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Editor’s Letter

World Cup: WORLD NEUROSURGERY

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On July 11, 2010,nearly one billionpeople throughout

the world enjoyed society’smost massively shared hu-man experience and themost important confronta-tion sport. The World CupChampionship final provedto be history’s largest single

vent in sport with the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics2008) a distant second at 600 million viewers. The tournament, ahree-year elimination affair, began with national teams from 206ountries vying for 32 coveted spots in the month long “Finals”ournament in South Africa.

he world’s first inter-ational football matchas played in Glasgow

n 1872 between Scot-and and England. Asts popularity grew,occer was grantedemonstration status

n the 1900 and 1904lympics. The Federa-

ion Internationale deootball AssociationFIFA) was founded in904, with the firstorld Cup tournament

eld in 1930 with FIFAponsorship. To date,9 tournaments haveeen held with 8 differ-nt national teamsinning the World Cuprophy.

ince the initiation ofhe tournament, tworophies have repre-ented victory: the Ju-es Rimet Trophy from930 to 1970 and the FIFA World Cup Trophy from 1974 to 2010.

epresenting the physical embodiment of singular global achieve-ent in time, the trophy stands 14.4 inches (36.5 centimeters) tall

nd is composed of 11 lbs (5 kgm.) of 18 karat (75%) gold with aase 5.1 inches (13 cm) in diameter containing 2 layers of malachite.he trophy depicts two human figures supporting the earth in Atlasashion.

he entire process and culminating event represent a global unitynd determination to achieve recognition for excellence in a humanndeavor - a long process requiring sustained effort, unity, organi-

ation, and communication at multiple levels. This organization, first D

ORLD NEUROSURGERY 74 [2/3]: 207, AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 201

t national, then regional, then continental levels, did not occurvernight but took decades to achieve the level that was evidenthis past June and July in South Africa.

he unification of purpose created success on many levels andemonstrated the benefits of the amalgam: South Africa in partic-lar was seen to benefit. Skepticism was rampant before the eventhat stadiums would not be finished, transportation would be aasco, violence would emerge, disorganization would prevail, andhe worst would characterize the tenor of the times. In short, Southfrica was seen to amaze even itself with the overall success of thevent and the remarkably positive sense of its ebullient nature thatas recognized and embraced by the world on this ultimate global

howcase. Those who engaged in situ, through media or othernformation conduits, could only uniformly rejoice in the kaleidoscope of

color, style, and per-sonalities of the partic-ipants and the hosts. Itwas a remarkable tes-timony to global effortand the positive in amultitude of varietiesof life that Twenty FirstCentury mankind hasto offer. Sport can of-fer this in its often-dis-torted microcosm.

Global neurosurgeryis in parallel with theanalogy to worldsport and has muchto gain by examiningthe World Cup organi-zation and events.

Communication, ex-change of ideas, andmutual participation,where all have a voiceon a level playing field,will offer progress andoptimization of achiev-ing purpose.

ORLD NEUROSURGERY is designated to accomplish this and like theorld Cup will thrive on participation of colleagues from all nations.

ichael L.J. Apuzzo

878-8750/$ - see front matter © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc.

OI: 10.1016/j.wneu.2010.09.034

0 www.WORLDNEUROSURGERY.org 207