Unfortunately, most of you probably don't care about the World Cup, so you have a choice: keep reading or move on and read about the success of the Estevan Elite peewee team on the weekend.
People who aren't fans of soccer think the sport is boring, but the World Cup in Brazil has been anything but so far.
Through 14 games as of Monday, 44 goals had been scored, which is over three per game. That's a lot for footy.
Not only that, it took 13 games for there to be a tie, although, granted, Monday's match between Iran and Nigeria might have been the most boring in the history of soccer.
There has been great drama, beginning 11 minutes into the tournament with an own goal by Brazil on home turf. On Saturday, Cote D'Ivoire turned Japan on their heads with two goals in as many minutes, moments after Didier Drogba came on as a substitute, on their way to victory.
There was Switzerland, scoring in stoppage time to defeat Ecuador after an incredible individual effort by Valon Behrami. On Monday, the U.S. did the same to get revenge on Ghana for being knocked out of the last two World Cups.
There have also been some big surprises. The Netherlands turned the soccer world on its ear on Friday, demolishing the defending champions and inarguably the best team in soccer, Spain, 5-1.
The next day, Costa Rica upended Uruguay 3-1, throwing one of two Groups of Death into chaos, while Germany hammered Portugal 4-0 on Monday. I won't lie, it was fun to watch the Portuguese self-destruct, including a ridiculous head-butt by Pepe that earned him a straight red.
I see Brazil, Germany or Argentina raising the trophy on June 13. I also had Spain in that group, but after the annihilation they took from the Dutch, I'm not so sure. Still, they have all the talent in the world. Argentina will also have to play much better than they did in their opener against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Here are the teams I see getting through to the knockout stage, in order of finish in each group: Brazil, Croatia, Netherlands, Spain, Colombia, Cote D'Ivoire, Italy, Uruguay, France, Switzerland, Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Germany, U.S., Belgium, Russia.
Contact Josh Lewis at 306-634-2654 or sports@estevanmercury.ca. How much money could a person have made betting on Alec Martinez to score the Stanley Cup-winning goal?
