The Americans plan to organize a tournament for teams that did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup. Artem Frankov and Ruslan Aslamov try to understand the pros and cons.
Deaf and inconclusive information - they say, the US Football Association has plans to hold a tournament for the losers of the World Cup selection - has caused genuine enthusiasm of our fans. Well, I understand them - it would be nice to throw our team over the ocean and force it to hold three or four or five matches with a very decent team that did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup.. This demarche would acquire a distinct political color and, among other things, would allow at the expense of the Americans to show a duel to the north-eastern neighbor.
Why at the expense of the Americans? Yes, because apart from them no one is able to organize such a large-scale tournament, nor FIFA intimidated to a state of total silence. Anyone else will come and ask weighty - are you talking about this, the alternative to our World Cup started, dear separatists? !!.
Why dul? Yes, that's why.
Why is it good? Because it is useful and interesting, after all, fresh.
If, of course, such an event would be practically feasible. That wave that has now passed through the media, is nothing more than a trial balloon, an attempt to touch the reaction and get information. As the millenials would say, the guys haypanuli a little and quieted, so as not to zashvaritsya ... Well, let's help American analysts and consider this project from all sides and the most unprejudiced.
For a start, let's take a break from the beating on the eyes of the positive and list the OBJECTIVE complications of the project.
Try to assemble June-early July - the mandatory date / time of FIFA only for the participants of the final part of the World Cup, the rest can only politely ask the players to come to the team, but do not require. In turn, as the players themselves can refuse to sacrifice leave for the sake of a dubious tournament (this may be interesting for us, but they do not have to!), And clubs - they should not be released. "Why are we exhausted for our football players? "According to one version, the tournament can try to stick in the" window "between the end of the club season and the beginning of World Cup. From the point of view of our reasoning, this does not change anything and even worsens the outlook. The main thing is that for Ukraine and other Europeans, in many respects the practical meaning of participation is lost - instead of sitting at home and collecting here for sparring World Cup participants, we are wound into the unknown distance, which is at least more difficult physically and organizationally. Only for big money!.
In short, try to collect the strongest national team of Ukraine in May-June for the de facto tour of the States. Is it a holiday for our players to guess - with tickets for NBA and NHL matches. I repeat: no one is obligated to participate in this.
Unless the US will put FIFA as a cancer and make it a traditional and official tournament. How do you think, how likely is this?.
Negative image You can call it whatever you like - right up to Antikubka of the world with Buffon and Gabon, even to fit the ideological underpinnings (they say, the participants did not aspire to visit the aggressor country - for example, Italians, who did not so much as seek, that they are still in tears and snot float), only a few will believe, and therefore will receive this unofficial competition, but the evil name "Cup of Losers". For those who love the lyrics - "Copa Maldito".
Believe me, no one in the countries that are at the World Cup, and in the participating countries, there will not be a tongue in the backside. I'm not a big supporter of rudeness, but I've often been surprised by the hamovitousness of the directness of my Western colleagues, especially from publications that by definition are not concerned with tolerance.
Including in the United States, whose national team in qualification was disgraced, perhaps, is steeper than all in the world.
Where the drozhishki US State on this money will not give - live eaten by taxpayers. The Football Association of the States does not have such money - it's not just that you have to pay the costs, but you also have to roll out a solid prize as a prize.
And what from the point of view of business - both direct sponsorship, and the sale of rights to television broadcasts? Although, in principle, the first directly follows from the second ... Well, who is this "Movement of Non-Aligned" will buy for a teleport? Not only matches of his team, but the whole tournament? He will not disturb strangers from any side, especially the World Cup participants.
It is clear, Ukraine, the good we have at least one television company, which does not care about the audience, and the rating, if only it could be wrapped in a flyer. It is a pity that we will have to pay for this from our cheerleaderski and nezolelschitskogo pockets. (By the way, I understand that we will not show the World Cup in Russia, right?) Alas, or fortunately, even in Ukraine the illusion of an exciting tournament, in fact, by the status equal to February in Cyprus, it will not be possible to create. Internet at your fingertips.
With the rest and is very tense. Let's say who will be interested in this tournament in Italy, which will certainly come there in the left or at all youth composition, if at all agree to participate? Ghana? Cote d'Ivoire? Maybe China? Probably. But who cares about China as an opponent?.
By the way, it's far from a fact that in the States themselves this competition will cause interest. The presence of superstars is not just dubious, but highly questionable (because WHO ?!), the Mexican national team, whose fans in the US are millions and millions, is playing for the World Cup and t. Hope for Irish, Italian, Ukrainian and other Diasporas? But are they able, sorry for the tautology, to prove their ability to fill stadiums and watch this tournament on pay TV?.
In short, business does not do this, it remains to rely on the ideological underpinnings, sort of Goodwill Games, and the ersatz Turner (which Ted). That's only in the IFE, for all their artificiality, not only losers.
And now let's play into the split personality and give three arguments capable of how that gun from "The meeting place can not be changed," to outweigh all the expressed skepticism.
Three D (money, money, money) In today's world, not everything is measured by economic measures. We enter the turbulent period, at the time of the change of the world order. And in this game the United States as yet the only hegemon will come in handy with any trump cards.
So if money does not give a business, they can be given some kind of fund of some Soros. Money is nothing, image is everything! And for a holy cause to pester a hated competitor (switch attention to the World Cup 2018!) And print a hundred or other evergreen millions is not a sin, the good is the dollar printer that's here, by the side.
Fighting corruption FIFA, of course, the organization respected. But given the recent corruption scandals in world football, her reputation is very damp. The speed with which football functionaries of different caliber tear the covers and lay out to the American investigators scorching truth can only be compared with the speed of the appearance of new confessions of victims of harassment of American producers and actors.
The US can easily take advantage of the immediate weakness of FIFA and squeeze such a tournament. If, of course, they decide that PR-benefits from its conduct will outweigh the imminent negative of Alter-FM. Especially, losers, as well as representatives of various minorities, in the modern world are encouraged to strongly support and support. And also give them a second chance, as for example, the teams that took third place in the Champions League. Is not it an analogy?.
More tournaments are good and different In football now, more than ever, many innovative ideas are moving forward. These are video replay, and annual changes in the Rules of the game, and, in a separate line, tournaments of different levels. World Cup, European Championships, club world championship non-stop expanding, causing malicious comments of specialists. Already in the near future will start a completely new project - the League of Nations of UEFA. The enraged FIFA, not waiting at least for the first LN draw, announced its intention to create its own, World League. Against this background, the "comforting" World Cup looks no longer so lonely. You look, and will take root proektik ... Okay, all this is a special abstraction, naked idea. Moreover, as far as we know, Ukraine has never been invited anywhere. And we already need to plan the pre-Mundial May and, as far as possible, to snap it from the "championship" - we will repeat, about sensible domestic or near-geographically sparring partners,. Maybe even the tenants to persuade, say, Kharkov and Kiev ... And then already engage in all sorts of manilovism.
Artem FRANKOV, Ruslan ASLAMOV.