The biggest sporting event in history begins today.

But of course, you knew that already.

You did, didn’t you?

Well some of you did, actually. But I’m guessing that most of you did not.

The event is the FIFA World Cup, where the football — uh, sorry, make that soccer — world gathers every four years to determine the champions of the planet.

And for most of the past century, America has yawned while the rest of the world played.

Most of us tend to think the Summer Olympics are the world’s biggest sporting event, but it’s a fairly-distant second to the World Cup. We assume otherwise because we win lots of Olympic medals, but haven’t done diddly in the World Cup for many years. (We were third in the first Cup in 1930, but didn’t even qualify from 1954 to 1986.)

For the sake of our discussion, we’ll ignore the implications of this year’s tournament being held in South Africa, the first time on that continent and in the country where apartheid was the law of the land. That topic could fill books.

It’s not quite the obscure event that it once was, largely thanks to two things: 1) the growth of the sport in the States in the last 20 years, especially on the youth level, much of which was spurred by 2) the 1994 World Cup, held here in the U.S. That tournament was a massive success, and to this day remains as both the highest-attended multi-day sports event in the country’s history, and also the record for World Cup attendance, even after the expansion of the tournament in 1998. (There’s also the Women’s World Cup, which we’ve actually won twice. Yes, we’re a superpower in the women’s game.)

The rest of the world is mad for soccer, and it will be at its maddest over the next four weeks. But aside from their love of the sport, here’s something else its fans love to do: Back their team with a few pounds, or euros, or rands.

You think we love to bet on our football, especially the Super Bowl? Well, take a look at what the British bookmakers have to offer on today’s England vs. U.S. game (12:30 p.m., ABC) alone. The Brits are a 1-2 odds-on favorite to prevail, America is a 6-1 underdog, and you’ll get 3-1 odds on a tie. You can bet on a specific score, such as 2-nil England (11-2 odds). Think Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney will score the first goal? It pays 3-1; you’ll also get that if he scores the last goal. There’s even a bet for how many shots will hit the goal posts.

And that’s just for one match, and just at one bookmaker (Ladbrokes). Multiply that by 48 group-stage matches and 16 in the knockout stage, and we’re talking about huge betting amounts that make Las Vegas sports books look like Harry the Hat, you local bar’s bookie.

While you’re not likely to find someone locally to take your $20 on Argentina to beat Nigeria (1-2 odds), there will be more American interest in this World Cup than any since 1994. Besides the sport’s boom in popularity, our team stands a decent chance of advancing into the final 16 teams (8-13 odds). And with ESPN televising every game on its 432 channels, we won’t miss a single corner kick.

So sit back and enjoy. You might get hooked on the game.