2014 FIFA World Cup



(Photo Courtesy of Abduzeedo)

The 2014 FIFA World Cup will be taking place in Brazil starting on June 12, 2014 to July 13, 2012. It is exactly 862 days away from kick-off! Yes, I say it with enthusiasm because in my opinion it is one of the best and most exciting sporting tournaments in the world along with UEFA’s Champions League and European Cup tournaments which I will most likely be blogging about in the future.

I moved to Canada in September of 1998, which means I able to witness the 1998 FIFA World Cup which took place in France. We (France) won the world cup that year and there are no words to describe the celebrations following the win. Thirteen million people filled the streets of Paris, more centralized in the Champs-Élysées, cheering and screaming at the top of their lungs. The greatest aspect of the win was that it really unified the country. As I can't really explain all the craziness, it was one of my most memorable experiences and I wish to re-live those moments in 2014 in Brazil.

The FIFA World Cup only happens every four years, and if I was given the choice of choosing where I'd like to attend the world cup, it would definitely be Brazil. Why Brazil? I went to Rio de Janeiro last summer and it's probably the best city I've ever been to. It's a beautiful, fun and vibrant city filled with welcoming people. Secondly, Brazil has one of the best soccer teams in the world hands down. Although I would like France to win, I'd like to see Brazil take it if my team doesn't! I can only start to imagine the celebrations there; Brazilian style which would be loud and rowdy. Soccer is almost like a religion there, so you can imagine how excited the whole country is about hosting the world cup. It will also be Brazil's second time hosting it since their last time in 1950. Brazil last won the world cup in 2002 after being the runners-up to France in 1998. They have already 5 world cup titles to their name and will be looking to make 6 at home. Rio has one of the biggest and most famous soccer stadiums in the world,  the Maracanã, which has a seating capacity of 83,000 but can hold up to a maximum of 120,000 when completely full.

I started saving money for my trip to attend the 2014 FIFA World Cup about a year ago as this is an event that will not come cheap. It will be a costly but a worthy experience and there's absolutely no way that I won't be going. For me, this will be a trip of a lifetime and I'm really looking forward to it, but in the meanwhile I'll keep myself busy with the annual Champion's League tournament and this year's Euro 2012 which is set to start this June.