World Cup 2014: Team previews, the mood in Brazil, and more

Guests: Gabriele Marcotti, Dave Zirin, and Michael Reid

The 2014 World Cup kicks off tomorrow in São Paulo, Brazil when Brazil plays its opening match against Croatia. While soccer fans across the globe are frothing for the games to begin, the mood in Brazil is more subdued. Many Brazilians are crazy about soccer, yet the country is full of unrest in the wake of World Cup preparations that were plagued with problems. There have been widespread strikes and questions have been raised about the country’s priorities and the event’s hefty price tag. In this hour of Radio Times, we’ll get a preview of the tournament and examine the ways in which the 2014 World Cup has led to problems within Brazil and where the country finds itself on the world stage. GABRIELE MARCOTTI, an analyst and writer for ESPN FC at the World Cup, will give us a preview of which teams and players to keep our eyes on. Then we’ll hear from DAVE ZIRIN, Sports Editor at The Nation, about social problems in Brazil that have been caused by the World Cup. We’ll round things out with MICHAEL REID, who writes the Bello column on Latin America for The Economist, who’ll provide us with a global perspective on Brazil.