The group stage is over! And what  a group stage it was. While France's out was very predictable, I would not have dared to dream that Italy will suffer the same fate. Either way, I sure won't complain. Aside from that, we have seen European and African teams struggle mightily, while Asian and South American teams are surprisingly good. Everybody expects Argentina and Brazil to breeze through the first part of the world cup, but from both continents combined only one team - North Korea - has not survived until now. That's very impressive to me, considering the list includes names such as Uruguay, Chile, and Japan.And who knew? On the other hand, big soccer nations like Germany, England, even Spain suffered scares that were fortunately overcome in the end. Now, England, the US and of course Germany all made it through... Meaning that we should still have some good discussion going on here.

Anyways, the round of 16. While in World Cups this round often seems like an "extended group stage" with favorites playing inferior teams, this year is different. Matches like Argentina v. Mexico, Spain v. Portugal and of course the all-time rivalry Germany v. England are games that no true soccer fan should miss. I know I won't. As for the US, they have definitely impressed in the tournament so far - now, it is important to not underestimate Ghana, who plays with an absolute chip on its shoulder because it feels now that it is representing all of Africa. Still, the US, unlike Germany and England, have gotten a favorable draw on their quest to reach the semi-finals. Ghana, Uruguay, and South Korea are all more than doable. I don't know if the same could be said for England/Germany and Argentina... But there will always be hope! have fun with this elimination stage post for the FIFA World Cup 2010.