# World Cup 2022 - discussion, predictions, and thoughts **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-soccer-fifa\ **Created:** [November 6, 2022, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476 "2022-11-06T20:37:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 33
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/641 "2022-11-28T20:52:50Z")
::shrug:: I’ve seen plenty a handball be called when a player jumped and had his arms were out as they naturally tend to be when someone jumps up. Knowing that, this is a clear cut handball. ---
**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:** [November 28, 2022, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/642 "2022-11-28T20:54:15Z")
There must be some intent involved, at least this was a rule some years ago and that was a good rule. There was clearly no intent to play the ball with the hand in this case. And nobody jumped up, the defender went to the ground and secured his fall with his right hand, which unfortunately deflected the shot. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/643 "2022-11-28T20:56:17Z")
He deliberately went down and deliberately stuck his arm out to brace his fall. If I were a betting man, I’d say the defender counted on if the ball hit his hand it’d be deemed to have no intent. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/644 "2022-11-28T20:56:38Z")
But that’s not the rule any more, from what I understand. I guess it’s too hard to know the intent in many cases. ---
**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:** [November 28, 2022, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/645 "2022-11-28T20:58:22Z")
I’m still not sure if that’s a handball or not, but I admit some schadenfreude watching Luis Suarez argue about it. Particularly since this match benefits Ghana. Meanwhile > ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/646 "2022-11-28T22:14:04Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > Particularly since this match benefits Ghana. I totally forgot the historical connection with Suarez and Ghana. And they could very well be playing each other to advance. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/647 "2022-11-28T22:22:45Z")
That’s the thing … maybe I didn’t quite catch it because I was little distracted, but I didn’t think he was part of the play. I thought he tried to play it but missed. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2022, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/648 "2022-11-28T22:25:05Z")
Directly interfering with the play counts. And even if he didn’t get a foot on it, he did, IIRC, run into the defender while going for the ball. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/649 "2022-11-29T00:23:20Z")
Round 2 is complete, in that each team has now played 2 matches. Three teams have already advanced: France, Brazil, and Portugal. ---
**Author:** ![dougrb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/76d3ee/32.png) [@dougrb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougrb)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/650 "2022-11-29T01:15:29Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Man, cancelling all alcohol the day before the first game… I saw I good meme today that said “Sober soccer fans realize how boring game is” ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/651 "2022-11-29T01:24:17Z")
Two teams cannot advance and are playing the third match for pride: Qatar and Canada. If I’ve done the math right, that leaves 27 teams that could qualify for the knockout stage. ---
**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:** [November 29, 2022, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/652 "2022-11-29T02:19:14Z")
Yes, there are 27 teams fighting for qualification, 3 in, 2 out. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/653 "2022-11-29T04:08:04Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Man, cancelling all alcohol the day before the first game… I dunno man. I would not be happy if I traveled there or I was a big sponsor like Budweiser. Also seen some journalists abused. What a cluster fuck. How did a decision like that get put off until the day before the event? I suspect that TPTB always knew that they wouldn’t be allowing alcohol sales at the games, but strung everyone along until it was too late to do anything about it. I wonder how much beer had been delivered to the stadiums in advance. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/654 "2022-11-29T04:43:48Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > How did a decision like that get put off until the day before the event? You could still drink spirits if you were in the luxury seats. But the average spectator was left high and dry. Qatar is dead to the sporting world. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/655 "2022-11-29T05:16:14Z")
A bit disappointed with Canadian coach John Herdman, not just with with his F bomb\* (hey, it’s Group F, after all) but also storming off after the Croatia game without shaking the Croatian coach Zlatko Dalic’s hand. \*Which he tried to justify be saying that’s what he said in a team huddle. Being impassioned, being in the heat of the moment, in the World Cup, is all cool and everything, but with reporters, a little self-editing should come into play. ---
**Author:** ![Mark\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@Mark\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mark_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/656 "2022-11-29T13:37:53Z")
I noticed that starting today (Tuesday), the two games in each group will start at the same time (10 am and 2 pm EST) rather than the “staggered” times of 5, 8, 11 am and 2 pm EST. Is this to prevent teams from performing in reaction to a score that they already know (since the other game has finished)? If so - why not do this for the earlier games? Have World Cup teams been known to fix/throw games in the past based on known results (when it could have been avoided by scheduling games concurrently)? ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/657 "2022-11-29T13:44:18Z")
> [@dougrb](#): > > I saw I good meme today that said “Sober soccer fans realize how boring game is” 650 posts before some American who knows nothing about the game comes along to play the ‘this game is boring’ card. We’re getting better, but we’re not there yet. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 29, 2022, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/658 "2022-11-29T13:48:00Z")
Because in the earlier games, there’s still so many unknowns that teams need to play at full strength, and it allows people to watch all the games live if they want to. But in the final game, it adds to the excitement, and stops teams fielding a lesser team, or dialling back effort, if they know they’re through. There was a famously awful game many years ago between Germany and Austria (can’t recall if it was the World Cup or the Euros) where they basically just passed the ball back and fourth for 90 minutes because they knew they had both qualified (and they are still best buddies). Remember there’s a lot of football to play in a tournament on this scale - if the manager can rest some key players for games that don’t matter, then they will. This ensures that every game matters. ---
**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:** [November 29, 2022, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/659 "2022-11-29T14:02:00Z")
> [@Mark\_Finn](#): > > Have World Cup teams been known to fix/throw games in the past based on known results (when it could have been avoided by scheduling games concurrently)? > [@SanVito](#): > > There was a famously awful game many years ago between Germany and Austria (can’t recall if it was the World Cup or the Euros) where they basically just passed the ball back and fourth for 90 minutes because they knew they had both qualified (and they are still best buddies). Read all about the “Schande von Gijon”, the disgrace of Gijon: > **[Disgrace of Gijón](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disgrace_of_Gij%C3%B3n)** > > The Disgrace of Gijón (Spanish: Desgracia de Gijón) was a 1982 FIFA World Cup football match played between West Germany and Austria at the El Molinón stadium in Gijón, Spain, on 25 June 1982. The match was the sixth and last game of the first-round Group 2, with the fifth game occurring on the previous day. > Due to the tiebreaker rules in the group stage, a West German win by one or two goals would ensure that both Austria and West Germany advanced to the next round. West Germany scored the o... This was the event that led FIFA to schedule the final group games at the same time in the first place. And Germany and Austria being best buddies in football is very arguable. They were, for one time in this shameful game in Gijon, but before and after, this is one of the biggest mutual football rivalries between Germany and another nation, only surpassed by the Netherlands. Austria’s 3-2 upset of Germany in the second group stage of the WC 1978 in Argentina which eliminated Germany from the tournament probably was the biggest event in Austria’s sports history, though they didn’t even advance themselves. ---
**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:** [November 29, 2022, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476/660 "2022-11-29T14:35:56Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > But the average spectator was left high and dry. What, no beer but plenty of dope? Whodathunkit! > [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Read all about the “Schande von Gijon”, the disgrace of Gijon: That is the day I stopped rooting for Germany. Still have not forgiven them. I forgave the Austrians when Spain beat them 9-0 in the qualification for the World Cup in France, but the 6-0 against Germany two years ago still feels insufficient. My wife, who obviously does not understand anything about football, talks about _nachtragend_ (vindictive) and _kindisch_ (puerile). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476.md?page=32) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2022-discussion-predictions-and-thoughts/974476.md?page=34)