Oh no,The European football is struggling at the world cup, Oh, the horror!

[stompix]

You have to love how much you can hate the gambling sections' discussions sometimes, and the World Cup is no exception...

So we went from:
Is European soccer on decline? Many big names facing elimination in early rounds
and:
Is the World Cup 2026 a moment of glory for African teams?
to, well, the five stages
African teams throwing away their games in FIFA WC. What is really missing?
and the bottom
What is wrong with Africa teams?

So, beyond the obvious that: What I think is true because the choir besides me shouts the same is not really the reality, let's break down the numbers:

Groups stage stats:

CONMEBOL , 18 matches:  9 wins, 6 draws, 3 losses  Win rate: 50%
UEFA - 19 wins, 12 draws, 9 losses Win rate: 47.5% (obviously we exclude games between them)
CAF  -  30 matches: 10 wins, 10 draws, 10 losses Win rate: 33.3%
CONCACAF - 18 matches: 6 wins, 2 draws, 10 losses Win rate: 33.3%

Knockout stage:

UEFA - 11 wins, 3 losses  Win rate: 78%
CONMEBOL  5 wins, 4 losses  Win rate: 55%
CONCACAF  3 wins,  3 losses  Win rate: 50%
CAF - 3 wins,  9 losses  Win rate: 25%

*
Half of it is done with Claude, who thinks that 10 wins 10 draws and 10 losses means 1 point per match, so there might be a slight mistake in it despite me checking it once.  

Previous World Cup last 8
2022: UEFA  5 teams, CONMEBOL 2 teams, CAF 1 team Winner Argentina
2018: UEFA  6 teams, CONMEBOL 2 teams  Winner: France
2014: UEFA  4 teams, CONMEBOL 3 teams, CONCACAF 1 team Winner Germany
2010: UEFA  3 teams, CONMEBOL 4 teams, CAF 1 team Winner Spain
2006: UEFA  6 teams, CONMEBOL 2 teams, Winner Italy
2002: UEFA  4 teams, CONMEBOL 1 teams, CONCACAF 1 team, CAF 1 team , AFC 1 team  Winner Brazil

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

[Slow death]

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

I laughed a lot when I read comments saying that Europe was doing badly in this World Cup; people thought the Europeans were going to fail. Unfortunately, they forget that the best football leagues are in Europe and that the best players from most national teams play in Europe, which shows Europe's great dominance in football.

It's obvious that Europe will always dominate the World Cup in terms of having many national teams going far, at least until the day other continents have leagues better than Europe's. In the past, Brazil and Argentina are currently the only teams that can at least take the World Cup title away from the Europeans.

[KTChampions]

Every World Cup (damn, I've been reading this for so long eh) similar topics arise and some fanatics seriously argue about them, although as we see, the reality is always the same 
But this year we must admit that people who live in their own reality have some "excuses" for their behavior - the expansion of the World Cup and the introduction of a new round of 32, which did not exist before and the level of which is obviously low, has instilled optimism in those who suddenly began to get into the playoffs (although this is a group stage by the old standards).

[stompix]

Unfortunately, they forget that the best football leagues are in Europe and that the best players from most national teams play in Europe, which shows Europe's great dominance in football.

Funny thing is that the best players of other national teams are actually born in Europe:


Quite the opposite of what some try to portray European football; it's not people from Africa going to Europe and playing for the national teams there, there are a lot of players born in Europe, schooled in Europe, with dual citizenship because of one of their parents, that go and play for an African or Asian country.

But this year we must admit that people who live in their own reality have some "excuses" for their behavior - the expansion of the World Cup and the introduction of a new round of 32, which did not exist before and the level of which is obviously low, has instilled optimism in those who suddenly began to get into the playoffs (although this is a group stage by the old standards).

Well, true, plenty of teams from Europe which shouldn't have been here in the first place, even if they did manage to score or get some points, still, they were no final championship stage material. I'm not going to comment on the others but, if you plan on adding that many teams, why even have a qualifying, make it somewhat like the Olympics, with every country sending their team and have the entire tournament played there.

[Porfirii]

I don't know the statistics but I suppose that this type of conversations and arguments may be the result of the large local African community that frequents this forum, and that they may have a biased or at least different vision from what other users are used to.

Thank you for sharing the data stompix, this is how arguments must be sustained in order to be valid, and I agree with you that nothing has really changed, beyond a greater number of national teams in the early phases.

[Smartprofit]

Yes, after the Moroccan football team's defeat, any hope of a sensational victory by an African team at the World Cup disappeared. However, even if they had won, it would still have been a sensational event, not a systemic phenomenon... European football teams are objectively stronger. 🙋

Currently, six European football teams and only one South American team are vying for the final. This very subtly hints at whose football is stronger. At the same time, the Argentine team still has a good chance of winning.

In my opinion, all the arguments made in this thread are impeccable... Human perception is subjective, so the successes of African teams at the beginning of the World Cup seemed much more significant than they actually were (although, of course, the Africans played excellent and brilliantly!). Understanding the subjectivity of human perception, incidentally, positively impacts the profitability of sports betting.  For example, right now, I've noticed that many players are focusing specifically on Argentina, although there are six other football teams... Does this mean their chances of winning are underestimated? 🧖

[davis196]

Well, the statement about European football struggling at the world cup isn't completely wrong. Italy didn't even qualify for the World Cup finals, Germany and Netherlands got kicked out at an early stage, no Eastern European national team had reached the quarterfinals. Obviously a big part of the European football is kinda struggling. I don't consider England to be a strictly European country, but that's just me. By the way, the French national team looks really "European". Let's be honest here. The western European countries would remain the dominant powers of this game. Who is going to compete against them, besides Brazil, Argentina and some other Latin American countries?

[Die_empty]

Some of these threads were started hurriedly. The authors saw a few European teams having poor results and thought that they wouldn't do well. Maybe seeing that nine out of ten African teams qualified from the group stage gave them the impression that they would perform better. This is exactly the problem of hasty judgement and its a learning for everyone including me.

Although some African teams put up a good performance, the outcome of the round of 32 showed that Africa still has a long way to go. I was expecting at least five African sides to make it to the next round, but they got just two

The current situation has shown that Europe still occupies the top position in global football. There will always be a clear difference between those who invest heavily in sports and those who put in peanuts.

[AHOYBRAUSE]

Sometimes people just create threads for the sake of getting their posts, plain and simple. Trying to say that European teams don't show their best at the moment, just because some busted out early, is always funny. Sure, people would have expected more from teams like Germany, Netherlands, Portugal and so, but that's it. The other big players such as France, England and Spain are still there. Not every team can reach the last 8 of course, there are always some setbacks, surprises or other things happening, that doesn't mean the whole continent suddenly forgot how to play. Some days ago we had a thread about how well Africa is doing, well they are all gone now (in some cases a bit controversial, I admit).

6 euro teams and only 2 from other areas in the last 8 is a big statement I would say.

[rdluffy]

My biggest “criticism” is directed at some users I saw commenting that the World Cup was going to be terrible, with awful games because of the non-European teams, and that there should have been more European teams
But that’s not what happened

Even though Argentina was the only team left from South America, the non-European teams didn’t disappoint, they didn’t play badly, and we had several pleasant surprises
Cape Verde and the Democratic Republic of the Congo were good examples of teams that everyone was criticizing, yet they represented their countries very well and played some great matches

[TopTort777]

Unfortunately, they forget that the best football leagues are in Europe and that the best players from most national teams play in Europe, which shows Europe's great dominance in football.

Funny thing is that the best players of other national teams are actually born in Europe:

Because it was invented by these guys



Finally these World Cup madness is about to finish, because I am tired of reading only about football in every gambling and casino topic. I only need to survive one last "Argentina has lost so lets find million reasons how their opponents cheated" topic.

[AmaGold70]

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

I laughed a lot when I read comments saying that Europe was doing badly in this World Cup; people thought the Europeans were going to fail. Unfortunately, they forget that the best football leagues are in Europe and that the best players from most national teams play in Europe, which shows Europe's great dominance in football.

It's obvious that Europe will always dominate the World Cup in terms of having many national teams going far, at least until the day other continents have leagues better than Europe's. In the past, Brazil and Argentina are currently the only teams that can at least take the World Cup title away from the Europeans.

I actually concord that European football still remains the best as they dominate , and still have the best league in the world. As for the world, there is a strong sign that the FIFA world cup 2026 might not be lifted by any of the European countries, but this doesn't mean they are not doing well when it comes to football. I look at it that , the trend has shifted to other continents, and this is exactly what makes it very competitive. If a particular continent is always carrying the FIFA world cup, the competition will definitely not look interesting. However, I still believe a time will come when the FIFA world cup will be shifted to Africa, and that will make FIFA world competitive, and interesting.

[Moreno233]

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

You are correct, nothing really changed.  Europe is well represented and theg are doing just fine. The only country that is a treat to and Europe is Argentina. France, Belgium and England are teams that have the potential of winning the World Cup. I know that people expected some European countries like Germany and Portugal to do better than they did but they forgot that it happens that way in football,  no champion reign forever.

[Mia Chloe]

~snip

Well what can we say? The matches so far have been fun to watch plus I think the most unexpected one was Cape Verde against Argentina and they were literally at the brink of paying the price simply because they totally underestimated their opponents and honestly the tension was something else.

France is a really strong European team and I'm very optimistic they could actually win the world cup because of their players and they have a strong attack too.

[DubemIfedigbo001]

Well what can we say? The matches so far have been fun to watch plus I think the most unexpected one was Cape Verde against Argentina and they were literally at the brink of paying the price simply because they totally underestimated their opponents and honestly the tension was something else.

Matches have been fun and very entertaining, but from the data, history is still about to repeat itself, the truth remains that European football is the most advanced and developed in the world and it is evident in WC performance as their teams always makes it to the advanced stages of world cup competitions, same thing repeating itself currently.

France is a really strong European team and I'm very optimistic they could actually win the world cup because of their players and they have a strong attack too.

France is a complete team, from defense to attack and even in their over squad of stars, they still manage to play selflessly and pull out outstanding performances. They can try, but the semi final isn't going to be funny with Spain if they manage to qualify against Belgium.

[Agbamoni]

I don't know the statistics but I suppose that this type of conversations and arguments may be the result of the large local African community that frequents this forum, and that they may have a biased or at least different vision from what other users are used to.

I dont think that is the case here. The conversations and arguments weren't carried out by the African community alone. Members from other continents took part in the conversation and aired their opinions.

However, I am one of the few people who believe in the European teams in the World Cup. France and England have always been my favorite teams that I support from the start because they have been the most consistent and complete teams IMO.

[KTChampions]

~
Although some African teams put up a good performance, the outcome of the round of 32 showed that Africa still has a long way to go. I was expecting at least five African sides to make it to the next round, but they got just two
~

I already wrote about this above, but I'll point it out again: this World Cup introduced a round of 32. That is, this round of 32 can, at best, be equated to the group stage of the World Cup in the old format, where the playoffs began with the round of 16. But now, thanks to the new format, a lot of new teams have made it to the playoffs (but it's a round of 32, damn, they could make it a round of 64 and then even more teams would be "successful" haha) and based on this, some fans started shouting about success.

[Emitdama]

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

You are correct, nothing really changed.  Europe is well represented and theg are doing just fine. The only country that is a treat to and Europe is Argentina. France, Belgium and England are teams that have the potential of winning the World Cup. I know that people expected some European countries like Germany and Portugal to do better than they did but they forgot that it happens that way in football,  no champion reign forever.

European soccer stands on a strong strategy, and their best system is just because of this. Things are always on their way; a few names are changing, but their consistency and quality are still the best. Now in the quarterfinals, 6 teams have spots, while most chances are three teams will be in the last four. This could be impressive.

In the last 7 World Cups, France has had four finals with 2 wins and 2 losses. The biggest achievement for them, sadly, is that South America on a bad run is not able to bring improvement, while Africans are doing well but still lack consistency and fighting spirit. This is going to be a problem for them, but hopefully they could bring changes and have their best in the coming years, but Europe is still going to be a dominating force in soccer around the globe.

[Rubuchi]

So basically what all the stats are saying... nothing changed overall, just the names making the stats!  

You are correct, nothing really changed.  Europe is well represented and theg are doing just fine. The only country that is a treat to and Europe is Argentina. France, Belgium and England are teams that have the potential of winning the World Cup. I know that people expected some European countries like Germany and Portugal to do better than they did but they forgot that it happens that way in football,  no champion reign forever.

European countries are the ones dominating right now. The only team that is a non-European country is Argentina and they are still the defending champions as we speak currently. France has already advanced to the semi finals awaiting the rest of the nations. I see France as the possible winner's of this year's tournament, Argentina as the second and England as the third. We don't know what is most likely to happen between now and then but let's see what will play out in the next competition / fixtures to come.

[Rruchi man]

It's obvious that Europe will always dominate the World Cup in terms of having many national teams going far, at least until the day other continents have leagues better than Europe's. In the past, Brazil and Argentina are currently the only teams that can at least take the World Cup title away from the Europeans.

Europe will not always dominate; even though they are dominating currently, I strongly believe that a time will come when Africa will win the World Cup because with every World Cup there is a clear observation of steady progress that African teams are making.

We are not there yet, but we will get there.