Too many International competitions

[Rock The Boat 1,332]

Sorry but I find all the multitude of international games really tedious and an unwelcome distraction from the Premier League.

Every year it''s either qualifying for the World Cup or the Euro Cup and then the actual Cup competition itself. As soon as one competition is finished then games for the next competition starts in the following season.

And because there are so many competitions the countries then need to play a set of "friendlies" to sort out tactics and players, while real football gets put on the backburner.

This is just the internatonal games and don''t even include club level competitions such as Champions League and Europa cup etc. etc. where the same set of players appearing for their countries just get re-shuffled as club players and appear in a different set of coloured shirts. Same old faces and bad haircuts, though.

What''s the benefit? Ok so FIFA and UEFA scam millions of pounds out of the competitions so can see where they are coming from. But suppose Ricky VW gets injured playing for Holland and is out for the season? What good is international football then?

I reckon a World Cup and Euro Cup (and African Nations Cup) should be played once every ten years so we can have a few years when we can concentrate on the real stuff without all these meaningless competitions going on. What say you?

[Herman 11,136]

What I say. Nonsense.

I find them enjoyable. And one day England will stop being so prehistoric and inept that I will enjoy them even more.

[ReadingCanary 0]

It''s pretty sad really, I get barely any enjoyment out of watching England anymoreRickie Lambert''s goal was one of the only moments in the last few years where I have passionately celebrated a goal like I would a Norwich City one.the whole system needs to change.The way we coach our youngsters, the style of football, the picking of players who deserve caps not just those with the famous names.

[Hackedoff 0]

I can''t believe Dyke came out with those 2 targets.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 2,424]

1 million ticket requests on the first day for World Cup tickets suggests that it is still popular enough to happen once every 4 years.

Personally I love the World Cup, Euros etc and it would be a massive shame if the system was changed to suit the interests of a few mega rich football clubs.

RvW might get injured getting out of bed, his being involved in the international team is of benefit to Norwich due to training and and advice he will recieve from top quality coaches and other players.

[lake district canary 4,830]

The system could be better.       Three games in to a league and then a two week gap to the next one is bonkers imo.   You already have the bonkers transfer window cutting in to the beginning of the season with the associated hype and unsettling of players and squads, then you have the international break the following week.    

The simple solution to the problem of all the qualifying games is to make the tournament itself bigger, with more countries and making it a knock out tournament  from the last sixteen instead of the last eight.  It would cut out all or most of the qualifying rounds.    The Europa cup and the Champions League would benefit from that too.  There is simply too much football going on.   But money talks and those whose sole interest is money making will try and squeeze every last cent out of the players and the footballing public.

[ZLF 335]

The national buzz from a good cup from from England is second to none - far exceeding the feeling from a champs league win or a local prem league title.

 

For all the deadline day furore I do like a window rather than the unseemly free for all that benefited the larger clubs who simply bought a player to cover an injury - at least we have some stability for 4 months now and can plan a campaign.   When that lands will always be contentious - we are v england focused - but it comesmore to the middle of some nordic leagues season usually a few weeks into ours and later for some mediterranean ones - its never going to work for all european nations.    IF its such a big problem for prem teams then all the EPL have to do is delay the start of the season until after the window closes - its their choice.

 

Ditto choice of starting the season a week before a long designated international friendly weekend.   Quite why the prem league chose that still baffles me yet the blame bizarrely fell on FIFA rather than our organisers.

 

Of course that our players have so little pride in appearing in a white lion shirt does not help - an issue that does appear to very a very english thing,  most european players appear to want to play perform and win for their country irrespective of wages or ego.   

 

 

[snake-eyes 13]

Bring back the three European cup competitions, but make them straight Knockout over 2 legs, like they were originally.

 

European Cup = League winners only!

Cup Winners Cup = National Cup winners Only

UEFA Cup = Second and Third in League or Second in League and League cup winners (Depends on Country)

 

This would result in more teams holding onto their best players as less clamour for ''Champions League Football''.  If you think about it, the only reason the best players are all going to just a handfull of clubs, is because they constantly qualify due to large expensive squads and get at least 8 European games a year.  If you make each tournament more elite and with a higher degree of risk in getting knocked out early, players are less likely to go to a team that has a large squad of expensive players, where their game time and international exposure is reduced.

 

Eventually players will not go for a payday just to sit on the bench for half a season.

 

Other International Continental Tournaments held every 4 Years  other than World Cup year.

 

 I for one am bored with the champions league.  Once, European football really excited me no matter who was playing. Now it is the same old same old teams and bullsh*t.

 

A real edge needs to be put back into the game and all involved need to realise that there are no guarantees! Success should go to those who truly earn it and not to those who buy it.

 

Rant over [:|]

 

Snake

[morty 0]

Quite likely it has a lot to do with the various football associations (and clubs) wanting to milk the right cash cow unfortunately.Playing for your country used to be an honour, players would sweat blood for the privilege, now the game is littered with young guys on way too much money, probably being pressured to put club before country.Agree Snake, the Champions league is dull as dishwater.

[snake-eyes 13]

Forgot to add that,

 

if other major clubs in other countries are able to hold onto their better players, their becomes a greater sense of National Pride with their country''s Football Clubs.  This translates to their National teams.

 

I must admit I find it very hard to support Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool etc in European competitions.  I just don''t feel any affinity to them with regards to them being English teams.

 

Once upon a time AJAX v HONVED or MONACO v STEAUA BUCHAREST would be a massive European game, but now unless the team is from The Premier League, La Liga, Bundesleague or Seria A then no one really bats an eyelid.

 

I believe if what I suggested earlier came into being, in time, International Football would flourish in Europe and would bring life back to a sterilised sport.

[morty 0]

On Sky Sports news just now the idea of a quota of English players you have to field is being touted. I think this should happen.When it was discussed yesterday Norwich were joint top with the amount of English players they fielded on the opening game of the season (6)

[snake-eyes 13]

Unfortunately Morty the reason why the ''British'' player quotas for European football were removed was because they contravined European Employment law with regards to restricting movement of labour.

 

Unless we came out of the EU we cannot legally impose such a law.

 

Shame really! [:(]

[morty 0]

[quote user="snake-eyes"]

Unfortunately Morty the reason why the ''British'' player quotas for European football were removed was because they contravined European Employment law with regards to restricting movement of labour.

 

Unless we came out of the EU we cannot legally impose such a law.

 

Shame really! [:(]

[/quote]Wouldn''t be the first time we contravened, and stuck two fingers up to the EU though.It doesn''t even need to be made a law though, it could be a kind of "Gentleman''s agreement" amongst the Premiership clubs.That said, just how much does a rich Arab owner really care about the development of English international football?

[PurpleCanary 6,386]

[quote user="Rock The Boat"]Sorry but I find all the multitude of international games really tedious and an unwelcome distraction from the Premier League.

Every year it''s either qualifying for the World Cup or the Euro Cup and then the actual Cup competition itself. As soon as one competition is finished then games for the next competition starts in the following season.

And because there are so many competitions the countries then need to play a set of "friendlies" to sort out tactics and players, while real football gets put on the backburner.

This is just the internatonal games and don''t even include club level competitions such as Champions League and Europa cup etc. etc. where the same set of players appearing for their countries just get re-shuffled as club players and appear in a different set of coloured shirts. Same old faces and bad haircuts, though.

What''s the benefit? Ok so FIFA and UEFA scam millions of pounds out of the competitions so can see where they are coming from. But suppose Ricky VW gets injured playing for Holland and is out for the season? What good is international football then?

I reckon a World Cup and Euro Cup (and African Nations Cup) should be played once every ten years so we can have a few years when we can concentrate on the real stuff without all these meaningless competitions going on. What say you?[/quote]

 

Without knowing what the result would be I looked at England''s fixtures for 1963. Fifty years ago that was not a World Cup year or qualifying year, and England had just one game in what was called the European Nations'' Cup. England played eight other - "friendly" - games, making nine. This year, which is a World Cup qualifying year, England are playing 10 games. Hardly a difference. If competitive matches were cut back then national sides would go back to filling the gaps in the calendar with "friendlies" or spurious tournaments.

[snake-eyes 13]

Exactly Morty,

 

These Billionaires care nothing for the clubs or the game. Their ownership is purely to fill their desires for Status and fuel their Egos.  The clubs are nothing more than playthings for their amusement.  What happens when they get bored?

 

Although things may look healthy with the increased TV rights and the massive transfer spending, I believe the game is coming to a critical point in the not too distant future.  How long will the amusement last for these owners?  Portsmouth and Rangers are just the start of a far greater collapse within the game.  Much like the recent Economy.  All seemed wonderful, but it was based on lies, debt and a system allowed to get out of control.  No accountability, no due diligence and a complete denial that it could ever fail or go wrong.

 

I believe we are fast approaching a fundamental change in the Game where it finally realises it can not continue as it is.  The largesse will stop and Billionaire owners will pull out and Clubs will suffer or even go out of existence.  Their will be great pain and much anger vented, but maybe, just maybe Football will rediscover its Soul.

[morty 0]

[quote user="snake-eyes"]

Exactly Morty,

 

These Billionaires care nothing for the clubs or the game. Their ownership is purely to fill their desires for Status and fuel their Egos.  The clubs are nothing more than playthings for their amusement.  What happens when they get bored?

 

Although things may look healthy with the increased TV rights and the massive transfer spending, I believe the game is coming to a critical point in the not too distant future.  How long will the amusement last for these owners?  Portsmouth and Rangers are just the start of a far greater collapse within the game.  Much like the recent Economy.  All seemed wonderful, but it was based on lies, debt and a system allowed to get out of control.  No accountability, no due diligence and a complete denial that it could ever fail or go wrong.

 

I believe we are fast approaching a fundamental change in the Game where it finally realises it can not continue as it is.  The largesse will stop and Billionaire owners will pull out and Clubs will suffer or even go out of existence.  Their will be great pain and much anger vented, but maybe, just maybe Football will rediscover its Soul.

[/quote]I hope theres a change coming, mainly because I am safe in the knowledge that Norwich City are doing things the right way.Financial fair play is allegedly going to level out the playing field a bit, but I won''t be holding my breath.I honestly don''t think that the game can go back to having honesty and integrity, awarding a world cup to Qatar was kind of the final proof for me.

[Jonzey 0]

[quote user="snake-eyes"]

European Cup = League winners only!

Cup Winners Cup = National Cup winners Only

UEFA Cup = Second and Third in League or Second in League and League cup winners (Depends on Country)

[/quote]

 

Agreed!

 

The Champions League should be a competition for ''Champions'', not second, third and fourth placed teams. And go back to being called the European Cup. The current name is ridiculous and never made sense.

 

As for the amount of International games, I actually love the World Cup and European Championships. They''re the greatest sports competitions in the world. But the qualification needs to be addressed. What''s the point of San Marino and The Faroe Islands being granted entry and getting d!cked every match after keeping 11 men behind the ball? Awful matches.

 

Did anyone see Di Canio get interviewed on the weekend? He panned International games, basically calling them inrrelevant and saying club football was far more important. I think all the other managers would agree, but only a loose cannon like him would ever say it out loud.

 

[Syteanric 1]

the "champions League" was bought in to stop the little teams trumping the big boys....

Steua Bucherest beating Barcelona in the European Cup final and Red star Belgrade reaching a final are sadly things of the past.

[Carrow_Road_Canary 0]

[quote user="Rock The Boat"]Sorry but I find all the multitude of international games really tedious and an unwelcome distraction from the Premier League.

Every year it''s either qualifying for the World Cup or the Euro Cup and then the actual Cup competition itself. As soon as one competition is finished then games for the next competition starts in the following season.

And because there are so many competitions the countries then need to play a set of "friendlies" to sort out tactics and players, while real football gets put on the backburner.

This is just the internatonal games and don''t even include club level competitions such as Champions League and Europa cup etc. etc. where the same set of players appearing for their countries just get re-shuffled as club players and appear in a different set of coloured shirts. Same old faces and bad haircuts, though.

What''s the benefit? Ok so FIFA and UEFA scam millions of pounds out of the competitions so can see where they are coming from. But suppose Ricky VW gets injured playing for Holland and is out for the season? What good is international football then?

I reckon a World Cup and Euro Cup (and African Nations Cup) should be played once every ten years so we can have a few years when we can concentrate on the real stuff without all these meaningless competitions going on. What say you?[/quote]

One every ten years??? I say you''re ****ing crazy!!

We''re never likely to improve as a footballing nation if we don''t play any meaningful internations in ten years. Plus we''d have, what... 8 or 9 world cups to watch in our lifetime?? How likely would we be to win anything then!!

The world cup is special. I look forward to watching it every 4 years - which is a long time. Seeing all the best players in the world having a go at each other. And the pride for playing for your country or even watching your country.

All these people who say how they can''t be bothered with watching England.... i wonder if they''d be celebrating with everyone else if we did actually win a world cup??

To me it''s just as important as Norwich. You stick with the team through the highs and the lows, and don''t jump on the bandwagon when things are going well, only to diss the team when it''s not.

[Rock The Boat 1,332]

The problem is that we''ve got football coming out of our ears. When we won the WC in ''66 there was no Champions League, no Europa Cup and I don''t know if there was an African Nations Cup but it did impinge on the local game as it does today.

Now we have Champions League qualification rounds, the CL itself, we have teams who fail at that drop down into the Europa League. We have International competitions every two years and qualification for them going on in the gap years.

As others have pointed out, it''s all about milking the cash cow of televised football. And it''s got to the point, I believe, that the domestic game will suffer as people become bored with the merry-go-round of the same teams dominating our tv screens. And I say tv because that is what this is about.

So you''ll probably tell me that if I''m not interested then I don''t have to watch, and you are right, and I don''t. It''s only NCFC that I care about these days and don''t watch any other team. And if millions of people do the same as me then money will stop being poured into the game.

The old system was really good, I would like to see a return but it will never happen while there is still a drop to be milked.

[PurpleCanary 6,386]

[quote user="Rock The Boat"]The problem is that we''ve got football coming out of our ears. When we won the WC in ''66 there was no Champions League, no Europa Cup and I don''t know if there was an African Nations Cup but it did impinge on the local game as it does today.

Now we have Champions League qualification rounds, the CL itself, we have teams who fail at that drop down into the Europa League. We have International competitions every two years and qualification for them going on in the gap years.

As others have pointed out, it''s all about milking the cash cow of televised football. And it''s got to the point, I believe, that the domestic game will suffer as people become bored with the merry-go-round of the same teams dominating our tv screens. And I say tv because that is what this is about.

So you''ll probably tell me that if I''m not interested then I don''t have to watch, and you are right, and I don''t. It''s only NCFC that I care about these days and don''t watch any other team. And if millions of people do the same as me then money will stop being poured into the game.

The old system was really good, I would like to see a return but it will never happen while there is still a drop to be milked.[/quote]

 

But, as I pointed out, 50 years ago England played only one less international match than they will do this year. Around the time England were winning the World Cup they took part in the Home Internationals tournament. If World Cups and the Euros came round less frequently, as you suggested, it is a pretty solid guess that the Home Internationals would come back, possibly with the Republic of Ireland added. Probably other more spurious tournaments too.I don''t disagree that there is too much club football. The old European Cup was a splendid competition and by contrast the Champions League/Europa League system (which rewards failure) is a farce. But until untold millions do what you do and cancel your satellite TV subscription or don''t get one in the first place that money will keep feeding the bloated monster.