2026 FIFA World Cup thread

World Cup champions?

  • Total voters
    27
  • This poll will close: .
Poisoned Slice said:
Football’s lawmakers have approved a series of major new rules ahead of the 2026 World Cup, with expanded VAR powers, stricter punishments for player protests and new anti-timewasting measures all set to be introduced.

Other new rules include:

Five-second countdowns for throw-ins and goal-kicks
Red cards for players covering their mouths during confrontations
Punishments for teams walking off the pitch in protest
Mandatory one-minute off-field treatment periods.

You're still allowed to cover your mouth when you're talking to a team mate or shouting abuse at an opponent or something. The mouth covering rule will just be used when talking to officials.

The five-second countdown will be interesting. I'm a fan of it in spirit, of course.
Click to expand...

"Expanded VAR powers" makes it seem like VAR is a comic book villain :D
 
Federer and Del Potro said:
"Expanded VAR powers" makes it seem like VAR is a comic book villain :D
Click to expand...
cristiano-ronaldo-recording.gif
 
Poisoned Slice said:
Here is the code for the talk tennis fantasy world cup league. MBNR09CA
Click to expand...

I’m in!

Unfortunately it still has my team name from Club World Cup fantasy and I don’t seem to be able to change it.

Looks like Badge In FC will have to take its domestic form international.

How’s the team looking, any hidden gems?
 
Feña14 said:
I’m in!

Unfortunately it still has my team name from Club World Cup fantasy and I don’t seem to be able to change it.

Looks like Badge In FC will have to take its domestic form international.

How’s the team looking, any hidden gems?
Click to expand...
I just clicked auto team so I could get the league set up. I chose a different name because Prat FC has been so disappointing lately, but according to leaks that have come out from my camp, the confidence in captain Haaland should remain, at least for match 1.
 
Poisoned Slice said:
I just clicked auto team so I could get the league set up. I chose a different name because Prat FC has been so disappointing lately, but according to leaks that have come out from my camp, the confidence in captain Haaland should remain, at least for match 1.
Click to expand...

Very nice! I see they open against.. Iraq!? The group stages are going to be wild. Our teams are going to be on 200 points by the end of the second day :-D

I remember Bayern Munich played Auckland on the second day of the CWC. Think that one was 10-0. Could see that a few times this World Cup.
 
Big_Dangerous said:
What the hell, I'll play! Let me just put all PSG players on my roster. :-D :-D
Click to expand...

I’m liking the strategies going on!

We’ve got a PSG super team and Unc FC :-D

Funny thing is, they’re probably going to both do very well.

I might go for a team of ex player names. I’ve discovered the Algerian goalkeeper is called Zidane, so that’s a start.
 
Zara said:
Hey Alexio, good to see you back! Are you here for the WC only? How have you been?
Click to expand...
Rita, good to see you too (again).. i dont think that only for world cup, but i might be wrong here, but hopefully, will be here too when it will be finished, but ..not so often, more likely... im somewhere in the middle haha, i.e. coulda been better but at the same time coulda been worse, i hope everything fine in your life
 
Feña14 said:
I’m liking the strategies going on!

We’ve got a PSG super team and Unc FC :-D

Funny thing is, they’re probably going to both do very well.

I might go for a team of ex player names. I’ve discovered the Algerian goalkeeper is called Zidane, so that’s a start.
Click to expand...
It kind of is wonky because they list Doue and Dembele as Midfielders and not forwards lol. Plus, I can only pick 3 players from the same country/team so I couldn't load up on French players, but I did get a nice mix of PSG players combined with some other really good players.

That 100 mil is tough to make work, as some of the forwards and midfielders are pricey at 10-10.5 mil each.
 

ESPN​

Harry Kane meets his waxwork at Madame Tussauds: 'It's like looking in the mirror!'​

The waxwork is kitted-out in tournament-ready attire with his famous No. 9 squad number on the new England home shirt and took six months to bring to life.

To make the unveiling more special, a select group of players from Ridgeway Rovers in Walthamstow, East London -- the team Kane first played for at the age of six -- were the first to see the new figure and give it their stamp of approval.

lol.jpg
 
Poisoned Slice said:

ESPN​

Harry Kane meets his waxwork at Madame Tussauds: 'It's like looking in the mirror!'​

The waxwork is kitted-out in tournament-ready attire with his famous No. 9 squad number on the new England home shirt and took six months to bring to life.

To make the unveiling more special, a select group of players from Ridgeway Rovers in Walthamstow, East London -- the team Kane first played for at the age of six -- were the first to see the new figure and give it their stamp of approval.

lol.jpg
Click to expand...
There should be a button on it that says “yeah, no, obviously” when you press it
 
Poisoned Slice said:

ESPN​

Harry Kane meets his waxwork at Madame Tussauds: 'It's like looking in the mirror!'​

The waxwork is kitted-out in tournament-ready attire with his famous No. 9 squad number on the new England home shirt and took six months to bring to life.

To make the unveiling more special, a select group of players from Ridgeway Rovers in Walthamstow, East London -- the team Kane first played for at the age of six -- were the first to see the new figure and give it their stamp of approval.

lol.jpg
Click to expand...

cristiano-ronaldo-two-face-batman-bust-statue-sculpture-figure-face-fail-photoshopped.jpg


7712cdb9c212cc7961180f064d915b13.gif
 
alexio said:
Rita, good to see you too (again).. i dont think that only for world cup, but i might be wrong here, but hopefully, will be here too when it will be finished, but ..not so often, more likely... im somewhere in the middle haha, i.e. coulda been better but at the same time coulda been worse, i hope everything fine in your life
Click to expand...
It’s okay. Hope things get better for you soon. Post whenever you find time for it, of course. Everything is fine—just a but hectic as usual. But the good weather is here!
 
With a little over a week to go, it’s time to continue my tradition of posting the story of the first World Cup in 1930. Remind us where it all began.

With the tournament being held in the Americas again, maybe we should’ve bought some of the traditions back?

England and Scotland taking the boat over, picking up Vini Jr and co on the way. Ecuador playing in berets, Anthony Taylor refereeing in a 3 piece suit and brogues, Pochettino knocking himself out with chloroform as the prospect of a group stage exit draws ever nearer etc..

Would’ve been a nice touch.

Riots, thuggery, snow, berets and a team that literally missed the boat — for sheer craziness the current Qatar World Cup has nothing on the first tournament in 1930. The host nation was Uruguay, chosen as two-time Olympic champions and with the country celebrating the centennial of its constitution.

No qualification was required, with 16 countries invited, although some of the biggest names in world football were missing.

England felt the competition was beneath them, while Denmark and Germany objected to the inclusion of professional footballers, believing only amateurs should play.

In the end, seven South American countries signed up and only four from Europe. Japan and Siam — now Thailand — sent their apologies, with the journey to South America involving several weeks on a boat in an age before regular air travel.


All the games were played in Montevideo, the Uruguayan capital, using five stadiums, including the 90,000 capacity Estadio Centenario.

Journey far from plain sailing​


A month before the World Cup, the European teams prepared to depart for South America and the fun began.

The Romanian squad, selected personally by the king, Carol II, were the first to board the liner Conte Verde as it set sail from the Italian port of Genoa, the players having first endured a gruelling two-day train journey.


At Viilefranche-sur-Mer, near Nice, the ship stopped to pick up the French team, three referees and the then president of Fifa, Jules Rimet, who was carrying the “Victory” trophy, later named in his honour, in a suitcase.

There was another stop in Barcelona to pick up the Belgians, and finally, on the other side of the Atlantic, in Rio do Janeiro, to collect Brazil.

Yugoslavia had left the decision to take part so late that the Conte Verde was fully booked. Instead they travelled to Marseilles to join the mail ship Florida.

Egypt had also booked the Florida but a storm in the Mediterranean delayed them by a day, and they arrived to find the ship had sailed without them, ending their World Cup campaign without a kicking a ball.

Wild weather for World Cup kick off​


Over in Uruguay, preparations were chaotic. It had rained solidly for six weeks and the Estadio Centenario, then the second-biggest stadium in the world, after Wembley, had not been finished. It did not host games until five days into the tournament.

France beat Mexico in the opening match on July 13. Unlike Qatar, heat was not the problem, with the match played in the driving snow of a South American winter.

Uruguay had the honour of having the first player sent off in a World Cup and went on to lose 3-1 to Romania in front of the smallest crowd in the tournament’s history, in a stadium with a 1,000 capacity.

Argentina, meanwhile, quickly established themselves as the dirtiest team in the contest. In their opening game with France, a crippling tackle forced the French goalkeeper to leave the pitch after 20 minutes, and there was more controversy when the Brazilian referee blew the final whistle six minutes early and with Argentina leading 1-0.

Argentina then threatened to leave the tournament after a hostile reception from Uruguayan fans who pelted them with stones. With the Argentinian captain returning home to take a law exam, it took a personal intervention from the president of Uruguay to persuade the rest of the team to stay.

A fight for victory​

They celebrated with a massive fight in their final game with Chile, broken up by police, but qualified for the knockout stages, along with Uruguay, Yugoslavia and the USA.

These were also the semi-finals, with the Argentina-USA game a classic, at least for those who like to combine comedy with extreme violence.

Four minutes into the game, a foul on the US goalkeeper left him with a badly twisted knee. Six minutes later, a particularly brutal foul broke the leg of US defender Ralph Tracy.

The US trainer, Jack Coll, rushed on to the pitch to confront the referee, who like all officials, was wearing a suit. Coll tripped and accidentally smashed a bottle of chloroform in his pocket, collapsing unconscious from the fumes. He was stretched off the field along with Tracy.

Reduced to nine men, and with no substitutes allowed in those days, the Americans, who fielded six British-born players, succumbed 6-1 to Argentina.

In the other semi-final, the hosts also won 6-1 against tournament underdogs Yugoslavia, who had previously beaten a Bolivian team that played in berets.

That set up a final between Uruguay and neighbours Argentina, then the most bitter rivalry in South American football. Even before the first kick, there was controversy over the ball to be used, with match officials eventually using an Argentinian ball for the first half and a Uruguayan one for the second.

Thousands of Argentinian fans crossed the River Plate border in an armada of small boats, chanting “Victoria o muerte” (victory or death). More than 90,000 spectators crammed into the Estadio Centenario in an atmosphere so intimidating the Belgian referee requested a ship be made available after the game for a quick escape.

Uruguay would win the first World Cup 4-2, sparking massive celebrations and the declaration of a public holiday. In Argentina the mood turned ugly, with an estimated 15,000 fans, who had missed the game after getting lost in fog, rioting. In Buenos Aires the Uruguayan consulate was stoned.

Lost World Cup star back from the dead​

The tournament was over but there was a bizarre postscript. After three months, the Romanian team returned home, but without one of their star players, Alfred Feraru, who had been taken ill with pneumonia on the voyage over.

A rumour swept Bucharest that Feraru had died and his distraught family prepared for a funeral. Feraru, now fit and healthy after a stay in an Italian hospital, walked through the door on the day of his wake, prompting his mother to faint.
Click to expand...
 
Feña14 said:
With a little over a week to go, it’s time to continue my tradition of posting the story of the first World Cup in 1930. Remind us where it all began.

With the tournament being held in the Americas again, maybe we should’ve bought some of the traditions back?

England and Scotland taking the boat over, picking up Vini Jr and co on the way. Ecuador playing in berets, Anthony Taylor refereeing in a 3 piece suit and brogues, Pochettino knocking himself out with chloroform as the prospect of a group stage exit draws ever nearer etc..

Would’ve been a nice touch.
Click to expand...
“You wouldn’t hit an unconscious maaaaan.”
:-D
 
The son of the one and only Zizou.

Feña14 said:
I’m liking the strategies going on!

We’ve got a PSG super team and Unc FC :-D

Funny thing is, they’re probably going to both do very well.

I might go for a team of ex player names. I’ve discovered the Algerian goalkeeper is called Zidane, so that’s a start.
Click to expand...
 
Appreciate the effort for the ad like the old ones that had, but why are they randomly running through the set?

The Cantona cameo is a nice touch, the Palmer one looks redundant now.

 
bezs said:
Appreciate the effort for the ad like the old ones that had, but why are they randomly running through the set?

The Cantona cameo is a nice touch, the Palmer one looks redundant now.

Click to expand...

Never fear! We have Madueke to come on instead of Palmer.

I mean, Palmer might’ve set up the winner in ET in the R16 at the Euro’s. Scored a penalty in the quarters. Oh and set up the winner in the semi final.. and yeah, sure, he scored in the final against Spain too.

And it’s not like he was player of the tournament last year at the CWC.. in the same stadiums, same conditions and he understands the dodgy pitches better than anyone.

But yeah, Madueke..

I’m kind of glad he’s getting a rest though. Tuchel is big enough to deal with the consequences when he comes home early in the knockouts.
 
Darren Diez said:
Norway has a very decent lineup, it's strange that I was the only one who voted for them. I think Holland and company will make a splash.
Click to expand...
EA Sports said it's gonna be Portugal, whereas one German economist said it's Netherlands this time, both predicted correctly the winners of the last three tourneys, so will be interesting to see who is right now. Well, anyway to me it''s gonna be def more clear the closer to semifinal or final rounds, so only then i will say who it's gonna be..
 
Federer and Del Potro said:
@Poisoned Slice I searched for a solid hour trying to find the Ronaldo running to the storm drain and then seeing his bust pop out (parodying, of course, Stephen King's It) - but I could not find it for the life of me.
Click to expand...
It sucks, the classics are getting cancelled. A lot of old movie scenes I used to use are now hard to find. Or you click on the GIF, and then it just goes to a page that doesn't exist error. Booooo.
 
Darren Diez said:
Norway has a very decent lineup, it's strange that I was the only one who voted for them. I think Holland and company will make a splash.
Click to expand...
I just don’t trust Haaland in a big game when his country needs him most. I expect him to statpad against Iraq and then vanish.
 
alexio said:
Biggest sporting event is coming closer and closer to us, bamos... and im really lookin forward to it..:)
Click to expand...
Some players featured here never won the World Cup despite being among the best players in the tournaments they played—Cruyff, Platini, Baggio, Zico, and others.

And at the very least, the creator of this video could have avoided blowing the ending by showing Maradona wearing the number 7 at the back of his shirt in the closing scene. Whoever operated the AI clearly knew next to nothing about football.
 
Last edited:
I repeat: while a 48-country World Cup may make commercial sense, it remains a completely absurd concept and a prime example of peak clownery.
 
Sudacafan said:
I repeat: while a 48-country World Cup may make commercial sense, it remains a completely absurd concept and a prime example of peak clownery.
Click to expand...

Yeah, they’ve even let Scotland in this time.

Will be nice to have them back, to be fair, it’s been awhile. I remember rushing back from school in ‘98 to see them put up a decent fight v Brazil in the opening game.

For those who’ve forgotten the anthem and want to join in, here it is.

 
Feña14 said:
Yeah, they’ve even let Scotland in this time.

Will be nice to have them back, to be fair, it’s been awhile. I remember rushing back from school in ‘98 to see them put up a decent fight v Brazil in the opening game.

For those who’ve forgotten the anthem and want to join in, here it is.

Click to expand...

I remember the Scots playing the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, during a period in which they qualified for five consecutive World Cups.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Poisoned Slice
  • Poll Poll
FIFA Women's World Cup 2023
2 3 4
Replies
185
Views
8K
tennishabit
T
littlelleyton
  • Poll Poll
Greatest Footballers Ever Part1
2
Replies
55
Views
4K
Phil
Phil
T
State of the Game
Replies
6
Views
774
matty p
matty p
UnforcedTerror
Today the tennis season ends and today the world cup begins!!
Replies
18
Views
723
JanMijer
J
soyizgood
World Cup Qualifying
Replies
49
Views
5K
Vcore89
Vcore89
Back
Top