Soccer WC becomes less elite.

http://www.theage.com.au/sport/soccer/fifa-council-unanimously-approves-48team-world-cup-from-2026-20170110-gtp4v1.html

Probably the commercial imperative again.

FFS, Asia to get 8 teams. None of their 4 teams from last time won a match.

Sixteen groups of three. One team won't be playing when the other two play their final group match. Yeah, I don't see how anything can go wrong.... Certainly not like it's happened in world cups before.

So, the initial group stage won't be worth watching then. FIFA have obviously watched too many Cricket World Cups.

spot on Bas.

Mind you inclusion of the likes of Australia from 2006 would suggest the WC becoming less elite has been a long term trend.

Who in their right mind is going to bid to host a 48 team competition?

So how many months will the WC be held over now & how many countries will have enough WC class stadiums to hold it?

Same number of group matches given the 16 groups of 3. Round of 32 is overkill, though. Uefa already shat the bed with the appalling euro format this year.

Hmm, other than giving previously non-qulaifying teams a little more hope, I can't see what this will achieve. The difficult hurdle of actually making the WC maybe lessened slightly but, by God, it was satisfying to actually qualify under the old format. Who can forget this??

tricycle wrote:Sixteen groups of three. One team won't be playing when the other two play their final  group match. Yeah, I don't see how anything can go wrong.... Certainly not like it's happened in world cups before.

What's the tie breaker if all teams draw every match? I think that's the only way a gentleman's draw in the last match could result in the third team going down.

skully wrote:Hmm, other than giving previously non-qulaifying teams a little more hope, I can't see what this will achieve. The difficult hurdle of actually making the WC maybe lessened slightly but, by God, it was satisfying to actually qualify under the old format. Who can forget this??

I was at that game. I've never hugged so many men in my life.

Woody was there too. Texted me something about cumming in his jocks.

skully wrote:Woody was there too. Texted me something about cumming in his jocks.

He might have been one of the one's I hugged.

Why not the full 128?

Apparently* even the group games will be decided by penalty shootouts.

JGK wrote:Apparently* even the group games will be decided by penalty shootouts.

But remember this exercise isnb't about the cash.

JGK wrote:

skully wrote:Hmm, other than giving previously non-qulaifying teams a little more hope, I can't see what this will achieve. The difficult hurdle of actually making the WC maybe lessened slightly but, by God, it was satisfying to actually qualify under the old format. Who can forget this??

I was at that game.  I've never hugged so many men in my life.

That was the first time. I can't even remember who we played to qualify for the finals the last time. Making it is now routine and next time anybody gets excited would probably be if we make the last 16.

48 teams is a joke. 16 three-team prelims is a really bad joke. As a sporting head honcho FIFA make me pine for the steady-as-she-goes, understated realism of Roscoe and the Big A..

(And on a not unrelated subject, why are we talking about 'soccer' not 'football'? There's AFL flat-earthers to annoy....)

For the superficial silliness of the concept, it does really turn the WC into something like the old European Cup given it is now essentially a sudden death competition.

So with more penalty shootouts the chances of a non-traditional winner go up I reckon. That said, the quality of the football might deteriorate.

Make it 64 teams and turn it into a sudden death comp. Six rounds of matches over a month, 64 matches (I think) to broadcast.

That would be way better than the each-way bet of the 16 three-team pools. It seems to work OK for the FA Cup, it's simple (lose and pack your bags), leaves no scope to manipulate your next opponent. Why not indeed 64 starters and sudden death?

Qualifying for the WC has been automatic for us since we entered the weak Asian zone. It will be a foregone conclusion now.

They obviously used the 2007 WC in the Caribbean as the template.