It’s 233 days until the World Cup kicks off in South Africa on June 11 2010. I know this because one of the British tabloids has started to run a countdown to the Cup on its sports pages.
Between now and June we can expect delivery of thousands of column inches of speculation, gossip, hysteria and, who knows, maybe even some serious analysis about the beautiful game.
It’s interesting that sport plays such a central place in the lives of so many people yet there are very few songs that utilise sport either as a central theme or as a source of metaphor. A quick rummage around the internet uncovers very few great ones:
When An Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease: Roy Harper
Hurricane: Bob Dylan
Centrefield: John Fogerty
England 2: Colombia 0: Kirsty MacColl
Tour de France: Kraftwerk
World In Motion: New Order
One tune that more people should know about is Canon Kpa Kpum by African System Orchestra. The band from Cameroon recorded a fizzing, impassioned epic to celebrate Canon FC de Yaounde’s 1980 victory in the Confederation of African Football’s Champions League. For once, a song that is as exciting as a game.
For a limited time, you can download it here:
