International Football Is Dead

[JG3001]

Agree with the general sentiment round here. Qualifiers and friendlies are a complete borefest and I normally only watch them if there's literally nothing else on TV. But when it comes to the tournament itself, be it World Cup or Euros, love the constant football with the Summer weather, thoroughly enjoyable.

Think the main problem maybe that the latest Euros have been somewhat ruined by the new format IMO. As it rewards teams who play negative football, and has possibly tainted international football in the OPs mind. Have to hope they don't touch the World Cup.

Personally, I think they should change the Euros back to the original format, or at least alter it so only top 2 teams qualify from each group (on the assumption that they expand the number of teams competing again)

 

[Oscie]

Hate international football but I don't think anything beats the World Cup, or the Euros. The quality of football often is poorer than the league/CL but having 2 or 3 matches a day to watch for a month is so amazing I hyperventilate with excitement thinking about it.

 

[Darwin09]

Horses for courses...in South America WC qualification is as exciting as it's ever been. High quality, every match is closely fought, and its 75% complete yet 8 of 10 teams are still competing for 5 spots, and only 1 team is clearly running away with it.

http://www.espnfc.us/world-cup-qualifying-conmebol/65/table

 

[Big Ben Foster]

CONMEBOL qualifiers are fantastic

 

[Peanut Butter]

Thread title: "International football is dead"

Thread content: "Here's why I don't like international football any more"

And?

 

[Bojan11]

Horses for courses...in South America WC qualification is as exciting as it's ever been. High quality, every match is closely fought, and its 75% complete yet 8 of 10 teams are still competing for 5 spots, and only 1 team is clearly running away with it.

http://www.espnfc.us/world-cup-qualifying-conmebol/65/table

That's because it's one whole group and you ain't got shit like Lithuania and Estonia stinking the joint.

If it was Spain, France, Germany, Belgium etc in one whole group then it would be exciting.

 

[littlepeasoup]

I do love international tournaments, even if I don't really care for international football. The best 30-odd teams playing each other, 3 matches a day for a fortnight, sun, beer. Can't beat it.

Sometimes tournaments actually live up to the hype too, which is nice.

Edit: In regards to whether international football is actually dead; I don't think it is, although watching England in qualifying matches does make me lose the will to live.

 

[17 Van der Gouw]

And?

Uhh, stating international football is dead is not the same as you not liking international football, all you've really done is given your opinion - not exactly objective is it?

Just because you don't like it, doesn't make it dead. Obviously...

 

[2mufc0]

Last time I watched an international match was the Euro final last year.

 

[Peyroteo]

UEFA just announced this today - http://www.uefa.com/community/news/newsid=2079553.html. I'm surprised there's not a thread on it here because it's quite big news. It's the UEFA Nations League and it will basically end most meaningless international friendlies. It should make the qualification process more interesting too. If it works as expected, the solution to what you're all complaining about has been announced 6 hours ago.

International football is amazing. There's nothing in world football that beats the World Cup. Last two Copa Americas were great and even though there wasn't great football on display in the Euros, there were unforgetable moments too. I agree that european qualification can be boring, but hopefully the UEFA Nations League fixes that. If you think the World Cup or the Euros are boring then it might be time to watch another sport.

 

[The Black Pearl]

Hate international football but I don't think anything beats the World Cup, or the Euros. The quality of football often is poorer than the league/CL but having 2 or 3 matches a day to watch for a month is so amazing I hyperventilate with excitement thinking about it.

You hate it and think it's amazing.

International football is not dead. It's just the money driven organizations that push the Premier league upon us as being the be all and end all when it comes to football has brainwashed some of you into thinking it is and that's your problem.

 

[Cheesy]

One previous power usually struggles, like Holland are doing recently.
But the whole thing seems to be dumbing down and moving to even sillier amounts of qualifiers. The Euros had too much dross in, and that nonsense with 3rd place qualifiers going through meant the crap teams got too far as well.

Now 32 in the world cup?!

Make either of them any bigger and you might as well scrap qualifiers for all but the lower ranked teams They can compete to join the top lot.

I don't mind 32 in the World Cup. It's a massive competition and warrants a decent number of teams being involved - although a 16 or 24 team WC would have merits as well. The 24 team Euros thing was a terrible move though.

 

[Stack]

Ok, so the thread title is a tad dramatic but to me, international football is done. I don't watch a single minute of it anymore.

Is it because I am older now? Or has the allure of Champ League football ruined the Euro and World Cup competitions.

I don't particularly support any nation anymore (I am half English, half Italian due to parents/where I was born.)

I literally don't care if England or Italy win, lose or draw anymore.

When the international break comes around, I use it as an excuse to catch up on house work, gardening etc.

So yeah - why my dislike for international football? Am I a miserable old man or do other reasons come into play?

When I was younger, tournaments like Mexico 86 and Italia 90 were magic. I was addicted.

I hardly paid attention to the previous World Cup.

Im 55, I love international football.

 

[Mrs Smoker]

UEFA just announced this today - http://www.uefa.com/community/news/newsid=2079553.html. I'm surprised there's not a thread on it here because it's quite big news. It's the UEFA Nations League and it will basically end most meaningless international friendlies. It should make the qualification process more interesting too. If it works as expected, the solution to what you're all complaining about has been announced 6 hours ago.

We had some threads about it. I am supportive of it.

 

[Peyroteo]

We had some threads about it. I am supportive of it.

Today is the first time I even heard about this. I'm just happy they're trying something. Even though the format of the competition seems a bit unfair I think it will work out fine.

 

[Mrs Smoker]

Today is the first time I even heard about this. I'm just happy they're trying something. Even though the format of the competition seems a bit unfair I think it will work out fine.

It was first announced back in 2014 I believe, and last year there was some more info about it. Yeah, I'm also happy they do something, as my interest in friendlies sans betting is at around 2% these days. Competitiveness will add some spark to the international games, and I like the prospect of one or two lowly rated countries to make the Euros.

 

[Eire Red United]

Ok, so the thread title is a tad dramatic but to me, international football is done. I don't watch a single minute of it anymore.

Is it because I am older now? Or has the allure of Champ League football ruined the Euro and World Cup competitions.

I don't particularly support any nation anymore (I am half English, half Italian due to parents/where I was born.)

I literally don't care if England or Italy win, lose or draw anymore.

When the international break comes around, I use it as an excuse to catch up on house work, gardening etc.

So yeah - why my dislike for international football? Am I a miserable old man or do other reasons come into play?

When I was younger, tournaments like Mexico 86 and Italia 90 were magic. I was addicted.

I hardly paid attention to the previous World Cup.

From my point of view, it's very exciting, everyone gets behind the team and theres a real buzz, the Irish lads that went to Paris seemed to have the time of their lives. I feel like I get alot more into watching Ireland than watching any other team. I watch lads like Walters, McClean and Coleman absolutely work their balls off for the team and I appreciate that a lot more than watching overpaid fairies prancing about.

 

[BennyBlanco]

Friendlies are generally a crime against football, qualifiers you seem to play a bunch of crumbums 4 games out of 5, WC & Euro's are OKAY, we all watch it but partly because its summer, theres no club football and we're all starved for action.
Got to be honest though, I think i'd watch a bunch of chimps run about trying to play football during the summer break with equal enthusiasm as a WC/Euro's, so long as they're in united shirts... you get that desperate.

 

[VeevaVee]

People need entertainment, but even more, people need something to really get behind, which mostly comes from the players imo. At the moment they're mainly an unlikeable bunch of nobodies. Before that they were a decent amount of world class players, and there was passion.

 

[ROFLUTION]

Wish they'd just accumulate the stats on each national team from FIFA 17 or something and add them all up to who goes through to the EUROs and World Cup.. then we'd be free from all these boring qualifiers and have more fun with the league and stuff

 

[Fenomeno9]

Conmebol has the best and most competitive qualifier games.

 

[Stack]

Wish they'd just accumulate the stats on each national team from FIFA 17 or something and add them all up to who goes through to the EUROs and World Cup.. then we'd be free from all these boring qualifiers and have more fun with the league and stuff

Yeah Sunderland v Swansea is a laugh a minute

 

[Vato]

Qualifiers suck indeed, but I still love the tourneys.

 

[Peanut Butter]

Uhh, stating international football is dead is not the same as you not liking international football, all you've really done is given your opinion - not exactly objective is it?

Just because you don't like it, doesn't make it dead. Obviously...

Obviously! Most posts around here are opinions. It's a forum where we offer debate and our feelings or thoughts about something.

If you actually thought international footy was dead just because of my thread title then you're extremely naive.

I even said thread title was "a tad dramatic" in the OP.

 

[Acole9]

It was dead ages ago. I had Portugal vs Hungary on yesterday just to get some sort of football fix and it was awful.

 

[Cloud7]

Coming from Trinidad, I can't say that I really share this sentiment as much as most of you. I generally get as excited to watch the national team play as I do to see United play. I can't speak for how it is for the other islands/Concacaf countries, but there's always massive hype in T&T whenever we have a game, particularly when it's a home game.

Take for example the game on Friday against Panama in the hex. All you could hear about all day on the radio was the game. Loads of places had special offers and stuff for people coming to watch the game. Granted the national stadium wasn't as full it as could have been, but I'm sure there were other mitigating circumstances to that, since most sports bars were absolutely packed out. When we have away games while the traveling support might not be all that, the amount of people tuning in at home is still as massive.

It may be due to the fact that most people don't really see our players week in week out like fans of players from the bigger countries do, so it's always exciting seeing the national team play. I agree with the sentiment that some of the European games in these qualifiers/friendlies generally are pretty boring, but I can't condemn international football as a whole when I find myself looking forward to an international break where we have a game (even though I miss United), and when I see how much of the country gets excited for these games.

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

This thread is spot on!

Internationals used to be the top level. It hasn't been for a long while now.

It always makes me laugh when players, managers and pundits talk about 'this level' as if qualifiers against European minnows are somehow the highest octane, most challenging football imaginable.

 

[Stack]

It always makes me laugh when players, managers and pundits talk about 'this level' as if qualifiers against European minnows are somehow the highest octane, most challenging football imaginable.

It always makes me laugh when fans dont understand that "this level" might just be referring to a minnows perspective and experience.

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

It always makes me laugh when fans dont understand that "this level" might just be referring to a minnows perspective and experience.

Fair point, but I've heard pundits saying things like 'you can't defend like that at this level' about England's qualifying games against run-of-the-mill teams. I find it amusing that players who have played in Champions League games against the world's best players are somehow playing a whole different ball game just because they're wearing an England jersey.

 

[EVO]

I think international footbal is somewhat for football what the Eurovision Contest is for music. You don't watch it for the quality of the performance but to entertain yourself with harmless flag-waving.

 

[Blackwidow]

Coming from Trinidad, I can't say that I really share this sentiment as much as most of you. I generally get as excited to watch the national team play as I do to see United play. I can't speak for how it is for the other islands/Concacaf countries, but there's always massive hype in T&T whenever we have a game, particularly when it's a home game.

Take for example the game on Friday against Panama in the hex. All you could hear about all day on the radio was the game. Loads of places had special offers and stuff for people coming to watch the game. Granted the national stadium wasn't as full it as could have been, but I'm sure there were other mitigating circumstances to that, since most sports bars were absolutely packed out. When we have away games while the traveling support might not be all that, the amount of people tuning in at home is still as massive.

It may be due to the fact that most people don't really see our players week in week out like fans of players from the bigger countries do, so it's always exciting seeing the national team play. I agree with the sentiment that some of the European games in these qualifiers/friendlies generally are pretty boring, but I can't condemn international football as a whole when I find myself looking forward to an international break where we have a game (even though I miss United), and when I see how much of the country gets excited for these games.

I think there is a difference between the enthusiasm in the smaller and the bigger nations. For Germany it is just a rush through the qualifiers as they never really struggle - but they often do not play well. Especially now short before the hot time in the leagues and in European football starts. Nobody wants to get injured - but you have to win. So it usually is not party time but done with minimum effort.

It should be different for countries that have to fight for every point to qualify and that have less players in the top teams.

 

[Mr Smith]

Don't understand this opinion at all. I get so excited in the lead-up to international tournaments, trying to predict squads and starting XI's, trying to predict tactics, putting current performances in the context of history... I love it.

There's a possibility that that's because I was introduced to international football before club football; the first football matches I really watched and paid attention to were the first games of Germany 2006. I was instantly addicted, and after that I just searched for football anywhere I could get it, but international football still holds some magic for me. Could also be because I'm very invested in football history, and tried to learn everything I could about international tournaments in those early days. Of course, I've done the same thing with club football since, but international football was still my first love.

 

[JustFootballFan]

I wonder whether the EPL has interns to open topics like these to Putin the English public. It´s okay we suck at football for the last 50 years. All you do is hope the players of your team don´t get hurt. When somebody does get hurt liek Coleman, make 20 articles about it. Don´t cheer the national team jersey. Only like the club jersey and hate when somebody else from another club plays well for England. You know if there was no international breaks the season would be four weeks shorter and you´d have no competitive games either. Oh wait not true. Then the EPL would have 24 teams.

 

[Cloud7]

I think there is a difference between the enthusiasm in the smaller and the bigger nations. For Germany it is just a rush through the qualifiers as they never really struggle - but they often do not play well. Especially now short before the hot time in the leagues and in European football starts. Nobody wants to get injured - but you have to win. So it usually is not party time but done with minimum effort.

It should be different for countries that have to fight for every point to qualify and that have less players in the top teams.

Yup, I think this is exactly where the big divide is. We've qualified for one world cup in our history, and usually get knocked out of regional competition early-ish, so matches for us are a much rarer occurrence. Not to mention what you said about the players in top teams and how often you actually get to see your own countrymen in action.

 

[TheRedHearted]

I wonder how do fans of not that popular clubs feel about it.

I find it fine usually, very entertaining sometimes, and WC is still the pinnacle of sport. I do not care for friendlies in the slightest, thou. We'll see how Nations League will be like.

Don't you mean champions league?

 

[Cloud7]

Don't understand this opinion at all. I get so excited in the lead-up to international tournaments, trying to predict squads and starting XI's, trying to predict tactics, putting current performances in the context of history... I love it.

There's a possibility that that's because I was introduced to international football before club football; the first football matches I really watched and paid attention to were the first games of Germany 2006. I was instantly addicted, and after that I just searched for football anywhere I could get it, but international football still holds some magic for me. Could also be because I'm very invested in football history, and tried to learn everything I could about international tournaments in those early days. Of course, I've done the same thing with club football since, but international football was still my first love.

Similar for me. When i was very young I didn't really know/understand club football was a thing, yet I always knew about our national team and would get taken to the matches. I actually became a fan of United as a result of Yorke being a player here. I was amazed that someone from our island was playing at what I found out to be one of the biggest clubs in the world. That of course led me to United, and the rest is history.

 

[marukomu]

I agree. I haven't watched an England game for 12 years and I haven't bothered with the last 3 World Cups.

 

[Kaos]

I hate it, such drab affairs.

Only bother with tournaments to scout some of our muppet targets.

 

[Mr Smith]

Similar for me. When i was very young I didn't really know/understand club football was a thing, yet I always knew about our national team and would get taken to the matches. I actually became a fan of United as a result of Yorke being a player here. I was amazed that someone from our island was playing at what I found out to be one of the biggest clubs in the world. That of course led me to United, and the rest is history.

Oh I definitely agree, and for me Germany 2006 was this big exciting thing because it'd been so long since Australia last qualified. But to be frank, I get really into an international tournament whether Australia is involved or not, it's still super exciting for me (and I confess, during the Euro's I sort of jump on the England bandwagon because of my investment in English club football).

 

[Mr Smith]

Horses for courses...in South America WC qualification is as exciting as it's ever been. High quality, every match is closely fought, and its 75% complete yet 8 of 10 teams are still competing for 5 spots, and only 1 team is clearly running away with it.

http://www.espnfc.us/world-cup-qualifying-conmebol/65/table

That's a very good point, qualification is a very different kettle of fish in South America, where there's a lot more competition. Honestly though, I get interested in qualification tournaments in general, at least in the sense that I'm interested in what shape different teams play and how teams are developing ahead of tournaments.

 

[Fenomeno9]

Don't you mean champions league?

The World Cup isn't held every year.