Favourite National Anthems

One of the pleasures of watching the World Cup is to hear the national anthems of the different countries. Some are practically funeral dirges, but others are really stirring, and not just because of the nationalist feelings they might evoke.

I'm currently listening to the Italian one (Italy v Costa Rica). I think it's my current favourite because of how upbeat it is. The Marseillaise is great too, of course, but I also enjoyed the Uruguayan, which sounds to me like it might have been composed by Rossini. The Russian one is the old Soviet anthem reworded and is another favourite. You'll never see any Spanish player singing along with their anthem, but that's because it is (I think) the only one in the world without words.

Here's the Italian one: