World Cup Fever

More than 60,000 fans will pack the Olympiastadion in Berlin on June 7. Nearly 5,000 dancers will boogie to Oscar and Emmy winner Doug Jack's choreographed routine; Il Divo will sing the "A Time of Our Lives" theme song, with some help from R&B singer Toni Braxton.

Why such an Olympic-scale ceremony? It's the opening match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup -- the most-watched sporting event on the planet. According to Initiative, a London company that buys media space for advertisers, the Cup's 64 matches will attract a cumulative live TV audience of more than five billion.

"People around the world will soon have World Cup fever," says Amy Shapiro at Concierge.com, a travel site.

As many Americans tune in at home (via ABC, ESPN or Univision) or crowd into local pubs to catch their favorite team's match, hordes will actually head to Germany, which is hosting the tournament 32 years after it was last contested there.

Germany beat out bids from South Africa (which will host the 2010 FIFA World Cup), England, Brazil and Morocco for the honor.

Brazil is the current holder of the trophy, as well as the most successful World Cup team, having won the tournament five times. Germany and Italy follow with three titles each. Brazil is, again, the favorite this time around.

The 32-team World Cup (the official Web site offers translations in nine languages) begins on June 9 in Munich, will be played in 12 German cities and closes with the final in Berlin on July 9.

Held every four years, the World Cup is by far the most important event to soccer-playing nations around the globe.

No wonder Adidas, Puma and Nike (NKE Quote) have already melded their brand identity into jerseys, shorts and socks for the fields of Germany.

"The World Cup this year has been tremendous for us," says Robert Tuchman, president of TSE Sports and Entertainment, a hospitality marketing firm. "Being in this business for 10 years, I was truly blown away by the response to this event."

Wilkommen to Berlin

The Global Village at Berlin's Kulturbrauerei complex couldn't have a more appropriate motto: A time to make friends. And it will be a diverse crowd -- organizers say fans from over 70 countries have booked more than 1 million overnight hotel stays in Germany for the event.