Europe > South America

[Guest Red Mist]

Let there be no more doubt - Europe is king of football. South America's finest have been sent home, after arrogantly believing they could win the tournament on the land of their football's progenitors.

Zidane has outshone Ronaldinho, Henry bettered Ronaldo, and Germany, the team ridiculed as mechanical, dull and robotic have outclassed Argentina. This World Cup has proven yet again that Europe is the top footballing continent.

[smithdown]

Everyone else is sh*t.

[Guest Cardie]

Europe > South America - When World Cup is in Europe

South America > Europe - When it's not

Portugal, Germany, Italy, France > than England.

Edited July 2, 2006 by Cardie

[Sir Tokyo Sexwale]

european teams have never won a wc outside europe.

[intense enigma]

and England has never won a World Cup outside.....errr....England

[Guest Anders Honoré]

Let there be no more doubt - Europe is king of football. South America's finest have been sent home, after arrogantly believing they could win the tournament on the land of their football's progenitors.

Zidane has outshone Ronaldinho, Henry bettered Ronaldo, and Germany, the team ridiculed as mechanical, dull and robotic have outclassed Argentina. This World Cup has proven yet again that Europe is the top footballing continent.

 

[Frosty Jack]

Let there be no more doubt - Europe is king of football. South America's finest have been sent home, after arrogantly believing they could win the tournament on the land of their football's progenitors.

Zidane has outshone Ronaldinho, Henry bettered Ronaldo, and Germany, the team ridiculed as mechanical, dull and robotic have outclassed Argentina. This World Cup has proven yet again that Europe is the top footballing continent.

 

Is that supposed to be funny?

[growler]

One thing is clear, just invite Brazil and Argentina to the Euro championship, and be done with the world cup.

[madaboutlfc]

I've seen triumphant patriotism before, but don't think I've ever seen it appplied to being European before.

 

I guess we can now all pat ourselves on the back for being European and laugh at all those puffed up south americans we never meet or debate with anyway.

[surfaris]

& the best football played by the spanish. not italy, not the german.

portugal & france - they are s****cow.

[intense enigma]

Yeah, the punchline went right over your head, fool...

 

I'm merely stating fact. Europe is the superior football-playing continent.

 

More like you're merely stating the fact that you are the superior fool around here

Edited July 3, 2006 by intense enigma

[Stevie H]

One thing is clear, just invite Brazil and Argentina to the Euro championship, and be done with the world cup.

slightly harsh on australia, japan, south korea, ghana, ivory coast, cameroon, nigeria, morocco, egypt, chile, colombia, peru, trinidad & tobago and countless other non-european nations who have made great contributions to world cups over the years no?

 

agree about excluding the USA however.

[Gilps]

The next world cup is in South Africa. The one after that will surely be South America's turn again as they now haven't had one since 78. You would have fancy South American teams to win both of those.

[nvdm]

The next world cup is in South Africa. The one after that will surely be South America's turn again as they now haven't had one since 78.

 

Brazil, probably.

[Gilps]

Brazil, probably.

 

Not had one since 1950 have they? Difficult to argue against it being their turn.

[Frosty Jack]

Not had one since 1950 have they? Difficult to argue against it being their turn.

 

If it is held there, it'll all be in the south of the country. They are due one for sure, long overdue.

[Leo No.8]

Funny though isn't it the way South American teams can't win the World Cup when its played in Europe, as most of their top players play here already.

 

I can understand the other side of the coin, but with most of the South American players already stars of the European game, I just don't get it...

[jimmylibel]

Funny though isn't it the way South American teams can't win the World Cup when its played in Europe, as most of their top players play here already.

 

I can understand the other side of the coin, but with most of the South American players already stars of the European game, I just don't get it...

 

That's a relatively recent phenomena though isn't it? Since 1990 there have been 3 World Cups on European soil and a South American team has gotten to the final of two of them.

[Leo No.8]

That's a relatively recent phenomena though isn't it? Since 1990 there have been 3 World Cups on European soil and a South American team has gotten to the final of two of them.

 

I'm not really sure in all honesty - I thought South Americans had always came over to Europe for more money.

 

Even back in the 50s you had the likes of Di Stefano playing in Europe, although I wouldn't honestly know if South Americans played over here en masse as they do today; for some reason I thought they did...

[jimmylibel]

I'm not really sure in all honesty - I thought South Americans had always came over to Europe for more money.

 

Even back in the 50s you had the likes of Di Stefano playing in Europe, although I wouldn't honestly know if South Americans played over here en masse as they do today; for some reason I thought they did...

 

Well there were one or two who came over back then but using the Di Stefano example, he then went on to play for Spain rather than Argentina.

 

I was even thinking about the 1982 World Cup and I don't think too many of the Brazilians or Argentine players were playing in Europe (at that time).

[intense enigma]

Funny though isn't it the way South American teams can't win the World Cup when its played in Europe, as most of their top players play here already.

 

I can understand the other side of the coin, but with most of the South American players already stars of the European game, I just don't get it...

 

It's even more baffling to think that the 1958 Brazil side that remain the only team to win on European soil had most if not the whole team playing in Brazil

[Guest Red Mist]

By the 1986 WC there were lots of S.Americans playing in Europe. Ardiles and Villa came to these shores even earlier.

Even before this world cup the Brazillians were saying the climate would prove no problem since they all play in such conditions for their European club sides anyway, so the fact they were playing on European soil was not a disadvantage.

[Frosty Jack]

The main difference is that there used to be restrictions on the number of foreign players on each team - although clubs used to get round that by turning various players into 'Italians', 'Spanish' (i.e. Di Stefano, etc).

 

Nowadays you can have larger numbers of Argentinian (say) players at a club, although I think Portugal always had some kind of exemption for Brazilians (?)

 

Countries like Italy (in particular) see their south american diaspora as part of their economy, and encourage them to return to counter-balance the general immigration of those with non-italian ancestry.

An Italo-brasilian, or Italo-Argentinian getting a passport and living in the E.U. is not unusual, but just when it is applied to football, or other sports, it's considered either cheating, on behalf of the country, or betrayal on behalf of the player: Deco for example is not well liked in Brazil.

I don't think however, that Italy or Spain or Portugal having South American born players is any different to most of the French team originating from their colonies, the difference is only in how the french held on to theirs.

[John am Rhein]

Before FIFA tightened the rules, players were able to represent more than one country in the World Cup.

During the 1930s, several of Argentina's biggest stars played in Serie A, the Italian first division. Vittorio Pozzo seized the opportunity and extended invitations to Raimundo Orsi, Enrique Guaita and Luis Monti - all born in Argentina, but with Italian roots - to play for the Azzurri in the 1934 World Cup.

 

Although criticized by some, Pozzo defended his use of the oriundi (an Italian word to describe foreign-born national team members of Italian ancestry) by famously saying, "If they can die for Italy, they can play [soccer] for Italy."

 

It proved a wise decision: Orsi scored three times (including the tying goal in the final), Guaita netted the winner in the semifinals, and Monti proved a defensive dynamo in midfield.

 

More Here

[jimmylibel]

Ireland needs to sign more Argies for our national team - large Irish population out there, we should snap them up!!!