The Glorious World Cup by Alan Black

The Ultimate Guide to the World Cup Finals 2010

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Powell's Books

 Tired of that tiresome basketball? The boredom of baseball? The dog fighting of American Football? No? Me neither but there is something bigger and better than them. The World Cup Finals are the cocktail for this summer. The games kicking off in South Africa in June are a shake-up of cosmpolitanism and nationalist spice. Unlike the Olympics which pose as purity, the World Cup is a clash of cultures, a struggle to assert that "we" are best. Soccer is the glue that holds many countries together. Wars can happen if things go wrong. El Salvador and Honduras slaughtered each other in 1969 after a World Cup qualifying game. Egypt and Algeria came to blows over their games in 2009. When England play Argentina, it's the re-enactment of The Falklands War. And as for the match up between Holland and Germany, look back to 1941 to understand the frenetic rip.

The USA plays England on June 12 in the most anticipated clash since the tea went into the harbor. Get behind the squad, Americans!

Check out The Glorious World Cup - A Fanatic's Guide - for everything about the World Cup

www.thegloriousworldcup.com