Higgs particle

[Mr_Moore]

Yesterday i saw a very interesting documentary regarding this that mostly focused on the competition between the us and Europe as to who would find it first.
They talked about the importance of finding it and how necessary it was for the development of physics.
They said that unless we find it, everything we knew about physics will crumble.

My first question is, if we do find it, what exactly could it mean for the development of physics?
If they fail to find it, what consequences will it have?