World Cup 2010: A Tale of Two Brackets for Argentina, Uruguay

Argentina and Uruguay are both four wins away from getting a third star for their jerseys.

“Europe in Decline While Latin America Shines” was the headline three days ago, as France, Italy and Greece were on the verge of elimination from the 2010 World Cup. Meanwhile local favorites Argentina and Uruguay took care of business in unselfish, workmanlike fashion, as did other Latin American teams: Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Paraguay will all make the cut.

Now Argentina and Uruguay find themselves in Round of 16 brackets that couldn’t be more dissimilar: Argentina’s reads like the Pantheon of Futbol Legends (England, Mexico & Germany) while Uruguay’s reads like a random seating chart at a Model U.N. conference (Ghana, Korea & U.S.A.).

One group has tallied 56 World Cup appearances, 17 Top 4 finishes and 6 World Cup victories; the other group’s stats are padded by Uruguay’s World Cup appearances (10) and wins (2). Since InvestBA focuses on investment opportunities in Argentina and Uruguay, we find the level of local fan confidence going into this weekend intriguing to say the least.

Despite their Pantheon positioning, confidence runneth over among the Argentine press and fan base. Pictures of Maradona sporting shades, headlines like “Vote of Confidence” and stories of fans of the Albicelestes already pushing back their return flights abound. In stark contrast, the Uruguayan fan base seems more reserved and respectful of their future foes. In fact, you can’t find a single story about the Seleccion Uruguaya today on the sports page of El Pai­s.

While Argentina speaks with the swagger of the ‘Canes, Uruguay settles for the occasional tweet from Forlan. Two different teams. Two different approaches. Two different chances to make history. We wish them both well and offer our predictions for this weekend of all weekends.