World Cup 2010 in South Africa... yes, I'm going to blog about it

So, I've decided to blog about the World Cup, and I'm pretty sure I'm not going to add much, but I've been posting so much on Facebook that I thought I would spare you all the constant stream of thoughts and images and stories and gather them all here instead.

I'm in a couple of pools, two for group and knock-out stage predictions and one for players and points. I've gone with really safe picks, which is lazy and will never happen. There will be a dark horse that makes it to the quarters or semis, and one of the big teams will get knocked out early, I just couldn't commit to those teams.

I've picked Brazil to win, beating Spain in the final, and Fernando Torres to be the top scorer. See? Very safe. My dark horse candidate (that I didn't pick) is Serbia. I think they'll come out of the real Group of Death, and they could beat England (or the US) in the first round. They would then face Mexico, Nigeria, France, Uruguay or Greece in the quarters, no-one too intimidating there.

I've also decided to predict the outcome of every match. It's easier than it looks if you aren't too worried about a dismal success rate. Go on, pick a day and try it.

Day One predictions:

South Africa 1-3 Mexico

France 1-1 Uruguay

Mexico will press constantly, and their attack will be too much for the hosts. France won't be able to score very much this tournament, and Uruguay are better than people think.

The SA-Mex game is already over but I got my hands on a PVR and I'm watching the game now. So far it's pretty exciting. South Africa are holding their own, but Mexico look dangerous. The celebrated vuvuzelas (plastic horns) are creating a constant, extremely loud buzzing in the stadium; it must be getting on the nerves of the Mexicans.

So, there ya have it. I'll try to keep my posts short and pointed, with a broad rather than narrow focus, such as where to watch in your neighbourhood (in Vancouver) but also what the South African experience might mean for Brazil in 2014 and why the Dutch won't win (hint: it's not for lack of scoring).

Sit back, watch some games, and enjoy the beautiful game.