Rummenigge: International calendar may have to change

My apologies if this has been covered elsewhere, but...Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has suggested that Europe may move to a spring-fall calendar in the future to avoid mid-winter breaks.

So, Sepp Blatter...what was that you were saying about MLS adjusting to the international calendar?

Interesting read. I will caution anyone to jump to conclusions though. From the article:

At any rate, I'm sure the Russians are pissed at the idea of going back on it.

If the point is to avoid playing during the winter, why on earth would you begin your season in January???

Somebody doesn't like a post Christmas world cup.

Today's wind chills have been brutal--can't really imagine playing soccer under these conditions. I guess January in Europe is milder than here in the U.S.

It is, generally, because of the Gulf Stream. London is further north than Winnipeg and Paris is further north than Montreal.

^ I like to tease my relatives from the UP that I've lived further north than any of them.

but still, January is the coldest month in most countries in Europe and February is the second coldest in a few.

Hmm, wonder if Europe is finally starting to wise up and realize that playing an outdoor sport in the dead of winter wasn't a brilliant idea.

Only Real man can do that.

It is good that European finals are played in good weather, remember the RedBulls play-offs?

Bavaria is one of the colder places in Europe, beyond places in the mountains or high up north.

I remember watching a game on tv last year from Nuremberg and it was something stupid like -14C (about 7F) and not only did most players not even wear gloves, most were in short-sleeve shirts too.

I never understood why the autumn - spring schedule, it doesn't make any sense, soccer is played in shorts, outside, on green grass, it's a summer sport, hope the MLS never even thinks of switching schedule, hopefully Europe by 2022 will change, lower south america the weather is reverse so it makes sense for them.

Maybe it's time join the rest of Europe in having a winter break, after the Boxing Day fixtures of course.
If we changed to a summer schedule then the European Championships would have to be in winter, which could be tricky as postponed games due to weather in a tournament would be awkward to rearrange.

And the World Cup in winter.

I was there.

My father took me despite the furious protests of my mother and grandmother.

In those days, you could exit and re-enter the stadium, so my brother got to see the first half and my Dad took me to the second half. My grandparents lived a short distance from the stadium and he walked home to get me.

Cold doesn't begin to describe it.

Aside from the final drive and the final play, my most vivid memory of the Ice Bowl was the number of people who needed medical treatment -- the P.A. announcer was asking doctors in the crowd to report below the stands to help people.

December 31st, 1967.

Soccer in hot weather is slow and boring though. Plus, Europe's finals are in good weather which is great. I think both continents have it right and neither should change.

To be fair, it depends on what parts of Europe.

Places like Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Scandinavia should have a spring to fall schedule and Western Europe/ Mediterranean Europe could stick with the fall to spring schedule.

The issue I guess is the middle Europe like Germany, the Balkans, mountain countries.

So I could see Germany going spring to fall but Spain, Italy and England staying fall to spring.

But some one from Germany (I think) posted on another thread under the Europe forum, pro/rel may create a problem for Germany and others, since their lower levels would want to keep the summer vacation because they are much more dependant on attendance and they fear they would be lower during the summer.

So you would not only have to change the top leagues but the full pyramid.

That's insanity. I'm sure their mothers scolded them soundly afterwards.

Many early football teams were spin-offs of local cricket clubs. The players wanted a sport to keep them fit during the winter when they couldn't play cricket. (circa late 1800s)

Avoiding cricket was the main reason but football was a sport played by secondary schools and universities in the 18th and early 19th century. One of the big reasons for the Football Association being formed in 1863 was to codify the rules so all the public schools and universities could compete against each other and so the players could transition onto the university teams having played by the same rules. They played a schedule that fit the school year which in England traditionally started in September.

Oh, pshaw on your practical reasons for the fall-spring schedule which may or may not apply today! True soccer fans know that the fall-spring schedule was handed down by God directly to the English FA on stone tablets, which also included pro/rel, Thou Shalt List Home Teams First, and Why Playoffs are an Abomination!

------RM

My coldest winter was a spring spent in Munich.

That isn't for the player's sake and you know it. It's all about the $$$$ and possibly hosting a Super Bowl which is no longer allowed to be a real man's final bc American sports fans are too p*******d to sit in cold weather and watch the big game. Or so the owners have assumed. At any rate, it's generally accepted that maximizing profitability means no longer exposing fans to the elements.

Well, I guess we're gonna find out when they hold the next Super Bowl in the Meadowlands in February...

------RM