Author: scatty

1930 marked the first time when the World Cup brought together the best players from the top countries in football, with host nation Uruguay winning in front of over 68,000 people. Since then, there has been a slew of countries that have hoisted the World Cup trophy, with many of them being the usual suspects. Countries like Brazil, Germany, Italy, and Argentina all have several World Cups, while some surprising countries have zero.

Out of the many countries that haven’t won the World Cup, which ones are the most surprising? Here are our picks for the five nations who are due to win their first title. Before we start the list, some of the countries that just missed the cut include Sweden, Hungary, Mexico, Chile, and the Czech Republic.

Croatia

Prior to 1991, Croatia was part of the Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, and ever since it became independent, has been one of the finer football programs in the world. In 1998, Croatia made the World Cup for the first time, and the nation made it all the way to the semifinals. Unfortunately, they ran into the eventual champion and host nation France, losing 2-1.

It took some time for Croatia to get that deep into the World Cup again as over the next four events, they were bounced out in the group stage three times and then had one event where they didn’t qualify. However, Croatia took a huge step forward, making it to the finals in both 2018 and 2022. In the former, they lost again to France, this time in the finals (4-2), and in the latter, they lost 3-0 to Argentina before defeating Morocco to take third place.

Belgium

Belgium was part of the very first World Cup but didn’t fair well as they lost both of their games. Since then, Belgium has had streaks of not making the event and streaks of making the knockout stage. Belgium made the second group stage in 1982, then four years later had their best performance to date by reaching the semifinals. The Belgians lost to Argentina, though, then dropped the third-place game to France.

The streakiness in the Belgian program would continue, mixing stretches of not qualifying and deep runs into the tournament. In 2014, Belgium surpassed its previous best performance, once again making it to the semifinals. This time around, they lost 2-1 to France but won the third-place game by defeating England 2-0, capping off an incredible run.

Portugal

Portugal is one of those nations that’s considered a “new blood” at the global level as they were actually a bit of a laughing stock in the early days of the World Cup. It took them 36 years (1966) to qualify for their first World Cup, and then didn’t qualify again until 1986. That means Portugal had just two World Cup appearances between 1930 and 2002, but in 1966 they reached the semifinals, then won the third-place game.

Cristiano Ronaldo then came around, and Portugal became a staple of the World Cup. In their six appearances with Ronaldo, Portugal advanced past the group stage four times. This included a quarterfinals appearance in 2022, and their best finish came in 2006. Portugal reached the semifinals, but lost to France (1-0) and then lost 3-1 to Germany in the third-place game.

Mexico

After the 2022 World Cup, there were eight nations that had at least 16 World Cup appearances. Five of them have won multiple World Cups, two more had one title, then there’s another that hasn’t even reached the semifinals. That country would be Mexico, which has reached the quarterfinals just twice (1970 and 1986).

Overall, only Brazil, Germany, Argentina, and Italy have more World Cup appearances than the Mexicans. For some reason, though, Mexico hasn’t been able to get over the hump. In fact, in every World Cup from 1994 to 2018, they advanced past the group stage to prove that they belonged, only to be knocked out in the round of 16.

Netherlands

No country has come closer to winning a championship as many times without winning the trophy as the Netherlands. In their 11 World Cup appearances, the Netherlands has advanced past the group stage every single time and has reached at least the quarterfinals seven times. In three events, they finished as the world’s runner-up.

The first time came in 1974 when the Dutch lost 2-1 to the host team West Germany, then in the very next World Cup, they lost to the hosts again, this time dropping a 3-1 decision to Argentina. Finally, the Netherlands avoided the host nation in 2010 by playing Spain, but lost 1-0 after a 116th minute goal by Andres Iniesta.

When it comes to professional tennis, there are usually two or three people that are dominating the field at any given time. Because of this, you tend to see the same faces reach the finals of every major tournament, but it’s not usually one-sided. Instead, it has made for some great back-and-forth rivalries with all-time greats duking it out to see who is really the best.

Which rivalries in men’s tennis are truly the greatest, though? Today, we’ll examine the five best, but not in order of the most matches played or most grand slam finals at stake. Instead, we want to focus on the intensity of the rivalries between legends, even if there were barely a dozen matches played between the two. 

Novak Djokovic vs. Rafael Nadal

Three men dominated tennis for the first couple of decades in the 21st century, so it was hard to pick how the round-robin rivalries stacked up against one another. Of course, we’re talking about Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer, and for the start of the list, Federer is left off. That’s because Rafa and Joker have played each other more than any other duo in the open era and it’s an almost 50-50 split in the record.

The rivalry has been intense, though there’s a certain ‘it’ factor that leaves it lower on the list. After all, the two have also had more grand slam matches and grand slam finals matches than any other pairing. Both men have gone on hot streaks against the other throughout this rivalry, including two seven-match win streaks by Djokovic to even things up in their history.

Ken Rosewall vs. Rod Laver

There’s one rivalry from before the Open Era on the list, and it’s between Australian legends Ken Rosewall and Rod Laver. Early on in their careers, the two men would play each other seemingly every week, and they had 164 total professional matches against each other, with more than 200 estimated when you include exhibition matches. In 1963 alone, they had 51 professional matches with Rosewall winning 38 of them.

Laver would get better almost immediately after that year, though, and ended up taking the overall series 89-75 over his long-time rivals. “Ken has consistently been my toughest opponent, on any surface,” Laver said, adding that “Ken pushed me around for about 20 years.” If you take out their first year playing each other, Laver actually held a 76-37 series advantage.

Jimmy Connors vs. John McEnroe

Tennis may be considered more of a European sport, but two of the best rivalries in men’s history have been between two Americans. The first of those rivalries on the list is between Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe, with the two men holding a combined 15 grand slam championships. 

Both of these men had rivalries with Bjorn Borg that were considered to be all-time greats, but against each other, there was a certain extra level of intensity. Connors and McEnroe squared off 34 different times professionally, including nine times in a grand slam. Two of those were in the finals, with each getting one win. “To have carried on this rivalry for so many years…must mean that we made our mark somewhere,” Connors said.

Pete Sampras vs. Andre Agassi

The other American rivalry to make the list was between perhaps the two greatest players that the country has ever produced. However, Sampras is considered the best in United States history, and he was a constant thorn in Agassi’s side as he tried to reach the mountaintop. Sampras and Agassi played their first match in 1989 and would meet up 34 times in total.

Sampras won 20 of those matches, including four of the five times when they met in a grand slam final. The first one came with Sampras sweeping the 1990 US Open, but Agassi would notch things up in 1995 at the Australian Open. Sampras dominated in their final three meetings, though, including a pair of US Opens.

Roger Federer vs. Rafael Nadal

There is a lot of debate about who the best men’s tennis player of all time is, and that conversation is usually between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. The two just happened to play in the same era of tennis, meaning that they were able to prove who was best repeatedly. The two men played in 40 professional matches, including nine in grand slam finals.

Some might be surprised to learn that Nadal actually holds the advantage with 24 wins, including six in grand slam finals. The two needed each other to validate their careers, and they acknowledge that it meant a little more when they played each other. “It was different from other matches,” Nadal said.

You can’t have a 108-year-long championship drought in your franchise’s history without making a lot of mistakes along the way. The Chicago Cubs know all about errors that can set a franchise back from the promised land, signing many players over the years who didn’t live up to expectations.

Out of the many signings that didn’t pan out, there were some lessons that were more expensive to learn than others. Here are our picks for the five worst-ever Cubs free agent signings, costing the team over a quarter-billion dollars in total.

Jason Heyward

When he made his MLB debut, many thought Jason Heyward would be the next big thing. He had become an All-Star in his rookie season, and in his one year with St. Louis, he batted .293 with 13 home runs and had an amazing WAR of 6.9. Heyward then became a free agent prior to the 2016 season, and the Cubs jumped at the opportunity.

Heyward signed an eight-year contract worth $184 million. While his defensive play was solid and he became a good teammate, Heyward, unfortunately, didn’t live up to his bulky contract. Heyward’s final year was bought out by the Cubs, and in seven seasons he batted just .245 with 62 home runs. That’s a good single-season performance, but over seven years is a massive letdown.

Todd Hundley

Todd Hundley was one of the best catchers in Major League Baseball throughout the 1990s, especially toward the later part of the decade when he was with the New York Mets. While in New York, Hundley became a two-time All-star and at his best was hitting .280 in a season. In 2000, Hundley found himself with the Dodgers and had a solid season, hitting .284 with 24 home runs.

The Cubs signed him after the 2000 season, giving him $23.5 million over four years. Many thought that Hundley was the missing piece, but he rubbed fans the wrong way almost immediately after being signed. Hundley lasted just two seasons with that four-year deal, hitting for a .199 batting average and 28 home runs. He then ended his career after the 2003 season, which was spent back with the Dodgers.

Milton Bradley

Milton Bradley had a unique name and personality, entering the league in 2000 with the Montreal Expos. After making stops in Cleveland, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Diego throughout the 2000s, Bradley found himself in Texas for one season. There, he became an All-Star for the first time thanks to his .321 batting average and .436 on-base percentage.

When he became a free agent, the Cubs gave Bradley a three-year deal worth $30 million. Almost instantly, he became a bad teammate and started talking trash to fans, all while having one of the most memorable blunders in baseball history when he forgot how many outs there were, leading to an opponent scoring. Bradley made it just one season as a Cub, finishing with a .257 batting average and 12 home runs.

LaTroy Hawkins

If you look at his overall statistics, LaTroy Hawkins was not bad, but Cubs fans who watched every game in 2004 and 2005 know why signing him to a big contract was a mistake. Hawkins seemingly came out of nowhere in 2002 and 2003 when he put together two amazing seasons with the Minnesota Twins. The Cubs then signed him to an $11.2 million contract over three seasons.

Hawkins was brought in as a set-up man but became the closer due to an injury to Joe Borowski. Hawkins was traded halfway through his second season, finishing his Cubs career with a 2.76 earned run average. That sounds fine on paper, but many of the runs that Hawkins gave up were in crucial situations which ultimately kept the Cubs from returning to the playoffs in 2004.

Edwin Jackson

Edwin Jackson had 16 different stints with MLB teams during his career which lasted from 2003 until the end of the 2019 season. At one point, he was a can’t-miss prospect who came up with the Dodgers, but ultimately became a journeyman with his Cubs tenure marking the end of his ‘potential.’ The Cubs gave Jackson a four-year, $52 million contract before the 2013 season, and it did not go well at all.

Jackson was traded part-way through his third season to the Atlanta Braves, but not before seemingly setting the franchise back. Jackson had a record of 16-34 with the Cubs and a 5.37 earned run average. Thankfully, his departure marked the beginning of the next step in the Cubs rebuild, leading to a 2016 World Series title.

The Chicago Cubs have one of the longest histories for any team in Major League Baseball. Because of that, the franchise has played thousands upon thousands of games, some of which were more memorable than others. Out of those seemingly countless games, though, which ones stand out as the most memorable? Here are our picks for the top five.

2016 World Series – Game 7

If you ask any Cubs fan where they were for the final game of the 2016 World Series, they would be able to tell you. The Cubs had fallen to a 3-1 deficit in the World Series, and it seemed that their 108-year World Series drought was going to continue for at least another year. However, the Cubs won 3-2 in game five, then handily defeated the Cleveland Indians in game six to force a final game to determine a winner.

The Cubs jumped out to an early lead thanks to a Dexter Fowler leadoff home run and had a 5-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth. After the Indians chipped away, the Cubs were up 6-3 in the bottom of the eighth before Cleveland tied it up. Nine innings wasn’t enough, and a rain delay pushed back the 10th inning. However, the Cubs outscored the Indians 2-1 in the 10th inning, ending perhaps the most memorable game in baseball history overall.

2003 NLCS – Game 6

More than a decade prior to the Cubs finally winning it all, the drought continued due to the Cubs being on the other side of a blown 3-1 series lead. Nobody remembers game five when the Cubs lost 4-0 to force a game six, and not many remember the game seven loss that seemed imminent. Instead, everyone remembers game six and the blown lead.

Heading into the eighth inning, the Cubs were just a few outs away from making their first World Series appearance since 1945 with a 3-0 advantage. However, the Steve Bartman ‘incident’ happened and the Cubs fell apart. Mark Prior, Kyle Farnsworth, and Mike Remlinger took forever to wrap up the eighth inning, but not before surrendering eight runs. The game would indeed end in an 8-3 Marlins win.

The Ryne Sandberg Game

In the National League, the Cubs-Cardinals rivalry is perhaps the best, even above the Giants-Dodgers. In what would otherwise be a run-of-the-mill early summer game with low stakes, the game that took place on June 23, 1984, between the two teams became memorable thanks to second baseman Ryne Sandberg.

The Cardinals had a 7-1 lead after the fourth inning, but the Cubs came storming back to force extra innings at 9-9. Both teams scored a pair of runs in the 10th, and the Cubs walked it off in the bottom of the 11th, winning 12-11. The reason it’s referred to as the Ryne Sandberg game is that he went 5-for-6 at the plate with seven runs batted in and two home runs. Sandberg’s first home run forced extra innings, and his second forced the deciding 11th inning.

First Game Under the Lights

Wrigley Field has always been seen as the Mecca of daytime baseball, but the stadium has hosted more primetime games in recent years. While the primary focus is still on day games, Wrigley didn’t have a single night game until August 8, 1988. Despite some backlash, that was the day the lights came on at Wrigley for the first time as the Cubs took on the New York Mets.

The game did start, but rain caused the game to be postponed before five innings could be played. Still, everyone remembers those first few innings as seeing Wrigley illuminated in the night sky for the first time was something that we all had to adjust to. The following day, the first official night game was recorded, with the Cubs defeating the Mets 6-4.

Kerry Wood’s 20 Strikeout Game

Early on in the 1998 season, the Cubs took on the Houston Astros on a rainy and cold day at Wrigley Field. There weren’t many people in attendance to watch rookie Kerry Wood go through one of the toughest lineups in the MLB, but those who were there saw perhaps the most dominating pitching performance in league history.

Wood mowed through the lineup as if they were batting with spaghetti noodles, striking out 20 batters to tie the record for most K’s in a nine-inning game. Wood allowed just one base runner, as well, with an infield single that could have been ruled an error. That’s how close Wood was to a perfect game or no-hitter, but thankfully it wasn’t overshadowed as his strikeout record was the true takeaway from that afternoon.

When it comes to our favorite teams, there are certain athletes that find themselves in an echelon of popularity where we can’t envision them wearing another team’s uniform. At the end of the day, however, sports is a business and players come and go, changing teams on a regular basis. This even includes superstars across all sports, and sometimes seeing them in a new uniform just doesn’t look right.

Between all of the major sports, which ones have been the most shocking to loyal fans? Let’s take a look at the five trades that caused legends to head to new pastures while leaving fans hanging up their jerseys in the back of their closets. 

Wilt Chamberlain (Los Angeles Lakers)

The 7’1” Wilt Chamberlain was an NBA icon who had already established himself as the best player in basketball during his time with the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors. At one point, Chamberlain was averaging more than 50 points and 25 rebounds per game, which will never happen again. In his rookie season, Chamberlain won the league’s MVP title and was in the midst of a season where he was averaging nearly 40 points per game in 1964-65.

However, the people of San Francisco never really embraced Chamberlain as they did in Philadelphia. Because of that, Chamberlain was traded in the middle of the season to the Philadelphia 76ers, a franchise that had just moved to the city from Syracuse, New York. Chamberlain played three and a half seasons with Philly and remained the league’s best player.

Ken Griffey Jr. (Cincinnati Reds)

Throughout the 1990s, Ken Griffey Jr. was the fresh new face of Major League Baseball and a bona fide superstar of the sport. After he made his MLB debut in 1989 with the Seattle Mariners, Griffey spent a decade with the team before being involved in a truly shocking trade. At the end of the 1990s, Griffey had stated he wanted to be closer to home and raise his children.

With that, Griffey requested that he be traded to Cincinnati, becoming a member of the Reds while still in his prime. Griffey was traded for Mike Cameron, Brett Tomko, and two minor leaguers, with “The Kid” signing a nine-year deal with Cincinnati. Unfortunately, injuries would take their toll and Griffey was never the same after a great first season with the Reds.

Joe Montana (Kansas City Chiefs)

Before Tom Brady and Peyton Manning came along, many considered Joe Montana to be the best quarterback in NFL history. The former Notre Dame star was a third-round pick in the NFL Draft but quickly blossomed as a great NFL quarterback. Montana won two Most Valuable Player Awards and four Super Bowls as a member of the 49ers, but was traded to Kansas City after the 1992 NFL season.

The 49ers wanted to move on to Steve Young, who had many prime years left in his career. Montana was traded for a first-round draft pick and signed a three-year contract with the Chiefs. Montana played in two of those seasons before retiring, putting together an impressive 17-8 record with 5,427 yards to show that he wasn’t done just yet, making the Pro Bowl in his first season.

Cristiano Ronaldo (Al-Nassr)

You can count on one hand the number of soccer players who have had the type of success as Cristiano Ronaldo. From winning the Ballon d’Or multiple times as the world’s top player of the year to several league titles, Ronaldo has done it all except for winning a World Cup. He spent many years with Manchester United and Real Madrid, but in 2023 had his most shocking move.

While there aren’t ‘trades’ in soccer quite like in American sports, we decided to count this acquisition to get the sport involved. Ronaldo wanted out during his second stint with Man U, and the two sides reached an agreement at the end of November 22. Just weeks later, Ronaldo announced that he had signed a deal with Saudi club Al-Nassr worth $200 million per year over three years.

Wayne Gretzky (Los Angeles Kings)

While other sports have a debate over who the best all-time player is, that’s not the case in hockey as it’s almost unanimous that Wayne Gretzky is the G.O.A.T. Gretzky is known as “The Great One” and that goes back to his time with the Edmonton Oilers, his first NHL team.

Following nearly a decade with the Oilers, Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings, shocking the sports world. Gretzky was acquired (along with Mary McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski) in exchange for three first-round draft picks, $15 million cash and two players (Jimmy Carson and Martin Gelinas).