World Cup

[Diane CBPFC]

I got a bit interested in the world cup after seeing the Norwegian team photo AND Lays crisps came out with official marketing for our Canadian team.

I am only cheering flags at this point seeing I know nothing. My teams are Canada; Scotland and Norway.

I think things turned out better than expected with all the politics

[Roger Kettle]

As I'm sure you know, I'm a huge football fan but the timing of the games is going to make it difficult for me to watch. For example, Scotland's first match against Haiti kicks off at 2 a.m. our time. I may need several gallons of coffee.

[Diane CBPFC]

May I suggest you stay up all night then have an afternoon nap?

[Roger Kettle]

My plan is to get comfortable on the couch in front of the TV at 11 p.m. and see what happens. My guess is I'll be asleep by five past.

[ZestyWhite]

Herein lies my dilemma. I have longed for Scotland to qualify for another world cup since Hadda scored Morocco's second at France '98. However, I'm working on Sunday morning. And a 2am kick off means a 4am finish. And there's a real possibility of falling asleep in the pulpit with that kind of bed time.
Add in the possibility of a draw or a Haiti victory, and it's probably best I just give it a miss this time...

If Scotland go out, I'll turn my attentions to France, since a chunk of my family would qualify for service in the Legion. Given my son's Ronaldo obsession and my supermarket loyalty card sweepstake result, I'll also be keeping an eye out for Portugal's results.

[Diane CBPFC]

I am really enjoying this 10-12 minute game re-caps - perfect for my interest level and it gives you an idea of who to cheer for. I am now cheering for South Korea and USA too. I will probably want to watch whole games when it gets closer to the finals so will have to sort out some streaming channel to view them on.


Spoiler alert....




Todays last minute Qatar goal made my day - their poor goalie was on top form triple duty as the Swizz were like energizer bunnies trying relentlessly at goal.

My daughter, who actually coaches soccer, won't watch because of Trump's peace medal.  Thus I'm here talking to you guys instead. 

[Diane CBPFC]

spoiler.....







that first goal was an awesome goal by Scotland :-)

Who else had to look up where Curacao is and its population? 

[Roger Kettle]

I didn't have to look up where Curacao was.
(I did that 3 weeks ago when Scotland played them in a friendly match).

[Diane CBPFC]

These re-cap games are really holding my interest this year, I watched all 8 games over the weekend.

[Max]

At last! A claim to fame! I actually have been to Curacao, er the airport actually for nearly an hour.
Back in 1996 we had a holiday on Margarita island Venezuela, and landed there before the hop to Caracas.
It was a wee place, no doubt lovely if you got to explore it.
Downside was the 22 hours to fly home.

[ZestyWhite]

My daughter, who actually coaches soccer, won't watch because of Trump's peace medal.  Thus I'm here talking to you guys instead.

It's a perenniel bugbear that as an organisation, FIFA is as bent as a three-bob note (I don't know why I use this expression, I was born comfortably after decimalisation) - and you know that they are carving out a substantial chunk of the world cup profits for their own slimy purposes.
I once read a fantastic piece of investigative journalism on the subject - 'Foul!: The Secret World of FIFA: Bribes, Vote Rigging and Ticket Scandals,' by Andrew Jennings. It's obviously a little out of date now, but I haven't seen anything that would make me believe they have reformed themselves in the intervening years.

My own world cup bugbear is seeing so many 'famous' people at the tournament; politicians, low-level musicians, reality TV participants etc. Because you know none of them have endured a freezing Hampden evening watching us struggle against Leichtenstein. It feels a shame for those who have walked through the valley not to have an opportunity to enjoy the mountaintop, because the right honourable member for Gravy Train, East has swiped their ticket.
I also had a rant the other day seeing Rylan Clark on a panel of faces of pundits and presenters on the BBC website. I spent a good couple of minutes deriding the lazy 'jobs for the BBC favourites' approach, and the inanity of having someone give us their allegedly hilarious, 'I don't know anything about football' slant on one of the world's biggest sporting events.
Turns out it was Olivier Giroud....

PS The football's loss is our gain Diane.

[Diane CBPFC]

Max - but have you been to Cape Verde?

Zesty, I still am enjoying these re-cap matches without knowing the background stories.

I am loving watching the pure joy of Scotland and the Netherlands fans as they take over cities - they have paid for flights and hotels and are making the most of every moment. It has been so lovely to see marches of JOY after so many dark years.