The World Cup as Starmaker

In many ways, football has changed.

When Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas strikes the cries from supporters watching live don't just spill over the Emirates Stadium walls and into Ashburton Grove, but throughout the world.

Satellite television has pushed the popularity of the major European leagues to incredible new heights and a player like Christiano Ronaldo is as likely to have his shirt worn by kids in Pakistan as he is in Portugal.

Despite the fact that the quality of play in these leagues routinely rises above that of the World Cup, the tournament currently on play in South Africa still can't be rivaled for its ability to make stars out of the world's best.

It's been that way since Pele, a precocious 17-year-old, stepped onto the World Stage at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden, scoring six goals--two in the final match, including The Sombrero--and ushering in his own legend.

That World Cup, the first to be displayed internationally on television, has laid the foundation for every tournament since and while Pele didn't win the golden boot (that went to Just Fontaine who scored an amazing 13 in his only World Cup appearance, two shy of the career record that took Ronaldo three tournaments to match.), he became arguably the first international superstar in the football world.

In 2010, stars come readily-packaged to the World Cup. Millions (if not billions) know the names of Christiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Wayne Rooney, Fernando Torres and others before they ever set foot on South African soil.

These days, the World Cup is less about building one's legend than it is about earning it.

That is the footballing world we live in today, where pressure is possibly higher now than it ever was for Pele.

Winning the World Cup is still everything, but when everyone expects you to play for country with the same ability and consistency that one does for club--where one has the benefit of extensive training and experience with one's teammates year-round--every mistake only becomes magnified.

Some have already risen to the occasion in the opening matches, such as David Villa who managed two finely taken goals in Spain's win over Honduras yesterday.

Perhaps the man with the most at risk this month is Christiano Ronaldo, whom many have pegged as the most dangerous man in this tournament.

His performance in the rout over North Korea was solid if not superb as Portugal employed lock-pick precision to open up the gates of what looked to be a very capable and dangerous defense for the first 29 minutes before Raul Meireles opened up the game with the first goal.

Stuck chasing the game needing to avoid a loss and catch Portugal, North Korea was smoked by a Portuguese team too motivated and too alert to slip up with the lead.

Still, World Cup legends are written with goals and Ronaldo needs to produce a heap more if he's going to continue on this track. He's already hit the post twice with vicious strikes that each would've been among the best goal scored in this tournament, but close doesn't count in this game.

This has been a World Cup that, for the most part, has been bereft of otherworldly performances.

Messi has been absent, though Higuain could cement his spot as a world-beater if he keeps up his scoring streak.

As the World Cup enters the knockout rounds, where legends are truly made, the future looms large for all remaining.