Because France changed managers so late in the cycle, there’s a real chance that they grow into this tournament. They look so much better today.France outclassed Brazil. Just a clinic in seeing out a game (except for that foul in the last 30 seconds).
Maybe because this USWNT clearly hasn’t found their groove yet and avoiding one of the top teams until that happens would clearly help them achieve that three peat. Do you cheer for the Patriots to get the 4 seed so they can play the toughest games on the way to the Super Bowl?I don’t get fans wanting to avoid teams to become World Champion, especially when rooting for a 3 peat. I want the most entertaining matchups possible. Not a path of tomato cans.
This game was pretty wheels off entertaining.Panama-Jamaica- 2 CONCACAF in the same group???
you'd never know the ref wasn't from CONCACAF. Lots of nasty fouls judged a play-on, a questionable PK non-call, a questionable VAR overrule of a PK call, announcers were joking about "concacaf after dark" because it's like the middle of the night in Perth. Ref also was about to give a Panama player (Castillo?) a second yellow at about 35', when she realized the player was already on a yellow, and very obviously hesitated and then stayed her hand. And they said this ref had done the women's Euro final! Yikes.This game was pretty wheels off entertaining.
The few games I’ve seen there have been a lot of really brutal tackles allowed with very few cards and in some cases play ons… I thought part of VAR was getting these calls right..you'd never know the ref wasn't from CONCACAF. Lots of nasty fouls judged a play-on, a questionable PK non-call, a questionable VAR overrule of a PK call, announcers were joking about "concacaf after dark" because it's like the middle of the night in Perth. Ref also was about to give a Panama player (Castillo?) a second yellow at about 35', when she realized the player was already on a yellow, and very obviously hesitated and then stayed her hand. And they said this ref had done the women's Euro final! Yikes.
Panama won the intercontinental playoff to get here, if you were wondering how that happened.Panama-Jamaica- 2 CONCACAF in the same group???
+1 Winning the World Cup is never easy.. the idea that a fan would want a harder path through is absolutely insane… there are zero fans of any other country that would think this way..Maybe because this USWNT clearly hasn’t found their groove yet and avoiding one of the top teams until that happens would clearly help them achieve that three peat. Do you cheer for the Patriots to get the 4 seed so they can play the toughest games on the way to the Super Bowl?
The top team earns the right to avoid the best team from the other group.
You are correct. The draw for the world cup groups was done on October 2022 but the intercontinental playoff wasn't until February 2023.Panama won the intercontinental playoff to get here, if you were wondering how that happened.
They beat Norway and drew with Switzerland, the 2 teams that advanced from their group, but lost out on GD because they lost to the Philippines.New Zealand becomes the first host in the WWC to be eliminated in the Group Stage.
Was that in doubt? I'd figure getting certain federations to let them play without one would be a harder task than letting a few players voluntarily wear them.Quite impressive also is FIFA’s progressivity in allowing a player play with a hijab in the WC
A few years back I advised a thesis that compared teenage Muslim girls’ organized sports participation across the US & UK. The lit and my student’s research suggested it was both - some orgs place arbitrary, ill-informed bans on hijabs typically on safety grounds. While there have been a variety of quality homemade remedies, a Dutch company called Capster started selling athletic hijabs around 2000. That company was founded by a gym teacher whose Muslim girls couldn’t participate in class. Anyway, Nike got into the game in 2018 and it is apparently a huge seller. It supposedly has one of the biggest profit margins of any Nike product.Was that in doubt? I'd figure getting certain federations to let them play without one would be a harder task than letting a few players voluntarily wear them.
If it’s good enough for the Spanish men why wouldn’t it be good enough for the women’s team?Japan downed Spain 4-0? Daaaammmnnn.
Spain had 77% possession. They competed over 900 passes!
Japan scored on 4 of their 5 shots on target.
Yeah, that's one of those that, while a legit penalty by the book, never would have been given pre-VAR. That would have been a free kick from just outside the box because the ref would have thought a PK was too harsh for the foul and magically re-sited the foul by six inches.Holy shit. That’s an insult to injury VAR PK call on Canada.
“I’ve been practicing penalties in training so I was confident,” Banda said. “At the same time, I was nervous ... carrying the hopes of thousands of people back home. It was an honour for me to take that penalty.”
I've searched in vain for a good place for full-match replays (I have no idea if the Fox Sports App has them). But Spain-Japan might be one of the first matches I'd have watched in full.Now that the upsets are coming. I’m really regretting the time difference. It is what it is, etc, but following is just not as satisfying.
I’m starting to think this might be a national problem. During an AFL match over the weekend, two players had a head-on-head collision. Neither player left the bench area to be assessed in a quiet room, and one player was back on the field within 5 minutes of being taken off. The AFL has since placed both players in a concussion protocol, and the club have been asked to explain the circumstances with the league, since this same club did the same thing last year.Screw the Australia staff who sent the player back out within 10 seconds. What protocol?