For some reason, it’s more visually appealing watching the replays of the Dutch committing their dirty fouls in Lego than it is on television. It’s quite more elegant than reality.

So in all of it’s splendor, here are the highlights of the 2010 World Cup Final featuring Spain and Netherlands in the wonderful stop-motion photography created by LegoFussball.

Congratulations to Spain on winning the 2010 World Cup after beating Netherlands 1-0 in extra time after a goal by Andres Iniesta.

Here are photographs from this historic day in World Cup history where Spain has won the World Cup for their first time and where they are current holders on both the World Cup and European Championship.

More pictures after the jump:

If you’ve been listening to the daily World Cup Buzz Podcast since it debuted in mid May, you’ll know how frustrated Richard, Laurence and Kartik have been with the performance by the Netherlands team. And I echo the same concerns. The team has achieved so much to get to the final and has shown flashes of brilliance along the way, but it’s not the type of Dutch team that is going to win games in a beautiful manner.

So, I thought it’d be a good idea to delve into the archives and to find some examples of how the Dutch teams of the past tantalized us with their incredible skill and attacking prowess. I’ve compiled a collection of videos from the 1974 and 1978 World Cup tournaments as well as one from the 1988 European Championship.

Here they are:

1974 World Cup tournament

This was the one where the Netherlands should have won the World Cup. With a team featuring stars such as Johan Cruyff, Johan Neeskens, Ruud Krol, Johnny Rep, Wim Suurbier, Rene van der Kerkhof and many others. They played a brand of soccer called Total Football, which was built on the premise that a player who moves out of position is replaced by another member of the team, thus retaining the team’s intended organizational structure.

Netherlands made it through to the final of the 1974 World Cup where they played host country West Germany. Within the first few minutes of the game, the English referee Jack Taylor awarded a penalty to Netherlands – the first penalty ever awarded in a World Cup Final. However, Taylor was criticized for failing to hand out yellow cards to German players who committed several serious fouls on Dutch players. The only German that day to be yellow carded was Berti Vogts in relation to the first penalty called in the game.

1978 World Cup tournament

Agonizing for the Dutch, they made it through to the 1978 World Cup Final and almost won the game when in the final minute of regulation time, Rob Rensenbrink hit the post. If the ball had gone in, the Netherlands would have won the 1978 World Cup. Instead, the game went into extra time and Argentina grabbed two late goals to win it 3-1.

1988 European Championship

Holland’s Total Football was long gone, but the 1988 Dutch team featured a stellar side of players including Ruud Gullit (with long hair), Marco van Basten and Ronald Koeman. This was a side that was not at the level of 1974 or 1978, but the Netherlands still went on to win the 1988 European Championship with one of the goals of the century courtesy of van Basten.

Spain, if you’re the “Best Team In The World” according to Joachim Loew, why do you have to be so bloody boring?

Watching Spain’s 1-0 victory against Germany Wednesday, I was bored several times during the match. No, not because of the lack of goals. But because of Spain’s methodically slow tempo. Several times in the first half, they would walk around the pitch and pass the ball between themselves looking for an opportunity to spring the perfect pass. Even when they were winning and they were in Germany’s penalty box, they played keep-away instead of trying to score their second goal.

There’s no doubt that Spain has a team that possesses some of the best players in the world. And the depth that manager Bosque has in his team would make managers of other countries (Capello, anyone?) drool. And, Spain’s tactics Wednesday night were effective by continuing to pass and press Germany, looking for the opening that would give them the slight edge which would be enough to win the game. Still, I realize that Spain and its footballers are not paid to entertain but rather to win, but do they have to be so slow in their build-up?

I’m not expecting Barcelona, I mean Spain, to be as frenetic as a teenage boy in heat (i.e. which is what many Premier League clubs remind me of when they get the ball), but I do expect them to mix up their style of play now and again in the 90 minutes. Yes, there were several flashes of brilliance in this game where David Villa would hit a perfect flick-on, or Andres Iniesta would serve up the perfect pass. But, for crying out loud, give me a few minutes of continuous hang-on-to-the-edge-of-your-seat onslaughts on your opponent’s goal.

I realize that Spain’s tempo is the opposite of what we see in the Premier League. But I’d honestly rather watch a rollercoaster ride of a Premier League match with plenty of highs and imperfect soccer than 90 minutes of boring artistry from Spain. After watching Spain’s semi-final victory, the word that popped into my head to best describe the Spanish team was ‘artisans.’ They excel in their profession and produce a wonderful piece of art. But that art is best enjoyed in a highlight reel rather than suffering through 90 minutes of boredom and flashes of brilliance now and again.

Judging by Spain’s performance today, I don’t hold much hope for this Sunday’s World Cup Final. The one thing that Germany failed to do Wednesday was to get in the faces of Spain and stop them from playing the game they love to control. Germany failed to take control and put Spain on the back foot. And there’s no guarantee that the Dutch crack Spain’s veneer either.

The odd thing about the two finalists in the 2010 World Cup is that neither team has played as well as we had anticipated thus far in the tournament. Both have done incredibly well to make it to the final, but neither team has played the game of their lives that we know they’re capable of. An early goal for both sides on Sunday is one of our few hopes to get both teams to play outside of their shell so we can see end-to-end action. But if that doesn’t happen, we may witness a drab game from both sides as they look for the few chances that fall their way.

The final of the 2010 World Cup is set. After Spain defeated Germany 1-0 in the World Cup semi-final Wednesday, we now know that there’ll be a brand-new country to add to the list of the select group who have won the most prestigious soccer tournament in the world.

But who will win Sunday? Vote below. And why will they win? Share your opinion in the comments section below.

Through some fortuitous timing on my part, and the benevolence of my wonderful wife, I was able to spend a large part of our recent honeymoon in South Africa…for the 2010 World Cup!  Since arriving back Stateside, I’ve attempted to settle back into a life devoid of 24/7 football and the sweet hum of the vuvuzela.  In reflecting on our trip, I wanted to share a few impressions and musings from our experience, the football portion, of course.

My wife and I arrived in Johannesburg from London the day of the US/England match.  As soon as we set foot in the OR Tambo Airport, we were greeted with the sight of colorful FIFA World Cup signage and booths hawking the latest World Cup gear and novelties.  The first question we were asked in customs was whether we were there for “the football.”  During our ride from the airport to our temporary residence in JoBurg, our driver was eager to discuss the World Cup; even while admitting he was more of a rugby fan.  He impressed upon us, as hosts of the World Cup, the casual South African soccer fan had been transformed into a full-fledged fanatic for the duration of the World Cup.

Our first match was the Netherlands blanking Denmark 2-0 at the Soccer City stadium.  The build up to the match was incredible.  While the traffic was thick en route Soccer City, the cast of characters entering the stadium was entertaining to say the least.  There were busloads of Danish supporters furiously waving their country’s flags.  This only spurred the Dutch fans walking beside the buses to reply with a frenetic chorus of vuvuzelas and their own flag waving.  Particularly amusing were the fans who had indulged in a few pints too many, and with no other option, were forced to handle their business on the side of the road.  All of this before we made it within a mile of Soccer City.  One of the cool sights along the way was seeing the level of entrepreneurial spirit exhibited by the vendors stationed along the path to stadium.  While you would expect the standard vuvuzela, replica soccer ball, or t- shirt, you could also find numerous national team specific wares, specifically targeted to the fans of the day’s match.  This day, it was all Denmark or Netherlands, from the flags being sold, to the pallets of face paint made available for willing patrons to have their nation’s flag painted on their person; all for a few South African Rand, of course.  Right before entering the stadium you could even pick up a pair of earplugs, just in case you wanted to drown out one of those recently purchased vuvuzelas.

While on the subject, a note about the vuvuzela.  There has been much made about the annoying nature of the instrument, and although I can sympathize with the unsavory hum while viewing at home, the vuvuzela is actually much less intrusive when present in the and around the stadium.  Much of the vuvuzela blowing is done in call and response fashion, and unless someone is blowing one right into your ear, you can pick up the musicality and interplay of the sounds much better in person.  Unfortunately, when you have 85,000 people all doing their own personal call and response, the interplay is lost in a cacophony of sound, thus the steady humming buzz you hear during broadcasts. I found the vuvuzela to be a unique addition to my experience…that being said, the random vuvuzela blowing outside of my window at 3 am was a tad annoying.  One final note on the vuvuzela, one of the funniest signs that I saw during my time in South Africa was a sign at the entrance of a shopping mall imploring people to please refrain from blowing vuvuzelas while on mall property.  Never mind that just about every sporting goods store and novelty shop within the mall had vuvuzelas for sale.  Again, the reach of World Cup fever is bigger than just the stadiums that host the games.

Our second match, Brazil/Ivory Coast, had an even more festive atmosphere than the Denmark/Netherlands build up.  The vuvuzelas were joined by drums and outlandish costumes.  We saw an Ivory Coast fan decked out as an elephant, faux elephant tusks and all, only to be rivaled by a Brazilian fan with fake four foot arms protruding from his Brazilian jersey.  There were joyful odes to Maicon and Luis Fabiano from the bus drop off point to the front gate of the stadium.  The crowd cheered every challenge and every corner.  One surreal portion of the match was Kaka’s sending-off for his second yellow card.  Without TV commentary, I’d venture to say the crowd didn’t know exactly what had happened, other than the fact that it was a bad situation.  The confusion on the pitch did little to quell the lively atmosphere in the stands.  When Didier Drogba scored the lone Ivory Coast goal, you would have thought that Ivory Coast had just advanced to the next round of the tournament the way the fans celebrated in their eye catching bright orange parka jackets.  While the final score line wasn’t indicative of a close game, the experience was still a memorable one, so much so that my wife claimed herself Brazilian for the evening (that’s not her on top of the celebratory pile though).

As much as I would have enjoyed having tickets to every match for the in-person experience, I realized that this wasn’t a reality; I was on my honeymoon after all.  Luckily, for matches for which we didn’t have tickets, the atmosphere in the many fan parks (we attended one in Cape Town that was set up to have the feel of a giant pub under a tent) was electric.  One of the more memorable moments was watching the South Africa/Uruguay match in one of the fan parks in Cape Town.  While South Africa’s performance on the day was far from their best, hearing the fans sing the National Anthem of South Africa was incredible.  For a nation with a bitter history of apartheid and racial segregation, the unified singing and the shared passion for the country’s national soccer team expressed a sense of pride that was inspiring.  As often as I’ve listened to my own country’s national anthem, during the World Cup, I came to view the singing of each national anthem as more than a routine precursor to the sporting action about to unfold.  Each anthem announced of a team, a country, its people.  Truly magical.

When our time in South African had come to a close, I was definitely sad to leave, in part because I was leaving behind a beautiful country with friendly people, but also because the reality set in that once I was back home, and at work, I wouldn’t be able to freely watch and talk about the games all day.  Thank goodness for fond memories and ESPN3.

For Scotland fans, there is one goal above all others than stands alone as a probably the best goal they’ve ever scored in a World Cup. In fact, lets be honest, it’s one of the best goals scored by any team at a World Cup. It’s certainly one of my favourite goals in the tournaments history. Argentina 1978 had been something of a disaster for the Scottish side, who had gone to the finals in Argentina with high hopes.

During English football’s dark days of failure, Scotland carried British hopes in both the 1974 and 1978 and on both occasions failed to progress from the group stages due to goal difference. Yet despite the disappointment, Gemmill’s goal stands out as a moment of pure football genius on every level.

The Scottish manager at the time, Ally MacLeod had fuelled the hopes of the Tartan Army by insisting his side could come home with a medal but as soon as they arrived in Argentina things began to unravel. The side were on a positive wave, created by beating England at Wembley in 1977, snapped crossbars and pitch invasions et al as they won the British Home Championships.

The first group game saw them face Peru and come unstuck when faced with the majestic talent of Cubillas. Despite taking the lead, Peru pegged them back and then Don Masson saw a penalty saved before Cubillas hit two goals to help the Peruvians to a 3-1 win. After the game Willie Johnston tested positive for a banned substances. Despite the fact is was a simple hay fever remedy, it was enough to engulf the team in a doping scandal. No bitterness from the English press there then eh!

Johnston was sent home in disgrace and the team lurched into the next game, against Iran. Once again, Scotland took the lead but couldn’t hold on and Iran levelled, if anything unfortunate to not win the match. The pictures of MacLeod slumped in his dug out, head in hands summed up the mood of the nation. How could it all go so wrong? Simply, they underestimated the opposition and paid the price.

The final group game saw the Scots face the dynamic Dutch and needed to win by 3 clear goals to have any chance of qualifying for the next round. After the two previous games, they were expected to be lambs to the slaughter. An early goal for the Netherlands, through Resenbrink seemed to be an opening of the flood gates, but Scotland rallied. Kenny Dalglish equalised to go into half time level.

Gemmill then got his first goal of the game, replacing Masson as the penalty taker and slotted one home to put them 2-1 up. Yet, it was his second goal and Scotland’s third that will live long in the memory. The Scottish newspaper, The Scotsman described it thus: “In 68 minutes, however, Scotland went 3–1 up when Archie Gemmill scored one of the great goals of this World Cup so far. The little midfield player homed in on goal, played a magnificent one-two with Dalglish then sprinted into the box and thumped a glorious goal past Jongbloed to revive all the hopes which had died the death this past fortnight. It was an extraordinary goal and an extraordinary moment. Suddenly Scotland were dreaming of glory again”

Of course, it was not to be, Rep scored a screamer to make it 3-2 and whilst the Scots held on for a famous victory, they went out once again on goal difference. A tournament that promised so much, finished with disappointment again. So near, yet so far and Scotland would have to move onwards and upward. The goal became a central point in Trainspottingwhich saw it moved from being the sole love of Scotland fans, to a worthy mention as one of the best goals in the competitions history.

Gemmill’s career saw him play for Derby County, Nottingham Forest and Birmingham City amongst others as well as playing in the USA for the Jacksonville Team Men in 1982. A delightful passer of the ball, he was a tricky midfield play-maker who got his fair share of goals. Currently the manager of the Scottish Under 19′s team, he is a popular speaker on the after dinner circuit, as anyone who spent so long working under Brian Clough could never be short of an anecdote or too. So all hail, Archie Gemmill, scorer of one the greatest World Cup goals ever and certainly Scotlands best.

Please leave  me your comments below and you can follow me at http://twitter.com/paulbestall

One of the co-authors of Soccernomics, Simon Kuper is also an expert on Dutch soccer. On this edition of the World Cup Buzz podcast, I talk to Simon about the romance surrounding the Oranje, when we learned about the team from Euro 2008, and whether he feels a suspect defense and hold up in South Africa.

Last year, I was lucky enough to do a fabulous series on English football legends, which saw me delve back through history to cover 11 players that perhaps never get the credit they deserve. Football is such a fickle sport that these days, people forget just how many great players passed through the annals before we became used to such wall to wall coverage as we have today.

It was a pleasure to write about such legends as Steve Bloomer, Dixie Dean et al and next month I’ll be tackling 80 years of World Cup history to whet your appetites as the greatest show in football hits South Africa. Not only is it monumental that the World Cup is coming to the African continent for the first time, but the quality of players on show could be up there with some of the greatest tournaments we’ve seen. Add to that wall to wall HD coverage for the first time as well as the highly unusual decision to screen some games in 3-D and we could be in for a treat.

The World Cup is just something special for me, I just immerse myself in it, taking in everything, every game, every supplement. I have to digest as much information as I can to sate my appetite for the tournament. The first World Cup final I watched was 1978 when Argentina beat the Netherlands and by 1982, I was hooked. The gap between tournaments seemed to last forever and I remember 1994 so sorely as England had, quite rightly failed to qualify.

I been priviledged to see some off the worlds greatest players and some of the best matches in my life in the World Cup but I’m going to be looking at players who have perhaps been left behind as football marches ever onward. I’m choosing ten players from 1930 that have slipped through the cracks and try and bring you up to date with them. Some of them should never be forgotten, so I hope you find the series as informative and interesting as the England Legend series.

For a lot of people, it could be the first time they get to experience the World Cup in all its glory. As football continues to grow in popularity around the world, especially in America, I hope you find something to entertain you and also make you look more of a connoisseur of the beautiful game. The fact that this could be the most open World Cup since 1982 adds even more spice to the pot and with some great group games coming up, it promises to be one of the more memorable tournaments.

Of course, I’ll be rooting for England, but don’t mistake my patriotism for blinkered xenophobia. I love football from all continents and I cannot wait to see how Argentina’s disaster can be transformed, how Spain can try for the international double and if Italy can successfully defend their title. All in all, I want a great tournament full of great football and hopefully the new series will get you all in the mood for it when it kicks off on June 11th

Yesterday, I looked at the expectations we often place on international football. This got me thinking about the Dutch and their legendary Total Football era in the 70s. What does this mean to us today? Does Cruyff’s legacy still influence world football?

What do we want from our football?

The Spain/South Africa match was on the television at the bar. Villa scored his ridiculous goal: collecting the ball cleanly on his chest, dropping it to his foot and slicing it home as the defenders converged on him. An impossible chance converted through pure athletic instinct.

I turned to the beautiful girl next to me and said, “Did you see that strike??” I think I was praying she’d turn out to be closet football fan. Villa’s goal would give me the opening to ask her to dinner. We’d be talking transfer rumors over antipasti. Yes: this is how my mind works…

She smiled politely. “I don’t really follow sports,” she said, crushing my plans.

“It’s not just a sport,” I offered, clinging to a wisp of romantic hope. “It’s an art form!” She raised her eyebrows with interest. But in the end, despite a spirited description of Villa’s movements as brush strokes on a canvas, I could not sell football to her.

What I needed was a classic Ajax or Holland match from the 70s. What I needed was a Cruyff Turn. What I needed was Total Football.

The dream of beautiful football is an old one. It can push the blood through our circulatory tunnels as much as a last minute winner in a tight cup win. Thirty years ago, Ajax and the Netherlands national team gave the gift of Total Football to the world. Endless improvisation and invention. Outfielders shifting between all the positions. Flowing movement. An open game. Dazzling individual skill married with deep team chemistry. The Dutch gave birth to some of the most exciting football ever.

The teams and the concept were built around Johan Cruyff, often credited with being the greatest player to never have won a World Cup. Cruyff’s boundless inventiveness and liquid style was an inspiration to his teammates as well as generations of footballers since.

The idea of Total Football is still exciting. Any outfielder ready to shift into a different position at any time. Defenders becoming attackers. Strikers defending. Midfielders shifting all over the place. Whatever the situation needs. Like jazz players weaving lines of notes around each other to push the song on its mysterious journey.

The Dutch still love the philosophy of Total Football and, today, it permeates their footballing culture. Barcelona (who enjoyed Cruyff’s talents from 1973 until 1978) show the heritage in their flowing, veritable everybody-attack-but-the-keeper mentality which helped them win the triple last season. We even see glimpses of it in the modern Premier League. Players shifting roles when the moment calls for it. The free-flowing approach Arsene Wenger likes to employ with Arsenal may be the closest thing to Total Football in today’s English game. This harks back to Nick Hornby’s description of Arsenal in 1972 in the chapter entitled “A New Family” in his fine book Fever Pitch:

Over the summer of 1972, things changed. Arsenal, the most British (that is to say, dourest and most aggressive) team you could imagine, went all continental on us, and for half a dozen games at the start of the 72/73 season decided to play Total Football…

Everything about the Wolves game was disorienting – the five goals, the quality of passing (Alan Ball was outstanding), the purr of the crowd, the genuine enthusiasm of a normally hostile press.

By the end of the chapter, Arsenal revert back to their “dourest and most aggressive” nature, but Hornby captures the seductiveness of Total Football. You feel he was taken in, albeit bewildered, by Arsenal’s brief adoption of this football philosophy. Years later, Wenger would build a more “continental” side.

When it works it is beautiful to behold. When it doesn’t the players can be punished for being out of position by piercing counterattacks. Total Football cannot work in its purest state (that of the Cruyff era) in today’s Premier League. No one side has enough players bursting with the wholesale versatility Ajax and Holland were known for in the 70s. Today, in England, it would leave too many gaps for a patient foe to exploit.  But when an English side flirts with Total Football, slides into the mentality in brief moments, the aesthetic rewards for the supporter are enormous. The striker who steams back to help the defense. The centre-back who explodes forth and takes a shot on goal. The attacking full-back who jets down the wing to send in a cross.When the attacks come off right, the beautiful, risky nature of such movement is thrilling. When it comes to goals as well, there’s no better moment in football.

The Dutch Masters of the 70s never won a World Cup or the Euro. Total Football took their national team to the 1974 World Cup final, but they lost to host nation West Germany 2-1. Nevertheless, they went down in that final playing the most beautiful game. The mark that Dutch era left on football and the world of sport is forever indelible.

Total Football lives on here and there. A joy to find when it rears its beautiful head.