Today's Football 2017-18 Season

[summerisle]

Or the First World Cup?

Or the Mafia Cup.

 

[Toffee in Jandals]

I think the US, Holland, and Italy should start our own alternative World Cup.

Throw in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Chile, some decent sides in that World Cup

 

[gonetomorrow]

It's quite ironic that Italy are out in a season when their domestic game has taken a turn for the better in terms of excitement and interest.

 

[johnnydawg68]

It's quite ironic that Italy are out in a season when their domestic game has taken a turn for the better in terms of excitement and interest.

And the US is out just as we actually have a true, undisputed world class player finally.

 

[summerisle]

 

[upthetoffees]

I think the problem with some of these countries not qualifying was because they expect to qualify. I know that has to be the case for Italy and it certainly was for the United States.

 

[summerisle]

Doesn't look like a happy camp.

 

[Toast]

It's quite ironic that Italy are out in a season when their domestic game has taken a turn for the better in terms of excitement and interest.

And Iceland have qualified, when their best player is actually gash.

 

[Toffee in Jandals]

I always found it extremely odd that the likes of Italy and France, two European nations with huge World Cup pedigree, were drawn in Pot 2 for UEFA World Cup group seedings, and the likes of Croatia, Romania, and Wales (!) were drawn in Pot 1. Doing that was always going to create the situation where two big Euro nations were likely going to be drawn in the same group together, and so it happened - Italy and Spain together in one group, France and the Netherlands together in another.

Even Poland, a strong European nation, were somehow in Pot 3 - and they ended up waltzing through their Euro group; mostly due to the fact they were paired with Romania, without a doubt the weakest nation in Pot 1.

So given the seedings, there was always a strong possibility a "big" nation wouldn't qualify for the World Cup, such is the lottery of the play-off stage and the defensive mindset teams get into in order to grind out a 1-0 victory over two legs.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_(UEFA)

 

[The binman chronicles]

mamma mia!

 

[SuperTimCahill]

Congrats to our Swedish brethren, though I gotta say it will be a lesser World Cup without Italy participating. One of my favorite teams to watch historically speaking. Really wanted Buffon to win it.

 

[Armel]

Excellent, I hate booing of anthems.

 

[marsh]

We get to see the swedish women at the world cup now haha

 

[Rook]

MORE FRESH MEAT FOR THE 2018 HOOTERS CUP!!!!!

Group A

Italy
USA
Ivory Coast
Northern Ireland

Group B

Chile
Ukraine
Hungary
Syria/Aussies

Group C

Netherlands
Paraguay
Greece
Oh you can come too Scotland

Group D

England (we'll start this tourney off right after match day 2, when you are mathematically eliminated from that other tourney)
Ireland/Denmark
Chech Rep
Ecuador

Failed to qualify: Canada but we'll play a couple matches in Toronto, just to annoy you.

 

[Huyton Layne]

Italy need a bit of failure. It’s good for a nation.