Was this the last genuine World Cup for Iran to shine?

[PersianLion80]

Hey guys new here as a member, was a member a long time ago in the beginning.
Anyone else get that feeling that this was the last true World Cup? Next one’s in Qatar in the winter and won’t have that open, party, feel to it .
Then in 2022 it expands to 48 teams so it won’t be as special anymore, qualification won’t be as meaningful and the tournament itself will be subpar with too many minnows and groups of 3 with 2 advancing. I mean almost any country will qualify-China, India, Cuba, uae, Iraq, Syria, etc
I can’t get this feeling out of me that we failed to advance in the last “real” World Cup-I know it sounds stupid but after this World Cup that’s been on my mind that I’m 2022 it won’t be as much an achievement anymore.
Is this the last real World Cup

[Iranianarsenal11]

Nah bro you're trippin lol

This was definitely not the last World Cup for Iran to shine in.

[Sam van Dam]

i feel that the 2018 world cup was the last true one as qatar 22 in during the winter.... and in qatar smh.

26 will expand to 48 teams which kills the competition because Italy vs Bahrain will be a must watch game! but i guess on the bright side FIFA can make more $$$ by selling broadcasting rights to 16 more countries.

however given that 22 is in qatar and on the other side of the persian gulf, this could work to our advantage like in 2014 when colombia, chile, and argentina all had good runs due to the increased fan base in brazil. lol argentinian fans took over brazil. so iranians can bring that party feel, because we love to party. the qatari government will probably allow alcohol for the month or atleast make designated drinking zones or make a rule that you can't have an open container within 100 meters of a mosque

[diz]

First, welcome.

Second, not sure where to start: “last genuine” WC? Meaning the rest will be counterfeit?

Third, if this is your mentality, then please delete your PFDC account and don’t worry about following TM in the future as doing so may be detrimental to your emotional well-being.

[PersianLion80]

I’m not down on team Melli, what I mean is FIFA is ruining a tourney which was special, 48 teams and 8 from Asia and what 6 from CONCACAF just invites mediocrity and with so many teams it lessons the tournament being so special.

[diz]

I’m not down on team Melli, what I mean is FIFA is ruining a tourney which was special, 48 teams and 8 from Asia and what 6 from CONCACAF just invites mediocrity and with so many teams it lessons the tournament being so special.

They probably said that each time the WC was expanded in its history. Don’t worry mate, it will still be special, and will give Iran one or two additional games in the WC that they wouldn’t otherwise get due to sanctions

[PersianLion80]

How special is it when almost any nation with even mediocre to second or third tier national teams will qualify?

[St_Mark]

Hey guys new here as a member, was a member a long time ago in the beginning.
Anyone else get that feeling that this was the last true World Cup? Next one’s in Qatar in the winter and won’t have that open, party, feel to it .
Then in 2022 it expands to 48 teams so it won’t be as special anymore, qualification won’t be as meaningful and the tournament itself will be subpar with too many minnows and groups of 3 with 2 advancing. I mean almost any country will qualify-China, India, Cuba, uae, Iraq, Syria, etc
I can’t get this feeling out of me that we failed to advance in the last “real” World Cup-I know it sounds stupid but after this World Cup that’s been on my mind that I’m 2022 it won’t be as much an achievement anymore.
Is this the last real World Cup

.


The 2022 World Cup will kick off on November 21 with the final played on December 18.
Autumn( not winter) is September, October, and November.
Average temperature per month in Qatar:

November	24.2°C	29.5°C
December	19.2°C	24.1°C

All WC are real and changes are not unusual.

On ( Not) a serious note...
We failed?!
There is no failure if you lose but act and talk as you have won.Isn 't it how some of the Iranian die-heart fans and IFF / Sports Ministry pretend?

[Ab-Gosht]

Iran can send a lot of fans to qatar, if we make it, it will be a big iranian party, just like in uae in 5 months

[KC McElroy]

The last real World Cup was in 1978 or at best 1994.

[Babak agha]

The last real World Cup was in 1978 or at best 1994.

Yes after that it's just video games we were watching, thinking we were watching real players.

[Taz]

Qatar will be 'interesting' but as long as the fans turn up it will be good and just because it's been moved by a few months and is in some crap location won't kill the passion us or the South Americans etc so no worries.

The extended format sounds like a crap idea but all it will really do is mean the group stages are less important and the tournament will really kick off after that so again, no worries.

The real worry I have is this idea of spreading the world cup across different countries and continents. 2026 covers Mexico, USA and Canada. That seems like too much dilution of the world cup atmosphere but again, come the days close to the matches, the cities themselves will still have world cup fever so again, minimal worries.

All in all, the only reason this may have been our last WC to shine in for some time is if CQ leaves and is not suitably replaced.

[CAGE]

Umm Qatar 2022 is 32 teams NOT 48 and since Qatar is hosting only 3.5 from Asia.

[DR Strangemoosh]

Hey guys new here as a member, was a member a long time ago in the beginning.
Anyone else get that feeling that this was the last true World Cup? Next one’s in Qatar in the winter and won’t have that open, party, feel to it .
Then in 2022 it expands to 48 teams so it won’t be as special anymore, qualification won’t be as meaningful and the tournament itself will be subpar with too many minnows and groups of 3 with 2 advancing. I mean almost any country will qualify-China, India, Cuba, uae, Iraq, Syria, etc
I can’t get this feeling out of me that we failed to advance in the last “real” World Cup-I know it sounds stupid but after this World Cup that’s been on my mind that I’m 2022 it won’t be as much an achievement anymore.
Is this the last real World Cup

I kindof agree with your comments but not the exact semantics of your question in the thread title. The proper question which I think you meant was "Was this the last genuine World Cup?" (regardless of Iran's performance) To which the answer is: probably.

UNLESS somehow Qatar loses the 2022 world cup because of corruption or human right issues, which is still possible. So many of the things we have taken granted in previous world cups will be missing in Qatar - atmosphere, fanbases in cities (eg Peruvians in Sochi), the general travel and excitement.

World cup of 48 teams from 2026 onwards will be garbage and imho will spell the splitting up of world football into different competitions (akin to Volleyball). There may be an elite tournament of 8-16 nations and then this world cup will be a free-for-all money spinner for FIFA. But the prestige of the world cup will be gone as there will be too much dross and imbalance.

So yes, I think this was the last genuine World Cup. But I still think that Iran can shine in future world football tournaments, whatever they will be called.

[forzatm]

Qatar 2022 could be our golden chance. Teams from Asia, Africa and CONCACAF tend to do well at the WC on non-European soil.

Number of non-European/South American teams in the round of 16.

1986 - 2 (Mexico, Morocco)
1990 - 2 (Cameroon, Costa Rica)
1994 - 4 (Mexico, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, USA)
1998 - 2 (Mexico, Nigeria)
2002 - 5 (Japan, Mexico, Senegal, South Korea, USA)
2006 - 3 (Australia, Ghana, Mexico)
2010 - 5 (Ghana, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, USA)
2014 - 5 (Algeria, Costa Rica, Mexico, Nigeria, USA)
2018 - 2 (Japan, Mexico)

bolded year = European WC