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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 6, 2018 15:54:36 GMT
Things are not looking too shabby for France. Goodbye, Uruguay, two-time World Cup winner.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 6, 2018 19:56:02 GMT
Messi
Ronaldo
Neymar
all gone...
The only teams left are European for the first time in ages...
Bravo to Belgium, even if it has to face France in the next round. I support both teams, so I don't care who wins.
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Post by mickthecactus on Jul 6, 2018 20:49:41 GMT
Kane is still there.
For now....
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Post by lagatta on Jul 6, 2018 21:18:40 GMT
An Argentinean friend is really sad now, as she was hoping for either Brazil or Uruguay. Oh well.
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Post by amboseli on Jul 7, 2018 7:39:34 GMT
Belgium - Brasil ... what a match!
Let's see what Tuesday brings. I'll cheer for Belgium.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 7, 2018 14:29:47 GMT
Well, your side won! Devilish!
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 7, 2018 16:50:01 GMT
Bravo to England, but I fear that the next matches will be unpredictable. When you think of all of the big teams that have already lost, there seem to be a lot of wild cards. The home team of a World Cup always gets a big boost, and certainly seems to have helped Russia so far, just like France in 1998.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 9, 2018 16:27:12 GMT
While waiting for the France-Belgium match, it has been fun to watch all of the reports about the friendly rivalry between the two countries, who basically really like each other. Regarding the neighbouring countries to France, Switzerland is about the only other country that could have received this treatment -- Spain, Italy, Germany and England could all go to hell and France would rejoice, at least in terms of football. Of course in the unlikely event that Luxembourg would ever qualify for such an event, the underdog factor would make a lot of the French support it just for that reason -- I know that I would.
Anyway, all of the reports come from two places -- the various towns straddling the Franco-Belgian border where people forget in which country they are living until a moment like this, but also all sorts of campgrounds in the south of France where sometimes the Belgian contingent has quite a big percentage -- up to 30 or 40% in certain cases. Basically, everybody has been saying that they support their own country and in just about all cases will watch the match with people of their own persuasion. But just about 100% of the people will support whichever team makes it to the final, just about the only exceptions being mixed marriages or ethnic origins.
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Post by whatagain on Jul 9, 2018 18:05:02 GMT
Yup. Am going with my best friend to watch the game in Paris along the line 5. Whoever wins will be supported by whoever loses.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 10, 2018 15:31:14 GMT
Now that things are getting serious (?) both President Macron of France and King Philippe of Belgium will be present in St. Petersburg tonight. Meanwhile, the RATP (Paris transport authority) and the STIB (Brussels transport authority) have been engaged in friendly jousting today with the RATP claiming that the Brussels metro station Hermann-Debroux has been renamed Griezmann to honour the French football star Antoine Griezmann. pbs.twimg.com/media/Dhqfvz-XcAAxoN-.jpgThe STIB riposted with a request that Saint Lazare station in Paris be renamed Saint Hazard for the Belgian football star Eden Hazard. pbs.twimg.com/media/DhqxHVlX0AE8WyQ.jpg |
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 10, 2018 20:01:36 GMT
One of the finalists appears to have emerged.
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Post by whatagain on Jul 10, 2018 20:21:01 GMT
Don't believe it. Fake news. And we are morally better.
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Post by amboseli on Jul 11, 2018 8:12:59 GMT
Vive les Bleus.
I don't know much about football, but even I could see that in the second half they were the better team.
May they win the world cup!
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 11, 2018 10:28:51 GMT
Hmmm, I wonder who's up next.  |
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Post by whatagain on Jul 11, 2018 10:50:00 GMT
Seeing the match in Paris was fun.
And all the guys next to me came to greet me at the end of the game.
Whilst the bartender gave me a beer to console me.
Nice experience.
And yes the French were either better or luckier. But if they were luckier maybe we were luckier than the Brazilians and not better than them ...
there is no team at that level that doesn't deserve to be there.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 11, 2018 13:35:58 GMT
Did the bartender give you a French beer or a Belgian beer?
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 11, 2018 16:15:36 GMT
I must sadly (?) admit that I prefer a victory by England tonight instead of Croatia, because England will be easier to beat in the final. No offense to our English friends.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 11, 2018 18:57:17 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 11, 2018 20:41:09 GMT
Oops... Goodbye England. So it's going to be France-Croatia for the final.
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Post by mickthecactus on Jul 11, 2018 20:48:12 GMT
Yes they were a bit too good for us. But for a new young team to get that far was a great achievement. Thay can be proud.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 11, 2018 20:50:15 GMT
Croatia is really really hungry and would absolutely love to overcome France after the match in 1998. It will be intense.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2018 6:34:44 GMT
Meanwhile, it is interesting to compare the official team songs of the two countries. The song for the French team is the Ivorian song Magic in the Air.
Croatia prefers a somewhat different style with Srce vatreno.
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Post by mickthecactus on Jul 14, 2018 9:34:04 GMT
I thought Magic in the Air was from Muppets Christmas Carol.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 14, 2018 11:51:28 GMT
I suspect we will be sick of that "tube" by the end of summer. But it is true that the France team has a strong pan-African component.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2018 12:12:32 GMT
Of course, we mustn't forget the two other teams.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 14, 2018 12:19:50 GMT
Indeed! How is the World Cup fever affecting the 14 juillet celebrations?
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2018 12:32:43 GMT
They're finding the dates extremely convenient. Champs Elysées and Eiffel Tower closed today for military parade, concert and fireworks, Champs Elysées and Eiffel Tower closed tomorrow for giant fanzone and mob scene. If France wins, the Champs Elysées will be closed again Monday afternoon for the champions' parade.
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Post by amboseli on Jul 14, 2018 14:58:50 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2018 15:08:19 GMT
I don't think anybody really has an "official" World Cup song. One just rises above the others sooner or later. The clue for the "winner" has more or less become the number of YouTube views these days.
Anyway, based on the songs, it looks like Belgium will win. The English song is so wistful and not all that optimistic.
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Post by kerouac2 on Jul 14, 2018 16:35:52 GMT
I will of course say bravo to Belgium for their 3rd place finish, because they were obviously one of the finest teams in the competition.
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