World Cup Qualification - Brazil 2014

[EPR2.0]

Other fixtures on our opening day / night / morning

Saturday 14th June

17:00 Colombia v Greece

20:00 Uruguay v Costa Rica

23:00 Ivory Coast v Japan

Sunday 15th June

02:00 England v Italy

[Ouroboros]

Much better to go out to decent sides in the group than limp past sone rubbish and get stuffed in round 2.

Excited by that draw.

[No Fixed Abode]

A real big shame for the pub trade that England will get knocked out at the group stage. Still, at least it won't prolong the agony and there will be fewer dickheads out in town for the latter part of the tournament.

[Cureton's Volley]

Yep, definitely going 'out out' for that one.

Walkabout in Reading is going to be rocking... it was magical for the Sweden game in Euros!!

[LUX]

could be far worse. Not easy, but whoever we'd have got would have looked tough, come on.

Unless we had the luck of the fcking French.

jsb must be tearing his hair* out

[Ian Royal]

I wouldn't be surprised if we finished bottom of that group.

Italy will be slightly better able to deal with humidity, will probably play a slower tempo game and keep possession better leaving us chasing shadows. I can't see much better than a draw there. Then I fully expect uraguay to destroy an exhuasted England. Leaving us desperate to beat costa rica to have any hope or salvage some pride, only to choke completely.

There's no room for anyone not fully fit, or for players just there for the experience who hage no chance of getting 90 mins. We'll need to use our squad well IMO.

[St. Brynjar]

France end up with Ecuador, Switzerland and Honduras? What country is that Platini bloke from anyway?

(Am well aware that has nothing to do with it but just annoyed France are rewarded for limping through qualifying with the easiest group in the tournament)

[Barry the bird boggler]

Looking forward to those games IMO. It's just the humidity/temperature thing I'm concerned about.

'greed.

2am in UK isn't that going to be about 9pm locally, surely the heat and humidity will not be so bad at that time? It's probably more likely to be the crowd suffering with the local friendly insect life such as mosquitoes....

[Kitsondinho]

Eng v Italy moved to 11pm UK time, 6pm Local. So much hotter than before, but at least the European audience can get to bed earlier!!

[St. Brynjar]

Eng v Italy moved to 11pm UK time, 6pm Local. So much hotter than before, but at least the European audience can get to bed earlier!!

Boo...I was looking forward to the 2am game!

[just some bloke]

Brilliant draw. I'm going to try and get to Manaus. When again in my lifetime am I going to get to see England play a World Cup game in the Amazon?

[TBM]

Eng v Italy moved to 11pm UK time, 6pm Local. So much hotter than before, but at least the European audience can get to bed earlier!!

Boo...I was looking forward to the 2am game!

Yeah this

[Kitsondinho]

Eng v Italy moved to 11pm UK time, 6pm Local. So much hotter than before, but at least the European audience can get to bed earlier!!

Boo...I was looking forward to the 2am game!

Yeah this

Exactly.....people would have watched it.....how many people stay up for the Ashes, Olympics etc.....This is the World Cup for crying out loud! Now it'll just a bloody awful game as we chase the ball around and Italy pick us off in the heat. Rooney's pasty face will be a picture!!

[Green]

Not sure 3 hours is gonna make a huge difference to the humidity or temperature, Kitsondinho.

Fair enough those of you wanted to stay up until 4am - I suggest you don't let the change in kick off time stop you.

[From Despair To Where?]

I think it's a cracking draw overall. There's a strong set of qualifiers this time round and I look at all the groups and, maybe with the exception of Group B, assuming both Holland and Spain turn up in the group stages which they don't always do, every country will look at the draw and think they have a chance of progressing.

[SPARTA]

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/ear ... 23229.html

Did FIFA fix the World Cup draw? Or is it a fantastic hackers’ coup?

Unlikely, but they're struggling to work out how that account revealed what they did before the draw was made.

[Cureton's Volley]

Which is more unlikely:

- The draw going to the exact whim of Blatter & Platini worth $$,$$$,$$$'s
- Someone 'hacking' twitter for such a petty stunt worth nothing

[Sanguine]

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/early-doors/did-fifa-really-fix-world-cup-draw-fantastic-160323229.html

Did FIFA fix the World Cup draw? Or is it a fantastic hackers’ coup?

Unlikely, but they're struggling to work out how that account revealed what they did before the draw was made.

Tbf that link suggests they aren't struggling at all.

[Kitsondinho]

Not sure 3 hours is gonna make a huge difference to the humidity or temperature, Kitsondinho.

Fair enough those of you wanted to stay up until 4am - I suggest you don't let the change in kick off time stop you.

Apparently it will make a difference. The sunset is around 6-6:30pm (on average) in Manaus during June, which is now K/O. If it was three hours later, temperature should have dropped by several degrees. The 9pm (local time) K/O would have been easier to play in, which is why both FAs and both managers didn't want the change. It has only been changed for ITV (yes I know!!) and RAI because they wanted an earlier K/O.

[Green]

A few degrees and a few percent in humidity, yeh go on then I'll give you that. As I said though, not a huge difference.

Of course the TV companies want the kick off to be at a time when more people will watch it - but so do millions of Europeans who'll be tuning in, albeit not the minority you're in who were relishing the novelty of staying up all night.