The Toronto Maple Leafs are a puppet regime my friends. Everyone seems to know it but those darn clueless Leafs fans. You know, the ones who descend upon places like Buffalo, Ottawa and Montreal like a bunch of crazed English soccer fans - without the excessive intoxication. 

This should be viewed for the historical moment it represents and not for picture quality.

The match pitted two soccer programs that were among the top sides in the world at the time who were about to head in opposite directions. 1947 was two years before the tragic Torino plane crash that claimed the lives of Italy's (and Europe's) greatest team and was to have a lasting psychological affect on the national team. 

It also precedes the arrival of the Magnificent Magyars from Hungary who were to thoroughly dominate world soccer in the 1950s. Though it did not translate into a World Cup triumph.

Though both sides remained among the world powers throught the 1950s and 1960s, the trend reversed again by the time the 1970s rolled around. This time Italy's rise and Hungary's slow descent that persists today. 

Japan: GDP $4.95 trillion. $38 900 GDP per head. World's second largest economy. Population 127.5 million. Home of Shogun and Yugi-Oh.