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Originally Posted by JHikka
What an oddly specific number. Why not 20K? 15K? This criteria means footballing countries like Norway, Slovenia, Albania etc. wouldn't qualify. I'm guessing you chose 35K because it enables some countries like Denmark to qualify despite ignoring things like population, population density and spread, and proportion of country's population.
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It has nothing to do with Denmark or other countries in Europe.
FIFA venue requirements to host WC events require a soccer specific stadium, with ideally covered seating, on grass field, with minimum seating capacity of 40,000. If you have a look at the past 4 or 5 World Cups, FIFA has "cheated" a bit and let cities with 35,000ish stadiums host as well. Some with temporary expanded seating, some not.
Hence why my oddly specific number. It's the lowest echelon of what a FIFA caliber soccer specific stadium should look like. It would enable "most" of our metro areas to host WC events, if ever Canada should choose to host in the future.
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Originally Posted by JHikka
The US/MLS has been building something like two large-scale soccer specific stadiums each year, which I think is pretty good. Ten new SSS in the past three years alone, including some nice builds in Cincinnati, Columbus, and Minneapolis. Venues like Banc of California in LA or Exploria in Orlando simply didn't exist five years ago, let alone further into the past.
These aren't multipurpose venues being built for multiple tenants and uses - they're venues just for MLS teams. The narrative that the US/MLS relied on large-scale gridiron stadiums is one very much from the 90s and 00s. Take the Gold Cup as one example - it used only gridiron stadiums until 2005 or so, and has slowly begun using more and more SSS as they become accessible and as they're built. They've gone from using one SSS in 2005 to five SSS in 2021 - an even split with gridiron stadiums. The narrative that this creates is an important one, as the sport goes from clearly renting bigger spaces for other sports to creating their own spaces and their own cultures. Football in the 2020s has a place in the US, and it's at grounds in places like Kansas City and Philadelphia that are devoted just to those teams and to that sport. It's a big mental hurdle to get over but an important one for the future of the sport.
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Yes, it is good. For MLS, for the advancement of the sport in the US and in North America.
However, that being said, at the 2026 WC, a grand total of zero of those stadiums you mentioned will be used. Gridiron stadiums will be used. What does that tell you?
It tells me those newly built MLS stadiums don't make the cut. 40,000 seats/minimum. The requirement is even higher for QF/SF games and the Final. FIFA regulations. Also, the US knows they can easily fill those 60-80,000 stadiums. So why not use the biggest stadiums you have.
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Originally Posted by esquire
When was the last time the world really noticed a world's fair in a major way?
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Exactly my point. A tennis ATP masters 1000 event gets more TV time/worldwide coverage than an expo. An expo is akin to a temporary museum exhibition in my book.
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Originally Posted by Acajack
Not sure about this match, but RDS have been covering Copa America quite a bit.
Every time I've tuned in to RDS they seem to have a match on.
Aside from the big tennis tournaments and F1, Copa America is probably saving their lives this spring and summer.
(TVA Sports has both the Habs and the Euro.)
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Yes, TSN and RDS have covered the Copa America for the most part. However, the semi-final games were at 9pm EST. Prime time. MLB, NBA and UFC clearly have more pull at those hours.
The group stage games were all at 5pm EST. (right after the last Euro group stage matches) That's dead time as far as sports TV is concerned, hence why there was not issues broadcasting the Copa group games.
In fact, I think this was done on purpose. This is the first year the Copa and the Euro are held on the same year. CONMEBOL wanted it that way. From now on, they will be held on the same year. Probably gives South America more worldwide TV exposure, especially if they time the games right after the Euro.