EVERY SPORT NEEDS A STAR
December 9th 2022 World Cup Qatar - Netherlands vs Argentina
The game ends with Penalty Kicks. Lautaro Martinez scores the winning goal as Argentina takes it 4 converted penalties to 3. But that doesn't tell you what actually happened in that game. For the casual soccer fan it was a truly exciting game. It had everything you would hope to see. Some masterful play, great goals, a penalty in the box, hard tackling, and a last minute equalizer to push the game to extra time. Then of course finally decided by Penalty Kicks. Sometimes I wish I didn't know as much as I do about soccer. I would probably enjoy watching the World Cup so much more.
As an educated fan what I saw was a Referee more interested in protecting Lionel Messi's legacy than actually officiating the match. I saw a Penalty awarded for an obvious dive in order to put the match seemingly out of reach. I witnessed Leandro Paredes commit three blatant fouls in immediate succession and only get booked for one. That's right I said three. Casual fans may be unaware but the first significantly late slide tackle on Ake earned him a Yellow Card. Then booting the ball at the opposing bench gets him another Yellow Card. Then on top of that the match was in the 88th minute so booting a ball out of play after the whistle is considered an unsportsmanlike offense which earns you yet another Yellow Card. So that makes three. For those of you that don't know it only takes two to get you sent off (ejected) from the game. That means Argentina would have been down a man. That would have significantly changed the game. Only Leandro Paredes wasn't sent off. The Netherlands could have easily thrown up their hands, gone through the motions, let the game end, and go home. Instead they showed that stubborn resilience they're known for and scored an equalizer just before time ran out.
At least the majority of Soccer Analysts are admitting that the Ref screwed the Netherlands in that game this morning. But so what. What's done is done. Argentina moves on and the world will tune in to watch Messi continue his quest to make history. That's what I saw, but that doesn't tell you what really happened either. I will get back to that in a bit but this isn't just about soccer!
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October 22nd 2022 UFC 280 - Petr Yan vs Sean O'Malley
The fight goes the distance and both fighters had moments of brilliance. Most MMA analysts (myself included) saw the fight as a 29-28 Win for Petr Yan. There was an obvious nervousness in the arena before the results were announced though. Now why was that? To understand why you have to go back to when the fight was announced.
Petr Yan was the former Bantamweight Champion, ranked as the Top Contender in the Division. Sean O'Malley had never even beaten a Top 15 Bantamweight before the fight was announced. So why was this fight even made? You can refer back to my UFC 280 Predictions article to understand why the UFC saw this as a good fight for Sean O'Malley. What I didn't point out was the obvious Star potential he brings to the promotion. Sean O'Malley has twice as many Instagram followers as Petr Yan, and more importantly appeals to a demographic the UFC is after. Considering the step up in competition a Sean O'Malley loss wouldn't hurt his future earning potential, but a win could elevate him into a superstar.
That's why there was an uneasy feeling in the arena. Anything but a decisive win by Petr Yan could provide the UFC with an opportunity to credit Sean O'Malley with the win. So that's exactly what happened. But some of you are thinking it's not up to the UFC, the judges decide. If only that were the case. There are so many external factors that influence decisions. A fighter's reputation plays a part. Who the crowd supports plays a role What the commentators say is a factor, and of course the UFC marketing machine is always working. The goal was for Sean O'Malley to take his next step towards superstardom. Ironically the controversial win might have hurt his legacy more than helped it. Only time will tell. You can be sure the UFC will do its part to protect their Star in the making.
EVERY SPORT PROTECTS THEIR STARS
I could write a book on examples of how the NFL has perverted public perception and protected Tom Brady.
I could go on and on about how the NBA has done everything it can to make things as favorable as possible for LeBron James. Trying in vain to have him supplant Michael Jordan as the greatest ever so casual fans will tune in.
How the MLB caught the Houston Astros cheating to win the World Series and let it slide so it wouldn't tarnish their reputation. You can't have casual fans thinking games are fixed so pretend it didn't happen.
Why is this becoming such a regular occurrence across so many sports? I believe it's because the days of dedicated Sports fans are coming to an end. The world is getting smaller and smaller. I can remember a time when sports were far more localized. Now you have regularly scheduled NFL games in Europe and Mexico. Two markets that are perceived as Soccer nations. How can you break into such a well established soccer market with American Football. Well their first game in Germany happened this year. It came as no surprise to me that one of the teams selected to play that game was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by Tom Brady. Tickets for that game sold out in a matter of minutes. I doubt it was because they were American Football fans. Casual fans aren't that particular about which team or even which sport they're watching. All they seem to care about these days is which player they are watching. In some cases I can't really blame them. How many Star players remain with the same team anymore? As the world shrinks international competitions become more like Club competitions. The World Cup is a great example. I'd be very surprised if any of the Teams in World Cup Qatar were made up entirely of players born in the Country they played for.
THEN THERE'S THE MONEY
The stadiums get larger and larger. Event purses constantly increase. Billionaires pay athletes exorbitant amounts of money to play the game they claim to love. Ticket prices continue to surge to where the average fan can't afford to watch their home team live anymore. So the television and streaming service contracts become even more lucrative. Sports Gambling has become the driving force behind gaining the interest of the casual fan. Some of the top sports leagues in the world have realized that without gambling they're doomed. So how do you turn a profit? As the number of dedicated fans diminishes your only path to solvency is in attracting the casual fan. The two most successful ways of doing it are by highlighting star players and creating special events. Golf has the Majors, Tennis has Grand Slams, NFL has the Super Bowl, Soccer the World Cup, and the list goes on and on. Every league has their Superstar, and in the rare circumstances that they don't. You can be sure that they will elevate someone to Superstar status that doesn't necessarily deserve it.
WHAT REALLY HAPPENED DECEMBER 9TH 2022
When two nations met in the Quarterfinals of a World Cup happening in a country it should never have been in. A country awarded the World Cup by FIFA officials who no longer hold positions in that organization, having been found guilty of corruption. A country that has spent over 229 billion dollars to demonstrate their "rightful place" in this competition, and shine a favorable light on their accomplishments. One of those Nations includes a player FIFA has also spent billions in promoting in order to keep the casual fan's interest. The other Nation has a truly rich soccer history but has been critical of FIFA's actions in the past. It includes a player that had intended to protest against the Country chosen to host the World Cup and its many Human Rights violations. Unfortunately that protest was crushed by FIFA when they changed their policy on protests made at the World Cup. Instead of a fine they switched it to a Yellow Card disciplinary action which would have been detrimental to his team. Why did FIFA change the policy? Who is the Puppeteer behind it?
With host nation Qatar out of the World Cup, after a very lackluster performance. The only way for them to feel compensated is to keep the eyes of the World fixed upon them, and this "incredible World Cup" they have created. Well the first piece of the puzzle to keep casual fans engaged is already in play. The World Cup is a grand event. The remaining piece of the puzzle is of course the Superstar. Unfortunately for the Netherlands on December 9th 2022 that was Lionel Messi. I'm sure they knew going in that the Referee would prove to be an additional obstacle. They had already dealt with a similar situation in the final game of the Group Stage against Qatar. Maybe the most corrupt officiating I have ever seen in the World Cup. Outside of the maybe 1000 Netherlands fans in the stadium. They must have felt like everyone was against them. The 50,000+ fans in the stadium rooting for Lionel Messi, FIFA hoping to keep their GOAT story going, Qatar wanting casual fans to pay attention to Messi, and not the thousands of people who died building the stadium he's playing in, and every "soccer analyst" that bought what FIFA has been selling and gave Argentina far more credit than they deserve.
NOW YOU KNOW WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
Or will you just dismiss this as one man's opinion?
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