It seems like only yesterday Real Madrid master playmaker Kaka came roaring onto the international scene as a gifted, fresh-faced teen. Which is why you might be shocked to learn the Brazil star turned 31 earlier this week - time flies when you're being dazzled by nimble footwork and brilliant finishing, it turns out. To celebrate, here's the World Cup winner's top three career goals, as chosen by Icons. Feel differently? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter...

Argentina 0 Brazil 3, Friendly International, Emirates Stadium, 3 September 2006

Pace, power and precision - what more do you want from a goal in a hotly-contested South American derby? Kaka robs the ball from a young Leo Messi and surges past his opponents to cooly slot home, leaving the Argentine defence dumbfounded. Stunning. (Watch on YouTube)

Manchester United 3 AC Milan 2, Champions League semi-final first leg, Old Trafford, 24 April 2007

Five years ago this week, Kaka scored an unforgettable solo effort than will live on in memory as one of the greatest UEFA Champions League goals ever. Flicking the ball expertly past a bewildered Patrice Evra and Gabriel Heize, the Brazilian then places the ball in the net with the casual demeanour of someone strolling down to a newsagent on a Sunday morning. (Watch on YouTube)

Brazil 1 Croatia 0, World Cup 2006 group game, Berlin, 13 June 2006

Kaka wriggles free from defenders to unleash an unstoppable blast from range that picks up speed in the air, giving the Brazilians a crucial win in a difficult clash with Croatia. From the milisecond it leaves his boot to the moment it pings into the top corner of the net, pure class. (Watch on YouTube)

Is there a more exciting player to have emerged from 2012 than Neymar? The 20-year-old has packed more into three years as a top level professional than most players manage in their entire careers, this year making the leap from next big thing status to global superstar. Here's a reminder of his biggest and best moments from the past 12 months...

Goal of the year winner (8 January)

When Neymar was named winner of the 2012 FIFA Puskas award at the start of the year, beating a Leo Messi chip and that Wayne Rooney bicycle kick to the prize, it made a household name of the young Brazilian, putting him firmly on the radar of Chelsea, Barcelona, Manchester United and Real Madrid, who continued to track him across the year. (Find on YouTube)

100th career goal (vs Palmeiras, 5 February)

Neymar joined the 100 club in February, scoring Santos' only goal in a 2-1 Campeonato defeat to Palmeiras, despite his tender age. The match was his 186th appearance for club and country, giving him a strike rate of 0.53 goals per game - astonishing for a player still in development. To celebrate the landmark, his team mates opted to not make him a cake, but cover him in cake ingredients in the changing room after the match. As you do. (Find on YouTube)

Hat trick hero (vs Internacional, 7 March)

On the same night that Leo Messi scored his famous five goals in one game against Bayer Leverkusen, his Brazilian counterpart was not about to be outdone, smashing home a sensational hat trick to deny Santos' fiercest rivals Internacional the points. It was a performance so big even Neymar himself was dumbfounded. "I cannot explain what I did tonight. I need to watch the TV to see what I did on the field. I knew I dribbled past a lot of rivals. That's the only thing I know," the 20-year-old told Globo TV. (Find on YouTube)

Olympic star (vs Mexico, 10 August)

Neymar scored three times in six games to propel Brazil to a final at Wembley in front of 86,000 people at London 2012. He may not have been able to stop a determined Mexico from a suprise win in the final but that was little to detract from what was an excellent tournament for the youngster, unleashing some dazzling tricks on mesmerised British crowds and further cementing his reputation as one of the fastest rising football talents around. (Find on YouTube)

Another goal of the year award awaits... (vs Flamengo, 13 September)

A wonder strike against Ronaldinho's Flamengo for Santos, featuring a deft flick around an opponent and a mazing run through the opposition defence, is the hot favourite for this year's Puskas prize, rounding a brilliant 2012 for Neymar. Can the 20-year-old win two in a row? The bigger question, as 2013 looms, however, is how long till a move to Europe where his incredible talents will really be put to the test... (Find on Youtube)

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Check out Icons' amazing range of signed Neymar memorabilia, available in time for Christmas - click here to buy!

Follow Icons on Twitter for all the latest football news, chat and competitions: @icons_football

Boas Festas! For the non-Portugese speaking among you, that's how you'd say Merry Christmas in Brazil (according to a quick Google search, anyway). The festive season is fast approaching, a time during which signed memorabilia from our fantastic roster of Brazilian superstars is always a big seller at Icons. But where to start? Here's just a few of the great Brazil products we have on offer...

Neymar

What a year it's been for the 20-year-old striker Pele predicts is going to dominate global football over the next decade. The rising star began 2011 by winning the FIFA Puskas Goal of the Year award before going on to help his club to their third consecutive title, scoring 44 goals in 41 appearances en route. Then of course he starred in the London 2012 Olympic Games and earned the attention of Chelsea, Barcelona and Real Madrid, if newspaper reports are to be believed. Icons flew to Sao Paulo to meet with Neymar in October and came back with a limited edition collection of signed memorabilia including Brazil shirts and photos, not to mention autographed pictures of the player in action for Santos.

View our entire Neymar range.

Ronaldo

There's a reason people talk about Ronaldo as the greatest striker of all time. The record World Cup goalscorer is as loved today as he was when he was tormenting defences wearing the famous yellow and green of Brazil. In 2012 Icons conducted our fourth signing with the legend, who spent spells at Barcelona, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Real Madrid and more. Check out our signed Brazil shirts and photos or for those wanting to commemorate his incendiary time at Camp Nou, we have sublime signed photos of the man during his Barca days.

View our entire Ronaldo range

...and there's plenty more where that came from. Check out our entire collection of signed Brazil memorabilia, including names like Pele and Kaka.

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Follow Icons on Twitter for all the latest football news, chat and competitions: @icons_football

Tomorrow marks ten years since Brazilian legend Ronaldo made his Real Madrid debut. Coming on as a substitute against Basque Country minnows Alavés the striker made light work of the opposition defence to score twice, burying his first within 61 seconds of being on the pitch. In celebration of this, and of Icons’ new range of brilliant shirts and photos personally signed by the man himself, here are five reasons why Ronaldo was truly one of a kind.

His supernatural technique

When Ronaldo burst onto the world circuit at the 1994 World Cup the footballing universe was a very different place. Germany and Italy were the dominant powers, with the ultra-defensive Serie A hailed as the game’s most compelling league. Ronaldo led the Brazilian revival that changed all that. A player of incredible touch and control, his step-overs and dummies introduced flair back to the game and changed the face of football once more.

He’s the highest goalscorer in World Cup history

To say Ronaldo had a finish to be reckoned with is an understatement. During his career the number 10 struck an astonishing 414 times at domestic and international level. Poachers’ finishes, long range spectaculars, mazing runs through defences and past goalkeepers, Ronaldo could do them all. He gave the World Cup some of its most memorable moments of the past 20 years and continues to be the competition’s highest goalscorer, with 15 goals in the tournament.

His huge personality

Few players have had Ronaldo’s brilliant sense of humour and loveable eccentricity. The Brazilian icon named his first son Ronald Ronaldo (“because I am Ronald McDonald,” he later rationalised to a reporter) and in 2002 had his hair cut in a unique “half-moon” style after the toddler saw Roberto Carlos on TV and confused him with his father.

He was loved everywhere

How many players could cross from Barcelona to Real Madrid in a career and still be revered by Catalan fans? Who else could spend spells at both AC and Inter Milan and still be loved by both sets of supporters? Ronaldo was such a fantastic presence on the field that the acclaim for him goes beyond club rivalries.  

That game at Old Trafford

The Theatre of Dreams has seen its fair share of spellbinding individual displays over the years but Ronaldo’s riotous running of Real Madrid and Manchester United’s 2004 Champions League tie is up there with the best of them. After three stunning goals, he left to the pitch to a standing ovation from the United fans.

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Check out Icons' range of signed Ronaldo products by clicking HERE

Gordon Banks won the World Cup with England in 1966, but the most memorable moment of the goalkeeper's career came four years later in Mexico.

7^th June, 1970. At Estadio Jalisco in the Mexican city of Guadalajara, World Cup holders England were finding themselves under enormous pressure in the first half of their group match against a Brazil side regarded as the greatest in World Cup history.

Advancing with the ball from the right back position, Brazil captain Carlos Alberto sprayed a low pass over the half way line into the path of Jairzinho. With remarkable poise and balance, the Brazil winger sped past England left back Terry Cooper at full throttle and dug out a looping cross to the far post, where Pele had timed his run to perfection.

The Brazil legend leapt above English right back Tommy Wright and met the ball with a thumping downward header. The ball bounced off the turf towards the bottom corner of the net, but as Pele wheeled away in celebration, Banks' pulled off the most remarkable of saves. The England keeper was still scrambling across the goal line as Pele rose to head the ball, and his reaction was nothing short of phenomenal. Twisting his body and diving backwards in the blink of an eye, Banks somehow clawed the ball up and over the crossbar using his thumb. For a few moments, the watching world struggled to make sense of what had just happened. "Gordon Banks, pick that out of the net!" exclaimed the elated BBC commentator once the dust had settled. "The save of the World Cup," he added. But this wasn't just the save of the tournament; this was quite possibly the greatest save of all time.

It was not just the technical prowess and lightening speed of Banks' save that made it so special, however. The stage could hardly have been bigger. This was Pele, the greatest striker the world has ever seen, up against one of the world's finest keepers. What's more, England were reigning world champions, while Brazil were the finest international side of all time. It was a moment fit for such an occasion.

"It's something people will always remember me for," said Banks in 2005. "They won't remember me for winning the World Cup [in 1966], it'll be for that save," he added. Brazil went on to win the game 1-0 thanks to a second half strike from Jairzinho, but England still progressed to the quarter-finals by beating Romania and Czechoslovakia in their other group games. It was in a rematch of the 1966 final against West Germany that their hopes unraveled, and it was no coincidence that England were without Banks for that quarter-final defeat due to an upset stomach. Replacement keeper Peter Bonetti had been slow to react for the German's first goal, and with the scores at 2-2 after 90 minutes, Gerd Muller's extra-time heartbreaker sent England packing. "Of all the players to lose, we had to lose him," rued England manager Alf Ramsey over his first-choice keeper. Brazil, meanwhile, went on to win their third World Cup in emphatic fashion, thrashing Italy 4-1 in the final.

Banks won 73 England caps in an international career that spanned nine years starting in 1963. From 1965 to 1972, he was indisputably England's first-choice goalkeeper. At club-level, Banks' career took off after he was signed by First Division Leicester City from Chesterfield for £7,000 in 1959. After 293 league appearances for the Foxes, he moved to Stoke City in 1967, where he stayed until 1972. He won two League Cups during his time at Leicester and Stoke, but never experienced club success to rival that of his international career.

To remember Banks for one moment alone would be a disservice to the man who is still widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers ever to have played the game. Banks could never match the feeling of lifting the World Cup in 1966, but at that moment on 7^th June, 1970 in the sweltering heat of Guadalajara, he couldn't have been too far off.

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Buy our photo of Banks' incredible World Cup save from Pele, signed by Banks himself. Reduced from £49.99 to £29.99 and with limited stock, this is a bargain you won't want to miss. Take a look here.

 

Well, we did ask for it. After spending last week previewing the Copa America, eulogising the South American game and salivating over the array of talent that was going on display, it was inevitable that the first round of fixtures would turn up with a touch of the damp squibs. But whilst none of the 'Big 3' showed up, there's still plenty to talk, moan and speculate about, which is what we'll be doing in our round up. Don't forget, we're running a Copa America competition on the blog and also have a whole range of Copa goodies in our online store. 

Group A

In a tournament that has traditionally been very kind to the hosts, we were expecting Argentina to cruise through a group that looks straightforward on paper. Since their 1-1 draw with minnows Bolivia, though, there have been calls for the head of coach Sergio Batista. Argentina have often been slow starters (Cameroon 1990, anyone?) and fans could do well to remember that Bolivia trounced them 6-1 in the qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup and although Batista doesn't curry favour like Diego, they should still bounce back. Icons' own Sergio Aguero looked brilliant after coming off the bench, scoring a fantastic equalising volley. With the first choice triumvirate of Messi, Lavezzi and Tevez coming in for particular criticism back home (Messi unluckily so), he could force his way into the starting line-up. Bolivia, on the other hand, were fantastic. They had a gameplan to stifle the hosts and stuck to it, seeking out Marcelo Martins on the break and eventually getting lucky when Edvaldo Rojas' flick was deflected into his own net by Ever Banega. They should take heart from an encouraging opening performance.

In the other game, Colombia defeated a severely depleted Costa Rica side by a single goal. Again, though, the headlines were all about the poor show put on by the supposed star players. Coming off the back of an extraordinary season with Porto, Rademal Falcao was expected to take the tournament by storm, but looked subdued throughout before being withdrawn in the second half. Indeed, Costa Rica looked the more likely to score until Randall Brenes was sent off on the half hour mark. Adrian Ramos scored soon after to seal the points and provisional top spot in the group for the Colombians, but they'll have to improve if they're to see make a real impact on the tournament.

Group B

If Argentina being held to a 1-1 draw was a surprise, then the sight of Brazil failing to score against Venezuela, traditionally the continent's weakest side, was stupifying. The defending champions certainly had chances. Alexandre Pato hit the bar and Mano Menezes' side could have had a penalty for handball close to half time. Despite some good link up play between Neymar and Pato, the Brazilians were frustrating and as Venezuela grew in confidence, they stretched their illustrious opponents in the second half and had several half chances to secure the victory themselves. As it was, neither side could break the deadlock and Menezes has since faced similar criticism to Batista from his homeland. The Brazilian press are insistent that despite wholesale changes to the lineup, the side has not progressed since the Dunga era. Anything but a victory in their next game against Paraguay is unthinkable.

Paraguay, too, are desperate for the points after their 0-0 draw with Ecuador left Group B still seeking its first goal. The game was arguably the worst of the six played, with little in the way of quality shown by either side. 

Group C

Uruguay were fancied by many before the tournament's kick off, but they too struggled to get out of the blocks, drawing 1-1 with a spirited Peru side. The goals came from Luis Suarez (Uruguay) and Jose Paolo Guerrero (Peru), both of whom we tipped to shine last week. In what was perhaps the liveliest of all the drawn games, Peru struck first when Hamburg's Guerrero slotted home a through ball in the 23rd minute. Suarez stepped up to convert a fantastic pass from Nicolás Lodeiro (our One to Watch) to even things up, but neither side were able to step on and seize the three points. 

It was down to Chile, then, to provide the best entertainment of the opening exchanges. Shorn of the gung ho managerial stylings of Marcelo Bielsa, we were unsure what to expect from the 2011 edition, but their neat passing and tidy movement was at times a joy to behold. It was the Mexicans, though, who took the lead. Having triumphed in the Gold Cup earlier this summer, they let most of their star players go on holiday and fielded an experimental, inexperienced lineup. Nestor Araujo gave them the advantage against the run of play in the first half after Chile (most notably star striker Humberto Suazo) had missed a host of chances. It was left for substitute Esteban Paredes and Arturo Vidal to score the two second half goals Chile deserved, but they will need to improve their finishing if they have real designs on causing an upset. 

As for our predictions...well, Icons' own Dan Jamieson is leading the chase. Our MD tipped Chile to win and Luis Suarez to top score and whilst it's still early days, they are looking like sage choices indeed. Here's hoping for an exponential increase in quality when we get to round two.

 

Tim Vickery, the BBC's South American correspondent, has a surefire way to avoid being wrong, with his oft recited adage of: "Always make your predictions after the event." Well call us foolhardy, but we in the Icons office love a good prediction and having built up towards tonight's Copa America opener all week, we've been itching to throw in our two cents. Not only that, but we've been rifling through our battered old contacts book (well, Twitter) and enlisting some of the most respected names in sports journalism and blogging to offer theirs, too. They're a brave lot, unafraid of eggy faces and we'd like to thank them all for participating. Why don't you let us know your thoughts on the footballing carnival of the summer? Tweet us, or get us on Facebook, but before doing so, you might want to brush up on your tournament knowledge with Parts One, Two and Three of our Copa America 2011 preview. Also, don't forget to check out our fantastic Copa America competition, where you can win a signed Messi boot and the Copa America section of our online store. Now, let's get on with it.

Dan Jamieson 

Dan is the Managing Director of Icons. He is also player / chairman of Grantchester Road and a lifelong Liverpool fan.

Winner: Chile
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Luis Suarez (Uruguay)

Ben Soley 

Ben is the Icons Marketing and Promotions Executive and another Liverpool fan (they're everywhere!).

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Finbarr Bermingham

Finbarr is the editorial intern at Icons, the guy who mans the Twitter desk and an Arsenal supporter.

Winner: Uruguay
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Radamel Falcao (Colombia)

Follow Finbarr on Twitter

Jonathan Wilson

Jonathan is the author of three books about football, Behind The Curtain: Travels in Eastern European Football, Inverting the Pyramid: A History of Football Tactics and The Anatomy of England: A History in Ten Matches. He is the editor of The Blizzard and writes regularly for The Guardian, Sports Illustrated, The Independent and many more. He is an occasional guest on the Guardian's Football Weekly podcast and the BBC's World Football Phone In.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Alexandre Pato (Brazil)

Follow Jonathan on Twitter

Kat Petersen

Kat is a sub-editor of the aforementioned Blizzard and is currently accompanying Jonathan at the Copa America.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Alexandre Pato (Brazil)

Andy Brassell

Andy is a football journalist and an expert on European football. He works for the BBC as their European football correspondent, appearing regularly on the World Football Phone In on 5Live and on BBC World's World Football Review. He also writes for ESPN Soccernet, The Blizzard, The Independent and many more. He is the author of the book All or Nothing: A Season in the Life of the Champions League.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Mexico
Top Scorer: Falcao (Colombia)

Follow Andy on Twitter

Luke Moore

Luke is a writer, producer, broadcaster and pundit. He is a co-founder, co-producer and co-presenter of The Football Ramble and has appeared on ESPN's Talk of the Terrace, BBC Radio London, BBC 5Live, ITV.com and Sky News.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Humberto Suazo (Chile)

Follow Luke on Twitter

Marcus Speller 

Marcus is the presenter and broadcaster of The Football Ramble. He has occasionally appeared on Sky News as a pundit and is also a stand up comedian.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Humberto Suazo (Chile)

Follow Marcus on Twitter

Dan Brennan

Dan is the owner of Libero Language Lab, which provides translation services to the sports industry. He also writes for FourFourTwo, When Saturday Comes, Champions, World Soccer Digest and other publications.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Leo Messi (Argentina)

Follow Dan on Twitter

Guillem Balagué

Guillem is a football journalist and a regular pundit of Sky Sports' Revisita de la Liga. He has contributed to The Times, The Observer and The Metro and is renowned for breaking transfer stories via his personal website

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Leo Messi (Argentina)

Follow Guillem on Twitter

Paolo Bandini

Paolo works for the Guardian's sports desk and writes weekly columns on Serie A and the NFL. You can hear him regularly on the Guardian's Football Weekly podcast

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Edison Cavani (Uruguay)

Follow Paolo on Twitter

Rupert Fryer

Rupert is a journalist and a South American football expert. He is the editor of the South American Football website and writes for the Guardian, The Observer, The Football Ramble, Goal.com, Sport 360 and Fox Soccer

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Follow Rupert on Twitter

Iain MacIntosh

Iain is a football journalist who writes for the New Paper (Singapore), Sports Illustrated, The Irish Examiner and OPM. He appears on the Red, White and Blue podcast.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Follow Iain on Twitter

Adrian Clarke

Adrian is a former Arsenal player and a football journalist. He is the former news editor of Icons and has co-commentated for Arsenal TV. He is the owner of Sport Media Solutions.

Winner: Uruguay
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Follow Adrian on Twitter

Scott Wilson

Scott is the Chief Sports Writer for The Northern Echo

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Alexandre Pato (Brazil)

Follow Scott on Twitter

Huw Davies

Huw is a staff writer, blogger and sub-editor at Four Four Two and the author of The Week Spot blog.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Mexico
Top Scorer: Alexis Sanchez

Follow Huw on Twitter

John Timmins

John is a Senior Designer for London 2010 Olympics and the goalkeeper for Grantchester Road FC.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Mexico 
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Dr Lee Watson

Dr Watson is the agent of Guillem Balagué.

Winner: Uruguay 
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Edison Cavani (Uruguay)

Simon Jalie

Simon is a freelance journalist and La Liga expert who writes for Soccer International.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Leo Messi (Argentina)

Follow Simon on Twitter

Daniel Colasimone

Daniel is a football writer and the editor of Argentina Football World.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Unspecified
Top Scorer: Leo Messi (Argentina)

Follow Daniel on Twitter

James Appell

James is a sports writer, travel journalist and Russiaphile. He writes for ITV and The Football Ramble.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Edison Cavani (Uruguay)

Follow James on Twitter

David Hartrick

David is the co-editor of the football website In Bed With Maradona.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Follow David on Twitter

Sam Kelly

Sam is a Buenos Aires based football writer who contributes to ESPN Soccernet, When Saturday Comes and In Bed With Maradona. He is also the producer of the Hand of Pod podcast.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Luis Suarez (Uruguay)

Follow Sam on Twitter

David Cartlidge

David is a Spanish football expert and co-editor of Spanish Football.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Neymar (Brazil)

Follow David on Twitter

Mark Sylvester 

Mark is a freelance football journalist who writes for BT Vision. He was the ghostwriter of Henrik Larsson's biography

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Chile
Top Scorer: Carlos Tevez (Argentina)

Carl Lyons

Carl is the Marketing Director of Top Table

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer:.Leo Messi (Argentina)

Dale Robinson

Dale is a Global Marketing Executive for TOFFS, the world's leading supplier of retro football shirts.

Winner: Uruguay
Runner Up: Colombia
Top Scorer: Radamel Falcao (Colombia)

James McDaid

James is the editor of the 2Footed football blog.

Winner: Brazil
Runner Up: Argentina
Top Scorer: Diego Forlan (Uruguay)

Follow James on Twitter

Ghost Goal

Ghost Goal is a football website edited by Oli Baker and Adam Bate. The pair started the site after growing frustrated at the perceived narrow scope of the mainstream football media. Ghost Goal was named as one of the Guardian's 100 Best Football Blogs and the pair have written for ITV, When Saturday Comes, CalcioItalia, Soccerlens, In Bed With Maradona and more.

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Brazil
Top Scorer: Edison Cavani

Follow Ghost Goal on Twitter

Laura England

Laura is the main buyer of Sports Endeavours, the US soccer partner of Icons

Winner: Argentina
Runner Up: Uruguay
Top Scorer: Falcao

Yesterday, we kicked off our coverage of the Copa America with a preview of Group A, featuring Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia and Costa Rica. Today, the focus shifts to Group B, featuring bookies' second favourites Brazil. Let's see what the group has in store. Don't forget, you can view our full range of Copa America merchandise by visiting our main site. 

Brazil

 

The history: Despite being the most successful nation on the global stage, Brazil have historically flattered to deceive at continental level. They've won just eight Championships, compared with 14 each for Uruguay and Argentina. That said, four of those eight have come in the last five editions, with the Brazilians winning each of the last two. They will be going into the tournament with every intention of improving on a disappointing 2010 World Cup in South Africa, so write them off at your peril.

The star players: All the talk in the run up to this one has been about the boy wonder, Neymar Santos (pictured above after scoring recently against Scotland). As he looks set to seal a big money move abroad, the Copa America could prove to be the perfect shopping window. Along with captain Lucio, Robinho, whose early career followed a similar trajectory to Neymar, is the most experienced member of the squad. He has just undergone a season of rejuvenation under Massimiliano Allegri at AC Milan and the pair together could be dynamite.

One to watch: Scouts had been flocking to Brazil to see Paulo Henrique Ganso turn out for Santos until a long term knee injury struck him down last summer. On the comeback trail, he's been linked with a big money move to Milan in January. Tall, elegant and with a sublime touch, we're hoping Ganso will show us what all the fuss is about in Argentina.

Impress your mates: Brazil's former coach Dunga is so called because that's the Portuguese for Dopey. His uncle coined the name when Dunga was a kid as he believed he'd never grow beyond the size of Snow White's favourite Dwarf.

Ecuador

 

The history: Not only have Ecuador failed to win the Copa America, they've never even made the final. Their best performance was reserved for 1993's tournament, when they reached the last four as the hosts. The statistic is surprising, considering the Ecuador side of the past ten years is widely regarded as their best ever. But with many of them now in retirement, it's a team in transition.

The star players: The squad is largely home based, but there are a couple of names that fans of European football will recognise. Luis Antonio Valencia (above) is their star man and having impressed on his return from injury towards the end of Manchester United's season, he'll be hoping for a busy tournament. Top scorer Christian Benitez, too, has a point to prove, following an indifferent spell on loan at Birmingham City two seasons ago. 

One to watch: Eyebrows were raised when Sven-Goran Eriksson splashed out £5million on Felipe Caicedo in 2008. He failed to make an impact at Manchester City, but has impressed many since his move to Spain, where his goals kept Levante in La Liga. Keep your eyes peeled for the big front man.

Impress your mates: Ecuadorian football was rocked in the build up to the 2006 World Cup when the team's doctor was found to be 'people smuggling' by issuing fake visas to people trying to escape the country, under the national team banner. 

Paraguay

 

The history: Paraguay have won the Copa America twice: way back in 1953 and 1979 and have failed to make the Semi Final since 1989. After making the World Cup Quarter Final last year, though, they will be hoping to maintain their good tournament form.

The star player: Despite his stalled career in England, Roque Santa Cruz is the darling of the Paraguayan faithful. We're excited to see Lucas Barrios (pictured), though. Born in Argentina, he gained Paraguayan citizenship just before the World Cup and has just had an excellent season in Germany, helping Borussia Dortmund waltz to the Bundesliga title.

One to watch: Paraguay have triumphed at the Milk Cup, one of the world's premier youth tournaments, three times in the last ten years and the current squad is built around those teams. Having spent his formative years in Germany, we're looking to Nelson Valdez (now 27) to make good on the promise of his youth.

Impress your mates: One of Paraguay's star players, the prolific Salvador Cabanas, was shot in the head in the run up to the 2010 World Cup, whilst in a bar in Mexico City. Cabanas has not played since.

Venezuela

 

The history: Venezuela have traditionally been the runt of the South American litter, having never qualified for a World Cup and only making out of the Copa America group stages once (2007 - as hosts). Development of football in the northerly nation has been impressive, though, with investment in infrastructure coinciding with real progression in player quality.

The star players: The undisputed star of Venezuelan football is Juan Arango, who is now plying his trade with Borussia Monchengladbach having spent five successful years with Real Mallorca in Spain. As captain and talisman, Arango will need to be at his inspired best if Venezuela are to progress.

One to watch: Well, two actually. Our attention has been drawn to a couple of starlets in the Venezuelan squad: namely José Rondón and Yohandry Orozco. Rondón was one of the bright sparks in a disappointing season for newly minted Malaga in Spain's La Liga, whereas Orozco has been snapped up by Felix Magath's Wolfsburg in Germany.

Impress your mates: Between their initial entry to the series in 1966 and their defeat of Ecuador in 1994, Venezuela registered only one victory in South America's World Cup Qualifiers. The win came over Bolivia in 1982.

Keep reading to get our final group preview tomorrow and don't forget to enter our fantastic Copa America competition this way.

Like the England team, the Icons boys travelled in hope, rather than expectation.

Arriving on a glorious Cape Town morning we stepped out of our taxi outside the hotel and literally bumped into Cafu coming out of the revolving doors. Perhaps everyone else in the hotel was a World Cup winner? Almost true. We discovered we were in the main hotel of the Brazilian travelling support so basically they were all winners. They had booked for a month, of course, fully expecting to be involved right to the end. We are due to fly back after the quarter-final.

Icons' view from their hotel window

We picked up our tickets, got giddily excited and watched the World Cup come alive on TV.

We all enjoyed the Germans miss penalties and lose to the Serbs before heading out for a beer by the marina and watched the US Slovenia game. We met Raphael and Gill, a half Greek, half South African man and his half Portuguese, half South African girlfriend, who, having lived in London for ten years, were both supporting England for the night. Nice to have such choices as to who you can follow.

Next to us at the bar, a man dressed in chain mail and a crown and brandishing an inflatable sword, was asked in a terribly posh voice: “Excuse me my man, what King actually are you?” “Richard the First,” came the reply. “Thought so, thought so,” said London mayor Boris Johnson as he turned back to his group. It was shaping up to be a surreal day. Here’s the photo of us all to prove it.

Icons meet Boris Johnson, and the King

Boris, parping away on his big red vuvuzela, and the rest of the English supporters were in good spirits on the way to the stadium. Everyone was friendly, enjoying the atmosphere as the sun set and Table Mountain descended into darkness.

A very cosmopolitan crowd with a wide mix of nations were all serenaded to the tune of “We’re England til we die”. The stadium looked iconic on the outside and breathtaking on the inside. I’d say 80% were English supporters, the rest neutrals with a few vocal Algerians dotted around. A refreshing amount of women, children and non-white people in white added to the carnival atmosphere, as did the amount of flags draped on every bit of the stadium. Shame the vuvuzelas drowned out the singing.

(Interesting point for those back home watching on TV, I’d say 1 in 200 had a vuvuzela, so you only need 3000 of them to create the beehive backing music to this World Cup)

We were sat close to the corner flag, 4 rows away from Andy ‘Andrew’ Cole and 8 rows from the Heskey family. We all hoped he had a good game.

And then the game started and the magnificent day went downhill.

I won’t dwell on the game, you all saw it and can make your own minds up. I thought it was extremely harsh to boo them off at half time, it didn’t help and we played reasonably well in the first 45 and the Algerians looked neat and tidy.

In the second half we just didn’t have another gear. We appeared to not be able to cross the ball, and looked by the number of short free-kicks, to not be able to take a set piece. Close to the action it was painfully obvious that we pass and stand, rather than pass and move. Everyone watched the man in possession do something and then reacted, rather than moving to receive the ball.

England’s tactics – pass and stand, pass and stand

Rooney’s body-language and subsequently his language were terrible. It was as if they all knew they were going to be hammered and their shoulders slumped at their powerlessness to control events, and the football.

At the end the boos rained down and they/we trudged off. We worked out that the last time England played well in a World Cup was the first 30 minutes against Denmark in 2002. We stank out the last tournament, and we’re stinking out this one. Oh dear.

Tom ‘glass half full’ Rollett pointed out that we were still unbeaten and that we started Italia 90 with two draws. I pointed out that in 1990 we had just seen the emergence of Gazza as a world-class genius and we only went on to beat Egypt, Belgium and Cameroon by one goal – and that was the greatest team of our lifetime.

Afterwards the Algerians celebrated winning 0-0, but to be fair the English fans did chat, “we’re shit and we know we are” back at them. Boris’ verdict: “Not very good, was it?” Fair point.

Algerians celebrated winning 0-0

So all in all one of the greatest days of my life was not entirely ruined by the football. If only we were like Gill and Raphael and we could easily switch allegiances. Unfortunately we’re stuck with this; we’re England till we die.

As you know icons.com is the world's leading supplier of signed football memorabilia. We've been meeting with world's best players for nearly 10 years now and bringing our customers the best quality products out there.

We were looking back in the archive of our signing photos throughout those 10 years and found these classics from the first Galactico era of Floretino Perez at Real Madrid. Back then we conducted numerous signings with the top players from that team.

Check out the signing photos of the orginal Ronaldo - the World Cup's greatest goalscorer of all-time

 

We also met the first of Perez's signings, Portuguese legend Luis Figo - signed from arch-rivals Barcelona for a then record transfer fee of £38.7m.

 

Icons.com also conducted a signing session with the best attacking full back of his era, Roberto Carlos, scorer of possibly the best free kick of all-time

and World Cup winner in 2002.

And as we were meeting all three of these superstars within a few months of each other we were able to create one of the most unique products we've ever had - a triple-signed Real Madrid Galatico photo.

As we only ever had limited supplies of these products they all sold out extremely quickly so unfortunately we don't have any more of them available.

However in a World Cup year there's always the possibility of new signings with these legends.

And if we were ever able to arrange signings with Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham the people who had signed up to the icons.com newsletter would certainly be the first to know. Watch this space.