International breaks

citytillidie

Andersonisgod wrote: »

Therein lies the beauty of Barcelona, like Ajax its a club loyal to the teachings of Cruyff and Michels, that has produced Guardiola, Xavi, Iniesta, Busquets ect. and where so mucy of the shape of the modern game was formed. Winning isnt enough, it must be won the Barça way. History ect. is obviously part of why anyone supports anything.

Maybe it's tough for you to understand but I'm not patriotic. Maybe to you this country means a lot, but to me it doesn't. Add in that feeling with the brand of football the country plays (and has always played) with the overall decline in interest and quality of international football and you have my feelings.

Going so well until you talk about maybe one of the biggest cheats in football

Ferris_Bueller

Andersonisgod wrote: »

I'd be someone who much rathers club over country. Its a combination of not being very patriotic and loving football. I love football so I love Barcelona, while I'd support Ireland I could never get behind them in the same way because of the style of football that this country produces.

I can understand more why someone would follow Barcelona, they are the best football team in the world and probably ever, if you like football you have to admire them. What I really don't understand is when someone says they don't follow their local league or team because the quality is so bad and then they support someone like West Ham(for example). If people who were following foreign teams were doing so for the quality of football surely they would all support Barcelona or Bayern Munich?

Skylinehead

Andersonisgod wrote: »

I love football. Good football. I believe there's only 1 rigjt way to play and thats the way of Cruyff, of Pep

That's incredibly close-minded of you.

thebaz

Ferris_Bueller wrote: »

when someone says they don't follow their local league or team because the quality is so bad and then they support someone like West Ham(for example). If people who were following foreign teams were doing so for the quality of football surely they would all support Barcelona or Bayern Munich?

I follow and support local league of Ireland (Rovers) - but totally understand why people support West Ham , have many friends who do so, many Irish have strong connections to London, more so than Barcelona , just cause Barca have been playing winning wonderful football for a good few years doesn't mean , you dump West Ham , cause ther on a bad run.

ps they did quite well last year , No ?

Gbear

There could be a lot more thought put into how international football is put together and it wouldn't just benefit the club sides.

I don't think it does international teams or the quality of the football they play any good that they get maybe 3 days at a time to train together.
That's where the gulf in quality has come from between club and country.

While you have sides peppered with superstars, as a team they're seldom much better than Championship level and perhaps it's just rose-tinted specs, but it makes most of what I see at international level pale in comparison to the memories of my youth when the gap didn't seem as pronounced.

Things like the ACON happening in the middle of the club season benefits nobody but they obviously can't have it during the African summer.
Then you have a random smattering of breaks during the season that screw the players over most of all, leading to more travelling, more injuries, worse training and worse football.

If they had, for example, 2 blocks either side of January of 3-6 weeks a piece that included blocks for international tournaments I think everyone would be better off.

citytillidie

Gbear wrote: »

There could be a lot more thought put into how international football is put together and it wouldn't just benefit the club sides.

I don't think it does international teams or the quality of the football they play any good that they get maybe 3 days at a time to train together.
That's where the gulf in quality has come from between club and country.

While you have sides peppered with superstars, as a team they're seldom much better than Championship level and perhaps it's just rose-tinted specs, but it makes most of what I see at international level pale in comparison to the memories of my youth when the gap didn't seem as pronounced.

Things like the ACON happening in the middle of the club season benefits nobody but they obviously can't have it during the African summer.
Then you have a random smattering of breaks during the season that screw the players over most of all, leading to more travelling, more injuries, worse training and worse football.

If they had, for example, 2 blocks either side of January of 3-6 weeks a piece that included blocks for international tournaments I think everyone would be better off.

So you want the countries who play summer leagues to be at a disadvantage to have to play during their off season like Norway and others up there. Where will they play there games when most of their countries are covered in snow shoul they play all their games away? There is no fix that will be right what is happening now is the most fair calendar that FIFA can do

Father Hernandez

I'll agree that the early international break breaks up the momentum for those who closely watch the PL but international breaks have its upsides too.

Those 4 weeks between the Euros and start of the PL were boring waiting for things to get going so be lucky that there's is constant football on whether it's international or club football.

I, for one love watching Ireland play (as dire as it might be sometimes but the passion in celebrating a goal is amazing) and try to get to as many home games as I can. Genuinely can't understand anyone who watches football can't support or take any interest in the Irish national team.

Omackeral

Father Hernandez wrote: »

I'll agree that the early international break breaks up the momentum for those who closely watch the PL but international breaks have its upsides too.

Those 4 weeks between the Euros and start of the PL were boring waiting for things to get going so be lucky that there's is constant football on whether it's international or club football.

I, for one love watching Ireland play (as dire as it might be sometimes but the passion in celebrating a goal is amazing) and try to get to as many home games as I can. Genuinely can't understand anyone who watches football can't support or take any interest in the Irish national team.

You said it was boring waiting for those 4 weeks between the Euros and the PL. Your last line says you genuinely can't understand anyone who watches football who can't support or take any interest in the Irish national team. Does that logic apply to our own league sides in Ireland too? That was on between those weeks. Some people don't give a rats about the national team the way some people don't give a rats about the national league. Their choice I guess.

Father Hernandez

Omackeral wrote: »

You said it was boring waiting for those 4 weeks between the Euros and the PL. Your last line says you genuinely can't understand anyone who watches football who can't support or take any interest in the Irish national team. Does that logic apply to our own league sides in Ireland too? That was on between those weeks. Some people don't give a rats about the national team the way some people don't give a rats about the national league. Their choice I guess.

Well the majority of people here have been speaking about club football with regards to the PL and international so that's the comparison I was making. I have a minor interest in the LOI supporting no specific team.

The national team for me is collective patriotism as Irish men & women, one that is very rare when it comes to club football.

Korat

I find it puzzling that some people would rather watch soccer teams made up of players who weren't good enough to play at a decent level in England than watch the best in the world in GAA, Hurling and Rugby. Each to their own I guess.

eagle eye

Korat wrote: »

I find it puzzling that some people would rather watch soccer teams made up of players who weren't good enough to play at a decent level in England than watch the best in the world in GAA, Hurling and Rugby. Each to their own I guess.

I dont think current set up is too bad.

Ireland are relatively competitive again which helps

Korat

Korat wrote: »

I find it puzzling that some people would rather watch soccer teams made up of players who weren't good enough to play at a decent level in England than watch the best in the world in GAA, Hurling and Rugby. Each to their own I guess.

Awful attempt tbh

Korat

If I wanted to watch soccer for the sake of watching soccer and the standard didn't matter I'd go down the local park and watch people kicking a ball around.

The four Irish rugby provinces were playing each other this weekend. Some of the best players in the world actually playing for Irish teams in Ireland. How can that not be more appealing than watching the LoI or even overhyped foreign national teams?

Everyone has their own preferences.

Gbear

citytillidie wrote: »

So you want the countries who play summer leagues to be at a disadvantage to have to play during their off season like Norway and others up there. Where will they play there games when most of their countries are covered in snow shoul they play all their games away? There is no fix that will be right what is happening now is the most fair calendar that FIFA can do

What?

Teams already play internationals in the off seasons. There are friendlies in June, without mentioning international tournaments in the Americas, Europe and the world cup.

You wouldn't need to have any games played in the middle of northern winter.

I think something like having October and some time between February-March as 3-4 week blocks for internationals and then the usual spot in the summer for internationals and tournaments would make more sense.
The ACON and the Asia Cup could happen in February/March, as well as World Cups in hotter countries like Qatar (but preferably with less death and corruption) and with everything else happening in the usual summer spot.

I don't think theres' anywhere in the southern hemisphere that has to worry about the cold in the winter at normal altitudes (IE, the block the Euros and the WC normally reside in).

But that's all besides the point. The issue is how they're chopped up over the course of the year and how different tournaments like the ACON don't fall within general blocks of international football.
You can set the dates to be whatever you like, so long as they're longer and there are fewer of them.

Korat

Korat wrote: »

If I wanted to watch soccer for the sake of watching soccer and the standard didn't matter I'd go down the local park and watch people kicking a ball around.

The four Irish rugby provinces were playing each other this weekend. Some of the best players in the world actually playing for Irish teams in Ireland. How can that not be more appealing than watching the LoI or even overhyped foreign national teams?

Everyone has their own preferences.

I thought your one about "we can watch the best hurlers and rince foirne dancers in Scór" was funnier than the rugby stuff.

I think the LoI teams would be stronger too if we just threw the clubs under a bus and divided all the best players between 4 teams.

Omackeral

Korat wrote: »

If I wanted to watch soccer for the sake of watching soccer and the standard didn't matter I'd go down the local park and watch people kicking a ball around.

The four Irish rugby provinces were playing each other this weekend. Some of the best players in the world actually playing for Irish teams in Ireland. How can that not be more appealing than watching the LoI or even overhyped foreign national teams?

Everyone has their own preferences.

Because it's rugby. Why not watch the Chess championships. Crap argument. Worst I've ever seen on here in fact, and that takes some doing.

deaddonkey15

Korat wrote: »

The four Irish rugby provinces were playing each other this weekend. Some of the best players in the world actually playing for Irish teams in Ireland. How can that not be more appealing than watching the LoI or even overhyped foreign national teams?

Ironic that you refer to overhyped foreign teams whilst claiming we have some of the best rugby players in the world here in Ireland. Irish rugby is incredibly overhyped, it's one of the reasons that my interest in it has all but dried up. Our national team and provinces and players are not as good as we think they are at all. We get found out at every world cup and our recent "golden generation" only just about produced 1 grand slam thanks to an under hit penalty from Stephen Jones. Furthermore, in my opinion, the game has become far too physical and dangerous and it's making it less enjoyable to watch. The stop start nature is a killer for me. Scrums, scrum resets, knock ons, lineouts, penalties - there's hardly any flow to a game anymore like there is in football. I'd rather watch the Irish football team hoof long balls up to Shane Long than watch the rugby team hoof the ball out of play and hope to win the opposition lineout 2 minutes later.

Korat

The sentiments here really do live up to some stereotypes.

In fairness soccer gets ripped to shreds when discussed by some fans of other sports. I think that's just as snobbish as small minded.

eagle eye

Korat wrote: »

The sentiments here really do live up to some stereotypes.

In fairness soccer gets ripped to shreds when discussed by some fans of other sports. I think that's just as snobbish as small minded.

I really yawned when I read your first post.

I watch Rugby but preferably Super Rugby which is much better. The best players from there, for the most part, come to Europe at the end of their careers for a nice big payday. The quality in Southern Hemisphere rugby is far higher than it is in Europe. You only have to look at the four semi-finalists of the last World Cup for proof of that.

Personally I think GAA football is a poor game, very slow in comparison to other sports. I'm not a fan of any stick sport, it's just not my cup of tea.

WesternZulu

eagle eye wrote: »

Personally I think GAA football is a poor game, very slow in comparison to other sports.

That's where personal preferences lie and in the end while you may think one sport is better in one regards there is someone else who thinks the opposite.

I think GAA football is a great sport because it is a lot faster than rugby and soccer. Doesn't meant I'll stop going to Irish soccer games and enjoying internationals though.

PhlegmyMoses

deaddonkey15 wrote: »

Ironic that you refer to overhyped foreign teams whilst claiming we have some of the best rugby players in the world here in Ireland. Irish rugby is incredibly overhyped, it's one of the reasons that my interest in it has all but dried up. Our national team and provinces and players are not as good as we think they are at all. We get found out at every world cup and our recent "golden generation" only just about produced 1 grand slam thanks to an under hit penalty from Stephen Jones. Furthermore, in my opinion, the game has become far too physical and dangerous and it's making it less enjoyable to watch. The stop start nature is a killer for me. Scrums, scrum resets, knock ons, lineouts, penalties - there's hardly any flow to a game anymore like there is in football. I'd rather watch the Irish football team hoof long balls up to Shane Long than watch the rugby team hoof the ball out of play and hope to win the opposition lineout 2 minutes later.

I mean, Irish rugby does have some of the best players in the world. Some over hyping has gone on at times, but the likes of Sexton, O'Driscoll, O'Gara, O'Connell, Murray, Heaslip, O'Brien are/were some of the best in the world in their positions. They got a pasting against Argentina, but it was a much to do with being decimated by injuries and suspensions as it was poor play. It took NZ years to win a WC, despite having the best players in most positions.

Anyway, enough Rugby talk in the soccer forum

Korat

Korat wrote: »

The sentiments here really do live up to some stereotypes.

Oh I agree, like the Irish ManU fan talking about quality and sitting down to watch...what were the recent games...draw with Stoke and beat Zorya Luhansk? Obviously the English game is better than here, as it should be in a country with over 10 times our population, but let's face it, if quality was the issue they'd be watching Barcelona and Bayern.

citytillidie

The following is this year and next year FIFA Calendar, FIFA try to keep it down to 10 dates for international games through out the year

FIFA international A Match Calendar
2016
Jan - Nothing
Feb - Nothing
Mar - 2 Matches - Friendly in UEFA, African Cup of Nations Qualifiers
World Cup Qualifier in Asia, North and South America
April - Nothing
May - OFC Nations Cup / Ocenaia World Cup qualifiers
June - Friedlies and Euro 2016, Extended Copa America.
African Cup of Nations Qualifier
Friendlies in Asia
July - Nothing
Aug / Sept - African Cup of Nation Qualifiers. 1 Friendly and 1 World Cup Qualifier
in Europe. World Cup Qualifiers Asia, North & South America
Oct - World Cup Qualifers everywhere apart from North America and Oceania
Nov - 1 Friendly and 1 World Cup Qualifer Europe, Africa, Asia
2 World cup Qualifers in Oceania, North and South America
Dec - Nothing

2017
Jan/Feb - African Cup of Nations
Mar - Nothing in Africa, 2 World Cup Qualifers in Asia, North & South America, Oceania
1 Friendly and 1 World Cup Qualifer in Europe
April - Nothing
May - Nothing
June - 2 World Cup Qualifers North America, Oceania,
1 World Cup Qualifer 1 Friendly in Europe, Asia
2 Friendlies in Afria and South America
July - CONCACAF Gold Cup
Aug/Sept - 2 World Cup Qualifers Asia, North & South America, Oceania, Europe
1 World Cup Qualifer and 1 Friendly Africa
Oct - 2 World Cup Qualifers Asia, North & South America, Europe
1 World Cup Qualifer and 1 Friendly Africa
Nov - World Cup play offs and Friendlies

And from After the World Cup there will be no more friendlies in Europe they will be replaced by UEFA's International League

Beefy78

Dr. Kenneth Noisewater wrote: »

This disdain for the international breaks seems to filter through from England, always see them moaning about it. I think that's fair enough for them because lot of them are more invested in their club than they are in the national side. A lot of the English don't really care about the national side at all.

Also, England's qualification groups are usually fairly dull processions and they rarely get another big European side in their group due to seeding so a game against Slovenia or Switzerland fails to capture the imagination.

Ireland usually have to scrap for most points we get in a given group and so the interest is always there, rarely is a result a foregone conclusion the way it would have been when we used to regularly hammer your Latvias, Lithuanias etc. I don't know why an Irish soccer fan would moan about the international breaks at all.

Lovely Bloke wrote: »

Imagine!

Just chiming in on this as England was mentioned - England's support is traditionally drawn from the clubs outside the Premier League and especially from the clubs not called 'Liverpool' and 'Manchester United'.

It is becoming harder and harder to support England what with the utter dross that we have to put up with but I wouldn't go as far as to say that most football fans don't care about the national side.

England tend to get the biggest support home and away in Europe. 85,000 at Wembley on Saturday vs Malta and the tickets weren't cheap.

I'm all for International breaks but I'd be in favour of some form of pre-qualifying campaign so that you have a more streamlined main qualifying system with fewer teams who can't qualify, probably getting rid of that horrible September set of games in the process. I know that's arrogant, etc, etc.

greendom

I really think that qualifying games should take place in the Summer, just like the tournaments themselves. Every evenly number year there is a tournament, and every odd numbered year you would have a qualifying tournament.

citytillidie

Beefy78 wrote: »

Just chiming in on this as England was mentioned - England's support is traditionally drawn from the clubs outside the Premier League and especially from the clubs not called 'Liverpool' and 'Manchester United'.

It is becoming harder and harder to support England what with the utter dross that we have to put up with but I wouldn't go as far as to say that most football fans don't care about the national side.

England tend to get the biggest support home and away in Europe. 85,000 at Wembley on Saturday vs Malta and the tickets weren't cheap.

I'm all for International breaks but I'd be in favour of some form of pre-qualifying campaign so that you have a more streamlined main qualifying system with fewer teams who can't qualify, probably getting rid of that horrible September set of games in the process. I know that's arrogant, etc, etc.

This is only going to draw more complaints from people

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018%E2%80%9319_UEFA_Nations_League

http://www.uefa.com/uefaeuro-2020/news/newsid=2079553.html

iDave

The cry baby attitude to international breaks epitomizes the entitled nature of EPL fans. It'll be the same in January and February when the FA Cup is on.
I remember when the Saturday before internationals was kept free and no one complained back then.
Its no coincidence people who support big EPL teams through their TV struggle with the grind of supporting a team that can't buy success and has to fight tooth and nail for every point.

Dirty Dingus McGee

iDave wrote: »

The cry baby attitude to international breaks epitomizes the entitled nature of EPL fans. It'll be the same in January and February when the FA Cup is on.
I remember when the Saturday before internationals was kept free and no one complained back then.
Its no coincidence people who support big EPL teams through their TV struggle with the grind of supporting a team that can't buy success and has to fight tooth and nail for every point.

EPL (and all professional sport) is effectively a TV show for most people (myself included).

So i suppose it's reasonable enough to complain if you're favourite TV show is cancelled for a week.

Omackeral

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

EPL (and all professional sport) is effectively a TV show for most people (myself included).

So i suppose it's reasonable enough to complain if you're favourite TV show is cancelled for a week.

This made me shudder badly.

Dirty Dingus McGee

Omackeral wrote: »

This made me shudder badly.

Why? It's the truth.

It's just people have pretensions that watching the EPL on Sky is something greater than watching Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead etc.

Omackeral

Dirty Dingus McGee wrote: »

Why? It's the truth.

It's just people have pretensions that watching the EPL on Sky is something greater than watching Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead etc.

Oh no you're 100% spot on in what you're saying. It's just seldom you see it said like that from a fan. Fair play.

kfallon

The problem with International breaks was the lack of games to watch in that club games would cease on the Sunday and there would be nothing on TV til all the International games were played the following Sat/Sun and then the second round of games were played the following Wednesday.

I think the staggered nature of the games for the last couple of years has been a great idea as we've had live games to watch Thursday, Friday, Saturday (x2), Sunday (x2), Monday & Tuesday. Ok it's not as much as if the club competitions were playing but if you want your fix of football, you can get it.

The boredom for the regular football fan was awful as you had to wait 6 days for something decent to watch with the old format. A lot of that has now been alleviated with a decent flow of games to watch.

I don't think people dislike International Football as such (I always look forward to the Ireland games), it was more the waiting around for a decent/any game to watch. That's what I found anyway (and tomorrow night will be a nightmare without any game to watch!!!)