Qatar 2022 World Cup Discussion

[Brian in Boston]

6 hours ago, DG_ThenNowForever said:

WTF is Boston doing there?

Robert Kraft has served as the Honorary Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors of the United Bid Committee of Canada, Mexico, and the United States since the group launched its effort to host the 2026 World Cup almost five years ago. Reportedly, Kraft and FIFA President Gianni Infantino have developed a close relationship throughout the buildup to the trio of North American host-nations being awarded the event and over the course of the four years since. Gillette Stadium is in the midst of a $225 million renovation project that will see the construction of a new entrance plaza at the facility's north end, as well as the addition of 75,000 square feet of function and hospitality spaces to the inventory that the venue already boasts. Finally, Boston has long been a popular  destination amongst international travelers, with many of said tourists having first visited the city as students at one of the numerous colleges and universities that are located within the Greater Boston Metropolitan Area.

Frankly, while some prognosticators were claiming that Boston was a "bubble" candidate to be designated one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, it would have struck me as a surprise if it hadn't been tabbed.

If anything scotched  Baltimore's chances of landing 2026 World Cup action, it was likely the fact that Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field - just 89 miles as the crow flies from M&T Bank Stadium - was amongst the venues selected.        

[DoctorWhom]

My uncle is an italian immigrant and huge fan of the Italian team, he lives right down the street from Gillette so I'm sure he's over the moon at the chance to see the team play in person.   

Of course getting tickets for the Italian team is probably going to be harder that getting tickets for the US team. LOL  Assuming they qualify of course.

 

I am also curious how well Foxboro is going to handle hosting the Cup. Not everyday a suburb is hosting Fifa. 

I doubt most could point to it on a map. LOL 

[Brian in Boston]

9 hours ago, DoctorWhom said:

I am also curious how well Foxboro is going to handle hosting the Cup. Not everyday a suburb is hosting Fifa.   

One would hope as well as Foxborough handled hosting six matches (including the Italy vs. Spain Quarterfinal)  during the 1994 FIFA World Cup, five matches (including the Norway vs. China Semifinal) during the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup, and four matches (including a Quarterfinal doubleheader of Brazil vs. Sweden and the United States vs. Norway) during the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup. 

[DoctorWhom]

Honestly I'm shocked Vegas didn't get pick as a host site. Since with the Knights & Raiders, it's one of the fastest growing sports markets. 

[Digby]

What are the odds of a normal, unconnected person being able to even buy a ticket to any of these games? Gotta be close to zero, right?

[DG_ThenNowForever]

6 minutes ago, Digby said:

What are the odds of a normal, unconnected person being able to even buy a ticket to any of these games? Gotta be close to zero, right?

 

I paid $500/seat for a three-pack to Copa America Centenario. I expect to pay at least double for a World Cup in Seattle. And probably just for one game. And probably to see something like Suriname vs Uzbekistan.

[Digby]

1 minute ago, DG_ThenNowForever said:

I paid $500/seat for a three-pack to Copa America Centenario. I expect to pay at least double for a World Cup in Seattle. And probably just for one game. And probably to see something like Suriname vs Uzbekistan.

 

I think you're about right for the prices and that's if you're the winner of some 1-in-10 lottery first, and only for the upper-deck seats. As a not-Patriots fan I haven't even been in the Gillette upper deck (or seen it open) since the 2002 MLS Cup final. Not sure if it's worth it or if I can handle it without getting a nosebleed.

[Digby]

9 hours ago, Brian in Boston said:

Robert Kraft has served as the Honorary Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors of the United Bid Committee of Canada, Mexico, and the United States since the group launched its effort to host the 2026 World Cup almost five years ago. Reportedly, Kraft and FIFA President Gianni Infantino have developed a close relationship throughout the buildup to the trio of North American host-nations being awarded the event and over the course of the four years since. Gillette Stadium is in the midst of a $225 million renovation project that will see the construction of a new entrance plaza at the facility's north end, as well as the addition of 75,000 square feet of function and hospitality spaces to the inventory that the venue already boasts. Finally, Boston has long been a popular  destination amongst international travelers, with many of said tourists having first visited the city as students at one of the numerous colleges and universities that are located within the Greater Boston Metropolitan Area.

Frankly, while some prognosticators were claiming that Boston was a "bubble" candidate to be designated one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, it would have struck me as a surprise if it hadn't been tabbed.

If anything scotched  Baltimore's chances of landing 2026 World Cup action, it was likely the fact that Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field - just 89 miles as the crow flies from M&T Bank Stadium - was amongst the venues selected.        

 

Beyond Bobby K being an old-school soccer guy who always gets these (remember not only did Old Foxboro host in 1994, but New Foxboro had Copa American Centenario too), it's a good basecamp area with the new Revs facility being right behind the stadium, you could probably build a 2nd facility on the Patriots fields, and Harvard's complex is always a basecamp for international teams touring the US as well. So lots of options. That plus with the renovations, it'll be a new-ish stadium again in 2026 (with natural grass again!).

 

Unfortunately all of these things are also why the Revs won't ever have a proper MLS stadium for themselves.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

11 minutes ago, Digby said:

 

I think you're about right for the prices and that's if you're the winner of some 1-in-10 lottery first, and only for the upper-deck seats. As a not-Patriots fan I haven't even been in the Gillette upper deck (or seen it open) since the 2002 MLS Cup final. Not sure if it's worth it or if I can handle it without getting a nosebleed.

 

Each site will have three to four games, right? I'd imagine something like that. That's my only real hope of getting in. And, again, that's probably an aftermarket ticket for a really unappealing group game.

 

Still, I'm going to at least try. It's the World Cup! It's been 32 years since it was last in the states and the way we as a culture view soccer is completely different now.

 

What's the lowest capacity World Cup 2026 stadium? Is it BMO Field?

[Brian in Boston]

I count myself lucky to have scratched my World Cup itch as a media relations volunteer in Foxborough at both the 1994 FIFA World Cup and the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup, as well as being gifted a trip - as a wedding present, from my wife's sister and brother-in-law - to the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.    

[MJWalker45]

27 minutes ago, Digby said:

What are the odds of a normal, unconnected person being able to even buy a ticket to any of these games? Gotta be close to zero, right?

FIFA generally wants the host nations to get cheaper tickets than the visitors, but I think they may do the opposite of this for games in the USA. 

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2780314-world-cup-2018-ticket-prices-latest-reports-on-sales-figures-from-russia

 

"Tickets have been divided into four categories, with Category 1 being the most expensive and Category 4—which are reserved exclusively for Russian residents—the cheapest".

 

Ticket prices for the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia by category and match (in U.S. dollars)*

 

Characteristic	Cat 1	Cat 2	Cat 3	Cat 4*
Opening match (1)	550	390	220	50
Group matches (2 to 48)	210	165	105	20
Round of 16 (49 to 56)	245	185	115	35
Quarter-finals (57 to 60)	365	255	175	60
Semi-finals (61 to 62)	750	480	285	70
3rd/4th place match (63)	365	255	175	60
Final (64)	1,100	710	455	110

[TBGKon]

9 hours ago, DoctorWhom said:

Honestly I'm shocked Vegas didn't get pick as a host site. Since with the Knights & Raiders, it's one of the fastest growing sports markets. 

Vegas applied but was eliminated from host consideration during the 2nd round of cuts in 2018, among other cities like Tampa, Charlotte, Phoenix, the Cotton Bowl and the LA Coliseum.

[TBGKon]

16 hours ago, Rockstar Matt said:

Super happy SoFi is gonna host the World Cup! I’d imagine that SoFi along with JerryWorld and MetLife in New York, are the main candidates to host the opening match and the Final. 

If the opening day will be 3 matches (one in each country) I would think Mexico City gets one.  Vancouver would be my choice for Canada due to larger capacity than Toronto.  Dallas might get the opener in the US since I feel like NY or LA gets the final.

[MJWalker45]

9 hours ago, DoctorWhom said:

Of course getting tickets for the Italian team is probably going to be harder that getting tickets for the US team. LOL  Assuming they qualify of course.

I worry that they may be on the downturn for a few years unless they embrace the youth movement like the USA has this cycle. I also remember that I had a World Cup t-shirt that had flags of the countries that were expected to qualify for USA 94 and that England was on the shirt but didn't make it in.  I'd be surprised to see that happen in 2026.  Italy missing three World Cups in a row would be catastrophic for them, so I expect UEFA to do everything they can to get them, Norway and the other better known squads in. With more slots available, probably 15 direct spots before playoffs, I'd expect them to make it in. With future tournaments jumping up to 48 teams in it'll take a lot more apathy from the bigger teams in Europe to not get into the tournaments. It'll also limit who can host these tournaments too. I'd expect China or the UK to host 2030, then the loser getting 2034 unless a multiple country bid from Europe or South America is on the table. 

12 minutes ago, DG_ThenNowForever said:

What's the lowest capacity World Cup 2026 stadium? Is it BMO Field?

BMO is the smallest.  All other MLS stadiums are just under the FIFA minimum, except for the ones that share space with NFL teams. That's the only thing I don't like about KC hosting, because they'll be at Arrowhead but Children's Mercy Park is a better soccer stadium. Also, can we stop putting up college stadiums at the start of the bidding process? We know they aren't getting the games because no one in FIFA wants to sit on a bench when most of Europe has standard seating and limited standing areas in them. Someone on Twitter was disappointed Columbus didn't put in a bid, but Ohio Stadium is not a great place for hosting multiple games when you have Cleveland and Cincinnati with more standard seating and business suites for the sponsors to hide out in.  Also, the US may be bidding for the Women's World Cup in 2027 or 2031, so at least they'll be playing in stadiums that were designed primarily for soccer. 

 

[MJWalker45]

2 minutes ago, TBGKon said:

If the opening day will be 3 matches (one in each country) I would think Mexico City gets one.  Vancouver would be my choice for Canada due to larger capacity than Toronto.  Dallas might get the opener in the US since I feel like NY or LA gets the final.

With 80 games, I think that we may have up to 5 games a day, though that first day being three games, one in each country, makes the most sense. 

[Brian in Boston]

12 minutes ago, TBGKon said:

IDallas might get the opener in the US since I feel like NY or LA gets the final.

I've been hearing quite a bit of chatter that AT&T Stadium and MetLife Stadium are the frontrunners to host the final. We'll see.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

59 minutes ago, Brian in Boston said:

I've been hearing quite a bit of chatter that AT&T Stadium and MetLife Stadium are the frontrunners to host the final. We'll see.

 

I think it has to be MetLife. Vegas would have been a good option, but alas.

 

SoFi is too small for soccer, right? Or at least not without accommodations (I know they've sorted this by now)?

 

AT&T is the best venue with a dome; MetLife is the best venue in America's biggest city. I'd rather see the final in the open air, myself.

[GDAWG]

 

[MJWalker45]

12 minutes ago, GDAWG said:

 

I love how Rob Stone was like, "Not so fast my friend"! 

 

24 minutes ago, DG_ThenNowForever said:

 

I think it has to be MetLife. Vegas would have been a good option, but alas.

 

SoFi is too small for soccer, right? Or at least not without accommodations (I know they've sorted this by now)?

 

AT&T is the best venue with a dome; MetLife is the best venue in America's biggest city. I'd rather see the final in the open air, myself.

I think SoFi is right there at the minimum requirements for field size now. I would think having the game indoors where they can at least control the temperature to a degree would help Dallas and LA over New York. I think the two hottest FIFA finals were the men's 1994 final and the ladies 1999 final, both at the Rose Bowl. 

[Red Comet]

54 minutes ago, GDAWG said:

 

They’ve been saying that for half a century now and it still hasn’t happened. And before anyone brings up Hispanics, recall that we’ve had plenty of Central/Eastern and Southern European immigration where soccer is also the unquestioned king and their descendants now follow baseball, football, basketball and then soccer. 
 

I’ll believe it when I see it.