Good morning, I’m Patrick Andres, and I’ll be making a spot start for Dan Gartland today. I’m wondering whether the population of Sunrise, Fla., can handle that much Tkachuk.
In today’s SI:AM:
🏀 Congress coming for college heavyweights
A World Cup on island time
When FIFA signaled that it would expand the World Cup to 48 teams way back in 2017, skepticism was immediate (this is, after all, FIFA). Would the move dilute the power of sports’ most revered tournament and the quality of the games themselves? Was it merely a cynical thumb on the scale to boost booming nations with little soccer tradition, like China, India and Indonesia?
So far, the answer to all three of these questions has been a resounding no, and that is due in no small part to the performance of some of this tournament’s least heralded entrants. This weekend, two of those teams delivered huge shocks.
First, on Saturday, Curaçao—a squad that sits in between Montenegro and Guinea in the FIFA rankings and lost 7–1 to Germany in its opener—wrestled an exhilarating 0–0 draw from Ecuador in Kansas City. The hero for the country of 155,000: goalie Eloy Room. Room, a 37-year-old Eredivisie alum who plays for Miami FC in the USL Championship, casually saved 15 shots in one of the greatest goalkeeping performances in World Cup history. The soccer profile of a nation far better known for baseball in the United States continues to rise.
The next day, Cabo Verde—already riding high after drawing Spain 0–0 in its opener—stared down Uruguay in Miami Gardens, Fla. The African side took a 1–0 lead on a 21st-minute goal from midfielder Kevin Pina, then came back from down 2–1 to earn a 2–2 draw and set itself up well for its group-stage finale against Saudi Arabia. Uruguay may be soccer’s ultimate overachiever size-wise—a nation of 3.5 million with two World Cup titles—so there was a certain irony in seeing them humbled by an even smaller fish.
Not to be outdone by its fellow island nations, New Zealand threatened to make it a hat trick of unlikely results Sunday night. Portland Timbers defender Finn Surman gave his team a 1–0 lead over Egypt in the 15th minute, but the Egyptians stormed back to win 3–1.
This weekend has raised two questions: how are these nations doing this, and why has the expansion of the World Cup proven so popular beyond its inventory creation?
Many explanations have been proposed for the first, including “spillover” from powerhouse nations and relaxed FIFA eligibility rules. Those are valid reasons, but the bloat of soccer’s modern schedule cannot be overlooked. Elite players and countries arrive at the tournament with more mileage on their odometers than ever before, even before we account for how little time international sides often have to learn each other’s rhythms. While not a perfect level, that does give, say, the Cabo Verde and Uruguay a rough level of parity they wouldn’t otherwise have on paper.
As for the second, here’s a theory for the domestic market: the expansion of the World Cup actually feels additive, even (gasp) sensible. A world that has grown steadily more affluent and heterogeneous over time should allow more nations to compete for its biggest sporting prize.
That is a breath of fresh air compared to the only intermittently logical inventory rush that has gripped North American sports since the COVID-19 pandemic—a 14-team NFL playoff, a 12-team MLB playoff, a de facto 20-team NBA playoff, a possible 24-team CFP, and two 76-team NCAA tournaments. Few fans of Auburn men’s basketball will remember a pit stop in the “First 12” in 20 years. Joe Schmo from Burkina Faso’s potential World Cup memories will last forever.
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The top five…
…most interesting World Cup moments from this weekend (nations of usual sizes edition).
5. Egypt couldn’t have come back against the Kiwis without winger Mo Salah, whose first goal of this World Cup was a stylish one.
4. Côte d’Ivoire winger Simon Adingra will rue this late missed chance against Germany, which opened the door for forward Deniz Undav’s stoppage-time winner.
3. Total football, if not totaalvoetbal, from the Netherlands.
2. American outlets like to fixate on a Japanese cultural norm they should know well by now, but it really is (to steal a British-ism) class that Japan’s fans cleaned up after their team crushed Tunisia 4–0 in the much-hyped 1,000th World Cup match.
1. Spain winger Lamine Yamal’s dazzling goal to open his team’s account against Saudi Arabia—the first of many, no doubt.
