Like the dark clouds giving way to bright sunshine, the FIFA World Cup has moved from the phase of criticisms and pessimism to the best of football action, as the recent past has already become a forgotten chapter, and the future is the eager wait to know who will rise to become the football power of the world!

Visa restrictions, high ticketing rates, and weary travels were what initially flooded the media attention. Why, the Somali referee Omar Artan, who had made history as the first official from his country to be selected for the FIFA World Cup, was denied entry into the US, and there ended a short-lived World Cup dream! There were roadblocks like that to instil a sense of seeming disinterest in what was always considered the world’s biggest sporting spectacle. With an enlarged field of 48 teams and action spread over three countries—the USA, Mexico, and Canada—for the first time, this edition was expected to give a new dimension to the beautiful game they call jogo bonito.

The Action Begins: The Rise of Cabo Verde

Thankfully, all was not lost, and once the ball started rolling and action started growing on the fields in the three countries in the fabulous stadium settings, the atmosphere of the true World Cup had begun. True, a few centres had less than capacity crowds initially, but as the days went by, the swaying of the crowd matched familiar sights of the past, and the focus began on the greats of the current game and also the possible new stars of countries which initially seemed difficult even to pronounce!

Prior to the World Cup, how many would have heard of the name Cape Verde (officially called Cabo Verde), considered the tiniest nation in the world, an archipelago off the west coast of Africa? Lesser still would fans have heard of a name, Vozinha, the 40-year-old goalkeeper who has already become a household name—a hero of this edition.

Vozinha’s stellar show in the country’s opener against former champion Spain, when he forced a goalless draw by his incredible goalkeeping, simply skyrocketed his name and fame instantly. What is more, the country has crossed the first stage with its 2-2 showing against another former champion, Uruguay, and a goalless draw this time against Saudi Arabia. The little nation now awaits the current champion, Argentina, next in the round of 32 for hopefully another grandstand show, and for sure, Vozinha will be the centre of attraction as he tries to tackle the current great in the game, Lionel Messi!

Legends of the Game

Talk of Messi, and perhaps he has to be the one player playing with zero pressure, so to speak. His achievements speak for themselves, and indeed, one would wonder what more there is for him to prove. Messi has the highest Ballon d’Or awards (eight) and took Argentina to World Cup triumph (2022); aside from this, he has an array of firsts. Yet, each time he enters the field, there is a buzz around for the magic he creates, which is enough to light up the stands.

As he proved this time, the great man straightaway got into the act with a hat trick against Algeria that helped him tie with Germany’s Miroslav Klose’s record of 16 goals in the World Cup. He has already stretched that to 19 now, but what is more, he is the only player thus far to have scored in seven straight World Cup games!

With six goals so far, Messi already leads the two other immediate rivals, France's Kylian Mbappé (4) and Norway’s Erling Haaland (4), in the race for the Golden Boot. Talk of rivalry, and maybe the other legend, Cristiano Ronaldo, has fallen back a trifle. His best is yet to be seen. Has the 41-year-old begun to show the strain of his long innings? Only time will tell, but Portugal still looks to him for all the glory that his presence seems to immediately raise, and the veteran for sure does not look like one who would disappoint. Indeed, interesting times are ahead for us, and as such, the big teams have crossed the first hurdle, except perhaps the former champion, Uruguay. The tempo should rise now.

The African Flourish vs Asian Setbacks

What is also striking about the first phase is the flourish shown by the African teams. Nine out of the 10 in the fray have moved on for bigger hopes in the next round. Tunisia failed where Morocco, South Africa, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Egypt, Congo, Algeria, and, of course, the tiniest among them all, Cape Verde, advanced. Morocco was a semifinalist four years ago in Qatar, and the way the team held Brazil to a 1-1 draw in this edition, the African Lions appear ready for bigger things this time. Incidentally, Morocco is also the co-host for the 2030 edition. If Cape Verde was a surprise package in this World Cup, so too it can be said has been Congo; and the way Algeria fought till the end for earning a passage to the next phase, African teams this time are truly living a dream, and surely there seems so much to look forward to from hereon.

However, for Asia, it was a setback of sorts. Only two teams progressed from the nine that had made it to the competition. Despite the enlarged field, the Asian show suffered compared to the last edition, where three teams had qualified: Japan, Korea, and Australia. South Korea missed out this time. Others who failed to make the cut were Qatar, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, and Uzbekistan.

Missed opportunities and some unexpected moments combined to make it a forgettable campaign for most of these Asian campaigners. Iran, for instance—the team which faced the greatest dose of difficulties thanks to the US’s aversion to its presence in its own territory—was unlucky that it could not still progress after being close to it. As Iran team captain Mehdi Taremi was to admit later, "It was a disastrous World Cup for them."

Looking Ahead

It will be interesting to see how the African potential will show its worth as the competition toughens and the big teams rearrange their own approach after what they have seen of the opposition thus far. There are bound to be surprises, and football never ceases to provide that.