Football… the final frontier is here!

Tomorrow, the world is going to witness the FIFA World Cup 2006 final clash between 2 nations that are totally opposite of each other in how they have fared historically in the World Cup.

Italy, on one hand, have reached the finals 5 times (second only to Brazil’s 7 & Germany’s 7) – this is their 6th appearance. They have won it thrice – in 1934 against Czechoslovakia by 2-1, 1938 against Hungary by 4-2, & 1982 against Germany by 3-1. The 2 times they have lost it has been to Brazil on both occasions – in 1970 by 4-1 and in 1994 by 3-2. Incidentally, all of their 3 wins came in Europe – Italy, France & Spain respectively – and they were against European teams. And both their losses came in the Americas – in Mexico & USA – against an American team.

France, on the other hand, has managed to reach the finals only once – in 1998 – which they won beating Brazil 3-0. That the tournament was in France and they were playing in front of home crowd would have given some wings to their ambitions, and the victory margin is a clear indicator of how motivated they would have been to beat a team like Brazil, who were the defending champions. Can the French win again and maintain a 100% record of reaching the finals and winning, one needs to wait & see.

A thing to notice is that amongst 18 World Cup finals (including the current year) featuring 2 sides each, there are a maximum possible 36 teams that could have played the finals. Amongst Italy, Brazil & Germany, they now have 20 appearances – more than 50%!!! Now, that does place Italy in the premium league, doesn’t it? Records clearly suggest that Italy is much more likely to take home the trophy as compared to France.

Nonetheless, the French are not going to be pushovers; the way they kept Brazil at bay in the quarter-finals tells you a thing or two about their current form. Also, Zidane has not returned from his retirement just for nothing. Though at 34, he is pretty old to play football, his legs have appeared to be the freshest in the tournament so far. Also, very few can dispute the fact that he is probably the best footballer of his generation in the world. And he is an inspiring leader, to say the least – his team’s commitment to him demonstrates this in no uncertain terms. They would die (and kill) to give him the best farewell a footballer can get – the world cup.

However, the beautiful game is very unpredictable – specially in this season. Who would have thought that none from Brazil, Argentina, England & Netherlands would reach the final 4 stage? Who would have thought that so many games would go to extra time and penalties? Who would have thought that not a single match would witness a hat-trick (this has never happened before)? And it is the very unpredictability of the game that makes it so beautiful.

So, who will win? Don’t we all love underdogs and would love to see France win? But don’t we also want to see the more deserving side, Italy, emerge glorious? I will not hazard a guess on the outcome of the final. Because, while I love my pizzas, I also cherish my wine.