2026 FIFA World Cup Thread

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#152      
the juiceman cometh
Mr. Tibbs said:
found out just one player on Curaçao’s team is a native , all the others are Dutch due to them being part of the Netherlands kingdom & loose rules about who can be on the roster
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You probably don't mean to but your post seems to be implying that any Dutch citizen can play for Curaçao, which is not true.

All Curaçaoans are Dutch, as Curaçao is a Dutch territory. So yeah, all their players are Dutch citizens (kind of like how all Puerto Ricans are Americans, but not all Americans are Puerto Ricans). But you also have to have a connection to Curaçao through either a parent, grandparent, or by living there for at least 5 years.

This is not unique, you see this with most teams. Antonee Robinson, playing for the US, was born and raised in England, and is eligible for the US merely because one parent is a US citizen (his father). Malik Tillman was likewise born and raised in Germany.

Curaçao's case it's even more likely that their players will be guys of Curoçaon ancestry who grew up in the Netherlands because there just aren't going to be opportunities on the island to develop as a soccer player.

And in the rare event a player in a place like that develops into a star, the bigger country usually snaps them up. French national team legend Christian Karembeu, for example, was born and raised in New Caledonia and did not move to France until he was 17.
 
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#153      
Illini92and96
These displays by Messi (especially) and Renaldo are insane. They are 39 and 41, and have 5 (all of Argentina's) and 2 goals, respectively. Renaldo had not scored in the last 10 games.
 
#157      
IlliniFaninHoosierLand
South Africa stuns South Korea 1:0.

South Africa finishing 2nd in this group has to be the surprise of this tournament with how poorly they played to start out.

I'd contend Canada catches a little bit of a break facing South Africa rather than South Korea on Sunday afternoon in L.A..

Also, based on what I've seen in this tournament (and honestly what he's done in MLS this season), Son might be done as a goal scorer at this point in his career.
 
#159      
KBLEE
IlliniFaninHoosierLand said:
Looks like Mexico's Round of 32 opponent at the Azteca could potentially be Scotland.
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Not sure where you are getting this. There is little chance that Scotland advances. They are on 3 points with a -3 GD. South Korea is on 3 points with a -1 GD and they are still not even a lock to advance.
 
#160      
KBLEE
I am hoping that Scotland advances. Here is their path:

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#172      
KBLEE
IlliniFaninHoosierLand said:
I don't know if that graphic is legit considering who ever generated it doesn't know how to spell Ecuador.
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The Ecuador win may have put the nail in Scotland's coffin. They could still qualify, but all of the following must now happen:

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