The official FIFA world cup thread

[Stripey McStripe Shirt]

Starting early with the draw later today. Everyone excited?

Who do we want England to get in the group stages? According to something I read apparently the worst case scenario (i.e highest ranking sides) would be Croatia, Panama and Jordan which doesn't feel particularly frightening. Suppose replacing Croatia with Scotland would add a bit of spice.

Either way, am fully expecting the WC to be a bit of a bore fest until at least the last 16...

Likely to be a few ex Saints in the tournament and potentially a couple of current ones (e.g the Irish).

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

Draw starts at 5 right?

Probably won't finish until 8!

[disconnect]

2 hours ago, Stripey McStripe Shirt said:

Starting early with the draw later today. Everyone excited?

Who do we want England to get in the group stages? According to something I read apparently the worst case scenario (i.e highest ranking sides) would be Croatia, Panama and Jordan which doesn't feel particularly frightening. Suppose replacing Croatia with Scotland would add a bit of spice.

Either way, am fully expecting the WC to be a bit of a bore fest until at least the last 16...

Likely to be a few ex Saints in the tournament and potentially a couple of current ones (e.g the Irish).

If that's the worst case scenario then makes a mockery of the whole extended format, and imagine we'll see some of the biggest ever scorelines next year. Might even mean we could rest Harry Lead Boots for a few games so he doesn't look like he's running through treacle by the time we play anyone half decent 🤣

[Turkish]

absolutely buzzing for the 2026 World Soccerball Series beamed live around the world from the US of A!!

[Doctoroncall]

8 minutes ago, Turkish said:

absolutely buzzing for the 2026 World Soccerball Series beamed live around the world from the US of A!!

…. And Canada and Mexico. 

[Turkish]

Just now, Doctoroncall said:

…. And Canada and Mexico. 

just states of the US pal

[LGTL]

Ah, the USA World Cup 2026, featuring Mexico and Canada. No idea why the latter two bothered in all honesty, you wouldn’t think they were even involved.

 

[Stripey McStripe Shirt]

What a stellar cast for the draw.

https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/final-draw-ferdinand-brady-oneal-gretzky-judge?fbclid=IwdGRzaAOftlZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR6RCAy1QOYc0aUN4hRBQ4h-qzMrE8OH0qON2I1Nnp39EEGCOo3KlfNB9OlHlw_aem_cocJeScJCrrF22g-dQ-bFA

[pingpong]

2 hours ago, disconnect said:

If that's the worst case scenario then makes a mockery of the whole extended format, and imagine we'll see some of the biggest ever scorelines next year. Might even mean we could rest Harry Lead Boots for a few games so he doesn't look like he's running through treacle by the time we play anyone half decent 🤣

I'd argue that Uruguay, ivory coast and Italy would be harder, which is also possible.

Other teams in our group could be

Croatia, Uruguay, Norway, Morocco, Senegal, Australia, Ghana, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Turkiye.

All of which I'd argue are better than Jordan or Panama.

 

 

Edited 8 hours ago by pingpong
Too many uefa for one group

[Totton Saint]

4 hours ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

Draw starts at 5 right?

Probably won't finish until 8!

The actual draw is much later after all the razzmatazz before hand has finished. The draw itself is on TV.

[die Mannyschaft]

England will get Scotland, Panama and Cape Verde an easy group.

Some pundit on England last game said if Kane not available there isn't another striker to replace him. No wonder Saints are struggling to find a striker, looks like they don't make them anymore.

[die Mannyschaft]

Fifa's big idea is to set up the best chance of blockbuster ties in the latter stages of the World Cup.

So for the first time it is giving special seeding status to the top four in the world rankings - Spain, Argentina, France and England.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c997y4l20jgo

 

[Stripey McStripe Shirt]

2 minutes ago, die Mannyschaft said:

Fifa's big idea is to set up the best chance of blockbuster ties in the latter stages of the World Cup.

So for the first time it is giving special seeding status to the top four in the world rankings - Spain, Argentina, France and England.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c997y4l20jgo

 

It's written in the stars (and stripes) 🇺🇸

[Willo of Whiteley]

Would quite like USA to get drawn with Iran and Mexico purely to see Donald Trump’s injunction to try and remove them from the tournament.

Couldn’t actually care less about the draw itself.

[EssEffCee]

46 minutes ago, Willo of Whiteley said:

Would quite like USA to get drawn with Iran and Mexico purely to see Donald Trump’s injunction to try and remove them from the tournament.

Couldn’t actually care less about the draw itself.

Them and Mexico can't be drawn together.

Be funny if they lost to Iran though.

[ChrisPY]

Buzzing to see who wins the FIFA Peace Prize tonight.

Fingers crossed for our boy, Sir Kier 🤞

[Badger]

4 hours ago, Stripey McStripe Shirt said:

What a stellar cast for the draw.

https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/final-draw-ferdinand-brady-oneal-gretzky-judge?fbclid=IwdGRzaAOftlZleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZAwzNTA2ODU1MzE3MjgAAR6RCAy1QOYc0aUN4hRBQ4h-qzMrE8OH0qON2I1Nnp39EEGCOo3KlfNB9OlHlw_aem_cocJeScJCrrF22g-dQ-bFA

I detect sarcasm in your comment.

Quite how Ferdinand gets to host it is beyond me. Good playing record at club level, and plenty of England caps. But outside the Peoples Republic of Manchester has done or won fuck all. At international level his involvement seems barrel scraping. 

As for the Co-hosts !  This is the biggest football tournament going, but to appeal to the US audience it has to bring in Tom Brady and those from other sports (barely played out of the US). Says it all really. 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

They really should have thought about the height difference of those presenters. 

[Oisin]

I used to get excited about the draw. Right now I feel lost, confused, let down and quite ill.  
Not surprised but still … it’s utterly depressing 

[danjosaint]

It's all about sucking up to Trump 

[Lee On Solent Saint]

Farcical 

[Challenger]

The whole thing is going to be nauseating, over the top, fuckfest that only the yanks could put on . Shame Canada and Mexico will get dragged into it.

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

So boring. 

[Sheaf Saint]

Of all the people in the world, of all the talented, articulate and charismatic people they could have got to host the draw, they chose Rio Ferdinand 😐

Edited 3 hours ago by Sheaf Saint

[AlexLaw76]

2 minutes ago, Sheaf Saint said:

Of all the people in the world, of all the talented, articulate and charismatic people they could have got to host the draw, they chose Rio Ferdinand 😐

The small talk they have to make to fill the time whilst someone opens some balls is tedious. Rio Ferdinand just makes it even more cringy

[whelk]

3 minutes ago, Sheaf Saint said:

Of all the people in the world, of all the talented, articulate and charismatic people they could have got to host the draw, they chose Rio Ferdinand 😐

Think he is doing a good job all things considered 

[East Kent Saint]

Wake me up when the knockout stage starts  ………..

[JohnnyShearer2.0]

Are Croatia still good?

[Sheaf Saint]

1 minute ago, whelk said:

Think he is doing a good job all things considered 

Apart from him forgetting to announce the video ahead of the pot 2 draw, and the fact that he keeps talking over his co-host, yeah he's doing a grand job.

[Willo of Whiteley]

3 hours ago, EssEffCee said:

Them and Mexico can't be drawn together.

Be funny if they lost to Iran though.

The orange man child would probably declare war.

[do i not like fizzy pop]

F*ck me. This world cup draw is excruciatingly painful. Who's bright idea was to let Rio Ferdinand present? It's making the Brits with Sam Fox and Mick Fleetwood look professional

[whelk]

1 minute ago, Sheaf Saint said:

Apart from him forgetting to announce the video ahead of the pot 2 draw, and the fact that he keeps talking over his co-host, yeah he's doing a grand job.

You are paying more attention than me. Think your expectation might need to be reassessed 

[whelk]

Jocks are fucked

[Bakovnetski]

Maya interviewed 

[AlexLaw76]

Group I looks decent

[Bakovnetski]

Rio Ferdinand is a plank

[Bakovnetski]

13 minutes ago, JohnnyShearer2.0 said:

Are Croatia still good?

Wrong question. Are England any good?

[AlexLaw76]

Who is this idiot drawing the balls for Pot 4?

 

[whelk]

1 minute ago, AlexLaw76 said:

Who is this idiot drawing the balls for Pot 4?

 

Wayne Gretzky - Ice Hockey legend. Could do with some pronunciation help

[do i not like fizzy pop]

I'm really missing Graham Norton not providing a commentary 

[die Mannyschaft]

17 minutes ago, whelk said:

Jocks are fucked

They won't make out the changing room let alone the group.

[Oisin]

That was quite possibly the worst piece of TV ever.

[whelk]

And if it couldn’t get any weirder. YMCA

[do i not like fizzy pop]

1 minute ago, Oisin said:

That was quite possibly the worst piece of TV ever.

Did you hang around for the Village People at the end .. who missed their cue... And put the cherry on the cake? 

[Bakovnetski]

2 minutes ago, Oisin said:

That was quite possibly the worst piece of TV ever.

Totally cringeworthy

[die Mannyschaft]

13 minutes ago, Bakovnetski said:

Wrong question. Are England any good?

On paper England should end up top group. If they cant cruise passed these teams then struggle to get a SF place. Its a shame Russell Martin wasn't England manager as be interesting to see how far possession football can get in WC26.

[die Mannyschaft]

4 minutes ago, Oisin said:

That was quite possibly the worst piece of TV ever.

Diabolical,  what on earth was that band at end, did they go into the local motel and see if anyone not doing anything today.

[Toadhall Saint]

20 minutes ago, whelk said:

Jocks are shit

Fixed it for ya

[Sir Ralph]

Win the group and on paper its a pretty simple route to the semis

[Paulwantsapint81]

Some absolute groups of life

 

Also who’s idea was it to prove the stereotype that sports stars lack charisma or literacy abilities