The tournament is also the first FIFA World Cup held in South America since Argentina in 1978. Previously there was no South American country hosted the FIFA World Cup more than once. National football team from 31 countries have qualified through a qualifying competition which started in June 2011 to participate with the host nation Brazil in the final tournament.
A total of 64 matches will be played in twelve cities in Brazil either a new stadium or rebuilt, with the tournament which begins with the group stage. For the first time in World Cup finals, the match will be carried out using goal-line technology.
This World Cup has been held 13 times, this tournament is held since 1966 by the British as the first host of this prestigious event. Since the beginning of the holding of this tournament each country makes a unique mascot that became typical of that State. Here are the mascot-mascot since the 1966 World Cup to the World Cup this time in 2014.
1. The UK 1966
World Cup Willy - A lion, a typical symbol of the British Empire wearing a Union Jack with the words "WORLD CUP".
2. Mexico 1970
Juanito - A boy wearing a uniform and a hat Mexican sombrero (with the words "MEXICO 70"). His name is the first name of "Juan", a common name in Spanish.
3. Western Germany in 1974
Tip and Tap - 2 boys in a German uniform, with the letters WM (Weltmeisterschaft, World Cup, World Cup) and number 74.
4. Argentina 1978
Gauchito - A boy wearing the uniform of Argentina. His hat (with the words ARGENTINA '78), scarf and whip are typical of a gaucho.
5. Spain 1982
Naranjito - An orange, a fruit that characterizes the Spanish by wearing the uniform of Spain. Its name is derived from the word naranja, Spanish oranges, and diminutive "-ito".
6. Mexico 1986
Pique - A jalapeno pepper which is characteristic of Mexican cuisine with a mustache and wearing a sombrero. Its name is derived from the word picante, Spanish of spices and sauces.
7. Italia 1990
Ciao - A stick figure player with a football head and body colored Italian flag. His name is a greeting word in Italian.
8. USA 1994
Striker - A dog wearing a U.S. uniform with the words "USA 94".
9. France 1998
Footix - A bird, one of the French national symbol, with the word "FRANCE 98" on the chest. His body was mostly blue, like the French uniform shirt and his name is a portmanteau of the word "football" with the suffix "-ix" from Asterix. Another name that was asked was "Raffy", "Houpi", and "Gallik".
10. The South Korea & Japan 2002
Ato, Kaz and Nik (The Spheriks) - Orange, purple, and blue futuristic, computer creatures. They are members of a team "Atmoball" (a kind of fictional football game), Ato is the coach while Kaz and Nik are players.
11. Germany 2006
Goleo and Pille - A lion wearing a Germany shirt with the number 06 and a talking soccer ball, Pille. Goleo is a portmanteau of the words "goal" and "leo", the Latin word of the lion. In Germany, "Pille" is a colloquial word to describe football.
12. South Africa 2010
Zakumi - the name of the mascot Zakumi is 2010 World Cup to be held in South Africa. Zakumi is a leopard with green hair eccentric, Zakumi was born on June 16, 1994 which coincided with the day of youth in South Africa. In 2010 Zakumi will be 16 years old, which will be celebrated globally with the 2010 World Cup crown.
Zakumi name comes from "ZA", the code for South Africa, and "kumi", a word that means ten in various African languages. Zakumi costume wearing a green and yellow (gold), which is also the color of the uniform dominance of the South African team.
13. Brazil 2014
Fuleco - Fuleco armadillo is the name chosen as mascot for the 2014 World Cup. Fuleco name is a portmanteau of the words "futebol" ("Football") and "Ecologia" ("Ecology"). Fuleco born on January 1, 2000 which indicates that it is an armadillo three-banded armadillo who becomes the first born in the new millennium. In 2014 14-year-old will Fuleco, which will be celebrated globally with the headline world cup 2014.