The World Cup

[Gimli]

If loving Curaçao is Chong, I don’t want to be right!

 

[Silky Sabella]

Having 48 teams at the world cup has totally degraded the quality of the competition !

 

[Ndiayewillalwaysloveyou]

Was thinking that havent England been lucky with the KO times given? (9/10pm) Mate of mine who's a big football fan has hardly watched any of the other matches due to work etc.

Think Scotland have had late times aswell.

 

[ATL Recs]

Was thinking that havent England been lucky with the KO times given? (9/10pm) Mate of mine who's a big football fan has hardly watched any of the other matches due to work etc.

Think Scotland have had late times aswell.

Not luck though look at Spain Germany France Holland etc it’s to fit tv in home countries it’s all calculated
The knockouts is more random depending where you finish

 

[I should coco]

Not luck though look at Spain Germany France Holland etc it’s to fit tv in home countries it’s all calculated
The knockouts is more random depending where you finish

To expand on your point, if FIFA had all the major Euroean teams kicking off at 2 and 5 in the morning, the TV rights would have been massively reduced.

Follow the money and all that.

 

[LBA_Blade]

Was thinking that havent England been lucky with the KO times given? (9/10pm) Mate of mine who's a big football fan has hardly watched any of the other matches due to work etc.

Think Scotland have had late times aswell.

Maybe it’s just me that’s watching most matches but I have been watching the 2am kick off with breakfast when I get up before work on IPlayer/ITV and it’s quite good to be able to fast forward through a lot of it such as the “hydration breaks” and half time, Although I think there are too many games the Cape Verde vs Uruguay is well worth a watch (just finished that one). Sometimes I will even leave the 11pm kick offs until after work and often I find I will be watching a game 05:30am, one at 5pm and then another in the 9pm slot

 

[mattbianco1]

NZ v Egypt only had 1 min added on in the first half, but had a 3 minute hydration break

 

[mattbianco1]

NZ v Egypt only had 1 min added on in the first half, but had a 3 minute hydration break

That's incorrect. There were 4 added minutes.

Note to self: Don't believe everything you read on Twitter

 

[LBA_Blade]

The 3rd place playoff's split is random but interesting, If England finish top (Group L) they would play one of the 3rd place teams of groups E/H/I/J/K, if we came 2nd in the group we would play the runners up of Group K. Currently the 3rd place play off teams in those groups are as below but they need to be in top 8 to progress (indicated in bold)
E/H/I/J/K
Ecuador
Cape Verde
Senegal
Jordan
Portugal (although unlikely as they play Uzbekistan next)

 

[CarlMcBlade]

Having 48 teams at the world cup has totally degraded the quality of the competition !

They’ve merely introduced a round friendlies before the real competition kicks off at the last 32 stage.

 

[Ndiayewillalwaysloveyou]

The Messi/Haaland/Mbappe/Kane world Cup?

Goals galore!

 

[Arcadia Blade]

Having 48 teams at the world cup has totally degraded the quality of the competition !

no it hasn't and it will only get better.

 

[ATL Recs]

They’ve merely introduced a round friendlies before the real competition kicks off at the last 32 stage.

Cape Verde would argue they haven’t

 

[CarlMcBlade]

Cape Verde would argue they haven’t

Look, I’m all for the underdog, but you can’t help but feel this expanded group stage is there for the big teams to get limbered up.

 

[Wapping Blade]

I think you need to look at the group stages as a "festival of football", it's great to see smaller countries and their fans so engaged. The "real" football, notwithstandng a couple of shocks, will start at the next stage.

 

[GrunkyPeep]

Look, I’m all for the underdog, but you can’t help but feel this expanded group stage is there for the big teams to get limbered up.

I'll be honest, I have no issues with it. I've liked being able to watch new teams like Curacao and Cape Verde, especially when they do better than expected.

I also like goals, and don't mind seeing a minnow getting battered.

 

[Tarqs]

I know there's some instances where we refer to countries in their local tongue (Cote D'Ivoire for example), but when and why did everyone start calling Turkey, Turkiye (and pronouncing it that way too)....?

 

[Balham]

The 3rd place playoff's split is random but interesting, If England finish top (Group L) they would play one of the 3rd place teams of groups E/H/I/J/K, if we came 2nd in the group we would play the runners up of Group K. Currently the 3rd place play off teams in those groups are as below but they need to be in top 8 to progress (indicated in bold)
E/H/I/J/K
Ecuador
Cape Verde
Senegal
Jordan
Portugal (although unlikely as they play Uzbekistan next)

Sweden's record is impressive. Win the first game 5-1, lose the second 5-1. Sets it up nicely for a 0-0 draw with Japan.

I would also, to the level of Kevin Keegan, love it if Scotland finished 9th in the 3rd place table. Força Brasil!

 

[Nickydblade]

Just finished watching Jordan v Algeria. Another interesting game with plenty riding on it already.

All the Trump, ticketing and temperature fiasco bothered me more than most in the build up, but I think the format, teams, stadia, fans and tournament itself has transcended all that so far.

An obvious downside are the hydration breaks, but as I’ve watched every game in full so far (a lot on catch up), I’m even getting used to those now. The games themselves, helped by the new ‘get on with it’ rules, are generally high quality and exciting. The rain break with France last night has been the worst thing, and hopefully there won’t be a lot of those as it was proper rubbish.

A long way to go, but as a ‘festival of football’ and a proper competitive tournament, I reckon it’s been brilliant.

Oh, and…

 

[Revolution]

I know there's some instances where we refer to countries in their local tongue (Cote D'Ivoire for example), but when and why did everyone start calling Turkey, Turkiye (and pronouncing it that way too)....?

The Turkish government has recently been pushing for people to use Turkiye, as that is how they write and say it.

 

[Pintor75]

I know there's some instances where we refer to countries in their local tongue (Cote D'Ivoire for example), but when and why did everyone start calling Turkey, Turkiye (and pronouncing it that way too)....?

new neighbour moved in (from darn sarf) and his daughter said she lived in Tork ee,( southern accent needed),I said nice place, but only been as a kid, she said ,no Torkee (southern accent), Oh Turkey! I said, ,yes,she said, heaven knows how I didn't blurt out "why didn't you say Turkey!"

 

[Gimli]

new neighbour moved in (from darn sarf) and his daughter said she lived in Tork ee,( southern accent needed),I said nice place, but only been as a kid, she said ,no Torkee (southern accent), Oh Turkey! I said, ,yes,she said, heaven knows how I didn't blurt out "why didn't you say Turkey!"

I’ve heard there’s some ropey hotels on the front at Torkee…

 

[LBA_Blade]

Just finished watching Jordan v Algeria. Another interesting game with plenty riding on it already.

All the Trump, ticketing and temperature fiasco bothered me more than most in the build up, but I think the format, teams, stadia, fans and tournament itself has transcended all that so far.

An obvious downside are the hydration breaks, but as I’ve watched every game in full so far (a lot on catch up), I’m even getting used to those now. The games themselves, helped by the new ‘get on with it’ rules, are generally high quality and exciting. The rain break with France last night has been the worst thing, and hopefully there won’t be a lot of those as it was proper rubbish.

A long way to go, but as a ‘festival of football’ and a proper competitive tournament, I reckon it’s been brilliant.

Oh, and…

View attachment 239155

It is a good pub quiz style fact that one, I looked it up too trying to understand that, apparently that is for official diplomatic usage, such as UN or Global submits etc it's not something as a English speaker we need to apply. Otherwise we should be using Espana for Spain, Deutschland for Germany etc. With "Cote d'Ivoire it is similar to how Wales want to be referred to as Cymru but how many times is that said in a match unless on specific Welsh language channels.

The one that annoys me the most for some reason is Paris Saint Germain, and the commentator says Paris then the French pronunciation of Saint Germain being pedantic but really it should be Pari(s) Saint Germain

 

[MadDad38]

I can't remember Didier Drogba ever being referred to as from Cote d'Ivoire.

 

[Gimli]

It is a good pub quiz style fact that one, I looked it up too trying to understand that, apparently that is for official diplomatic usage, such as UN or Global submits etc it's not something as a English speaker we need to apply. Otherwise we should be using Espana for Spain, Deutschland for Germany etc. With "Cote d'Ivoire it is similar to how Wales want to be referred to as Cymru but how many times is that said in a match unless on specific Welsh language channels.

The one that annoys me the most for some reason is Paris Saint Germain, and the commentator says Paris then the French pronunciation of Saint Germain being pedantic but really it should be Pari(s) Saint Germain

We could ‘issue a decree’ saying we want to be referred to as United Kingdom but the French are still gonna call us ‘Allemagne…’

 

[Gimli]

We could ‘issue a decree’ saying we want to be referred to as United Kingdom but the French are still gonna call us ‘Allemagne…’

Or indeed Angleterre - I haven’t spoken French for a while, evidently!

 

[Kenilworth]

Or indeed Angleterre - I haven’t spoken French for a while, evidently!

Thank goodness for that.
I thought I’d just woken up and found myself in some dystopian parallel universe and it was just like Len Deighton’s SS GB, for a moment, there

What a fucking relief that was, I can tell you, mein Obergruppenführer.

 

[Nickydblade]

It is a good pub quiz style fact that one, I looked it up too trying to understand that, apparently that is for official diplomatic usage, such as UN or Global submits etc it's not something as a English speaker we need to apply. Otherwise we should be using Espana for Spain, Deutschland for Germany etc. With "Cote d'Ivoire it is similar to how Wales want to be referred to as Cymru but how many times is that said in a match unless on specific Welsh language channels.

The one that annoys me the most for some reason is Paris Saint Germain, and the commentator says Paris then the French pronunciation of Saint Germain being pedantic but really it should be Pari(s) Saint Germain

It doesn’t bother me either way, I just looked up why they might have chosen to say it

 

[LBA_Blade]

Some interesting views on the apparent penalty claim for Ghana last night, being a referee albeit not at FIFA level or professional, it can help to understand why it shouldn't have been a penalty rather than going with the press narrative that England dodged a bullet. Firstly I don't think the referee had full control of the game and was happy to let a lot go, which sets out your stall and threshold for contact. In the first half with a trigger happy card referee, Ghana would have picked up 3 or 4 yellows for fouls where they didn't play the ball and played the man. The referee last night wasn't one of them, which is fair enough.

A few things on the decision, the referee was caught out by the quick break and was approx 30-40 yards away when it occurred, he was still mulling over the shoulder charge that happened. However I think that is the key as to why the penalty wasn't given and why VAR didn't step in. Although shoulder charges are allowed in football, they can be ruled that one player has used too much force like sprinting at a stationary player, in the shoulder charge on Eze that was seen and deemed ok by the referee, I would say it was a at a high threshold of whether or not it should have been a foul. It's in that category of "I have seen them given"

Fast forward 10 seconds or so, (the advice given to referees and VAR for the World Cup is that the threshold for which you give a foul for contact has to be consistent), Adu wasn't in possession of the ball as he played a heavy touch forwards into the penalty area, although this isn't a fully consideration factor as fouls can happen out of possession it does allow Konsa to compete for the ball. The problem the referee has got he is miles out of position so is relying on his assistant or VAR, the problem both of them have got is that the referee has set a high threshold for contact, and with penalties (in all games) the threshold is even higher with it being a potential match changing decision.

Konsa, although he doesn't make contact with the ball initially is allowed under the Laws of the game to compete especially as he has the opportunity to do so , and basing on the shoulder charge contact seconds before that the referee has allowed and that you haven't given a foul for, the threshold is that much higher, Konza made a genuine attempt to get the ball, the opportunity was there for him to do so and the threshold for contact was high. The coming together of the players was going to happen because of the runs each were making, which brought both of them down, it was deemed a football related contact and play on. The offside was spot on as obvious he was interfering with play and behind the 2nd to last defender.

 

[Swannyblade]

It is a good pub quiz style fact that one, I looked it up too trying to understand that, apparently that is for official diplomatic usage, such as UN or Global submits etc it's not something as a English speaker we need to apply. Otherwise we should be using Espana for Spain, Deutschland for Germany etc. With "Cote d'Ivoire it is similar to how Wales want to be referred to as Cymru but how many times is that said in a match unless on specific Welsh language channels.

The one that annoys me the most for some reason is Paris Saint Germain, and the commentator says Paris then the French pronunciation of Saint Germain being pedantic but really it should be Pari(s) Saint Germain

What about Bayern Munich? That's the weirdest example for me as we've only Anglicised half of their name. Surely it should either be Bayern Munchen or Bavarian Munich?