I mean, pretty sad and insecure that Infatino felt inclined to repost something from 7 years ago. Is he worried about something /someone? #asskissingresumes
of course ... every world cup has its own controversies I have a strong feeling this will be by far the worst one, but no worries, saudi arabien is going to beat it by a huge margin
**taps mic** Quick reminder to everyone that the US elections are over... so rehashing them here will be considered off-topic going forward.
Cracking first half in Port Moresby where PNG lead Fiji 2-1 to the delight of the home crowd. These games show there's a market for an OFC NL in this part of the world. Earlier Solomon Islands' poor 2024 form continued as they were upset 3-2 by New Caledonia.
The main problem would be the traveling distance and how to finance that. These small islands are separated by vast distances.
Not sure how. There was an attendance of 1,500 in a city of 360,000. Rugby league matches in the same city attract 15,000 even when a local team isn't involved.
There looked to be more there than that and the fans were enthusiastic throughout! A consistent programme of competitive games would help develop football across the South Pacific. OFC discussed starting a NL a few years ago. FIFA will likely increase the funding for NT competition participation costs to low turnover national associations - currently about 115 of the 211 - from USD$0.3m/year to at least $0.5m/year for the 2027-30 FIFA Forward cycle. OFC - like all confederations - receives $15m/year from FIFA. They could host each window of 2 x MDs each in a different country to facilitate travel.
Interesting update on preparations in the USA. https://www.insideworldfootball.com...breaks-mould-create-ambitious-world-cup-ever/
So, to sum up the article, despite the 2026 WC being a huge financial windfall for FIFA, they have done little so far in terms of engaging with host cities to help organize and promote the tournament. Same old FIFA...
That's not quite the way I read it. It says twice that FIFA is a bit slow out of the box but doesn't provide any evidence. It also says that FIFA is working directly with the cities rather than the organising committee, so has it started working with the cities or not? I know for instance that FIFA was meeting with the stadium owners the city authorities and local law enforcement back in the summer. "Depending on who you talk to, the overriding feeling is that with 570 days to go to kick-off, FIFA has been slow out the blocks in terms of organisation and leadership. Kristic’s panel in Fort Lauderdale would beg differ, though no-one is underestimating the scale of the task." "Depending on who you talk to" and "the feeling is" = not good journalism.
I had a chance to re-watch the final draw for WC 1994 and i guess they will make it the same ways this time. in 1994, they first drew the groups but without assigning it clearly to ABCDEF but the groups were named according to the seeds.. After all teams had been drawn, it only took them 3 minutes (!) for the organizing commitee to assign which group will be ABCDEF and therewith, which venues their matches will be held. I guess, this time it will be AI driven, but i am curious if it takes then longer. That would be fun. :-D 3 minutes later (no image of the ful panel was seen, they announced it A to F within 30 seconds)
UEFA preliminary draw will start at 1200 CET on 13 December. https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments...ticles/uefa-preliminary-draw-date-13-december
UEFA pots are projected: Pot 1: France, Spain, England, Belgium, Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Germany, Croatia, Switzerland, Denmark, Austria. Pot 2: Hungary, Serbia, Poland, Ukraine, Turkey, Sweden, Wales, Greece, Slovakia, Romania, Czechia, Norway Pot 3: Scotland, Slovenia, Ireland, Finland, Georgia, Albania, North Macedonia, Iceland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, Montenegro, Israel Pot 4: Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Belarus, Armenia, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Cyprus, Latvia, Faroe Islands, Lithuania Pot 5: Moldova, Malta, Andorra, Gibraltar, Liechtenstein, San Marino
Which ones? I have Belgium and Switzerland failing to win their groups. Austria and Denmark could also fail depending on their groups. Croatia may slip as well but they always find a way at the end.
I would also expect Belgium and Switzerland to struggle to win their groups, although - paradoxically for the pot one teams - they might benefit from being in groups of four teams. Croatia, Denmark and Austria might also have particular difficulty. The other seven - France, Spain, England, Netherlands, Portugal, Italy and Germany - seem less likely to end up in the hazardous playoffs, although those in groups of four are of course only one suprise defeat away from potentially finishing second.
There's Pot 1 teams I'd want but I don't really see a Pot 2 team that is massively better or worse than the rest. Pot 3 on the other hand... I see some definite ones I would want to to avoid (or would like)
i wonder if that regional rules avoiding long distance trips are still in place as well apart from all the other bogus. Like Northern Ireland not playing Kasakhstan, remember?
Yes, they are. This was how it was for the 2024 European Qualifiers. Excessive travel: A maximum of one pair of teams identified with excessive travel distance in relation to other countries could be placed in each group: Azerbaijan: with Gibraltar, Iceland, Portugal. Iceland: with Cyprus, Georgia, Israel. (Armenia were also identified with Iceland for excessive travel distance, but the teams were in the same pot for the draw.) Kazakhstan: with Andorra, England, France, Gibraltar, Iceland, Malta, Northern Ireland, Portugal, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Spain, Wales. (Faroe Islands were also identified with Kazakhstan for excessive travel distance, but the teams were in the same pot for the draw.)
difficult to call exactly before the draw. depends on which stronger teams will come from pot 2 and 3. Form is very important this time as there a 6 matchdays, all of groups of 4 teams are like this UNL in September, October and November. So just imagine Haaland will pick up an injury in August, then the chances of Norway are reduced drastically. The system benefits more teams with a depth in the squad and not one/two-star teams. Some teams have a good form a.t.m. which are to avoid. Germany, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Greece. Switzerland, Poland, Belgium, Denmark could be prefered contenders on the other side.
Luckily they don't have those rules in the Canadian Premier League. An away day from Halifax to Victoria is 1.5 times the distance from Iceland to Cyprus, or 700 miles further than England to Kazakhstan (round trip).
pfff I always keep hearing the same about british teams, then nothing happens. Poland should also not be much of a problem for any pot 1 team. These teams can grind a draw against the top seed ofc, but their low technical quality usually prevents them from getting the needed consistent results against lower opposition.
The UK teams are thriving: if Scotland win their UNL playoff in March then England, Scotland and Wales will all be in League A while Northern Ireland were automatically promoted to League B. They are all technically proficient teams.