Years in which there is a World Cup tournament generally see a surge of interest in soccer, and this year was no exception. In fact, this year’s tournament had many pundits calling it one of the best. If you’re a soccer novice or only an occasional viewer, you might wonder what made the 2018 World Cup so special.
By Joseph Plunkett
Giants Crashed Out
Italy and the United States didn’t even make into the tournament in the first place, and that turned out to be a harbinger of what the tournament had in store for several top contenders. Italy, one of the most successful teams in World Cup history, has won the tournament four times but failed to qualify.
The United States is a more recent contender and generally does well to make a good showing and get out of the group stages, but it usually doesn’t have too much trouble beating its regional contenders for a spot in the tournament.
This year, those shocking omissions were only the beginning of the surprises. The greatest upset was defending champion Germany being unable to even make it out of their group phase and losing to South Korea and Mexico. It was Germany’s poorest performance in a World Cup ever. If you enjoyed the World Cup, you might want to try your luck in the popular online sportsbetting world.
Unexpected Successes
Just as teams like Germany and Argentina were shocking viewers with their lackluster performances, unexpected challenges arose from teams like Croatia and Mexico. England, traditionally considered a decent contender despite having won only one World Cup, had lost the confidence of its fans in recent years, who felt their players were overpaid, underperforming and entitled.
They surprised everyone by fielding a team of young, eager players full of heart and talent who made it all the way to the semifinals.
Croatia rose up as a new contender in the final, and though they couldn’t defeat the experience of a France team that has won the World Cup in 1998 and competed in the tournament since 1930, they won over new fans. Iceland, a small team that has only recently begun qualifying for the World Cup, was a fan favorite as well.
Plenty of Goals
Seasoned soccer fans will tell you it isn’t about the goals, or at least it isn’t all about the goals. It’s about the strategy, the technique and setting up plays. However, even those fans would probably concede that they would rather watch a match that ended 3-2 than a 0-0 draw.
The 2018 World Cup didn’t break any records for number of goals scored, but its scoreboards were busy enough to keep even casual viewers happy. This World Cup was notable for other reasons, in particular its use of technology.
Soccer has been notoriously resistant to introducing new technology, such as instant replays, that are standard in other sports. Video-assisted referees, or VAR, was not without its critics but certainly played a huge part in the tournament.
Having watched a lot of the tournament means you will have already been introduced to stars such as Mohamed Salah. Sports betting can bring an entirely new and even lucrative dimension to the fun of watching games, and most sites are set up to help beginners jump in and get started right away.