# FIFA World Cup 2026 - discussion etc **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-soccer-fifa\ **Created:** [October 14, 2025, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962 "2025-10-14T15:43:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 136
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2701 "2026-07-03T23:17:06Z")
> [@iamatractorboy](#): > > I used to get kicked up in the air on a regular basis playing Sunday League football and not once did I feel the need to perform a triple flip with pike, clutching my shin and rolling about 27 times across the turf, them miraculously rise to my feet completely unscathed 30 seconds later. Yeah, the only time I’ve ever been injured playing a sport was playing goalkeeper in soccer. I grabbed the ball in the goalie box, and an idiot on the other team came and kicked it out of my hands, dislocating the phalange on the end of my thumb. It was crossing the next one like a T. I surely had some choice words for Danny, but rolling around like a decapitated chicken wasn’t on my list of things to do. All of that said, I think part of the performative aspect of being injured in professional soccer is a combination of the ref having a lot of things (and players) to keep his eyes on, and it’s relatively easy to do really painful things to each other without it being obvious when two people are fighting for control of the ball. So, you end up with a situation where demonstrating wildly is probably your best bet when you feel you’ve been fouled. In turn, a certain number of people will eventually adopt the same behavior when they think it’s to their advantage. To compare it to hockey one last time: in hockey you can still get called for embellishment even if the other guy actually did perform an illegal move on you. Yeah, they cross checked you, but you acted like they killed your grandma. Two minutes for you too, genius. It’d be nice to see a similar mechanism in soccer, but since it’s not really a penalty box style system, I can’t even imagine how you’d enforce such a thing. Apropos of nothing, it’ll be a lot easier to root for Argentina when they’re not playing a small island country that’s hitting above it’s national weight. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2702 "2026-07-03T23:20:38Z")
Well well well. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2703 "2026-07-03T23:24:35Z")
Oh fuck, I’m afraid and kind of sorry I jinxed it for Frodo. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2704 "2026-07-03T23:29:45Z")
Frodo’s fault for not promising to get another tattoo. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2705 "2026-07-03T23:31:08Z")
Let’s wait and see how this game and the whole Cup ends. Maybe we’ll see a lucky Frodo with a new tattoo after all this ends. And all Argentinians will snicker about how they almost fucked up in the round of 32 against Cape Verde, before Messi saved them. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2706 "2026-07-03T23:31:55Z")
Last couple of attacks for Argentina have just been long balls into the box. Kinda reminding me of England towards the end of their game; we’ll see if anyone steps up like Kane did. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2707 "2026-07-03T23:34:50Z")
Is Messi puts any pace on that, Argentina is back ahead. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2708 "2026-07-03T23:36:38Z")
I fully expect Argentina to win, but if, if, Cape Verde we to win this, I could think of a bigger shock in the history of the sport. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2709 "2026-07-03T23:40:21Z")
I don’t think they’ll keep the draw in regular time, and not in extra time, but if it comes to penalties, all bets are off. Argentina will be demoralized by then. But I’m wayyyyy projecting, it’s still a long way to go. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2710 "2026-07-03T23:44:00Z")
Not that long! Martinez would be fine in PKs I imagine, but Vozinha would be on some magical shit at that point. And the Argentine takers I could see being freaked out. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2026, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2711 "2026-07-03T23:52:05Z")
Hard to keep up with the current interpretation of handballs. It’s not just pure “not within the silhouette” anymore? ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2712 "2026-07-04T00:00:13Z")
Heroic stuff from Cape Verde. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2713 "2026-07-04T00:00:28Z")
Unbelievable. Extra time in this game! And they were my second favorites after France. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2714 "2026-07-04T00:05:37Z")
Holding both Spain and Argentina to draws, wow. Are those teams washed or is Cape Verde just out of their minds? xG was very in favor of Spain and mildly in favor of Argentina, but whoa boy. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2715 "2026-07-04T00:07:42Z")
Surely not another comeback? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2716 "2026-07-04T00:11:01Z")
Cape Verde is giving me hope for Canada tomorrow. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2717 "2026-07-04T00:12:04Z")
Canada surely have a puncher’s chance. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2718 "2026-07-04T00:18:10Z")
THis is insane ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2719 "2026-07-04T00:18:26Z")
What a shot ! ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2026, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962/2720 "2026-07-04T00:19:10Z")
I would give a lot to see Cape Verde pull this off. So cool. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962.md?page=135) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fifa-world-cup-2026-discussion-etc/1023962.md?page=137)