Head Space Daily Words...

It's here at last. The World Cup is upon us, set in the country that is romantically associated with beautiful football. Names such as Pele, Garrincha, Jairzinho, Zico, Socrates, Ronaldo and Ronaldhino, trip off the tongue, conjuring up thoughts of 'samba' football, where the pace of the game is dictated - quick, quick, slow, slow, quick - almost like a dance in itself, by breathtaking charisma, skill and daring, with a total lack of footballing inhibition. That is Brazilian football artistry at its best and how we all like to envisage the Brazilian national side. To actually play football in this way though is extremely hard to accomplish. For a start you need players with exceptional ability in every position on the field, who gel as a team, both on and off the pitch. A certain chemistry is required and not every side will be blessed with an array of talent as seen in the teams of Brazil '70, or Brazil '82 - and that team didn't lift the trophy. Although this year's Brazilian vintage has many excellent players, the only real superstar would appear to be Neymar. Perhaps it is too much to expect memories of former Brazilian teams to be resurrected and home advantage could either lift or suffocate them. We shall see.

What we do know is there are many other superbly talented teams at this World Cup. When Brazil won the competition in 2002 in South Korea, it was against a sea of mediocrity. This time around, there would appear to be several teams in with a shout besides the hosts, plus numerous dark horses. Spain, as current World Champions will be hard to dethrone, Argentina look very strong, Germany are always contenders, as are current holders of the Copa America, Uruguay. Then come the outsiders of Belgium and Chile - if they can negotiate the group stage - and you write off the Italians and Dutch at your peril!! 

First and foremost, we all want the football to be good. In South Africa 2010 - apart from Spain - the football was average at best, with a brutal Dutch side forgetting that they invented 'total football' and killed the Final with their newly devised brand of 'anti football.' 

Beyond the football, to make the tournament live in the memory, you need that extra special ingredient - atmosphere. As FIFA has sanitised the World Cup in recent times, with its flatpack stadia, corporate takeovers and carefully choreographed T.V schedules, this atmosphere has to come from the host country - it's culture, it's people. Germany 2006 had it to a certain degree, although the last tournament to nail it and truly capture the imagination, I feel, was France '98. Exciting football, great talent on show, the French team was superb and the French nation fully embraced it, which elevated the experience above and beyond the mere spectacle of football. It can really help the atmosphere if the host nation performs well. Good luck then to that formidable footballing nation Qatar, in 2022.

Spain in 1982 is the first World Cup that I truly remember and the first World Cup match indelibly etched on my brain is Brazil v Italy. I am transported back to my friend's house, where I saw the match after school. An incredible game of football, accompanied by the continual blare of air horns. Whenever I think of Spain'82, I instantly hear that high pitched buzz. We aren't talking the mass marketed, thoroughly annoying vuvuzelas of South Africa here but a noise which naturally derived from the resourcefulness of the supporters. These days, you wouldn't be able to take an air horn into a stadium, only the bland official merchandise would be allowed in the grounds. The bigger the tournament has become and the more control FIFA has exerted, the more character and personality has been lost from inside the grounds - or so it feels watching on T.V. Outside the grounds is another story, as I have read that FIFA have displaced street vendors, moved people from their own homes and managed to get street parties banned within a certain radius of the stadia. It would appear that FIFA have taken it upon themselves to behave like some kind of totalitarian regime.

A major international sporting event like the World Cup is a great vehicle for a nation's voice to be heard though and the Brazilian public has been protesting en masse against the huge cost that has been involved in staging the World Cup - money which could have been spent on public services - new schools, better housing, hospitals, transport. The hope has to be that any demonstrations during the competition itself are done in a peaceful manner but that voices are still heard.

The other major tension in the lead up to the big kick off has come from the tournament sponsors. Sony, adidas and Visa have all done the right thing and rather than just thinking of the dollar, have demanded to know the truth about potential corruption and bribery in the way Qatar won the right to host the 2022 Finals. It's a shame questions weren't raised at the time, as thousands of construction workers have died whilst building the stadia. We are living in 2014, not building pyramids in ancient Egypt!! How could any nation that is incapable of holding the tournament during the break in domestic football competition, due to its potentially life threatening hot climate, be considered a viable option? OK, Qatar cannot control the temperature but it is an unavoidable fact which should have excluded them. Again FIFA is after world domination, just thinking of expanding their brand, bringing in more money and in the process have lost sight of the game.

One aspect of the build up that I have thoroughly enjoyed, is the lack of hype surrounding England. I am not seeing cars driving around with St,George's crosses stuck to their aerials. Neither are there a great number of flags draped from windows. You can safely say that expectations are exceedingly low. If we get through the group stage, we will have performed well. The refreshing aspect of being no hopers is that you can sit back and enjoy the football of the other nations, which is what I intend to do.

The country of Brazil is a major factor for me. Considering my brother in law lives in Sao Paulo with his wife and kids, I know very little about the country itself. I realise the place is vast, massive, enormous, colossal - beyond my comprehension. Discovering Brazil will be another great aspect of this World Cup. Our generalised view is of a party nation living on beaches, with guys playing football, whilst girls wearing skimpy bikinis look on; or the carnival with its outrageous costumes and persistent beat, in full swing in Rio. I will be glad to see that view blown out of the water and for the real Brazil to boldly step forward.

Our Brazilian sister is here for a few days on business, so we will get to watch Brazil play this evening, in the opening game of the Brazilian World Cup, with a real life genuine Brazilian!! With Spain against Holland on Friday and England versus Italy on Saturday, this World Cup could start with a real bang. I can't wait...


Carlos Alberto 1970...

I couldn't leave an article about the Brazilian World Cup without posting the greatest goal of all time, which just gets better each time you watch it...