The World Cup so far

Submitted by azar on Wed, 07/07/2010 - 16:51

It’s the second last day of the Fifa World Cup 2010 and tonight’s game, between Germany and Spain, could easily go either way.
But I am getting ahead of myself.

I’m not a huge fan of the World Cup and firmly believe that club football is where all the action is. When the tournament kicked off almost a month ago, it lived up to my belief that it would be a boring affair. There’s simply too much money riding on these games and the World Cup as such, and no one wanted to lose. This was reflected in the cagey and inhibited football on display.

However, two things really turned the tournament around for me. Firstly, all the teams I was supporting got knocked out one-by-one, allowing me to enjoy the World Cup as a neutral fan; and second, the photographs that came in from different Demotix contributors around the world.

Once you look at the fans, in all their colourful attire, their celebrations and heart break, the World Cup stops being a mere tournament and you realise it’s more of a carnival. The orange of the Dutch, the red-and-white of the English, the blue of the Italians, the yellow-and-blue of the Brazilians – it’s quite true that the tournament really kicked off for me once the also-rans had fallen by the side – some of the photographs we received are simply amazing. Our contributors have really managed to capture the mood and the emotions of the supporters, and the mass hysteria that perhaps only football can generate.

I have really enjoyed the unpredictability of the World Cup; for me at least, the upsets have generated more excitement. Like the Holland-Brazil game. Even though Brazil are one of my favourites, I really enjoyed Holland’s victory. It simply made for a better spectacle and better football, and some excellent photographs.

As far as tonight’s game is concerned, Spain have failed to hit top gear but still managed to get this far, and tonight they might be overrun by Germany, who are only too clear in our memory for demolishing England. Whoever wins, we’re guaranteed some entertaining football with the Dutch already into the finals.

The tournament is undoubtedly a victory for football, and for Africa, with South Africa successfully pulling off hosting the World Cup. And while I am still all for club football, I won’t be in a hurry to let the World Cup pass me by.