Ladies and Gentlemen: The World Cup

It is the biggest sporting event in all of sports. So mammoth in its scope that it operates as a separate entity onto its own. It is not an exaggeration to state that FIFA has more power than any international organization in the world. It is much bigger in its fan base than the Olympics or the Super Bowl. Like jazz, the World Cup is. Americans for their part should be interested. American soccer is on the rise and this is great for the sport.

So, to get into the drama of it all, I will be posting my thoughts about the tournament which runs from June 9 until July 9. Today I want to begin with a discussion involving what is widely regarded as the 'Big Four' in international soccer: Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Italy - with respect, of course, to other soccer stand outs such as England, France and Holland. Maybe I'll start a 'Big Seven' list later on.

If Brazil is considered to be the purveyor of beautiful free-form improvisational soccer, Italy represents the essence of sophisticated, practical and tactical football. Brazil are all about ball possession. On the other end of the spectrum, Italy are defined by opportunism. If we accept this premise (and I think most do), these two countries represent the extreme interpretations of the game. Though as I pointed out in an earlier post, this is changing for Italy.

Next lie Argentina and Germany who play a more integrated style. The Germans play a remarkably systematic and efficient -if not predictable -version of the game in itself filled with sublime marvelous football, while Argentina incorporates all the natural Latin passion inherent in their game that is both stylish and imaginative as much as it is aggressive teetering on being brutal.

Between the four they have produced countless players of the highest caliber. They have all influenced the game in some way at some point throughout history. For its part England and its rich soccer heritage has done much in internationalizing the game but World Cup greatness eludes them as their only victory came in 1966.

Other countries include France (the School of St. Etienne has historically produced brilliant players. The French play with a philosophy of attractive football. They too have one title captured in 1998) and Holland (while the concept of 'total football' was a Northern European invention, the Dutch played it to near perfection.)

Both Brazil and Italy are rabid soccer nations. Among the top four they take the top two spots in terms of their fanaticism for the game. This is all subjective of course so let's turn our attention to cold, hard statistics when comparing the two.

Brazil's all-time record at the world cup is 60 wins, 13 losses and 14 ties for a total of 141 pts. This translates into an astounding .770 winning percentage. Brazil are five time Champions and twice they have been runner up (5-2 in finals). They have finished 3rd twice and 4th once. That's 10 trips to the semis out of 17 appearances.* They can be excused for thinking the World Cup strictly resides within their sphere.

Italy's all-time numbers are 39-14-17 96 pts./.674 and 3rd overall. Italy are three time champions (3-2 in finals). They have been runner up twice. They have finished 3rd and 4th once. 7 semi-finals in 15 appearances.**

I single out Italy and Brazil because it's these two that have played more important games against one another when it comes to the continental comparison. Germany has a dismal losing record (4w-10l-4t) against Brazil. Interestingly, despite a staggering 14 finals between them, they have met only once in the World Cup and that was in 2002 when Brazil defeated them in the finals 2-0. Argentina has a winning record against Brazil (35-33) but they have been playing each other for a century and know one another well. Argentina have won more Copa America's (14) than any other South American country including Brazil (7). That leaves Italy as the only European nation to hold its own against Brazil.***

Italy and Brazil are locked into a 6w-6l-1d all-time record (including friendlies) against each other. In World Cup play the record is also tied up 2-2-1. However, one of the draws happened in the 1994 finals when the two sides played to a scoreless draw at the end of regulation. Brazil went on to win in a shoot-out. Each time they have played it has been in a crucial match and Brazil has earned a slight edge here. Twice Brazil defeated Italy in the finals (1970, 1994). Once in the semi-finals (1978). Italy for their part defeated Brazil in the semis in 1938 and 1982.

As a point of interest, Italy has never lost to Germany at the World Cup.****

Germany is ranked 2nd all-time at the world cup with a 50-17-18 record. 123pts./ .684. Germany has triumphed 3 times and reached the finals an additional 4 times. They join Brazil in 7 finals appearances (3-4). They earned 3rd place twice and 4th once. 10 semis in 15 appearances. That's a .667 ratio which even tops Brazil's 10 in 17 (.588 ratio) and far better than Italy's 7 in 15 (.467).

Argentina is ranked 4th. 30-19-11 72pts./ .592. In terms of winning percentage England and Holland surpass them for teams with at least 6 appearances. Argentina has reached the final 4 times twice being crowned champions (2-2) in 13 appearances.

There you have it. I kept it as brief as I could. It's a good start to begin. I hope to include along the way other interesting soccer nations like Spain, Portugal, Mexico, Poland, Sweden, Belgium (who are not in Germany in 2006), Croatia and Serbia (regarding the Yugoslavian lineage) and African football. To name a few. If I don't get to all of them it's because I had no time.

*Brazil only country in history to qualify for every world cup.
**Italian appearances were hurt after the tragic Torino plane crash in 1949 which set the national program back a decade. They declined to enter in 1930.
***I deliberately exclude the Magnificent Magyars from Hungary of the 1950s who dominated world football that decade without winning the big trophy. Much like Holland 20 years later when they embodied the spirit of 'total football' in the 1970s. Holland has a 1-1-1 record at the World Cup against Brazil. Hungary for its part has the honor of never losing to Brazil not only in the World Cup (2-0) but all time (3w-0l-1t). Between the two, three finals and no victories. Life isn't fair sometimes. Still, between Hungary, Holland, Argentina and Italy it brings into question Brazil's apparent dominance. Against higher quality sides Brazil is on par. Despite popular conceptions they are beatable.
**** Italy never played Germany prior to the second world war or East Germany. All meetings have been with West Germany. Italy is 12w-7l-8d all-time against all German teams (including Euro and friendlies). There is a possibility these two giants could meet in the finals in 2006.