I’ve never been a fan of the original football (fútbol). I tried to watch part of the World Cup once and was so woefully bored that I just gave up. No offense to those who watch it, but it just wasn’t for me. However, had I known that some of these guys were playing, I would have paid much closer attention.
June 12 is the start of the 2014 World Cup. Check out our list of some of the hottest players participating in this year’s FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Maybe a couple of them will make soccer fans out of you.
Gabriel Achilier, 29
Hometown: Machala, Ecuador
Team: Ecuador
Sergio Ramos, 28
Hometown: Andalusia, Spain
Team: Real Madrid
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, 22
Hometown: Sao Paulo, Brazil
Team: FC Barcelona
Yaya Toure, 31
Hometown: Bouaké, Ivory Coast
Team: Ivory Coast
Ezequiel Lavezzi, 29
Hometown: Villa Gobernador Gálvez, Argentina
Team: Argentina
Jérome Boateng, 25
Hometown: West Berlin, Germany
Team: Germany
Kevin-Prince Boateng, 27
Hometown: Berlin, Germany
Team: Ghana
Gerard Pique, 27
Hometown: Barcelona, Spain
Team: Spain
Cristiano Ronaldo, 29
Hometown: Santo Antonio, Portugal
Team: Portugal
Givanildo “Hulk” Vieira de Souza, 27
Hometown: Campina Grande, Brazil
Team: Brazil
Fabian Johnson, 26
Hometown: Munich, Germany
Team: USA
Aurélien Chedjou, 28
Hometown: Douala, Cameroon
Team: Cameroon
Gokhan Inler, 29
Hometown: Olten, Switzerland
Team: Switzerland
Adam Larsen Kwarasey, 26
Hometown: Oslo, Norway
Team: Ghana