I even learned to play that on the recorder :mad::mad::mad:
Yeah, Why not? And why not hold the Winter Olympics in Sri Lanka?
Quite possibly the only ever World cup record to mention that their beloved neighbours wouldn’t be attending:
we’re representing Britain, We’re gonna do or die,
Cos England cannae be there cos they didnae qualify.
I thought it was quite touching that Andy Cameron thought to include us Sassenachs…
Looking back, I think it was a wee bit unwise for the team to have a big celebratory send off at Hampden before boarding the plane to Argentina. 
This strikes me as an excellent question! What, in fact, would be the practical ramifications of the major confederations leaving FIFA? Would FIFA have any legal recourse against them, and how much time would realistically need to elapse between announcing their intent to leave and actually leaving? Anyone know?
What a great argument… That sure changed my mind. It’s just a good as argument as why shouldn’t white folks get 2 times as many votes each as minorities in European countries, right?
Who gets to decide who are the “special” FIFA countries that get a veto? Heck, if it was determined in the 1950s, Hungary would have veto power.
All members of FIFA should be equal members. There should be no discrimination in membership.
You are making the assumption that FIFA is run as some sort of a democracy and the decisions taken are the result of transparent debate and deliberation. That is touchingly naïve.
The smaller countries have their votes bought in myriad different ways. The smaller the country the less it costs but the vote they bring for Blatter and co doesn’t change according to the size of the bribe. The more small countries the easier it is for the corrupt to stay in power.
Actually why not. It does in fact snow in the Sri Lankan highlands, the tourist infrastructure is quite good and they have experience with hosting large international events.
Better than Qatar WC anyhow.
Let’s try to avoid these types of general comments in threads not wholly about religion.
Hell, I’m an England chap and it cracked me up. Then again I follow Coventry City, so I am used to such utter ineptitude on the pitch.
Democracies aren’t immune to corruption. Have you met the United States (or Italy)? 
The alternative is simply classicism - THESE are the important countries as we’ve decided them. They get extra votes just because we’ve determined it. You new countries are merely lesser. That’s basically what is being said, right?
I wasn’t having a pop at Sri Lanka, once called by us Brits 'Serendipity, and regarded by many people as the most beautiful place in the world. It was just a random place near the equator that I thought might not be the ideal place for the Winter Olympics.
Maybe Colombia might have been a better example; downhill skiers need the powdery white stuff…
It’s not about votes as such, it’s about a corrupt old Swiss geezer who has brought nothing to the game lining his and his cronies pockets by sweeteners to small nations and creating a bloc of countries that will vote for him. It’s not racism or nationalism, it is blatant corruption.
And your “solution” is to minimize the votes for the “lesser” members of FIFA. Sorry, but your solution betrays your viewpoint, IMO. How about focusing on corruption itself rather than suggesting that the (current) giants of the game get extra power?
I am focusing on the corruption.The fact is that Blatter and his cronies are bribing small nations to vote for them and line their own pockets.
I’d like to see Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein as FIFA’s top man. A bloke who knows about soccer and cares about soccer.
But your argument contained a lamentation that smaller FIFA countries get the same vote as England or Italy. What was that about?
I’d have to think Luis Figo may have a better chance than Prince Ali at toppling Blatter. Though I read some article that indicates that Platini may have persuaded Figo to enter the race to help deflate Blatter a bit, so that Platini can run in the next election against a sufficiently beaten up Blatter.
Columbia? Aka that nation in the Andes?
I know you were not taking a pop at Sri Lanka, just wanted to point out that Winter Olympics there makes more sense that a WC in Qatar.
I want Figo to win. He would be better than Blatter anyway. Hell Platini, who is corrupt to the core, would be better.
Corruption, as I’ve said throughout this thread. Prince Ali is independently wealthy and has (from what I’ve heard) a genuine love of the game. Not the kind of chap to award World Cups for small Piccassos
I wouldn’t mind Figo but, for me, Platini is too intertwined with Blatter.
To be fair, Blatter’s awarding of the World Cup to South Africa (while I know it was to gain votes) was quite a brilliant world expanding notion.
Besides, I doubt it was just Blatter that pushed for Qatar. I know we like to put the blame on just Sepp, but it runs through the system. Having a non-corruptible head won’t magically make the system clean - I mean if that were the case you’d have no corruption in the Middle East oil countries.
‘Powdery white stuff’. ‘Colombia’. Notice any connection?
I can hear the Whoosh already…