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A Layman’s Guide To The 2010 World Cup

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 Brazil is probably going to win the World Cup this year. They are the best team. And the other best team, Spain, will likely be on the other side of the bracket, so if you’re a betting kind of person, bet on a Brazil/Spain final. Here's what's so good about Brazil and Spain:  

Brazil

 As usual, Brazil is pretty much overloaded with talent. Top of the list has to be Real Madrid striker Kaka (whose real name is kind of a mouthful) on account of he can do superhuman shit like this:   You should also keep an eye out for Sevilla striker Luis Fabiano, who was the top scorer in last year's Confederations Cup, with five goals in Brazil's cup-winning appearance.  The only real knock on Brazil is that they have a tough draw in the early rounds, with both the Ivory Coast and Portugal to contend with on their way out of the group stage. They call Brazil's group, Group G, “The Group of Death.” (There's always a group of death in the World Cup. It's kind of a tradition.) What makes Group G particularly fatal, honestly, is Portugal, who are ranked fifth in the world and have Cristiano Ronaldo, who is an asshole but an undeniably talented asshole. Cristiano Ronaldo 

Spain

 Barcelona Striker David Villa leads a talented Spanish squad in what may be their best ever chance at World Cup glory. Coming off a Euro Cup championship in 2008, the Spaniards may be the best contenders to knock off Brazil and bring home the cup.  
Highlights of Spain decimating Belgium in the qualifying rounds If the Brazilians and Spaniards aren't doing it for you for some reason, the other absolute best teams in the world are England and Argentina. Here are some things to think about when you're thinking about England and Argentina.  

England

 England's success is going to depend on whether striker Wayne Rooney is healthy enough to be a factor, and whether they can stop being a bunch of fucking choke artists. If England finally gets their collective shit together after the last 44 years of World Cup drought, the rest of the world will have to learn the words to this song:  

Argentina

 Argentina has the best player in the whole world! His name is Lionel Messi. You should try to watch Argentina games so that you can watch Lionel Messi perform. Soccer has not seen the likes of Lionel Messi in a generation. Here is an example of what Lionel Messi can do.  Also worth thinking about here is Argentina coach Diego Maradona. In addition to being one of the elite World Cup players of all time, Maradona is batshit crazy. So that'll be fun to watch.  

The Netherlands

 Also. Don't forget about The Netherlands! They have four of the best strikers in the world, a devastating Midfield, and a super-easy Group stage to get through (Denmark, Japan, and Cameroon). Expect big things from the Dutch squad this year. Here's a taste of what star striker Robin Van Persie can do when he finds his form.   

But what about the U.S. team?

 The U.S. team is OK. And honestly, they might surprise some people by making a run at it, but they'll need to do a lot better than they have been, and you'll want to hope for some above-average performances from their team of Damarcus Beasley, goalkeeper Tim Howard, and a bunch of World Cup noobs. Assuming favorites England win the group, the U.S. team will need to outplay Algeria and Slovenia if they want to make it into the next round. Take heart, though, USA fans. Your boys surprised the shit out of Spain last year by actually beating them. Which is hard to do.   For more important information on Team USA (specifically who are the most handsome players on the team), check out this list. 

What games should I watch?

 Here's the schedule for the first games! You should probably start by watching England/USA play each other on June 12 at 2:30 ET. That should be a good game. Have fun! 

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12 Responses So Far

  • davew20 thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is Old  about 2 weeks ago
  • greg hardin   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • efrainq thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is LOL  about a year ago
  • jacquesl   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Fernanda C.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Only people outside of Brazil think Brazil has a chance of winning.

    veludoudigrudi
    a year ago
  • A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is starting to get hot on Facebook Share It  about a year ago
  • Matteo Del Balio thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is LOL  about a year ago
  • Ben Picone   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Lazar Taxon   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Wait you guys are complaining about this being a poorly written sports related post from the people of BuzzFeed? That's like thinking porn will educate you on how to pick up women in a bar.

    Alex
    a year ago
  • MarcusNyce   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Sid L.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • QUE VIVA ESPAÑA!

    Umano17
    a year ago
  • Corey Anderson   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • JKSxo   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Mathieu L.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • I planned on reading this but got bored around Kaka and then scrolled down without really focusing.

    coconutbrah
    a year ago
  • Cornell C.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • It looks like an American wrote this guide. I have all my money on the netherlands and england.

    Rodro
    a year ago
  • Rodro thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is LOL  about a year ago
  • Nicholas B. thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is Geeky  about a year ago
  • Erick V. thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is LOL  about a year ago
  • America is going to win FIFA.  Whoever is not aware of this clearly hates our freedom or doesn't know a damn thing about foot-egg.

    nononono
    a year ago
  • Brazil should be a safe bet. European teams win when it's in Europe, South American teams when it's not (Brazil's win in Stockholm in 1958 is actually the only exception to this rule.) With Argentina led by a lunatic, it should be a cakewalk for Brazil.

    eixo
    a year ago
  • JO J   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • I wouldn't say that the Netherlands group is particularly easy. Cameroon will cause trouble, and Denmark had a pretty good qualifying campaign. They should get through, but it might be tight. And the fact that Brazil have a tough group is by far the only knock on them. The fact that that Kaka is coming off the back of his worst ever season is cause for concern, especially in a Brazil squad that is far from vintage and has precious few magical players who can create something from nothing compared to previous tournaments. Still, they are Brazil.

    Tom Schaller
    a year ago
  • FOOTBALL'S COMING HOME.

    Doug B.
    a year ago
  • djpopeurban   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Rjay B.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Nora V.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Seriously?! Who wrote this?! Brazil has been slacking since 1994, and if it wasn't for Roberto Baggio, they would have lost that too.  And Spain? Remind me again when the last time they won the world cup gold? England DOES have a strong shot, I'll give em' that. But they tend to choke more than a gang banged porn star. Imagine them as the European Red Sox. With less facial hair, and more alcohol. And why not mention the teams who ACTAULLY have a chance to win? France, Italy? Jesus, of course the US will lose, and they will lose bad. Why? Because the US can only beat the US. That's why they just said fuck it and said “Let's just call it the World Series…. no need to ACTUALLY play the world, let's just chock it up as a win!” So now when they DO get to play the world in a sport, they realize that they once again, suck…and suck bad.

    JonWithoutAnH
    a year ago
  • Katrina C.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Chad S.   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Nice work Jack. Spot on about Ronaldo too.

    Jason A.
    a year ago
  • turtlefeed   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Thanks for a great guide. However, you're wrong. The Netherlands will whoop Brazil's ass big time in the semi-finals!

    Chris Boers
    a year ago
  • John Winskowicz   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • Ryan S. thinks A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup is LOL  about a year ago
  • Amanda Dobbins   A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup  about a year ago
  • A Layman's Guide To The 2010 World Cup was featured on the homepage  about a year ago

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