Tournament Seeding and the Need for a Fix

With the increased globalization of the game, major tournaments are heading to new lands. Austria and Switzerland hosted Euro 2008, with next year's event heading to Poland and Ukraine. Last year South Africa staged the World Cup with Russia and Qatar on the horizon. While I'm all for spreading the game around the globe (aside for whatever shadiness helped Qatar land the 2022 World Cup), this trend presents a flaw with regards to tournament seeding.

Tournament hosts automatically qualify, which makes perfect sense. If you're hosting a party, you're obviously getting a seat at the table. For countries such as Austria, South Africa and Qatar, this means a rare chance to compete. For the likes of Russia and Poland, it guarantees entry into an event where sometimes they qualify and sometimes they don't. But I think it's absurd that, when it comes time for the draw, the qualifying hosts are further rewarded with unjustified one seeds that throw off the balance of the opening round.

Take last Friday's Euro 2012 draw as an example. The pre-dertermined one seeds were Spain and Netherlands (certainly deserving) along with co-hosts Poland and Ukraine. Instead of one seeds going to, say Germany and Portugal, those two teams ended up in the Group of Death, Group B, with Holland. Where's the fairness there?

Of course, the potential for a Group of Death adds excitement to the draw and creates better opening round matches. But consider that from the trio of Holland, Germany and Portugal, at least one side will miss the knockout round, while among Russia, Greece and Poland, at least one will advance. The quarterfinals get watered down when teams aren't slotted properly.

Although co-hosts double the problem, at least the 16-team Euro field is deep enough to make this less of an issue. But in the World Cup, where there's a large gap between the contenders and the countries that are just happy to be there, giving a one seed to a South Africa or Qatar is absurd. We still have 10 years until Qatar hosts a World Cup. Let's hope there's a change to the seeding system before then.

And with that post, I'm proud to say that I wrote at least one in 2011, one day shy of the anniversary of my last post. Time and energy for blogging are in short supply these days, but I'm determined not to totally abandon my humble Soccer Haus. If you made it this far, thanks for reading!

Euro 2012: Flowers in the Air

While the world focuses on next year's World Cup, Poland and Ukraine are getting ready to host Euro 2012. A year ago things were looking dicey and there was talk of moving the event to an experienced former host. But the co-hosts have responded and the Eastern European neighbors in a better position to host the continent's showpiece tournament.

Part of the preparations included the unveiling of the tournament logo and theme earlier this month. I'm no graphic design major, but I'm not convinced the crew who pulled this together knew they were fashioning a logo for a soccer tournament. Take a look- is this for Euro 2012 or the Warsaw Flower and Garden Festival?


Admittedly this video that reveals the brand theme is pretty slick, but tulips (Are those tulips? I don't know) don't really jive with Andriy Shevchenko and Artur Boruc. We'll just have to wait and see about the mascot. Potsie the Potted Plant?

Euro 2012: No More Polish Jokes

As preparations continue for Euro 2012, Poland appears to have its house in order. Ukraine? Not so much. The New York Times has the latest from Eastern Europe in an update made all the more entertaining because of the fantastic intertwining of the news with a classic Seinfeld moment.

UEFA Euro 2012: One Month to Shape Up

This is not a stellar time for the upcoming hosts of international soccer tournaments. While much of the focus has been on South Africa's struggles to put together a credible World Cup in 2010, major concerns have developed over Ukraine and Poland's ability to host Euro 2012. With Euro 2008 complete, the attention turns to the future hosts, who are nowhere near being on pace. UEFA chief Michel Platini attempted to rally support Thursday for the local organizing committee, while also giving warning that a decision is coming next month as to whether or not the tournament will be moved.

So, as with the 2010 World Cup, there's the issue of who might serve as fill-in hosts. Italy were runners-up to Ukraine/Poland in the bidding for 2012, but Platini suggested the Italians are better off upgrading stadiums with an eye towards 2016. Scotland has expressed interest, but that seems like a long shot bid. With UEFA needing a safe bet, look for Germany or France to be the back-up plans. Spain is also in the mix, but the situation gets tricky if the Spaniards have ambitions of snatching the 2010 World Cup. The Germans have already stated they're uninterested in hosting a second-straight World Cup.

Euro 2012 in Scotland?

Remember the old Mike Myers line from SNL "If it's not Scottish, it's crap?" Well, in the case of Euro 2012 it could be "If it's crap, it might become Scottish." Allow me to explain.

The co-hosts of Euro 2012, Poland and Ukraine, have been making less than impressive progress on infrastructure upgrades and stadium construction. UEFA boss Michel Platini and his crew will be heading to Eastern Europe sometime after Euro 2008, and if he doesn't like what he sees, there's a genuine chance the tournament could get moved.

Enter Scotland, whose officials have already been in touch with Platini about the possibilities of serving as Plan B. Despite their willingness to host, Scotland seems like a long shot. The country has four stadiums that meet international standards, but three of those four are in Glasgow. Organizers typically frown upon more than two stadiums being used in a single city for international tournaments. Scotland would have to get a lot of stadium upgrades done in a short time frame if they were to serve as hosts.

The more likely back-up plan? Plantini's home country of France hasn't hosted the Euros since 1984, and with the venues from the 1998 World Cup still in place, they could easily accommodate the tournament on short notice. Same goes for 2006 World Cup host Germany, which last hosted the Euros in 1988.