World Cup: In my life

Taking inspiration from a blog article by Richard Johnson, here’s something similar from me - namely a look back at the World Cups in my life so far and the way they intertwined with life itself.

Spain ‘82
Aside from the hazy image of tickertape streaming down onto an Argentinean football pitch – one that the BBC rightly included in its opening title sequence for World Cup Grandstand – I remember virtually nothing of the 1978 World Cup. I was only six at the time, so for me Spain ’82 is where it all began.

I was in my final year at junior school, nearly eleven, and utterly besotted by football. I’d been collecting Panini sticker albums since 1980 and my nose was rarely out of football reference books and magazines. This, however, was my first World Cup and I couldn’t have asked for more inspiration to set in train this exciting interest in the beautiful game.

For a start, England flew out of the traps with a wonderful 3-1 win over France (and what about that goal for Bryan Robson after 27 seconds!) shortly to be followed by further progress to the second round. Brazil played the sort of football that was so good, I’d be trying (and failing) to emulate it for the next 25 years or more. Italy, however, started very poorly... I wonder whatever happened to them?

I remember raving about David Narey’s wonder-goal for Scotland against Brazil and hearing that Hungary had beaten El Salvador 10-1. I can remember sitting in the back of my Dad’s car after he’d dropped my Mum off at the local bingo hall one evening and hearing about Gerry Armstrong’s (ultimately winning) goal against Spain on the radio. I also recall returning home from the park (having played football with some friends of mine) and hearing the commentary from dozens of TVs blaring out of the open windows of nearby houses. It was as if everyone was watching the World Cup.

Each game was accompanied by a cacophony of blaring horns from the crowd which, though it sounded strange to British ears, only added to the amazing atmosphere of the event. And they think vuvuzelas are a new idea...

It was a great World Cup and one which co-incided with an innocent and carefree time in my life. The summer sun was beating down for much of the time and the abundance of wall-to-wall soccer – to play and watch – kept me very happy. Great days...

Mexico ‘86
By 1986, I was nearing the end of my time at comprehensive school. There was still a year to go before I’d eventually stroll out through those gates and into adult life, but well before that there was a new World Cup in an old destination to be enjoyed.

Mexico had been the scene of many a vivid football memory in 1970, but now was a chance for my generation to watch stars such as Diego Maradona, Michael Laudrup and Emilio Butragueno take their inspiration from the land of the Aztecs.

Sadly for us watching the action back in Blighty, the land of the Aztecs was several hours behind British Summer Time, so in order to have the privilege of watching Bobby Robson’s men drawing 0-0 with Morocco, we’d all have to stop up until 11.30 at night. Nice. But stop up we did – right to the last vital group game where Gary Lineker exploded onto the scene (plaster cast and all) with a wonderful hat-trick against Poland.

I can’t recall whether anyone rated England’s chances of winning the World Cup in 1986, but one thing I do remember was asking my good friend Martin Lewis who he thought the champions would be before the tournament had started. Being an astute sort of fellow, he avoided giving the obvious answer like I had (Brazil), instead replying with the supreme self-confidence “Uruguay”.  I was somewhat taken aback by his prediction and assumed he’d gained some insider knowledge from the less-available-than-it-is-now World Soccer. I was soon laughing up my sleeve at him, of course: Uruguay succeeded only in collecting more yellow and red cards than anyone before or since prior to hot-footing it home on the plane (if that isn’t a contradiction in terms).

I remember it being a good World Cup, and that was chiefly based on the fact that we seemed to be playing football a lot more often at school. We’d arrive extra early in the morning to have a decent kick-around in the playground with a tennis ball, then we’d enjoy every available minute of our three breaks during the day doing exactly the same. We really did live and breathe football back then.

Such was the advance of technology that we were now seeing fancy graphics and captions appearing on our screens. Action replays now flew onto the screen like a frisbeed paving slab coloured appropriately for whichever teams were playing. Matches began with a run-through of the teams, each name illuminating in turn with an accompanying video clip of the relevant player silently mouthing his name into camera (if you were lucky). Funny the things you remember...

At home, I had the Panini Mexico ’86 sticker album, a sticker wallchart for the second World Cup running (lots of flags and spaces to fill in the scores, as I recall), but my bedroom wall was also adorned with something very odd... well it is from an adult point of view at least.

My Dad worked in a paint factory for many years, and if there was one thing he could get his hands on for nothing every once in a while, it was large rolls of thin brown card. It was with this card that I brilliantly drew to scale the Mexico 86 logo lettering which I then cut out and coloured with green and red paint. Once dry, I blue-tacked it high up on my wall above my wallchart and there it stayed for the duration of the tournament.

At two metres or so wide, it dominated my tiny little room giving it the look of a miniature BBC World Cup Grandstand studio, albeit one with a bed in it. I remember being quite proud of the skill I’d shown in making the thing, but I shudder to think what my parents thought at the time. I’ll never know now...

Anyway, what a tournament – three home nations were involved, and from them England battled their way through to the quarter finals where Maradona was waiting to prick their bubble. In the end, not even West Germany could turn them over - Argentina were the eventual champions. Great football, great memories and a great World Cup.

Italia ‘90
Hopes were high that more of the same would follow in Italy four years later, but sadly the magic was in lesser supply. It all started brightly enough with an opening ceremony that featured a fashion parade of all things (whatever happened to a bunch of kids walking around the stadium carrying the flags of all competing nations?) and then the explosive encounter between reigning champions Argentina and Cameroon.

I watched that opening game from the chalet of a holiday camp at the time. I can’t remember where it was – probably somewhere near Great Yarmouth at a guess - but this was probably my last visit of many to a holiday camp at the ripe old age of 18. My Mum and Dad seemed to quite like them as we visited several down the years, but by now I was finding them seriously tedious. (Holiday camps, that is – not my parents.)

At least the site of several Cameroonians kicking big lumps out of the Argentineans (and scoring a vital goal against them) brought a spark of life to my holiday in 1990, and the games that followed continued to be quite enjoyable too.

After a while though, it became clear that the tournament wasn’t quite generating the same sort of excitement as Mexico ’86. The goals flowed less freely, the fouls and sendings off piled up and there weren’t quite as many high points as we’d seen four years earlier.

Outside of the World Cup though, I was nine months into my working life, going through a year-long IT trainee scheme. Everything was ticking along nicely, I was earning a reasonable working wage and I had a new bunch of colleagues to discuss football with. One of them, I seem to recall, thought the Roger Milla that scored for Cameroon was the same Roger Miller who once sang ‘England Swings’ and ‘King of the Road’. He was a Bristol City supporter if I remember correctly... I’ll leave you to make the appropriate judgement...

Back at the tournament, Brazil were going off the boil, England were bumbling their way through to the semi-finals against the odds and the West Germans were being, well... efficiently German. Sadly for England they were in a different league and so the Final saw Franz Beckenbauer’s team pitted up against Argentina once again. Two red cards and a few yellows later, West Germany were crowned champions but a bad-tempered competition had left a bad taste in the mouth. Frank Rijkaard will vouch for that.

USA ‘94
This would be the last time I’d watch a World Cup with my Dad. He wasn’t much of a football supporter, but he showed an occasional interest whenever there was a good match on. For USA ’94, I decided to book off the first two weeks from work so I could see the First Round games - a cunning plan given that many of the games would be shown on TV after midnight in the UK.

It worked like a dream... for a few days at least. Dad and I stayed up late to witness the first few days’ action and all was well... but then the tiredness kicked in. By the middle of the first week, my brain was on American time and a change of sleeping patterns had left me experiencing something akin to jetlag. I soon returned to my regular sleep times and normality was soon restored.

It was a strange World Cup in 1994. International football being played in a country that barely acknowledged its existence at the time, long grass, gridiron stadia... not what we were used to at all. As for that opening ceremony... don’t even get me started on that. One more mention of Diana Ross and I’ll go spare...

There was no British involvement this time so only the hardened fans this side of the Atlantic were showing much interest. Those that did watch, however, saw new names playing on the world stage – Greece, Nigeria, Bolivia, Saudi Arabia – all of whom added an abnormal twist to the competition, but also much interest and a degree of mystery too.

By this time, I was becoming a confident IT Support officer enjoying work and life in general. My colleagues at the time were a funny bunch of characters, always ready to have a laugh and show that ‘all work and no play’ was the last thing they’d subscribe to.

It was during this World Cup that one of my colleagues, only a couple of years old than me as a 22-year-old, suggested we all grew goatee beards as many of the players had done. On a Friday afternoon, we vowed to abstain from shaving over the coming weekend and come in on Monday sporting our new facial furniture.

I wonder if you can guess the identity of the only member of our eight-man team that didn’t fall for this immature little scheme? Yes, I was alone in returning to work with a crap goatee beard while everyone else looked smart and clean-shaven. It was a long and slightly embarrassing day that passed before I could finally make use of my Gillette Sensor.

As USA ’94 moved into its latter stages, a few surprising names emerged as possible winners. Bulgaria, Sweden, the Netherlands... but it was Brazil who finally ended their 24-year wait to lift the trophy again by beating Italy in the Final on penalties. Possibly the strangest World Cup was over, and a four-year journey towards French sensibility was just beginning...

France ‘98 onwards
As childhood memories faded ever more into the past, so life became more serious, the innocent pleasure of having no responsibilities making way for an existence where it seemed I was responsible for everything. The World Cup, however, came around as regular as clockwork to punctuate my adult life.

Only a couple of months after USA ’94 ended, my Dad suffered a brain haemorrhage and eventually needed 24-hour care in a nearby nursing home. The impact and emotional upheaval was considerable and from that point on I devoted myself to supporting my Mum, who by then was in her early 60’s. It felt like the right thing to do given the efforts my parents had made to bring me up as a child. Though I had plenty of opportunities to go out with friends in my spare time, I usually declined every time in order to repay their sacrifice.

In France, meanwhile, we witnessed a great tournament – well organised, lots of great goals and scored by great players too. Michael Owen, anyone? It was also the start of a new era in which France were genuine world-beaters, thereby providing a much needed breath of fresh air to the proceedings.

I can remember watching the opening game of the 2002 World Cup at my workplace. In my lunch hour I went in search of the only TV that was available in order to watch Senegal v France – and it happened to be in a noisy air-conditioned computer room. Still, no matter: it was a shock to see Senegal winning in the same way it was a shock to see Cameroon beat Argentina in 1990, and it set the tone for another one of those World Cups in which anything seemed possible.

At home, things remained the same. Mum was still very much the focus of my attention as my spare time seemed split between giving her the company she craved and visiting Dad at the nursing home. By now it seemed I was missing out on a lot of opportunities as a young thirty-something, but in general life was OK if not altogether a barrel of laughs.

When Germany 2006 rolled around, however, I was already well into a period of major change. The year before, Dad had sadly passed away, but with uncanny timing someone new came into my life around the same time - my future wife Melanie. We’d started dating in 2005 and by 2006 were living together... probably just as well as our daughter Bella was born just a couple of weeks after the World Cup Final that year.

As for the World Cup itself, that was a reason for great excitement too. For some reason it seemed to have everything in abundance – goals, incident, a great atmosphere, a wonderful selection of teams taking part... I couldn’t fault it. The World Cup was, in my view, better than ever and Germany could take great credit for having hosted such a ground-breaking event. Shame about that head butt, though...

And as for the 2010 World Cup... well I’m not sure it’s lived up to the brilliance of 2006, but South Africa have added heaps of passion and a unique sense of joy to the occasion. We’ve perhaps been a little starved of quality goals, quality performances and players showing their own individual qualities, but as someone once said, the World Cup’s the World Cup. You’d still love it no matter how good it was.

And me?  Well life goes on, of course. I’ll be 40 next year and my daughter will be 4 towards the end of this month. Last year wasn’t great: I was made redundant in January after 19 years at the same organisation and six months later Mum sadly suffered a severe stroke. Once again my life was turned upside down as, like my Dad before her, Mum found herself in a nursing home needing 24-hour care.

It was a cruel twist of fate that was difficult to accept – but all is not lost. I’m still happily married to Mel, I still have a wonderful sister who in turn has a wonderful family of her own, and I’m working once again which, as you can imagine, has restored my self-esteem no end.

Finally then, is the World Cup an ongoing story of players striving for success and overcoming disappointment and adversity? Yes it is. Why do we like it so much? Because it’s like life, really. You adopt a way of playing the game and by that you either win or lose. Wish me luck for the second half...

Obscure World Cup Kits From History #4

By way of adding a final entry to this feature which we started right back in the early days of SPAOTP, we give you one of the oddest kits ever to be worn in a World Cup. Be it home kit or away, there have never been any quite as personalised as those worn by Zaire in 1974.

On the face of it, they were nothing special (the kits, that is – not the players). The home strip of yellow shirts, green shorts and yellow socks, plus the reverse colour-scheme for the away strip, were vivid enough. Both kits also had that look of a market stall Adidas-knock off, but then again so did many others at the time.  There's even the possibility those kits actually *were* made by Adidas, but that's to miss the point.

No. The one stand out feature about Zaire's kits were the big circular logos (if that's what you can call them) emblazoned all over the shirts. The word 'Leopards' could be seen inside the circle (pertaining to the team's nickname) and 'Zaire' was shown beneath it. But just what was that image in the middle?

We can only presume it was some stylised picture of a leopard, but to be honest, we're not entirely sure. It could have been a cock-up at the shirt-printing factory or a badly executed cartoon picture of Idi Amin's head for all we know. Yet for all that doubt, Zaire wore their shirts with pride, whatever the hell that image was supposed to be.

And you've got to admire their balls (if you can squint hard enough) for this was a bold, unique design that no-one before or since has adopted for their own good (that we're aware of). Imagine the fun you could have applying the same idea to other teams… Scotland could have a big circle with a thistle inside it, Ivory Coast could have a big circle with an elephant inside it and France could have a big circle with a huge coq inside it. The possibilities are endless…

Sadly, 1974 was to be Zaire's only appearance at the World Cup to date, meaning no chance to see those wondrous shirts again. We can only hope that under their new name, Democratic Republic of Congo, they qualify again and wear shirts based on that classic from 36 years ago. Failing that, we'll be happy if they just do this again…

World Cup TV Preview : 6-7 July

(All times - UK)

Tuesday 6th July

19:30 Netherlands v Uruguay, World Cup Semi - Final, ITV1/HD

Say what you like about the ethics of the last remaining South American team's presence in the semi-final - there is a wonderful sense of romance about the first ever world champions making it to the latter stages of the first ever tournament to be held in Africa. However, you can't help but feel that the road may be coming to end. Key players are lost to injury and suspension (including the evil/heroic Luis Suarez).

The Netherlands are reaching their peak and barring any last minute collywobbles, should progress to their first World Cup final since 1978. For the neutral lies the prospect of Arjen Robben and Diego Forlan, both at the peak of their careers, pitted against each other in one of the biggest stages on Earth. Let's hope they give us a fantastic show.

Wednesday 7th July

19:30 Spain v Germany, World Cup Semi - Final, BBC1/HD

This is a match that is, not unreasonably, billed as the game that will decide the winner. I'm not sure I hold with that. Nevertheless for the Europeans, this is a game that features the widest spread of familiar players, as opposed to the modest mystique on the Uruguayans. Picking a winner, of course, is another matter. Will Germany's lack of defensive cover finally be the end of them? Or will Spain's insistent persistence with Fernando Torres lead to the European champions getting their come-uppance?

denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

World Cup TV Preview: 19 - 20 June

Saturday 19th June

12:30 Netherlands v Japan, FIFA World Cup Group E, ITV1/HD
A pre-tournament turkey shoot has now become a dangerous encounter with a dark horse for the Dutch. Having said that, the Netherlands were pretty average against Denmark and still contrived a result. Reasons for orange confidence then, although the Japanese will be walking on air after their unexpected win against Cameroon. Unfortunately for them, Football is played on grass.

15:00 Ghana v Australia, FIFA World Cup Group D, BBC1/HD
It is almost impossible to imagine how Australia can improve themselves sufficiently to be able to compete with a young and effervescent Ghana side. Their offside trap requires a serious dollop of 3-In-1 oil and the absence of Tim Cahill is going to smart. Harry Kewell could be back though...

19:30 Cameroon v Denmark, FIFA World Cup Group E, ITV1/HD
Back to Group E, then, and the door to the Last Chance Saloon has swung open early for these two teams. Defeat for either and they'll be told to finish their drinks and sling their hook. Victory means they can stay but they'd better pay up next time. A draw totally ruins my metaphor so let's not dwell on that shall we?

Sunday 20th June

12:30 Slovakia v Paraguay, FIFA World Cup Group F, BBC1/HD
There is a certain degree of unrealised expectations between these two teams. Paraguay enter the fray with greater confidence after a 1-1 draw with the world champions while Slovakia have more than a point against New Zealand to prove. This should be the play-off for second...

15:00 Italy v New Zealand, FIFA World Cup Group F, ITV1/HD
... unless the All Whites pull off the biggest shock in World Cup history and can get something against an unconvincing Italian side. Surely not.

19:30 Brazil v Ivory Coast, FIFA World Cup Group G, BBC1/HD
What to make of the Brazilian performance against the Dear Leader's XI. Were the champions elect suffering from first game malaise with normal service resuming against the Ivorians or can the African team go one better than the Koreans and stop Dunga's team in their tracks. Can't wait to find out!

The (World Cup) Friday List of Little or No Consequence #169

When England didn't add up to much...
The 11 Lowest Totals When Adding Up The Shirt Numbers Of England World Cup Starting XI's Since 1954

1. 66 (v Romania in 1970 - Banks; Newton; Cooper; Mullery; Labone; Moore; Lee; Ball; B. Charlton; Hurst; Peters)*
2. 66 (v Soviet Union in 1958 - McDonald; Howe; Banks; Clamp; Wright; Slater; Douglas; Robson; Kevan Haynes; Finney)*
3. 66 (v Belgium in 1954 - Merrick; Staniforth; Byrne; Wright; Owen; Dickinson; Matthews; Broadis; Lofthouse; Taylor; Finney)*
4. 72 (v Portugal in 2006)
5. 75 (v Morocco in 1986)
6. 75 (v Portugal in 1986)
7. 76 (v Austria in 1958)
8. 76 (v Brazil in 1958)
9. 77 (v West Germany in 1970)
10. 77 (v Soviet Union (play-off) in 1958)

* These are the only three occasions in the World Cup since 1954 where England's starting XI have worn shirts numbered 1 to 11.

World Cup TV Preview: 17 - 18 June

Thursday 17 June

12.30 Argentina v South Korea, Group B, ITV1/ITVHD
South Korea's display against Greece was one of the best from the first round of fixtures. However that was at sea level and this one is almost 6,000 feet higher. The Argentinians have already played at Jo'burg's other venue, Ellis Park, beating an obviously ill-prepared Nigeria but respecting the conditions (no doubt mindful of recent altitude defeats to Ecuador and of course the 6-1 drubbing lowly Bolivia gave them). Should provide an entertaining encounter, well worth taking an extended lunch break for.

15.00 Greece v Nigeria, Group B, BBC1/BBCHD
While both teams lost their opening fixtures they'll enter this in polar opposite states of mind. Nigeria can only benefit from getting their toughest game over with first and meeting the seemingly clueless Greeks could kick-start their campaign. Greece offered little in their defeat to South Korea and it's hard to see how the the introduction of Liverpool's Sotiris Kyrgiakos in defence will greatly improve them. A result either way could see the first team eliminated from the competition.

19.30 France v Mexico, Group A, BBC1/BBCHD
If I could find it in me to care, I'd be worried for France. Their body language and play says to me they hate each other and their manager - it's like watching a 1990's Dutch side. Mexico did better than they've got credit for against an under-rated host, a vociferous home crowd and the sheer weight of history in their opening draw and could take advantage of the French. But the Mexicans still look shaky at the back and players of huge individual attacking skill like a lively looking Franck Ribery could make them pay.


Friday 18 June

12.30 Germany v Serbia, Group D, BBC1/BBCHD
Critics of the controversial Jabulani ball will see Germany's 4-0 demolition of Australia as evidence of the ball's eccentricities. Played at sea-level with a ball that many Bundesliga clubs have used in the second half of the season, Germany seemed the most calm and assured side during the first round of fixtures - and the result stands out. It mustn't be forgotten, however, that Germany start World Cups well - scoring four or more in four of the their last six openers. Serbia will provide a sterner test as they look to recover from their defeat to Ghana.

15.00 Slovenia v USA, Group C, BBC1/BBCHD
Both teams will be happy with their starts to their World Cup but both will need to improve if they are to progress. Slovenia huffed and puffed their way to a narrow win over an unconvincing 10-man Algeria, while USA of course capitalised on a goalkeeping error to snatch a point against a one-dimensional England side. A draw here wouldn't be the end of the world for either side and is, in my opinion, the likeliest outcome.

19.30 England v Algeria, Group C, ITV1/ITVHD
They won't screw this one up, will they?




denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

denotes match we recommend you take a long liquid lunch break for. 


(All times - UK.)

World Cup TV Preview: 11 - 13 June

Friday 11th June

15:00 South Africa v Mexico, FIFA World Cup Group A, ITV1/HD
Hallo everyone and welcome back to the famous Some People Are On The Pitch TV Previews. Well, here it is - the World Cup. At bloody last! Kicking off proceedings are the hosts who need every ounce of support behind them from their adoring public. ITV are your hosts for this tournament opener as we prepare ourselves for that constant droning buzzing noise that will become synonymous with South Africa 2010. At first, you'll find the din irritating but give it time and soon you'll get used to Clive Tyldesley. Boom boom!

19:30 Uruguay v France, FIFA World Cup Group A, BBC1/HD
Auntie Beeb kicks off her coverage with the grandfather of the World Cup, Uruguay. The two times world champions just scraped into the Finals in a play-off and outside Montevideo, little is expected of them. However, in Diego Forlan they have one of La Liga's finest (assuming he is fit to play) and will be tough hombres. France, as we all would have read in the tabloids, are ball-handling, surrender eating cheese monkeys with a comical manager and a divided squad. That's as maybe but it's not going to stop them from winning the group.

Saturday 12th June

12:30 South Korea v Greece, FIFA World Cup Group B, ITV1/HD
An intriguing if not uber-glamorous encounter between two teams with their eyes on second spot. It's maybe a cliche but there are no easy games in this group and no obvious runner-up to Argentina. In our Sound of Football World Cup Preview Podcast we predicted that Greece would finish second and I fancy Bundesbag favorite 'Fanis Geikas to shock the world of football with a brace.

15:00 Argentina v Nigeria, FIFA World Cup Group B, BBC1/HD
The west Africans will have a lot of support for in South Africa and they may well need it. Argentina may have more question marks around them than the Riddler's wardrobe but few are expecting them to make a hash of the group stage. The big question for us outsiders is 'will he play Higuain or Milito'?

19:30 England v USA, FIFA World Cup Group C, ITV1/HD
If England lose this game I can see them salvaging the group with wins against Algeria and Slovenia. If USA lose I can see them dropping points against Slovenia before facing Algeria in a fight for their lives. In my book there's more pressure on the States. Not that that will stop me from drinking large amounts of alchohol while watching the game through a pillow.

Sunday 13th June

12:30 Algeria v Slovenia, FIFA World Cup Group C, BBC1/HD
These lunchtime slots seem to be reserved for the more defensive minded fixtures don't they? Algeria are bus-parkers while Slovenia have only a little more about them. A second half Milivoje Novakovic goal could be enough to settle this one.

15:00 Serbia v Ghana, FIFA World Cup Group D, ITV1/HD
Here we go then - our first chance to see Serbia's Milos Krasic in full flight. If all goes according to plan the CSKA Mocow player will be hot-footing it to Spain after a successful World Cup. Ghana are shorn of Essien and are relying on the young squad that got them to the Africa Cup Of Nations Final earlier in the year.

19:30 Germany v Australia, FIFA World Cup Group D, ITV1/HD
Much like the arrival of Krasic on the world stage, Bundesliga fans can't wait to see what Germany's Mesut Osil can do. We'll get a better indication of whether the Bremen midfielder has the stuff to reach the top after he pits his skill against a resilient, if creaky, Australia side.

denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

16 Top World Cup Theme Tunes (Part 2)

In the previous thrilling instalment, we embarked on British TV’s journey from library music to classic opera in its search for a decent World Cup theme tune. In this concluding part, we embrace synth pop, retro Krautrock and the Great American songbook plus much more besides...

‘America’ (BBC World Cup Grandstand 1994)
Leonard Bernstein

After the rip-roaring success of Luciano Pavarotti’s Nessun Dorma in 1990, the BBC knew it had a tough act to follow, so for its 1994 outing they went for something similarly enriched in national culture. Where Italy had its opera, the USA had its musicals, and what better a song to pluck from West End Story than the unashamedly shouty America.

As unrefined and brash as Nessun Dorma was pure and graceful, America was the perfect vehicle with which to make the nation sit up and take notice (as was essential for British football fans waiting until the wee small hours for some footy action).

Though never likely to be the commercial success (of sorts) that the BBC had four years earlier with Pavarotti, the song was nevertheless a perfect choice for its coverage and a country mile ahead of ITV’s selected theme...



‘Gloryland’ (ITV World Cup ’94)
Daryl Hall with The Sounds of Blackness

An apt name for Daryl Hall’s backing vocalists given the truly uninspiring nature to this ITV theme tune. From the clichéd saxophone breaks to the wailing soft rock crooning, this indigestible slice of American schmaltz had little to endear it to the public except The Sounds of Darkness themselves.

Having said all that, it did somewhat remarkably creep up to number 36 in the UK singles chart, after which we’re guessing it crept just as quietly back down again. To make matters worse, this piece of music was usually followed by Matthew Lorenzo in a media bunker trying (but failing) to generate some enthusiasm among the British public for a competition in which no home countries were involved. In a word, ‘forgettable’.



‘Pavane’ (BBC World Cup Match of the Day, 1998)
Composer: Gabriel Fauré; Sung by the Wimbledon Choral Society

By 1998, the BBC were showing they really had the happy knack for choosing the right sort of music when there was a World Cup on. Following the formula of ‘tradition + nationality = success’, they this time plumped for the orchestral piece Pavane by French composer Fauré.

Plaintive and haunting as it steadily built to a pleasing crescendo, this piece perfectly encapsulated the sense of anticipation that comes before a World Cup match or indeed the sombre reflection of former campaigns that ended in defeat. One might even proffer that the tumultuous choral ending is indicative of the determination to strive for glory through pain and suffering.

Either way, it was enhanced no end by a clever opening title sequence that was full of understated Frenchness and nostalgic imagery to satisfy even the most disillusioned football fan. The song alone reached number 20 in the UK charts – a suitably deserving achievement for a fine piece of musical scene-setting.



Rendez-Vous 98
Jean-Michel Jarre and Apollo 440

Yet as if to prove that you don’t need a brooding, historical musical epic to compliment your World Cup TV coverage, ITV put their Gloryland nightmare behind them with a classic French synth-fest courtesy of Jean-Michel Jarre.

Working with English group Apollo 440, Jarre recreated his zingy track from the mid-80’s to instantly add some much needed credibility to the ITV programming. No doubt appealing to the younger television audience, you can imagine revellers in their thousands raving to this in Ibiza or wherever the drunken European generation were likely to take their summer holidays.

An uplifting energy-fuelled piece, ITV knew they’d hit musical gold and duly released the by now requisite single. It got to number 12 in the charts, and rightly so – this was a great World Cup theme of the sort that the BBC would probably never choose in a million years. Or so you’d think...



‘Tarantula’ (BBC World Cup Match of the Day, 2002)
Faithless

Yes, the Beeb opted for modernity in an effort to reproduce the success of Rendez-Vous so a remix of Tarantula by Faithless was called for. With hints of the Orient punctuating every bar (and we’re not referring to the Leyton variety here), this was a musical mirror being held up to the host countries of the 2002 World Cup - Japan and South Korea.

Not immediately captivating to many, this was a tune that more than likely grew on you little by little with every listen. What was distinctive about it was its subtlety and measured approach to layering melodies and instrumentation one on top of the other. With that, hidden depths can be found and were heard every time the BBC’s World Cup coverage burst onto the TV, by now presented by Gary Lineker.

Perhaps not ranked as one of the great theme tunes of all time, Tarantula (or rather the BBC’s sampled version of the same) is nonetheless one that shouldn’t be overlooked too quickly. Of high tempo and modern to the last, it capably did its job doing what ITV had done so well in 1998. It’s just a shame that ITV forgot how to do it in 2002...



‘One Fine Day’ (ITV World Cup 2002)
Opera Babes

Ironically, ITV went in the opposite direction by adopting the old BBC tried and trusted method of having a traditional-sounding operatic theme. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem to pay off as the tune they plumped for – One Fine Day by Opera Babes – lacked any kind of verve or soul.

Taken from Madame Butterfly, this classical piece was reasonable enough in its original context and certainly didn’t lack any oriental instrumentation, but it never really went anywhere. Compared to its far more melodic equivalent on ‘the other side’, One Fine Day (or One Fine Day We Shall See, to give it its proper translation from the original Italian) was the wrong piece of music for the wrong event.

A shame, then, that ITV’s recent ascendency in the World Cup theme tune stakes should be deflated quite so badly, but the use of Italian opera for an orientally-flavoured competition just wasn’t right somehow. Perhaps not the most heinous crime ever committed, but certainly a disappointing exercise in the application of music to sports TV programming - a sentence we duly admit you're unlikely to see on any other football blogsite.



‘Sports Prepare’ (BBC World Cup Match of the Day, 2006)
Composer: Carl Davis

Heading to Germany for the 2006 World Cup, both major UK broadcasters flipped back to their winning ways of old. BBC’s coverage had perhaps been lessened slightly by its dalliance with modern music in 2002, so back they went to the classics. This time they figured a composition by German-born Handel would do the trick, so Carl Davis was asked to conjure up some magic via the chorus of Judas Maccabaeus, namely See, The Conquering Hero Comes. Quite who it was that thought Sports Prepare was a good title remains a mystery.

In many ways the German equivalent to Pavane in 1998, this was a fine example of how to stir the emotions with close choral harmonies, trumpets and melody. Once again, it hoped to make classical music more appealing by putting it under the noses of ordinary punters up and down the country waiting for their footy to start, and whether it did so is open to debate. What it did confirm, however, was the BBC’s self-imposed duty to add some reverence to the world’s biggest football tournament by putting it on a pedestal along with some of the finest music the planet has ever heard.



‘Heroes’ (ITV World Cup ’06)
Kasabian

ITV’s last outing saw an interesting change of direction taken on a well-trodden path. For the 2006 World Cup, they wouldn’t just revert to modernity as had often been the case before – instead they went for something that was modern-ish and without any obvious traditional links to the host country.

David Bowie’s hit Heroes had been released in 1977 reaching 24 in the UK charts and was covered by many artists in the years that followed. With obvious lyrical references that were all too easy to absorb for glory-hungry football supporters, ITV figured it would be appreciated by ultra-partisan Sun-reading England fans and popular music aficionados alike. Whereas it might have been acceptable to trot out the original Bowie version, however, they couldn’t resist bringing it right up to date with a re-record by someone current.

And so it was that Kasabian were invited to perform their version of the song, and all things considered they didn’t do a bad job of it. Again, it probably won’t be remembered as a classic by any means, but this was miles better than ITV’s musical failure of 2002 and happily jumped on the Bowie retro bandwagon that had begun only a few months earlier with the BBC drama serial Life on Mars.



A respectable effort on which to end and the opening title sequence that accompanied it was a work of genius for which ITV should be congratulated. Whether they or the BBC will stumble upon the visuals or indeed the music to make 2010’s World Cup coverage memorable remains to be seen, but the answer won’t be long in coming now. Enjoy it when it comes.

The (World Cup) Friday List of Little or No Consequence #166

Regular refs
The Only 8 Men To Have Refereed At Three World Cup Finals

1. Jean Langenus (Belgium, 1930–1938)
2. Ivan Eklind (Sweden, 1934–1950)
3. Benjamin Griffiths (Wales, 1950–1958)
4. Arthur Ellis (England, 1950–1958)
5. Juan Gardeazábal (Spain, 1958–1966)
6. Jamal Al Sharif (Syria, 1986–1994)
7. Joël Quiniou (France, 1986–1994)
8. Ali Mohamed Bujsaim (United Arab Emirates, 1994–2002)

16 Top World Cup Theme Tunes (Part 1)

Back in March, Terry brought you a popular and much needed retrospective on those top UK TV football theme tunes that filled the air of our halcyon days. As he explained at the time, however, his list was devoid of classic World Cup theme tunes - namely because we were saving them specifically for our World Cup Pull-Out. Now at last, that time has come.

With the 2010 World Cup only 16 days away, let's take a trip down memory lane and ponder awhile on those musical sig tunes that had us all humming along merrily… or not, as the case may be.

Here’s Part 1 of our guide to the Top World Cup TV Theme Tunes, and watch this space for Part 2 coming soon...

'Lap of Honour' (ITV World Cup Theme 1974)
London Stadium Orchestra

Back in the mists of time, the BBC and ITV would look no further than to plunder their sound library for a piece of music to accompany their World Cup coverage that sounded vaguely appropriate for the host country in question. England '66? That'll be something bold and brassy to reflect the bulldog spirit of old Blighty. Mexico '70? Something with lots of classical guitars and castanets. It really was that simple.

Come 1974, however, ITV were more than happy to cast off the shackles of international stereotyping by using a fairly generic piece of musical bluster to usher in the 10th World Cup in West Germany. Full of shouty brass, it's very much of its era – in fact one could argue it was still clinging onto the late-1960's by its fingertips – yet ITV would continue to plod on with it for another four years while the Beeb looked for something that sounded less dated.



'Argentine Melody' (BBC World Cup Grandstand 1978)
Performed by San Jose featuring Rodriguez Argentina (a.k.a. Rod Argent), composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber

With the 1978 World Cup in Argentina appearing on the horizon, the BBC had a very clever idea. Rather than dip into its music library for something neglected and dust-ridden, they made a call to the composer behind the hit West End musical Evita – Andrew Lloyd Webber.

With the sound of Latin American guitars still ringing in his ears, Lloyd Webber was ideally suited to conjure up the sound of Argentina for the purpose of the Beeb's World Cup coverage that year. In fact so successful was the tune he produced - Argentine Melody - that the BBC released it as a single which eventually reached number 14 in the UK charts.

ITV, meanwhile, re-recorded their theme from 1974 with some added synthesisers and considered it a job well done. We're not sure about that, but Action Argentina was certainly a job easily done.



'Jellicle Ball' (BBC World Cup Grandstand 1982)
Performed by The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, composed by Andrew Lloyd WebberNever ones to leave a winning formal well alone, the BBC arrived at the 1982 World Cup having bagged the rights to another Andrew Lloyd Webber composition, namely Jellicle Ball - an instrumental piece from the musical Cats.

Full of euphoric triumphalism and without a single castanet in sight, this brilliant orchestral composition is full of the energy and momentum that a team thrives on in pursuit of FIFA's famous gold trophy.

What's great about it is that it hasn't aged very much at all, mainly because it was never intended to be a product of its time. The Royal Philarmonic fills every second with tunefulness and melody by using every player in the orchestra to generate three minutes of unadulterated gusto.



'Matador' (ITV World Cup '82)
Jeff Wayne

The man behind the musical version of War of the Worlds and countless other TV and movie projects came up trumps with this effort which was a little sombre by comparison to the BBC's equivalent. It was, nonetheless, a brilliant combination of electric guitars, flutes and synthesisers that somehow conveyed that unmistakable air of Spanishness that 'the other side' didn't have.

Modern (in an early 80's kind of way) and nicely understated in its execution, this was a good follow-up for Wayne who composed Jubilation for ITV in 1980 – its theme to The Big Match (see previous article). More wistful and reflective in tone than Jellicle Ball, Matador's aim was to gently ease you into an evening of football from Bil-bay-oh (check Brian Moore for correct pronunciation) rather than have you on the edge of your seat before a ball was even kicked. For that very reason it was no bad thing.



'Aztec Lightning' (BBC World Cup Grandstand 1986)
Heads

The 1986 World Cup brought us two of the best themes to date from the BBC and ITV. This one by Paul Hart and Helmut Zacharias (better known as Heads, but only just mind you) had all the traditional Mexican instrumentation thrown into the mix along with the kitchen sink, we shouldn't wonder.

The main musical motif is a phalanx of horns which keep the melody chugging along and which also herald the start of the tune itself. With a synthesized bass providing a percussive backbeat and the occasional carnival whistle to remind us we’re in Latin America, this is an exercise in upbeat rabble rousing, but good though this was, many felt it had met its match in ITV's offering that same year...



'Aztec Gold' (ITV World Cup '86)
Performed by Silsoe, composed by Rod Argent

No, we haven't heard of Silsoe either, but that's to miss the point. Here was a theme tune that was so good, ITV used it for various projects many years after Mexico ‘86, most notably Saint and Greavsie.

With some similar elements to the BBC’s Aztec-oriented theme tune, ITV once again out-moderned its rivals with a piece of music that was brighter and some would say more melodic. Rife with the ubiquitous clickety-click of the castanets plus a searing electric guitar element that made it borderline soft-rock, the song was inevitably released as a single which reached number 48 in the UK charts. Probably not high enough, in our opinion, for this was a true 80’s classic.



'Nessun Dorma' (BBC World Cup Grandstand 1990)
Sung by Luciano Pavarotti

Not strictly a specifically commissioned piece of music for a World Cup TV programme, but the BBC does deserve the credit for recognising the beauty and passion that lies within this aria by Puccini.

Before 1990, no-one would have thought to plunder an operatic work to front its World Cup coverage, but the UK populous took to it like Gary Lineker to a penalty spot. Suddenly everyone knew who Luciano Pavarotti was, everyone was discovering opera and everyone understood the raw emotions it conveyed. For that reason alone it was the perfect choice of musical accompaniment for the four-yearly footballing rollercoaster that we all found ourselves on. Overlay some visuals of Gazza blubbing his eyes out and Marco Tardelli wheeling away after scoring a goal in a state of near orgasm and you have the true connoisseur’s choice of World Cup theme tune.



'Tutti Al Mondo' (ITV World Cup '90)
Composed by Rod Argent and Peter Van Hooke

Unfairly overshadowed by Pavarotti & Co, Tutti Al Mondo takes the operatic oeuvre and drags it kicking and screaming into the 1990's.

Blending the traditional towering Italian vocals and orchestral overtones into a tasteful hip-hop fusion, this concoction of funk and fortissimo was improved yet further by a brilliant computer-generated title sequence (see below). Put together, ITV had created a potent opening package for its Italia '90 programming, but even without the visuals this was a vibrant and enthralling musical piece that in any other World Cup year would have gained greater exposure and admiration. Of all the years to run into Pavarotti...



Coming up in Part 2: Synth pop, retro Krautrock and the Great American songbook plus much more besides...

32 For 2010: Slovenia

This is the third major international tournament Slovenia have qualified for - each time by manner of a play-off. They overcame Ukraine to win a place at Euro 2000 and beat Romania to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.

The key to Slovenia's qualification campaign was their excellent home form (they conceded just one goal in six games) and an away victory against the eventual group winners Slovakia, denying the Czech Republic, Poland and Northern Ireland a place in South Africa. They had a tough draw in the play-off against Russia - who had a very strong group stage. Despite falling two goals down in the first leg, a late strike from Sparta Praha's Nejc Pečnik gave them an away goal - an all important away goal as they went on to win 1-0 in the return fixture in Maribor, Bochum's Zlatko Dedič getting the goal.

Slovenia's main threat up front is FC Köln's 6'4" striker Milivoje Novakovič. However he's found goals hard to come by recently following a much publicised falling out with his club manager Zvonimir Soldo - scoring just six this season. Their only UK based player is team captain Robert Koren, a mainstay of the West Brom midfield for the past three seasons. It's likely that the squad will be entirely made up of non-domestic players.

Slovenia have been drawn with England, USA and Algeria - of these sides the only team they've played before is England - right at the start of this season. Belgian-based striker Zlatan Ljubijankič picking up a late goal in their 2-1 friendly defeat at Wembley. They may feel they have an advantage in playing England last in the group - hoping that England will have already done enough to qualify for the next stage by that time. Their key match is their opener against Algeria where anything less than a win will give them a huge mountain to climb; realistically though, the most they can hope to achieve is an improvement on their 2002 showing where they lost all three games.

32 For 2010: Australia

The Socceroos have moved. Not literally of course but on an administrative level. Previously, Football Federation Australia were members of the Oceania confederation which only has half a qualification spot for the World Cup Finals. This manifests itself as a play-off against a low-ranked team in another confederation (Asia this time, but in the past it has been South America). This route to the tournament has proved problematic for Australia (most notably under Terry Venables for France 98) and was one of the reasons why they lobbied to be included into the Asian Confederation which has more competitive nations and more qualification spots.

With the domestic league still in its infancy, many Australians play overseas in Europe. A number of them are household names. Despite not being the number one sport in the country, there are a large number of experienced international footballers with a growing supporter base who have become galvanised by the team's exploits in 2006 which took them to the Second Round only to be controversially knocked out by the wily Italians.

Top players ahead of the trip to South Africa are Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, Tim Cahill of Everton and of course Harry Kewell, now at Galatasaray. However, some doubts remain as to the fitness of the former Leeds United player which would be a significant blow for the team's aspirations. Backing up the headliners are a rump of professionals from European leagues such as David Carney (FC Twente), Mark Bresciano (Palermo), Brett Emerson and Vince Grella from Blackburn Rovers and Luke Wilkshire of Dynamo Moscow. Jason Culina, played for PSV Eindhoven until he made a big money move to A-League side Gold Coast United last season. If he features in South Africa, he may be one of the few home based players to feature. Mark Viduka has effectively retired.

Conscious that the top players in the squad are getting on a bit, a squad of predominantly younger A-League players were selected for the Asian Cup qualifying campaign in the hope that this will yield some senior Socceroos for qualification to Brazil in 2014.

The coach Pim Verbeek was assistant to Guus Hiddink in 2006. The Dutchman is not the most popular figure and has been criticised for using negative tactics (a criticism he refutes). He will be stepping down after the World Cup.

Before that, the Aussies must overcome a tough group if they are to fulfill their dream of meeting England in the Second Round. Australia have been drawn with Germany, Ghana and Serbia. To be frank, progression is going to be a tall order. However, that famous (or infamous, depending on your point of view) competitive streak and sporting appetite may see them through.

32 For 2010: Paraguay

Participants in the first tournament they may be but up until recent years, Paraguay's contribution to World Cup history has been fairly inauspicious. Between 1930 and 1998, the land-locked country located in the shadow of Argentina and Brazil as their neighbours, only qualified for the final stages three times.

Since 1998 however, Paraguay have become a regular fixture in the World Cup draw. Thus far they have never progressed beyond the second round and last time, in Germany, could not manage even that. Paraguay finished third behind Sweden and England and had an uninspiring tournament in an uninspiring group (the game against England was a snore-fest).

This year there may be more grounds for optimism on the back of an exciting qualification campaign. The White and Red registered impressive victories against Brazil and Argentina plus a 5-1 thumping of Ecuador. They finished third in the CONMEBOL qualification table, only one point behind the group winners, Brazil.

In terms of the players, English football fans will know all about Roque Santa Cruz' exploits on Manchester City's bench and treatment table. The former Blackburn and Bayern Munich striker has scored 20 goals for his country. National team coach, Gerardo Martino, also has to choose from Benfica striker Oscar Cardozo and Borussia Dortmund's Nelson Valdez.

In an interesting twist, Valdez may be joined by his strike partner at Dortmund, Lucas Barrios. Now, anyone who has been following Barrios' exploits this season on the Bundesbag will know that he is an Argentine. However, Barrios' mother is Paraguayan and he has just had his citizenship confirmed. Without further ado Barrios was selected by coach Martino (himself, an Argentine) for the latest national team training camp and looks set to be named in the squad.

This will not be an uncontroversial selection as non-Paraguayan Paraguayans are not usually made welcome in the national team. However, If Barrios can replicate his Bundesliga form (19 goals in his first season) in the World Cup, then he may be crucial to their hopes of progressing to the Second Round.

If that is to be achieved, Paraguay must overcome the world champions Italy, dark horses Slovakia and happy-to-be-there New Zealand in Group F. Not impossible but not easy. Their best chance may come in the first game against the notoriously slow starting Italians on 14th June. A good result there would set up their campaign nicely.

The Friday List of Little or No Consequence #163

The important ones...
13 World Cup Finals 'Milestone' Goals

1. 1st = Lucient Laurent (for France v Mexico, 1930)
2. 100th = Angelo Schiavio (for Italy v USA, 1934)
3. 200th = Harry Andersson (for Sweden v Cuba, 1938)
4. 300th = Chico (for Brazil v Spain, 1950)
5. 400th = Max Morlock (for West Germany v Turkey, 1954)
6. 500th = Bobby Collins (for Scotland v Paraguay, 1958)
7. 600th = Dražan Jerković (for Yugoslavia v Uruguay, 1962)
8. 700th = Pak Seung-Zin (for North Korea v Chile, 1966)
9. 800th = Gerd Muller (for West Germany v Bulgaria, 1970)
10. 900th = Héctor Yazalde (for Argentina v Haiti, 1974)
11. 1,000th = Rob Rensenbrink (for Netherlands v Scotland, 1978)
12. 1,500th = Claudio Caniggia (for Argentina v Nigeria, 1994)
13. 2,000th = Marcus Allbäck (for Sweden v England, 2006)

World Cup Draw 2010

The dust has finally settled on FIFA's World Cup 2010 draw and we now know which teams will play in which groups during the First Round of next year's competition. And it was quite some draw – all of the groups had an interesting angle or a talking point to ignite the excitement and anticipation.

Let's explore that fevered expectancy now as we take a whistle-stop review of the eight groups that will demand our undivided attention in 2010...

Group A
South Africa, Mexico, Uruguay, France
This has all the makings of a classic World Cup group – in fact it has a very familiar look to it. Why? Because three of the four teams in this group were in England's First Round group in 1966. On that occasion, Uruguay came a close second to England with Mexico finishing third and France fourth.

It's anyone's guess how they'll finish in 2010 because essentially these are four teams whose star has fallen in recent times. South Africa have failed to qualify for next year's African Cup of Nations and can only realistically hope that home support will spur them onto greatness next year. Mexico were hampered by Sven's hapless leadership and ignorance of the many issues that complicate the game there. Uruguay were inconsistent and very average during qualification and France laboured for most of their campaign as Raymond Domenech struggled to organise his talented squad into a genuine force to be reckoned with.

Group A is therefore very open which makes it a great one to keep an eye on in the First Round. For my money, though, only France and Mexico have the players, the potential and the pedigree to qualify. For the sake of the home fans, however, we hope South Africa can score some goals and maybe win a game so they have something to cheer about.

Group B
Argentina, Nigeria, South Korea, Greece Here's another group that the World Cup aficionados amongst you will think looks familiar. Back in 1994, Argentina, Nigeria and Greece faced each other in what turned out to be a very close Group D (along with Bulgaria) that had more than its fair share of surprises. Chief amongst these was Argentina's third-placed finish which allowed them to scrape through to Round Two where they were knocked out 3-2 at the hands of Romania anyway.

Back then, Greece finished bottom of the group but this time around they should be good enough to at least finish third. The only team that beat them in qualifying was Switzerland and largely thanks to Bayer Leverkusen striker Theofanis Gekas, scoring goals wasn't a problem either.

South Korea may have problems where that's concerned though, but a good defence will be their key trump card. Nigeria have consistency issues but should be good enough to avoid bottom spot too, while Argentina... well where do you start with Argentina?

Some say Maradona won't be in charge by the time the Finals start, but we say he will and indeed should be, if only for the entertainment value he brings to an event like this. As for his management of the Argentinean national team, his tactical shortcomings could bring about a similar group placing to the one they had in 1994. Luckily the two-month ban he's currently enduring for a post-match potty-mouthed tirade will give him some time to bone up on the finer points of football coaching.

Group C
England, USA, Algeria, Slovenia
From an England fan's perspective, this is a great draw as it features only one team that they'd have rather avoided (i.e. the United States) thereby making the group entirely winnable. It's also an interesting group as all three opponents are rarely encountered (indeed England have never played Algeria before under any circumstances) just to add an element of the unknown to the proceedings.

The English press are today virtually unanimous in their agreement that the draw was a good one for Fabio Capello's team, The Sun (as usual) expressing their views in their predictably silly way (see right). They will, however, have to exercise some caution over Slovenia, Algeria and the US as all three teams have the ability to fight tooth and nail to great effect.

Algeria will be regarded as the weak link, but the way they dealt with a very talented Egyptian side in the African qualifiers will give something for Rooney and Co. to think about. Slovenia earned great credit for containing Guus Hiddink's Russia in the European play-offs (mind you, they're not so hot away from home) and the US will long dine out on being the team that ended Spain's record-equalling run of 35 games unbeaten in the Confederations Cup this year.

As for England themselves, they've proved that under Capello they're perfectly capable of beating all but the very best teams in the world – a fact that's led many people to start calculating potential opponents in later rounds. As long as they treat their Group C opponents with the respect they deserve, they should progress easily into the knockout stages.

Group D
Germany, Australia, Serbia, Ghana
As soon as anyone sees Germany in a group, they automatically place them as one of the favourites to progress, but many betting companies across the UK think they're less likely to win the competition outright than Argentina. That's largely on the back of Germany's placement in a tricky group against Australia and Ghana, two countries that represent the best their respective continents can offer. Serbia topped France's group in European qualifying, so they'll hardly be a pushover either.

Australia have faced German opposition in the World Cup before, the Western half of the country playing the Socceroos in 1974, but they've come on leaps and bounds (sorry) since then in no uncertain terms. Pim Verbeek's team cruised through their final qualifying group unbeaten, even against fellow Asian giants Japan, so they'll have arguably their strongest team to date when they arrive in South Africa next year.

Ghana benefitted from an easy group at the end of their qualifying campaign, but didn't disappoint by winning their first four games to make it through at a canter. Serbia were impressive in topping Europe's Group 7 but some eyebrows might be raised by their inability to beat France in both meetings. Given France's stumbling qualification, that may cause some to question Serbia's high standing.

And then there's Germany, of course. Dropping only four points from a possible 30, they were clinically efficient as ever and even beat Russia home and away. With names like Klose, Ballack and Podolski all showing their goalscoring prowess, they'll undoubtedly have top billing in this group and that's without taking their resolute defence into consideration. Something tells us the bookies of Britain have missed a trick with their prices for Germany to win the cup, but we're not going to tell them – not until we've placed our own bet at least...

Group E
Netherlands, Denmark, Japan, Cameroon
A great group, this – full of interest and excitement. The Dutch were the first to qualify from Europe, albeit in an easy group, but don't let that take anything away from their achievements. Their fast, effective, attacking style of play and their brilliant defence justifiably makes them the favourites to win this group, and that really leaves only the runners-up spot to be decided.

As we've already mentioned in an earlier article, Denmark rarely fail to reach the knockout stages once they've actually done the qualifying bit. Finishing top of a tough group that included Portugal and Sweden, they have what it takes to do so again but they'll be up against it when they enter arguably their most important match in South Africa against Cameroon.

Perpetually one of the greatest threats from Africa, Cameroon (lead ably led by former Lyon and Rangers coach Paul Le Guen) finally settled down after a poor start to qualify with a flourish. No-one, not even the Dutch, will dismiss their chances of going through to the Second Round – not while players like Samuel Eto'o, Geremi and Rigobert Song remain in their ranks.

Japan, however, look set for an uncomfortable ride in the Finals. Still one of the big teams from the Asian continent, they dropped far too many points in qualification to be taken too seriously and will do well to take a point off anybody in their three games next year.

Group F
Italy, Paraguay, New Zealand, Slovakia
Whichever way you look at it, this looks like an absolute shoe-in for Italy. Having qualified convincingly ahead of Ireland in European Group 8, they now have little to worry them before they make their inevitable passage through to the knockout stages in South Africa.

Paraguay might be their biggest challengers in 2010, but their flying start to qualifying went belly-up at the mid-way stage, after which their form was rather inconsistent. In the end they were caught by Chile in the group table and had to make do with third place, and even then you got the feeling they only got that thanks to Argentina's dilly-dallying throughout the contest.

Slovakia are considered by some to be the dark horses of this group and indeed the entire World Cup next year, but they dropped ten points in qualifying (including two defeats against Slovenia) and won't have gained everyone's admiration by the time the Finals begin in earnest.

As for the All Whites of New Zealand, they need to concentrate on their defence – undoubtedly their greatest asset – if they're to gain even a single point in this group. With little in attack to trouble even a semi-awake Slovakian or Paraguayan side, damage limitation will be the order of the day for Ricki Herbert and his brave band of men. It'll be great to see them though, that's for sure.

Group G
Brazil, North Korea, Ivory Coast, Portugal
The 'Group of Death', as many have already labelled it, but paradoxically Brazil should progress from it without too much trouble as long as they show the quality football and professionalism they've displayed throughout qualifying and beyond.

Brazil aside, the deathly overtones will be all too apparent for the other three teams in the group, particularly North Korea who made it through to South Africa largely on the back of their ultra-defensive style of play. They'll face an altogether sterner test than the likes of Iran and Saudi Arabia here, but as they proved in 1966 there's always room for an upset or two if the opposition aren't 100% focused on the job.

Portugal, as many will recall, almost didn't make it through qualifying but ironically it was two Brazilians who chipped in to save the day for Carlos Queiroz. Sporting Lisbon's Liédson was drafted in to good effect when Portugal needed goals the most and Chelsea's Deco was often the engine of the team supplying him with goalscoring opportunities as Portugal ground out the 19 points they needed to go through.

They did need a play-off to reach South Africa, however, and that alone will give heart to the likes of Ivory Coast who, as arguably the number 1 team in Africa, could stop them progressing from Group G. Undoubtedly their key strength is in attack, and when you've got someone like Didier Drogba scoring goals for fun, it's hard not to see why.

He topped the goalscoring charts in African qualifying and with backup from Barcelona's Yaya Toure and Marseille's Bakari Koné, The Elephants will be sure to make the World Cup altogether more exciting and entertaining when the action starts next June.

Group H
Spain, Switzerland, Honduras, Chile
As co-favourites, there were few permutations that would have left Spain unsure of their chances at the Finals next year, and the draw they got didn't disappoint.

They'll face a reunion with Honduras, the team that tripped up Spain in a 1-1 draw during the 1982 World Cup, but few will expect history to repeat itself in 2010. Though exciting and difficult to beat at home during qualifying, Honduras were poor on their travels and may end up propping up Group H by the time matters draw to a close on June 25th next year.

Chile finished second only to Brazil in South American qualifying – an impressive feat, but on closer inspection much of their success can be put down to the points gained by beating the weaker teams in the group. Yes, they won 1-0 against Argentina and 2-0 against Paraguay, but in general they found the big guns difficult to handle – something that Spain will find all too pleasing to know.

Finally there's Switzerland, a team that topped its qualifying group by being efficient at the expense of being exciting against the likes of Greece, Latvia and Luxembourg – the last of which actually beat the Swiss 2-1 along the way, curiously. They have some decent players such as Philippe Senderos, Alexander Frei, Hakan Yakin and Blaise N'Kufo, and with Ottmar Hitzfeld at the helm, they stand a very good chance indeed of reaching Round Two.