Those last four years went by pretty fast… Well, it’s time for the FIFA World Cup again. This year Russia is the host country and it’s their first time doing so. But the World Cup is no stranger to Europe as this will be the 11th time that this part of world is staging soccer’s biggest event. Although this event still has another few days before kickoff (June 14th), we have some intriguing storylines taking place.
Team USA will not be participating for the first time since 1986, they had played in the last seven World Cups before hand. Some countries are returning to the World Cup after a long drought, others are joining the field for the first time, some looking to make history, and then the familiar faces. It should also be noted that 17 players from Major League Soccer will be participating. It comes as no surprise that Latino America continues to have strong presence in this event.
Here’s a breakdown of those teams and who they’ll be competing against…..
Argentina
16th World Cup Appearance (42-14-21 all-time record)
Best Finish: Champions in 1978 and 1986
2018 Draw: Group D
All eyes are on Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria again as Argentina is under a heavy microscope for this World Cup. After losing the championship game to Germany four years ago, Messi –a five-time Ballon d’Or winner- continues to take the heat for the fact that “La Albiceleste” hasn’t won an international championship since taking home the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Some also blame Di Maria for not being more productive thus putting all the pressure on Messi.
Argentines are tired of losing to their regional rivals. Since those 2008 Olympics they’ve had to watch Brazil and Chile win a combined six championships and medals between the Olympics, Copa America, and the Confederations Cup. If they want to regain momentum in the race for CONMEBOL supremacy, they’ll first have to navigate a series of what some call “trap games” in Group D.
That group includes a Croatian team that’s been making noise in Europe, an upstart Iceland side that’s making it’s first World Cup appearance and playing in just it’s second international event overall (they’ve gone 8-1-6 in their
last 15 international matches), and Nigeria who’s playing in their third straight World Cup.
Panama
1st World Cup appearance (48-11-38 all-time record in other international competitions)
Best Finish: TBD (they have two combined championships in other tournaments)
Draw: Group G
Outside of Central America nobody knows what to expect from Panama. While they are a heavy underdog they come in tow with two excellent offensive players. Luis Tejada and Blas Perez have combined for 86 international goals. “Los Canaleros” scored 12 total goals during the CONCACAF portion of World Cup qualifying, Tejada and Perez accounted for four of those goals. They’ll be heavily leaned on as they’ve been placed in one of the more difficult groups with World Cup regulars in England, a Belgium team that’s looking to build upon it’s quarterfinals appearance from 2014, and Tunisia who’s making their first World Cup appearance in 12 years.
Brazil
Have played in every single World Cup (70-17-17 all-time record)
Best Finish: Champions in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002
2018 Draw: Group E
It’s just another day at the office for “Selecao” as they’ve never missed a World Cup. Their worst finishes came in 1930 and 1966 when they failed to make it out of group play. Star forward Neymar, playing in just his second World Cup, is looking to add his name to the list of Brazilian legends such as Ronaldo, Kaka, and Ronaldinho among others that have hoisted the World Cup Trophy. While they haven’t won the big one since 2002, they’ve collected a host of other championships in that time.
That collection includes three Confederations Cups (2005, 2009, 2013), two Copa America titles (2004 and 2007), and they’ve medaled in the last three Summer Olympic Games (gold in 2016, silver in 2012, bronze in 2008). Neymar was the star for the 2016 and 2012 teams. Brazil is never short on talent or experience and they are a favorite to win. But winning a sixth World Cup will be easier said than done as their Group E draw contains Switzerland (who’s reached the Round of 16 in two of the last three World Cups), Costa Rica (who’s won eight Copa Centroamerica championships since making their World Cup debut in 1990), and Serbia (making just their second World Cup appearance since separating from Yugoslavia).
Mexico
16th World Cup appearance (14-14-25 all-time record)
Best Finish: Reached the quarterfinals in both 1970 and 1986
Draw: Group F
As good and popular as “El Tri” is they’ve never won a World Cup title. With every World Cup since 1994, Mexico has been unable to get past the Round of 16. They have either failed against European defenses (Bulgaria in 1994, Germany in 1998, Netherlands in 2014), couldn’t keep up with other Latin American powers (Argentina in both 2006 and 2010), or just flat out lost to an arch-rival (United States in 2002). They’ve lost those games by a combined score of 12-5.
The inability to score at that level is problematic to say the least. But before Mexico can even think about another Round of 16 slot, Javier Hernandez and the Dos Santos brothers (Giovani and Jonathan) first need to work their way past the defending champion Germans, a hungry Swedish team that’s playing in it’s first World Cup since 2006, and a South Korean unit eager to prove that they are one of the elite teams in the world. A tall task indeed lies ahead of them.
Costa Rica
4th World Cup appearance (5-4-6 all-time record)
Best Finish: Quarterfinals in 2014
2018 Draw: Group E
Like Colombia, “Los Ticos” are eager to prove that their 2014 performance was no fluke. But they have a tough draw this year as they are paired up in the same group as Brazil, Switzerland and Serbia. Luckily, Costa Rica has one of the better goalkeepers in the sport in Keylor Navas. They’ll need him as they’ll be facing plenty of offense in the opening round.
Colombia
5th World Cup appearance (7-2-9 all-time record)
Best Finish: Quarterfinals in 2014
2018 Draw: Group H
Midfielder James Rodriguez can’t wait to take the pitch in Russia. He was the face of the Colombian team that reached the final eight four years ago in Brazil, it was the nation’s first World Cup appearance since 1998. Now Rodriguez and “Los Cafeteros” are looking for more as they have a little more experience under their belts. They have one of the more interesting draws in Group H where they’re joined by an up and coming Japan team (who’s qualified for their sixth consecutive World Cup), a surprising Poland squad (last played in the 2006 World Cup), and somewhat of a newcomer in Senegal (only their second World Cup appearance).
Spain
15th World Cup appearance (29-12-18 all-time record)
Best Finish: Champions in 2010
Draw: Group B
Espana is no stranger when it comes to the World Cup. Like Brazil, they always field team excelling with talent and experience. Unfortunately for the 2018 version of “La Furia Roja”, there is some uncertainty. After barely qualifying for Brazil four years ago, they weren’t able to make it out of group play. They sported a 1-0-2 record and were outscored 7-4. This led many Spaniards to demand changes from top to bottom because aside from the 2010 title, Spain practically made the Round of 16 a formality in previous World Cups.
Their ability to regain their spot atop the FIFA food chain will be extremely tested as they’ll need to defeat arch-rival Portugal, a Morocco team making their first World Cup appearance in 20 years, and a surging Iranian side that’s won nine of their last 14 matches. All eyes will be on midfielder Andres Iniesta (the man that scored the championship winning goal in 2010), who announced his departure from F.C. Barcelona back in April. His fellow Spanish citizens are hoping for another round of World Cup moments before he takes his talents to Japan’s J1 League later this year.
Peru
5th World Cup appearance (4-3-8 all-time record)
Best Finish: Quarterfinals in 1970
Draw: Group C
While this is the fifth World Cup trip for Peru as a nation, this is a first time appearance for the players on the current roster since Peru last played in this event in 1982, before anybody on the current squad had been born. You’d have to do an extensive search to find Peruvian citizens who watched the team play that year. So the current squad looks at this as a potential fresh start as “Los Incas” look shock the world. Striker Paolo Guerrero (87 caps, 34 goals) leads this team that will contend with a previous champion in France (1998), as well as Denmark and Australia who are also playing in this event for just the fifth time.
Uruguay
13th World Cup appearance (20-12-19 all-time record)
Best Finish: Champions in 1930 and 1950
Draw: Group A
Not winning a World Cup in over 68 years has to be a tough pill to swallow. Especially since Uruguay comes from the same continent as Brazil and Argentina who’ve won a combined seven World Cup Trophy’s since then. “La Celeste” has outscored their opponents 14-11 in the 2014 and 2010 World Cups combined. F.C. Barcelona striker Luis Suarez has scored five of those 14 goals but yet it still wasn’t enough to end the country’s drought. Trying to end that drought this year will be quite the challenge as Uruguay has been paired up with host nation Russia (where the home crowd will be rowdy), and two potential sleeper teams from the Middle East in Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
The world will be watching when these teams take the pitch on June 14th.