We should create our own FIFA, without the blackjack and hookers.
I think you're mistaken if you think the current FIFA lacks hookers.
Yes, that is the joke the "without" was meant for.
UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
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Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#622I'm so happy to see they care enough to take a stand. The last World Cup was a sh-t show. I expect the LA olympics to be no better.
How was it a shit show? I’m genuinely curious. I attended 5 games (Atlanta, LA and Dallas) and was a fantastic experience minus the process to get tickets.
I was wondering what exactly what to think about the Tom Cruise speech before the final.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#623Earlier quoted context omitted.
The fact that you had 'hydration breaks' in enclosed, fully air-conditioned stadiums is very telling.
An argument I've heard is that since hydration breaks can affect the game, if you are going to have them they should be mandatory and at the same time in all games in a tournament rather than doing them like they did when they were originally introduced in 2014. Then they were only done in games when the conditions on the field got dangerous.
football games can have "momentum". An extra break allows for a breather and a tactical intervention from the coach. That also why we saw keepers sitting down (faking injury) in the Premier league last season.
Anyway, a hydration break while it's raining is a bit of a tell it has nothing to do with the needs of the players.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#624Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#625Earlier quoted context omitted.
While the football business is horrible it's nice that this may fail like the Super League. Now if only that could put a dent in Infantino reelection...
The Super League was a wonderful idea! Imagine watching the best teams in Europe playing each other multiple nights a week for months on end! Instead you’d rather watch 1 or 2 teams spend 10x more than anyone else and dominate the league every season. How is that fun or exciting? Would you rather watch a Bayern v Bremen match or a Bayern v Chelsea match? Or PSG, is it fun watching them not even bother playing their b…
You can fuck right off trying to create a closed league where only a "chosen" few clubs take part.
It might just be an entertainment spectacle to you but for others it's very tied into local identity.
The idea that outside money men should be allowed to come in and destroy open competition is highly offensive to me.
The best years in football are when a smaller club gets a run of luck and beats the big boys. Or when one of the super clubs gets relegated and their fans have experience a season or two in the lower leagues.
You're not taking that away from us without a fight!
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#626Earlier quoted context omitted.
That’s the same justification my German friend made. I guess it’s American viewpoint vs European. The Super League would have been like the NFL in the US, where every team can beat any other any given night. That’s much more appealing to me, but to each their own.
You mean, its the dullest. Imagine never having any relegation risk for being crap. Without divisions and removal of risk, what's the point? Without the chance to work at a lower level and through simply being good, getting a team promoted how are you supposed to inspire? NFL, is both the least and the most American sport there is.
PSG has won 8 of the last 10 Ligue 1. Bayern 9 of the last 10 Bubdesliga. Barcelona/Real Madrid 9 of the last 10 La Liga.
That’s exciting? There’s 50+ teams in those leagues that stand NO shot of ever winning a championship, ever. The argument I’ve seen in this thread is either 1) it’s thrilling when my favorite average team upsets the backups of one of the powerhouses and 2) it’s exciting to get relegated and then come back.
You know what’s even more exciting…winning a championship. And every August every NFL fan starts with the hope and belief that this is their year. NFL has Leicester-lite situations every few years. Patriots were worst 2 years ago, lose in the championship the next year.
I will give credit to the Premier League - they’re doing it right. As mentioned, too 15-20 teams are competitive and could win a title in a given year. You know why it’s the best league - they set up a revenue sharing model similar to US leagues. Equal chance of winning = most excitement for fans of the entire league.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#627Earlier quoted context omitted.
The NFL is so balanced not because it’s a “super” league but because every team has the same salary cap. The best team and the worst team all have to spend essentially the exact same amount of money on their players, ensuring that no team can buy their way to the top. Even there it’s still not really true that the best team can lose to the worst team in any given night. The best team is generally favored a lot and ju…
Another large part is the draft. Worst team gets first pick goes a long way to levelling the playing field.
As a lapsed NY Jets fan, I disagree -- competent ownership and management is required more than good draft picks. To wit: Tom Brady was drafted at 199 overall, but the Jets' last two QB picks (Zach Williams and Sam Darnold) are both journeyman-level players.
I'm more of a hockey guy, which has a much stricter salary cap than the NFL, and the Edmonton Oilers are instructive here: they had a bunch of first overall picks 10 years ago (including multiple franchise players), but the team itself wasn't competitive until management changed and could build a cohesive team.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#628First off, fire Infantino on the spot, just the same way they fired Blatter for corruption. This last world cup was the worse I've ever seen since 1978, almost 50 years, and I've seen the good, the bad and the ugly. We all know billions are moved under the table, but money can never break rules and traditions, specially if they don't benefit fans and players above all Did anybody ask the players about the hydration b…
I think the Balogun red-card and just inconsistency in general with red card suspensions was the only real blight on the tournament and that's fixable with some rules changes. The world cup in general was tremendously entertaining, though.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#629First off, fire Infantino on the spot, just the same way they fired Blatter for corruption. This last world cup was the worse I've ever seen since 1978, almost 50 years, and I've seen the good, the bad and the ugly. We all know billions are moved under the table, but money can never break rules and traditions, specially if they don't benefit fans and players above all Did anybody ask the players about the hydration b…
I think the Balogun red-card and just inconsistency in general with red card suspensions was the only real blight on the tournament and that's fixable with some rules changes. The world cup in general was tremendously entertaining, though.
inconsistency with VAR was a huge slight. The Colombia offside call where VAR showed his big toe was offside was pretty ridiculous. Theres no way that is within the margin of error for that technology.
Re: UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions
#630Earlier quoted context omitted.
There is no right and wrong here. Watching a bunch of guys kick a ball around is a completely optional activity. The stadium can accommodate x people, and x+n people want to watch the game. Therefore, someone has to be left out. That can be decided multiple ways, but there is no philosophical reason that money being the deciding factor is wrong. We use that mechanism for almost everything else in the world. It's the…
You see it in England all the time where organized fan groups do push back and protest ending up with the owners walking back the suggested ticket increases.
There is nothing wrong with that, either. It’s all just buyers and sellers negotiating prices.