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World Cup of Hate, Part 14: The Salty 16
Calling this round of the World Cup of Hate the “Sweet 16” doesn’t sound right, though just “Round of 16” is kind of boring. “Sour 16”? Eh… “Salty 16”? Fuck it… ROUND OF 16 EL CLASICO (SPAIN) VS. DERBY DELLA CAPITALE (ITALY) LENGTH Barcelona and Real Madrid first played in 1902, while Roma didn’t even exist…
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World Cup of Hate, Part 13: Going Gangbusters in Groups
GROUP STAGE Over the previous dozen chapters, we’ve whittled down the hundreds of fantastic rivalries in the world down to the best of the best — the 32 (really 33) meticulously detailed, unforgettable hate-filled histories between 64 (really 66) clubs that make up the World Cup of Hate. Now, it’s time to cut that number…
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World Cup of Hate, Part 12.5: Can’t Catch a Break
Well, that took long enough, didn’t it? We finally have all 32 participants in the World Cup of Hate, having scoured the entire world for the best rivalries in all of soccer. Of course, while that claim can be made for the majority of these rivalries (and all 32 can at least claim to be…
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World Cup of Hate, Part 12: Three Classics, Two Spots, One Fight
OCEANIA (1) It only took a dozen chapters, but we’re finally reaching the end of our journey across the globe to fill out our roster for the World Cup of Hate. With 30 spots taken, we have just two more to award. The first of those final spots takes us to perhaps the least-recognized, least-appreciated, and…
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World Cup of Hate, Part 11: Brazilian Battles
Our journey through the world of soccer hatred has finally arrived at the spiritual home of soccer, the place many people think of first when they think of the sport — Brazil. No country has won more FIFA World Cups (five) than Brazil, which has produced a seemingly endless list of exceptional players, including Ronaldo,…
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World Cup of Hate, Part 10: A Matter of Hate and Death
SOUTH AMERICA (5) At long last, we have reached South America, arguably the spiritual home of soccer. Home of the first ever FIFA World Cup in 1930 (won by Uruguay) and the winningest country in World Cup history (Brazil), South America has birthed tremendous success and legends of not just soccer, but sport in general.…
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“Do not say a little in many words but a great deal in few.” – Pythagoras
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