OT: 2024 Soccer and Vancouver Whitecaps Thread

[Bubbles]

Caps and MLS messed up big time. Messi only has so many years left in him. He turns 37 in June. Rinaldo is 39 as a comp. Have to make the most of what little time he has left. I looked over Inter Miami's schedule in 2023 and 2024, but didn't see either POR or SEA listed as opponents. With the number of teams in MLS at like 29 and 34 regular season games, this was likely the only time Messi would be scheduled to be in Van and they stick it as a 1 off road team before a stretch 3 games in 8 days.

Oh I agree, lots of fingerpointing all around. It's not just one issue, it's many things. I would have even been satisfied with a wave or him practising or some crap, to not even show up in Vancouver is wrong. There was a recent match where he showed up and didnt play in Hong Kong, and the people there got a refund. The Caps are more than happy to take the money.

I'm sure there'll be a Legends tour with Messi, Ronaldo, Fat Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and a smattering of old dudes. I'll gladly pay for that!

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

Oh I agree, lots of fingerpointing all around. It's not just one issue, it's many things. I would have even been satisfied with a wave or him practising or some crap, to not even show up in Vancouver is wrong. There was a recent match where he showed up and didnt play in Hong Kong, and the people there got a refund. The Caps are more than happy to take the money.

I'm sure there'll be a Legends tour with Messi, Ronaldo, Fat Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and a smattering of old dudes. I'll gladly pay for that!

I budgeted a trip a few years ago to watch Athletico, ManCity and Dortmand in a span of 2 weeks. Came up to 300 CAD for tickets and 1,500 on flights and hotels.

You look at some of the ticket prices across North America and realize it's simply not worth it.

 

[Red]

So I went to the game. Not exactly my choice but that's a whole other story.

Never followed the Caps even though I'm a huge soccer fan that follows European, S. American and of course world football. I'm pretty surprised that there was only 1 Canadian player in the starting 11. And the rest of the team was filled with no one I can recognize even at the international level.

Just anecdotally, I was overhearing a lot of just Messi fans that were their first game at the Whitecaps. Clearly in the "cheap" seats it was mostly newer fans.

Yeah, the Caps offered a free game, but they will never get my money again. They deliberately surge pricing for this game and they should have offered some kind of compensation. Would they charge this much for Real Salt Lake?

If they had set the standard pricing for this game ($30-100), the tickets would have sold out in a second and everyone would have scalped them for the $350-2000 prices they went for anyway.

Whitecaps did the only logical move, which was to charge the prices people were clearly willing to pay for the risk and possibility to see Messi, rather than scalpers taking the $14 million in profit. I find the blaming of them not setting a low price disingenuous of the reality.

Messi, Inter Miami, and MLS schedule-makers hold 99% of the blame. Team sucking is a separate issue.

 

[Hit the post]

Oh I agree, lots of fingerpointing all around. It's not just one issue, it's many things. I would have even been satisfied with a wave or him practising or some crap, to not even show up in Vancouver is wrong. There was a recent match where he showed up and didnt play in Hong Kong, and the people there got a refund. The Caps are more than happy to take the money.

I'm sure there'll be a Legends tour with Messi, Ronaldo, Fat Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and a smattering of old dudes. I'll gladly pay for that!

There used to be one - it was called the old NASL.

I didn't manage to catch watching Pele at Empire though.

I *did* see legends like George Best, Franz Beckenbauer, Johan Cruyff, and heh of course Alan Ball. Another legend Ruud Krol didn't last long as a Whitecap (heh, probably didn't think much of playing on the cement like turf at Empire).

 

[Street Hawk]

If they had set the standard pricing for this game ($30-100), the tickets would have sold out in a second and everyone would have scalped them for the $350-2000 prices they went for anyway.

Whitecaps did the only logical move, which was to charge the prices people were clearly willing to pay for the risk and possibility to see Messi, rather than scalpers taking the $14 million in profit. I find the blaming of them not setting a low price disingenuous of the reality.

Messi, Inter Miami, and MLS schedule-makers hold 99% of the blame. Team sucking is a separate issue.

MLS has 29 clubs and 34 games a season from what I googled. Typically MLS would play around 6 or so games a month with 4 or 5 full days off between games. Pretty much right in the middle of NHL/NBA which averages just over 1.2 full days off between games and the NHL which is 6 days off between games. When you send a team on the road, it should always be for 2 games unless the opponent is close like SEA/POR/SJ and possibly Salt Lake and Colorado is to Van for example.

MLS schedule makers just gave a built in excuse for Miami and the players to skip the game. 10/11 hours to fly to play just 1 game. Then play again on Wed and Sun the following week, while adjusting back to a 3 hour time difference.

Reality is also that the Euro leagues play in 1 country where most of them are what like the size of Texas where travel is very light and easy.

 

[604]

I budgeted a trip a few years ago to watch Athletico, ManCity and Dortmand in a span of 2 weeks. Came up to 300 CAD for tickets and 1,500 on flights and hotels.

You look at some of the ticket prices across North America and realize it's simply not worth it.

To be fair the marquee games cost more.

In 2011, I watched Arsenal vs MU and MU vs Chelshit and it was ~ £200 per ticket, that’s $500.

Same trip, Barca v Real Madrid (Champs League semi-final second leg) cost about €300.

I believe all Arsenal games were sold out this year and the re-sale market was high.

I was given WhiteCaps tickets and brought my wife and kids. Unfortunately the team was trying to make the Canadian Cup(?) finals and were trying to hold on for the win by feigning injury without any contact, everywhere. My child asked, “Why are they rolling on the ground like that.” and I responded: “Because they never want us to come back.” and we still haven’t. Terrible football and embarrassing antics.

 

[VanJack]

Turns out Inter Miami didn't need Messi to beat the slumping Caps, who are now only three points away from 10th, and out of the playoff picture.

Feel bad for the fans who bucked up to watch one of the best players of his generation. But the way to have made them pay, would have been a home victory by the Caps. But couldn't get it done.

 

[StreetHawk]

Turns out Inter Miami didn't need Messi to beat the slumping Caps, who are now only three points away from 10th, and out of the playoff picture.

Feel bad for the fans who bucked up to watch one of the best players of his generation. But the way to have made them pay, would have been a home victory by the Caps. But couldn't get it done.

Reality is that hockey and football players want to play.
Basketball, baseball (# of games), soccer are going to be more load management.

Sadly, it's a reminder that when the next great Euro player comes to MLS at the end of their career, you do have to look at that player's team schedule.

Had Miami had a full week off between Van and their home game afterwards, like they did when they played LA Galaxy at the beginning of the season, much more realistic for Messi to have played.

MLS needs to do a much better job at scheduling. Trips out of your area, should be for 2 games. Miami can easily play 1 off games going as far west as Texas and North to Boston as they would be in the same time zone. But, when they came to the West Coast, should have done both LA and VAN on the same trip.

Not sure how the schedule works in terms of these inter divisional games. Once every 2-3 years Van would now play an Eastern club. Miami, only played in the PST or MST zone vs LA, Van. CST vs Chicago, Nash, KC.

So, if the rotation for Miami was to only play in LA and Van this year, that should have been done on the same trip. On a Sat in LA, then like a Wed/Thur in Van after that. Chi/KC/Nas, 2 of them probably together on another trip. I know MLS schedule is more spring/summer, thus these stadiums will have more going on, but most of these are still 25K capacity ones, where top artists are not going to play. They'd play in Solider Field, vs where the Chicago Fire play. Or at Sofi, vs where the Galaxy play. Otherwise, better off in an indoor NHL/NBA arena.

Should have lots of arena availability. Or the Caps and Galaxy if it was their turn to host Miami this year, should have talked together and went to MLS and said, hey, can we both host Miami on the same trip.

 

[Jyrki]

Some people think they're really clever lol

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

Some people think they're really clever lol

View attachment 876738

Haven't done the research but I doubt they own Inter Miami.

 

[Javaman]

AITAH?

I can't help but shake my head at all the people who actually, genuinely, and sincerely believed Messi was ever going to play that game.

 

[I Hart Conor Garland]

AITAH?

I can't help but shake my head at all the people who actually, genuinely, and sincerely believed Messi was ever going to play that game.

perhaps not  tah

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1797699056170422662

Thursday is the day!

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1798816765608386626

 

[Petey O]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1798816765608386626

Looks like all of that national team success was a big mirage.

 

[MS]

Looks like all of that national team success was a big mirage.

I mean, it's the Netherlands. They're one of the top 5 or 6 teams in the world. These friendlies are booked basically knowing we'll get shitkicked at this point but in the hopes that experience against elite teams will allow us to be shitkicked less by them in the future.

 

[Cucumber]

Anyone shocked that Messi didn't play shouldn't have been. We didn't get to see Rooney, Beckham, Henry, Ibra, Kaka, Lampard, Drogba ect... No big European stars play on turf and/or Vancouver.

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

Canada were fine for the 1st half.

Got exposed by a better team early in the 2nd and couple with some bad defending/goalkeeping caused the score to be 4-0.

 

[MS]

Canada were fine for the 1st half.

Got exposed by a better team early in the 2nd and couple with some bad defending/goalkeeping caused the score to be 4-0.

It's crazy how long it's been since Canada has had a goalkeeper that was anything better than 'passable'. Craig Forrest at the 2000 Gold Cup?

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

It's crazy how long it's been since Canada has had a goalkeeper that was anything better than 'passable'. Craig Forrest at the 2000 Gold Cup?

Forrest was incredible during that run.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

It's crazy how long it's been since Canada has had a goalkeeper that was anything better than 'passable'. Craig Forrest at the 2000 Gold Cup?

Part of the issue is this country never really appreciated center backs or goalkeepers for the longest while. Offensive players got a shit ton of praise in the youth leagues and inept managers favored a stupid longball strategy. Some U13 teams in the past would get the fattest or slowest kid on the team to go in goal.

It was so strange to play striker in Canada then proceed to go to Italy and be told I was better off as a CB due to stamina.

It's changing for the better here but it may take a bit longer before we produce more quality in our backline along with a good keeper.

 

[Bubbles]

It's crazy how long it's been since Canada has had a goalkeeper that was anything better than 'passable'. Craig Forrest at the 2000 Gold Cup?

Milan Borjan was literally the goalie that led them to the world cup.

Looks like all of that national team success was a big mirage.

Only to the casuals. When they get to real competition, they will be smashed to bits. They're only in the Copa because of an expansion of the competition.

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

Only to the casuals. When they get to real competition, they will be smashed to bits. They're only in the Copa because of an expansion of the competition.

That WC 2022 Qualifying campaign was a positive step but what gets downplayed was really lucking out in the scheduling which allowed the team to play 3 games in some cold hellish conditions.

 

[Frostage]

That WC 2022 Qualifying campaign was a positive step but what gets downplayed was really lucking out in the scheduling which allowed the team to play 3 games in some cold hellish conditions.

Estadio Ice-teca


I know that FIFA implemented regulations regarding altitude but does anyone know if there is a minimum temperature for games?

 

[VanJack]

Considering the fact the Canadians have a new coach; and limited time for training, I thought they looked fine against one of the best countries in the world.

Next up is France, who are rated at 6th in the World; followed by defending World Cup champs Argentina. Almost impossible to overstate the importance of these games to the Canadian program.

Probably the three toughest tests in the history of the program in Canada. Bring it on!