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France 98 - The World Cup
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We Americans can be so arrogant when it comes to our sports. We call the champion team in Major League Baseball the "world champions," even though they don't compete against teams outside the US (unless you count the two Canadian teams in the MLB). The National Football League makes such a big deal about the Super Bowl, as if it's something the entire world truly cares about. Well, guess what? The world really doesn't care about the Super Bowl. What the world does care about is the true world championship of sport: the Coupe du Monde, Copa Mundial, the World Cup. Over 160 nations compete in regional competition, with the top teams in each region gathering every four years to compete against each other for the world championship of soccer. Of those 160+ teams, thirty win spots in the final. (The number of teams in the final is actually 32, but the host nation and the defending champion automatically qualify, leaving the rest to fight over 30 slots.) The US is in the final 32 for France 98, and hopefully will make a good showing. To learn more about World Cup 1998, check out these sites: France 98 Official Site -- Venues, history, screen savers, merchandise. FIFA -- Track the rankings of all of the teams.
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