The World Cup of Transportation

As the 2014 World Cup kicks off this week, we thought it would be fun to put together a bracket based on which countries have the best transportation infrastructure.   We utilized the World Bank’s rankings of each country’s infrastructure to determine which World Cup teams would advance.  Using the World Cup’s groups and bracket, we simply selected the countries that have the best infrastructure as the winner.  Here’s how it all shakes out:

Group A:

Brazil

Croatia

Mexico

Cameroon

Advancing: 1. Mexico,  2. Brazil

Group B:

Spain

Chile

Netherlands

Australia

Advancing: 1. Netherlands, 2. Australia

Group C:

Columbia

Greece

Ivory Coast

Japan

Advancing: 1. Japan, 2. Greece

Group D:

Italy

England

Uruguay

Coasta Rica

Advancing: 1. England, 2. Italy

Group E:

France

Switzerland

Ecuador

Honduras

Advancing: 1. Switzerland, 2. France

Group F

Argentina

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Nigeria

Iran

Advancing: 1. Argentina, 2. Nigeria

Group G:

Germany

Portugal

United States

Ghana

Advancing:  1. Germany, 2. United States

Group H:

Russia

Belgium

South Korea

Algeria

Advancing: 1. Belgium, 2. South Korea

Now that we’re down to the round of 16, here’s how the bracket plays out.

Observations about the bracket:

• With the top infrastructure globally, Germany is our World Cup champion.  This is not a bad pick considering Germany is one of the favorites according to most experts.  ESPN’s Nate Silver gives Brazil a 45% chance to win, Argentina 13%, Germany 11% and Spain 8%.  No other team has more than a 4% chance to win.

•   As you can see, heavy-favorite Brazil is upset in the first round according to our methodology. 

•   Another top-pick, Argentina, also makes an early exit in this bracket.

•   The United States and Japan making the final four would be shocking according to most oddsmakers.

 So, that’s how our bracket plays out.  Who do you have winning yours?