Format CD single Genre Latin pop Label Columbia | Recorded 1997 Length 4:28 | |
Released March 9, 1998 (1998-03-09) | ||
"The Cup of Life" (Spanish: La Copa de la Vida) is a song recorded by Ricky Martin. It was released on March 9, 1998, as the second single from Vuelve (1998). "The Cup of Life" became the official song of the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France and topped the charts in many countries around the world.
Contents
The 41st Annual Grammy Awards are widely remembered for Martin's performance of "La Copa de la Vida", which was later included on his DVD, The Ricky Martin Video Collection. The popular version of the song is a remix by Pablo Flores.
Music videos
The music video to "The Cup of Life" was shot by Wayne Isham in 1998 in a concert in Puerto Rico and later aired in April 1998. In the video, Martin performs the song energetically before a sold out concert audience. The music video to the Spanish version of the song, known as "La Copa de la Vida", basically consists of the performance in "The Cup of Life" video, but starts with Martin kicking a soccer ball to the screen while being filmed, presumably for the song's video. This video is also interspersed by added scenes of the audience singing and dancing to the song, plus shots of different soccer players playing during the FIFA World Cup, which in turn are being projected onto a wall while Martin sometimes poses before it.
Chart performance
"The Cup of Life" became one of Ricky Martin's most successful songs. It topped the charts for six weeks in Australia, France and Sweden, for four weeks in Germany, for two weeks in Spain, and for one week in Switzerland and Belgium Wallonia. "The Cup of Life" reached also top ten in Norway, Austria and the Netherlands. In the United States, the song entered the Billboard Hot 100 in 1998, peaking at number sixty. However, after the success of "Livin' la Vida Loca", it re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 in 1999, and reached number forty-five. In the United Kingdom, "The Cup of Life" peaked at number twenty-nine.
The single was certified platinum and gold around the world. It has sold 563,000 copies in France, and although released long before the digital era, it has sold 141,000 digital copies in the US.