Listen to the National Anthems - First Words

National Anthems have traditionally been played before international matches, which of course includes World Cup matches. Even though FIFA's current President (Sepp Blatter) reportedly now wishes to abolish the anthem tradition (pls. see below

), this Section brings you links to National Anthems for every Nation contesting the 2006 World Cup.

Independently of the above mentioned news, the National Anthems are to be heard in the 2006 World Cup, even if this were to be for the last time, in World Cups (a matter which really remains to be seen: no plans are in sight to discontinue the playing of National Anthems, according to a FIFA spokesperson, toward the end of 2005).

At any rate, on the next page, you can listen to⁄download every National Anthem, in advance of the match, get the lyrics (in native language and in English translation), as well as the sheet music for most of the Anthems. Some National Anthems, in fact, constitute quite interesting musical pieces! The lyrics of the Anthems, in turn, can offer cultural enrichment, especially for their historical worth (they often evoke a significant value, passage or period in the history of the Nation in question, many having been inspired by independence, or the struggle for or establishment of sovereignty).

Differently from the order below, the nations' names will be listed in alphabetical order, for their National Anthems. You find the links to all the Anthems, on the next page.

Below is a table displaying the country names and flags, according to their World Cup Groups, so you can check, at a glance, which two Anthems will be heard in sequence, before the different matches to be played among the National Squads in each group.

Below, you find, as well, a few relevant observations, in addition to links to further information on National Anthems. Please read these observations, as they allow you better to enjoy the Anthems' Page, proper (these observations below are merely alluded to, on that page).

To check which Anthems you will be hearing before a particular match, use the World Cup Calendar to see when these countries play each other within their Groups, or beyond the First Round.

Nations & Groups


Germany Costa Rica Poland Ecuador	England Paraguay Trinidad and Tobago Sweden	Argentina Côte d'Ivoire Serbia and Montenegro Netherlands	Mexico Iran Angola Portugal
Italy Ghana United States Czech Republic	Brazil Croatia Australia Japan	France Switzerland Korea Republic Togo	Spain Ukraine Tunisia Saudi Arabia

The first Country in each Group, above, is the seed.

The remaining Countries, in each Group, are ordered according to the number assigned

during the World Cup drawing, in Leipzig (which, in most cases,

reflects the number of the pot which the Country name had been placed in, for the drawing).
The Country Flags beside each Group Letter, above, follow the same order, from left to right.

Update: Links to

South Africa's anthem have now been included on the Anthems' Page.

South Africa is the

Host Nation

for the

World Cup

	Symbols linking to each Anthem in question, available for free streaming and⁄or download, on the next page:
	- an MP3 version (instrumental and⁄or voice) - a Midi version (only instrumental)
	� Further observations: - Lyrics for the Anthems: usually available on both of the sites that are linked to, on the next page. On the MP3-version site, there may be just a partial transcript; and, in some cases, no lyrics at all for a few Anthems. The Midi-version site, on the other hand, offers the Lyrics in their entirety, not only [1] in their respective native languages – in both original and Latin characters, whenever these differ, such as in Farsi, Japanese, Ukrainian, etc. – but also offers [2] a translation to English, for every Anthem in a language other than English! So, even if you prefer the MP3 recording, it pays off to follow the Midi-link, as well, for downloading or copying the lyrics. More than Lyrics: The Midi-version site also provides very interesting information on many anthems, the accuracy and clarity of which of course remaining their responsibility (the disclaimer is prudent, given the needed remark regarding the Brazilian Anthem, on the next page). At the MP3-version site, in addition to the recording(s), there is a map and some brief information, for each country. Again, the responsibility for accuracy⁄clarity is of course theirs. - Sheet Music for the Anthems: usually available on the site offering the Midi-version. Whenever the sheet music has not been found available there, it is indicated, beside the entry, on the following page.

On the Anthems' Page, proper: all Country names appear in alphabetical order, instead of

being listed by World Cup Group, as above

(pls. note: this is different from FIFA abbreviation order, for "Saudi Arabia : KSA" and "Spain : ESP").

{letters in brackets}: indicate the World Cup Group, so you do not need to turn back the page,

just to check this.

Abbreviations, beside the country name: the ones used by FIFA, as well as in this eBook.

For further information on National Anthems, beyond that which you can find via the links displayed on this eBook's National Anthems' Page, check the Links' Pages on the and on .

If the MP3 version or the sheet music for your National Anthem is not available on the National Anthems' Page, you might wish to consider assisting these sites in being able to offer them to the general public, World-wide, if you are able to. The same goes regarding enriching additions you may be able to offer to the already interesting information provided, besides the anthems, themselves, or regarding eventual inaccuracies you might come across and may be able to help correct. Soberness, dedication, and love of what they do, all transpire regarding the folks behind these Anthems' pages linked to from here, as you'll be able to sense for yourself; so, undoubtedly, they would appreciate whatever contribution that could help make their sites even more informative and useful. Their main URLs are at the bottom of the current and the following pages.

___________________________

Sepp Blatter's recent position against the use of the national songs has been linked to his having been upset by the booing of National Anthems, in a recent World Cup play-off, as Turkey ended up being eliminated, by his native Switzerland. There have been other such incidents, in Europe, such as during the Euro 2004 Tournament, in Portugal: the booing of the French anthem (by England's supporters), Croatia's having likewise been disrupted in the same Tournament, for example, were of course reported to have made UEFA unhappy. The disruption of National Anthems at the Turkey vs. Switzerland matches must have made a stronger impression, since the home crowds, themselves, were doing the booing – this means, a whole stadium, or close to.

It is hard to control what fans do, for being part of a crowd, in the heat of a match's excitement, can easily override one's usual prudence, composure and common sense. On the other hand, what is done in a sports tournament cannot be taken as a national offense, for it is not meant this way. Fans feel they can help their squad, by cheering their players and booing at the opponent. And, in fact, many times fan support has helped make a difference. In the case of the above-mentioned World Cup play-off, the Turks, especially, were angered (probably shocked, in disbelief) at the possibility of being eliminated by Switzerland, as it in fact did happen. This must, in turn, have led the Turkish fans to behave in possibly anti-sporting ways that irritated the Swiss. So, the Swiss surprisingly booed, in their home game, and the Turks returned the booing.

Far from trying to excuse whatever booing, the above considerations are merely an attempt to understand how these incidents developed. This is by no means synonymous with approval. There have been hints that UEFA may start handing out fines, for this sort of disruption. And, Turkey, by the way, will reportedly receive a penalty from , because of lamentable anti-sporting incidents which followed the second of the above-mentioned matches. FIFA's Disciplinary Committee will be meeting on February 6, 2006, in order to review the above-mentioned incidents and take disciplinary action. The word on the Press goes that Turkey is expected to be handed a penalty, which could be anything from a simple (though possibly high) fine, to suspension of its Football Confederation for a determined period. (Check for the outcome.)

At any rate, if you are going to watch the 2006 matches at the stadiums, in Germany, please remember to reserve your booing to what goes on after the whistle is blown! This seems to have become a delicate issue, before the soccer authorities, so it will likely be more noted, should it occur again. And, frankly, don't you think the World Cup and other international matches would loose a bit of their charm, were the playing of anthems to be abolished altogether?

(return to text) (link to the Anthems' Page, right below)

Free music downloads, guitar tuning, & a lot more on

2006

World Cup

World Cup Nations:

National Anthems (page 1) National Anthems (page 2)

Group A:	Group B:	Group C:	Group D:

Germany	England	Argentina	Mexico
Costa Rica	Paraguay	Côte d'Ivoire	Iran
Poland	Trinidad and Tobago	Serbia and Montenegro	Angola
Ecuador	Sweden	Netherlands	Portugal

Group E:	Group F:	Group G:	Group H:

Italy	Brazil	France	Spain
Ghana	Croatia	Switzerland	Ukraine
United States	Australia	Korea Republic	Tunisia
Czech Republic	Japan	Togo	Saudi Arabia

World Cup Squads: 2006 WC Players' Sources World Cup Stadia & Matches


#	Group A	Group B	Group C	Group D	#

1	Germany	England	Argentina	Mexico	1
2	Costa Rica	Paraguay	Côte d'Ivoire	Iran	2
3	Poland	Trinidad and Tobago	Serbia and Montenegro	Angola	3
4	Ecuador	Sweden	Netherlands	Portugal	4

#	Group E	Group F	Group G	Group H	#

1	Italy	Brazil	France	Spain	1
2	Ghana	Croatia	Switzerland	Ukraine	2
3	United States	Australia	Korea Republic	Tunisia	3
4	Czech Republic	Japan	Togo	Saudi Arabia	4

Squad Abbreviations used by FIFA, as well as in this eBook

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