World Cup: Where do all these players come from?

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There are 736 players from 32 nations taking part in World Cup 2010, but where do they play their club soccer? According to the statistics, 116 play in England, 84 play in Germany and 80 earn their living in Italy. Next in line are Spain with 60 players and France with 41. Add them up and 381 players, or 51.76% of the entire World Cup field, are performing week in and week out in Europe’s five major leagues. The question then becomes: Are they the best leagues because they have the best players, or are these the best players because they play in the best leagues? All answers welcome. -- Grahame L. Jones in Johannesburg, South Africa