Germany's shock exit from the World Cup tells us that upsets are a rich part of human affairs. Paraguay have bundled out Germany from the World Cup. There are several upsets in recorded history, the Pakistanis being dealt a crushing defeat at Longewala, Buster Douglas knocking out Mike Tyson, the movie Parasite eclipsing many heavyweight contenders for the Oscars, BJP losing Ayodhya, Kodak getting bankrupted by the digital photography it invented. The penalty shootout win, the election drubbing, the Oscar trophy, the product launch, are all usually part of a longer feedback loop. Old value gets destroyed so new value can emerge, this is a universal truth. Existing coalitions give way to emergent identities. The fall of the Berlin Wall was a corollary of Soviet communism collapsing. The Parasite win only announced that intelligent Korean cinema was right up there with classic Hollywood. Morocco's run in the 2022 Cup looked like a surreal dream, but it was reward for investment in coaching, academies, and the enormous pool of talent playing for European clubs. The Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter opined that every dominant firm, tech or institution eventually creates the conditions for its own demise.
VINAY DWIVEDI, Benaulim
