Every FIFA World Cup Ranked From Worst To Best

Spain were worthy winners at the 2010 World Cup but the tournament, as a whole, failed to inspire.

Proceedings were hardly helped by the ever-present buzz of vuvuzelas at every game, with the monotone sound of the plastic horns popularised by fans at that year’s World Cup akin to the buzz of a very annoying bee.

Many of the big teams failed to turn up. France went on strike and exited early along with an abject Italy, while England froze on the world stage again. Brazil and Argentina also blew hot and cold, eventually suffering disappointing defeats in the quarter-finals.

Ghana were the neutral’s favourite, as the host continent’s sole representatives in the quarter-finals but even they fluffed their lines, losing on penalties to Uruguay despite having a spot kick to seal victory.

Holland made the final, fired on by a superb Wesley Sneijder but let themselves down with their aggressive approach to tackling opponents Spain.

Even the winners struggled to score goals, eventually claiming the title with a 1-0 win over the Dutch in extra-time – their fourth straight 1-0 win at the tournament, in a run that included a one goal win over the competition’s other standout side, Germany, in the semis.