Well, after the first game, it was obvious that at least one referee has been bribed, or at least he has so much fear in the citizens of Brazil that he felt compelled to make calls in their favor.
I dislike big sporting events like the World Cup and the Olympics, because often times the governments spend tens of billions of dollars with few actual benefits for the citizens but some prestige for the country. And government officials and their friends and a few sports teams always get a few handouts. See Qatar and Russia.
Regardless of my dislike of the authoritarian nature of these events, I do enjoy the entertainment aspect. When you put all the emotions and grandstanding aside, that's what modern professional sports is these days: an entertainment industry. When you look at sports from that angle, you get less emotional about the whole thing.
Enough of that schpeel. I like the Germans, Italians, and Argentines this time around. The era of Spain looks to be winding down. Brazil has some great players, but it looks like they need some gifts from the referee to win their first game and they do not play team football as well as some other teams. Then again, the home country advantage has already begun to show.
I would hope that my home country figures out a way to at least tie Ghana this time around. Ghana beat the USA in the last two World Cups, and our team could not compete with their speed, strength, and team play. I say park the bus and play the counter attack. But I'm just an armchair quarterback.
