| Which is the greatest team sports' event? For most | | | | competition's history. This year, legendary coach |
| US Americans the "Super Bowll" would be an easy | | | | Pareira has at his disposal some of the most talented |
| answer. Others, mostly attracted by baseball, | | | | football players of the world: Kaka, Adriano, Roberto |
| basketball, or hockey, would choose one of those | | | | Carlos, Ronaldo and of course Ronaldinho the World |
| sports' finals or all-star games, but this is not the case | | | | Player of the Year for the last two years.As strong |
| for the rest of the world. Outside of the US when | | | | contenders for the title are considered, by soccer |
| people say football they refer to the sport that is | | | | experts and bookmakers, the team of Germany, |
| known as soccer in United States and which is by far | | | | which will play in front of its audience as the |
| the most popular sport in all of the five continents. | | | | host-nation, and that of England, Argentina and Italy. |
| The World Cup that takes place over a four-year | | | | In addition, the Brazilians, the French striker Thierry |
| period is considered as the most important athletic | | | | Henry, the Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko, the |
| competition, being more widely-viewed on TV | | | | English midfielder Frank Lampard, the German |
| exceeding even the Olympic Games. In 2002, when | | | | midfielder Michael Ballack and the new star of the |
| North Korea and Japan co-hosted the World Cup the | | | | Argentinean football Lionel Messi are players one will |
| cumulative TV audience was estimated to be 28.8 | | | | enjoy watching.The United States' national team is |
| billion, while 1.1 billion individuals watched the final | | | | assigned in the Group E and will face Italy, Ghana and |
| match of the tournament between Brazil and | | | | the Czech Republic in the first stage of the |
| Germany.This year the World Cup takes place in | | | | tournament, giving its first game in Gelsenkirchen on |
| Germany with the first mach between Germany and | | | | the 12th of June against the Czechs. Coach Bruce |
| Costa Rica being scheduled on 9th of June and the | | | | Arena has his team believing that their mix of young |
| last one, the final game which is going to take place | | | | talents such as DaMarcus Beasley and Landon |
| one month later on the 9th of July in Berlin. | | | | Donovan and old campaigners like Claudio Reyna and |
| Thirty-two national teams are participating in this | | | | Brian McBride could be enough to go further than the |
| great "party" of world soccer and they will play in a | | | | quarter-finals where they reached in 2002.There are |
| total of twelve German cities. Among the national | | | | many assumptions about soccer's low popularity in |
| teams, which participate 14 come from Europe, 5 | | | | the United States, but the most convincing one seem |
| from Africa, 4 from South America, 4 from Asia, 4 | | | | to be the fact that the American national team didn't |
| from North and Central America and 1 from | | | | have any serious accomplishments during the last |
| Oceania.Brazil is the defending Word Champion and | | | | years in order to attract their country's attention and |
| one of the great favorites of wining the trophy this | | | | interest. The boys of Bruce Arena will have their |
| year. The Brazilians have already won the World Cup | | | | opportunity now inside the German stadiums. |
| five times and are the most successful team in the | | | | |