World Cup Wednesday- The Basics!

If you haven't heard, the World Cup is finally here!  Well, almost here.  Officially, the games kick off on June 12 but football (yes, the REAL football) fans have been delighted with lots of international friendlies.  The friendlies feature teams in and out of the World Cup.  For instance, the United States vs. Azerbaijan.  USA in, Azerbaijan out.  The friendlies have been a good preview of certain teams as the players you see are likely the ones you'll see in the games.  To get you ready for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, here are some basics:

2014 location: Brasil
How many teams participate: 32
How are they split: Into groups of 4 for a total of 8 groups
When do the games begin: June 12, 2014
When is the championship: July 13, 2014
Which countries are in each group:  see below

Official Groups:
Group A: Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon
Group B: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia
Group C: Colombia, Greece, Côte D'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Japan
Group D:  Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy
Group E: Switzerland, Ecuador, France, Honduras
Group F: Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria
Group G: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA
Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia, Korea Republic (South Korea)

How do teams advance?
During the group stage, each team plays each other for a total of 4 games and a maximum of 12 points.  A win= 3 points, a draw (tie)= 1 point, and a loss=0 points.  The 2 teams with the most points will advance to the knock out stage, which decreases the pool to 16 teams.  If teams have the same amount of points, goal difference will be taken into account.  During the group stage, it is possible for both teams to have a scoreless draw (a 0-0 scoreline).

During the second stage (also known as the knockout stage), the 16 teams go head to head.  For example, the top team in Group A (1A) will play the second team in Group B (2B) and so forth.  Check out FIFA's website to see the pairings: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/index.html    .  Obviously, the teams are TBD :-)

Where can I watch the games:  In the USA, you can watch on ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2.  You can also go to your local bar for some spirited banter, especially if there are other footy fans around!

What's your prediction?
Well...I'm only doing this for the group stage and there are ALWAYS surprise wins and disappointing play and suspense. However, you've gotta make predictions, so here are mine:

Group A: Brazil, Cameroon
- potential surprise team: Croatia over Cameroon (Cameroon has always been off-on in their World Cup appearances but I think they will advance, though Croatia has been looking strong)

Group B: Spain, Netherlands
-potential surprise team: Chile over Netherlands

Group C: Colombia, Japan
-potential surprise team: Cote D'Ivoire over Colombia (this is a toss up, both teams are loaded with talented superstars but Colombia is missing their biggest (and one of my favorites)--Radamel Falcao)

Group D:  England, Italy
-potential surprise team: Uruguay (Uruguay did make it to the quarterfinals in 2010)

Group E: France, Ecuador
-potential surprise team: Honduras over Ecuador (these teams are fairly similar, though I give the advantage to Ecuador)


Group F: Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- potential surprise: I don't think there will be any. I haven't seen Iran play yet, to be honest, but Nigeria did not impress in their friendly match against Greece yesterday (June 3, 2014).  Nigeria's 2010 showing was not good and while that's been 4 years ago, I have seen Bosnia play and they look good.  Argentina are the definite favorites and I don't see the second place team from this group advancing far.

Group G: Germany, Portugal
-potential surprise: It's a toss up between Portugal and Ghana, I think. Portugual's biggest asset is they have one of the top 5 footballers in  the world right now in Cristiano Ronaldo.  This group has been dubbed the Group of Death and this is a tough table.  Germany is heavily favored and Portugal likely is too.  I'd love to see Ghana advance and while national pride has me rooting for USA, their squad just doesn't look on par with a squad like Germany for instance. 

Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia, Korea Republic (South Korea)
-potential surprise: None.  I see Belgium sailing through along with Algeria.

If you want to learn more about the World Cup, check out FIFA's official website: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/

On My Way

Happy Monday!  Happy Cinco de Mayo!

I woke up this morning feeling very good.  I’m just off the cusp of a good weekend filled with culture, a wedding, unexpected reunions and smoothies!  I’ll write more about the culture aspect in a post later today.  Double posting, what what!  All in all, a great weekend.

 

So today is Cinco de Mayo.  I’ll admit that I never knew the background of Cinco de Mayo.  It’s pretty interesting, here’s a brief synopsis of what I found (per Wikipedia but you can Google for more):

“It originated with Mexican-American communities in the American West as a way to commemorate the cause of freedom and democracy during the first years of the American Civil War,[8][9] and today the date is observed in the United States as a celebration of Mexican heritage and pride.”

Pretty cool, right?  I'm a supporter of embracing cultural diversity throughout the year, so today is a start but keep it going!

Anyway, when I commute to work, I like to listen to music and often I just groove along to whatever my player decides.  Today, one song really stood out to me.  It’s called “On My Way” by the very underrated (but surely appreciated), Res.  I’ve been using this song as a personal anthem for years but sometimes when you are going through transition or phases, songs can resonate more than ever.  This song is all about not comparing yourself and how you can pull through when life presents tough moments.  With hard work and perseverance, you can begin to make your aspirations come true.  See what I mean about the message being on time?  "If I fall, if I stall and if I crawl 'cause I wanna go, it's okay, I'm ON MY WAY"  YES!

Love this acoustic version.  It's the way to go!

Have a wonderful week!

Speaking Up: #BringBackOurGirls

 

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

As I write, there is a very disturbing and heartbreaking human rights situation taking place in Nigeria. You can Google this story and I've included a few links below. Back in late April (last month), militants stormed a boarding school and abducted over 200 school girls, many of which are still missing today.  There has been much discussion of what their fate is, all of which is devastating.  I can not even begin to imagine the fear, pain, suffering and despair that these young girls are going through and unfortunately, this story is all too common in the world.  It's so easy to turn a blind eye to this issue of trafficking and violence, particularly against women in developing nations.  In fact, when I read the news update on this story, I immediately stopped what I was doing to pray for these young girls and tweet about it. Makes me realize my "problems/stressors" are really quite minuscule.  As global citizens, our biggest power lies in our VOICE and in our ability to raise awareness and advocate for change.  While the situation looks grim, I don't believe that all hope is lost.  Just because these events occur in places thousands of miles away from us does not mean we should not care or show support.  I may not be able to do much but if we can collectively raise awareness to get strategic organizations and media to pay attention, that is power.  I will pray for these girls and for their safe return and reunion to their families.  #BringBackOurGirls



Read more here:
CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/01/world/africa/nigeria-abducted-girls/
BBC: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27256860  &  http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-27241941