On 6th November 2011, Sir Alex Ferguson completes 25 years as manager of Manchester United. A landmark no one thought possible when he came to the club in 1986, attempting to awaken a sleeping giant. The glory days of Sir Matt Busby were a distant memory, and they had gotten used to being in the shadow of Liverpool, who were collecting not only league titles but also European Cups. Legend has it that one of Fergie’s first statements upon taking over as manager was that he would “knock Liverpool off their <expletive_deleted> perch”.

Alex Ferguson is unveiled as Manchester United manager on 6th November 1986.

Believe it or not, it took him 4 years to deliver success. An eternity in the modern game. Who can imagine a manager at a big club getting so much time today? Calls for Fergie’s head reached a crescendo in 1990, but chairman Martin Edwards and director Sir Bobby Charlton stuck to their guns and kept him. It’s often said that an FA Cup 3rd round match with Nottingham Forest on Jan 7th 1990 was the decisive match of Fergie’s life. Had they lost, the axe would have fallen within a matter of days. As destiny would have it, Mark Robins won the game for United. Not only did United get to the next round, they won the FA Cup that year, beating Crystal Palace in a replayed final. Fergie got breathing space. And got even more of it by winning the 1991 European Cup Winners’ Cup and the 1992 League Cup.

What started the revival was his quiet transformation of the club’s background. Drinking culture went out, stars like Paul McGrath were dumped, youngsters like Lee Martin and Mark Robins were brought in, and a discipline unseen at the club earlier was instilled. Shrewd signings like Gary Pallister and Brian McClair were made. The youth setup of the club received a total makeover, whose results would be seen in the coming years. Stars like Ryan Giggs and Peter Schmeichel were blossoming fantastically under the watchful eye of the gaffer.

In 1992, it looked like Fergie would lead the club to its first league title since 1967 under Busby. But with pressure proving too much, United choked to let Leeds steal the title from under their noses. A workmanlike Manchester United couldn’t cross the finishing line because they didn’t have enough magic in the side. This was the time Fergie took his most extraordinary gamble and brought in a player who was nothing but trouble wherever he went. A player who had punched a teammate, fought with another, thrown a ball at a referee, and called every one of his country’s football federation an idiot. His name was Eric Cantona.

A manager who was a traditionalist in every other way brought in a combustible genius who transformed the club. Unsurprisingly, United won their first league title in 26 years in 1993. Extraordinary moments like Steve Bruce’s two headers against Sheffield Wednesday and Fergie’s golf trip when a caddy said Aston Villa had lost to Oldham to give United the title meant that no fan would ever forget this campaign.

Alex Ferguson's first Premier League title in 1993

Fergie followed up his first title with another in 1994, coupled with the FA Cup. When Cantona launched himself into a fan at Selhurst Park and received an 8th month ban, that resulted in United winning nothing in 1995. Blackburn Rovers, then the richest club in England, had bought their way to the title and were posing a serious challenge to United.

This is when Fergie again showed his managerial genius. He resisted his initial instinct to dump Cantona after his atrocious act, and in fact flew to France to convince him not to quit football. What’s more, he dumped the very established Mark Hughes, Paul Ince and Andrei Kanchelskis, and replaced them with the unproven Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and David Beckham. Pundit Alan Hansen famously said “You’ll win nothing with kids” when United lost the opening game of the 1995-96 season to Aston Villa. But at the end of the season, the club had won the Premier League title back from Blackburn, and added the FA Cup too. The extraordinary manner in which United hunted down Newcastle’s 16-point lead and the way Fergie made Kevin Keegan crack into his “I would love it if we beat them” rant became the stuff of legend. Cantona returned from his 8-month ban in October and proved the magician who inspired the Double, with the only goals in 6 crucial 1-0 wins, including the title decider at Newcastle and the FA Cup final against Liverpool.

Cantona's winning goal in the 1996 title decider at Newcastle

One more title in the bag in 1997, and Cantona shocked everyone by announcing his retirement at the age of 31. But with the youngsters of 1995 maturing into excellent players, there was still enough talent at the club to continue winning things.

But this was the moment Fergie received an unexpected challenge. Another sleeping giant, Arsenal, were stirring after the coming of the crafty Arsene Wenger. A manager who would revolutionize the very philosophy of the club. In his first full season of 1997-98, Wenger prised the Premier League title from Manchester United and won the FA Cup too.

Just when we wondered if Fergie’s best years were behind him, he responded with his greatest season ever. Nobody will ever forget the Treble winning season of 1998-99, when an extraordinary team including Schmeichel, Stam, Giggs, Beckham, Cole, Yorke, Sheringham and Solskjaer won the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the club’s first Champions League since 1968. Extraordinary days like the two 3-3 draws with Barcelona, a stunning comeback against Liverpool in the FA Cup, the greatest FA Cup game of all time in the semifinal against Arsenal, and the miraculous Champions League final when two goals in stoppage time defeated Bayern Munich meant that Fergie had entered the gates of footballing immortality. Shortly after the incredible Treble, Fergie had 3 more letters added to his name. Sir.

Sir Alex Ferguson lifts the Champions League in 1999

Having reached the very top, the only way was down. Such were the high standards United had set themselves, that winning only the Premier League in 2000 and 2001 was seen as a come-down. They were struggling to replace Peter Schmeichel. A barren season in 2002 was proof that recent experiments with Paul Scholes as a striker and Laurent Blanc replacing Jaap Stam had failed. After an almost unexpected title win in 2003, the club went 4 years without the league title. The Roman Abramovich revolution at Chelsea made them briefly more successful than United, when Jose Mourinho led them to back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006.

But having seen off the Wenger challenge, the Abramovich-Mourinho challenge was not insurmountable. In 2006-07, Fergie did it again by dumping star players like Roy Keane and Ruud Van Nistelrooy, and winning the title with a new side that included Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, Michael Carrick and Louis Saha.

But he had one more itch to scratch. After the unforgettable events of 1999, United had underachieved in Europe. The tactical nous of Ottmar Hitzfeld’s Bayern Munich, the obdurateness of Bayer Leverkusen and the surprise package of Mourinho’s Porto had all conspired to keep United away from the Champions League title for several years. But that changed in 2008, when a new-look Manchester United beat Chelsea to win the Champions League in Moscow. A team brimming with wizardry in the form of Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez had too much class for all other teams on the continent. Fergie had won his 2nd Champions League, proving that 1999 was no fluke.

The long-awaited second Champions League in 2008

He wasn’t done. He had vowed to knock Liverpool off their perch, and did it in style when United equalled Liverpool’s 18 league titles in 2009, and went one better with the 19th league title in 2011. He now has a record no other manager has reached and will reach. 12 Premier League titles, 5 FA Cups, 3 League Cups, 2 Champions Leagues, 1 European Cup Winners’ Cup, 2 Intercontinental Cups, and 1 World Club Championship sit on his roll of honour. What an amazing 25 years it has been. And we look forward to more.

His appetite for a challenge knows no bounds. After repelling the challenges of Blackburn, Newcastle, Arsenal and Chelsea to remain England’s premier footballing force, the latest and greatest challenge is from the blue half of Manchester, where a Sheikh-up has seen the city’s other club emerge as the world’s richest, and a genuine contender for the Premier League title. In Europe, United has twice fallen way short of Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, currently one of the greatest sides the world has ever seen. Barcelona beat United in the 2009 Champions League final and repeated the same feat in 2011. Winning the Champions League a third time ahead of the Catalans and keeping the Manchester City challenge at bay would make Fergie the greatest manager who ever lived. And you wouldn’t put it past him.

But I make an exception for one brand: Starbucks. The coffee brand you can love or hate but can’t ignore. What does this brand stand for? It stands for a third space between home and office, a coffee experience that goes beyond the actual drink, a feeling of belonging to a welcoming place, an exciting coffee that makes other coffees duller. And I’ve swallowed this entire brand essence, hook, line and sinker.

What makes a big difference is the approach followed by a few baristas. I used to work at the Concourse building, Beach Road, Singapore, which has a convenient Starbucks downstairs. A bunch of friendly baristas by the names of Hansel, Rafi and Johari had a great way of putting people at ease. They remembered not only the names of most customers, but also their favourite drinks. They remembered 3 or 4 of my favourite drinks and asked me which of these I wanted to have each time. On one occasion when I was about to go to Bali on holiday, I happened to mention it to Hansel in passing. 10 days later he asked me how my trip to Bali was. I was amazed that in the midst of hundreds of customes, he remembered that I had made a trip to Bali. This is on-the-ground CRM! Low-tech CRM it may be, but it works! If only every brand remembered so much about every consumer!

And the Starbucks culture ensures that other baristas show a similar attitude. After Hansel and Johari moved to other outlets, I still kept on going to the one at Concourse, because others fulfilled their roles equally well. It remained the place that excited me whenever I wanted an early morning cuppa or a break in the afternoon. Many times I considered going to the small drinks stall across the road, but it was just not exciting enough.

Then, something terrible happened. We shifted office to Scotts Road! One of the first things I found out was if there was a Starbucks nearby. And no, there wasn’t! I thought a lot about what I was going to do. There were mom-and-pop coffeeshops nearby, but they were not Starbucks. And astonishingly, I went a whole month without a Starbucks coffee!

I was naturally cribbing about it. A friend in the office who noticed it said that there’s a Starbucks next to Orchard MRT, which was quite far from my office. It’s not walkable unless we have half an hour to spare, and that acted as a deterrent. But one morning, that same friend bought me a tall nonfat latte (my favourite drink) from the Orchard MRT Starbucks! Having my first Starbucks in a month was orgasmic! For a few seconds I considered marrying this friend of mine (disclaimer: exaggeration).

I had the taste of it again. I was not going to wait another month for my next Starbucks. Since then, once every week I get down at Orchard MRT instead of my usual Newton MRT, get my tall nonfat latte at the Orchard MRT Starbucks, and then take a bus to my office. Sometimes even at 10am or 11am in the office, I feel like a Starbucks and make a bus journey to get one. Soon I realized, I’m not the only one in the office who’s doing it! Sometimes a group of us make the same half-hour trip for a Starbucks. That’s the bonding we have with Starbucks.

It’s often said that a truly successful brand is something you would drive a whole night for. In my case, it’s a brand I would make a half-hour journey for, once a week!

I recently read a book by Singapore’s iconic leader Lee Kuan Yew, called Hard Truths To Keep Singapore Going. Among many things, he mentioned that for any society to continue doing well, 4 types of people are critical: innovators, entrepreneurs, mentors and super-mentors. And he said the only country which has all 4 in large numbers is America.

That was consistent with my own observations: that America remains the capital of creativity and entrepreneurship. It remains the only country capable of giving us a Facebook or an iPad. Think of new innovations that emerged in the 2000s – the search revolution spearheaded by Google, the social networking phenomenon led by Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, the location based networks trend spearheaded by Foursquare and Gowalla, 3 innovations from Apple that changed the world (iPod, iPhone, iPad), the e-books revolution spearheaded by the Amazon Kindle. They all have one thing in common. They all originated in the US.

The blueprint of America is special, and has withered many a storm. It’s the mindset of entering uncharted territory, creating something, and building a good future for everyone involved. That blueprint existed when the original invaders of the continent built every city, town and economic hub from scratch. That blueprint exists to this very day in Silicon Valley, hence the innovations mentioned above.

It includes the mentality of welcoming every nationality and absorbing them into its fold, and being enriched by their multiple talents. This mindset existed when English, Irish, German and Hungarian immigrants docked at Ellis Island. It existed when Jewish immigrants took over the realm of small-scale entrepreneurship, and slowly increased their scale to the extent that they control most of the economy today. It existed when Chinese, Indians and Vietnamese enriched Silicon Valley. It exists to this day, because America remains the only country where the son of a Kenyan immigrant can become President.

This blueprint also includes the world’s greatest entertainment culture. The story is considered America’s greatest export, and nowhere is it more true than in Hollywood. It remains the world’s dream factory. Apart from that, you can see phenomenal expressions of this entertainment culture in Las Vegas, Universal Studios and Disneyland, just to name a few.

Asia has its own strength, primarily a large population of high IQ, educated and hardworking people. But I believe that this is just a starting point of a society’s success, and not the be-all-and-end-all. This alone cannot take Asia ahead of the US. The culture of creativity and entrepreneurship in the US continues to act as a magnet for Asian talent. The long list of Indian technopreneurs in America like Vinod Khosla, Ram Shriram and Naveen Selvadurai bears testament to this. It absolutely begs the question: Why couldn’t Vinod Khosla’s Sun Microsystems or Naveen Selvadurai’s Foursquare emerge out of Bangalore or Hyderabad? China isn’t far ahead either when it comes to creating global brands that take over the world. All they can boast of is Lenovo, which had to be taken over by America’s IBM. And Huawei, whose only markets outside China are India and Indonesia.

The culture of creating something special out of thin air is still missing in Asia. China’s ability to produce graduates with great scientific and mathematical ability is legendary. But in industries like advertising, which require creativity and communication skills, there’s a severe shortage of talent in China. The conformist mindset of the people doesn’t help.

I’m not denying the rise of China. I would be a fool to do that. But does China have the blueprint to be No. 1? Does a country which depends on the fake goods industry to spearhead 8% of its economy have the foundation values in place? Does their undeniable economic rise necessarily mean they will be accepted as the global leader?

At least it’s debatable whether China can take over the No. 1 spot. But I don’t think the India case is even debatable. Quite a lot of what is said about India is theoretical and melts in the real world. For instance, there was so much rhetoric about microfinance and how it was going to get millions out of poverty. India contributed famous microfinance case studies like the Shakti Amma movement in Andhra Pradesh state of southern India. But today, microfinance is seen as India’s own subprime crisis, where tens of thousands are struggling, unable to repay loans borrowed from aggressive lenders. The same Andhra Pradesh is the worst hit.

Another commonly heard rhetoric about India is that it has a young population and a large workforce. What’s actually happening is that more and more lower-income Indians are migrating around the world, doing jobs locals don’t want to do. The last five years have seen a substantial increase in construction workers from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan migrating to the Middle East. The last two years have seen immigrants from Punjab and Gujarat emerge as the second largest group of illegal immigrants in the US, behind only the Mexicans. Does it make sense if a “superpower” is a major source of labourers for the rest of the world? The demographic dividend of a country can be realized only if it educates its increasing population. A large belt in India, from Punjab in the north to Bengal in the east, doesn’t appear to be doing this.

If even China and India cannot match the US, what chance do other countries have? Can we really imagine a superpower emerging from elsewhere? Japan and Korea plateaued 20 years ago. Latin America doesn’t appear ready to lead the world. Europe has shown itself incapable of global leadership in spite of its economic success over the last few decades. The Next 11 emerging markets (Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia etc) are all capable of significant economic success, but it’s difficult to imagine any of them exerting substantial geopolitical influence.

There are only flimsy reasons supporting the belief that America’s best days are behind it. Superpowers emerge by having a solid DNA in place, and only if they lose it, they will decline, as in the case of the Roman empire and the British empire. And America is showing no signs of losing it. What they are facing now is only half as bad as the Great Depression of 1929. The challenge from China and India is no different from Russia sending Yuri Gagarin into space, in which case America responded by sending Neil Armstrong to the moon. A country which put cars on every road, computers on every desk, and Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck into the heart of every child, is not going to relinquish its status as the world’s leading superpower for the next hundred years.

It was due. It was due because even before the club won the IPL, they were creating a very special legacy. A legacy which makes them more than just a team.

“Barcelona es mes que un club”, or “Barcelona is more than a club” is the motto of FC Barcelona, one of Spain’s and Europe’s most successful clubs. For a variety of reasons, that rings true for the Catalan club. What makes it similarly true for the IPL champions?

First of all, the Chennai Super Kings are a brand. Think of Chennai Super Kings, you think not of 11 players batting, bowling and fielding. But you think of fearless, attacking cricket. You think of aggressive batsmen in yellow smashing the ball to the boundaries. You think of fearless bowlers taking stunning wickets. You think of the passionate crowd which feels like an extension of the team.

As someone in the marketing industry, I know that it’s critical for a brand to define what is known as a brand essence. Chennai Super Kings have done this by defining their brand essence as “fearless, entertaining cricket”. The adage they give themselves is “The Fearless Entertainers”, and with aggressive players like Matthew Hayden, MS Dhoni and Albie Morkel, they live up to the moniker. Even supposedly defensive anchor batsmen like Murali Vijay and Subramaniam Badrinath seem to discover a hidden gear of attacking intent when they don the yellow shirt.

Murali Vijay mauls Rajasthan with 127 in April 2010

The concept of the brand molecule suggests that each brand is an atom in a molecule, where bonds link it with other brands. Some of these bonds are stronger than others, as indicated by the distance between the brands. Consistent with this, a whole host of brands have associated themselves with Chennai Super Kings. 7Up has a close association with the club, and created a movement called the 7Up Pattalam, where thousands of 7-a-side teams from all over Tamil Nadu competed for a chance to play against the Super Kings. Other brands that associate themselves with the Chennai Super Kings include Reebok, Fosters, Yahoo, Peter England, and the Chennai-based Aircel. A study done this year claimed that the total sponsorship value of the Chennai Super Kings was the highest among all the IPL teams. The value of these brand associations is mutual. The Chennai Super Kings brand is strengthened, as are the associated brands.

Secondly, the Chennai Super Kings are a family. The players, coaching staff, franchise owners, supporters and even the team ambassadors seem to be part of a big family supportive of one another. Fan bonding was critical to create this atmosphere. And one way Chennai Super Kings developed fan bonding was through their Chennai Super Kings Juniors programme, aired on TV, in which thousands of promising youngsters had a chance to show their talent and win an opportunity to train with the club at junior level. The aforementioned 7Up Pattalam had a similar effect. The Kings Club fan club, and jerseys anyone can personalize by having their name on it, are two other factors that bonded fans with the club.

Equally importantly, the players and the coaching staff have bonded very well with one another. The core group of players play together for Tamil Nadu in the domestic circuit and have a great understanding. This includes Murali Vijay, Subramaniam Badrinath, Ashwin Ravichandran, Anirudha Srikkanth, Lakshmipathy Balaji, Arun Karthik, Abhinav Mukund and Hemang Badani. Then you’ve got players like MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina who play together for India, as do Vijay and Badrinath occasionally. Likewise you’ve got the Aussies (Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey, Doug Bollinger, George Bailey), the South Africans (Albie Morkel, Justin Kemp, Makhaya Ntini), and the Sri Lankans (Muttiah Muralitharan, Thilan Thushara, Thissara Perera).

But it’s not just national and state-level bonding. Chennai Super Kings nurtures players and gives them a sense of belonging. Suresh Raina was just another promising youngster in 2008 when Chennai Super Kings signed him up. Under the tutelage of captain Dhoni, batting legend Matthew Hayden, and the intelligent Chennai Super Kings think-tank, Raina has blossomed into an amazing player who contributes immensely in all three departments of the game. No one had heard of Ashwin Ravichandran and Shadab Jakati two years ago, but they have developed so well under the Chennai Super Kings umbrella.

Suresh Raina repays Chennai's faith with a Man-of-the-Match performance in the IPL 2010 final

The family atmosphere of the club was reflected in an anecdote coach Stephen Fleming shared earlier this year. On a tortuous bus ride to Dharamsala, Fleming watched in fascination as Michael Hussey and Muttiah Muralitharan engrossed themselves in a mammoth discussion on every aspect of cricket. Fleming said Mike and Murali were like “Mr and Mrs Cricket”, a moniker that extended Hussey’s usual nickname of “Mr Cricket”. They had bonded as if they had been playing cricket together since the age of five.

The players have also bonded with the city they represent. Captain MS Dhoni who hails from the far northern state of Uttarakhand has said that he wants to stay with the Super Kings because he is identified as a Chennaiite now. Australian Matthew Hayden says Chennai is his second home and he has gotten so much from it, as he spent a lot of time practising there in his younger days, and it helped him develop as a batsman. Sri Lankan spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan is the son-in-law of Chennai, having married a girl from the city. And with typical Tamil hospitality, the people of Tamil Nadu have accepted these “outsiders” as one of them. They call Dhoni “thalaivar” (leader), Hayden “namma ooru singam” (lion of our city), and Muralitharan “maapillai” (son-in-law).

An interesting person who makes every Chennai Super Kings home match more entertaining is not even a cricket player. A drummer called Sivamani, who may be familiar to aficionados of the Tamil film industry based in Chennai. He attends every match and provides a soundtrack with his drums for everything that happens on the field, particularly victorious moments like a boundary or a wicket. Needless to say, he’s decked in the famous yellow jersey with his name on it.

Thirdly, Chennai Super Kings is the alternative national team for the people of Tamil Nadu. The state, particularly Chennai, is known to be cricket-crazy just like the rest of India. But on top of that, they are known as the most intelligent and knowledgeable cricket watching crowd in India. But in spite of the significant importance given to cricket there, Tamil Nadu has yet to produce a genuine cricketing superstar. While a steady stream of players have played a handful of games for India, Chennai has not produced a Tendulkar, a Sehwag or a Ganguly. Only the magnanimous view that the Indian national team was more important than local loyalties meant that Chennaiites remained passionate about cricket.

As a result, Tamil Nadu had become an underserved cricket market. There were insufficient channels for the people of Tamil Nadu to show their interest in cricket and their knowledge of the game.

The Chennai Super Kings have bridged this gap. Chennaiites are now able to cheer their local heroes as they lead their side to victory. Tamil Nadu players who couldn’t get into the Indian team for various reasons suddenly have the limelight they were craving for. And like a match made in heaven, Chennai’s path crossed with a genuine cricketing superstar who did not come from a major cricket-loving city and therefore did not have a local IPL team. His name was Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Tamils who have always prided themselves on their “virundhombal” (hospitality) and “vandhaarai vaazha vaikkum thamizhagam” (the Tamil land where anyone is welcome to come and prosper) had no trouble taking Dhoni as their “thalaivar” (leader). After all, this was a land where the two biggest movie stars of all time had both been outsiders. With Dhoni’s talent, stardom, leadership and charisma making him the heart and soul of Chennai Super Kings, the club’s status as an IPL powerhouse was never in doubt. Thalaivar’s unforgettable rescue act in Dharamsala and his great captaincy in the victorious IPL final meant that he would forever be a hero in Tamil Nadu.

Dhoni is mobbed after his stunning rescue act takes Chennai into the IPL 2010 semifinals

The special space that the Chennai Super Kings occupy in the hearts of Tamils means that wherever Tamils are, a large number of them support the Chennai Super Kings. When the Super Kings won the IPL, fireworks went off in Coimbatore, 500km to the west of Chennai. Theatres in San Jose were filled with Chennai Super Kings supporters watching the final and celebrating. Sri Lanka and Singapore are two other countries known to have a sizeable number of Chennai Super Kings supporters.

It’s not by accident that the Chennai Super Kings became a brand, a family, and a national team. The franchise owners have looked at what successful clubs in other sports and other countries do, and tried to follow in their footsteps. Just as soccer clubs like Manchester United and Barcelona have gained a huge fan following based on their entertaining, attacking soccer, Chennai Super Kings decided that entertaining, attacking cricket would be their philosophy. They have picked the right composition of players: Tamil Nadu players, top players from the rest of India, and top players from around the world are all there in a healthy ratio. They have given importance to having a catchy name and a catchy anthem. They have realised that fans are part of the club and not distant spectators. Even the Sivamani phenomenon was built after observing the exploits of Manolo Del Bombo, the famous Spanish drummer who attends every Valencia and Spain match. By painstakingly building a legacy beyond just the bat and the ball, Chennai Super Kings have ensured that they are the only IPL team which is more than a team.

Other IPL franchises treat their team the same way they would treat a state side in the Ranji trophy. Many aspects of the club, including the name and anthem, seem an afterthought to them. Mumbai for instance gave themselves the unimaginative name of Mumbai Indians, inviting comments like “the ultimate height of laziness in name selection” and “like they chose the name by throwing darts at a wall”. The Bangalore team owners wanted to strengthen their Royal Challengers whisky brand by naming their team Royal Challengers Bangalore. In doing that, they strengthened the Royal Challenge brand, but ensured that the Bangalore IPL team would never become a brand in its own right. And when places like Punjab and Kolkata with no cricket culture tried to create teams out of thin air, it was inevitable that what they created would be just a team and nothing more.

The Chennai franchise, on the other hand, are known as the most intelligent, whether it’s the player auctions, individual match tactics, or brand building. A reputation for intelligence is not new to Chennai, but on this occasion it has translated itself into something special on the cricket front. If the English Premier League has its Manchester United and Major League Baseball has its New York Yankees, the Indian Premier League is beginning to have its own cricket religion called the Chennai Super Kings.

These were a reference to the fact that more than half of the Spain team which won World Cup 2010 were Barcelona players – Xavi, Iniesta, Puyol, Pique, Busquets, Pedro, Villa (who has just joined Barcelona), and Fabregas (inevitably on his way to Barcelona). Plus Victor Valdes on the bench.

Not just that, the style of play so closely resembled Barcelona. Busquets anchoring midfield, Xavi and Iniesta bamboozling opponents with their passing, Pedro an impact substitute, and Puyol and Pique forming the central defensive partnership. The Catalan media is quick to call this a victory of Barcelona.

An extraordinary development at the end of yesterday’s final was that the Spanish flag was not the only flag displayed by the winning team. Carles Puyol and Xavi Hernandez took out the flag of Catalunya and celebrated with it. To the uninitiated, Catalunya or Catalonia is the autonomous region in the northeast of Spain which was an independent nation for most of its history until the Spanish state annexed it the 19th century. A sizeable proportion of the 7 million Catalans wish for an independent Catalan nation. Some Catalans don’t even approve of Catalan players representing Spain.

It was amidst this background that the two proud Catalan players unfurled the Catalunya flag. By seizing an unexpected time to trumpet their Catalan identity, they had not only risked angering mainstream Spain, but also brought credence to the theory that this was a Catalan victory as much as a Spanish one.

Xavi and Puyol celebrating with the Catalan flag after Spain's victory in World Cup 2010

So while Barcelona Football Club and the region of Catalunya can both claim the victory that should have been Spain’s, another entity can bizarrely claim credit: The Netherlands. Yes, you read that right.

The present-day Spain team has an indelible Dutch imprint in it. The Total Football philosophy of the game that Dutch masters like Rinus Michels (coach) and Johan Cruyff (star player) brought to the 1974 and 1978 World Cups influenced the style of Barcelona Football Club. Hardly a surprise considering that Johan Cruyff himself was manager of Barcelona in the 90s and reinvented the club in his mould. Among other things, he married a Catalan girl and named his son Jordi after the patron saint of Catalunya. Catalunya’s adoped son shaped Barcelona Football Club, and Barcelona Football Club would go on to shape the world-beating Spanish national team.

It’s an irony that the Dutch themselves deviated from their Total Football philosophy and concentrated more on preventing Spain from playing. As Johan Cruyff himself said recently, Spain have become the true practioners of the Dutch philosophy. It’s always a good thing when a positive, attacking and entertaining side win the World Cup, and Spain has shown that this philosophy always reaps dividends. 2008′s European Champions are now World Champions. Just as Barcelona’s current team is the best ever and has two recent Champions League triumphs to its name, the Spanish national team are easily the best in their history. Not just that, they are now easily the best team in the world.

We should have known we were in for something special when Senegal stunned France 1-0 in the opening match in Seoul. The tone was set when Papa Bouba Diop scored past Fabien Barthez, and all the Senegalese players gathered at the corner flag and did an African tribal dance round an imaginary campfire. It heralded the start of the Senegal story, in which the unfancied African nation went all the way to the quarter-finals. Astonishingly, defending champions France then drew with Uruguay and lost to Denmark, exiting the competition in the group stage without scoring a goal!

Argentina was one of the nations with the best records in the qualifying campaign for the World Cup. And they were blessed with great entertainers like Claudio Lopez, Hernan Crespo and Juan Sebastian Veron. They were expected to challenge for the title, but they shocked everyone by getting knocked out in the group stage. They drew with Nigeria and Sweden, and lost to England in a momentous match in which David Beckham scored a brilliantly disguised penalty. That match was also pivotal for England, as it ensured their progress to the next round.

Portugal was another country who were fancied to go all the way. Their players had been heralded the “Golden Generation”, and included Luis Figo, Rui Costa and Nuno Gomes. They took to the field against the USA expecting to win. But they were in for a rude shock. The Americans scored 3 goals in the first half to lead 3-1. Portugal fought back to 3-2 and laid siege to the American goal. But it was not to be. The cat was well and truly among the pigeons. After both Portugal and co-hosts South Korea beat Poland, the two nations met for an all-or-nothing showdown. With a fanatical national following, the South Koreans delivered a 1-0 victory, and were through the 2nd round. The Golden Generation had failed. We can still remember Luis Figo in tears after the match.

The Germans are not known for their attacking instincts, but they woke up one day thinking they were Brazil, and duly hammered Saudi Arabia 8-0. Speaking of Brazil, they took to the field against Turkey, and got a rude shock when the Turks went in front. They fought back to win 2-1, a victory soured when Rivaldo play-acted to get an opponent sent off. Both teams qualified for the next stage, and were destined to meet again. Two other favourites for the trophy, Spain and Italy, made smooth progress to the knock out stages.

One of the stories of the World Cup came from a team which didn’t even go very far – Ireland. Captain Roy Keane was so exasperated with the pathetic training facilities and the defeatist attitude of Mick “It’s a big deal that we’re even in the World Cup” McCarthy that he blasted his manager in front of all the players. There was no way Roy Keane could remain in the team camp, and was sent home rightaway. The man had a way when it came to ending his association with teams. Just ask Manchester United fans what happened three years later in 2005!

After a first round of shocks, the knock outs began in earnest. Germany edged out Paraguay, the USA defeated neighbours Mexico, and England were too strong for Denmark. Senegal and Sweden slugged it out in an energy-sapping contest before the Africans prevailed in extra time. On one momentous day, both the co-hosts took to the field. Japan seemed to have the easier task against Turkey, but the Japanese following underestimated the wily Turks, who conjured up a 1-0 victory, causing free flow of tears in the country.

A few hours later, South Korea took on Italy. We all know what happened.

Ahn Jung Hwan missed a penalty in the 3rd minute. It seemed like it was not their day. Christian Vieri put Italy ahead, and as the final whistle approached, it looked like another professional Italian job. But Seol Ki Hyeon stunned the Italians with an 89th minute equalizer. The match went to extra time. Totti was sent off for a blatant dive in the box, and Trappattoni could be seen hammering a hoarding. Then Ahn Jung Hwan rose above Paolo Maldini to head the “golden goal” winner, and the stadium went mad. As did the millions of Koreans watching all over the country. The Italians went back with their tails between their legs, complaining that the Koreans cheated. Well, we can’t all be upright like the Italians, can we?

The Irish showed great spirit to take Spain to penalties. But they took some of the worst penalties ever seen, and the Spaniards finished them off with aplomb. Brazil circumvented a potential banana skin in Belgium, and recorded a routine 2-0 victory. England awaited in the quarter-finals.

That quarter-final was another of the unforgettable matches of World Cup 2002. England had the best defence at the World Cup, conceding only one goal in four matches. Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell had formed a formidable defensive partnership in front of David Seaman, and Nicky Butt had done such a great job shielding the defence that Pele called him his player of the tournament. Trying to pry open this backline was the best attack at the tournament, comprising of the 3 Rs: Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho.

The match started with Brazil gamely trying to unlock the English defence. The game needed a goal to light it up. It arrived when Lucio made a defensive error and Michael Owen pounced to put England ahead. England had something to cling on to. Half time approached, and it appeared that England would go into the break with a lead to defend.

Ronaldinho had other ideas. Picking the ball up at the halfway line, he started running at player after player. Shades of Maradona in 1986. Then he laid the ball with a perfectly weighted pass, and Rivaldo sneaked in on the right. Getting the ball onto his favoured left foot, he placed it past David Seaman. 1-1 at half time.

Early in the second half. Paul Scholes fouls Ronaldinho way out to the left of the English goal. The entire English defence expects a cross. Ronaldinho swings at it with his right boot, and to everyone’s astonishment, the ball loops over David Seaman and into the goal! Did he mean it? We’ll never know.

The next chapter in the South Korea story unfolded when Spain awaited in the quarter-finals. The Koreans rode their luck with some dodgy refereeing calls, took the match to penalties, and scored five superb penalties to knock out Spain.

After knocking out Poland, Portugal, Italy and Spain in earlier rounds, another European side, Germany, awaited the Koreans in the semi-final. Surely they were not going to get past the Germans and enter the final in Yokohama, annoying their neighbours in the process? They were not. The Germans outdid the Koreans in the department of precise, defensive and physical football. South Korea’s lack of a world-class goalscoring striker was also exposed. Germany squeezed a 1-0 victory and ended the Korean dream. But they were already heroes for the Korean nation. There were celebrations even north of the border. This remarkable World Cup was enough for Guus Hiddink to become a national hero and the Korean players to build good careers in Europe.

South Korea’s opponents in the 3rd place playoff were equally surprising – Turkey. The Turks went further than anybody predicted, beating co-hosts Japan in the 2nd Round and Senegal in the quarter-finals before coming unstuck against a Rivaldo-inspired Brazil in the semi-finals. Another surprising quarter-finalist was the USA, who lost to eventual finalists Germany.

After a World Cup of surprises, the very fact that the final comprised of two familiar teams (Brazil and Germany) was a surprise. The two finalists couldn’t be more different. One South American, the other European. One attack-minded, the other defensive. One was all about artistry, the other was all about precision.

A subplot circled around Ronaldo, who was part of that ill-fated final loss to France four years ago, when he suffered a fit in the dressing room prior to kick-off, was taken off the team sheet, and then reinstated for mysterious reasons. Ronaldo played like a shadow of himself that day, just like the rest of the Brazil team. Now four years on, there was a chance for both Ronaldo and the team to put the unfinished business to bed.

Ronaldo had had a great goalscoring campaign, with 6 in 6 games. Rivaldo’s creative magic was largely responsible for the output in front of goal. And they had just unearthed the find of the tournament in Ronaldinho. The Germans had the tournament’s best goalkeeper in Oliver Kahn, who had conceded just 2 goals in 6 games.

After a sideshow that involved Turkey beating South Korea to win third place, the two great footballing nations took to the field for the final. Keeping up with this World Cup’s adherence to sheer entertainment, it was the artistic entertainers from South America who prevailed. Rivaldo created two goals, Ronaldo score both, and Oliver Kahn undid all his good work with a schoolboy error for the first goal. At the final whistle, commentator Steve Banyard said, “Guess who has won? Brazil has won, because this is the World Cup final, and they almost always win!”

The “almost” was of course a reference to what happened four years ago. Now there was redemption for Brazil and for Ronaldo. The pendulum had swung back to South America, and to attacking football. In this, the most memorable World Cup of all, it was fitting that the philosophy of positive, attacking football triumphed.

Dick Hopkins was the quintessential kiwi who wrote with a pin, surfed the Wib, and drank Speight’s Beer. He had just arrived in Auckland to start work at the same company as Wenrong.

Here’s what happened on their first meeting. No kiwis were harmed in the making of this scene.

Wenrong: Hi, I’m Wenrong.
Dick: Hi, I’m Duck. Nice to meet you.
Wenrong: You’re Duck?!
Dick: Yeah. D-i-c-k, Duck.
Wenrong: Nice to meet you.
Dick: You’re from Singapore?
Wenrong: Ya lah, then?
Dick: Come again?
Wenrong: Er, um, I mean yes, I’m from Singapore.
Dick: I haven’t been to Singapore. I’ve been to other parts of China like Shanghai though.
Wenrong: Singapore not part of China lah!
Dick: Oh, Singapore’s not part of China law? It’s like Hong Kong, then?
Wenrong: No, Singapore independent country one.
Dick: Oh I see. My general knowledge isn’t great. But you’re all Asians, right?
Wenrong: Ya lah, then?
Dick: (Blank expression)
Wenrong: Why you look like you just see hantu one?
Dick: Erm, ok, so you’re all Asians. I, erm, kinda like Asians. I find them attractive.
Wenrong: Oh thanks. I just wish I yandao like other Asians.
Dick: I like Asian skin. Smooth, with no frickles or pumples.
Wenrong: Pumples?
Dick: Yeah, you know, the small round things we have on our feeces.
Wenrong: Our faeces?
Dick: Yeah
Wenrong: You mean our pangsai? Pangsai where got small round thing one? Pangsai big round thing one!
Dick: (Flabbergasted)
Wenrong: (Blank)
Dick: So where are you staying?
Wenrong: Westlake
Dick: Wistlake? Nice place. Bitter than Glinfield inytime.
Wenrong: Why is it bitter? The weather?
Dick: No, the wither’s the same ivrywhere. Wistlake is bitter because the people are bitter.
Wenrong: They seem nice enough to me.
Dick: Yeah, ixactly. They are bitter.
Wenrong: No they very nice one.
Dick: Yeah, they are nice.
Wenrong: Wah, why you argue for nothing, then agree?
Dick: No, I’m not arguing. I’ve liked Wistlake since I was a kud.
Wenrong: What’s a kud?
Dick: A child.
Wenrong: Oh, kid?
Dick: Yeah, kud.
Wenrong: So you’re from Auckland?
Dick: I’m from Christchurch on South Island. Bin there?
Wenrong: No lah! I first time in New Zealand one eh.
Dick: New Zealand 1A? What’s that? Sounds like some code.
Wenrong: Oh, I mean first time in New Zealand.
Dick: Bin to Australia?
Wenrong: Yeah, been there once.
Dick: What did you hate most about it?
Wenrong: (Speechless)
Dick: Don’t tell me you liked it.
Wenrong: No, not at all.
Dick: They and their kangaroos. We often ask them whether they ride kangaroos. Hahaha!
Wenrong: (Artificial smile)
Dick: But they can’t ask us if we ride kiwis. Cos we aren’t mudgets! Haha!
Wenrong: What’s a mudget?
Dick: You don’t know what’s a mudget?
Wenrong: No
Dick: Small people, you know.
Wenrong: Like kids?
Dick: Not kuds. Mudgets.
Wenrong: Oh, midgets? Ok. I got it. Kiwis very small one, only midgets can ride one, correct or not?
Dick: Yeah of course kiwis are small.
Wenrong: You sure all kiwis small ah? You kiwi, but you big leh!
Dick: I don’t know what’s bug lay, but I git the joke. I’m kiwi and I’m bugger than the kiwi birds! Hahahaha!

I must say it lived up to (or even exceeded) my expectations. It was a visual feast and a great experience.

I’m not going to delve into the story or what was/wasn’t good. There are enough people doing that! Instead let me just give you my take on the story/plot/thoughts conveyed.

It’s a story with a philosophical underpinning. Not the most original (it reminded me of Pocahontas), but a serviceable story. Its message is that a life close to nature is the best. It makes the best use of resources, preserves harmony, and is better for the long-term success of a species. The same message was conveyed in this scene in Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams.

The earthlings have killed their planet and exhausted all its resources due to a life that deviated from nature as far as possible, whereas the Na’vi occupants of Pandora live in perfect harmony with nature. This characterization of the Na’vi inhabitants was based on the Noble Savage Theory by French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who claimed that a life less touched by technology and its evils was the best. He claimed that man reached his peak when he had cultivated values like family, filial piety, tribe, homeland and loyalty, but before he had become a master of technology.

Another thing that struck me about James Cameron’s portrayal of the Na’vi was their concept of loyalty. The giant birds are loyal to their rider for life. When Jake gets back on Pandora after the first round of the war is over, his long-forgotten giant bird swoops down to pick him up. After the sex scene, Neytiri tells Jake, “We have mated for life”. This is different from the decadent world Jake came from, where multiple partners were commonplace. It was James Cameron’s message that a civilization which humans regarded as “hostile natives” can have a better value system than the technologically advanced humans.

One of the most appealing things about the movie was how the animals were similar to earth animals but also somehow different. The “this looks like a rhinoceros, but wait a minute, it’s blue and it has big ears” feeling somehow appeals to us. It invokes a sense of wonder, like a biologist who discovers a new species of penguin with lights on its head and a shark-like fin. If a human-like species is known as a humanoid (as the Na’vi are described), then Avatar was also full of rhinoids, horsoids, birdoids, leopardoids and jellyfishoids.

In a lot of science fiction movies, people with even a cursory understanding of science know that several things are unscientific. But everything in Avatar was consistent with science. If you look at the pack of leopard-like animals which attack Jake shortly after the rhinoid attack, they move in packs exactly as wolves would. Their manoeuvres, their positioning, their teamwork, everything is consistent with how pack-based earth animals operate.

The language of the Na’vi was also scientifically created. Just like the language Klingon was created for the Star Trek (tidbit: the Hamlet was translated into Klingon), linguistic consultant Paul Frommer created a new language for the Na’vi. He created syntactical rules and over a thousand new words for the language. No wonder it didn’t sound like rubbish, but sounded like a real language. A lot of insight went into how the language should sound. Since the Na’vi were a peace-loving community, the language was musical and mellifluous. Klingon on the other hand was rough and rasping.

James Cameron says he crafted a few scenes deliberately for the sequel. We can guess which ones they are. Grace Augustine (Sigourney Weaver) “dies”, but her “soul” goes to Eywa. There must be a reason for that. I’m sure she’ll come back in the sequel. Also for the sequel, the humans are not exterminated and can always come back. A larger army and better technology can give them a better chance of success next time round.

I’ll definitely look forward to a sequel. It will be another visual feast, and I’m just hoping that James Cameron will have surprises in store.

The Uighurs are one of the great stateless nations of the world. A nation with its own history, language, culture, food and festivals, but without a country of its own. The stateless nations of this world are often subgroups within a country, and in some interesting cases, may be transnationally shared among more than one country. The Uighurs are one such nation. They are like the Basques, the Catalans, the Kurds, the Tamils, and China’s own Tibetans.

There are only 8 million Uighurs in this world, and the Han dominated Chinese government is laying siege to them. There are aggressive family planning efforts to prevent Uighurs from procreating, so that the Uighur population can be reduced and brought to a tiny number before long. There is state sponsored migration of Han Chinese to Xinjiang to alter the demographics of the province. Han Chinese are given preferential treatment in education and employment. The predominantly Muslim Uighurs are sometimes even forbidden to perform daily prayers. The Uighur language, which belongs to the Turkic language group of Central Asia and Turkey, has no official patronage in China. There are even attempts to destroy traditional Uighur architecture in Kashgar, the ancient cultural capital of the Uighurs and a famed city on the Silk Road. The very name Xinjiang means “new territory”, a name reeking of expansionist sentiments.

These have caused Uighur hatred towards the Han Chinese ruling race. Most Uighurs have stopped identifying with China. They aspire for regional autonomy and possibly independence, but recognize the futility of these efforts against an iron-handed Chinese government. Whenever possible, the Uighurs leave China. They have established sizeable communities in several western cities including New York, San Francisco and Vancouver. They are somewhat like the Sri Lankan Tamils who don’t really identify with Sri Lanka but have established Tamil settlements in Toronto, Paris, Berlin and several other western cities. As percentages of their total populations, the Uighurs and the Sri Lankan Tamils have two of the largest diasporas in the world. Another similarity with the Tamils is that the Uighur diaspora attempts to instigate separatism from outside. Uighur separatism has received unwanted publicity through Guantanamo Bay, where 17 Uighurs are currently housed.

The recent riots in Xinjiang are only symptoms of a deep, underlying disease. The disease of Chinese expansionism. Much like an anachronistic kingdom of a bygone century, China avariciously aspires to gobble up lands that do not belong to it. Xinjiang and Tibet are merely two such examples. The long-standing conundrum of Taiwan need not be raked up, for fear of inducing slumber. And just ask the Indians about China’s designs on Arunachal Pradesh and portions of Kashmir. Speaking of India, there are allegedly some Chinese designs on the entire nation! China has established bases in Cocos Island in Myanmar, Hambantota in Sri Lanka, and Gwadar in Pakistan, completing a “string of pearls” (as military strategists like to call it) around India. There are also rumors that China funds Maoists and Naxalites within India. In other words, China has surrounded India from all sides, including the inside! Come on, which other country in the world would want control over an additional one billion people?!

If China wants to be seen as a cooperative and dignified country within the international community, it needs to quit its designs on lands and people which do not rightfully belong to it. But who honestly sees it happening? It’s like expecting the dragon to stop breathing fire.