*By Christian Smith*
To the surprise of absolutely no one, the 2018 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 is filled with European and South American teams, and that's not likely going to change any time soon.
Money, national soccer infrastructure, and league leadership are the keys to the success of these two continents says longtime soccer fan and publisher of the World Cup newsletter "[The Banter](http://jointhebanter.com/)," Jeffrey Marcus. These three factors are the reason Europe and South America have dominated world soccer since the first World Cup in 1930, and are what the United States and other competitors will need if they ever want to hoist the golden World Cup trophy in the air.
"I think we have the administrative here in the United States," Marcus said in an interview on Cheddar. "I think it's a question of finding better players and nurturing them."
In Europe's case, math is on the continent's side. Out of the 54 countries competing in UEFA, Europe's World Cup qualifying conference, 13 get spots in the World Cup finals. By comparison, Africa's CAF is made up of 54 nations, and only five will qualify for the World Cup. That's not to say Europe's 13 qualifiers aren't deserving, it just means there more European teams are likely to advance out of the group stage.
South America's story is slightly different. Only five teams from CONMEBOL, the South American FIFA league, qualified for the tournament. Four of those teams made it to the Round of 16: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Uruguay. All of those teams except for Colombia have won the tournament two times or more, cementing their dominance in the sport.
Uruguay is an [especially interesting case](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EVr1I6oll0). The country is the size of Florida and has about 3.44 million people, which is just shy of the population of Connecticut. Despite these limiting factors, the country regularly shines on the world stage.
From 1950 to 1990 the United States failed to qualify for the World Cup. If the U.S. men's national team hopes to one day match the success of its South American neighbors, then it will need to focus on finding and developing better talent, Marcus said.
World Cup 2026, which the United States will host along with Canada and Mexico, could provide the best chance for a North American team to win the tournament for the first time. All three host nations automatically qualify for the tournament. Plus, the hometown focus on the World Cup will likely mean more money will be funneled into talent and coaching development.
For full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/previewing-the-2018-fifa-world-cup-round-of-16)
Millions of people around the world are getting ready for the Super Bowl on Sunday. And while the day is all fun and games, there's still a serious discussion happening about player safety. Now, two leading sports brands have teamed up to design new, state-of-the-art equipment using 3D printing. Joe DeSimone, co-founder and CEO of Carbon, stopped by Cheddar with more on how technology is making football more safe, head to toe.
Luke Wilson is taking a short break from Hollywood. A commercial break. The "Rushmore" and "Old School" actor is starring in his first Super Bowl commercial, and he says the 30-second Colgate spot will probably get more views than any of his movies. "I think more people will see this than any movie I've ever been in for sure," Wilson told Cheddar on Friday.
Draftkings CEO Jason Robins told Cheddar that New Jersey residents alone could wager as much as $100 million on the Super Bowl, the first time sports betting will be legal there for the big game.
Although it has 3 million customers, home security company SimpliSafe isn’t a household name yet. It’s hoping that will change on Sunday after its first Super Bowl ad airs.“In a market where people are trying to lock you in a contract or harvest your data, we’re trying to keep you safe,” brand creative director Wade Devers told Cheddar. “There aren’t really a lot of places you can reach the number of people you can reach like the Super Bowl.”
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, Feb. 1, 2019.
On Super Bowl Sunday, the Hallmark Channel will be home to the sixth annual Kitten Bowl, the annual matchup of cat-letes held to benefit the North Shore Animal League. Beth Stern, host of the Kitten Bowl and spokesperson for North Shore (and wife to Howard), brought a pair of 12-week Siamese kittens to Cheddar Thursday to help promote a new event this year: the first-ever Cat Bowl.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019.
Super Bowl Sunday is the ー well ー Super Bowl of building brand awareness, particularly for food and beverage companies. This year, Pepsi and Frito-Lay, both units of PepsiCO ($PEP), are once again among the snack giants planning to use the 100 million-plus members of the expected television audience to launch new products and elevate brands in their respective portfolios. Frito-Lay CMO Jen Saenz spoke to Cheddar Tuesday alongside Greg Lyons, the CMO for Pepsi, which is known for its Super Bowl ads and social media engagement tied to the Big Game.
Apple is planning a subscription service that would function like Netflix for games, according to people familiar with the matter. The iPhone maker has also discussed partnering with developers as a publisher, which could signal ambitions to assume distribution and marketing costs for games.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019.
