Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
The 2024-2025 Football Thread
- Thread starter Scepticalscribe
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
My own practice - I have started the thread over the past two years, prior to that @Lord Blackadder had started it - is that I (or, whoever wishes to start the thread) will not do so until just before the Community Shield competition, which features the winners of the Premier League and the winners of the FA Cup (this year, Liverpool and Crystal Palace, respectively), takes place.
This is a competition which takes place a week before the formal start of the football season, - this year, it is scheduled to take place on 9th, or 10th August, - and is regarded as the event that traditionally, heralds, or marks, the start of a new season.
In practice, that means that the new thread - reflecting the start of the serious season - should start around the beginning of August.
For now, especially as this initial, brief transfer window - designed to facilitate some swift player transfer movement in advance of the Club World Cup (another meaningless, energy sapping, time consuming, but doubtless money generating, competition) shuts tonight for a further week or so, much - if not most - of the media coverage on the subject is little more than hot air, and is very much the sort of treatment of this topic that encourages speculation, engagement, reaction, clicks and similar responses.
Last edited:
Nobody will care.The good game of football is going to be ruined for ever. International tournaments I can understand but for club sides, no, never. Apparently FIFA is going to arrange for a half time show at the world club cup, much like what we see done at the American Super Bowl with half time shows.
source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg902e0jd4o
It will be a travesty for the game
It seems the Champions League final also had some show. Nobody cared.
There have been some attempts to add cheerleading and nobody cares.
The Olympics always had those opening and closing shows and those even are something people look out for.
Things are what they are and if it someday evolves so that people appreciate a show it will stick, if not we will carry on.
Shoehorning won't work.
Football is a continuous game where loosing a minute can kill all joy so half time is to go to the bathroom, get a drink or snack or whatever. Or watch the best moments so far.
A sad attempt to copy the SuperBowl half time show but it’s never been ingrained in football/soccer. Half time is when you go to the loo and refill your pint and then return in time for the 2nd half.
Completely agree.
And most fans - I suspect - would far prefer the idea of a proper half-time break, a time to hit the loo and get another beer rather than the completely fake entertainment of cheerleading and similar dismal offerings emanating from the US.
I was watching the Champions League final, and saw they had dredged up some American rock band named Linkin Park to do a pre match show? It was fairly cringe worthy.
Nevertheless… the CL final itself was surprisingly not-close. A 5-0 win for PSG makes you wonder about the new setup, with league play followed by a cup draw. The real final in my eyes was the Liverpool v PSG tie, which happened quite early after the cup draw.
PL fixtures are out. We are at the Stadium of light for our first game. Great. Newly promoted Sunderland will be well up for it.
The thing I am finding very amusing in this transfer window is the situation where Man United are unable to transfer players that have 1 year left on their contract because the players refuse to accept wage reductions which means other clubs cannot afford them. Chelsea said no to Sancho because it is alleged he refused to reduce his wages. Aston Villa have said no to Rashford. It is rumored the club want Casemiro to leave because he is on very high wages but it is alleged he will not leave because like the others he does not want to reduce his wages and thus like the others wants to see out his contract.
This could mean the club starting the new season with the exact same squad of players they started off last season with which resulted in their second worst league position ever. I think it is 3 players that have left because their contracts have come to an end but that is it. Only one new player has arrived and the team go on a pre-season tour of the US in 3 weeks time. This is the time when managers get to work with new players, youth players and existing players and in Amorim's case it will be time to get them to learn and train to his style of system, something which is alien to the players and the club.
Amorim does not want to use Garnacho because of their public falling out, he does not want to use Rashford because of his statement saying Rashford was basically lazy and not training well and he does not want to use Sancho because of their public falling out and yet he could be left with all 3 of them for the start of the season.
I bet rival fans are loving this, the ongoing implosion at the club. Worst still they have got Arsenal the first game of the new season. In theory Arsenal should batter them but we know games never always turn out how they are supposed to go.
This could mean the club starting the new season with the exact same squad of players they started off last season with which resulted in their second worst league position ever. I think it is 3 players that have left because their contracts have come to an end but that is it. Only one new player has arrived and the team go on a pre-season tour of the US in 3 weeks time. This is the time when managers get to work with new players, youth players and existing players and in Amorim's case it will be time to get them to learn and train to his style of system, something which is alien to the players and the club.
Amorim does not want to use Garnacho because of their public falling out, he does not want to use Rashford because of his statement saying Rashford was basically lazy and not training well and he does not want to use Sancho because of their public falling out and yet he could be left with all 3 of them for the start of the season.
I bet rival fans are loving this, the ongoing implosion at the club. Worst still they have got Arsenal the first game of the new season. In theory Arsenal should batter them but we know games never always turn out how they are supposed to go.
Regarding the PL fixture list for this coming season, it is going to be a ball ache if the 9 PL teams that are in European competitions reach the later stages of the competitions because with FA Cup and EFL cup games and international friendlies due to the upcoming 2026 World Cup it is going to be a fixture pile up nightmare. Mixed in with that lot is the African Cup of Nations in December/January meaning many PL clubs are going to be missing their African players.
2026 is going to be an extremely tough year.
www.bbc.co.uk
2026 is going to be an extremely tough year.
Premier League 2025-26 fixtures: Warning issued over games moving at 'relatively short notice' due to European matches
Fans are warned by the Premier League that fixtures could move at "relatively short notice" next season because of the number of teams in Europe.
www.bbc.co.uk
Sheffield Wednesday: Ex-owner Milan Mandaric plans Owls takeover bid
Former owner Milan Mandaric says he will attempt to buy back troubled Sheffield Wednesday in order to save the club from being "destroyed".
www.bbc.com
WOW, I didn't know they were in deep trouble. Players and staff not being paid on time, the club facing transfers and loan embargos and registration embargo where they cannot sign new players. Those embargos will hit the club very very hard. I remember when Derby suffered the same and oh man did they struggle. Nearly all of their first team quit and they had to rely mainly on their youth players.Sheffield Wednesday: Ex-owner Milan Mandaric plans Owls takeover bid
Former owner Milan Mandaric says he will attempt to buy back troubled Sheffield Wednesday in order to save the club from being "destroyed".
Question is, is he a good owner? I know they got promoted back into the Championship during his term as owner in 2012 but he mentioned in a BBC article back in 2013 that the club was losing £5 million a year and two years later he sells the club, basically saying the club needs something with fare deeper financial pockets. So they are in league one, he buys the club for £1 in 2012, the club get's promoted in the 2012/2013 season and in 2013 he mentions the club is losing money, lots of it. Obviously the promotion from league one to the Championship was more than his finances and management of the club could handle because if a club is run right they do not make loses year in year out.
So, if he struggled to own the club when they got promoted to the Championship, what makes people think he is going to be able to run the club now. He couldn't do it before and sold the club. Maybe he is not the right owner for the club.
Sadly it seems It happens every 5 years or so with Wednesday...
And ,no, IMHo, Chansiri isn't a good owner. He reminds me of a certain president pumpkin head...
I see in the football news that French league 1 men's team Lyon have been demoted to league 2 due to their continued financial issues.
www.bbc.co.uk
It is currently only a provisional demotion because the club are set to appeal. The thing is though it's got people talking about Man City because they are facing 115 premier league charges with many due to financial issues, a hell of a lot more than Lyon and that if the French league went that far to demote Lyon, how far will the premier league go if City are found guilty of any of the charges against them.
It will most certainly put the premier league into a very difficult position if the demotion of Lyon is upheld because if City are found guilty of any of the 115 charges against them and they are not demoted it will get the football world talking that the premier league bottled it against City and thus they are not the all powerful league that they make people out to believe.
Therefore if the demotion of Lyon is upheld, all eyes will be on the premier league and Man City.
Lyon relegated: French club demoted to Ligue 2 over finances
French club Lyon are demoted to Ligue 2 because of the poor state of their finances.
www.bbc.co.uk
It is currently only a provisional demotion because the club are set to appeal. The thing is though it's got people talking about Man City because they are facing 115 premier league charges with many due to financial issues, a hell of a lot more than Lyon and that if the French league went that far to demote Lyon, how far will the premier league go if City are found guilty of any of the charges against them.
It will most certainly put the premier league into a very difficult position if the demotion of Lyon is upheld because if City are found guilty of any of the 115 charges against them and they are not demoted it will get the football world talking that the premier league bottled it against City and thus they are not the all powerful league that they make people out to believe.
Therefore if the demotion of Lyon is upheld, all eyes will be on the premier league and Man City.
I don’t see the two are connected. City won’t get relegated unfortunately. Probably just a fine.I see in the football news that French league 1 men's team Lyon have been demoted to league 2 due to their continued financial issues.
Lyon relegated: French club demoted to Ligue 2 over finances
French club Lyon are demoted to Ligue 2 because of the poor state of their finances.
It is currently only a provisional demotion because the club are set to appeal. The thing is though it's got people talking about Man City because they are facing 115 premier league charges with many due to financial issues, a hell of a lot more than Lyon and that if the French league went that far to demote Lyon, how far will the premier league go if City are found guilty of any of the charges against them.
It will most certainly put the premier league into a very difficult position if the demotion of Lyon is upheld because if City are found guilty of any of the 115 charges against them and they are not demoted it will get the football world talking that the premier league bottled it against City and thus they are not the all powerful league that they make people out to believe.
Therefore if the demotion of Lyon is upheld, all eyes will be on the premier league and Man City.
However, I do hope that it will be a very, very, hefty fine.
And one can hope - devoutly hope, fervently hope - for a points deduction, as well.
Clearly the French system is far more strict that the English system then. In the English system, mess around with your finances and all you get is a fine and maybe points deduction. In France mess around with your finances and you get a demotion to the lower league.
Its quite crazy we still don't have a verdict on City
Birmingham away on the Friday night of the opening weekend of the season. And they say the fixtures are random 😂 .
Tough start for us with 2nd, 3rd & 4th favourites for promotion all in the opening 5 games. But a chance for us to lay a marker down for a promotion push back to the Premier League.
Tough start for us with 2nd, 3rd & 4th favourites for promotion all in the opening 5 games. But a chance for us to lay a marker down for a promotion push back to the Premier League.
I know nearly all of you said you do not go in for buying your clubs football top but I notice many teams have changed their kits this season. If your teams kit has been changed what do you think of it?
My team Gillingham FC have released there new seasons kit. I like the blue the most. The black looks very similar to Man United's black away kit from 1993 (minus all the logos it looks near identical).
My team Gillingham FC have released there new seasons kit. I like the blue the most. The black looks very similar to Man United's black away kit from 1993 (minus all the logos it looks near identical).