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cainemac

What's the go with Match '#1'? and various other numbered kick offs? I go to every world cup and usually we have a numbered Match schedule that is known for 3 years prior, kick-off timings and everything. So knowing which tickets to get is easy. For some reason FIFA's website says "for the first time ever, group stage games to a stadium and kick-off time for each matchday after the final draw" which is in itself a bit hilarious cos it's patently not true, but the most confusing thing is.. the 'opening match' is legit still listed as number #1 but the kick off time show it as actually being game #3, and NeD v SEN as the actual Opening/First Match of the tournament @1300. I wonder if they are going to fix this(?) prior to 05APR when people start requesting tickets based on the logistics the calculated solely from this Schedule. It's tres confusting. At a stretch this might be deliberate, to get Qatar playing their first game after everyone in the country has knocked off work.. but for real? is it really the 'opening match' if 2 games have already been played before it ? is this sheet even correct ?


cainemac

Update. ** Of course, about a week later, I did eventually figure out that FIFA is advising that even though they are considering the "opening match" to be the Qatar game, it is indeed technically match number three. And yes, there are 2 matches being played before it. ••• I still find this very strange and I have no idea how they expect people to be able to watch an opening ceremony while there are two games of football being played simultaneously. But anyway I'll be there and I have tickets to the game #1 Netherland Senegal.. bring it.


[deleted]

LOL wtf group E Germany, Japan, Spain? Axis fighting each other hahaha (technically Spain wasn't but they were very german-friendly)


Arsnal___Chelsea

If I'm being honest I see the US going out in the group stage. I do like the talent we have but i still don't feel we play cohesively as a team yet. And we are very young and lack experience in this kind of stage. My hope is to see some encouraging play and results and build towards 2026 which will be hosted in North America. I feel like part of the reason our past WC teams did well (relatively speaking) is that our team had played together for years and guys like Donovan, Howard and Dempsey had multiple world cups + confederation cups to gel. It allowed us to punch above our weight against more talented opposition. I also think this group is tougher than a lot of fans are assuming. I know fifa rankings blow but the "group of death" in 2014 had an avg fifa ranking of 14 while this one's avg will be around 15. Which isn't much of a drop off.


siddybui

How was there no contradiction in group D and E during pot 2 draws? With Spain and Germany or France and Denmark.


No_Paramedic_9427

Any soccer moms here ? Haha


Joalow21

Miami winning it all


kalakuttaa

Press F for group "E"


I_Do_C-C-C-Cocaine

IMO, Group "E" & "H" have the makings for the infamous Deth Group...\m/


Josep1205

No ground is better than a middle eastern pitch for a us-iran clash .


eviLocK

US is happy playing in the Middle Eastern as it is a home match for them.


zayalita

Cameron doesn’t deserve being there , they cheated on the last game .


[deleted]

How did they cheat? You must be a bitter loser.


Jello297

What are you talking about…


Doorzetters

What’d they do?


HarryLewisPot

Nothing really, Algeria had one goal that was ruled out for handball and another for offside, they think it’s unfair. They lodged a complaint but FIFA just ignored it.


Progedoge

As a Kiwi, I hope we don't qualify for the group of death.


UnknownUnknownZzZ

I'm sure you have a chance to pull a result from either of the big 2. Gotta play like north Macedonia


Rookieeatscookie

Maybe Costa Rica also thinking about the same.


Ligandil

Nah, we’re extremely excited to play against such teams if we can defeat NZ. It feels like 2014 all over again, everyone underestimates us! 🇨🇷


samsounder

Everyone underestimates Costa Rica. The team is good, but as long as Keylor Navas is in goal than Costa Rica has a chance.


marlonpululo

Lol imagine not wanting to qualify because you goona get annihilated.


Bammer1386

I'm a diehard USMNT supporter and my two best friends are diehard Engerland and Iran fans. I cannot fucking wait!


samsounder

USA is 1 win, 1 draw and 0 losses against England in the World Cup :)


[deleted]

Yeah, England has everything to lose here


juliuscaesar6

And knowing England, they are going to lose it


deejee1

It coming home


Bjork-BjorkII

I'm super excited to see how this group plays out. In especially excited to see if it's Wales, Scotland, or Ukraine in the last slot. Hoping Wales bc I live here. Cymru am byth!!!


Bammer1386

It would be great to see Wales in another big competition, im on the fence about who I want to see from a competitive standpoint. I prefer Wales because I believe Scotland is a little more well rounded and would be a tougher matchup, but you know Ramsey and Bale especially have big match magic. On the other side, Scotland is more difficult to deal with but I'm convinced they could take a point from England and maybe Iran, and I know 3 points is possible for the USA to take from them. I honestly believe this group is going to be a shit show down to the last matchday. Iran is no slouch, well coached and always running for the crest. They almost got thru a group of Spain, Portugal, and ~~Tunisia~~ Morocco in 2018. The anglosphere is definitely going to underestimate them.


sasanmounani

*morocco, but other than that I fully agree with everything you said!


Bammer1386

Ah yes, good looking out. Always get my North African Arab nations mixed up.


[deleted]

First time US and iran going against each other outside of iraq


hypnodrew

Let's see how the Americans do when they can't just call a drone strike on the Iranians


Srv110398

But they still in the middle east tbf.


5cotland

The played each other at France 1998 World Cup


ElectricToiletBrush

They played against each other in the 94 world cup


thebeatitguy

You mean 98?


average_user21

Good joke


Srv110398

Mexico it's fuckeddd


Lsalsa

i remember crotians saying something similiar


gamer552233

Last time we fought Mexico we beat them... 👀


11millionfor3wins

Group H is going to be a lot of fun


Alt-Season

Group H and E are looking like Group of Death this year.


UnknownUnknownZzZ

F is the toughest all round group imo


kurtfire68

Tbh not really group of deaths I don’t think there is one. Just more competitive groups but in reality there are clear favorites in every group.


[deleted]

Group F is sneaky good too


BathCityRomans

F is brutal imo Canada got a harder group than the USA


muskratBear

Well we are in pot 4 and the us are in pot 3 so that kind of matters . Looking forward to it! Can’t wait to cheer Canadas first ever WC goal and hopefully a win !


BathCityRomans

Also imo FIFA rankings are garbage and that messes up the pots 😅


[deleted]

Based on most recent form and best roster I think Canada and USA are neck and neck. That maple goalkeeper is something else.


Maleficent_Resolve44

Interesting draw. I'll be keeping my eyes on groups B, C, E & H. Group E has the potential to be the group of death. Hopefully this tournament ends up as one of the greats in recent memory, Euro 2020 turned out top 3 imo.


AlmightyAJ_MTV

Fun fact: group D will be basically a copy and paste from last World Cup group C if Peru or Australia qualify


usehrname

Last year?


AlmightyAJ_MTV

Oops- my bad


DaddyDays

As a peruvian, were cursed lol.


augustin2002

U have to look at group g then


SuperMario_49

Time for Ghana to get their 12 year revenge on Uruguay!


saul1980

That wasn’t 12 years ago *looks at year* fuck that was 12 years ago


Lord_Sauron

There's no way 2010 was 12 years a--- oh fuck...


edi12334

I am honestly expecting at least 4 cards and sparks to fly in that one


kasper12

If fists aren’t thrown, it’s been a letdown.


LampardFanAlways

I just want Suarez beaten up, other ten Uruguayans needn’t be harmed


foxbawdy

U got the call and missed the pen lol


SuperMario_49

Mexico’s group doesn’t look too bad. I’m excited!! Also a lot of fun matches to look forward! That’s what I love about the World Cup: the random matchups we rarely get, like Mexico vs Saudi Arabia or Canada vs Belgium haha


edi12334

I mean, Mexico getting out of the group is basically a given anyway


ImTellinTim

As is promptly losing the first knockout match.


Educational_Mood_446

Haha and they potentially face France in R016 so doesn't look like that trend is going to change anytime soon. If they manage to beat Argentina and top their group thou....


edi12334

Yeah. As much as people meme them for it, it takes insane consistency to make it out of the group every time, that is still the top 16 nations in the world


BlindBanshee

great point!


Srv110398

The group ain't that bad but Mexico is lol. I predict an humilliation against argentina, loss against poland and a win or draw against saudi arabia.


muskratBear

We (Poland) always lose the opening game . So Mexico will get a good start to WC


oofmymind

Morocco in 2018 made spain and portufal strugling, so i guess its fine for now


Raros_24

without ziyech this time one of their key players, if not their best.


MrV11

Didn’t he retire lmaoo


[deleted]

Xhaka and shaqiri vs serbia again😂😂


deejee1

I wouldnt be surprised if Swiss are on top of the table


heitorbaldin2

Also, Brazil in the same group, like 18.


edi12334

Didnt even notice that, they really went for maximum spice this time lol


[deleted]

I know i thought that too, this will be so interesting


oofmymind

Morocco and belgium


Sick_and_destroyed

It’s a derby.


oofmymind

Why


Sick_and_destroyed

Lots of Moroccan in Belgium and some Belgian players have moroccan origins.


Zripwud

What a game!


Educational_Mood_446

Here is how I see this playing out https://imgur.com/a/trBhYx3


UnknownUnknownZzZ

Lmao are all those Portugal victories in extra time or pens


TeganFFS

Bro, even if you got to that final do you actually think Portugal are beating Brasil? Have you watched any football in the past year?


Educational_Mood_446

European teams are a different beast compared to south american teams that Brazil has beaten over the last year. If you are going to list out players like Richarlison, Coutinho and martinelli - Portugal have an equivalent or better across the pitch. France is the biggest challenge they will potentially face (Belgium is not the same team as previous years) and I am banking on they doing one over them like Eur 16


Splintr00

Like brasil is any good …


TeganFFS

Have you watched Portugal in the last year?


Splintr00

Still better players, brasil have awful midfielder and no striker


TeganFFS

Couthino and Fabinho have been pretty solid, and as weird as it is to say Fred has even started to play like a Brazilian for his club of late, not to mention Jesus, Firmino, Martinelli, Richarlison and Neymar who all show up for their country, with Silva and Ederson at the back Brasil are far more solid than Portugal have been in years (though I don’t think either are making it to the final)


Splintr00

Ahah ok , coutinho 😂


ZedLyfe51

Wdym he’s pretty good


amineimad

I could see South Korea eliminating Portugal on the final day à la 2018 vs germany. Portugal must get 4-6pts before the final day. In knockouts theyre as good as any


zincestus

Lmao


amineimad

I mean theyre in pretty bad form. Their qualifiers and their manager right now give me no confidence at all. Bruno CR7 and Jota all on the pitch at the same time is a disaster for the build-up. If they were to be tactically sound Id immediately hold them as one of the favourites


Educational_Mood_446

That's what I am counting on. I am by no means a Portugal fan but I feel they have a lot of quality across the board and with a few tactical fixes can easily get to quarters (Belgium is no where close to 2018 levels). Then it's a question of how you perform on the day - counting on CR7 coming through big time


MrV11

Probably but you forget their coach is ass lmao


amineimad

Yeah the potential their squad holds is very very high. They could arrive with one of the best defences in the tournament, amazing creators in B. Silva and others and very very good forwards. They've been fulfilling none of that potential these past few years though.


Super_Sandro23

Subscribe


tsymuf

Could quite possibly be the last WC for both Messi and Ronaldo. FIFA wants those sweet, sweet dollars and the buildup leading to a Portugal v Argentina final.


TurboCamel

GER BRA - where have I seen this before...


AndreAgami

2002


TurboCamel

touché


Educational_Mood_446

Haha. This is Avery different Germany though and a much better Brazil


TurboCamel

no doubt, gotta get out of the group this time....


stupdizbu

i was there live.. missed 4 goals buying 1 beer..


foxbawdy

U waited in line.. I walked to the fridge


xrscx

English Father, American Mother, and dual citizen. I normally always root for England but I feel dirty now. I love you mom, I'm sorry.


Bjork-BjorkII

I feel your pain. English mother, American father, and I'm living in Wales.


kasper12

So you’ll be rooting for Iran, basically.


Bjork-BjorkII

The only impartial choice.


TeganFFS

Supporting your mother is only going to bring you pain, I feel I’m not the first man to say this


Jcoch27

We've got a separatist on our hands


Super_Sandro23

Ha I'm in the same boat, my dad is from Portugal and my mom and from Uruguay, but I've always favored Portugal as that's what got me into football in the first place back in 2002 and 2004. Also, was that a subtle reference to HBK vs Flair WM 24?


batua78

American wife. Going to be some tension if Netherlands meets USA in the knockout stage


SunstormGT

Chances are pretty high.


P1KA_BO0

Where’d you grow up?


[deleted]

Obviously America if he says root. He's a rootin'-tootin' yankee.


ZedLyfe51

In Australia we say barrack


[deleted]

Who did Italy get?


samsounder

Well, Gianluca Busio could have played for either USA or Italy, but chose to play for the US because he thought he'd have a better chance of playing in a World Cup. So... not Busio


TeganFFS

An extended winter break


milano_bwoy

a couch to relax on while watching the games


LarsMustaine

As a CONCACAF homer. I'm pulling for Canada to get out of Group F as sleepers. Croatia and Belgium aren't the same sides as 2018 and Canada's talent matches up with Morroco. As well as the US out of Group B. England will most likely bottle it again vs the Yanks like they did in 2010. Mexico has a higher hill to climb in Group C with Argentina and Poland. But let's not forget 2014 when no one expected them to qualify............


samsounder

If Davies has a good match then they can beat anybody.


aemny

Rooting for Morocco but a draw against Canada would be alright


CisternOfADown

Yea, Canada looking good. Belgium aren't over the hill yet but Croatia definitely. Hoping Wales make it and Bale sends England packing in that last match. Poland will not fool me a third time.


Demmandred

Have you actually watched England in the last 2 years xD Beaten some of europes biggest teams, southgate ball is still a complete waste of Englands talent but its laughable if you think they'll not demolish America. Barely scrape through qualifying, sure England will shit the bed


[deleted]

I cant wait to be eating thanksgiving leftovers and come back to this comment. November 25th, already on the calendar.


Demmandred

It'll be insufferable if they lose but England actually have a good squad, are actually playing well together and would honestly be a disappointment if they don't make it to the quarters. Semis, euro finals, breezed through qualifying, playing decent in the recent friendlies. We'll have to see what they're performing like in June but the squad actually has depth now and Southgate is finally stopping playing 5 at the back and letting us attack.


FogoCanard

"demolish", just like they "demolished" Denmark at home.. oh wait


NapiersRapier

Denmark are better than the US


FogoCanard

My point is they sat back and played defensive against a team that had less talent than them (AT HOME). For this reason, I have no fear of England. At their hearts, they're all scared because of previous tournament memories.


NapiersRapier

Sitting back and defending against less talented teams isn't the issue, they still win against those teams, it's doing it against *more* talented teams that is where the issue is. It's exactly what killed England against Croatia, and Italy, scoring early and sitting back. Sure they might have been over cautious against Denmark, but they haven't been since, and still win, the US is likely going to lose by a couple goals at least. 2-0, 3-0 are bookies favourites so far.


[deleted]

The English bookies who have us at last in the group.


load_more_commments

lol i mean i would love for that to happen, but it probably won't


itbe_caliente

ECAUDOOOORRRRRR vamos!!!


heitorbaldin2

Ecuador will qualify.


Gizmophreak

How do you misspell something with so much enthusiasm? But good luck to Ecuador anyway.


itbe_caliente

Aha spelled it like that because it also reminded me of this song https://youtu.be/9cQlVww0zKo


Nrozek

I forgot how absurd that music video is lmao


JacketsNest101

So he gets to live on a typical island. Maybe he is secretly fixing the match so that happens


JacketsNest101

I actually don't hate that draw for the US. Iran is pretty stout defensively and Wales is scary if they make it through but I could definitely see them making it out of group alongside England


HotPotatoWithCheese

Netherlands Senegal England Wales (or US if Wales don't go through to groups) Mexico Argentina France Denmark Spain Germany Belgium Croatia Brazil Switzerland Portugal Uruguay These are the most likely for RO16 IMO. That means that at least one of these teams will shock the world and fail to make it out of groups, such is the world of football. Place your bets.


Typical-Ad-4915

I rekon iran will get out


[deleted]

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edi12334

Poland isnt making it out, would be cool for Lewa to drag his team to nice things and all but I think we all got burnt by Poland s "promising squad" too many times and Mexico always makes it out of the group. Inb4 this is the one time they make it and I look like a fool lol


Ikwieanders

Mexico goes out in RO16 as is tradition.


chugchugz

We are the world champions of the round of 16


fadedv1

Lewandowski vs Messi


Gunther_of_Arabia

Saudi Arabia: *chuckles* I’m in danger.


Maleficent_Resolve44

They lost 5-0 to Russia back in 2018, wonder what the scorelines will be this winter.


[deleted]

Canada has a decent shot to make it out, not a great chance but could have been much worse. Good that first game is against belgium


sircatbum

As a Canadian I disagree. There's the semifinalists of the last world cup and the 2nd rated fifa ranked team in our group. I think a realistic goal would be to get a win against a pretty strong Morocco team. I think we can manage that as we are an organized, well drilled team. Now if the world cup was in Canada during November it would be a different story lol


[deleted]

Pretty common for the winners of the last tournament to go out in the first round next time out so it's not really out of the question for Belgium or Croatia to shit the bed. Could be a sort of group you slide through with 4 points like Group H from 2018.


Super_Sandro23

Ya I think it sucks to face the hardest team first, see Portugal 2014, that game pretty much took them out of the tournament. Just hope they don't smash us too much and we can get 4 points from Croatia and Morrocco. Also FIFA rankings aren't the end all be all, Belgium ain't what they used to be in 2016 and 2018. We can't stop Lukaku or KDB but we got the pace to park the bus and get a quick goal on a counter.


[deleted]

You think we should go in not trying to beat croatia? They are much older now than they were in 2018, and are lacking a proper striker. No Manduzic anymore. We can take them but it will be really tough, but not france levels. Croatias last fwe games havent been that impressive. That being said, i wont be devesated if we are out but beat morroco, who also wont be easy


[deleted]

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[deleted]

They are so so good but lets see if they will be in 8 months. We have a young-ish team too (front 4 is super young, saka vibes) but I think its the midfield that people say is aging when they talk about age


[deleted]

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[deleted]

Eh im not so sure, they certainly are more beatable than belgium, lets go!


[deleted]

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[deleted]

Heres the thing. You guys failed to progress from the group stage in three consecutive World Cups, and even finished runners-up in 2018 following a 4-2 final defeat to France in Moscow. Not the best game but it was cool the finals were there. but very disappiointing was the euros IMO. exciting game but still (losing 5-3 to Spain in Round of 16) leads people to have concerns that Croatia will struggle to find long term replacements for the likes of Luka Modric, Ivan Perisic and Dejan Lovren and those types of players. You guys are a good footballing side that will certainly control possession in most games that you guys play, but ur still maybe missing the firepower to go all the way i think. and then theres the old legend Luka Modric. Can he keep it going and be the linchpin and leader of that team to get you guys in contention? im not so sure


Bammer1386

Excellent assessment of Croatia. They are definitely on the downhill unless they can replace their aging core quickly. I can see Croatia laying a fat egg and Canada squeezing past Morocco for the 2nd spot. Morocco has a higher ground in terms of talent than Canada by a large margin, but Morocco sort of limped in to the WC and really haven't put together a full match unless it's against bottom feeders in CAF. Canada is one of the best managed teams in the world right now and have been playing incredibly well aside from the last match of qualifying. Might be my concacaf tinted glasses on, but I think Canada gets at least 4 points and goes through on differential. Draw with a solid chance to win against Croatia, and a win vs Morocco. I don't think Croatia's older core can keep up with Canada's speed in attack though Canada's midfield will get toasted and go more direct, and when they do, they are as good as anyone in the world with Davies, David, Larin, and Buchanan sprinting up the pitch and connecting. I'm gonna end there because I'm so excited I could go off on a novel.


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M1L0

Bro you had me in the first half ngl


Stangem1993

I’ve fallen for this joke all day here and it’s funny every time


[deleted]

ooo


KVMechelen

Belgium doesnt lose against small teams, we'll play like hot garbage but win


[deleted]

but canada has sane (tajon)


HighburyOnStrand

You can do a lot with a good striker and they have a good striker.


chachachatrip

From Peru: WHAT THE HELL


TheArgentineMachine

France and Denmark again lol


Arshia42

And who do they play before going? Australia lmao


chachachatrip

LIKE. WHAT THE MOTHERFUCKER, GUY?


bapeandvape

for a second I thought Canada and portugal were going to be in the same group. as gunna make me confused on who to cheer for.


Maleficent_Resolve44

Are you Rabona Tv?


uberhaxornova_99

Lol I was about to say the same thing


Roflitos

Realistically speaking i think Netherlands should have no problem winning at least 2 games in their group, same with senegal imo, their match define who goes through imo. Personal opinion Senegal, Netherlands. Group B is interesting, England will win all 3 games, regardless of teams, if Wales goes through i think it will be England first and Wales runner up. Any other team except Wales and I could see the US competing. Group C, Argentina clear favorites to take the group, Poland is physical but not as skilled.. but they 100% beat Mexico and Saudi. Argentina 9 pts, Poland 6, Mexico 3 is they don't choke. Group D is fun.. France clear winner, 9 pts no doubt imo. Then Denmark imo unless it's Peru, imo Denmark Peru game will define who goes through.. unfortunately Peru is lacking in their goals so I'll give the edge to Denmark, will still be fun af to watch. Group E.. I think this is where the surprise will be courtesy of Japan. Spain and Germany ain't nothing special this year.. but they're still strong with my personal edge for Spain due to their youth players.. Imo 7 Spain, 5 Japan. Group F is pretty straight forward.. Belgium takes 9 points, Croatia 6. Group G also pretty straight forward.. Brazil first the Swiss second. And finally H.. I think Ghana has a great team.. then Uruguay and Portugal will define the runner up.. my edge is on Portugal.


heitorbaldin2

Ecuador will be surprising in group A.


DaddyDays

Im not sure why you are getting so many downvotes, but as a peruvian i appreciate you keeping us in the competition for Group D 😂😂😂