04/17/24
June 11, 2015
SportsFilter: The Thursday Huddle:
A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.
Yeah, watching that 30-for-30 episode made the scene from Seinfeld a bit funnier:
KRAMER: No. I was kicked out for fightin' with one of the players. [leaving]
JERRY: Wait. Way--way--way--way--way--way--wait! Who?!
KRAMER: [stops] W--Reggie Miller.
ELAINE: Cheryl Miller's brother?
...
JERRY: Can you believe that?
ELAINE: I didn't know Cheryl Miller's brother played basketball.
posted by grum@work at 10:56 AM on June 11, 2015
There still might be a Dusty finish, so I'm not sure that Death has really won that match.
posted by grum@work at 03:28 PM on June 11, 2015
Watching Germany-Norway, I see some sections with quite a few empty seats. These are easy to spot because they're painted the same color, which makes me wonder something: Has any stadium ever used varying seat colors to make the venue look more full on TV?
posted by rcade at 04:33 PM on June 11, 2015
Went out to the WC Qualifiers last night to see the match against Myanmar. Fantastic game. All over Asia, the groups stages started, with some interesting results. Guam had a rare win over Turkmenistan, and the Philippines beat Bahrain. And East Timor got a 90th minute equaliser in Kuala Lumpur. Tuesday night is versus Lebanon, and Australia are away in Bishkek.
It is a wonderful family, the global football family. All the more reason to reform FIFA.
posted by owlhouse at 09:29 PM on June 11, 2015
Watching Germany-Norway, I see some sections with quite a few empty seats.
Some coworkers got tickets yesterday for $20. The game started at before the government folks got out from work, but still, it's nutty in a city of over 1 million people you can't fill a 22,500 person stadium for a major sports event like this.
On the plus side, my quarterfinal tickets are sweet and cheap.
posted by dfleming at 09:40 PM on June 11, 2015
I couldn't figure out why they couldn't fill the modest stadium in Moncton for England v France of all things. The place looks like a decent sized high school or small Division 2 collegiate facility at best.
I don't think the weather could have been that much of a factor. I can't imagine anyone from the maritimes would be discouraged by a bit of lashing rain. They know how to handle it. Very few umbrellas in the stands, and many full foul weather sets.
I noticed that they cleverly lit Olympic Stadium for the evening Brazil v Korea match, so that the vast empty upper sections of seats were concealed by darkness.
Here in the US, schools are still in session, and I know lots of families in the northeast are planning to head up to see some matches as soon as the kids are done, so hopefully, the crowds will start to swell a bit toward the end of the group stage.
posted by beaverboard at 11:12 PM on June 11, 2015
I wonder if this is a product of putting the tournament in a country whose relationship with soccer is relatively tepid and which is sparsely populated.
I can imagine folks driving from PEI/Nova Scotia to Moncton for a game on a weekend, but I can't imagine a lot taking time off work to do so during the week unless it was the home team playing.
posted by dfleming at 07:41 AM on June 12, 2015
I watched part of the 30 for 30 segment on Reggie Miller last night during breaks in the NHL action. I now have a much broader appreciation for the dynamics of his formative years. What a daunting family environment he grew up in.
Those two escaped killers in upstate New York better hope the US Marshals find them before Cheryl Miller does.