Held every four years, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup is possibly the world's most popular sporting event, with billions of fans tuning in. FIFA held the first competition in 1930 in Uruguay, but after only three contests, it put the event on hiatus for 12 years due to World War II. Reestablished in 1958, the World Cup was held exclusively in Europe and the Americas until 2002, when Korea and Japan were chosen to co-host the finals.

1. By Jed Drake

2. 
Held every four years, the Fédération
Internationale de Football Association (FIFA)
World Cup is possibly the world's most popular
sporting event, with billions of fans tuning in.
FIFA held the first competition in 1930 in
Uruguay, but after only three contests, it put the
event on hiatus for 12 years due to World War II.
Reestablished in 1958, the World Cup was held
exclusively in Europe and the Americas until
2002, when Korea and Japan were chosen to cohost the finals.

3. 
In 2014, Brazil will be the home of the 17th
World Cup. The nation possesses the most
number of World Cup wins, with five titles.
Prior to the concluding matches, soccer
teams from more than 200 countries
compete over the four years between Cups in
order to obtain rankings. Subsequently, FIFA
conducts qualifying matches where teams
from six regions determine who earns a spot
in the World Cup.

4. 
As Senior Vice President and Executive
Producer of Event Production with ESPN, Jed
Drake oversees the broadcasting of numerous
sporting events. In 2010, Drake's coverage of
the World Cup in Johannesburg, South Africa,
garnered him interviews with the Washington
Post, NPR, and other periodicals.