Hooked on football (futbol)

[mcark]

If there is a football thread already, delete this and send me the link.

What are your favorite football clubs? British premier league, American League, and or other leagues (minor or premier) in any other country.

Here is my list

English: Arsenal
American: Seattle Sounders
American Minor: AC Saint Louis

National Teams
USA
Netherlands
England

[mightykaboosh]

Here's the thread your looking for:

http://www.notesfromspain.com/forums...1122#post91122

Just one thing, United kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland = England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Island. Each with there own flag and national identity.

To play in the English Premier League you have to be based in England or play in the English Football League. The Scottish Premier League isn't a global brand and isn't well supported.

Scottish clubs don't get anywhere near the same amount of tv revenue as there neighbours south of the border. As such year on year, the gap between the elite English team and the top two Scottish clubs (Celtic and Rangers) grows wider and wider. Celtic can't attract top class players because they can't pay their wage demands. Rangers haven't bought any players in the past 4 seasons and each year these toothless teams battle it out to see who will be number 1.

The Champions League is the holy grail for these teams and because they can't compete and attract high calibre players they get knocked out in the qualifying rounds and miss out on more money. Perpetuating a vicious circle.

Favourite teams:

English: Arsenal
Spanish: Barcelona

National: Brazil, Germany (as of 2010 World Cup) & of course Spain. Hard to pick a national team after witnessing the worst World Cup I've ever seen. Lightest ball ever+altitude= terrible freekicks.

Tonight England will play Hungary in a worthless friendly, 3 days before the start of the Premier League season. The decision makers in World Football seem retarded.

Preseason World Tours+Worthless Friendlies+2 Domestic Cups+Champions League/Uefa Cup Campaign+ 38 game season= knackered players that perform badly at World Cup and Euro's!

Wembley will be half full tonight and a "new" England team made up of youngsters and players not deemed capable 2 months ago will get viciously booed by an angry public. (at least that's what the press have been advocating for the past fortnight)

Was hooked, now disenchanted football fan.

[eldeano]

Originally Posted by mightykaboosh

Was hooked, now disenchanted football fan.

Come to the dark side. You know you want to.

[mightykaboosh]

You read my mind. I was going to put I was considering ********** (can't bring myself to say it).

If there was a RL team near me I'd be there in a flash!

If I lived in your neck of the woods I'd watch both. Wigan Athletic season ticket= same price as Shrewsbury Town season ticket

[eldeano]

Please never consider **********. That's strictly for our young cousins.

[Legazpi]

A few trivial corrections

Originally Posted by mightykaboosh

Here's the thread your looking for:

http://www.notesfromspain.com/forums...1122#post91122

Just one thing, Great Britain= England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Island. Each with there own flag and national identity.

Great Britain does not include Northern Ireland

Originally Posted by mightykaboosh

To play in the English Premier League you have to be based in England. The Scottish Premier League isn't a global brand and isn't well supported.

Try telling that to Cardiff, Swansea and Wrexham

You'll also find that Celtic have a massive following worldwide (most of the Irish support then).

Originally Posted by mightykaboosh

Scottish clubs don't get anywhere near the same amount of tv revenue as there neighbours south of the border. As such year on year, the gap between the elite English team and the top two Scottish clubs (Celtic and Rangers) grows wider and wider. Celtic can't attract top class players because they can't pay their wage demands. Rangers haven't bought any players in the past 4 seasons and each year these toothless teams battle it out to see who will be number 1.

The Champions League is the holy grail for these teams and because they can't compete and attract high calibre players they get knocked out in the qualifying rounds and miss out on more money. Perpetuating a vicious circle.

Favourite teams:

English: Arsenal
Spanish: Barcelona

National: Brazil, Germany (as of 2010 World Cup) & of course Spain. Hard to pick a national team after witnessing the worst World Cup I've ever seen. Lightest ball ever+altitude= terrible freekicks.

Tonight England will play Hungary in a worthless friendly, 3 days before the start of the Premier League season. The decision makers in World Football seem retarded.

Preseason World Tours+Worthless Friendlies+2 Domestic Cups+Champions League/Uefa Cup Campaign+ 38 game season= knackered players that perform badly at World Cup and Euro's!

Wembley will be half full tonight and a "new" England team made up of youngsters and players not deemed capable 2 months ago will get viciously booed by an angry public. (at least that's what the press have been advocating for the past fortnight)

Was hooked, now disenchanted football fan.

I agree

[mightykaboosh]

Yes your right, my mistake.

I meant to say that teams from Scotland and Northern Island cannot play in the English Premier League, and since no Welsh team has cut the grade since it's inception. (Cardiff came close last year though)That just skipped my mind. Plus the Welsh have there own League with the mighty TNS.

Celtic do have a massive following, but that doesn't make the Scottish Premier League a global brand. The Scottish Premier League has little commercial value, as it can't be sold to overseas markets. Nobody wants to pay to watch "star" strikers like Georgios Samaras.

The fact that they can't afford to buy high calibre players mean that they can't challenge any major (or even average sized) club in Europe. They would get smashed if they played Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine. (last season Shakhtar spent $100 million on transfers)The current Celtic team is woeful and got taught a footballing lesson from Braga in the Champions League qualifier.

[mcark]

My first football match was the first World Cup match. My European friends told me that I would "burn out" and stop watching soccer after the last match of the World Cup. Well, I've watched several American league games and I have even watched old English premier league matches.

It's easier (convenient) for me to watch Mexican soccer but I find their game to be too defensive. The English are football artists on the field!

[Stephen]

The English are football artists on the field! - mcark

***s artists maybe. Artists no.

[eldeano]

Originally Posted by mcark

The English are football artists on the field!

I think you mean that some (mostly overseas) players in the English Premier League are artists. Too many English players are **** artists.

[mcark]

It's obvious that you two haven't seen American soccer. Someone that can draw stick figures is an artist compared to someone who cannot draw at all.

[eldeano]

We all saw how the English 'artists' performed against the American 'non-artists' in Rustenburg.

[Stephen]

Against the Americans all the English artists could do was draw. Geddit.

[ValenciaSon]

Originally Posted by Stephen

Against the Americans all the English artists could do was draw. Geddit.

Even I got that one.

[Sagitario]

Originally Posted by mightykaboosh

Yes your right, my mistake.

I meant to say that teams from Scotland and Northern Island cannot play in the English Premier League ...

I respectively beg to differ. Being that since the formation of the Premier League (note there is deliberately no reference to the word “English” in the title) on February 20th 1992 as a limited company there has been no geographic restrictions placed on member clubs.

However, the same does not apply to the Football League, which in 1888 came about as the professional arm of an otherwise amateur English Football Association. And, from whom the Premier League broke away from at the start of the 1992-93 season. Hence, with the exception of a handful of Welsh clubs who have historically chosen to remain members, only English based clubs are permitted to be Football League constituents. Ergo, only English based clubs can qualify for promotion (subject to acceptance) to the Premier League from what is now known as the Football League Championship Division.

In theory, it would be perfectly legitimate for the likes of Rangers and Celtic to apply for membership of the “English” Premier League. However, the practicalities of doing so are nowhere as near straightforward being that …
1: In the event of relegation a club based in Scotland would be barred from playing in the lower leagues of the “English” Football League.
2: With particular reference to Rangers and Celtic, the “Scottish” Premier League (which is constituted along similar lines to that of the “English” Premier League) have made it known that neither club would be automatically welcomed back should they decide to leave. Inferring that any application for re-entry into Scottish League Football would likely only be considered at a lower divisional level.

[Legazpi]

Originally Posted by Sagitario

I respectively beg to differ. Being that since the formation of the Premier League (note there is deliberately no reference to the word “English” in the title) on February 20th 1992 as a limited company there has been no geographic restrictions placed on member clubs.

However, the same does not apply to the Football League, which in 1888 came about as the professional arm of an otherwise amateur English Football Association. And, from whom the Premier League broke away from at the start of the 1992-93 season. Hence, with the exception of a handful of Welsh clubs who have historically chosen to remain members, only English based clubs are permitted to be Football League constituents. Ergo, only English based clubs can qualify for promotion (subject to acceptance) to the Premier League from what is now known as the Football League Championship Division.

In theory, it would be perfectly legitimate for the likes of Rangers and Celtic to apply for membership of the “English” Premier League. However, the practicalities of doing so are nowhere as near straightforward being that …
1: In the event of relegation a club based in Scotland would be barred from playing in the lower leagues of the “English” Football League.
2: With particular reference to Rangers and Celtic, the “Scottish” Premier League (which is constituted along similar lines to that of the “English” Premier League) have made it known that neither club would be automatically welcomed back should they decide to leave. Inferring that any application for re-entry into Scottish League Football would likely only be considered at a lower divisional level.

I don't know if it has ever been discussed, but I always thought it would be a good idea to include the winner of the Scottish Premier League in the Championship play-offs every year. The two main drawbacks are the one that you've already mentioned (what happens if a Scottish club is relegated from the Premier League) and also the Scottish clubs would probably have to forfit their chance of getting into the Champions League directly as champions of Scotland.

I think the main opposition to the Scottish clubs playing in the Premier League comes about because it would dilute the distinction between the Scottish and English national teams. A British Premier League might lead to a British football team, which would not be acceptable to Scottish fans.

[SrCandas]

Originally Posted by Sagitario

2: With particular reference to Rangers and Celtic, the “Scottish” Premier League (which is constituted along similar lines to that of the “English” Premier League) have made it known that neither club would be automatically welcomed back should they decide to leave. Inferring that any application for re-entry into Scottish League Football would likely only be considered at a lower divisional level.

Thanks for pointing out the relegation issue for either Rangers or Celtic. I hadn't thought that one throu'. It is an interesting conumdrum

However I believe the Glasgow inclusion issue will only really be addressed if the premier league decide to abandon relegation. I'm sure many of the economic powers would welcome a static grouping and would be happy to invite Rangers and Celtic.

However the current Premiership cannot bring this about while unfashionable teams like Blackpool, Wigan and Hull (and every now and again even my Watford) are occupying slots and voting rights.

So it would need a new organisation with new rules. Hopefully it won't happen in my life time

p.s. As you suggest if the impossible happened and I was the Scottish FA I'd invite them, if relegated, to rejoin Scottish Div 1 upon relegation. Now that would boost a few gates

[Sagitario]

Originally Posted by Legazpi

I don't know if it has ever been discussed, but I always thought it would be a good idea to include the winner of the Scottish Premier League in the Championship play-offs every year.

What a novel suggestion and an absolute non-starter on the grounds of what as the Premiership ever done for the Football League?

Considering the success and the resulting financial power of the Premiership at the undoubted expense of the lower professional divisions of English football which the Football League represents. I can see no rhyme or reason why the Football League should be so inclined as to adapt its end-of-season play-off competitions to further enhance the profile of the Premiership.

While the formation of the Premier League as proved to be a rod to beat itself with, I can’t for the life of me see the Football League allowing the Premiership to further rub salt into the wounds by effectively hijacking its Championship play-off competition.

It may well be possible for the Football League to ‘invite’ the likes of the SPL winners to take part in the Championship play-offs. But knowing how their minds work, I can well imagine the committee-room “what’s in it for us” arguments against such a move being made.

Furthermore, the English Football League would be dead-set against setting any kind of precedent that might at some later date be used as a means to expand the geographical net ... but nevertheless, a nice idea.

[Legazpi]

Originally Posted by Sagitario

What a novel suggestion and an absolute non-starter on the grounds of what as the Premiership ever done for the Football League?

Considering the success and the resulting financial power of the Premiership at the undoubted expense of the lower professional divisions of English football which the Football League represents. I can see no rhyme or reason why the Football League should be so inclined as to adapt its end-of-season play-off competitions to further enhance the profile of the Premiership.

While the formation of the Premier League as proved to be a rod to beat itself with, I can’t for the life of me see the Football League allowing the Premiership to further rub salt into the wounds by effectively hijacking its Championship play-off competition.

It may well be possible for the Football League to ‘invite’ the likes of the SPL winners to take part in the Championship play-offs. But knowing how their minds work, I can well imagine the committee-room “what’s in it for us” arguments against such a move being made.

Furthermore, the English Football League would be dead-set against setting any kind of precedent that might at some later date be used as a means to expand the geographical net ... but nevertheless, a nice idea.

Yes I agree that there are too many vested interests in this. UEFA might have something to say in it as well - what would be there to stop the Premier League from inviting the winners of say the French League to enter the play-offs as well? (That would please Platini )

Maybe it's just wishfull thinking on my part - I'd love to see Premier league just float off into some global branding excercise - just so I could see the faces of Man U supporters when their club gets relocated to Texas, or Liverpool fans when their club gets relocated to Beijing or wherever