There's going to be a halftime show 💅

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cge1q41np7go

4 minutes ago, Campos_Wig said:

Sheehan starts for Wales tonight in their match against Ghana. Will be interesting to see if Ghana pose any potential threat to England in the group stages. 

Slightly off topic but the Football Cliches podcast often make a great point about how teams play against a country thats nearby one of their upcoming tournament opponents, like its meant to give them some sort of prep for how they'll play!

I see we have Costa Rica in a friendly soon. That'll set us up nicely for the Panama game 😃

46 minutes ago, Traf said:

I've currently no interest in it at all.

I can't work up any enthusiasm for this. Might change closer to kick offs but I can't see it.

4 hours ago, bolty58 said:

I am well on the way. Watching the Brazilian squad visiting their trophy room; England at their hotel in Miami and the likes of Messi and Ronaldo in transit has me not far off fever pitch already.

You are correct about 'dire games' although they can often throw up something sensational, memorable or even amusing. I've already been all over the wall chart with green highlighter for the 'must watch' games,  red for the 'hoping to see them lose' watch games and all the others can be caught up with in the highlights shows.

I mean yes tbf there are dire games in any tournament (the way media likes to portray Euro 96 as this great event for example). It's just the scale of it all for me, it doesnt feel like the format lends itself to a proper competition until very late on. Which is what FIFA want I suppose.

I've grown pretty cynical about football the last few years. I'm a long way from the time when I used to spend days scouring any magazine I could for any info about every team, and hanging on to every word Gabriel Clarke tells us from the England camp.

I dont see having the likes of Curacao, Haiti and Uzbekistan there as being a great pull, it just seems diluted.

15 minutes ago, Marc505 said:

I see we have Costa Rica in a friendly soon. That'll set us up nicely for the Panama game 😃

Yep, both are shite.

CR had a huge dropoff from their 2014 QF squad all retiring. Finishing 3rd behind Haiti and Honduras in a group is particularly bad.

Edited Tuesday at 18:585 days by jmjhb

31 minutes ago, Marc505 said:

I mean yes tbf there are dire games in any tournament (the way media likes to portray Euro 96 as this great event for example). It's just the scale of it all for me, it doesnt feel like the format lends itself to a proper competition until very late on. Which is what FIFA want I suppose.

I've grown pretty cynical about football the last few years. I'm a long way from the time when I used to spend days scouring any magazine I could for any info about every team, and hanging on to every word Gabriel Clarke tells us from the England camp.

I dont see having the likes of Curacao, Haiti and Uzbekistan there as being a great pull, it just seems diluted.

Me too, couldn't get enough of it till about 10 years ago, belting out the Vindaloo songs etc in the pub just for group stage games v USA, Paraguay or Trinidad.

As you say, its diluted to the point of disinterest in the early stages, same as the European club competitions which I have absolutely no interest in bar the knockout stages of the champions league.

Those glorious days of buying magazines and newspapers to find out as much as we could about all 24 and then 32 teams!

48 is just too much to be arsed about with other things going on both personally (like everyone) and across other summer sports. 

 

3 minutes ago, Johnnyrotten said:

Me too, couldn't get enough of it till about 10 years ago, belting out the Vindaloo songs etc in the pub just for group stage games v USA, Paraguay or Trinidad.

As you say, its diluted to the point of disinterest in the early stages, same as the European club competitions which I have absolutely no interest in bar the knockout stages of the champions league.

Those glorious days of buying magazines and newspapers to find out as much as we could about all 24 and then 32 teams!

48 is just too much to be arsed about with other things going on both personally (like everyone) and across other summer sports. 

 

This is the first one I’ve shown some apathy for.

I was buzzing for the winter one in Qatar and all previous ones with England in. 

You describe some of my feelings, but I’ve still got all the dates in my diary, read up on the groups, venues etc and analysed our squad, so I think I’m turning and will more than likely be up for it come that first game.

I can’t imagine having just “a little passing interest” when it all kicks-off. 

5 hours ago, L/H White said:

any had any outright bets?  I've a list going and will share if anyones arsed

had £5 on haaland top scorer 

then went £5 each way on Norway thinking it would include semis or 3rd place but it doesn't, just the final

4 minutes ago, Zico said:

had £5 on haaland top scorer 

then went £5 each way on Norway thinking it would include semis or 3rd place but it doesn't, just the final

There is to reach 1/4 & semi final markets 

It will be amazing once it gets going, but a total lack of jeopardy in the group stages is a killer. 72 games to get rid of the shittest 16 teams.

1 hour ago, Johnnyrotten said:

Me too, couldn't get enough of it till about 10 years ago, belting out the Vindaloo songs etc in the pub just for group stage games v USA, Paraguay or Trinidad.

As you say, its diluted to the point of disinterest in the early stages, same as the European club competitions which I have absolutely no interest in bar the knockout stages of the champions league.

Those glorious days of buying magazines and newspapers to find out as much as we could about all 24 and then 32 teams!

48 is just too much to be arsed about with other things going on both personally (like everyone) and across other summer sports. 

 

UEFA and FIFA's motives seem very much to be make it virtually impossible for big clubs/nations to miss out (ffs Italy what are you doing) and keep them involved for as long as possible. Doesnt make for much of a spectacle.

16 team Euros and 32 team world cups were the pinnacle for me.

An overbloated tournament spread across thousands of miles ruined by VAR and the heat, sounds ace.

Oh, and a load of sub-standard teams (only there to fill quotas) who've never used VAR before.

I did see Scotland beat Curacao 4-1 at the weekend. 

Fookin ell how shit must they be and they're in the World Cup. 

18 minutes ago, jayjayoghani said:

I did see Scotland beat Curacao 4-1 at the weekend. 

Fookin ell how shit must they be and they're in the World Cup. 

Scotland were losing until the liqueur had a man sent off.

3 hours ago, deeane Koontz said:

Aye, Dont even know who's in our group.

We've got the heavyweights of Panama. Beat them and we're almost certainly throwing regardless of other results 

43 minutes ago, Traf said:

Scotland were losing until the liqueur had a man sent off.

My apologies to any Curacaoans reading 👍

8 hours ago, Zico said:

had £5 on haaland top scorer 

then went £5 each way on Norway thinking it would include semis or 3rd place but it doesn't, just the final

Just looked at Group 

dout they will get out of it 

France 

Senegal 

Iraq

Norway 

scotland will only need to beat haiti and they've pretty much qualified for the knockouts

this world cup is about as meaningless as that conference league 

rewards losers 

2 hours ago, little whitt said:

Just looked at Group 

dout they will get out of it 

France 

Senegal 

Iraq

Norway 

reckon they are more than capable of beating Senegal and Iraq, got a decent squad and Haaland up top

wouldn't put a draw v France past them given they play each other last

be very surprised if they don't make it out of that group

They've watered down every international and European comptition in town for tv money. Hope theyre not surprised when folks interest starts waining

56 minutes ago, L/H White said:

scotland will only need to beat haiti and they've pretty much qualified for the knockouts

this world cup is about as meaningless as that conference league 

rewards losers 

I'm sure that I heard 1 win guarantees qualification to the next round - it's bollocks.

There are some scenarios, apparently, where even a couple of draws will get a team through, and whilst extremely unlikely, it is possible a team that only gets 1 point, could qualify.....which would be ridiculous.

 

Also, Sweden massively tanked in the qualifiers, but still go to the WC by way of the Nations League, which just seems a bit silly

29 minutes ago, Sweep said:

I'm sure that I heard 1 win guarantees qualification to the next round - it's bollocks.

There are some scenarios, apparently, where even a couple of draws will get a team through, and whilst extremely unlikely, it is possible a team that only gets 1 point, could qualify.....which would be ridiculous.

 

Also, Sweden massively tanked in the qualifiers, but still go to the WC by way of the Nations League, which just seems a bit silly

never watched a game in that, no idea what it's for or how it works 

far to much football

All your WC weather

 

9 minutes ago, freds dad said:

All your WC weather

 

denmark didn't qualify

11 minutes ago, Zico said:

denmark didn't qualify

Does it matter?

40 minutes ago, Zico said:

denmark didn't qualify

They did not get in automatically but FIFA introduced the extra tier of qualification via birds breast size and they literally squeezed in