Very interesting subject... it's not easy, even if you have a good or great squad, to win in the World Cup. It requires confidence and respect from the refs. Spanish team has never won it, not even played in the final game. Being a contender in the World Cup takes more than having a good team.
I think the US team has potential to be a top 10 consistently, then everything is possible, even to reach the last four and try to win it all. But you can bet Brazil is going to be there, Germany will, even Italy and Argentina. Sometimes a very good squad may win, like France did in 1998, but the 4 teams get all the respect from the refs, and they have confidence: that leads to "good luck".
Maybe Spain and Brazil have the best squads, but I would not be surprised to see England and Argentina fight for the gold. Germany will be very tough to beat, and Italy will play awfully in the preliminary round, but then will be able to beat anyone.
I think South Africa will have a tough time to get out of his group, will be interesting. Also will be fun to watch Brazil vs Cote d'Ivoire and Portugal. For the US fans, watch out Algeria, they have the best tradition in African football (soccer) and they use to treat the ball very well.
Very nice thread... OKC Zombies up 25 with less than 2 minutes