Day -642. WorldCup2018
If ever you, a football fan, worry about Gianni Infantino's plan for a 40 team World Cup and what that would do to the format, and who all the extra spots would go to, just be thankful that you are not a hockey fan, of the ice variety.
As I live in the land of hockey, and as I am generally drawn to any sports news on the radio and TV just like any star gazer is enthralled by any Toronto International Film Festival news, I find myself following the news about the upcoming World Cup of hockey taking place in Toronto. And here is your first lesson: this is the World Cup of hockey, distinct from the hockey World Championships. In a nutshell it is the tournament for players and fans of the National Hockey League (NHL), whereas the World Championships are run by the International Ice Hockey Federation.
My apologies at this point to anybody who might be offended, or who's intelligence might be insulted, by my ice hockey for dummies tone.
So we have 2 World Cups essentially, one run by the world governing body of hockey and one run by the richest league in the world. A simple comparison is the English Premier League running its' own World Cup, only for players who play in its' league, and running this as a competing World Cup to Fifa's. Add in also that the World Cup of hockey is played by NHL rules, not IIHF rules. Yes, there is a difference. One of the benefits, for the NHL, of the NHL rules is that there are more breaks, which means more TV advertising time and of course more money. The NHL World Cup is not an IIHF sanctioned event, but does need it's approval for the various countries to participate. Sepp Blatter would be turning in his grave of football exile if he knew that the Premier League clubs were running a non-Fifa sanctioned World Cup.
Now to the teams taking part, which is where to me it gets rather amusing and bemusing. The NHL seemed to have embarked on an exercise of "how do keep the true hockey fans (the ones who spend money) happy and interested but also be seen to be inclusive of all hockey countries". There was no qualifying. Instead it was all by invitation with a couple of made up teams. Canada, USA, Finland, Russia, Sweden, Czech Republic are in, the countries from where the majority of the NHL players originate. But still left out quite a few NHL players. So a Team North America was put together made up of Under 23 players from Canada and USA. Sadly, the third North American country, Mexico, don't have any players in the NHL. That still left out a few more players who should be at the party. They will be there as Team Europe, which includes the Danes, Latvians, Slovaks, Germans, etc. My information generated from listening to sports radio tells me that while Team North America will be fun to watch, and a dangerous opponent, Team Europe is a bit of the sad team, there to make up the numbers and to keep all the minor hockey countries happy.
The World Cup of hockey is making a comeback after it was last held in 2004 and before that in 1996. It is a successor to the Canada Cup, held five times between 1976 and 1991. Ironically, given how different this World Cup is to Fifa's World Cup in terms of structure and make-up, the brainchild behind the Canada Cup, Alan Eagleson, was inspired by Fifa's World Cup when he came up with the idea. He wanted a true World Cup where all the best players played. At that time the Olympics were strictly for amateur players and the World Championships clashed with the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs. In 1997 Eagelson was found guilty of fraud and embezzlement, for stealing money from his clients in his role as a hockey agent and from tournaments such as the Canada Cup. I daresay that rather than him being inspired by Fifa, some of his more questionable work may have inspired a few now-disgraced Fifa officials.
This has all taken me a long way from football, for a few reasons. One because when I hear World Cup I immediately think of football but this is a World Cup which can hardly be compared to Fifa's. Also, as a football fan and a European, I find the whole concept mildly amusing. And lastly I probably wonder about the way football may go. With all the political interference that has seeped into everything from domestic leagues to the Champions League, to the World Cup and the huge amount of revenue that football is generating for some teams, some players and some countries how long is it before the Fifa World Cup is replaced by the Champions League World Cup of football?
As I live in the land of hockey, and as I am generally drawn to any sports news on the radio and TV just like any star gazer is enthralled by any Toronto International Film Festival news, I find myself following the news about the upcoming World Cup of hockey taking place in Toronto. And here is your first lesson: this is the World Cup of hockey, distinct from the hockey World Championships. In a nutshell it is the tournament for players and fans of the National Hockey League (NHL), whereas the World Championships are run by the International Ice Hockey Federation.
My apologies at this point to anybody who might be offended, or who's intelligence might be insulted, by my ice hockey for dummies tone.
So we have 2 World Cups essentially, one run by the world governing body of hockey and one run by the richest league in the world. A simple comparison is the English Premier League running its' own World Cup, only for players who play in its' league, and running this as a competing World Cup to Fifa's. Add in also that the World Cup of hockey is played by NHL rules, not IIHF rules. Yes, there is a difference. One of the benefits, for the NHL, of the NHL rules is that there are more breaks, which means more TV advertising time and of course more money. The NHL World Cup is not an IIHF sanctioned event, but does need it's approval for the various countries to participate. Sepp Blatter would be turning in his grave of football exile if he knew that the Premier League clubs were running a non-Fifa sanctioned World Cup.
Now to the teams taking part, which is where to me it gets rather amusing and bemusing. The NHL seemed to have embarked on an exercise of "how do keep the true hockey fans (the ones who spend money) happy and interested but also be seen to be inclusive of all hockey countries". There was no qualifying. Instead it was all by invitation with a couple of made up teams. Canada, USA, Finland, Russia, Sweden, Czech Republic are in, the countries from where the majority of the NHL players originate. But still left out quite a few NHL players. So a Team North America was put together made up of Under 23 players from Canada and USA. Sadly, the third North American country, Mexico, don't have any players in the NHL. That still left out a few more players who should be at the party. They will be there as Team Europe, which includes the Danes, Latvians, Slovaks, Germans, etc. My information generated from listening to sports radio tells me that while Team North America will be fun to watch, and a dangerous opponent, Team Europe is a bit of the sad team, there to make up the numbers and to keep all the minor hockey countries happy.
The World Cup of hockey is making a comeback after it was last held in 2004 and before that in 1996. It is a successor to the Canada Cup, held five times between 1976 and 1991. Ironically, given how different this World Cup is to Fifa's World Cup in terms of structure and make-up, the brainchild behind the Canada Cup, Alan Eagleson, was inspired by Fifa's World Cup when he came up with the idea. He wanted a true World Cup where all the best players played. At that time the Olympics were strictly for amateur players and the World Championships clashed with the NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs. In 1997 Eagelson was found guilty of fraud and embezzlement, for stealing money from his clients in his role as a hockey agent and from tournaments such as the Canada Cup. I daresay that rather than him being inspired by Fifa, some of his more questionable work may have inspired a few now-disgraced Fifa officials.
This has all taken me a long way from football, for a few reasons. One because when I hear World Cup I immediately think of football but this is a World Cup which can hardly be compared to Fifa's. Also, as a football fan and a European, I find the whole concept mildly amusing. And lastly I probably wonder about the way football may go. With all the political interference that has seeped into everything from domestic leagues to the Champions League, to the World Cup and the huge amount of revenue that football is generating for some teams, some players and some countries how long is it before the Fifa World Cup is replaced by the Champions League World Cup of football?
No comments:
Post a Comment