A German national wearing a Brazilian jersey, a well-travelled muso, and a “double agent” reflect Cape Town’s sentiment surrounding the 2014 Soccer World Cup.

The spark struggles to ignite with the ongoing protests and division in Brazil as they play host to the world, contradicting the theme of unity conveyed in the official song ‘We are one’.

Although some Capetonians are supporting the Brazilians during this year’s soccer tournament, many say South Africa’s effort, four years ago, still outshines their successors’.

While many were expecting the host nation to blow the world away on the entertainment front, the opening ceremony and official song were met with criticism and disappointment. Many people we questioned were not aware of this year’s official song. Those who had heard the song disliked it and openly expressed that they preferred Shakira’s hip-shaking “Waka Waka” – the official song of the 2010 World Cup held in South Africa.

Sadly, our very own Bafana Bafana did not qualify to partake in this year’s competition but soccer enthusiasts from Cape Town have adopted other participating nations. The most popular of these are the Samba Boys, followed closely by Germany and defending champions Spain. African giants Ghana have also won support from Cape Town locals.

“Ghana, that’s my favourite team! I don’t worry about Brazil,” said a flower vendor.

The tournament has been full of controversy off the field, yet a few surprising upsets have so far given the impression that it is going to be an exciting tournament.

On the second day, the 2010 runners-up Netherlands sent the all-conquering Spaniards packing 1-0. Uruguay followed suit losing 3-1 at the hands of Costa Rica.

Yesterday the defending champions dramatically exited the tournament as they lost 2-0 to Chile while the Netherlands booked a place in the next round with a 3-2 win against Australia.

Despite various setbacks, whether football will unite Brazilians like it did to South Africans from all walks of life remains to be seen.

Story by: Sinethemba Ndleleni, Lisa Katz, Chireez Fredericks, Mariette Adams, Rhama Carriem, Jeremy Vessells and Zukisa Mambumbu