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FIFA: Destroying Football Since 1904

https://twitter.com/x/status/1567897428648411137

The expansion to 48 teams is massive mistake. The traditional way of having a number of host cities in one country won't work any more. There's barely anyone able to host it unless you just build a bunch of stadiums that you have no need for afterwards like Qatar are doing. At least someone's getting a lot of money.
 
Jordinho said:
https://twitter.com/x/status/1567897428648411137

The expansion to 48 teams is massive mistake. The traditional way of having a number of host cities in one country won't work any more. There's barely anyone able to host it unless you just build a bunch of stadiums that you have no need for afterwards like Qatar are doing. At least someone's getting a lot of money.
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48 teams? o_O Might as well just skip the qualifiers and invite every country to the world cup.

The whole concept will be so watered out - this was supposed to be a special event where the very top teams fought it out for the right to crown themselves world champions. Now it's all about the money, and everything else is second priority - except human rights, of course, which is third priority.

Definitely going to the 2024 Euros in Germany. Could be the last proper tournament in a while.
 
Robbo said:
48 teams? o_O Might as well just skip the qualifiers and invite every country to the world cup.

The whole concept will be so watered out - this was supposed to be a special event where the very top teams fought it out for the right to crown themselves world champions. Now it's all about the money, and everything else is second priority - except human rights, of course, which is third priority.

Definitely going to the 2024 Euros in Germany. Could be the last proper tournament in a while.
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For the 2026 WC they will have 16 groups of three teams and the top two will go through. The total number of games will increase from 64 to 80, but the finalists will still play seven matches. One fewer at the group stage, but we'll get an additional knockout round.
 
Robbo said:
48 teams? o_O Might as well just skip the qualifiers and invite every country to the world cup.

The whole concept will be so watered out - this was supposed to be a special event where the very top teams fought it out for the right to crown themselves world champions. Now it's all about the money, and everything else is second priority - except human rights, of course, which is third priority.

Definitely going to the 2024 Euros in Germany. Could be the last proper tournament in a while.
Click to expand...

Couldn’t agree more. It’s nonsense. 32 is the right number for me from a sporting perspective. If you were gonna change it I’d go back to 24 but that’s never, ever gonna happen.

It’s the same with the Euros. 16 was the perfect number because we usually have around 16 really good teams in Europe. I remember in 2004 saying to my mates, “this will be a great a tournament because 15 of the teams could win it and I can’t pick a winner.” Turns out the 16th team who id written off, Greece, won it. Now it’s 24 teams, you end up with some cannon fodder in it. And I say that as an Irishman whose team has benefitted from that expansion.

I’ve lost any enthusiasm for international football and this is part of the reason (as well as awarding World Cups to whoever bribes the most people and mediocre players getting capped regularly. As Roy Keane says, if you can trap the ball now, you play for your country). Part of the reason I fell in love with the game was Mexico 86 and Euro 88. I hate seeing what international football has become.
 
They should do more with the regional competitions (all in the same year) and based on the standings there proceed to a proper world Cup.

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Let's just change it to a straight knockout tournament and televise the games for the last 64 teams left.
48 teams with group games is ridiculous.
 
Germans have a reputation for being blunt.

Europe shows Infantino the way on the pitch – now it must do the same off it
Philipp Lahm

The World Cup began with a Europhobic tone. In his speech the Fifa president, Gianni Infantino, attacked Europe. He accused its representatives of arrogance, double standards and self-centredness. He overlooked one point: the centre of football is indeed in Europe: historically, culturally, economically and sportingly. Only in Europe is it possible to have a great career in top-level football.

Europe dominates contemporary football. In the World Cup that is clearer than ever. The last time the final of the tournament was played without a European team was almost three quarters of a century ago. The last four world champions are Italy, Spain, Germany and France – and three of their four opponents in the final came from Europe. In 2006 and 2018, the semi-finals were all European.

The dominance in club football is even clearer. Everything is pointing towards Europe, to the five big leagues, and this trend has intensified since the creation of the Champions League in 1992. The last world-class footballers to really shine outside Europe were Pelé and Zico. Diego Maradona spent his best years in Spain and Italy, Lionel Messi went to Barcelona as a child, Neymar at 21. From the starting XI of the last non-European world champions, Brazil 2002, only one never played in Europe during his lifetime: Marcos, the goalkeeper.

Talent is evenly distributed across the globe – South America develops many great footballers, Africa has great players – but they always take the final step in a European league. The last world champion teams where this was different were Brazil and Argentina in the 1970s.

Now the Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay teams consist almost exclusively of footballers from the Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1 or Serie A. Teams with a different profile have virtually no chance of reaching the semi-finals at the World Cup, not to mention winning the title. The hosts Qatar failed against Ecuador because the South Americans had, in Enner Valencia, someone who had developed his game in England.
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Kandi1977 said:
The coach of the Norwegian national team commented on that, and said it was really disappointing from someone he'd previously admired, and said he's obviously been brainwashed. Love that he always just speaks his mind and doesn't hold back.
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Tbh i don't want football to get too involved in politics. Off the field players should be free to represent any cause they want. On the field, nah.
There's 168k charities in the uk and many good causes. Football can't represent them all and shouldn't.
 
Lilbaz said:
Tbh i don't want football to get too involved in politics. Off the field players should be free to represent any cause they want. On the field, nah.
There's 168k charities in the uk and many good causes. Football can't represent them all and shouldn't.
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What the players were supporting was neither a charity nor a good cause.
 
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