# Omnibus World Football Thread 2020-2022 (edited) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-soccer-fifa\ **Created:** [August 16, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264 "2020-08-16T15:38:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 86
**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:** [March 28, 2026, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1702 "2026-03-28T21:09:16Z")
After a pretty even first half Belgium is shredding the US. Not what you want to see in the run up for the WC. ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1703 "2026-03-31T21:40:15Z")
European World Cup Qualifiers are over… Turkiye, Sweden, Czechia and Bosnia and Herzegovina advance (the last two on penalties). Italy misses its third straight World Cup! I know there are two more qualification games to be played today (Iraq/Bolivia and Jamaica/DR Congo); I think those are the last spots to be determined for the World Cup? ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1704 "2026-03-31T21:43:56Z")
I guess we should change the increasingly outdated title of this thread, maybe 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1705 "2026-03-31T21:44:55Z")
Well, Italy didn’t qualify in 2022 just like this year, so in that way time has stood still… ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1706 "2026-03-31T21:46:07Z")
I have reasons to support stopping football history in 2022, so I second the motion. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1707 "2026-03-31T22:30:58Z")
Many times I have thought about asking a mod to update the title, but it turns out I kinda like its retro feel. ---
**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:** [March 31, 2026, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1708 "2026-03-31T22:37:05Z")
Agreed. It’s even better that the title was updated once to keep it current and that was 4 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1709 "2026-03-31T22:58:12Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Many times I have thought about asking a mod to update the title, but it turns out I kinda like its retro feel. Agreed too. > [@Wilson](#): > > I think those are the last spots to be determined for the World Cup? Yes and no: nobody knows what will happen to/whith Iran. And whoever has to (and will be delighted to) step in their place, should they not play. Be it because the USA does not let them in, or Iran does not let them out in their name, or any mess in between. And as far as I know, there has not been a definitive decision yet, or has it? The later the decision is taken, the more room for corruption I see. ---
**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:** [March 31, 2026, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1710 "2026-03-31T23:03:52Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > And as far as I know, there has not been a definitive decision yet, or has it? > The later the decision is taken, the more room for corruption I see. One thing is clear: it won’t be Italy. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1711 "2026-03-31T23:10:52Z")
Sure? Cite? 😉 _Ich sage nur_: FIFA & President Ineptstein. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1712 "2026-03-31T23:26:30Z")
Unless, as some were wondering in Twitter, Trump let’s them in in exchange for the use of the Sicilian air bases… ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1713 "2026-04-02T14:38:16Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > One thing is clear: it won’t be Italy. 😉 The Guardian writes Italy is in an even thighter spot than we thought: they don’t qualify for a World Cup since before the iPod was invented, but they might not host a European Cup either (where they would at least automatically qualify as host nation) because their stadiums are among the “worst in Europe”: > **[Uefa president Ceferin warns Italy it could lose Euro 2032 without action on...](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/apr/02/uefa-president-ceferin-warns-italy-it-could-lose-euro-2032-without-action-on-stadiums)** > > Aleksander Ceferin has warned Italy it risks not being able to co-host Euro 2032 due to the condition of the country’s stadiums, which he called ‘some of the worst in Europe’ ---
**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:** [April 2, 2026, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1714 "2026-04-02T17:19:34Z")
So why did they get UEFA’s ok to host the 2032 EURO in the first place? Did their campaign promise big renovations and newly built stadiums, but nothing of that materialized so far? ETA: I just read the Guardian article, and my hunch seems to be true. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1715 "2026-04-02T18:19:12Z")
Yes, inefficiency, corruption, and gerontocracy seem so very Italian. Then on the other side, they never qualify for the World Cup anymore, but they won the European Cup in London in 2021. Maybe a Covid side effect, I had forgotten about that. ---
**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:** [April 2, 2026, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1716 "2026-04-02T18:35:11Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Yes, inefficiency, corruption, and gerontocracy seem so very Italian. Do you by chance remember the collapsed bridge in Genoa? The collapse was a big fuck up that killed 43 people, and most probably caused by mismanagement through corruption, but they only needed about two years to rebuild the bridge. So they can do it if it’s urgent. I remember it so well because it has been held up high so often in Germany a la “We need 20 years to build a new airport or railway station, while even the Italians can build a bridge in two years”… Here’s the case: > **[Ponte Morandi collapse](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Morandi_collapse)** > > On 14 August 2018, around 11:36 local time (09:36 UTC) a section of the Ponte Morandi (English: Morandi Bridge) in Genoa, Liguria, Italy, collapsed during a rainstorm, killing forty-three people. The remains were demolished in June 2019. The replacement bridge, the Genoa-Saint George Bridge was inaugurated a year later. > The cable-stayed bridge was designed by civil engineer Riccardo Morandi, from whom its unofficial name was derived. The viaduct was built between 1963 and 1967 along the A10 m... ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1717 "2026-04-02T18:48:55Z")
I remember that very well, it was horrifying. I did not know they had rebuilt it so quickly. I hope they did a good job of that, a repeat of the **[collapse](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcsjKVljbWI)** would be more than embarassing (link to YouTube, 42"). ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1718 "2026-04-02T18:49:38Z")
That was because England is cursed. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1719 "2026-04-02T18:56:39Z")
Writes the Hand-of-God-Worshipper! 🤣 It’s OK, serves them right. For whatever they did (_algo habrán hecho…_ 😉 again) ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2026, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1720 "2026-04-02T18:59:41Z")
God Himself may have had something to do with the curse in fact, He had returned to His throne a few months before that final. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2026, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264/1721 "2026-04-03T11:51:34Z")
One of ESPN’s writers speculated yesterday that Italy’s collapse was due to coaching misfires, some bad luck in games and the emphasis on tactics and defense at all levels of the developmental system instead of focusing on skills development and attacking. That’s pretty general but it’s all entirely possible. I’ve never seen anything quite like this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264.md?page=85) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/omnibus-world-football-thread-2020-2022-edited/918264.md?page=87)