Meet TIME's World Cup Squad

clear="all"> Name: Bruce Crumley
TIME Bureau: Paris
Nationality: American (passport), French (football)
Home National Team: France
Favorite 'Away' National Team: France
Favorite Club Team: Bordeaux (for whom most current "Bleus" played at one time)
Team You Love to Hate: All others. But mostly England, England, England, most of South America, Spain, England, Ireland (because Roy Keane exists), and any side for whom Beckham ever played
Favorite-ever goal: Lilian Thuram's double vs. Croatia to get us into the '98 final, Sylvain Wiltord's last-second goal in injury time vs. Italy, sending the Euro 2001 final into over-time — which France finally won.
Best Football Moment: Entire World Cup '98
Worst Football Moment: France-Bulgaria, 1993, keeping us out of the U.S. World Cup.
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: My finger nails.
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Upper Volta (otherwise, France)

Name: Michael Elliott
TIME Bureau: Editor-at-large
Nationality: British-American
Home National Team: England-USA
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Holland, but since they're not playing, France
Favorite Club Team: Liverpool
Team You Love to Hate: Manchester United
Favorite-ever goal: Istvan Farkas for Hungary against Brazil at Goodison Park in the 1966 World Cup. This was "Albert's game." I was there. Second favorite: Ricky Villa's second goal in the 1981 FA Cup final replay against Manchester City. I was there for that, too. Third: boring choice, but hard to beat Carlos Alberto's goal for Brazil - their fourth - in the 1970 World Cup Final.

Best Football Moment: The Glorious 25th of May, 1977, when Liverpool won the European Cup for the first time, in Rome. Golden moment: when Tommy Smith soared like a salmon to score the vital second goal.

Worst Football Moment: Heysel, then Hillsborough. But on the field of play, Michael Thomas scoring in the last minute in the 1989 Liverpool vs. Arsenal league title decider; the goal that is at the heart of Nick Hornby's "Fever Pitch." I was celebrating my birthday; it wasn't much of a party. Rivaled for awfulness only by United stealing the 1999 European Cup from Bayern Munich with those two flukey injury time goals.

Favorite Pre-Match Meal: My Mum's mince (for Americans: ground beef) stew with carrots and suet dumplings, which I ate every second Saturday throughout the 1960s before going to watch Liverpool at Anfield.
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: France

Name: Tony Karon
TIME Bureau: TIME.com
Nationality: South African
Home National Team: South Africa
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Nigeria, Cameroon, Holland, France, Republic of Ireland
Favorite Club Team: Liverpool FC, and Orlando Pirates (the pride of Soweto)
Team You Love to Hate: Argentina, Man Utd.
Favorite-ever goal: David Narey's 40-yard toe-poke for Scotland vs. Brazil in '82 to give them a jaw-dropping if short-lived lead. Francois Omam-Biyik for Cameroon vs. Argentina in 1990, after which nobody ever again took an African team lightly. And the 1982 goal against Russia by Brazil's Socrates, my all-time favorite player.
Best Football Moment: Cameroon 1, Argentina 0, 1990 World Cup.
Worst Football Moment: Rob Rensenbrink's miss in front of an open goal that would have won the 1978 World Cup for Holland against an Argentina team whose thuggery put their military dictatorship to shame. Cerezo's square pass across his own defense that allowed Italy's Paolo Rossi to steal in and sink the hopes of those brilliant '82 Brazilians. (And, of course, that glorious own-goal while cutting off a cross for the magnificent Dynamo Obs in my student days...)
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Salomie — a Cape Town Malay-style mutton curry wrapped in a roti.
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Safe bet: France. Flutter: Portugal or Brazil. In my dreams: Senegal

Name: Aparisim "Bobby" Ghosh
TIME Bureau: TIME Asia
Nationality: Indian (Yes, there are some of us who aren't obsessive about cricket.)
Home National Team: Spain (My home in a previous life: as a Hindu, I know this for certain.)
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Argentina
Favorite Club Team: FC Barcelona
Team You Love to Hate: England, Real Madrid
Favorite-ever goal: Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" special
Best Football Moment: Argentina 2, England 1, 1986 World Cup.
Worst Football Moment: Two finals — 1990 and 1994: awful, awful games
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Octopus pizza (When in Japan...)
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Safe bet: Argentina. Flutter: Portugal

Name: Chris Taylor
Bureau: San Francisco
Nationality: British
Home National Team: England
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Brazil
Favorite Club Team: Liverpool
Team You Love to Hate: Argentina
Favorite ever goal: Michael Owen against Argentina, 1998
Best Football Moment: David Platt's bicycle kick against Belgium in extra time, 1990
Worst Football Moment: Gareth Southgate's penalty kick against Germany, 1996
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Fish and chips with Ribena (blackcurrant juice)
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Italy

Name: Josh Tyrangiel
TIME Bureau: New York
Nationality: USA
Home National Team: USA
Favorite 'Away' National Team: England
Favorite Club Team: Chelsea
Team You Love to Hate: Man. U
Favorite-ever goal: Gianola dribbling through eight Arsenal Arses and finishing in the top left
Best Football Moment: Too many
Worst Football Moment: Beckham gets sent off
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: None
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Italy

Name: Hannah Beech
TIME Bureau: Shanghai
Nationality: Half American, Half Japanese
Home National Team: Hmmm, got two of 'em (U.S. and Japan)
Favorite 'Away' National Team: China
Favorite Club Team: Perugia
Team You Love to Hate: Man U
Favorite-ever goal: The Hand of God
Best Football Moment: Watching Japan's Hidetoshi Nakata score his first Serie A goal
Worst Football Moment: U.S. World Cup when the Colombian who scored an own-goal was shot and killed
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Ramen (Japanese soup noodles)
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Argentina

Name: Enrique Zaldua Gorostegi
TIME Bureau: Time Latin America
Nationality: Basque-Spanish
Home National Team: Tough question. I will go with Spain for this.
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Senegal and Portugal
Favorite Club Team: Real Sociedad de San Sebastian
Team You Love to Hate: Real Madrid de Madrid
Favorite-ever goal: Zamora's goal in Gijon with 20 seconds left to give Real Sociedad its first-ever Spanish League title, in 1981. Also, Van Basten on Dasaev, Eurocup '88.
Best Football Moment: Real Sociedad's first Spanish League Championship, knocking down rich and powerful Real Madrid. Imagine winning the lottery: 100 times crazier.
Worst Football Moment: Real Sociedad losing out on its first-ever championship against Real Madrid the previous year, 1980, after having gone unbeaten till the next-to-last game. Imagne winning the lottery but losing the ticket. 100 times worse.
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Bocadillos de tortilla con chorizo — chorizo omelet on baguette, Spanish style.
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: France, China (just kidding! Go, Milu.)

Name: Simon Robinson
TIME Bureau: Nairobi
Nationality: Australian
Home National Team: Australia
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Argentina
Favorite Club Team: Leeds
Team You Love to Hate: Manchester United
Favorite-ever goal: Maradonna's goal against England in Mexico '86. (Not the hand of God goal but "the other one" as it's always referred to)
Best Football Moment: Winning the Under-10's schoolboy competition in northern Sydney. We were up 7-0 at half time when the ref noticed we had 12 players on the pitch. Our score was scrapped but we still scored 5-0 in the second half.
Worst Football Moment: Iran forcing Australia out of the last spot for France '98 after we'd drawn in Iran and were up 2-0 in Melbourne. Heart wrenching.
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Pesto. (Or hot dogs if it's during the match)
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Argentina (or dark horse Portugal)

Name: Romesh Ratnesar
TIME Bureau: New York
Nationality: U.S.
Home National Team: U.S.
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Nigeria
Favorite Club Team: Arsenal
Team You Love to Hate: Chelsea
Favorite-ever goal: Diego Maradona v. England, 1986
Best Football Moment: Being the leading American scorer for my college club at Oxford (luster diminished slightly by the fact I was the only American in the college who actually played football)
Worst Football Moment: Taking a penalty kick in high school, and missing the goal entirely
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: McDonald's Big Breakfast 2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Argentina

Name: Tim Larimer
TIME Bureau: Tokyo
Nationality: U.S.
Home National Team: Japan
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Ireland
Favorite Club Team: San Jose Earthquakes (are they still a team?)
Team You Love to Hate: Any team whose star is married to a Spice Girl
Favorite-ever goal: I've never actually seen a goal; isn't the score always 0-0?
Best Football Moment: Brandy Chastain
Worst Football Moment: None
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Zaru Soba
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: France

Name: Chris Taylor
Bureau: San Francisco
Nationality: British
Home National Team: England
Favorite 'Away' National Team: Brazil
Favorite Club Team: Liverpool
Team You Love to Hate: Argentina
Favorite ever goal: Michael Owen against Argentina, 1998
Best Football Moment: David Platt's bicycle kick against Belgium in extra time, 1990
Worst Football Moment: Gareth Southgate's penalty kick against Germany, 1996
Favorite Pre-Match Meal: Fish and chips with Ribena [blackcurrant juice]
2002 World Cup Winner Prediction: Italy