32 team knock out style every game is a final!
To a certain extent yeah, I'd also be happy with the 16 teams. I just think 24 is a terrible middle point, which eliminates a lot of the entertainment from the group stages, because almost everyone progresses, so the majority of games are relatively low stakes, unless you're right on the cusp of being either a good or bad third place team. There's so little jeopardy, you win your first game and you're basically through...
Like a 32 team euros is basically like having our current 24 teams + Wales, Bosnia, Iceland, Norway, Ireland, Montenegro, Sweden and Greece. It's not great, but it's not like a huge drop in quality to the current teams outside the top 8 teams, who are very much in a league of their own... And the format improves much much more... You see it in the world cup, thinking of Germany getting knocked out in a group with Mexico, South Korea and Sweden - the dynamics of 2/4 getting out a group causes far more upsets than 2.5/4
53 teams competing in qualifying for 32 team championships would be nonsense. 16 teams was the perfect number for Euros.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
The only football stadiums in Wales or Scotland that have the capacity to host matches are already based in cities that are being used. So technically they'll have to deal with the SRU not SFA or WFA as Murrayfield would be the most likely stadium they'd use.
All a bit moot anyway as doubt they'll go anywhere but another English stadium. Could look for somewhere like Leeds, Leicester, Sunderland, or Southampton
I see they are asking the Brits to get stoned and not drunk
https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/...n-championship
Germany gonna be a tough out. What a beautiful goal....
UEFA simply does not permit two stadia in one city - not even London, a city which could damned nearly host the whole tournament on its own. (Wembley for the Final etc is an exception).
Which is why Dublin is out i.e. it could only ever be Aviva or Croke, and since the Aviva is 50% football, that will be it. (There is no other stadium in ROI which comes close to complying)
Wales has one stadium which meets the criteria (Principality) and another which might, Cardiff City Stadium (unsure?), but both are in the same city, so that's a no/no.
Scotland conceivably might do it if you included Murrayfield, except that it probably doesn't meet UEFA requirements, which are about much more than mere capacity, as well as being a rugby stadium, and why would UEFA or the SFA want to benefit a rival sport?
Which, assuming Casement doesn't make it (increasingly likely imo), leaves England. My guess is Sunderland/SoL, though if Nottingham Forest could redevelop The City Ground in time for the final decision (odds-against, I'd say), they might be in the running. Or as 'JR89' says, Leeds or Soton might step up. (Leicester City probably aren't in the running since the city doesn't have its own international airport, what with East Midlands being closer to Derby or Nottingham)
Last edited by EalingGreen; 16/06/2024 at 6:01 PM.
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