World Cup Qualifying Procedure

cruiserweight

Hmmm I wonder if it will make our job harder or easier

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/6237684.stm

Uefa has tweaked the qualifying system for the 53 European countries who will bid to reach the 2010 World Cup.

The teams will now be separated into eight groups of six and one of five to fill the 13 places available for the tournament in South Africa.

The group winners will automatically qualify before the top eight runners-up go into a round of play-offs.

They will be determined after the bottom team in the eight larger groups is erased and the points recalculated.

"It's a good compromise solution, because I wasn't really happy with the format for the last qualifying competition with groups of seven and eight teams," said Uefa president Michel Platini.

The system is different from the Euro 2008 qualification process which sees the top two in each group go through without any play-offs.

The Rooster

Think its unfair that one of the runners-up doesnt make it into the playoffs. Being the 2nd placed team with the worst record does not mean that team are the weakest of the nine 2nd placed teams. It means they were in the most competetive group.

Fratton Fred

more games = more TV revenue.

Am I being too cynical?

astrofool

Won't it be less games with more groups?

i.e. 24 teams:
6 groups of 4 = 6 games per group x 2 (home/away) x 6 (groups) = 72 games
4 groups of 6 = 15 games per group x 2 (home/away) x 4 (groups) = 120 games

Fratton Fred

astrofool wrote:

Won't it be less games with more groups?

i.e. 24 teams:
6 groups of 4 = 6 games per group x 2 (home/away) x 6 (groups) = 72 games
4 groups of 6 = 15 games per group x 2 (home/away) x 4 (groups) = 120 games

you're right (I think) I was thinking there would be ore play off games, but I didn't take into account the group matches:o

I just find it hard to believe UEFA can do something that doesn't make them more money, unless Platini really does have football's best interest at heart:eek:

Andrew 83

I actually preferred the reversion to top 2 going through that we have this time.

therecklessone

Fratton Fred wrote:

I just find it hard to believe UEFA can do something that doesn't make them more money, unless Platini really does have football's best interest at heart:eek:

Do UEFA get anything from group games??? I'd have thought TV rights and sponsorship would go to the home association.

What's needed is a complete overhaul of the qualifying system for Europe, with a pre-qualifying section before the group stages. Cut the number of sides in the group stages down to 40 or less, then hold a secondary competition for the excluded sides on qualifier matchdays, with decent prize money and maybe automatic qualification for the qualifier group stages for the next tourney? The lesser teams could benefit more from regular competition against similar sides than being hammered by Europe's big boys all the time.

KdjaCL

therecklessone wrote:

Do UEFA get anything from group games??? I'd have thought TV rights and sponsorship would go to the home association.

Tv rights and other things go to home assoc, but those shiny ads that have to appear at halftime are all uefas.

I bet i can name all of the champions league sponsors Sony, mastercard........etc:


kdjac

therecklessone

KdjaCL wrote:

I bet i can name all of the champions league sponsors Sony, mastercard........etc:

Wouldn't know, more of a UEFA Cup man myself...:D

Zebra3

Fratton Fred wrote:

you're right (I think) I was thinking there would be ore play off games, but I didn't take into account the group matches:o

I just find it hard to believe UEFA can do something that doesn't make them more money, unless Platini really does have football's best interest at heart:eek:

International team football doesn't bankroll UEFA, the CL does.

This seems to be a move to keep the likes of the G14 happy.