World Cup 2006: Soccer's biggest show kicks off today

2006 World Cup

GDO Report

Twelve years ago, America hosted the World Cup. A surprising run to the second round by the U.S. team changed the perception of soccer in this country and led to the creation of a major professional league here.

Four years ago, the U.S. advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals as many American pros became high-profile, wealthy players in European leagues.

Today, the 2006 World Cup begins in Germany. Like other parts of the country, the mid-Hudson Valley is teeming with people who are passionate about the 32-day tournament. Many of them are part of the first generation of real soccer fanatics in the U.S.

"I remember seeing (the World Cup) for the first time in 1994," said Kyle Hopkins, 22, of Poughkeepsie. "It just drew me more into soccer. I love the World Cup. It's a team game and you're only as strong as your weakest player."

Highland resident Rory Becker, 36, says he has set up his digital recording equipment at home to capture every minute of every game.

"I think the '94 World Cup really enlightened people and put soccer on more of a mainstream," Becker said. "This is going to be a long weekend of game-watching. I've got two young children and they're getting into it — it's like a fever, if you will."

For the record, there have been 17 World Cup tournaments, but there have only been seven different winners. Billions of people worldwide will watch the tournament. Brazil, which has won two of the last three World Cup titles, is favored to win this year.

The U.S. team is ranked fifth in the world rankings and is no longer considered a huge underdog, a testament to growing respect internationally.

"We grew up with this stuff," said Chris Kapogiannis, an Arlington High School graduate. "We started at age 10 in the East Fishkill Soccer Club. For those 30 days, everything else takes a back seat. My brother and I have cassette tapes of every World Cup going back to the eighties."

Kapogiannis has owned Soccer United, an apparel and equipment store in Wappingers Falls, for 11 years. He's seen how youth soccer programs in the area have blossomed and he gets to see firsthand, every day, how much interest there is in the World Cup because he's stocking team jerseys.

"When I started the business, July, August, September were the busiest months and the winter was quiet," Kapogiannis said. "It's no longer seasonal.

"It was very difficult to get national jerseys back then, too," he continued. "Now they're very accessible, and the companies offer them in both home and away."

Matt Cunniff purchased a tiny England uniform for his young daughter. A New Paltz resident and a native of Chester, England, he's doubly excited about this year's World Cup.

"Obviously, I support England, and we've got a good chance this year," Cunniff said. "My parents recently emigrated here, so I'll be watching the game Saturday with my dad."

Having lived in the U.S. for 13 years, Cunniff compares the international passion for soccer to the draw of American football.

"You see passionate fans, standing with their shirts off in minus-10-degree weather, with the team's name scrawled on their chests," Cunniff said. "It's a similar type of feeling. People here grow up with American football or baseball, the rest of the world, by and large, grows up with soccer."

32 teams go for goal

Here's how the tournament works: The 32 teams are separated into eight groups of four, and the groups play round-robin games against each other. The top two teams in each group advance to the second round, also known as the knockout round, because it begins single-elimination play. The quarterfinals, semifinals and final follow.

The United States plays the Czech Republic, the No. 2-ranked team in the world, Monday. Italy, regularly a World Cup powerhouse, and Ghana make up the rest of Group E.

"We need to either win or draw against the Czechs," said Hopkins, who is trying out for the Hudson Valley Region's soccer team for next month's Empire State Games in Rochester. "It's going to be tough. If we can fare well in the first round, then we can see what the second round brings."

Expectations for U.S. soccer have definitely changed.

"I don't think it's an issue of whether the rest of the world is taking us seriously anymore," U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller said in a recent interview published in Newsday. "They still think they're better than we are. ... We now can compete with and beat anyone, but until we take it to the next level and consistently get to the quarterfinals, there's no argument. I do think there's a lot more respect for the U.S. than there was four years ago."

Getting to the second round would be an accomplishment, most experts say. The top two teams in the U.S. group will play the top two teams in the Brazil group in the knockout round. There's a chance, even if the U.S. survives group play, that Brazil will be waiting in the knockout round.

"If you ask people, most everybody is taking Brazil," Kapogiannis said. "With the skill of their players, they'd have to be the pick. But skill is not the only formula for success."

"The Brazilians are flashy and have incredible talent," Becker said. "But I have to root for my home squad. That's the beauty of the World Cup. Sometimes the ball bounces your way and sometimes it doesn't. And sometimes the best team doesn't win."