OT: The 2026 World Cup Thread

[Triumph]

Spain gave up 1 goal the whole tournament - probably over 800 minutes of play

Seemed like SP had 20 players on the field yesterday.

 

[bormio]

Seemed like SP had 20 players on the field yesterday.

Argentina did not just stand around and watch them, they were pressuring the ball. But there is always an open spot and Spain always had someone moving into it - there was always a place to pass the ball. And the guy making the pass always knows where it is. It is not just talent, it is practice - and it is impressive. Hard to score when you never have the ball.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

Biggest hurdles for me getting into this sport:

(1). The constant moving backward to move forward.

(2). The flopping.

(3). Except for goalkeeper and "head," hands/arms/upper body aren't used. I assume enthusiasts will emphasize the subtle maneuvering allegedly requiring an upper-body skillset, but sorry ...

A smaller field would make things more interesting. I remember an indoor soccer league from quite a few years ago that was great fun to watch.

Personally the sport itself isnt a problem to me, its the format in which they play. The teams dont belong to a particular "league" they are just a club and play in a bunch of different leagues and tournaments with relegations and promotions on the line. I'm going to try and make a concerted effort to understand that a bit more this time around, because I badly need a sport other than football to care about. But I hardly ever know when the team is playing a game that matters nor the repercussions of it

 

[bormio]

Personally the sport itself isnt a problem to me, its the format in which they play. The teams dont belong to a particular "league" they are just a club and play in a bunch of different leagues and tournaments with relegations and promotions on the line. I'm going to try and make a concerted effort to understand that a bit more this time around, because I badly need a sport other than football to care about. But I hardly ever know when the team is playing a game that matters nor the repercussions of it

The relegation/promotion thing is fascinating. No longer do you get to be the Browns or Pirates and field crappy teams with no consequences. And if you are a 2nd division team, your fans can dream of the day you’ll play with the big boys. Obviously there has to be a viable 2nd, 3rd and 4th divisions. Never gonna happen in football. But baseball and basketball could do it (but they won’t). I also like a sport that emphasizes the regular season. No finishing near .500 and getting hot to win.

 

[A Defiant Goose]

The relegation/promotion thing is fascinating. No longer do you get to be the Browns or Pirates and field crappy teams with no consequences. And if you are a 2nd division team, your fans can dream of the day you’ll play with the big boys. Obviously there has to be a viable 2nd, 3rd and 4th divisions. Never gonna happen in football. But baseball and basketball could do it (but they won’t). I also like a sport that emphasizes the regular season. No finishing near .500 and getting hot to win.

Your final point is ok but if I understand correctly they don't even have playoffs right? Its just the team with the most points "wins"? I cant imagine being 75% through with a season and already mathematically knowing who the champion is. But maybe with all the relegations and changes theres good parity and that hardly ever happens

 

[Triumph]

Argentina did not just stand around and watch them, they were pressuring the ball. But there is always an open spot and Spain always had someone moving into it - there was always a place to pass the ball. And the guy making the pass always knows where it is. It is not just talent, it is practice - and it is impressive. Hard to score when you never have the ball.

SP would work the ball down to the ARG goal and maybe take a shot and then SP would kick the ball all the way back to the SP goalie and repeat the sequence. There were sometimes 2 - 3 SP players open when SP kicked the ball out of trouble if ARG tried to pressure.

The stats are sick. Google Search

 

[PatsFan2]

It could have been 10 Zip Spain: Argentina should erect a statue to their Goalie. He saved them a possible embarrassment: glad the Yankees of Soccer didn't win.

 

[Triumph]

Hard to score when you never have the ball.

SP passed @ a 90% success rate.

It was a giant game of keep away from Messi and ARG.

 

[Triumph]

Personally the sport itself isnt a problem to me, its the format in which they play. The teams dont belong to a particular "league" they are just a club and play in a bunch of different leagues and tournaments with relegations and promotions on the line. I'm going to try and make a concerted effort to understand that a bit more this time around, because I badly need a sport other than football to care about. But I hardly ever know when the team is playing a game that matters nor the repercussions of it

Soccer needs improvement.

1. Keep time like the NFL where it decreases. 45 minutes per half.
2. Each team should have 3 timeouts and 2 challenges per half.
3. All goals are reviewed by VAR.
4. Identify who is playing who better for new fans of the sport.
5. Still add time at the conclusion of each half per referees discretion.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

The relegation/promotion thing is fascinating. No longer do you get to be the Browns or Pirates and field crappy teams with no consequences. And if you are a 2nd division team, your fans can dream of the day you’ll play with the big boys. Obviously there has to be a viable 2nd, 3rd and 4th divisions. Never gonna happen in football. But baseball and basketball could do it (but they won’t). I also like a sport that emphasizes the regular season. No finishing near .500 and getting hot to win.

If the NFL really wants to expand beyond 32 teams, one thing they could do would be an 18-team championship division and an 18-team relegation division, with, say, the top 4 relegation teams replacing the bottom 4 championship teams each year.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Soccer needs improvement.

1. Keep time like the NFL where it decreases. 45 minutes per half.
2. Each team should have 3 timeouts and 2 challenges per half.
3. All goals are reviewed by VAR.
4. Identify who is playing who better for new fans of the sport.
5. Still add time at the conclusion of each half per referees discretion.

The clock should be tied to the referee's timepiece, and should be visible to all, which would make (5) unnecessary (since the idea is the time should stop automatically during goal celebrations, injury stoppages, etc.).

 

[ctpatsfan77]

I mean, you don't go 11 on 10 if your entire team doesn't bother playing the ball the entire game. Argentina legitimately could have had 3 guys sent off during this game.

Spain put Messi in jail, and Argentina had to resort to CONCACAF ball.

VARgentina got what they deserved.

That said, if I were in charge of FIFA, Paredes would be banned from the 2030 World Cup (since VARgentina already qualified as a host country). That BS has absolutely no place in sports.