Should US/others simply walk out of the World Cup?

[Guest]

I heard on the news that players wearing this armband would be ejected:

I, for one, would love it if the whole team would wear the armband, then, if reproached by officials, simply walk off the field (preferably with the middle finger raised). Anyone else here have similar feelings?

[mike carey]

Not ejected, given a yellow card. It's the captain's armband so the whole team can't wear it (they could have devised a different patch or something that the whole team could wear to make the point). The armband was planned by seven European countries and when they were advised of the yellow card plan the national football associations decided not to proceed. The DFB (the German Football Association, or Deutscher Fußball-Bund) has lodged an urgent case to have the yellow card decision overturned in the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The DFB also lost a major sponsor over its decision against wearing the armband.

A reminder that this discussion could easily become political, so stick to the facts, not commentary on motives and the like.

[Guest]

But don't two yellow cards result in the player's ejection, leaving his team extremely vulnerable? If all players get yellow cards, it seems like an impossible situation. I don't mind if this gets re-directed to the political forum--whatever the moderators feel is best. If it were my decision, I'd withdraw my entire country's team from competition. Too bad for those who bought tickets to those games. And I imagine Budweiser is furious after sponsoring the games!

[mike carey]

49 minutes ago, Unicorn said:

But don't two yellow cards result in the player's ejection, leaving his team extremely vulnerable? If all players get yellow cards, it seems like an impossible situation. I don't mind if this gets re-directed to the political forum--whatever the moderators feel is best. If it were my decision, I'd withdraw my entire country's team from competition. Too bad for those who bought tickets to those games. And I imagine Budweiser is furious after sponsoring the games!

Bear in mind that the Political Forum is closed until 2 Jan 23.

[Guest]

9 hours ago, mike carey said:

Bear in mind that the Political Forum is closed until 2 Jan 23.

😢It's the most interesting one, IMHO....

[+ DynamicUno]

The restrictions during the games are among the least of the issues surrounding this WC, which probably would have to wait until the politics forum to reopen to discuss in detail.

It seems like the Qatar authorities planned to demand restrictions on alcohol and impose dress requirements on players and spectators at the last minute when there was no way for FIFA or the teams or the sponsors to negotiate around them.  One would hope this would lead to reforms at FIFA, but....

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

Since we are limited to discussing the game only and not politics, walking off the field would result in a definite loss.

I am reminded of Jesse Owens in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin.  He could have walked out in response to the treatment from the host country.  But instead he stayed and won 4 gold medals.  This was an accomplishment for him, his country, and for showcasing the ignorance of the host country.

Winning brings more influence than losing.  We should stay and play and win!

Edited November 29, 2022 by Vegas_nw1982