World Cup Names

If you watched last night's lacklustre encounter between Holland and Argentina (or indeed any other match of similarly weak entertainment value), you'll know what it's like to feel a bit short-changed, televisually. The World Cup is, after all, supposed to be a spectacle - a footballing festival, if you will. So what's a man supposed to do when the World Cup fails to live up to expectations?

The answer lies in a simple but rewarding game you can play from the comfort of your own armchair. All you have to do is 'translate' your name so that it fits one of the teams playing at the World Cup. Let's say, for instance, I decided to buy an England shirt and wanted my name printed on the back. Well I'd quite possibly have 'Chris' emblazened across my shoulders for all to see, but if it were a German shirt? Well my name would have to be 'Chrisowski', of course. An Italian shirt? 'Chrissi', one would presume...

And it doesn't stop there. I've worked out what my World Cup name would be for various other countries, too:

Angola - Chrisanga
Argentina - Chrispo
Brazil - Cristoforo
Croatia - Chrisovic
France - Chrissé
Holland - Van Christens
Japan - Chrisizawa
Poland - Chriskowiak
Saudi Arabia - Al-Chrisani
South Korea - Cris Ok-Lee
Spain - Christo
Sweden - Christensson
Ukraine - Christov

It's good fun, once you get into the swing of things! Why not have a go yourself and tell us what your World Cup name would be?