistan’s interest at the World Cup was never in doubt as there are more football fans in the country than one can count. However, the made-in-Pakistan Brazuca justified the following of those whose interest extends beyond that of ‘ordinary fans’. The country was represented at the World Cup by being one of the suppliers of the official ball. That has already been touted as a reason behind the high-scoring affairs seen so far. At the 2010 final, Spain beat the Netherlands 1-0 with the goal just before the end of extra time, waking up fans, who had been put to sleep. This time, the two teams — the Netherlands obviously more so than Spain — compensated for their low tally of goals in South Africa and gave a glimpse of what is to come by giving fans a true goal fest.

Spain’s display has signalled the end of their era of dominance. Almost every day will bring down the curtains on a team’s chance to progress. If the general perception proves to be a reasonable assumption, then Germany, Argentina, Belgium and the Netherlands could be the teams that progress further than most, with one of them getting hands on the exquisite World Cup trophy.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2014.

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