World Cup 2018/2022

I think for America this should be a wake-up call, not just in the realm of sport. Our bid was riding the coattails of 1994 and our reputation as a dominant figure on the global stage. If we don't wake up and get our asses in gear with what the rest of the world is doing (advancing) we're gonna be the newest third world country in 100 years.

Qatar's bid was ******* GREAT.

by bid, do you mean money envelopes?

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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I think for America this should be a wake-up call, not just in the realm of sport. Our bid was riding the coattails of 1994 and our reputation as a dominant figure on the global stage. If we don't wake up and get our asses in gear with what the rest of the world is doing (advancing) we're gonna be the newest third world country in 100 years.

Qatar's bribe was ******* GREAT.

Fixed for you

Originally Posted by daft

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by bid, do you mean money envelopes?

Originally Posted by Lusitano

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Fixed for you
This and this x infiniti. Can't win the bid when the bidding process is rigged. ARE YOU ******* KIDDING ME?!!?!? 120 DEGREE SUMMERS?!!?!? A COUNTRY WITH A POPULATION OF THE BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN?!?!? ZERO FOOTBALLING HISTORY?!? Also, LOL @ World Cup bids somehow amounting to world super power influence. How on EARTH did the US get by before 1994? Seriously....I hope that point was sarcastic.

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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If we don't wake up and get our asses in gear with what the rest of the world is doing (advancing) we're gonna be the newest third world country in 100 years.

What the **** does this even mean?

Originally Posted by StephenHero

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What the **** does this even mean?

Its just an all too common American attitude that just because its America, its great. We planned a World Cup with NO NEW STADIUMS, NO NEW TECHNOLOGY, and we were up against a nation that will air condition the pitch, and build 10 new ones. Look at AMerican education...we're lagging behind many other socialized nations. Why? Because we feel we're too good to do what the Danes are doing..."they're the ******* Danes, who the hell are they, we're America!"

This attitude purveyed all throughout our bid.

Originally Posted by embowafa

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Also, LOL @ World Cup bids somehow amounting to world super power influence. How on EARTH did the US get by before 1994? Seriously....I hope that point was sarcastic.

I meant politically/economically/socially. more so the latter.

so much wrong in this thread. not sure where to start

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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Its just an all too common American attitude that just because its America, its great. We planned a World Cup with NO NEW STADIUMS, NO NEW TECHNOLOGY, and we were up against a nation that will air condition the pitch, and build 10 new ones. Look at AMerican education...we're lagging behind many other socialized nations. Why? Because we feel we're too good to do what the Danes are doing..."they're the ******* Danes, who the hell are they, we're America!"

This attitude purveyed all throughout our bid.

wait...what about the Danes?seriosuly i missed that part

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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Its just an all too common American attitude that just because its America, its great. We planned a World Cup with NO NEW STADIUMS, NO NEW TECHNOLOGY, and we were up against a nation that will air condition the pitch, and build 10 new ones. Look at AMerican education...we're lagging behind many other socialized nations. Why? Because we feel we're too good to do what the Danes are doing..."they're the ******* Danes, who the hell are they, we're America!" This attitude purveyed all throughout our bid.

Originally Posted by NewYorkRanger

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I meant politically/economically/socially. more so the latter.
Then I would recommend you start a thread on how our failing education system will ultimately fail the country as a whole (I'm sure you're a great teacher...I just wish there were more of them! )...but to connect a bid to host a sporting event to global political/economic/social influence is a bit silly. The US essentially IGNORES football, except for a slight blip on the radar every 4 years, and is still the cultural center of the universe. That's not changing any time soon. And most assuredly will not change because Qatar and Russia host an event. Besides, your whole argument is based on the idea that the bidding process was fair and that the US was on a level playing field....that was NEVER the case.

Yes, anytime you have the opportunity to give the biggest sporting event in the world to a country with no football traditional at all, no stadiums, 125 degree temps in the summer, and a population smaller than that of the San Gabriel Valley in LA, you just cannot pass on it. A real no brainer.

Will Inez Sainez have to wear a burqa on the sidelines? What a ******* joke.

Originally Posted by blofeld

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Yes, anytime you have the opportunity to give the biggest sporting event in the world to a country with no football traditional at all, no stadiums, 125 degree temps in the summer, and a population smaller than that of the San Gabriel Valley in LA, you just cannot pass on it. A real no brainer.

Hey, at least all the matches will be within walking distance.

I mean, aside from the U.S. and Australia, who else had a bid? Those had to have been better options than Quatar, right?

WALKING distance? how about crawling distance.

They're going to have a complex with 3 stadiums in one area. So stupid.

BTW, Korea/Japan also had a bid for 2022. Too close to 2002, IMO.

Are they going to allow more alcohol/relax the alcohol laws for the cup? If not, the Germans, Brits, and Dutch will be at a huge disadvantage.

Russia and Qatar may have prepared great bids, and this is indicative of a high level of commitment which FIFA is obviously looking for.

That being said the bid "process" for the '18 and '22 World Cups were a ******* farce. The World Cup needs to be about two things.

1) The sport
2) The fans
3) Money

The World Cup needs to be hosted in an environment where the teams can play in safety, where the game is reasonably popular, and ideally where it will help to make the game more popular. The weather in Russia shouldn't be a problem in June/July. However, much of Russian/the Russian population is notoriously racist and it's not nearly as safe as most of the other bidding countries.

Qatar is a rich country and I'm not sure what they're like in regards to crime, etc. But the heat there is ******* ridiculous and they can make all the noises they want about air-conditioning it's going to be a BOILING in those stadiums (stadia?). I'm also unsure how open-minded the country is and who knows how the natives will react to black, Jewish, etc players and fans.

I don't have the statistics at hand but I believe the United States made up the largest % of people traveling to the 2010 World Cup. Many people from the US and elsewhere will have deep reservations about traveling to Russia due to preconceived notions about the country along with very real concerns as well.

As for Qatar, who wants to go to the Middle East? That's going to be a turnoff for a LOT of people. Who knows what kind of issues there are going to be. People were hesitant about going to South Africa. As a destination it's nicer than Russia but not as safe and on a continent that, as a general rule, isn't looked at very favorably. Just the words "Middle East" are going to turn people away, whether or not it deserves to.

When I say money I mean money for the host country. Not money that FIFA gets to jam into their already overstuffed pockets. For 2018 the difference isn't as big but having the World Cup in Spain/Portugal or England would've netted more money because there would have been more travelers to the area, both those with tickets and those without. The 2022 World Cup in the US especially would have made a bundle for the same reason.

FIFA obviously has its own agenda because neither of these two choices favor the game, the teams, or the fans. As a fan of the game I'm disappointed because I want the World Cup to be as successful as possible, and this simply won't happen in Russia and Qatar. I think the countries that should have won the bids were perhaps a little too lax in their preparation, or in some cases rocked by scandals, or not looked upon favorably by FIFA.

Either way, these two decisions have further stained FIFA's reputation and someone, somehow needs to clean house and cleanse FIFA of the corruption and all the self-serving, back-slapping bastards that are currently running the show.