The race for World Cup glory

The growing excitement around the 2018 Fifa World Cup has not only gripped traditional football followers, but has also sent tongues wagging among those who hardly follow soccer action. The first round of matches played over the weekend produced amazing displays and set the tone for what can only be a spectacular event. Russia, who have been brilliant hosts thus far, set the tone early and finished strongly after thrashing Saudi Arabia 5-0 in their opening match. African nations, however, are finding the going tough with Egypt, Nigeria and Morocco all failing to give the continent that much-needed lift. There were surprises too. Who would have imagined Iceland - with a population of just over 300 000 people - keeping Argentina and Lionel Messi at bay in what is their historic World Cup debut? Iceland never panicked and matched their more fancied opponents pound-for-pound to force a 1-all draw. And then there was the fantastic Mexican side, which derailed the usually reliable Mannschaft machine from winning their World Cup opening match - the first time this has happened in 36 years. Prior to the match, the world champions had not lost a World Cup opening match since the 1982 finals. However, a well-organised Mexican side stunned the Germans to win their group tie 1-0. Favourites Brazil were also frustrated by a well-marshalled Swiss side, which came from a goal down to force the match into a 1-all draw at the Rostov Arena on Sunday evening. All the so-called big guns, which include Argentina, Germany, Brazil, Spain and Portugal are without wins at the biggest global showpiece and those bearing the underdog tag will surely grow in confidence in the coming days. The World Cup is truly taking shape and this vibrant drama is what makes football the number one sport in the world. It is a sport that is capable of bringing people together and connects societies around the world. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the enormous power of sport, which transcends borders, while inspiring and continuing to change lives. In the Namibian context, the dream remains to one day see our national side doing battle against these giants of the game at the World Cup finals. We can only dream, for now!