Pop World Cup 2010: First Quarter Final – Netherlands 1 Honduras 3

If you can’t quite smell the greatest pop football prize of all yet, you can certainly hear it in the distance. For one of our managers, three more songs will take them through to the world championship.

But we are getting ahead of ourselves. Welcome to the first Quarter Final of the Pop World Cup 2008! First up, Iain F’s Netherlands, whose style so far has been mainly laidback pop slinkery. They take on Carsmile Steve’s Honduran reggaeton monster, growing in size with each opponent it devours. The HEAT is ON.

This match closes at midnight on Sunday 23rd May

NETHERLANDS: Wende – “The Moon Is Out” The Manager Says: “”I’ve been delighted by the success of our tactics to date. However, wary of becoming predictable, and of the folly of taking on Honduras at anything resembling their own game, I’ve decided to switch things up. More urgency, a touch more rock and a powerful striker in the shape of Wende Snijders, whose story takes in England, Indonesia, Guinea-Bissau and an unlikely period of time training in the French Chanson system.”

HONDURAS: Acidmunky ft Martha Bonilla- “Shake It Off” The Manager Says “Thought we’d mix it up a bit this time, didn’t want to get accused of playing one-pace pop football, so here’s a track from Honduras’s top dance wunderkind Acidmunkey. Bashing beats and a fair bit of hollering from Ms Bonilla, lets see if the Dutch like it up ’em!!! A place in history can be ours!”

 Loading ...

Commentary Box Analysis By the look of the teamtalks, both managers are intent on wrongfooting their opposition by changing up their tactics. The Dutch begin in a formation which (by consensus here in the press box) sounds like formulaic rock rubbish but degenerates into something much stranger, and oddly beguiling at that. Half of us are up and applauding by the end. the other half look bemused. Honduras, too, move in a much harder direction than their previous easygoing uptempo reggaeton; surely the manager learned the “kick – punch” tactic during his long years in the lower leagues of English football. Both teams here are flexing between styles mid-song, apparently at will. Both seem a little surprised by the final whistle. A fascinating game. Which scary lady do you prefer to have shouting at you?

Coming up In the second QF we see Chris R’s Korea Republic, purveyors of classy K-Pop in the round of 16, taking on Andrew H’s mercurial German team. No easy games at this level, and no boring ones either.