Bore Draw

On Friday, I was excitedly awaiting the draw for Euro 2012. Now I am aware that this is Scottish Comedy FC and one or two of you may be unaware that there is a major football tournament every two years… .
For anyone who is still reading, that obviously is a joke… I wasn’t that excited.

FIFA and UEFA both do these major draws in the manner of people who buy a ring from Argos and think it’s a good idea to put the box in another box, then another box, then another box and then hand over a massive box! At first you are quite excited but by the time you get to the actual good bit you are bored and a little bit fed up.

There were some frightening possibilities regarding the draw, England could have ended up in a group with Spain or Portugal, and more worryingly Sepp Blatter could have taken the opportunity of so many cameras being present to turn up with some black ‘friends’. “You can tell Rio Ferdinand that this guy is one of my best mates! The chauffeur’s uniform? Oh, he just likes wearing it.”

Now the reason for my post is that I believe the fans are getting sick of the group qualifiers format where one team qualifies and the rest play for 2nd place, before then playing-off for the remaining 4 spots. This system is based on a seeded system that sees the smaller nations find it very difficult to qualify. Obviously the likes of Spain, Germany, and England are never going to accept a change to the system and sponsors for the major tournaments also won’t be for it… but imagine it for a second. Use the World Cup as an example and consider the possibility of Wales drawing Argentina in the 2nd round of the World Cup Qualification at the Millennium Stadium in a one-off tie with extra time and penalties if needed…..

Now, if England were to draw say New Zealand away and then in the 2nd round (sorry any New Zealanders reading this, but come on) they get Australia away you could see an argument against it on the grounds of the travel logistics, but here are my proposals:

• All teams go into the hat and are drawn to play a one off game where the winners progress.

• Extra time and penalties decide games.

• A host country is still chosen but the final 32 play their last qualification match in that country with the final 16 progressing to 4 groups of 4.

People will argue that Brazil could draw Spain in round one. People may moan that jet-lag could hinder teams (You’d have an international week though so get out there ASAP and get over it!). People may moan if a team gets 7 home draws.

What I will say to all the above is no one argues these points in the FA Cup, still arguably the best cup competition in the world. Imagine if the France v Scotland game had meant progress rather than an ultimately useless 3 points! This will never happen but just try picturing it.

The draw is in for the first round, and it’s:

Northern Ireland v Brazil
China v England
Scotland v Tonga
Wales v Trinidad and Tobago
India v Rep of Ireland

I personally think it would give qualification a massive shot in the arm and ultimately the bigger teams would still qualify… but it would be easier watching Scotland miss out on another tournament on a beach in St Kitts rather than a freezing cold November in Poland!
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About the Author

For as long as he can remember, Mark has loved football. Originally from just outside Manchester, he supports Bury FC so can’t be labelled as a glory hunter (although they do hold the record for the biggest FA Cup final winning margin, 6-0 in 1903 and it still stands today!).
Mark drives a cab, so automatically he “has an opinion and usually it’s the right one!” All opinions are the author’s own, and they can be heard on twitter @bigmarkdavies. You can contact Mark via email at bigmarkdavies@talktalk.net

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