The World Cup is a highly anticipated event that occurs every four years. It can be compared to the Olympics due to its sheer popularity and influence alone. This year, the World Cup will be taking place in Brazil. It is scheduled to take place during this summer, June 12th to July 13th. No doubt, millions of fans wait in anticipation for the esteemed and beloved event. The World Cup brings about change, both beneficial and detrimental to the people and places involved with it.
The history of the World Cup begins in 1909, with the establishment of the Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy. This was considered to be one of the very first professional international tournaments for football or soccer. As such, it can be considered to be the very first World Cup. Eventually the event evolved into a greater recognized one, being included in later Summer Olympics. In 1930, the FIFA congress at the time, decided to have a nation host an actual FIFA tournament. The host nation was Uruguay. From then on, besides the years where World War 2 made it impossible, there has been a World Cup for every four years. This tradition has continued all the way until today, changing and growing like the sport and spirit of football.
Brazil is the leading football superpower in the world. They are the only nation that has competed in every single World Cup. In addition, they have also managed to win the most. Having the competition be hosted in their nation is symbolic of their achievements and popularity in football. However, the privilege of hosting the World Cup also comes with its many responsibilities. FIFA general secretary, Jerome Valcke, says “Brazil has no choice. Brazil has to be ready.”
As the host nation of the Cup, Brazil is responsible for welcoming multitudes of people. That means the nation has to spend money and time to construct appropriate living quarters for the team, stadiums, and various entertainment constructs. Though the set up will prove to be costly, the amount of revenue gained from the tourism and the popularity of the games should be more than enough to cover the initial costs.
Brazil has already been feeling the pressure of hosting the World Cup. Two
construction workers proved to be victims of the construction work of a World Cup stadium. The tragedy was caused by a freak accident of a swinging crane. Brazil’s construction on a whole has been behind schedule due to the incident raising inquiries of work conditions.
The World Cup is a tradition that is held by the whole world. Having the privilege to host it proves that the nation is an entity unified with the world. It is a proving point of football’s role in the betterment of humanity. Whether Brazil will be the nation to prove that they are good enough to host it, only time will tell.