Football 2022/23

[pink_triangle]

Wales very poor in the first half. Lacking in ideas without Joe Allen in midfield. Need big improvement in second half 

[kaosmark2]

45 minutes ago, Barry Fish said:

They bought it because they could...  They have a fuck ton of gas - they already have influence.

Its more western arrogance to think they want polticial influence with us or the World Cup gives them that.  They bought it for the same reasons we wanted it.  Willy waving.

When the oil runs out, or the climate summits eventually start doing something and fuck them, they want to have other things to fall on. This is part of that.

[kaosmark2]

15 minutes ago, Barry Fish said:

Go on them genius...  Tell me how the World Cup makes up for the gas running out... 🙂

Oh we know you don't have any gas anymore but you once had the world cup so lets still be friends 😄 lmao

International recognition comes beyond trade deals. It doesn't "make up" for it, but if a nation has established itself as a wealthy tourist destination. Things like Olympic and World Cup stadia become long-term tourist destinations, even if they largely serve as white elephants. The built infrastructure enables more tourism, and the sheer fact of name recognition adds further. 

It's easy to make trade deals based on major resources, but for other things, having established relations, and integrated travel and tourism, makes others easier.

The London Olympics wasn't just about flag-waving and ego, it's also about having an event that brings people into the country, and then explore it.

How much more have you learned about Qatar in the last 12 years since they got the world cup?

[Comfy Bean]

Great penalty 👏 

[charlierc]

3 hours ago, steviewevie said:

yeah, so much geopolitics going on at moment, hard to avoid.

Anyway, come on USA.

It's kinda more than just current geopolitics imo given there's about a decade's worth of sporting politics and high-level state politics going on here. Saudi Arabia, UAE and Egypt even tried to get the tournament taken off Qatar or at least expanded so they can host matches, in something that feels under-reported in the West. I'd heard Infantino talk up the idea at the G20 a few years ago of bringing forward the expansion to give some of Qatar's neighbours games, which he failed to get off the ground.

I'm not gonna be a gatekeeper and say no Middle East country should ever be allowed to host a World Cup, but it cannot be pretended the decision when reached in 2010 was a shock and that many of the revelations about FIFA's workings since haven't exactly reflected well on the people who gave it to them.

[pink_triangle]

28 minutes ago, Comfy Bean said:

Great penalty 👏 

Mad challenge as Wales just didn't look like scoring, but over the 90 minutes a fair result. Neither team created much and I am pretty certain whoever goes through from this group with England,will be sent packing the next round. From my perspective I didn't have much expectation going into the tournament so anything is a bonus. To score a goal is another thing ticked off the list.

[charlierc]

31 minutes ago, kaosmark2 said:

International recognition comes beyond trade deals. It doesn't "make up" for it, but if a nation has established itself as a wealthy tourist destination. Things like Olympic and World Cup stadia become long-term tourist destinations, even if they largely serve as white elephants. The built infrastructure enables more tourism, and the sheer fact of name recognition adds further. 

It's easy to make trade deals based on major resources, but for other things, having established relations, and integrated travel and tourism, makes others easier.

The London Olympics wasn't just about flag-waving and ego, it's also about having an event that brings people into the country, and then explore it.

How much more have you learned about Qatar in the last 12 years since they got the world cup?

Well yeah - down the road, Abu Dhabi and Dubai spent most of the 2000's getting heavily invested in sport, technology, infrastructure, real estate, tourism etc, and as far as sport goes, Qatar decided to go for it too with things like Moto GP, tennis and the 2006 Asian Games, although given IOC officials who went to that last one deemed Qatar an insufficiently prepared host for those ones and rejected their bid for the 2016 Olympics, it probably would've played in to the people who would've dismissed the 2022 idea.

There's a lot of interesting reading about it tbf. In a way, it is kinda helping me understand things a bit more as there's a part of me that's kinda bemused as to why Qatar is spending a budget at over 100% of its GDP and orienting a large part of its national post-fossil fuel growth strategy around a 4 week football tournament, not least after a sports economist wrote a thing a few weeks ago calling the idea crazy. For scale, be like if the UK had spent $3trillion on the 2012 Olympics (a figure that was over 100% of GDP at that time).

[charlierc]

Quite something that all 3 games today have just had enormous tranches of injury time - double digits for both halves in England-Iran, Netherlands scoring in 90+9 in the win over Senegal, another 9 in US-Wales... quite something if this is becoming a theme.

Keeps things open in the group nicely tbf - I only saw the first half and the US played well in that, but Wales at least still have a decent enough resolve to fight back, as they did in their 2 recent Euros runs. That game vs Iran is pretty massive on Friday.

[kaosmark2]

1 hour ago, Barry Fish said:

I've learnt nothing I didn't already know.

Anyway - Bale just scored 🙂

You not learning anything is of very little surprise to me.

[pink_triangle]

1 hour ago, charlierc said:

Quite something that all 3 games today have just had enormous tranches of injury time - double digits for both halves in England-Iran, Netherlands scoring in 90+9 in the win over Senegal, another 9 in US-Wales... quite something if this is becoming a theme.

Keeps things open in the group nicely tbf - I only saw the first half and the US played well in that, but Wales at least still have a decent enough resolve to fight back, as they did in their 2 recent Euros runs. That game vs Iran is pretty massive on Friday.

I feel people are underestimating Iran. I see Wales, USA and Iran at a similar level and think all the games between the 3 will be tight. 

[steviewevie]

 

[Skip997]

12 hours ago, charlierc said:

Quite something that all 3 games today have just had enormous tranches of injury time

It's good, should be happening in the PL, might just make players think about time wasting.

[steviewevie]

Come on Saudi Arabia.

[sime]

What a game! 

[Punksnotdead]

Bloody Argentina - messed up my accumulator bet! ☹️

[Crazyfool01]

Eriksen ❤️

[DomDom1984]

Was wondering what Saudi Arabia were doing at 2-1 up and continuing to play that high line, but they did deepen a fair bit eventually, and at that point, didn't look too under threat very often. Before that, Argentina were getting far too much joy in behind them, despite doing nowt with it.

[Skip997]

Hope you're all enjoying it

Quote

Jan Vertonghen of Belgium in the pre-match press conference

'"I'm afraid if I say something about this whether or not I'll be able to play on the field tomorrow, that is a situation I've never ever experienced in football."

Jan Vertonghen says they are being "controlled" and he is afraid to speak up on important issues':-

https://twitter.com/footballdaily/status/1595074897775980545? - with 90 second video

Move along now, nothing to see here...

[hodgey123]

4 hours ago, Punksnotdead said:

Bloody Argentina - messed up my accumulator bet! ☹️

Never back the early kick off applies to the World Cup

[Neil]

Bye bye skippy. 

[The Nal]

Utd love a bit of drama with the bigger players. Best, Becks, Keane, Ruud, Ronaldo. 

[charlierc]

20 hours ago, pink_triangle said:

I feel people are underestimating Iran. I see Wales, USA and Iran at a similar level and think all the games between the 3 will be tight. 

Wales v Iran I think will be close, though Iran will need to be better at their approach than they were against England the other day.

[charlierc]

3 hours ago, Skip997 said:

Hope you're all enjoying it

Move along now, nothing to see here...

The Belgium Love insignia thing is interesting - if it's because the O in LOVE on their collar was a commercial thing for Tomorrowland Festival when they were told that kind of thing is banned, that's one thing. But out of context, FIFA telling Belgium to remove the word is not exactly something that'll give off a positive connotation.

[charlierc]

1 hour ago, Neil said:

Bye bye skippy. 

Might not be the only figures who were heavily involved with Man Utd in 2005-09 that might be on the way out

Both Liverpool and Man Utd being for sale at the same time could be quite the intriguing bidding war.

[Skip997]

6 minutes ago, charlierc said:

Both Liverpool and Man Utd being for sale at the same time could be quite the intriguing bidding war.

Man Utd are welcome to have the next depostic sports washers.