I'm curious how far apart some of the sites in Russia and Brazil are from each other relative to the ones in the US. Getting from one site to another in either of those two countries probably ranges from mildly dangerous (i.e. I could get my wallet stolen or my hotel room gets ransacked) to "we will likely die" (i.e. harrowing journey / Oregon Trail / Donner Party). Either way, America > errybody.
Porto Alegre to Manaus is ~4800 KM or a little under 3000 Miles. Google Maps is not letting me calculate Russia.
Traveling to/around Dubai and the UAE is fine so I expect the same from Qatar. I think Brazil will actually be a lot worse than Qatar. Russia
I don't doubt that it's safe to travel there on it's own, but I think we're talking about different circumstances. Honestly, I think having the world cup there is a recipe for a terrorist attack. Think about it: 1) Massive concentration of (mostly) Westerners in the Middle East 2) It's the most watched event in the world 3) Relatively small country --- even though its over the course of a month and in different cities, people will be pretty closely clustered 4) Within rocket distance of plenty of haters 5) Qatar's military is probably as poorly ranked as their men's national team Pretty much the worst combination I can think of. Nuclear attack? Who knows. 12 years to plan it, too. I wouldn't normally worry about this, but it just seems like a perfect storm of circumstances. I know Qatar has tons of money, but is this really going to be secure? I'm not talking about safe fan zones, I mean could Hezbollah or a similar group lob rockets into the country? Has this thought crossed anybody else's mind?
Qatar is an emirate. They won't be attacked. For the most part, those terrorist groups don't attack their own. It may end up being safer than anywhere else. There's a reason places like the UAE will never be attacked by terrorists. Dubai, for example, houses most of the bin Laden family. They may have disowned Osama, but he's still not going to fuck with them. The only problem I see is Sharia Law. Partying in the streets won't be allowed. Partying in designated areas will be unbelievable though. I don't think many who have actually been to the UAE would be against this.
I'm actually shocked more people aren't speaking out as vehemently against Russia. That's going to be a HUMONGOUS mess. Their transportation systems are God awful, and they're very strict about who comes into and goes out of the country. I'm literally shocked they got a bid.
it will be more of a bitch than they think. this is all based on verbal promises. only country fifa had in contetion that they ranked as a high risk
I would probably try and go to Qatar, but it is gonna be hot. I've been to Qatar in July and that is hot on a level you can't imagine. Most manual labor is done at night because workers would be heat strokin out if they tried that shit during daylight. Qatar is a pretty cool place and I'd love to go back... Just in Oct or later.
It hurt to see England not get 2018 and my heart broken when USA did not get 2022. FIFA is fucking corrupt as shit and will continue to be that way. It is just the nature of the business.
shit sucks about 2018, would have been so easy to get tickets. and by 2022 i expect to have emigrated to the states so that would have been nice too..
What about the World Cup hotties that won't be able to show skin? This should have been a major factor as well.
FIFA is trollin. They've got more clout than National Governments these days. Its actually just so funny what a clusterfuck of an organisation they are.
Someone mention the "untapped" Middle East market. Fuck that, nothing in the world is more important than the American consumer. This wasn't anywhere close to a business decision by FIFA. It was straight up bribery
Never mentioned it on TMB because I figured the show would get bashed on there but it fucking cracks me up. Bout to watch Twin peaks one in a couple minutes.
The St. Petersburg stadium is already under construction. I gotta find a pic to put on here, cause I've never seen so much rebar used in any construction project.
Looks pretty good other than low capacities. Anyone see any capacity numbers on the Qatar stadiums? Those looked awesome but a bit small as well. I also hate seeing the main stadium (Moscow) being non-soccer specific. I like when the crowd is as close as possible to the pitch. In Olympic stadiums with a track and circular field, you have people sitting in the front row 20+ yards from the pitch. I don't like that. I like when the fans are right on top of the field. Really adds to the environment. Just my personal preference though.
I admit that will definitely be a problem, even with all the measures they're going (to attempt) to take. I'm not saying Qatar is a perfect bid. Far from it. I'm just saying that it's no surprise they beat us out and that it's ten times better than Russia. Russia is by far the worst country I've ever been to, from both a travel logistics and overall experience standpoint. The place sucks with a passion. Russia over England was a much bigger travesty than Qatar over us.
I think we're arguing two different things here. You seem to be arguing about the decision making process while I'm focusing on which destination I think will be more enjoyable for fans. I think those two things can result in two different answers.
The Russia bid was just the worst bid of the four whilst the Qatar bid was just flat out ridiculous. Russia has a lot of problems making it a good event, in Qatar it will never be a good tournament no matter how good they plan it. Therefore random European country Bid >>>>> Russia Bid>>>>>>> Moon Bid>>>>>>> Qatar Bid conclusion, Fifa are corrupt fucktards