<p>I vote for any country that doesn’t have vuvuzelas or the equivalent.</p>
<p>Alexandre, don’t you think that putting the WC in the US is the best way to build more soccer fans? A good, safe country to visit, with really big stadiums = lots of people can attend. Even if Qatar had zero soccer fans, and after the WC, every single person who lives there becomes a soccer fan, that is still not that many people.</p>
<p>Also, it’s very easy to travel around Europe. You can hop on the train and be to another country in a couple hours. You cannot really compare the difficulty in getting from England to France to watch the WC with getting from the US to Europe. England to France is like DC to NYC. Any WC in Western Europe is practically in the back yard of ALL of those people. Over 500 million people, way more than the US.</p>
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<p>based on what???</p>
<p>where did you find this imaginary rule???</p>
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<p>how do you define “worthy”???</p>
<p>"based on what???</p>
<p>where did you find this imaginary rule???"</p>
<p>It is not imaginary, it is applied. There have been 23 host nations to date. With Germany being the only exception (they hosted the World Cup in 1974 and 2006, which is still over 30 years), no other nation has hosted the world cup more than twice and never within 60 years of each other. Brazil, France and Italy are the only other countries that were officially chosen to host the World Cup twice and all three of them waited over 60 years to do so. </p>
<p>“how do you define “worthy”???”</p>
<p>I define “worthy” as a nation capable of hosting the World Cuo but has not do so yet.</p>
<p>Well, let’s not have any more bidding, then, Alexandre, and just award it in the years you state to the countries you state. It will save all the other “unworthy” nations $$$$$$.</p>
<p>And the country is Colombia, not Columbia. Sorry, but that’s a pet peeve of mine.</p>
<p>And, please, tell me about the popularity of soccer in Qater.</p>
<p>gloworm, it’s Qatar, not Qater–people who correct others’ spelling and then make a booboo are a pet peeve of mine…</p>
<p>I don’t think Alexandre’s idea that what makes a host “worthy” is being able to host the Cup and never having done so before is such a bad standard. But I would think that Australia would have been better in this regard than Qatar.</p>
<p>Thanks, Hunt. I agree and my apologies.</p>
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<p>The cold? You mean the same snowy cold I saw Arsenal play in and that Russians play in all the time in their respective country? There are no excuses for poor performance with regards to temperature. In a Manchester City game last week, it was freezing and the players said so, but guess what? They doesn’t mean a thing when it comes to controlling a ball. Balotelli and Silva were still two of the most talented players on the pitch, ice be damned.</p>
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<p>Yes, some coaches will scapegoat the cold as reasons their teams didn’t perform as well. But that is just what it appears–they are scapegoating and trying to save their own skins from the sack. Africans and Australians typically do not complain about the heat in their respective countries, and develop just fine. Conversely, Europeans play in all sorts of cold. Temperature will not turn Ronaldinho into Milner.</p>
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<p>With regards to WC selection, I am a firm believer in diversity. I do not think Europe should continuously get the WC, just because they are richer than everyone else and live nearest enough other. Proximity be damned, if the World Cup is truly the world’s game, it must be held in all corners of the globe, and not controlled by the Europeans who think themselves superior at every turn. </p>
<p>South Africa was an excellent choice, and by and large, the tournament was good. Some will complain about turnout, but I’m sorry that Europeans didn’t want to travel all the way from toasty Europe to Africa. That doesn’t bother me whatsoever. Also, vuvuzelas, although annoying, were part of the spirit and added a unique and unforgettable aspect to the South African spectacle. </p>
<p>In terms of Russia, however, I think FIFA made a bad choice. Russians are pretty racist and do not like non-white (or even non-Slav) people. And do not bother preaching that I am generalizing wrongly; I am not. I personally know Russians who have a general dislike of all sorts of people. In Russia, the racists will mercilessly hound not only African teams, but teams with black or half black players in their squads such as England.</p>
<p>“I don’t think Alexandre’s idea that what makes a host “worthy” is being able to host the Cup and never having done so before is such a bad standard. But I would think that Australia would have been better in this regard than Qatar.”</p>
<p>I agree that Australia would have been a better choice, but Qatar was not a bad one.</p>
<p>“And the country is Colombia, not Columbia. Sorry, but that’s a pet peeve of mine.”</p>
<p>Hehe, we are on CC. I am in university mode. Ironically, my mother was born and raised in Barranquilla!</p>
<p>Interesting developments are taking place. It seems the proposal for hosting the 2022 World Cup in winter is gaining serious traction (Platini is for it) and that Qatar is currently talking to the UAE and Bahrain to co-host the cup with them. This would be a win-win scenario, with ideal weather for the players and a significant number of countries hosting the cup.</p>
<p>See my post #915.</p>
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<p>[Fifa</a> boss tells gay fans: ‘Don’t have sex at Qatar World Cup’ | World news | The Guardian](<a href=“http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/dec/14/fifa-boss-gay-fans-no-sex]Fifa”>Fifa boss tells gay fans: 'Don't have sex at Qatar World Cup' | World news | The Guardian)</p>
<p>Any comment?</p>
<p>My opinions about Blatter would close this thread.</p>
<p>Gay sex in public is illegal in Qatar. Wait, gay sex (or any kind of sex for that matter) in public is illegal virtually everywhere. In the privacy of one’s hotel room, one can do whatever they like, as long as it does not involve serious injury or damage! ;)</p>
<p>As for Blatter, the man is a dinosaur. He should retire and have a younger person more in touch with reality take his place.</p>
<p>A quote from the article:
I suppose it’s likely that Qatar will refrain from doing this while soccer fans are there for the World Cup.</p>
<p>Hunt, those are very rare cases. They usually involve lewd conduct on private places or drunk driving. I do not condone the harsh punishments, but it is not like those people were merely drinking alcohol or having sex in the privacy of their own quarters.</p>
<p>It does not look that great anymore for Qatar.</p>
<p>[Jack</a> Warner: Mohamed Bin Hammam ‘bought’ Qatar World Cup | Metro.co.uk](<a href=“http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/864752-jack-warner-mohamed-bin-hammam-bought-qatar-world-cup]Jack”>http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/864752-jack-warner-mohamed-bin-hammam-bought-qatar-world-cup)</p>
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<p>Fwiw, one can only wonder why it took so long to “catch” Warner and Bin Hammam. It is probably only a matter of time before similar scandals end up tainting the choice of Russia as well. </p>
<p>Fortunately, FIFA is turning to China for a replacement with integrity. And yes that IS sarcastic.</p>
<p>Hadn’t heard this. Interesting.</p>
<p>Any idea how the ratings were for Saturday’s game between Barcelona and Man United? I was pleasantly surprised that Fox showed it instead of baseball …</p>
<p>FOX averaged a 1.8 overnight rating for its coverage of the 2011 Champions League Final between Barcelona and Manchester United, which is an increase of 64% over 2010′s numbers according to a FOX Sports representative.</p>
<p>The best ratings were generated in Washington DC, Seattle, New York, Providence (RI), Los Angeles and Austin. Note that those are preliminary household ratings.</p>
<p>How does that compare to the 2009 Champions League Final on ESPN? The 2009 Final, which featured Barcelona against Manchester United on a Wednesday afternoon, drew a 1.0 rating.</p>
<p>[Premier</a> League blog, soccer news and football shirts from EPL Talk](<a href=“http://www.epltalk.com/]Premier”>http://www.epltalk.com/)</p>
<p>We did our part to help the ratings :). We have a friend whose cousin has a private plane and flew a group from here to Barcelona - lowering the TV ratings by 18 people, lol.</p>