NGLANDS OPPONENTS- Italy Mario Balotelli Italy are a possession-based team with a dynamic attacking threat. Their 2013 Confederations Cup experience could prove to be a trump card in dealing with the heat. Recent defensive frailties at crosses and high balls are a concern but the bookmakers predict Italy will reach the last eight. AC Milan forward Mario Balotelli, 23, heads to the World Cup as a maturing performer. He inspired Italy to the Euro 2012 final, scoring twice in the semi-final v Germany, and top scored in qualifying with five goals. When Balotelli (12 goals/29 apps) plays well, Italy tend to - they have never lost when hes scored. 1752: MANAGER REACTION More from England manager Roy Hodgson: Even Costa Rica are a very, very strong team. Jurgen Klinsmann was warning me how tough they are after playing them in qualifying. I am still very positive about the whole affair, as you never know. You do not win football matches on paper. You go out on each occasion 11 v 11. If you are well prepared you have a chance to win all three games. We are here, we have an interesting group with three top-quality opponents. It will be a chance to see the north of Brazil, it will be a very interesting experience. 1751: ENGLANDS OPPONENTS- Costa Rica Bryan Ruiz The Central American side are defensively organised, with an emphasis on pressing the opposition. At the other end of the pitch, they will need key contributions from the likes of talented but erratic captain Bryan Ruiz of Fulham and promising Arsenal forward Joel Campbell if they are to reach the knockout stage. 1749: MANAGER REACTION Roy Hodgson England manager Roy Hodgson: Its a tough group, theres no doubt about that. In Italy and Uruguay its almost as though we have got two number one seeds in our group. We know how good Italy are because we lost to them in the quarter-finals at the Euros. The game is going to be tough from a climate point of view for both teams. Were both in the same boat. There were not going to be many scenarios where we were going to be jumping for joy. It [the draw] doesnt surprise us. I suppose one positive is that we have only got one long trip then the other two are in the same neck of the woods. 1748: ENGLANDS OPPONENTS- Uruguay Luis Suarez Style & formation: As qualifying went on, coach Oscar Tabarez settled on a pragmatic 4-4-2. The industrious Edinson Cavani leads the line, with Luis Suarez given licence to roam. Tabarez, however, is not afraid to switch formations, doing so in away matches and during the Confederations Cup to counteract the opposition, including playing 3-5-2 and 4-3-3. Expect him to vary it up in Brazil. Strengths: In Suarez, Cavani and the evergreen Diego Forlan, Uruguay possess magnificent striking options. Tabarez has also reintroduced the Uruguayan characteristic garra - an inner belief that they are tougher than their opponent, both technically and mentally. Weaknesses: An ageing Uruguay defence conceded 25 goals in qualifying (16 away). Experienced centre-back pairing Diego Godin and captain Diego Lugano can have their lack of pace exposed. Strong, robust and determined they might be, but both can also foul once beaten. Uruguay need Sebastian Coates to return from his anterior cruciate injury to add height, pace and composure to their backline. 1745: MATCH OF THE DAY VOTE Between 1600 GMT and 1725 GMT Match of the Days World Cup draw programme and bbc.co.uk/worldcup asked how far people thought England can go in next summers World Cup. The results are in. Second round - 31% Quarter-final - 29% Group stage - 24% Semi-final - 7% Winners - 6% Runners-up - 3% GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Ben H: Suarez v England. Gulp. Bang goes Norwich goalkeeper John Ruddys hope of a World Cup call up. 1743: Its a tough group, says Roy Hodgson. No messing. 1741: The more you look at Group B, the harder it gets. Spain, the Netherlands and Chile all take on Australia. We all saw how good Chile were at Wembley just the other week and they may be looking at third in the group. Or will the Dutch go out? BBC Sport chief football writer Phil McNulty Fortunately BBC had the worlds most positive man - Everton manager Roberto Martinez - on hand to lift initial gloom of that World Cup draw. Statisticians Opta: 5 - In major tournaments against Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica, England have played five games and won none (D2 L3). Nightmare. 1737: Bosnia-Hercegovina and Stoke goalkeeper Asmir Begovic Buzzing about our draw! Opening game at the Maracana! Looking forward to it big time. Lets do it! Bosnia play Argentina on Sunday 15 June. Asmir could be busy against Lionel Messi and co... GET INVOLVED VIA 81111 Roy Hodgson Aman in Coventry: Excuses already before England even kicked the ball! If you want to be the best you have to beat the best and stop blaming the weather conditions! Andy and Victoria: England will need at least five points. Draws against Italy and Uruguay and thump Costa Rica. Sorted! Its never that easy though.... Marcus, optimistic in London: Tough group! So what, were England. 1735: ENGLAND REACTION BBC Sports South American expert Tim Vickery: Roy [Hodgson] has to go to Manaus, a place he was hoping to avoid. The crucial second game is against Uruguay. Thats going to be tough but there will be some ageing limbs in that Uruguay side. It could be a cautious game. Real Madrid and Wales forward Gareth Bale Tough looking group for England but some exciting games to look forward to... Portugal v Germany and Spain v Holland in particular. 1733: Im getting ahead of myself, I know, but should England qualify from Group D they will play one of Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast or Japan in the last 16. Some other potential ties in the knockout stages are Brazil v Spain/Netherlands; Germany v Belgium and Argentina v France. Massive. 1732: Alan Shearer, BBC Sport The likes of Gerrard will know this is going to be their last tournament and they will be determined to go to Brazil and be successful. The World Cup has to be the pinnacle for any player. The first thing their club managers will be saying to them is forget what happened today, theres four or five months to go. Theyll be determined to get their minds focused on their club football. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Michael Doran: After Suarezs performance on Wednesday, Uruguay was the last team England wanted to see. Philip Kirkland: I have a feeling that Germany may not make it out of their group... Barry Wiggett: As a previous manager once said: Do I not like that?! Tough group, tough conditions, are England tough enough? 1731: Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live It is not as bad a group as it looks on paper for England at the moment. Italy are a better team than England but they have to face the humidity just like we will, the first game is not our biggest problem because of the fear factor. England will be set-up in a counter-attacking way, so that will not frighten Roy Hodgson against Italy. Listen to reaction to the 2014 World Cup draw on BBC Radio 5 live now. 1731: When I said you should book the day off work for that England v Italy game I forgot that it falls on a Saturday night/Sunday morning. That could be a big, big, big, big night out in England... 1731: Englands group Fighting talk from Jack Wilshere! Heres a rundown of Englands group games: England v Italy - Manaus Sunday 15 June (02:00 BST) Uruguay v England - Sao Paulo Thursday 19 June (20:00 BST) Costa Rica v England - Belo Horizonte Tuesday 24 June (17:00 BST) Arsenal and England midfielder Jack Wilshere Tough group... But so what? If we want to win it we will have to play the best teams anyway!! Netherlands and former Manchester City midfielder Nigel de Jong Exciting group, looking forward to our first game. 1727: Roberto Martinez, Everton manager I think Englands group is going to be really good in pushing the players to the maximum. I dont think Italy are the same as they were when they were in the Euros. England have a chance. 1725: Some of the fixtures to look forward to in the group stage then: Brazil v Croatia in the opener in Sao Paulo on 12 June. Spain v the Netherlands in Salvador a day later. Germany v Portugal in Salvador on Monday 16 June. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Adam Momoniat: England have the opportunity to prove their mettle against top opposition from day one. Or crash and burn. Which will it be? 1724: Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live The Spain group is a wow. Spain, Chile, Australia and the Netherlands. The group England would have loved to be in is Switzerlands. That is the easiest group of all easy groups. Group G featuring Germany is an interesting one with Portugal and the United States. Listen to reaction to the 2014 World Cup draw on BBC Radio 5 live now. 1724: Gary Lineker, BBC Sport One of the positives is that Luis Suarez isnt in good form at the moment. Not at all Gary no... 1723: Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live Normally by the end of the Premier League the players are on their knees. Playing in Manaus is a massive thing for England, they will have to go there two days early to face Italy. Listen to reaction to the 2014 World Cup draw on BBC Radio 5 live now. 1722: Alan Shearer, BBC Sport That is a tough group. Anyone who wants to know how tough its going to be just look back to the Euros when we played Italy. Its a tough, tough group. Also we didnt want to play in one of the hottest places where there is 99% humidity. 1722: Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live In the first game at the World Cup teams are frightened of losing. It might be in Englands favour the first game being in Manaus. It will be very difficult for the supporters to get to Manaus. Listen to reaction to the 2014 World Cup draw on BBC Radio 5 live now. 1720: WHERE IS MANAUS?- England v Italy (15 June 2014) The capital of the state of Amazonas, Manaus is the furthest north of the host cities. The climate is very difficult. Tropical heat with tropical storms. Highs are a toasty 30C with a 40% chance of thunderstorms in June, with humidity up to 80%. Expect to see plenty of drinks breaks. Time Zone: GMT -4 hours. Approximate distance from Rio (Englands base): 2,659 miles. 1719: GET YOUR DIARY OUT Right then, time to book a day off work. England face Italy in Manaus on 14 June - A 2AM KICK-OFF! Thats the only match in the whole tournament which kicks-off at that time and has scuppered a few plans. Manchester City and Belgium captain Vincent Kompany England.. A 1716: Wow! What are your thoughts about that draw then! England face Italy, Costa Rica and Uruguay! Bryan Oviedo, Mario Balotelli and Luis Suarez... RUSSIA ARE IN GROUP H Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia and South Korea. PORTUGAL ARE IN GROUP G Group G: Germany, Ghana, Portugal and USA. BOSNIA ARE IN GROUP F Group F: Argentina, Bosnia, Iran and Nigeria. FRANCE ARE IN GROUP E Group E: Switzerland, Ecuador, France and Honduras. Group D: Uruguay, England, Costa Rica and Italy. That is a tough draw as England will have the only game to kick-off at 02:00 BST... ENGLAND ARE IN GROUP D Group D: Uruguay, England, Costa Rica and Italy. GREECE ARE IN GROUP C Group C: Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast and Japan. Wow! A repeat of the 2010 final! Spain v Netherlands in the group stages. NETHERLANDS ARE IN GROUP B Group B: Spain, Chile, Australia and Netherlands. CROATIA ARE IN GROUP A Group A: Brazil, Mexico, Croatia and Cameroon 1710: So Jurgen Klinsmann is up against Germany, and every European team is hoping to be in Group E... SOUTH KOREA ARE IN GROUP H Group H so far: Belgium, Algeria and South Korea USA ARE IN GROUP G Group G so far: Germany, Ghana, USA. IRAN ARE IN GROUP F Group F so far: Argentina, Nigeria, Iran. HONDURAS ARE IN GROUP E Group E so far: Switzerland, Ecuador, Honduras. COSTA RICA ARE IN GROUP D Group D so far: Uruguay, Italy, Costa Rica JAPAN ARE IN GROUP C Group C so far: Colombia, Ivory Coast, Japan AUSTRALIA ARE IN GROUP B Group B so far: Spain, Chile, Australia MEXICO ARE IN GROUP A The central American side will face Brazil and Cameroon. 1705: Halfway through then, and Group E looks the easiest so far. Group D looks tough. ALGERIA ARE IN GROUP H Algeria are grouped with Belgium. GHANA ARE IN GROUP G They are in the same group as Germany. NIGERIA ARE IN GROUP F They are grouped with one of the tournament favourites Argentina. IVORY COAST ARE IN GROUP C They are in the same group as Colombia. Group E is looking decent... ECUADOR ARE IN GROUP E They are in the same group as Switzerland. CAMEROON ARE IN GROUP A They are in the same group as hosts Brazil. CHILE ARE IN GROUP B They are grouped with world champions Spain. ITALY ARE IN GROUP D They are in the same group as Uruguay. 1659: Right then. The seeds are allocated, now Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay and Brazil are in Pot X. Zinedine Zidane pulls out Uruguay and then Italy come out. BELGIUM ARE IN GROUP H GERMANY ARE IN GROUP G ARGENTINA ARE IN GROUP F SWITZERLAND ARE IN GROUP E URUGUAY ARE IN GROUP D COLOMBIA ARE IN GROUP C SPAIN ARE IN GROUP B BRAZIL ARE IN GROUP A We knew that. 1656: POT 2 Geoff Hurst has picked one of the European teams to go into pot 2. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Josh Hammersley: Here we go... 1654: A reminder that there can be no more than two European teams in any one group. World Cup draw Arsenal and France striker Olivier Giroud Im looking forward to the draw... So excited! 1653: Geoff Hurst is in charge of the bin containing the nine unseeded European teams. Hell be pleased with that. 1652: Former England captain Alan Shearer, BBC Sport Without being convincing England emerged from the group undefeated. Theres always going to be pressure on them to go out and perform. The expectation for them to win it wont be there at this tournament. And that could just help us. Obviously the two recent friendlies set the mood and confidence back a bit. But there is still time to work on that. 1652: Edin Dzeko It seems Premier League footballers are coming together to watch the draw as well. Nikica Jelavic and Edin Dzeko are opponents for club (Everton and Croatia) and country (Manchester City and Bosnia-Hercegovina), but have joined up to see what they will be doing next summer. 1649: HERE WE GO Here we go then, the people who will draw the balls are out on stage. Geoff Hurst, Mario Kempes, Fabio Cannavaro, Lothar Matthaus, Zinedine Zidane, Fernando Hierro, Cafu and Alcides Ghiggia. GET INVOLVED #Englandexpects Thanks for your responses to #Englandexpects so far. The most popular words so far are penalties, home, Rooney and Germany. Send your three word responses for your World Cup expectations for England using #Englandexpects to @bbcsport. 1648: Roberto Martinez, Everton manager It helps to get a big team in [Englands] group because it sets the standards for the rest of the competition. I think Brazil have a fantastic balance and a lot of creativity. You cannot under estimate Uruguay with the strikers that they have. They are a strong force to be reckoned with. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Karlos Quinky: I am backing England all the way to the second round! If we are very lucky! John Duffy: I find these draw ceremonies pointless. Call me a misery guts but its more embarrassing than exciting. Ben J: Personally, I think England are in decent shape. We look organised and very fluid at times. We can cause problems in Brazil. 1646: VOTE So far 37% of those of you who have voted believe that England will reach the last 16 of the World Cup, with not a single person thinking that they will be runners up! A positive 5% picked England to win it... 1645: Brazil legend Pele I really trust Brazil very much, I think they will be in the final. I will never forget the 1950 World Cup final in Brazil when I saw my dad crying as the home nation lost. I do not want my kids to see me crying in this World Cup. I want to tell the whole world of football that Brazil is waiting for you with open arms. GET INVOLVED VIA 81111 Tom from Bedford: Got the draw streaming at work in the corner of my monitor. Getting some odd looks from my co-worker as it just looks like people dancing around. 1642: The dance is over - and you wont be surprised to hear that we are running seven minutes late. The draw itself will start in 12 minutes according to Jonathan Pearce. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Andrew Bell: Lots of dancing, very little ball-drawing. 1641: MATCH OF THE DAY VOTE How far will England go at the World Cup? Have your say in BBC Sports online vote. Between 1600 GMT and 1725 GMT Match of the Days World Cup draw programme and bbc.co.uk/worldcup will put that question to its readers in the UK. Terms and conditions can be found here. Vote by visiting the the Match of the Day voting page. The result will be announced after 1730 GMT on Match of the Day and in this page. To cast your vote you will need to be signed in to the BBC website. Signing in or registering a new BBC iD is simple. Click here to register. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Kieran Wragg: Can I stay pessimistic and say we wont get past the training camp? Howard Horner: The World Cup Draw - the one time the rest of the world even gets close to capturing Eurovision. Blair John Christie: One day Ill see Scotland in the World Cup draw. 1640: Roberto Martinez, Everton manager It all starts now. You have to hope youre fortunate and get a fortunate draw. The draw is important because you want to avoid South American opposition. 1638: More dancing! I thought we were there but no, some dancing now. Roy Hodgson is starting to look hot under the collar. 1637: Former England captain Alan Shearer, BBC Sport It is hard to look past Brazil. If you think England are under pressure then you should see the pressure they [Brazil] are under. Join the debate at #bbcfootball Statisticians Opta: 1 - England have only lost one of their last nine World Cup opening games (W4 D4). Anticipation. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Ben Yorke: Looking forward to the World Cup draw! 1635: Former England captain Alan Shearer, BBC Sport There is so much going on this stage of the season but you can guarantee the players will all be sat round the television. In France 98. I was a bit disappointed with the draw because I wanted one of the big guns to get going. Instead we got Tunisia, Romania and Colombia. 1635: A QUICK RECAP A pre-draw will be held to move one of the European non-seeds (potentially England) to pot 2 Pot 1 will then be drawn. Brazil will be placed in Group A, with all other seeds drawn sequentially in Groups B-H The four South American seeds are temporarily allocated to Pot X and one team is drawn - meaning their group will include the European side moved to Pot 2 in the pre-draw The remaining teams in Pot 2 will be then drawn This is done sequentially from Group A to H, although groups may be skipped to guarantee geographical separation - i.e. Chile and Ecuador will not be drawn into groups containing South American seeds The teams from Pot 3 will then be drawn sequentially from Group A to H The teams from Pot 4 will then be drawn sequentially from Group A to H Finally, the position within groups (A2, A3, A4, B2, B3, B4 etc) will be drawn for all teams in pots two, three and four. Only then will we know where and when teams will meet Two-time Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldo Ronaldo I am sure with the work of thousands of people we will deliver the best World Cup ever. 1631: Here he is, fat Ronaldo on stage now. What a World Cup legend! 15 goals in World Cup finals. Five more than Gary Lineker. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Harry Agar: England can beat any team on a good day. Just a shame we wont have a month of good days. Germany to win. 1630: BBC TWO Is rolling. Stick it on if you can... Brazil 2002 World Cup winner Cafu Preparing to go on stage. The World Cup begins now! 1628: That was terrible! Dearie me. Anyway, it sounds like we may be close to some actual ball-drawing action... MOTD presenter Gary Lineker The Brazil 2014 World Cup draw is live on BBC Two in a few minutes. Ill be with Roberto Martinez and Alan Shearer. Be lovely if you joined us. 1625: More music! Vanessa Da Mata and a guy in an all-white suit, Alexandre Pires - this is really awful now. Noel Edmonds would be eight boxes down if I had my way... 1624: Here comes Spain coach Vicente del Bosque clutching the World Cup they won in South Africa three years ago. Can they make it four tournament wins in a row in Brazil? 1621: A video of each World Cup is currently running. Go on Reidy you can catch Maradona... 1620: SWISS SEEDS? If you are wondering why Switzerland are one of the eight seeds by the way - and if youre not, you should be - this article from the BBC Magazine will sort you out. Bizarrely, it has something to do with a friendly between the Netherlands and Indonesia... GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Sahil: I reckon Englands group will be South Korea, Ghana, Spain. Winners: Brazil. England: last 16. Michael Clarkson: Looking at the pots Id say Englands easiest group would be Switzerland, Algeria & Iran. Tegan Nichols: Lets face it, if England dont get knocked out on penalties it will be a result. 1618: Pele, Ronaldo, Neymar and Oscar - and Big Phil Scolari - all get a round of applause as the opening address from Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff comes to an end. The actual draw is not too far away... 1616: STAT ATTACK There are eight former World Cup winners and all eight have made it to the 2014 World Cup. Uruguays Luis Suarez, Netherlands striker Robin van Persie and Belizes Deon McCaulay were the top scorers in qualifying with 11 goals each A total of 202 national teams played at least one 2014 World Cup qualifier 1615: Brazil has won five World Cups and it is justice that the tournament has come here!, says Sepp Blatter. Football connects people, builds bridges. I appeal to the population of Brazil, please come together and join everybody through this World Cup. Sepp Blatter 1612: Former Liverpool defender Mark Lawrenson on BBC Radio 5 live It is so important where England are going to play and what time of day. It was so hot and humid in the north when I was there last summer for the Confederations Cup. Listen to build-up to the 2014 014 World Cup finals draw on BBC Radio 5 live now. 1611: Here comes Fifa president Sepp Blatter who says that there will be a minutes applause in tribute to Nelson Mandela, who is pictured holding the 2010 World Cup. The watching crowd stand and applaud. World Cup draw 1610: WHO HAS MADE IT? A quick reminder so you can have a last-gasp World Cup sweepstake in the office. Pot 1: Brazil, Spain, Germany, Argentina, Colombia, Belgium, Uruguay, Switzerland Pot 2: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Algeria, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chile, Ecuador (7 teams) Pot 3: Japan, Iran, South Korea, Australia, United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras Pot 4: Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia, England, Greece, Italy, Netherlands Portugal, Russia, France (9 teams) 1609: WATCH NOW! I forgot to tell you all that you can watch the action online by the way - its live on our website and on the BBC Sport app, with BBC Two kicking in at 1630 GMT. GET INVOLVED VIA 81111 Joe in Northampton: This ceremony is missing a Eurovision-esque Terry Wogan voiceover, sorry Pearcey... 1607: Our first live entertainment of the afternoon is up and rocking as Brazilian singer Alcione breaks into song, quickly followed by rapper Emcida. Who should surely be MCda really? Think Tina Turner accompanied by the Fresh Prince, but in Portuguese, and youre on the right page. Former Arsenal and Nigeria striker Kanu Praying for a good group for Nigeria. 1606: The law of averages suggest that England must be due to win a penalty shoot-out soon. Surely? GET INVOLVED #Englandexpects Thanks for all your responses to #Englandexpects so far. The most popular words so far have been penalties, home, heartbreak, Germany and Rooney. Have your say by tweeting three words describing your expectations using #Englandexpects. GET INVOLVED- #englandexpects Andrew Gilbert: 48. Years. Hurt. Brian Smith: Confound. All. Expectations. Ian Lamerton: Penalties. As. Usual. 1603: Hot. Sticky. Anticipation in the air says our very own Jonathan Pearce as the draw begins. Hosts Fernanda Lima and Rodrigo Hilbert address the crowd and we are up and running. Montage time... 1600: UNDER WAY The 2014 Fifa World Cup draw is under way. Sort of. Great footage here of Nelson Mandela meeting the great and good of football in years gone by, including an early Roy Hodgson! Not sure when that was taken. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Ubaidullah Budye: World Cup draw is closing in. I hope England gets easiest group, so they can proceed to next round. Nima: Is it weird to say I am more excited for this draw than Christmas? Behfar Karimi: Surely everyones fearing Iran in the draw after Dejagahs cracking goal for Fulham on Wednesday! 1557: The set is very, very pink by the way. And heres a big clock telling us there is two minutes to go until the ceremony itself kicks off. 1557: MATCH OF THE DAY VOTE Michael Owen scores against Brazil in 2002 How far will England go at the World Cup? Have your say in BBC Sports online vote. Between 1600 GMT and 1725 GMT Match of the Days World Cup draw programme and bbc.co.uk/worldcup will put that question to its readers in the UK. Terms and conditions can be found here. Vote by visiting the the Match of the Day voting page. The result will be announced after 1730 GMT on Match of the Day and in this page. To cast your vote you will need to be signed in to the BBC website. Signing in or registering a new BBC iD is simple. Click here to register. 1555: Roy Hodgson is sitting with Greg Dyke, FA chairman. Hes having a great time by the looks of it. Of course Roy was on message yesterday when he said: I will respect and have enormous admiration for everyone - But the word fear is the wrong one. Its terror Roy, terror. When England come out with Brazil, Italy and Mexico its time to be terrified... GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Tom Crowder: Yet. More. Disappointment. Kyle Reade: Hoist. World. Cup. Jimmy Whitehead: Quarters. As. Always!!! 1551: CEREMONY UNDER WAY Action! We have some action as Jaques Wagner, a local government official of some kind, addresses the packed tent. The draw is closing in! 1550: I would love it, love it, if there is a teenage girl in Kilmarnock called Bebeto. 1548: GET INVOLVED- on 81111 Bebeto Stephen, Kilmarnock: Re rock the baby Brazil goal celebrations. My wife was pregnant with twins during the 1994 World Cup. As they seemed particularly active during Brazil games , I came up with the idea of calling them Romario and Bebeto. Unfortunately one of them is a girl. Still, she doesnt get teased that much now! Garfield in Ipswich: The new Ronaldo shouldnt really be mentioned in the same breath as the original. Strange but not unusual how quickly people forget as soon as someone is no longer in the public eye. A true legend is the original. Just saying. Amar, West Midlands: The original Ronaldo definitely gets my pick. hell go like knife through butter. No, really. Along with everything else. Sebastian: El fenomeno - and I wasnt even alive whilst he was tearing up La Liga! 1542: NOELS WORLD CUP DRAW? Noel Edmonds If England ever get the chance to host a World Cup in our lifetimes - I know, I know - then how do you think we should do the draw? Something to speed it up a bit and still maintain that English feel. I reckon we get Noel Edmonds in, give him 32 coloured boxes in a semi-circle and get the England manager to pick them one-by-one. With England placed last. TV Gold. 1542: Aston Villa and United States goalkeeper Brad Guzan Not long now before the World Cup draw. Christian Benteke & Ron Vlaar, better hope you are not in the USA group! GET INVOLVED ON THE BBC SPORT FACEBOOK PAGE Orwin Oteemah Gwah: England got to stand up now! Mandela Ndikum: Cameroon, all the way to the semis. Christopher Uche Uwaonu: I hope Nigeria gets England. 1539: THE MINNOWS Who are the lowest-ranked team in the tournament then? Turns out its Australia, who limped into the last 32 despite a ranking of 59. We could have another Ashes style contest next summer then, which England may have more chance of winning. Maybe. GET INVOLVED- #englandexpects Himesh Dusara: Quarters. Penalties. Heartbreak. Captain Fieldhouse: Crumble. In. Jungle. Sanjay Khetani: Sturridge. To. Shine 1534: INSIDE THE TENT Ive got some live pictures coming through now from inside the World Cup draw tent in Costa do Sauipe - and I can clear up that it is in fact a bit bigger than the Bake Off arena. Its absolutely huge in fact. More like hall six at the NEC. Colossal. 1533: Dan Walker Presenter Dan Walker is primed in Costa do Sauipe with the rest of the worlds leading broadcasters, poised to bring you reaction from the 2014 World Cup finals draw. You can watch Dan in action from 1630 GMT on BBC Two and the BBC Sport website. 1531: MEET FULECO! Fuleco World Cup Willie? Ciao? Goleo the slightly camp lion? Everyone loves a World Cup mascot and its time we got to meet next summers dancing armadillo Fuleco. Apparently he has a message of environmental concerns. Lets leave it to football eh Fuleco son? 1528: 2014 WORLD CUP FINALS DRAW LIVE Everton manager Roberto Martinez joins former England strikers Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer in the studio as BBC Two brings you live coverage of the 2014 World Cup finals draw. You can also be sure to hear interviews from the likes of England manager Roy Hodgson as the great and the good of the football world react to the draw. Watch the programme on TV or online from 1630 GMT. 1525: LINEKERS VERDICT Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker will be on air on BBC Two and online from 1630 GMT; and he has had his say on the eight seeds. Who does Gary think will win? Who has this tournament come too soon for? Have a read. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Liam Nield: Im hoping for a quarter-final appearance but expect nothing less than a second round spot. 1522: Bebeto While we are on the theme of Brazilian legends, Bebeto has just taken his seat. He was partner of Romario up front at World Cup 94 and then played off Ronaldo in 1998. Remember his rock the baby celebration in the USA? Worryingly that makes that child about 19 now... 1520: Heres one for you then: Cristiano Ronaldo or the original Ronaldo? In his prime obviously. Who would you pick? 1519: BBC Radio 5 live Anna Foster and Jonathan Overend will be joined by a number of guests as BBC Radio 5 live bring you coverage of the 2014 World Cup finals draw. Stay tuned after the groups come out to hear reaction from throughout the game and beyond. Coverage begins at 1600 GMT. GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Tom Harrison: Hoping for a good seeded team with England just to test themselves. Hopefully last game with both teams through. 1512: THE FAT RONALDO Ronaldo Ever since the emergence of whippersnapper Cristiano Ronaldo a decade or so ago, the original Ronaldo - he of Brazil, Barcelona, Internazionale, Real Madrid etc - has been known in some circles as the fat Ronaldo. Harsh? Certainly. Ronaldo Luis Nazario de Lima was a superb striker, scorer of 15 goals in World Cup finals, winner of two World Cups and countless club honours. He also had the best stepover of his day, could go round goalkeepers all day long, is probably in my top five favourite players of all time, and is is part of todays ceremony. However, I am willing to concede that now, in his retirement, the 37-year-old may be growing into his nickname... 1510: BBC Radio 5 live senior football reporter Ian Dennis World Cup draw BBC Radio 5 lives senior football reporter Ian Dennis is making himself comfortable in Costa do Sauipe ahead of the draw, which you can hear on the station from 1600 GMT. As you can see, Denno has nailed a great seat. Top work. 1508: NO SAMBA? NO PROBLEM Samba band Remember the drone of the dreaded vuvuzela in South Africa? Fifa let the racket rumble on but has banned samba drums from Brazils World Cup stadiums next summer. The spoilsports. Even though local authorities are not happy about it they say it will not diminish the atmosphere inside the 12 arenas. As a Brazilian and a soccer fan it is a part of our culture having samba instruments and musical instruments in the stadiums (during) the games so that is a normal part of the atmosphere around football games, said Deputy Sports Minister Luis Fernandes. For us it would have been better if we could have musical instruments inside the games but I dont think it will make a major difference because people are extremely enthusiastic for football and they are extremely musical so there will be a lot of singing in the World Cup games. Its basically going to be a month-long rave... 1506: The countdown to the draw has reached its final hour then. Balls are being screwed up, microphones checked, seating plans allocated... Manchester City and Belgium captain Vincent Kompany Looking forward to todays World Cup draw. 1501: There will only be one debutant nation at the World Cup next summer, with Edin Dzekos Bosnia-Hercegovina the new boys on the block. Of the other 31 teams they dont come more experienced than hosts Brazil, who have been at very World Cup. Ever. 1457: GUNNERS UP FOR THE CUP Arsenal players Now were curious about the World Cup drawing! You too?, says Arsenals Lukas Podoloski. Hopefully the Arsenal players tune into BBC Two at 1630 GMT for full coverage of the draw. With Denmark not involved, maybe Nicklas Bendtner can bring the teas. Bobby Pires the cakes. 1456: Joachim Low Germany manager Jogi Low is in the house, looking as smart as ever. Can the Germans win for the first time in 24 years next summer? Thats a lifetime to wait by their own impeccably high standards. But a European team has never won the World Cup in South America dont forget... GET INVOLVED VIA 81111 Aaron in Cirencester: Off to Brazil next summer. Keeping an eye out for Groups B, G and E. Hoping for England to be picked out in E3 alongside Germany. 1450: Vahid Halilhodzic The great and good of the footballing world are arriving at the venue for the draw as we speak. Winning the red carpet style guide so far is Algeria coach Vahid Halilhodzic. Ice cool. 1447: IS IT HOT OR NOT? Ipanema beach In most World Cups each group is based in a certain area for logistical and common sense. Not in Brazil. Every team at the finals is likely to have to travel around huge distances as the tournament criss-crosses the vast country. But which group would be best to be placed in? Our man in Brazil Tim Vickery says: The seeded teams will surely be delighted to be drawn in Group H; they will play in Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, three cities clustered in the south-east region with mostly mild weather in June and July. Indeed, this would be a good group for a European team. Teams H3 and 4 have to trek out west for the opening match in Cuiaba, but otherwise all the games take place in the south or south-east. It is the only group which does not go to the tropical north east. Group B would also be a favourable option in this respect. Which would be bad news? Avoid playing in Manaus if possible. The Amazonian city is sauna-like with a 31C peak and humidity can reach 99%. Uncomfortable to say the least. Its a good job Scholesys not on the plane... Arsenal and Germany striker Lukas Podolski Just a few hours before the drawing. It will be exciting to see which opponents we will have in our group. 1444: THE STADIUMS There are 12 stadiums pencilled in to host matches next summer - providing they are all finished on time. From the Amazon basin in the north to the banks of the River Guaiba in the south, 12 cities are gearing up for the arrival of the worlds best players and hundreds of thousands of supporters. Want to know more? Sure you do. Have a butchers at our stadium guide. GET INVOLVED- #englandexpects Danny Welbeck Aman Sheth: Welbeck. Golden. Boot. Shan Russell: It. Is. Now. Nathan Lines: Oh. Deary. Me 1437: THE REHEARSAL DRAW Ashley Cole v David Silva Everyone loves the practice draw on these occasions, as Fifa delegates and media alike try and find a story in the sequential withdrawal of numbered balls out of plastic pots. The odds of the rehearsal repeating itself again this afternoon are obviously slim but for the record, England were placed in Group E alongside defending world champions Spain, as well as Ivory Coast and South Korea. Would Roy Hodgson take that? Looks tricky. But not as tricky as the classic Group of Death thrown up in rehearsals, which was more a group of certain, total, mutually assured destruction. Group A saw hosts Brazil up against France, Italy and Australia - three of the last four World Cup winners. And Australia... GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Craig OCallaghan: Its nonsense wanting to avoid the big teams, it didnt do England any favours in 2010. Lets test ourselves against the best. Rian Hoskins: While the World Cup is in South America, I think Germany will win. They have great players in every position unlike Argentina. Tadewos W. Mentta: England will be out of the world cup in the first round. Technically poor, overrated players. GET INVOLVED VIA 81111 Chris in Croydon: Hows this for pessimism - Brazil, England, USA, Holland. 1431: DRAW ORDER World Cup draw Heres the plan for who gets pulled out when. Still with me? A pre-draw will be held to move one of the European non-seeds (potentially England) to pot 2 Pot 1 will then be drawn. Brazil will be placed in Group A, with all other seeds drawn sequentially in Groups B-H The four South American seeds are temporarily allocated to Pot X and one team is drawn - meaning their group will include the European side moved to Pot 2 in the pre-draw The remaining teams in Pot 2 will be then drawn This is done sequentially from Group A to H, although groups may be skipped to guarantee geographical separation - i.e. Chile and Ecuador will not be drawn into groups containing South American seeds The teams from Pot 3 will then be drawn sequentially from Group A to H The teams from Pot 4 will then be drawn sequentially from Group A to H Finally, the position within groups (A2, A3, A4, B2, B3, B4 etc) will be drawn for all teams in pots two, three and four. Only then will we know where and when teams will meet Its all really quite simple. 1428: POT X Drawing 32 teams from four pots into eight groups of four obviously wasnt dramatic enough for Fifa, so they threw a curve-ball into the mix earlier this week with the announcement of a fifth pot - the mysterious pot X. Roy Hodgsons England have been placed in Pot 4 with the other unseeded European qualifiers. However, there are nine unseeded European sides and only room for eight, so a pre-draw will take place before the main draw and one country will be moved into Pot 2. Still with me? It gets better. The European team that is moved to Pot 2 will only be put in a group with one of the four South American seeds. These South American seeds will be put into a temporary Pot X. One of these four teams will be drawn, and that is the group the European team will be put in. 1426: Come on now! Wheres the optimism? 1426: GET INVOLVED- #englandexpects Mark Healey: Germany. Penalties. Heartbreak. Elliot Rogers: Scrape. Through. Group. Jon Preston: Quarters. Penalties. Out. 1423: EVERYONE ELSE The other 24 teams are split into three pots as follows: Pot 2: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Algeria, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chile, Ecuador (seven teams) Pot 3: Japan, Iran, South Korea, Australia, United States, Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras Pot 4: Bosnia-Hercegovina, Croatia, England, Greece, Italy, Netherlands Portugal, Russia, France (nine teams) As there are nine European non-seeds, one of them (potentially England) must be moved to pot 2. This team will be guaranteed to face one of the South America seeds - Brazil, Argentina, Colombia or Uruguay. More on that in a moment... 1421: THE SEEDS Oscar The eight seeds will be allocated into a group, from B-H. This is because as hosts, Brazil have already been given a place at the top of Group A. The other seven seeds to be drawn out of the hat are: Spain Germany Argentina Colombia Belgium Uruguay Switzerland 1420: GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Josh Rufus: I have undertaken my own draw during lunch of course! England have ended up with Spain, Ecuador & Australia - yes please! 1418: NELSON MANDELA TRIBUTES Fifa will of course be marking the death of Nelson Mandela during the ceremony, with the former South African president dying last night at the age of 95. Back home, it has been confirmed that a minutes applause will be held before kick-off at all 10 weekend Premier League football matches in tribute. The first will be ahead of the Manchester United against Newcastle game at 12:45 GMT, followed by six further matches on Saturday, two on Sunday, and Swansea v Hull on Monday. The Football Association and Football League have also asked clubs taking part in their respective competitions to hold a minutes applause ahead of their matches this weekend to celebrate the life of Mandela. There are 20 FA Cup second round ties being played across the weekend, starting with Port Vale against Salisbury City this evening. 1412: GET INVOLVED- #bbcworldcup Got World Cup fever yet? A mild dose? Know how to pronounce Belo Horizonte? Worked out the climate in Fortaleza? Course you have. Dont keep your symptoms to yourself, let us know! You can text in with your name to 81111 (UK Only), tweet us using the hashtag #bbcworldcup or comment on the BBC Sport Facebook page. We also want you to share your expectations for England at the World Cup, using just three words, by tweeting @BBCSport with #Englandexpects. For example, some of you may write Disappointment, Heartbreak, Defeat, while others may write Glory, Excitement, Victory. Or maybe Milner, Cleverley, Heskey. We will include some of the best replies. 1411: WHO CAN ENGLAND GET? Wayne Rooney The permutations surrounding the draw are complex. But in a nutshell, its possible that England could face any of the other 31 teams in the hat. And its certain that they will play one of the eight seeded nations - of whom Switzerland are probably the weakest, with Germany, Brazil, Spain and Argentina the teams to avoid. Fifa president Sepp Blatter Just a few hours from the Final Draw. Like all fans, Im looking forward to finding out which teams will play each other in group stage. 1406: WHEN IS THE DRAW? The fun and games get going from around 16:00 GMT, where Roy Hodgson and co will be treated to some Brazilian dancing, singing and possibly even rapping. Wonderful stuff. The draw itself is then due to kick-off at around 16:30 GMT - subject to delays, faffing about and technical hitches. It will all run smoothly, of course. But it all went wrong in 1982 - check out this video of a young(er) Sepp Blatter getting in a flap... 1403: World Cup draw tent Final preparations are under way for the draw as the worlds gaze focuses on the upmarket coastal resort town of Costa do Sauipe in the province of Bahia, approximately 56 miles from the host city of Salvador. The draw itself is being held in what is basically a tent. Think Great British Bake-Off on the beach. Which is an idea I might pitch actually. Brazilian actors Fernanda Lima and Rodrigo Hilbert host the draw, with singers Margareth Menezes, Olodum and Emicida involved in a lavish opening show, which has been designed to showcase the host nations natural beauty. The balls will be drawn by famous players from previous tournament. These will include Englands 1966 hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst, Frances Zinedine Zidane, Brazils Cafu and Italys Fabio Cannavaro. 1400: THE BOYS IN BRAZIL Neymar One hundred and eighty-eight days. Four thousand, five hundred and eighteen hours. Two hundred and seventy one thousand and eighty minutes. Sixteen million, two hundred and sixty-four thousand and eight hundred seconds. Ish. Thats how long we have to wait until hosts Brazil kick-off the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Sao Paulo. Neymar, Messi, Ronaldo, Aguero, Suarez, Muller, Hazard, Falcao, Toure, Modric, Balotelli, Van Persie, Ribery and Welbeck are all waiting patiently to find out just who they will be facing in the biggest sporting event on the planet. In a few hours time we shall all know. Its time for the World Cup Draw...
Posted on: Fri, 30 May 2014 19:24:20 +0000
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