A Little World Cup History
The World Cup was first held in 1930 and has been held every 4 years since then. The only time it was not held was in 1942 and 1946 due to World War II. The World Cup currently features 32 of the worlds best teams. However it was not always 32 teams. The tournament was expanded to 24 teams in 1986 and 32 teams in 1998. There is talks to expand the participating countries to 40 teams. Qualification for this prestigious tournament lasts up to 3 years. The World Cup is the most watched sporting event in the world garnering up to 30 billion cumulative viewers over the course of the tournament. This event is being held in Brazil this year and Brazil is actually one of the most successful participating countries capturing the World Cup title 5 times!
Participating Teams
2014 Qualifying Countries
- Australia
- Iran
- Japan
- South Korea
- United States
- Chile
- Uruguay
- Croatia
- Germany
- Netherlands
- Spain
- Algeria
- Cameroon
- Ghana
- Ivory Coast
- Argentina
- Columbia
- Belgium
- England
- Greece
- Portugal
- Switzerland
- Nigeria
- Costa Rica
- Honduras
- Mexico
- Brazil
- Ecuador
- Bosnia+Herzgovina
- France
- Italy
- Russia
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2014 World Cup Brackets
32 teams enter, and only one leaves as the World Champion. Legends are made while billions watch. The World Cup is the largest sporting event aside from the Olympics. I wish all 32 teams the best of luck in the coming weeks.
Home Sweet Home
Home field advantage comes into play in every sport, from Football and Baseball, to Hockey, and Soccer. But does the home field advantage really come into play during the World Cup? Research has shown that the host country of the World Cup actually has a sizable advantage during the tournament. A recent report produced by Goldman Sachs found that the home field advantage added 0.4 goals per game. In a sport where scores hover around 1-0 and 2-1 that 0.4 can truly be the deciding factor. Did you know that the home team was 30% of all of the World Cups since 1930? Not only that, but the world's traditional football powerhouses like Brazil, Italy, Germany, Argentina, Uruguay, Spain, France ,and England have won over 50% of all the World Cups ever held. The is heading beyond just superstition almost into factual territory. There is no denying the effect that home field advantage has on the World Cup participants.
The World Cup Trophy
The World Cup trophy is awarded to the winner of the FIFA World Cup tournament. In the tournament's history two trophies have been used. The first trophy was originally named "Victory" but was later changed to "Honour" after former FIFA president Jules Rimet. After several years of dominance Brazil won the original trophy outright in 1970. However, in 1983 the trophy was stolen from Brazil and was never recovered. The new trophy was called the "FIFA World Cup Trophy" and was made of 18 carat gold with a malachite base. The new trophy stood 36.8 centimeters tall and weighed in at 6.1 kilograms. The new trophy was designed by the Stabilimento Artistico Bertoni Company and depicted two human figures holding up the Earth. The current reigning trophy holder is Spain who won the trophy in 2010.
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