Winter World Cup... Here We Come!

Sigh. Well, I mean sure, I guess you can just change the UEFA schedule if you want.

Does UEFA has a say in this or are they in the fix as well?

 

There is over 7 years till this happens, so I bet a lot more controversy will happen along the way. Hopefully fifa can magically realize that Qatar is using slave labor and people are dying building their stadiums!

 

Magically, when FIFA realizes this, then, Magically, FIFA won't give a flying f*&k.

 

Putting the geopolitics aside for a moment - why is having a winter world cup necessarily a bad thing?

 

It's going to really mess up the european seasons. The world cup will see most club players leave for at least 6 weeks and it is a very arduous tournament that typically results in quite a few injuries. The World cup final is supposed to be played on December 21st and then the English season kicks off again on the 26th. Those two dates are very close. The leagues will either have to start earlier or make their season go longer to compensate which will in turn cause the next season to be effected.

 

if they were able to accommodate Fox with the TV rights extention I think UEFA is being kept in the loop. Fifa, Uefa and the locals league will work out something. The other leagues won't get the same "respect"...

 

Not a bad thing at all......... it it is in Australia.

 

Heck, for all we know we're those silly fools who, in the winter of 1935, were fretting about the location of the 1942 World Cup.
For myself, I am going to bet that the future I should be caring about is Now... [and would that JK had had the same perspective on WC'14].

 

Winter World Cup you say.
Nike ought to start on ClimaWarm jerseys instead of the past ClimaCool ones.

 

I don't care about it interrupting the seasons, I do care that it could injure the best players for each club. For a team like Aston Villa, if they were to lose say a Benteke or Guzan due to playing too many games because of a random world cup thrown into the middle of a season, that could spell relegation for the club.

 

I'm pretty sure they do know but won't give a ******** since the media hasn't pressured them into doing something serious about it. For that to happen someone needs to launch an actual investigation. Forced labor isn't something new especially in africa and in some asian countries. Of course we only start give a ******** since it's a world cup we're talking about.

 

I think that you guys have the wrong thread as this only negatively impacts Europe with minimal impact on us.

 

If the World Cup is in November and December, how would the MLS shift the playoffs? To January after the Cup? Not likely. To October, with the whole season pushed at least 1 month forward?

 

Saying clubs and players should treat the World Cup as number 1 are missing some key points here. Their club team they have a contract with and it is their job. THAT is their number 1 priority....not the national team. If they get hurt in an intense tournament format, it could have an impact on their team they are contractually obligated to and who pay them their salary.

And yes relegation is a real concern and can cost teams and players millions and millions of dollars. Injuries to key players can make or break clubs for decades. Some never recover from relegation.

So remember, Club teams are players jobs and careers and more and more most players take that more seriously then their national team. Champion's League is the highest quality soccer on the planet....not the World Cup. I mean do you really thing Ronaldo is more passionate about Real Madrid or the terribly underachieving Portugal team.

 

Do we have evidence to say they choose Club over country? How many player choose to retire from international competition to focus on Club at the peak of their career? Or decided to not attend a competition (Kaka once snubbed a Copa America I think in order to rest he had to fight his way back in the starting team)...

If Clubs have to pay for their services while country gets them for free isn't this a evidence where their heart lies?

In Brazil this is taboo if a player comes out saying the chooses Club over Country he will be treated as a pariah. Call me naive but I think the opposite, we see less and less loyalty to clubs (Messi, Xavi, Iniesta are quite unique in this aspect) players will work for whomever pays the most but country is different.

One could argue that some Basque players have their heart in BFC rather than Spain but it is not because of pay but rather their loyalty lies with a specific region.

Do you think CR would be cool if real madrid decides to pay him as much as he earns (correcting for the number of games) while playing for Portugal? Actually he was on record in 2012 saying Country over Club don't know if he had a change of heart.

"What is the difference between club and international football?

They are completely different environments. In the national team, I have many friends. we share a common language and are working together for the honour of the country. At club level, you are with your team-mates every day, so you can communicate and get on easily. But speaking from the heart, I prefer the feeling of the national team."
http://www.eurosport.com/football/ronaldo-country-over-club_sto3320295/story.shtml

http://www.goal.com/en-ca/news/4175...im-cahill-no-qualms-picking-country-over-club

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...holes-chooses-club-over-country-Football.html (Club over Country here)

http://www.supersport.com/football/...ws/150211/Yaya_prefers_nation_over_club_glory

 

I'm pretty sure most English footballers will be home well before December 21st.

 

It doesn't really effect the MLS schedule too much. Yeah, it has to be pushed up a month, but the past year the MLS took a short break for the world cup. With no summer tournament, and no obstruction in the middle of summer, moving the season up two weeks, and playing the playoff matches closer together shouldn't create too much of an issue.

All of that being said, that is IF the MLS is still on the March-December format. I wouldn't be surprised to see them move eventually to link up with the current European season. BLAH BLAH BLAH about snow... their are only 3 teams who really have to worry about snow. Montreal, Toronto, and New England. Montreal already plays some games at Olympic, Toronto can play games if need be at the Rogers Center, and New England is building a new stadium...put a retractable roof on it. Problem solved.

 

Moe, too much beer makes your mind jangly. New England is not building a new stadium. The Rogers center is a mess for soccer. Montreal can only afford games at the Olympic if it is a very special event [which freezing yer butt off in January or February does not qualify]. As for "their [sic] only three teams who really have to worry about snow" riff, are you mad? Chicago, Columbus, Kansas City, Salt Lake, New York, Philadelphia, Colorado, even Vancouver, all really have to worry about winter snow or cold. Even Seattle, Dallas, and DC have to be careful, although if you don't believe me feel free to go play a game by the Potomac right about now. That's over half MLS right there.
If that's what you call "Problem Solved" don't ever try to make a living from ordnance handling.

 

Montreal plays at Olympic when it is cold in March. So it snows a little, you play the game. It's a little cold? You play the game. You play more away games for those teams in that month. And NE is will be building a new SS stadium, which is part of their Olympic bid. Most of those cities get minimal snowfall, and it melts before it sticks. If you have to move games, you move games. That's how they do it in Europe, why can't it be done here.