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World Soccer Mailbag Can Man U conquer Europe again?
Posted: Friday November 26, 1999 05:26 PM
CNN/SI's world soccer insider, London-based Gabriele Marcotti, periodically responds to questions and comments from readers. Marcotti writes a weekly column on international soccer for CNNSI.com To submit questions or comments to Gabriele Marcotti, click here. Question from Ulises Pichardo of Miami, Florida
Marcotti: Many Frenchmen still blame Ginola for keeping France out of the 1994 World Cup. It was his mistake deep into injury time that allowed Bulgaria to score, knocking France out of the qualifiers. The real reason is more tactical than anything else. Ginola is very talented, but he is one of those players who can be woefully inconsistent and who needs freedom to produce the goods. Like Diego Maradona or Gheorghe Hagi, you pretty much need to build your team around him, give him a free role and let other players do the dirty work for him. Unfortunately, he's good, but not that good. In addition, at the last World Cup, France had Youri Djorkaeff who fills a similar role. Also, Ginola is 32 years old, and I think French coach Jacques Lemerre wants to build with younger players. Question from Josh Preneta of Boston, Massachusetts
If Blatter is right, and the fans do lose interest, then the broadcasters would not be as willing to sign such large contracts for rights to games in the future. This would reduce the number of games televised back to a level where fans are happy with the number of games shown, and also would reduce players wages because clubs would no longer be able to sell the rights to games for so much money. What I am saying is that this seems to be a self-regulating cycle. The fans demand for games on television is met by television companies supplying them. If the supply is too great then the companies will lose money and stop televising so many games. Why does FIFA need to get involved? Marcotti: FIFA's mandate is to protect and nurture the game. I agree that in a free-market system it is a self-regulating cycle and in most cases FIFA should stay out of it. There have been situations, however, where the glut of soccer on television has hurt attendances (as was the case in Portugal a few years ago) and the game suffered. I don't have a problem with Blatter speaking his mind. After that, it's up to the clubs whether or not they wish to follow his advice. Question from Carsdale Solomon of Jamaica
Marcotti: There really are two aspects to your question. In strictly economic terms, the game is fairly healthy. The gap between big clubs and smaller clubs is growing, but that is inevitable. Some feel that clubs have mortgaged their future by betting heavily against massive television revenues a few years down the line. If things like pay-per-view don't take off, a lot of clubs could suffer. But that sort of speculation happens in every industry: you invest based on your prediction of future earnings. Also, compared to twenty years ago, more and more clubs are being run as businesses, generating additional cash flows through merchandising and better marketing. Some have floated on the stock exchange (none more successfully than Manchester United) and are generating mindboggling profits. There is another factor to consider however. Many clubs, especially in Italy and Spain, are not run for profit. They are essentially loss leaders for their owners, or, in the case of Barcelona and Real Madrid, are members' cooperatives. In these cases, the main priority is not always the bottom line but rather achieving success. Clubs like Juventus and AC Milan are part of larger corporations and provide a return in terms of image. That is why some clubs have willingly been run at a loss for many years. Question from Mohamed Fall of Binghamton, New York
Marcotti: I agree. Last season there were five or six teams all capable of winning the Champions League. Nobody stood out. In these situations luck plays a part and Manchester United excelled at taking advantage of the chances that came its way. It fully deserved to win it all, but had a few lucky breaks, which is normal in soccer. This year I think it lacks something, at least on paper, compared with Barcelona and Lazio. Having said that, it's still wide open and I would not rule out a repeat. As for Beckham, I think the jury is going to go with Rivaldo. Question from Hector Sanchez of Queens, New York
Marcotti: It's a trade-off between aiding the game's development worldwide and having the 32 best nations participate. Last time around, Australia lost to Iran. Now, some would argue that if the Oceanian champion can't beat the fourth best team in Asia, then it doesn't deserve to go to the World Cup. It's a fair argument. However, when you look on the grander scale, Iran's chances of winning the World Cup (or even advancing past the first stage) were tiny anyway. So others may argue: if you're going to get destroyed in any case, why not go ahead and have a representative from each continent? Ultimately, we tend to remember the winners, or at least those clubs that make the quarterfinal stage and above. As long as legitimate contenders aren't shut out, FIFA is right in putting geographical representation ahead of strength -- which means giving Oceania a free pass. Question from Moe of Lake Forest, California
In Europe, the pace of the game is incredibly faster than MLS because of the more experience and talent that the players have. I think the biggest impact any one player has had on MLS would be Mohammad Khakpour of Iran. He has had the biggest impact on MLS, especially the NY/NY MetroStars. The MetroStars needed some desperate help and Khakpour came at the right time. MLS needs more players like Khakpour so the league could become more exciting and interesting. Marcotti: One thing to bear in mind when considering the impact of foreigners on MLS is what the fundamental, long-term goal is: to make soccer as popular in the United States as it is in the rest of the world. Many (including myself) believe that the only way to do it is to build a strong national team, one that can fit solidly into the second-tier of world powers (i.e. behind the usual suspects, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Argentina, etc.). The idea is that a great showing in the World Cup (say, the U.S. reaching the semifinals) could generate massive excitement and carry over into MLS. To do that, you need to get as many young U.S. players as possible playing in a quality league. Obviously having more foreigners (correction: more good foreigners, right now there are too many mediocre ones in MLS) will improve the quality of MLS. At the same time however, it will shut out U.S. players. Having said that, you also need to take into account the fact that a lackluster MLS won't excite anybody, won't generate more money, won't attract more good foreigners and will perhaps push promising U.S. players abroad or into other careers. What it boils down to is striking the right balance. More foreigners alone won't help. Question from Dina Banister of Charlotte, North Carolina
Marcotti: Before I get to the list, there are a few things to remember. First of all, winning the World Cup is a greater achievement than winning the other competitions, so if you're going to rank countries on this scale, you should weight it accordingly. Also, some competitions, such as the Copa America, have been around much longer than others. Obviously then, some countries have entered many more tournaments and therefore won more trophies. Anyway, here's the list. I haven't included Under-21, Under-18, Olympic tournaments, etc. There too are FIFA-sponsored competitions, but I figured you would only want the major ones. Also, as far as Central and North America (CONCACAF) is concerned, I've included the CCCF and Gold Cup tournaments (which preceded and then replaced the CONCACAF title). I also lumped Germany together with West Germany for obvious reasons. Enjoy.
1) Argentina 16 (2 World Cups, 14 Copa Americas)
Uruguay 16 (2 World Cups, 14 Copa Americas)
3) Brazil 10 (4 World Cups, 6 Copa Americas)
Costa Rica 10 (10 Concacaf titles)
5) Germany 6 (3 World Cups, 3 European Championships)
Mexico 6 (6 Concacaf titles)
7) Italy 4 (3 World Cups, 1 European Championship)
Egypt 4 (4 African Nations' Cups)
Ghana 4 (4 African Nations' Cups)
10) Iran 3 (3 Asian Cups)
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