2014 World Cup thread

[MileHigh]

Six months out from the first game in Brazil, but we're a couple of hours out from the all-important draw. Some countries won't be happy not just who they will have to play but some of the ridiculous scheduling/traveling that will be done. Here are the pots:

Pot 1
Brazil
Argentina
Colombia
Uruguay
Belgium
Germany
Spain
Switzerland

Pot 2
Algeria
Cameroon
Ivory Coast
Ghana
Nigeria
Chile
Ecuador

Pot 3
Australia
Iran
Japan
Korea Republic
Costa Rica
Honduras
Mexico
USA

Pot 4
Bosnia-Herzegovina
Croatia
England
France
Greece
Portugal
Italy
Netherlands
Russia

 

[MileHigh]

Some early soft groups. U.S. pot is up now. Group E would be very nice.

 

[MileHigh]

U.S. is in with Germany.

 

[zagoshe]

Does it really matter who the US plays?

I mean, I get up for the World Cup every year and the US - outside of the one year - usually disappoints and I stop thinking about soccer - along with most of the country - for four more years.

 

[zagoshe]

U.S. is in with Germany.

0-1

 

[NoOneLikesUs]

We're ****ed.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

We're ****ed.

Yep.

 

[MileHigh]

Disastrous draw for the U.S.

 

[Cosmo]

Yeah, well, the last draw was supposedly cake and we barely got through. So maybe this will work out just fine.

 

[Key]

Brutal

 

[LongTimeListener]

How many consecutive World Cups are they supposed to get with an easy path through the first round? From 1994 on, even the ones that haven't worked out have been favorable draws.

Bout time the U.S. stands or falls on its own.

 

[deskslave]

Always amazing how these things work out. Spain-Holland in the first round, but there's a group of Switzerland, France, Ecuador and Honduras.

Seriously, how the **** does Switzerland get seeded?

(Actually, the answer is, basically, because Holland played a friendly in June against Indonesia.)

 

[zagoshe]

Honestly, I could see the US going 0-2-1 or even 0-3 in this and I think best case would be 1-1-1 and hope

 

[PCLoadLetter]

How many consecutive World Cups are they supposed to get with an easy path through the first round? From 1994 on, even the ones that haven't worked out have been favorable draws.

Bout time the U.S. stands or falls on its own.

No argument at all. And I'm not particularly emotionally tied to the US team.

There's nothing unfair about this draw, but I think it's reasonable to look at this and say the US is going to get its ass handed to it.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

Beat Ghana, lose to Germany, Portugal is a toss up.

 

[NoOneLikesUs]

Beasley just said he hopes to get a point against Ghana.

So ****ed.

 

[Michael_ Gee]

To show you how perspectives differ, the guy doing the Guardian live blog of the draw regarded the US group as a bad draw for Germany, including the "dangerous" US as one of the reasons.

 

[Rusty Shackleford]

Best case is 1-1-1 I think. Most likely is definitely 0-3.

I could see them maybe surprising Ghana with a win, and I guess they could get lucky and earn a draw against one of the others. But man, that's a brutal group.

Like others have said though, they've had softer groups many times before. Can't really complain.

 

[deskslave]

The team you really gotta feel for is Australia. Already the lowest-ranked side in the tournament, and they get Spain and Holland. Not unlike the U.S. and Ghana, Australia and Chile have a really important opening game.

And the reason that could happen? Because Holland played a friendly against Indonesia, and that made Switzerland a seed: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25134584

 

[LongTimeListener]

So FIFA adopted the BCS system? Excellent!