So the World Cup is now a week old, every team has played at least once. It is now becoming clear whether your team was a sound bet or as dodgy as a Northern Rock balance sheet.

There have already been a few surprises, and those following a minnow may have had a nice surprise. Also those struggling can cling to a few strands of hope as no team has been eliminated thus far.

If like me you have a team you know little about in the office sweepstake, or you have just not bothered with the World Cup so far, I have created a quick summary to get you up to speed.

How is your team doing?

Algeria – A poor start against Slovenia and elimination beckons, unless they pull of a surprise against England. Should Algeria qualify and you live in England you may be forced to change your name, address and seek alternative employment.

Argentina – In Messi you should trust, Argentina recorded one of the most crushing one nil victories you will ever see, in the first game and eventually ran out comfortable winners agains South Korea.  Blue and white fireworks will surely illuminate this tournament sooner rather than later.

Australia – Hammered by Germany and unlikely to progress, the players should start booking their plane tickets home.

Brazil – Although they made heavy work of the North Koreans, I would still be happy to have backed Brazil in this tournament. The quality is there for all to see.

Cameroon - Having lost their opening game, there is a lot left to do if Cameroon are to qualify, hope is not yet lost but I would not back my sweepstake team.

Chile – An opening game victory, playing attacking football, what more can you ask for?

Denmark – Lost to Holland but not out of it yet, Nicklas Bentdner and others will need to be at the top of their game for the next two games though.

England – If you don’t know how they are doing, just google ‘Robert Green’ and all will become clear.

France – Started with a draw and this side looks weary, improvement needed from a side that looks devoid of ideas.

Germany – Emphatic win against Australia, people are already taking notice of the Germans in this tournament.

Ghana – Flying the flag for Africa with an opening game win, this side will receive a lot of coverage in a tournament desperate for African success.

Greece – Poor and uninspired, if they cannot improve they will soon be back to the economic turmoil of their homeland.

Holland – Won their first game, should progress from their group with ease.

Honduras – Lost to Chile, things are already looking bleak for one of the teams no one really knows/expects anything from in this tournament.

Italy – Had a poor first game which was the ultimate defence vs. defence battle that somehow produced two goals.  After 2006 you should resist the urge to rule out these ageing slow starters.

Ivory Coast – After a battling draw against Portugal, Sven’s men need a big win against North Korea, or a miracle against Brazil to progress.

Japan – Secured victory in their opening game, they will be hoping to build on this as expectations back home grow.

Mexico – Only a draw to start the tournament off, massive improvements will be needed in order to prove they can make a mark on this tournament.

New Zealand – The point they got in their opening game was hailed as a miracle for New Zealand, read into that what you like given the opposition was Slovakia.

Nigeria – Massacred in a 1-0 defeat to Argentina, they will be ok if their goalkeeper keeps up the form he showed in that game.

North Korea – Fantastic start, strong favourites to win the tournament, well back home at least. In all seriousness the Koreans showed real passion against Brazil and even got a consolation goal. Unlikely to progress but their compact style may harm the chances of one of the other ‘top’ sides in the group.

Paraguay – Secured a great result against the holders, but may need to play with more attacking intent to progress.

Portugal – Things just don’t seem right in the Portugal camp, a draw in the opening game is ok, however much more is needed.  Only so much can be done as a one man team.

Serbia – Having lost their opening game, the Serbians look to be limping out of the tournament; however there is talent in this side. This will need to shine through if they are to reach the second round.

Slovakia – Having failed to beat the worst team in the competition in their first game, I think the Slovakians are finished in the tournament before it has really begun.

Slovenia – Top of England’s group with a win, Slovenia have a real chance to upset the apple cart and qualify ahead of the USA or England in group C.

South Africa – Full of heart and with their nation behind them, it looks like this will not be enough to help Bafana Bafana progress. Two gutsy displays have not made up for a lack of discernable talent, only a win against France and a miracle will see them through to the next stage.

South Korea – After winning their first game in an impressive fashion, the Koreans will dream of a repeat of 2002 or even better. Combining a strong work ethic with touches of flair. Despite  losing to Argentina, this team has the potential to have a stellar World Cup.

Spain – The favourites lost their opening match to Switzerland, potentially setting up a second round tie with Brazil. Still not out of the running, their Rolls Royce midfield engine needs to start ticking over, and fast.

Switzerland – After beating Spain this team must feel on top of the world, the second round may be their target, but they have certainly already made their mark on the competition.

United States – Brilliant result if not performance against England, confidence must be at an all time high. Slovenia must not be underestimated though and Friday’s game will be key to their campaign.

Uruguay – Almost through to the next round, they looked good against France and South Africa. Manchester United fans may not recognise the Diego Forlan of this World Cup compared to his days in England as he fires Uruguay forwards in the competition.

So this is where we stand after one week, in the next few days the group pictures will become a lot clearer and we may start to lose teams.

If you have backed Brazil or Germany you should be very happy with your investment, those following Slovenia, Switzerland, Chile or Uruguay may have been pleasantly surprised by last weeks games.

As we move forwards every team still technically in with a shout, each team is now  just 6 games from immortality.

MORE FROM THIS WRITER

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Gentleman, let us put away childish things.

Yes, international breaks can provide some godawful football.  Yes, it doesn’t seem fair for a player to risk injury for a team he plays with only five times a year and miss games for the club that employs him on a weekly basis.  Yes, nations like Lichtenstein don’t give much bang for your underdog dollar when facing Germany.

But to call international football boring, to curse the name of the foreign sounding manager who would dare call up your club star to represent the nation that raised him, to rant on whatever message board or blog that will let you about the inanity of Wales versus Finland, France versus Lithuania, is arrogant in the extreme.

Hatred for the international break comes from the same school of thought that calls for the abolishment of the Carling Cup, the FA Cup, and the speedy introduction of the European Super League.  If the same nations always seem to advance in international tournaments, the absurd logic goes, why not give them an automatic berth and have everyone else duke it out over the summer?

Well, for one, things change in international football, if maybe not fast enough for the club supporter who mentally erases the club season just as soon as it’s over.  Hungary were considered a global footballing power in the 1950s, along with Austria in the 1920s.  Yugoslavia, Denmark and Greece have more European Championships than England.  Hell, Uruguay twice as many World Cups as England.  Brazil was once considered small potatoes in South America, and Argentina didn’t participate in international tournaments for two decades out of fear of embarrassment.  Who’s to say Ivory Coast, South Korea, or even the United States won’t one day win a World Cup?

Sure, these are established footballing countries with ambitious national programs, but what about San Marino and the Faroe Islands?  These tiny nations are unlikely to take a national tournament by storm, but is it fair to take away the right of nations to compete in the most popular game on the planet just because you get a bit bored one Saturday or Wednesday out the season?  If you ask any professional footballer, they will often point to international caps as the highlight of their career.  It could be something curmudgeonly club-shirted punters, Best-Of DVDs in hand, might never understand.

Earlier this week I wrote an opinion piece about how the experience of watching football matches on TV are oftentimes better than seeing the games in person. Well, I want to take that back. That’s because watching a match on TV in a pub is better than both watching matches at home and in person, but it has to be the right type of pub.I found that pub this afternoon when I met up with my friend Ron from Romford, England — a fellow Miami Fusion fan from the good old days when we had a team in South Florida. We met some unlikely guests at the establishment, which definitely made the whole football watching experience more enjoyable.One of our unlikely guests at the Slainte Irish Pub in Boynton Beach was former professional footballer Ivan McKinley who used to play for New England Revolution, DC United, Tampa Bay Mutiny and Miami Fusion. Now retired from playing professional football, he and his family live in the area.For those of you who don’t know McKinley, he was pigeonholed as a rough and tough defender who still has the notoriety of receiving the most number of red cards in MLS history. The South African defender was one of the better defenders the Fusion had. Never afraid to throw his body to block a shot or go up for a header against the top strikers, McKinley was definitely a huge hit at the Fusion.We all gathered at the pub to watch the Spain against Sweden match, which was yet another firecracker. This tournament is really turning into an enjoyable experience with so many wonderful matches and exciting football on display. The Sweden against Spain game was no exception. The match had plenty of drama around the two goal areas with Spain starting out very strong but Sweden gaining confidence as the match went on.This was the type of match I watched purely for enjoyment sake. Between knocking back a glass of Magner’s Cider, chatting with McKinley and watching the match in HD on plasma screens, I wasn’t able to concentrate on the tactics or the specifics but had the pleasure instead of just watching the match.All three goals in this match were sublime and examples of why Euro 2008 is more entertaining than Copa America 2007 ever was. The first goal by Fernando Torres for Spain was a perfect example of the Spaniard making something out of nothing and reaching out to redirect the ball into the corner of the net.The second goal was an example of the strength that Zlatan Ibrahimovic possesses. While most strikers would have fallen to the ground or been knocked off their feet by the physical Spanish defender, Ibrahimovic managed to shrug off the physical challenge, twisted and turned to carefully slot the ball into the back of the net.The third goal was a work of art as David Villa stayed calm under pressure in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper and knocked the ball into the corner of the net. The impressively taken goal reminded me a lot of Fernando Torres’s goal for Liverpool against Chelsea earlier last season.With Spain, Portugal, Holland and Croatia already qualified for the next round, those are four teams that play extremely attractive football and it’s quite plausible that one of them will end up being champions of Europe this summer. I can’t wait.After the match ended, the beer kept flowing as the crowd in the pub started singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” in full voice (there were a couple of Liverpool supporters there). A little later I had a chance to chat with McKinley a little more and heard him recount his stories of training with both West Ham United and Reading. Unfortunately because he was unable to get a work permit, he couldn’t sign for either club. But he did share a story about turning up at West Ham’s training ground early one morning a couple of hours before the players arrived. Then manager at the time Harry Redknapp asked McKinley what he was doing and proceeded to invite the South African to join him for breakfast!Overall it was a wonderful day. The Greece against Russia match was bearable and I managed to catch the one and only goal for Russia before heading off to run some errands. I have a feeling I’ll be returning to the Slainte Irish Pub a few more times before Euro 2008 concludes.

I’ve finally had a chance to catch up on watching some of the Euro 2008 matches I missed. The jet lag hit me later in the week, so I found myself watching many of the games this week at weird hours on DVR.The one thing about football is that it can be so subjective. Earlier in the week, I found myself watching the 1-0 Croatia win against Austria game on the giant screen TV at the FanZone in Zurich. To me, Croatia looked like a very hard working team in the first half who were playing some wonderful football. Especially impressive was Ivica Olic, the Croat striker who plays for Hamburg, who was a workhouse throughout the game putting in an incredible performance. If ever there was a player who would do well in the Premier League, Olic is it.In their game against Austria, Croatia changed their tactics in the second half, which allowed Austria to press forward more. And it was the Austrians who impressed me, putting to bed all the fears about them being the worst team in the tournament.So I was surprised when I returned to the States and was hearing and reading the comments about Croatia looking weak in their first match. Against Germany, the Croats showed their true strength in their 2-1 win and it’s now Germany — many people’s favorites to win Euro 2008 — who risk getting knocked out of the tournament depending what happens in their final match against Austria.The other thing I found surprising when I returned to the States was the perception among many that this has been a boring tournament thus far. Sure, it’s easier to enjoy the atmosphere and games when you’re experiencing them in Switzerland, but still, the tournament to me has been one of the most exciting football events in quite some time, even more so than World Cup 2006. The France against Romania nil-nil match was horrible, but aside from that, I’ve enjoyed all of the other matches.Speaking of Romania, their 1-1 draw against Italy on Friday was a brilliant match to watch. So much goalmouth action with balls hitting the post or goalkeepers pulling off incredible saves. Buffon’s penalty save, too, was amazing to watch. Romania could have easily won the match in the first half, while Italy showed in this game their masterful technical touches — beautiful flicks, excellent ball control, deft passes and wonderful creativity — something which is desperately lacking in the Premier League and on the England national team.Italy, though, has to feel cheated by the goal that was ruled offside. On replay, it’s clear that the goal should have counted. But when I watched it in real-time, it looked to me to be offside, so I empathize why the referee and assistant referee thought the whistle should have been blown for offside.I’ve been writing about how impressed I’ve been about Holland since Monday and they completely blew me away again on Friday with their 4-1 win against France. In fairness, the French are to blame for this scoreline as they had plenty of chances to score. Just as in the match against Italy, the Dutch took full advantage of the chances they had with their clinical finishing.While Holland and Croatia continue to impress, Portugal can be added to that list. In their first game against Turkey, I thought the Portugese looked very entertaining with Pepe, especially, being a revelation. Portugal also looked breathtaking in the 3-1 win over Czech Republic. So far this tournament, the Czechs have done very little to impress me.For all of the bad press Austria got from the pundits and their own fans before the tournament started, I’ve been more impressed by the Austrians than Switzerland. Austria deserved to get the 1-1 draw against Poland earlier this week, and the penalty decision by Howard Webb, I believe, was a correct one.Speaking of Switzerland, the national team was dealt a cruel blow when Alex Frei was injured in their 0-1 loss to Czech Republic. But in the Swiss 2-1 loss to Turkey, it was Turkey’s Arda Turan who was the relevation. The Galatasaray winger scored two beautiful goals. The first, a beautifully taken header, and the second was an amazing shot in the last minute of the game, which will be one of the goals of the tournament.The one group I haven’t had a chance to watch so far this tournament is Group D because I was traveling throughout the day on Tuesday and missed Spain‘s demolition of Russia and the entertaining game between Sweden and Greece. I’m looking forward to seeing those matches on Saturday.