326 The expansion of the World Cup and the dream of Chinese football
'The suspension is a huge loss for us, he's only 19 years old, he's still a young man, he's going to remember that lesson. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoI'm sure Cech will do what he needs to do and he's a great goalkeeper. I'm sure we'll welcome back with a win, and in the final round of the league, we'll lift the trophy. ”
"Xiaotian, can we enter the World Cup in 9 years?"
"Brother Tian, nine years later, you will be 28 years old, and you are at the peak of the goalkeeper, we will definitely be able to achieve good results!"
"Brother Tian, we not only have to score, get one point, get three points, but also advance to the knockout round!"
"Brother Tian, with you, no problem!"
……
While looking at the messages of the cane fans on the "head" platform, he said to Zhang Yuning on his mobile phone: "Who knows what will happen in the future, take care of the present, Brother Zhang." ”
Putting his phone on the table, he said to Darko Markowitz: "Darko, what do you think, what is football?" ”
Markwitz was stunned, a little confused by the question of Zhang Zhetian.
What is Football?
Isn't football the number one sport in the world?
Isn't football a game of 22 players on the pitch to see who will score first?
Leaning on the sofa with his hands behind his head, Zhang Zhetian said in a flat tone: "Football is not only a sport, it exercises the body, shapes the personality, carries the passion and dreams of countless people, and also shoulders the hope of a country. ”
Mark Witz's sycophancy was just about to come out when he let out a sneer.
"Hehe, I loved football back then, and it was my dream to play for my country. But now, "Palm Zhetian's eyes flashed, he looked at Markowitz with a bright look, and said word by word: "Football is just a sport, a game, and it can't carry the hope of a country!" ”
On May 9, 2017, the FIFA Council meeting in Bahrain approved the allocation of hopes for the 2026 World Cup finals. In this regard, the allocation of quota places for the 2026 finals, which will be expanded from 32 to 48 teams, has been decided, with the AFC and AFC being the biggest beneficiaries, with the Asian quota increased to 8.5.
The host nation of the 2026 World Cup will occupy a quota place for the respective continental football federation, and in the event of a joint event, the FIFA Council will decide the number of teams from the host country to compete in the finals.
At the same time, according to this latest plan, in addition to UEFA, the other five football confederations will each have one team, plus one team from the host continent's football federation, for a total of six teams to participate in the play-offs.
Unlike the current play-off format, the new play-off will feature six teams based on the FIFA rankings, two seeded and the other four teams facing each other in pairs, with the winner facing the seeded team for the last two spots in the World Cup finals.
As soon as the news came out, the AFC's seats in the new plan increased significantly, which was considered good news for the national football team by many Chinese fans.
According to the latest FIFA rankings, China is in the embarrassing ninth place in Asia, and if this is calculated, the national football team can only fight for a place in the play-offs.
However, the appointment of Marcelo Lippi and the emergence of Zhang Zhetian have brought significant improvement to the recent national football team.
Many people believe that although it is almost impossible to break through in the current top 12 matches, if Lippi's thinking can be consistent, the progress of the national football team can still be expected.
If nothing else, the 2026 World Championship will start in 2023, six years from now, when the current Under-23 players will be the mainstay of the national football team.
With the implementation of the Chinese Football Association's U23 new policy, some new stars in the Chinese Super League and the Chinese League have come into our field of vision, and a few players such as Huang Zhengyu, Min Junlin, and Liu Yiming have secured the main position of the club.
Of course, looking overseas, there are still foreign players like Zhang Zhetian and Zhang Yuning who have gained a foothold in the European League, but if you want to carry the future of Chinese football, you also need the emergence of more competitive young players.
It must be mentioned that while at club level, these players have been given the opportunity to make their mark, but they have not been convincing in international competitions in Shanghai, with the exception of Zhang Zhetian, who has been widely regarded as the only super-talented goalkeeper in China and even Asia who has a world-class level.
Players in the 93, 95 and 97 age groups have achieved quite unsatisfactory results in international competitions, and the national youth have missed the World Youth Championship for 6 consecutive years, even if there are conditions for the expansion of the 2026 World Cup quota in front, will these youngsters be able to jump the national football pillar in a few years?
Although Chinese fans know that the goalkeeper position will be worry-free for 20 years, as long as Zhang Zhetian does not die halfway or become Fang Zhongyong, the position of the first person in Asia is unshakable.
Another well-known way to qualify for the World Cup finals is to become the World Cup host nation. Due to FIFA's principle of "the same continent needs to bid for two sessions apart", and Qatar is the host of the 2022 World Cup, it is generally believed that bidding for the 2034 World Cup is more suitable for China. Although the Chinese Football Association officially clarified a few days ago, saying that "the Chinese Football Association wrote a report confirming the bid for the 2034 World Cup" is not true, it did not deny the possibility of bidding.
Canada, Mexico and the United States have submitted joint bids for the 2026 World Cup, but if the 68th FIFA General Assembly fails to select a host country, FIFA will invite more member associations to participate in the bid, including countries and regions from Asia and Europe.
In other words, the possibility of China's bid to host the 2026 World Cup is not entirely out of the question.
At the same time, FIFA intends to amend the regulations on the World Cup bid, adjusting the previous rule to "if the situation so requires, it is possible to host the World Cup again on the same continent within ten years".
If the 67th FIFA General Assembly on May 10 and May 11 adopts this decision, the 2030 World Cup will also be an opportunity for China to bid for the World Cup.
In addition, Zhang Jianren, executive vice chairman and secretary general of the Chinese Football Association, has just been elected as a member of the FIFA Council, which is of great benefit to increasing the voice of Chinese football in international organizations and broadening the channels for Chinese football to participate more actively in international football affairs.
Whether it is the increase of World Cup seats or the future becoming the host country of the World Cup, for Chinese football, the above are all external conditions.
Iron also needs to be hard, and the most important thing is to improve the strength of the team.
Fundamentally speaking, it is still implemented in youth training and the training of local players in a down-to-earth manner is the core of the long-term development of Chinese football.
"A Football Association that has no foundation, no real professional youth training, a layman who manages an insider, and a Football Association that does not act according to the laws of football, I don't have hope for them at all. Youth training must be built in Europe! Zhang Zhetian's eyes flashed, and he looked at the inbox on the tablet.
The Hunan TV email has been opened, and it reads: "Agreed, looking forward to the interview." ”