On Saturday June 20, FIFA’s 2015 World Cup Canada will stat it’s second round of play. The first round, or ‘group play’ was held from June 6 through June 17. There were six groups of four, 24 teams having qualified for this expanded field. In group play, each team faces each of the other three teams in the group. Over the course of three games and twelve days the teams score 3 points for a win, one point for a draw, and zero points for a loss. Once every group member has played all of the others, their point totals establish their place in the group.
The second round looks similar to the Sweet Sixteen of an NCAA Basketball tourney. The sixteen teams are made up of the group winners and runners-up from each of the six groups. This accounts for 12 of the 16 teams, so the six third place teams from each group are compared, and the top four fill out the last spots of the 16 team bracket. That is where we stand today in Canada’s World Cup, the round of 16 has been established and for the next two rounds of play, it’s win or go home.
The U.S.A. entered this World Cup as one of the favorites to win it all. Currently ranked #2 behind Germany and just ahead of #3 France, the United States side has passed the eye test thus far. They have not exactly found their offensive rhythm, but their defense and overall team experience keeps the other team from getting comfortable. Playing in Canada means that the Americans will have lots of fans and their support thus far has been record setting. Sold out stadiums and TV ratings setting records while up against the NBA Finals stateside.
It is international events such as the World Cup or the Olympics that often times expands the popularity of a given sport, and soccer is leading the way in these regards. Social media and modern communications have provided a faster track for spreading the word, and Americans specifically are catching on fast. Millions of new soccer fans have been cultivated thanks to the internet and World Cup Brazil 2014, now World Cup Canada 2015 is poised to boost that number exponentially.
I have only been a “soccer fan” for the past year, having gotten the bug from the USA’s performance in Brazil just one year ago. Actually, it started with conversations with my friend Matt Landis. His passion and love for the game was fun to listen to and he answered basic questions with information that led me down the path of understanding the game. Which is the birthplace of any real love for the game. So my desire to blog about the World Cup and the beautiful game of soccer is not from a vast expertise and certainly not from years of playing the game. It is born of a love for novelty, sportsmanship and international fellowship.
Once the USA side began making waves in group play in 2014, I listened to the game against Germany on the radio as I drove from one town to the next. The radio experience was thrilling and the draw with Germany was enough to put the USA into the knock out round. Being ranked well outside of the top twenty in the world, this was quite an accomplishment for the Americans and the announcers on the radio were ecstatic. I started to journal about my new interest and suddenly, I had the fever.
The final two weeks of the 2014 World Cup drew me in totally and completely. I watched every minute that I could and afterwards I started my obsession with MLS, BPL, Champions League and now of course women’s international soccer. The past year has been a learning experience to say the least, now with the USNWT in action I am again journaling and scrap booking the experience, but this time I have decided to blog my way through the rest of the tournament in hopes of spreading the fun and excitement that the world shares every four years.
It was certainly exciting to watch the men’s team play and compete, but it was a bit of an upset for them to find themselves in the second round. The women’s team on the other hand is ranked #2 in the world and stands to be one of the favorites all the way through. My own personal impression is that the Americans have bigger stronger athletes with the speed and agility to defensively dominate almost anyone. They still need to execute the proper teamwork at the proper time in order to produce goals, but their defense seems to give them ample opportunity to do so. I look for the USA to win this tournament in powerful fashion with possible challenges from France or Germany, and a possible final against Brazil, England or perhaps Japan. It is my hope that you will join me and excuse my “newbie” status as we explore the lingo, the rules and the passion expressed world wide for the beautiful game of soccer.
The second round looks much like a bracket from the NCAA Basketball Tournament; a sweet sixteen of sorts about to play two more rounds with a “win or go home” situation facing each team. Once the last four teams have been established there will be four more games as the World Cup like the Olympics plays a consolation game to establish third and fourth place awards. A reality that respects and honors the third and fourth place teams for having made it so far and values the competition enough to play a game that cannot win anything more than third place.
Check your local listings, catch a game or two and then get ready to cheer on your favorites for the next two weeks. World Cup Fever! Get yourself some of your own! Look for tomorrow preview of the USA vs Columbia match and results from Saturdays games!
