World Cup Time for pre-qualifying in the Women's game?

[Wallop]

I don't think anyone is saying that a tiny country shouldn't be allowed to enter the World Cup. Every country should - that's the beauty of the competition.

Just saying that maybe you have to earn the right to challenge yourselves against the best teams in the world - either by getting your Nations League ranking/FIFA coefficient up, or by winning a first round qualifier against a team with a similarly low ranking.

As it stands, if you're from San Marino or Andorra or some other tiny European nation, you automatically get the chance to get battered by one of football's superpowers every two years, just by virtue of the fact that your country is located in Europe, and UEFA holds the most minnow-friendly qualifiers.

Exactly - it’s how the FA Cup works, any team (starting from a very low level) can enter and if you keep winning games, you play better opposition. In theory you could win the whole competition but it’s highly unlikely and you get very few horrendous mismatches. On the rare occasion this occurs, it’s seen as the beauty of the cup with the minnows having earned their big day rather than being there because they’ve paid a UEFA/FIFA affiliation fee.

 

[Robie]

How can you enjoy a GK not being able to kick the ball beyond the 18 yard box from a goal kick?? For anyone that doesn't know what i'm on about, check out England's 18th goal last night.

It isn't a knuckle dragging opinion, it is a decision based upon what you can be seen before our very eyes! Look at the scores in the women's game last night for an idea of the 'quality' on offer:

England 20 Latvia 0
Ireland 11 Georgia 0
Luxemborg 0 Austria 8
Spain 8 Scotland 0

If you choose to watch and enjoy the kind of spectacle that is on offer, then good for you. No problems with that. However, please do not be that guy that decides that anyone who chooses to question the 'product' and decides to not tune in to 20-0 stuffing's must have 'knuckle dragging opinions'.

Someone else mentioned the 10,000+ crowd. For balance, these were the ticket prices for last night's game:

£15.00 – Category 1 (Full Price Adult)
£5.00 – Concessions (Over 60's & 18-24)
£2.50 – Child (Under 16s)

For group bookings of 9 or more, please use the Group tab when booking tickets. Group prices:
£7.50 – Category 1 (Full Price Adult)
£5.00 – Concessions (Over 60's & 18-24)
£2.50 – Child (Under 16s)

There is plenty of peddling of the women's game in the media and on various social platforms, not sure it is needed here too.

Anyone would think the England men’s team didn’t just beat a team scoring double figures.

If you have watched the game rather than your sky sports news feed then you can make an opinion. If you have only watched 15 minutes of one game 5 years ago and make your opinion from a sky sports news feed then I will reserve the right to call you out on it.

There are plenty of examples of good quality football out there and the defensive game has vastly improved in those nations that have had the necessary support to professionalise. This has lead to better quality football… and it’s free to watch without a sky subscription…

 

[IsleofWightYellow]

Anyone would think the England men’s team didn’t just beat a team scoring double figures.

I don’t necessarily dispute your other points, but in professional football there’s a massive, massive difference between winning 10-0 and winning 20-0. Yes they are both ‘double figures’ but so is 99-0!

 

[ECYellow]

Anyone would think the England men’s team didn’t just beat a team scoring double figures.

If you have watched the game rather than your sky sports news feed then you can make an opinion. If you have only watched 15 minutes of one game 5 years ago and make your opinion from a sky sports news feed then I will reserve the right to call you out on it.

There are plenty of examples of good quality football out there and the defensive game has vastly improved in those nations that have had the necessary support to professionalise. This has lead to better quality football… and it’s free to watch without a sky subscription…

San Marino are the worst, international men's football team in the world (below British Virgin Islands, Anguilla & US Virgin Islands). What would the England women have racked up against Mauritius? (worst ranked in women's football btw).

Sky Sports news feed doesn't lie. The scores i have highlighted above, happened. Those scores do not suggest a reasonable playing standard. I'm sorry that doesn't fit the narrative but that is how it is, currently. Good luck to the women (OUFC's in particular) but to suggest it is currently a quality product is very difficult to grasp.

Games i have seen would result in the following observations: Screeching females (due to no crowd of note), poor GK's - see Latvia's, Slow build up play, lack of physicality/robustness and a huge disparity between the top of the WSL and even the bottom half of the league - games are rarely competitive for 90 minutes.

If deciding to not tune into games with crowds of 2/3/4,000 in the WSL, and if i decide to not tune into England women batter Latvia 20-0 makes me a 'knuckle dragger', then so be it. Some won't stick their heads above the parapet but i would wage a sizeable amount of money, that my view isn't in the minority amongst football supporters, currently.

By the way, there isn't a right or wrong answer - it is an opinion. At no point have i described you in a derogatory manner after you've expressed your views on the subject. Perhaps you'll reconsider your knuckle dragging opinion in lieu of a reasoned debate.

 

[werthersoriginal]

San Marino are the worst, international men's football team in the world (below British Virgin Islands, Anguilla & US Virgin Islands). What would the England women have racked up against Mauritius? (worst ranked in women's football btw).

Sky Sports news feed doesn't lie. The scores i have highlighted above, happened. Those scores do not suggest a reasonable playing standard. I'm sorry that doesn't fit the narrative but that is how it is, currently. Good luck to the women (OUFC's in particular) but to suggest it is currently a quality product is very difficult to grasp.

Games i have seen would result in the following observations: Screeching females (due to no crowd of note), poor GK's - see Latvia's, Slow build up play, lack of physicality/robustness and a huge disparity between the top of the WSL and even the bottom half of the league - games are rarely competitive for 90 minutes.

If deciding to not tune into games with crowds of 2/3/4,000 in the WSL, and if i decide to not tune into England women batter Latvia 20-0 makes me a 'knuckle dragger', then so be it. Some won't stick their heads above the parapet but i would wage a sizeable amount of money, that my view isn't in the minority amongst football supporters, currently.

By the way, there isn't a right or wrong answer - it is an opinion. At no point have i described you in a derogatory manner after you've expressed your views on the subject. Perhaps you'll reconsider your knuckle dragging opinion in lieu of a reasoned debate.

I think you mean 'my view isn't in the minority amongst MALE football supporters, currently.' I can make a few general observations about male football: shouting males in the crowd, aggressive posturing among the more inadequate fans, feigning of injury by players, and a huge disparity between the top of the PL and even the bottom half of the league - games are rarely competitive for 90 minutes.

I'm not really pro or anti women's football - it's great if people are interested in playing or watching it, and it's totally irrelevant whether it's as 'good' as male football. I do notice that the goalkeeping seems poor, which is partly because the players are small in relation to the goal. It might be more appropriate if their goals were made proportionally smaller.

 

[ECYellow]

I think you mean 'my view isn't in the minority amongst MALE football supporters, currently.' I can make a few general observations about male football: shouting males in the crowd, aggressive posturing among the more inadequate fans, feigning of injury by players, and a huge disparity between the top of the PL and even the bottom half of the league - games are rarely competitive for 90 minutes.

I'm not really pro or anti women's football - it's great if people are interested in playing or watching it, and it's totally irrelevant whether it's as 'good' as male football. I do notice that the goalkeeping seems poor, which is partly because the players are small in relation to the goal. It might be more appropriate if their goals were made proportionally smaller.

Are you suggesting that you'd prefer to not have shouting males (or females) in football grounds? really? That's the point - women's football doesn't have that and so it lacks atmosphere IMO.

As for the disparity in the premier league, i'd point you towards Leicester winning the title a few years ago, Watford beating Ronaldo and Co 4-1 and the current champions squeaking past Watford last night. I'd say the PL is extremely competitive by comparison.

Totally agree on your GK point.

 

[Wallop]

Anyone would think the England men’s team didn’t just beat a team scoring double figures.

If you have watched the game rather than your sky sports news feed then you can make an opinion. If you have only watched 15 minutes of one game 5 years ago and make your opinion from a sky sports news feed then I will reserve the right to call you out on it.

There are plenty of examples of good quality football out there and the defensive game has vastly improved in those nations that have had the necessary support to professionalise. This has lead to better quality football… and it’s free to watch without a sky subscription…

There’s a reason for that.

 

[Paul Cannell]

Can't give it away.

 

[werthersoriginal]

Are you suggesting that you'd prefer to not have shouting males (or females) in football grounds? really? That's the point - women's football doesn't have that and so it lacks atmosphere IMO.

As for the disparity in the premier league, i'd point you towards Leicester winning the title a few years ago, Watford beating Ronaldo and Co 4-1 and the current champions squeaking past Watford last night. I'd say the PL is extremely competitive by comparison.

Totally agree on your GK point.

I'm joking - you mentioned screeching females as a bad thing. I'm sure a less aggressive or at least a less male atmosphere is a big plus for people who do watch women's football.

Anyway if it takes off and lots of girls get interested we'll potentially double our potential crowds.

 

[Big Ron]

San Marino are the worst, international men's football team in the world (below British Virgin Islands, Anguilla & US Virgin Islands). What would the England women have racked up against Mauritius? (worst ranked in women's football btw).

Sky Sports news feed doesn't lie. The scores i have highlighted above, happened. Those scores do not suggest a reasonable playing standard. I'm sorry that doesn't fit the narrative but that is how it is, currently. Good luck to the women (OUFC's in particular) but to suggest it is currently a quality product is very difficult to grasp.

Games i have seen would result in the following observations: Screeching females (due to no crowd of note), poor GK's - see Latvia's, Slow build up play, lack of physicality/robustness and a huge disparity between the top of the WSL and even the bottom half of the league - games are rarely competitive for 90 minutes.

If deciding to not tune into games with crowds of 2/3/4,000 in the WSL, and if i decide to not tune into England women batter Latvia 20-0 makes me a 'knuckle dragger', then so be it. Some won't stick their heads above the parapet but i would wage a sizeable amount of money, that my view isn't in the minority amongst football supporters, currently.

By the way, there isn't a right or wrong answer - it is an opinion. At no point have i described you in a derogatory manner after you've expressed your views on the subject. Perhaps you'll reconsider your knuckle dragging opinion in lieu of a reasoned debate.

A reasoned debate is fine but I and a few others here raised an eyebrow at your comment about women’s football being ‘peddled’ everywhere and there being no need for it here. That did sound like a view from another century.

 

[ECYellow]

A reasoned debate is fine but I and a few others here raised an eyebrow at your comment about women’s football being ‘peddled’ everywhere and there being no need for it here. That did sound like a view from another century.

A comment made off the back of being a knuckle dragger.

 

[Paul Cannell]

This is what happens when gauntlets get thrown down.

 

[Big Ron]

A comment made off the back of being a knuckle dragger.

Ah, right. That's OK then.

 

[ECYellow]

Ah, right. That's OK then.

That's right, all ok. Just opinions, you see. No right or wrong

 

[Marked Ox]

This is what happens when gauntlets get thrown down.

Get the dueling pistols out.

 

[MJB]

Get the dueling pistols out.

I’ve demanded satisfaction from this Forum for years now. One day, one day.

 

[38yearsofpain]

Get the dueling pistols out.

Don't give one to Gorrin he always misses from 10 yards.