:00:08. > :00:09.Hi, I'm Ayshah with your Newsround update.
:00:10. > :00:15.Brazil get ready to kick off the biggest football tournament
:00:16. > :00:23.First, the day many of you have been waiting for has finally arrived.
:00:24. > :00:29.The tournament starts tonight with a spectacular opening ceremony
:00:30. > :00:33.in Sao Paulo before the hosts take on Croatia in the first game.
:00:34. > :00:36.But the build up to the World Cup hasn't been easy with many
:00:37. > :00:39.Brazilians upset over the amount spent on hosting the competition.
:00:40. > :00:43.There's also been concerns over whether stadiums would be ready
:00:44. > :00:49.So with the World Cup just hours away,
:00:50. > :00:57.Leah's there for us and has sent this report.
:00:58. > :01:01.With just hours before the World Cup kicks off, kids in Rio can't get
:01:02. > :01:06.With some of the biggest footballing stars from
:01:07. > :01:10.around the world hoping to get their hands on the trophy, it's worth
:01:11. > :01:16.It's the biggest football tournament in the world and millions
:01:17. > :01:20.But just in case you're not completely up to
:01:21. > :01:24.speed with the World Cup, here's our rundown of what you need to know.
:01:25. > :01:27.The FIFA World Cup invites countries from around the world to compete for
:01:28. > :01:35.32 teams are split into eight groups.
:01:36. > :01:39.The top two teams qualify for the knockout stages.
:01:40. > :01:42.From here it is lose and you are out.
:01:43. > :01:45.Until the last two teams battle it out in the World Cup final.
:01:46. > :01:48.It began in the 1930s and has taken place every four years since, except
:01:49. > :01:56.Only eight countries have won the tournament
:01:57. > :02:02.Germany have won it three times, Italy four times
:02:03. > :02:10.England have won it once, almost 50 years ago.
:02:11. > :02:14.The all-time World Cup top scorer is Ronaldo.
:02:15. > :02:25.The Brazilian scored an incredible 15 goals.
:02:26. > :02:29.On each of the previous four occasions the World Cup has been
:02:30. > :02:34.staged in South America, a team from South America has won.
:02:35. > :02:40.You can keep up to date with everything in Brazil
:02:41. > :02:43.on the World Cup portal on the Newsround website.
:02:44. > :02:46.From today we'll also be bringing you a Fact of the Day -
:02:47. > :02:49.head to the website to find out today's, which is all about why
:02:50. > :02:58.Other news now and the militant group Isis, which seized
:02:59. > :03:01.the second city in Iraq yesterday, has moved closer to Baghdad.
:03:02. > :03:05.The group which has links to Al-Qaeda is now about an hour's
:03:06. > :03:10.Iraq's Prime Minister has urged people to fight back
:03:11. > :03:22.500,000 people have fled the area already controlled by the militants.
:03:23. > :03:26.When the sun is shining, it's tempting to want to play
:03:27. > :03:31.outside all day, but research has suggested that sun cream alone is
:03:32. > :03:38.UV light can cause skin cancer, called melanoma -
:03:39. > :03:41.now thought to be the fifth most common cancer in the UK.
:03:42. > :03:44.Experts say when the sun is strong you should also wear a T-shirt,
:03:45. > :03:48.NASA has released dramatic images, showing two massive solar flares
:03:49. > :03:53.The flares have been classified as "x-class" -
:03:54. > :03:58.NASA says they pose no direct threat to the Earth, but very intense
:03:59. > :04:02.flares can sometimes disrupt GPS and other communications signals.
:04:03. > :04:11.Along with the usual mixture of fancy footwork,
:04:12. > :04:13.penalty shootouts and hope and despair, this tournament
:04:14. > :04:23.Let me tell you about this, it is not shaving foam,
:04:24. > :04:28.If we have a free kick here, the referee will pace out ten yards,
:04:29. > :04:31.and with his magic can he will mark a line
:04:32. > :04:34.on the pitch to tell the opposition that they cannot pass that line.
:04:35. > :04:37.The crazy thing is, it is vanishing so in a couple of minutes,
:04:38. > :04:41.Finally, using sea creatures as fortune-tellers seems to be
:04:42. > :04:45.Meet Big Head the sea turtle, who made a prediction
:04:46. > :04:52.Surprise, surprise he seems to have chosen Brazil.
:04:53. > :04:54.Don't forget to join Newsround live from Brazil at 4:20pm
:04:55. > :05:00.Leah will have a bumper packed bulletin from Rio de Janerio ahead
:05:01. > :05:02.That's all from me, have a great morning.