It's less than six months before soccer's greatest spectacle will take place, and this time Americans will not be forced to crawl out of bed in the wee hours of the morning to view the World Cup. Four years ago in Korea and Japan, Brazil took home its fifth title by scoring a 2-0 win in the final against Germany, which happens to be the host of this year's tournament. Two great soccer powers battled for the trophy, but the last World Cup was more about the surprising runs made by nations that were not expected to do as well as they did. Resembling a trend that has been seen recently in the NCAA Tournament, there has been increasing parity among the countries competing for soccer's most coveted prize and that was evident in 2002. South Korea and Turkey shocked the world by reaching the semifinals and the United States was among the final eight teams in the last World Cup. Will other nations emerge this time around or will there be a restoration of the old order? Here is a glance at the ten teams that could make some noise at  the 2006 World Cup:

10.   The United States national team has improved considerably since it qualified for the World Cup in 1990 and ended its 40-year absence from the tournament. In 2002, the U.S. upset Portugal in group play and beat Mexico in the Round of 16 before succumbing to Germany in a game many thought the U.S. should have won. But this year, the U.S. will   have a lot more obstacles to overcome. On Dec. 9, when the World Cup matchups were announced, the U.S. got stuck with a difficult draw. Bruce Arena's squad will have to face both Italy and the Czech Republic in Group E. If the Americans can get standout performances from goalkeeper Kasey Keller like they did from Brad Friedel four years ago, less pressure will be placed on Landon Donovan, Eddie Johnson and Brian McBride to tally some goals. But Europe has not been kind to the U.S. The Americans have never won a World Cup game across the pond.

9. It's hard to picture a Scandinavian country taking home the cup. But Sweden could be a sleeper in the tournament. Despite finishing second in its qualifying group, the Swedes have Henrik Larsson, Freddie Ljungberg and Zlatan Ibrahimovic -- a powerful trio that will make any defenders quiver in their cleats. In the last World Cup, Sweden finished on top of the Group of Death, ahead of Argentina and England. They have shown they can play with the big boys. Lars Lagerbach and Tommy Soderbergh have another strong team this year, and they will get another shot against England in what will be an interesting matchup after the two teams battled to a 1-1 tie in the previous World Cup. The game will also have an interesting subplot, as Sven Goran Eriksson, a native of Sweden, is coaching the Brits.

8. Spain has a history of underachieving in the World Cup. In 2002, the Spanish were defeated by Korea in the quarterfinals and four years earlier they failed to make it out of group play. But Luis Aragones' side would be hard-pressed not to make advance to the next stage. Matches against Ukraine, Tunisia and Saudia Arabia in the opening round should not be terribly difficult for a team that has Xabi Alonso anchoring the midfield and Fernando Morientes on the attack with Fernando Torres. Even if Raul can't recover from his knee injury in time to be on the field in June, Spain should have no problems at the outset of the tournament. Then again, many didn't think that Spain would finish second in a weak qualifying group that included Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Lithuania, Belgium and Serbia and Montenegro. But it did -- giving soccer fans more reason to believe that this team could be a paper tiger, although it might take until the Round of 16 to find out if that is indeed the case. 

7. Having played in the final game of the last World Cup and serving as host of the upcoming tournament, Germany would appear to be one of the favorites. However, there is reason to believe the Jurgen Klinsmann's side is just not as good as the other powers in world. Two months ago, the Germans lost to Turkey and only scored a 1-0 victory over China. Klinsmann has been criticized for his decision to live in the United States while at the same time preparing his team for the World Cup. In order for Germany to have a chance to get back to the final game, it will need goalkeeper Oliver Khan to turn in a series of performances that resemble his play in the 2002 World Cup, when he was named the best stopper in the tournament. Germany should finish first in its group, but a likely matchup with Sweden or England in the Round of 16 could send the hosts packing.

6.  David Beckham. Michael Owen. Rio Ferdinand. Stephen Gerrard. Wayne Rooney. England's roster is a Who's Who of soccer and it's hard to imagine how a team with these players could get knocked out in group play or the Round of 16. But England has been difficult to figure out. The Brits lost to Northern Ireland 1-0 last September and dropped a game to Demark 4-1 the month before. These performances have not inspired confidence that England can relive the glory days of 1966 four decades later. After all, England has not even moved on to the semifinals since 1990. Perhaps the recent woes has to do with a style of play that favors more open attacking than containment. But don't worry anglophiles. Pencil in England for the quarterfinals if it wins its group. Surely, Beckham, Owen and the gang can overcome Poland, Ecuador or Costa Rica in the Round of 16.

5. The last World Cup felt like something was missing. Maybe that had something to do with the fact that the Netherlands wasn't participating. After finishing fourth in France eight years ago, Holland failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup. For a nation that was the runner-up in two consecutive tournaments in the 1970s and has a proud soccer tradition, not competing in soccer's biggest event was a bitter pill to ####.  But the Netherlands is back and they mean business. Holland breezed through qualifying this time around, winning ten games and securing the best record among all the teams in Europe. With players like striker extraordinaire Ruud van Nistelrooy, captain Philip Cocu and goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar no team wants a piece of the Orange, which should advance with Argentina in Group C.

4. Six months ago, it would have been to imagine France repeating the performance it had in 1998, when it won the World Cup on its own soil. After all, Les Bleus were shown the door in group play at the World Cup and id not fare well in Euro 2004. But then something curious happened. Zinedine Zidane heard a voice and it told him he should forego retirement and help France qualify for the World Cup. He obliged and France now has one of the best playmakers in the world to set up Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and David Trezeguet. With a favorable draw, France should have no problem moving on and beating Ukraine, the expected runner-up in Group H, in the Round of 16.

3.  The same year its CONMEBOL rival Brazil won the World Cup, Argentina did not even make it past group play. The year 2002 was not a happy one for the nation that produced Diego Maradona and won soccer's biggest spectacle in 1978 and 1986. This time around Argentina has a strong mix of youth and experience with Hernan Crespo, Javier Mascherano and Javier Saviola making up the core of a talented roster. Lionel Messi, a forward with FC Barcelona, could also play a piviotal role after leading Argentina to the FIFA  World Youth Championship in 2005. Even Brazilian striker Ronaldo is giving the young Argentine some props and openly wishing Messi could play with the Samba Boys. However, Ronaldo probably wouldn't trade his team's group with the one Argentina has. Messi and Argentina will have a tough time overcoming Netherlands, another team still smarting from its past failures.

2. Brazil has participated in the final game of each of last three World Cups and has won two of them. There is no reason to believe why the Samba Boys won't be there again. Brazil finished on top of its qualifying group after being the first defending champions to not be awarded an automatic bid to the next tournament. During their run, they scored the most goals of any South American team and flashed a stingy defense.  The same cast of characters is back with Ronaldinho leading the charge and Kaka, Dida, Robinho and Roberto Carlos right beside him. Brazil has also dipped into the past. Carlos Alberto Parreira, who steered Brazil to the 1994 World Cup title, is coaching the squad again. So watch out world.

1. When it comes to World Cup play, there has not been a team more star-crossed than Italy in the last 15 years. In 1990, gli Azzurri lost to Argentina on spot kicks. Four years later, they were vanquished by Brazil in the final game when star forward Roberto Baggio launched a penalty kick over the crossbar. In a cruel twist of fate, Luigi Di Biagio hit the bar four years later on Italy's final penalty kick in a quarterfinal loss to eventual champion France. Finally, in 2002, gli Azzurri lost in the Round of 16 when they gave up a golden goal to Korea. Italy has been dealt some harsh blows, but it appears that things are about to change for a nation that has won three World Cups. Marcello Lippi has come in and restructured Italy's roster, which has the talent to play catenaccio defense and score with the likes of England and Brazil. With Francesco Totti, Alessandro Del Piero and Alberto Gilardino up front, Italy has a strong attack. But Lippi must move beyond the conservative tactics that have hurt Italy in the past. If he does, Italy could be hoisting the trophy in Berlin on July 9.

At the same time a movie about Texas Western's trailblazing path to the 1966 championship is about to appear in theaters nationwide, it was shocking to see an Italian soccer player made a fascist salute to fans last week at a Serie A league match. Progress can be seen by looking at the past, and in the United States a lot of change has taken place since Don Haskins crossed multiple barriers by starting five black players in the NCAA title game against all-white Kentucky.

Up until 1970, teams comprised solely of white players took the fields at college football stadiums around the South. Texas was one of them, as Terry Frei pointed out eloquently in his book, "Horns, Hogs & Nixon Coming." Now, the Longhorns are led by a black quarterback and feature a roster that is loaded with African Americans. These athletes are no longer ridiculed or the targets of jeers from bigoted crowds. They are celebrated and cheered.

 A thing of the past?

Courtesy Der Spiegel

But in Europe that is a different story. In soccer stadiums around the continent, black players are subjected to taunts. From the Bernabeu in Madrid to the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, they are hissed and booed because of their color. Others have had bananas thrown at them. Meanwhile, a subculture of racism, anti-Semitism and hatred that exists in Europe is bubbling to the surface at league and international matches, where extremist groups pack the stands and espouse their propaganda. Paolo Di Canio, the player who made the fascist salute, plays for Lazio, a team that has an army of fans who sympathize with far-right ideologies. In 2004, the club, which is based out of cosmopolitan Rome, was fined because of the racist actions of their supporters during a match.

But Italy is not the only country where overt racism is found in sports. Similar incidents have been seen Spain, England and France. It is a reflection of the growing discomfort in societies that are changing. A wave of immigration has transformed the populations in Europe, and they are no longer homogenous. As a result, there has been a backlash and people are voicing their bigoted and xenophobic views in stadia across the continent. Black players have been the targets of their anger and hostility. Even Thierry Henry, one of the best strikers in the world, was singled out in a racist remark by Spanish national team coach Luis Aragones.

In the United States, such overt racism would not be tolerated. Just look at Al Campanis, the former general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who lost his job because of misguided comments he made on ABC's Nightline in 1987. That was 21 years after Haskins revolutionized college basketball and advanced the cause of African-American athletes.

A lot had changed since then, and in a matter of two decades the country became sensitive to minorities, so much so that political correctness is now criticized by even mainstream commentators. But sixty years after the ####s were defeated in World War II, fascist propaganda is still seen in the most public of forums. That is troubling. Europe needs change, but it appears that it is regressing. At at this point, there is to be no happy ending to this story in sight.

Alex Rodriguez was born in New York and lives in the United States. He plays a game that is still considered the national pastime and has taken full advantage of the country's free market economic system by signing the largest contract in sports history. So why would Rodriguez want to play for the Domincan Republic, a country he called home for only a small part of his childhood?

The inaugural World Baseball Classic, which is scheduled to start in March, has raised some questions about the national identities of some of the game's greatest players. Is Mike Piazza really Italian? Is Doug Mirabelli, for that matter? International competitions historically have created some strange bed fellows between athlete and country.

David Regis, a former defender for the U.S. national soccer team, became an American citizen only weeks before the 1998 World Cup. Born in Martinique, Regis grew up in France and had lived there his entire life. However, because he was married to an American, he was able to exploit a loophole and gain citizenship in an unusually speedy fashion.  He then became eligible to play for the U.S. and eventually suffered through three embarassing losses in the 1998 tournament. 

Khalid Khannouchi, one of the world's best marathon runners, had competed for Morocco in international meets before deciding he wanted to run for the U.S. in the 2000 Olympics. He had lived in the U.S. since 1993 and married an American in 1998. But after bungling several attempts to gain citizenship, Khannouchi's efforts were successful after he also took advantage of the system. Finally, it appeared the U.S. had a shot at the gold medal in the marathon. But before the Olympic trials, Khannouchi injured himself and could not run, leaving U.S.A. Track and Field back where it started -- without an elite long distance runner. Khannouchi's efforts to change citizenship, nevertheless, seemed pure.

But a lot of athletes like Regis appear to change nationalities so they can play in elite competitions because they're not good enough to be selected by their own country's national team. Alex, a defender for the Japanese national team, was born in Brazil and gained citizenship in his adopted homeland in 2001, just a year before he took the field  in the 2002 World Cup with players named Nakata and Inamoto. It's somewhat understandable why Alex would feel compelled to switch national allegiances in order to chase a dream, especially when a team like Brazil is loaded with talent. However, his actions should also be recognized as selfish, because national teams should not be viewed as clubs. Furthermore, national sport federations should not woo athletes like free agents.

And that is why it is difficult to understand the motives of Alex Rodriguez, a player who would be one of the leaders for the U.S. squad. The same is true for Mike Piazza. While Piazza could help baseball by attracting a new market to the game, he would be better served suiting up for the U.S, even if he is the second-string catcher behind Jason Varitek. He is American, after all.

And so is Alex Rodriguez, a superstar who many are counting on to make the right decision.