World Cup World Cup haters thread

[tonyw]

OK folks, club season is all over and we're about 10 days out from World Cup kickoff......so I'm making a plea to all you haters.

We know that FIFA are the worst, most corrupt organization on the planet; that many (most?) people think that this year's tournament is too large and too long; that international football is tedious; that the weather is going to be too hot to play, and the mandatory drinks breaks are going to be ridiculous (especially for a 9pm kickoff on a pleasant evening in Seattle, or inside an air-conditioned dome in Atlanta); that the kickoff times are largely going to be impossible for UK viewers.

I get it. You're not wrong.

But despite all that, there are some of us that still love this stupid, corrupt, overlong tournament. Love the chance to watch three or four games a day for weeks on end. Love the chance to see Haiti, Uzbekistan and Curacao chancing their arms against the big boys. Love the colour and the brilliant goals and the hopeless defending and the dodgy refereeing and the psychotic tackles and the noise and the different football cultures going head to head and the way that almost every sports fan across the whole world is focused on just one thing for a month.......

And if we're lucky, we get twenty of these in a football watching lifetime.

Also, we'd probably also quite like to chat about it on here with other similarly crazed obsessive yellows.....and it's going to get tedious if every thread is constantly derailed by "This is the worst World Cup of all time" and "I can't stand international football". Yes, it's a perfectly valid opinion, but you're not going to change anything by moaning about it on here and clogging up our threads. All you're going to achieve is to mildly annoy fellow Oxford fans.

So how's about we put all the negativity* in one thread, eh? Use this one for all the anti-World Cup vitriol, and leave the other threads for us nutters to talk about Uzbekistan vs. DR Congo in peace? Would it help if I said please??


(*OK, not all the negativity. Specific negativity about Neymar, Ronaldo, Mbappe and whoever else you hate.....as well as about the Scotland and England national teams when they make their inevitable disappointing exits.....is encouraged.......)

 

[chuckbert]

Fully support this.

Presumably, unreasonable moaning verging on vitriol about England’s performances is still encouraged in the other threads?

 

[tonyw]

Fully support this.

Presumably, unreasonable moaning verging on vitriol about England’s performances is still encouraged in the other threads?

Of course. I will probably be leading it. I will also be yelling at anyone who says or implies that England getting to the quarters or semis or even Final is a 'good effort' and 'they've done OK'. We've got multiple World Class players - as many as anyone save perhaps France.....and they're France so as likely to implode as play their best. Bringing the trophy home should be the only result that makes people happy!

 

[SteMerritt]

I'll take a draw first game.

 

[werthersoriginal]

Yes OK. Can we have a similar thread for OUFC haters who dislike nearly all our players and whoever is managing us?

 

[Essexyellows]

I have never been less interested in a World Cup.

Gave up when it went to the footballing hotbed, and conveniently mega wealthy, Qatar.

In town there is a large open space called Jubilee Square. the council are planning outside bars, big screens etc......... in the most multi-cultural City in the UK I can not see that ending well with games starting at 9/10/11pm and folk being on the lash straight after work for 5 hours+.

Maybe I`m just a miserable old Hector.

 

[Scotchegg]

It was the 1982 World Cup that gave me a love for football way beyond the FA Cup finals or occasional games on TV. Had the Ladybird World Cup book that I would record the results in. I learnt where Honduras and El Salvador was, especially after they got battered by Hungary. I loved seeing Bryan Robson score after a few seconds against France, and pretty much everything Brazil did. Zico, Socrates, Falcao, Junior, Elder, Oscar! Just beautiful football, until they were robbed by Italy!

I think that the older we get, the less exciting the World Cup becomes. And this one is not only going to be ridiculously long, but the potential to be ruined by Trump and Infantino and everything those two mugs stand for.

But I'll still watch, although probably sparingly during the first few games of the group stages except Brazil v Scotland and the England games depending on work. There was a time when I would have taken leave around England fixtures and headed to the pub. Now, I'll aim to see these earlier games but won't drop other commitments.

By the time we get to the knockout stages I'll probably have the bug and will watch more, but without any half time shitshows!

 

[Scotchegg]

Yes OK. Can we have a similar thread for OUFC haters who dislike nearly all our players and whoever is managing us?

I thought that was the transfer thread?!

 

[holdsteady]

Good idea. Can’t say I am overly hopeful it will work but as someone who has a sticker book, two separate wall charts and will be in at least 3 or 4 prediction leagues I am already getting excited, so if it keeps the “I don’t like international football” posts off threads about Uzbekistans left backs haircut then it’s worth a go.

Don’t think how I will ever get how anyone who grew up, and is still a football fan, watching World cups could fall out of love with it, but different strokes for different folks, so hopefully people will respect that throughout the tournament.

 

[werthersoriginal]

Good idea. Can’t say I am overly hopeful it will work but as someone who has a sticker book, two separate wall charts and will be in at least 3 or 4 prediction leagues I am already getting excited, so if it keeps the “I don’t like international football” posts off threads about Uzbekistans left backs haircut then it’s worth a go.

Don’t think how I will ever get how anyone who grew up, and is still a football fan, watching World cups could fall out of love with it, but different strokes for different folks, so hopefully people will respect that throughout the tournament.

I suspect a lot of people, like me, will start off not really bothered and end up getting really into it.

 

[tonyw]

I'll take a draw first game.

So would I......but that's purely for selfish reasons, because I'm going to the Panama game at the end of the Group Stage and would rather it mattered at least a little bit!

 

[ZeroTheHero]

We probably need a 'luke warm' thread as well!

I am not a 'hater' but can't say I 'love' the World Cup in this guise, in that place, under the current administrations (both FIFA and the USA).

I'll watch bits of it and will enjoy some of it. I probably won't remember many of the matches for long.

 

[bicesterox]

I don't think I've ever looked forward to a world cup less than this one, but I will watch all Englsnd and Scotland games in the hope England can do well and Scotland provide the comedy

 

[werthersoriginal]

I don't think I've ever looked forward to a world cup less than this one, but I will watch all Englsnd and Scotland games in the hope England can do well and Scotland provide the comedy

Or vice versa

 

[Northernyellow]

Maybe it's an age thing (me), but I wasn't very interested in Qatar, and I'm even less interested in this one. The pricing approach for this tournament (happy to be corrected, but I think driven by FIFA) is just disgraceful. It's now become a corporate event and FIFA clearly has very little interest in the 'football family', or whatever Infantino decides to call it this week. Probably won't happen, but half empty stadia would serve them right.

 

[Left Wing Cross]

I watched very little of the last World Cup and don't see that changing this time.

I'm most likely to listen to some key games on the radio but I expect that to be the limit of my involvement.

 

[Northernyellow]

Or vice versa

Scotland falling apart is one of life's pleasures. They hate us (football wise), so it's only fair we reciprocate.

 

[Kamal]

Whilst I am not defending the prices, they are normal for what Americans pay for their sporting events, even concerts. They have a ridiculous live event pricing culture over there which I hope doesn't come across to Europe (some of it already has).

 

[BicesterU]

Urgh, clicked on this thread because I wanted a safe space to complain about it all, and all I find is this sickening plea for positivity

Will probably watch the England games and hope we win it, but won't be crying if we don't.

 

[Sussexox]

Scotland falling apart is one of life's pleasures. They hate us (football wise), so it's only fair we reciprocate.

I'll be in Scotland for some of England's games (again). It'll be entertaining to say the least

 

[SamLongSlidingTackle]

It’s football so I’ll watch when I can

 

[Osei Yaw]

Yes OK. Can we have a similar thread for OUFC haters who dislike nearly all our players and whoever is managing us?

And another for the sanctimonious people who bait other fans, imply their opinions are wrong and then cry foul when they get a bit back.

 

[werthersoriginal]

And another for the sanctimonious people who bait other fans, imply their opinions are wrong and then cry foul when they get a bit back.

You what?

 

[Emilio]

Bit disappointed, I must say. I saw the title and thought this would be an exciting place set aside specifically for those with my inclination to chat about something particular while the tournament is on.

Don't worry @tonyw, we haters are already so bored of the endless farce of a tournament that we're already bored of moaning about it too.

I loved the magic of the WCs when I was younger. I hope you all get to find some sort of magic to enjoy in this one. With a billion teams involved, you would hope there be at least a few sparks!

 

[holdsteady]

Bit disappointed, I must say. I saw the title and thought this would be an exciting place set aside specifically for those with my inclination to chat about something particular while the tournament is on.

Don't worry @tonyw, we haters are already so bored of the endless farce of a tournament that we're already bored of moaning about it too.

I loved the magic of the WCs when I was younger. I hope you all get to find some sort of magic to enjoy in this one. With a billion teams involved, you would hope there be at least a few sparks!

Did you fall out out of love with it about 3 world cups ago?

 

[Emilio]

Did you fall out out of love with it about 3 world cups ago?

2010 was good fun, and despite the Spanish tikka takka lifting the prize, there were some great games. I don't remember much of Brazil 2014, other than the hosts being schooled by Germany.

But, of course, it peaked in 2006

 

[unification]

We probably need a 'luke warm' thread as well!

I am not a 'hater' but can't say I 'love' the World Cup in this guise, in that place, under the current administrations (both FIFA and the USA).

I'll watch bits of it and will enjoy some of it. I probably won't remember many of the matches for long.

This probably sums up how I feel about it too. FIFA have the World Cup and it continues to have that exclusivity. It’s on every four years, it’s going to be somewhere new or unvisited for a long time and it’s a stage to get behind your team regardless of club colours.

It’s horribly bloated now, diluted with weaker teams, held in a nation run by a w****r (although does anyone listen to Trump any more when he says the US are ‘close’ to a deal with Iran? Boy who cried wolf, much?) and it’s going to have some laughable bells and whistles attached to it, but it’s still the World Cup and I’ll be there watching what I can.

My wife who has no interest in the game asked me how many matches I think I’ll end up watching. I said I’d checked KO times and calculated I could see myself watching some or all of ‘just 52 of the 104 games’. She said ‘just 52?!’

Despite it all, I’m going to be invested but certainly not to the extent that I’ll be setting the alarm for Brazil v Haiti at 1.30am.

 

[werthersoriginal]

This probably sums up how I feel about it too. FIFA have the World Cup and it continues to have that exclusivity. It’s on every four years, it’s going to be somewhere new or unvisited for a long time and it’s a stage to get behind your team regardless of club colours.

It’s horribly bloated now, diluted with weaker teams, held in a nation run by a w****r (although does anyone listen to Trump any more when he says the US are ‘close’ to a deal with Iran? Boy who cried wolf, much?) and it’s going to have some laughable bells and whistles attached to it, but it’s still the World Cup and I’ll be there watching what I can.

My wife who has no interest in the game asked me how many matches I think I’ll end up watching. I said I’d checked KO times and calculated I could see myself watching some or all of ‘just 52 of the 104 games’. She said ‘just 52?!’

Despite it all, I’m going to be invested but certainly not to the extent that I’ll be setting the alarm for Brazil v Haiti at 1.30am.

TBH all it takes for me to get into it is lots of games on TV at convenient times- which I’m not sure this one is going to have.

 

[Emilio]

Despite it all, I’m going to be invested but certainly not to the extent that I’ll be setting the alarm for Brazil v Haiti at 1.30am.

Bet you'll live to regret that, when Haiti absolutely wipe the floor with Brazil in what will be considered one of the greatest ever matches in World Cup history.

 

[tonyw]

Bet you'll live to regret that, when Haiti absolutely wipe the floor with Brazil in what will be considered one of the greatest ever matches in World Cup history.

I’ll send you all some pics because it’s the first of four matches I’m going to be at!