El campeonato y la victoria de España-dos cosas importantes

Sorry to my English-speaking friends, but I need to be multi-cultural for a second.

¡Por fin escribo algo en español! Discúlpenme por no haberlo hecho anteriormente. Lo que es importante es que se haga, ¿verdad? Bueno, para mis amigos que hablan este mismo idioma de castellano (en verdad no se llama "español," pero eso es otro sujeto para otro día), sé que quieren oir algo del fútbol. Ya se acabó la Copa Mundial, pero sigue resonando la importancia y el efecto que tiene lo que hizo España. Es muy difícil comprender como es posible que fue la primera vez que ese país estuvo en el final del torneo. España tiene una historia y un pasado muy decorado y largo con el fútbol de los clubs. Real Madrid y Barcelona han estado ganando por años y épocas. Los mejores jugadores del mundo se van a España para jugar para esos clubs. Ojalá que el país siga ganando. ¡Aver como le va en Brasil en 2014!

Anteriormente hablé del efecto del campeonato de España tiene sobre el país completo. Después de tantos años de lucha, pelea, ira y odio entre las naciones seperadas, el equipo nacional calmó a la gente un poco. A la vez, se hizo algún tipo de unificación. Los catalanes, los euskadis, los gallegos y los castellanos tienen ese campeonato en común. Es algo que pueden compartir al olvidarse de sus diferencias y tensiones, si solo por un momentito. El imagen o el acto que promociona ese idea fue el gol de Carles Puyol en el semi final contra Alemania. Puyol, un catalán orgulloso, contribuyó al triunfo del país completo. Así que ¡sigan celebrando, todos los del país de España! En esta victoria se ha encontrado algo más y mucho más importante que un campeonato, y es la manera de unirse despues de tanta contención.

¡España!

¡España es el campeón del mundo! ¡Les ganó a los Países Bajos para el título del ganador de la Copa Mundial! ¡Será el campeón por los 4 años próximos hasta la siguiente! In english, Spain is the world champion. They beat The Netherlands to take the title and they will be the winners for four years, until the next World Cup. It sure has been a great ride! I'm actually really sad that it is over. There may not have been as many goals scored this year as there has been in years past, but I could not take my eyes off the television. It is amazing how a sport that can end tied 0 to 0 can get so exciting. Spain was able to win its last 4 games scoring only one goal per match, and not allowing a single one. They were dominant in how they possessed the ball and refused to let anything phase them, even if it is a blatant cleat to the chest (should have been a red card for Nigel De Jong of the Netherlands, by the way. Xabi Alonso was lucky he got back up and stayed in the game). But the real hero is Spain's goalie, Iker Casillas. He continued to make play after play when an opponent or two got the upper-hand of the rest of the team. When he blocked Robben's wide open break away shot with the nail on his big toe (good thing he didn't clip them the night before), you could feel that Spain was not only the most complete team in the tournament, but probably the team of destiny as well. What a great overall performance by Casillas, who probably has played his last World Cup match for his country. What a way to finish!

and the winner is...

Well it has been a while since I posted anything and as you all know, my World Cup dream has not come true. Not the scoring a goal dream (we all have that one, right?), but the Argentina vs. Brazil dream. The Netherlands knocked out the Brazilians and their "beautiful game" and Germany punched and pounded Argentina into submission. As it turns out, you need to play a little defense in the World Cup. Crazy, huh? But I think that we fútbol fans are in for a real treat this Sunday. You sure can't go wrong with Spain vs. Netherlands. Whichever nation wins, it will be their first ever World Cup title. Spain seems to always find a way to win, and the Dutch may just be the team of destiny. I feel that the Spanish are going to take it, but don't quote me on that. I may or may not have struck out when it comes to World Cup predictions. The point is, the game should be a lot of fun and we will find out who gets the Golden Boot (top scorer in the tournament). It will be either David Villa or Wesley Sneijder.
Back in the homeland, LeBron James announces who he will play for next season. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited to see him, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade playing in Miami together, I am just sick of the media coverage (ESPN...) and them slaughtering the story into a stain on the floor. I couldn't tell you how many montages of James dunking I have seen streaming across my television. It's getting really annoying. LeBron, stop holding the NBA and the media hostage and just make a decision. Don't drag it out, don't make a huger deal out of it than it has to be, and just tell us and go play. Your brand needs you to win, not just talk about wanting to win. Put your money where your mouth is.