The World Cup Will Cause World Peace

Sometimes; well, often really, I want to weep. Not, as you might think, because of all the suffering that goes on in the world or because I've stubbed my toe getting out of bed. Not even because I've been listening to Johnny Cash singing 'Hurt' - although that does get me every time.

No, I mainly want to weep when people who should know better make outrageous claims for their products. I'm not taken in by this whole 'brand values' thing generally, but when someone says "next year’s World Cup will unite South Africa to eliminate the remains of apartheid and contribute to world peace", as Danny Jordaan, head of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee, did, really the only logical response is to cry. A lot.

There's No News...So Let's Make Something Up..Part 1 of Several 100

It's been a quiet week in football in general, apart from the USA's sterling performance against Brazil in the Confederations Cup Final.

So, bored journalists do what they are best at and that is : make something up.

Take this headline in the Daily Mail from a couple of days ago:

'We fear England could ruin our World Cup chances, reveals Brazilian superstar Kaka'

Wow, you think. Kaka must have really taken leave of his senses to consider England a threat to Brazil at the 2010 World Cup Finals.

Well, um, no. He hasn't. Nowhere in the quotes given by Mr Kaka does he say anything even remotely like 'we fear England'.

What he does say are the usual platitudes like "I think England is playing very good (sic) under Capello" and "the most important national teams at the moment are Spain, Argentina, Italy, France and England."


Still, why let the truth stand in the way of a good story. Expect much, much more of this kind of thing before the World Cup actually starts. And much, much more when it's actually happening.