The 2014 World Cup for Football, or soccer, if you prefer.

I'll say this straight up front, I'm betting quite a large amount of money on Brazil to win the 2014 World Cup. My reasons, I hear you ask?

Well, first of all, Brazil will be in their own country with their own fans. Secondly, they have the best centre-back pairing in the world(Thiago Silva and David Luiz, or Dante). Brazil has never really been known for its outstanding defense, but Thiago Silva is the captain, and possibly the best defender on Earth. Thirdly, the rest of the Brazilian team is full of superstars. Oscar, Neymar, Pedro and Hulk to name but four. And fourthly, they play better than any other team in the world at the present time. They beat the reigning World Cup winners, Spain, in the Confederations Cup earlier this year. Spain was untouchable during the last World Cup, and Brazil beat them comfortably in the Confed's Cup.

So, who else has a chance at next year's World Cup? Well, the Belgian team looks very, very promising. They have a pretty dismal record in all World Cup competitions, but now, their team is filled with superstars like Benteke, Vertonghen, Mirallas, Dembele and a few others with silly names like that.

England? Well, England have ALWAYS had a very experienced and highly skilled team, but for various reasons, they've not been able to win a World Cup since 1966! They will most likely not win, but it'll be incredibly dramatic and fun to watch the England team next year. Even more fun will be watching the semi-deluded English public follow their team to the bitter end.

Spain? I don't really fancy the Spanish team to do very well. I'm a bit biased because I don't particularly like the way the Spanish team plays football. They play very effectively, but their style doesn't interest me as much as the fast counter-attacking, long passing style of play. Spain will probably do quite well, maybe even reach the semi-finals, but I wouldn't count on them winning.



Germany? I think Germany will do very, very well. I'd expect them to make it to the semi-finals, at least. They have always been a powerhouse in world football, and their current team looks like of their best ever. Cold, clinical and efficient is the German way, and their football team exemplifies this in its barest essence. Germany will do well in next year's World Cup, as they always do!






Italy? I've always thoroughly enjoyed the way the Italian team plays. They are ROCK SOLID in defense, and they counter-attack with blinding speed and skill. But, their current team has undergone immense changes. They no longer play in the "Catennacio" style. Catennacio means door bolt. The catennacio style emphasized a near impenetrable defense, and then would rely on skillful players to score the goals. One goal would be enough in the catennacio style, because the defense would simply not allow opponent goals to be scored. Anyway, Italy no longer plays with this very unique, they now play in a more midfield orientated style. Midfield domination is the key part of the current Italian team's style. And luckily, they have several of the world's best midfield players. So, Italy should do well in the World Cup, and I hope they do, because I really like the way they play.

There you have it. If you have any thoughts on other teams that might stand a good chance in the 2014 World Cup, let me know in the comments.

Cheers,

Andrew.

    

 

Does anyone know what Grand Theft Auto V is like?

Is anyone out there a game tester, or has had access to the game "Grand Theft Auto 5"? If you have played the game, can you please leave a comment regarding your thoughts. Is the game as good as everyone thinks it will be, is it enjoyable to play, does the huge size of the map have any disadvantages? Things like that.
Even write a list of pros and cons if you want to.

Thank you,

Andrew

Oi Oi Lads, let's smash his face in, just after this game is over.

Football hooliganism was, and is, a very strange thing. It reached its worst in the 80's. English football teams in particular were very bad indeed. In fact, ALL English teams were banned from ALL European competition from 1985 to 1990. What caused this ban? It was put in place because of the Heysel Stadium disaster, in Brussels. Basically what happened was that during the European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus. The hooligans from both teams started a bit of a riot, and part of the stadium collapsed. 39 Juventus fans were killed, and 600 more were injured. It was deemed that the Liverpool hooligans were largely to blame, and so they were banned from all European competition for 6 years. All other English teams were banned for just 5 years.

Heysel Disaster Madness

You see, football, when it's played very well, is one of the most beautiful things you could possibly see in your lifetime. Why then, does such a relatively non-combat, gentlemanly game have in its past, and still does to some extent, the most vicious and violent fans of any other sport?

A lot of the ferocity may come from the fact that football teams are, here comes the gooey cliche, just a fact of life for many many people around the world. Religion is often inextricably linked to certain football teams as well. For example, if you're a Catholic born in Glasgow, you'll almost certainly be raised a Celtic fan. If you're a Protestant born in Glasgow, you'll almost certainly be a Rangers fan. So in the Scottish capital city , you have a very old religious disagreement acting itself out within the two football teams.

I love football, but I can't figure out why you'd want to smash someone's face in just because they support a rival team. It's supposed to be about friendly rivalvry, even at the pinnacles of the World Cup or the European Cup final. If you're a hooligan, or you feel you may have hooligan tendencies, let me tell you, "STOP! Don't punch anyone, don't throw bottles at opposing supporters, just enjoy the game. Sit back, sing for your team, boo the other team if you want, but don't let it get physical!"

Thank God that hooliganism has been very harshly dealt with over the years, because the vast majority of us football fans just want to be able to go to the stadium, watch the game, buy some horribly overpriced beer, and enjoy ourselves. It's very hard to enjoy yourself when you're spending most of the 90 minutes dodging bricks and having to take your friend to the hospital for stitches.

I don't know how this works, but Scottish police use totally
non-violent tactics like this at Celtic/Ranger games.

Thank you police, I never thought I'd ever say that! Thank you for making football a viable and safe alternative to watching TV talent shows and visiting relatives you don't like.