Broken promise worries Argentina soccer fans

Religious statue gave 1986 Cup champions 'strength'

BERLIN -- Two-time World Cup champion Argentina may never win another World Cup because of a broken promise.

In 1986, to prepare for the high altitude in Mexico City, the national team trained for several weeks in Tilcara, a small town in the Andes near the border with Bolivia. The team and coach Carlos Bilardo also went to pray in front of the Virgen of Copacabana, asking for strength to win the World Cup.

Bilardo vowed that if the country won the World Cup, the team would return to the town to give thanks.

Argentina did win, defeating West Germany 3-2 in the final. But it seems the team never returned to keep its promise, leading residents of Tilcara to say by breaking its promise the country would never win the World Cup again.

Julio Humberto Grondona, president of the Argentine Football Association, and other team officials went recently to Tilcara -- just in case Bilardo hadn't.

However, Bilardo claims he did return to Tilcara, apparently on a private visit that went unnoticed.

"They are all lies, lies," Bilardo said recently. "When I make a promise, I keep it."

MISS WORLD CUP: Edwige-Grace Madze Badakou of Togo is the new Miss World Cup.

The 24-year-old finance graduate beat out 31 other women, one from each of the 32 countries that have teams playing at the World Cup.

Badakou, a former Miss Togo, beat Maria Garrido Baez of Spain and Katty Lopez of Ecuador at the last stage. The judges were celebrities and sports personalities.

At the World Cup, Badakou will take part in various events associated with the tournament and will appear at some matches. She said she hopes to use her status to promote peace, environmental awareness and the artists of her country.

PREDICTION: You don't need a college degree to know that Brazil is favored to win the World Cup. Still, researchers at the University of Warwick in England have been analyzing soccer games to predict which team will lift the trophy in Germany.

Brazil was the top pick with a 13 percent chance to win its sixth World Cup title.

In the group stage, the Ukraine-Tunisia match was the toughest one to call for the computers. England-Trinidad and Tobago was the easiest, giving the English an 83-percent chance to win.

The forecasts were made by analyzing about 4,500 international games, including prior tournaments, qualifiers, and friendlies. The system gave more weight to recent games.