As a Mexican I completely agree , Mexico has so much talent . Our youth team always do good in the youth tournament but our players don’t seem to be able to make the next steps in their career. One big problem for me is the overpricing Mexican clubs put on young players which is why they’re not many Mexican players in Europe,
@dark8243 Жыл бұрын
The league system is also bad for the young players. There are only 17 league games and most managers will only have around 8 games to prove themselves or they will be sacked so they prefer to play foreigners instead of gambling on youth.
@TheEyeball37 Жыл бұрын
I'm American, and I feel bad for you guys. It's an injustice.
@playedout148 Жыл бұрын
I'm hoping that the north americans raise the level. As usa and Canada improve, that they pull mexico up as well.
@themexicansensation2698 Жыл бұрын
@@playedout148 Mexico has always been better than Canada and the US but their inability to improve is what had led us to lose quality. Hopefully now that they’re improving we can maintain our quality and also improve
@gustavomartinic9299 Жыл бұрын
Talent?? I can barely name a decent world player from Mexico...Hugo Sanchez got in mind.. and that's it!! They're very average to be honest.. that's the reason that they never succeed in football..you need very top players and for a very long time to create a tradition in world football stages..
@MrMeh23 Жыл бұрын
as an Indonesian, my opinion of the state of our international hopes has always been: If I see my country in the World Cup before my grandchildren have children, it would be an absolute miracle. I've been saying this since I was 17 in highschool
@IErfanCN Жыл бұрын
Indonesia masuk piala dunia = keajaiban yang luar biasa wkwkw 😄
@michaelgiovanni9533 Жыл бұрын
At this point seeing Cambodia qualify for the world cup someday is a lot more realistic than Indonesia. They have a better vision towards improving their league and national team. While we're here at Indonesia still cant even manage our premier league (liga 1) or decide the future of the lower leagues. While at the same time our federation seems to hate the idea of having foreign born Players on the team.
@animevsirl Жыл бұрын
At least Indonesia got more chance of qualifying for world cup than Singapore
@Ricky_Baldy Жыл бұрын
The World Cup is expanding to 48 teams at the finals. Who knows. You may see it.
@nirvaya Жыл бұрын
I guess 48 teams in future world cups should give Indonesia a bigger chance than teams like China and India.
@mannyortiz3656 Жыл бұрын
Mexico has actually reached the Copa America final twice, in 93 and 2001, losing both finals to Argentina and Colombia respectively.
@joseluna3715 Жыл бұрын
No he is 100% right, the fact that Mexico is so soccer obsessed has a large population has invested so much into our youth and our leagues and has never even been to a world cup semi final as a Mexican I find it sad and pathetic and from the looks of it it’s looking like the US has a better chance of winning a World Cup now before Mexico does
@supaa45128 ай бұрын
Our only somewhat notable achievements in our history are winning the Confederations Cup in 1999 and the gold olympic medal in 2012 (beating Brazil in both finals). It’s embarrassing considering Mexico’s huge potential
@CAPIVAN5 ай бұрын
@@supaa4512Olympics is an amateur and no one took confederations seriously
@supaa45125 ай бұрын
@@CAPIVAN I know that’s why I said somewhat notable
@huseroland Жыл бұрын
An honourable mention could be Hungary. We were always a football-loving nation, and until 86' we were regular World Cup competitors with 2 silver medals. And 3 gold with also 2 silvers at the Olympics. But since 86' our biggest success was competing in the 2016 UEFA Europe Cup.
@ilidioalves7 Жыл бұрын
But I think previously you were over-achievers. A nation of some 8 million having the team you had in the fifties is simply crazy. Nowadays I'd say you are achieving more in line with what your country is, in terms of economy, population, etc. Yes, maybe you could be doing better and qualify more often to the big tournaments, but I wouldn't say you are underachieving. Only whence it's measured against your glorious past.
@GooseGumlizzard Жыл бұрын
@@ilidioalves7 yeah but compared to their neighbors Hungary have been really especially bad in the past 50 years, producing no top players and hardly every qualifying for Euros or WC's, meanwhile teams like Croatia, Czech, Slovakia, Serbia, even Slovenia have done better
@stephentyas4698 Жыл бұрын
hold on,I think your making a comeback.
@huseroland Жыл бұрын
@@stephentyas4698 Hope so 😀 Szoboszlai's transfer and his good performance really can open up some doors to the top level for our young talents.
@kornelmezei2872 Жыл бұрын
@@ilidioalves7 We are overachievers in the olimpics aswell...statistically we get the most medals compared to population.
@franks5312 Жыл бұрын
And then there is Croatia with 3.9 million people. -Got independence in the 1990s -2 bronze medals at world cups -1 silver -nations league semi final this year
@soundscape26 Жыл бұрын
Croatia and Uruguay are quite the opposite of this list.
@tannerwilson4843 Жыл бұрын
@@soundscape26 Croatia and Uruguay have become model nations to follow for many smaller tier nations around the world. They do everything right regarding ⚽️ in their countries.
@ElAlejo99 Жыл бұрын
@@tannerwilson4843 As well as Morocco after their unexpected amazing performance in this recent world cup!
@unlockedaccount Жыл бұрын
croatia achieves a lot in basketball as well
@villek3722 Жыл бұрын
@@ElAlejo99 Difference is that Morocco has 10 times bigger population and far less success
@roberttorres8477 Жыл бұрын
Mexico not being better is honestly laughable
@DresdenShuffle Жыл бұрын
North America in general being so poor is laughable
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
@@DresdenShuffle true, NA is awful at football, but they’re improving though, Canada US and Costa Rica are rapidly getting better and may all even surpass Mexico in the coming years if Mexico doesn’t get their act together
@skyrothman8651 Жыл бұрын
@@bababababababa6124 Probably not Costa Rica, but the US and Canada for sure. There's an argument to be made that the US is already better
@nabri-nfg3262 Жыл бұрын
Im not surprised that mexican football has fallen since they stop participating in south America competitions
@roberttorres8477 Жыл бұрын
Mexico has talent it’s just depressing how they have not been able to develop it. I mean they are the biggest Spanish Latin country with a love soccer. They have everything to become a super power in fútbol the countries lack of invest in talent has held them back
@ADAJ3KINGANGEL Жыл бұрын
Nigeria’s squads are usually all chest no legs. It’s like everyone decided they wanted to be a striker while disregarding the midfield and especially the defense/goalkeeping.
@alexchimi7093 Жыл бұрын
Alfie, I encourage you to look into making a "What On Earth Is Going On In... Liga MX" video. Ever since 2010 we've had a hell of a circus that includes getting rid of promotion/relegation, stopping participation in Libertadores/Sudamericana, but also Cruz Azul's former owner being wanted by Interpol, teams buying their way back into the top flight by acquiring the team that just got promoted, and some teams straight up disappearing like Monarcas and La Piedad, mostly because of corporate greed. I know corruption is a spectre that haunts all of Latin America but Liga MX is on a league of its own.
@kozukizaki8675 Жыл бұрын
Yes! As a Morelia fan, my injustice must be aired 😂
@alexchimi7093 Жыл бұрын
@Dorkwing Buck that sounds more like a problem with FMF than with Mexican Americans themselves
@Joe_EP3 Жыл бұрын
Not a fan of Liga MX, but I’d love to see a video on this. Alfie’s videos are superb.
@Luigiman_95 Жыл бұрын
@Dorkwing Buck I hate that Liga MX is basically ran by greedy Yankee money. It's a crazy thing that multi cartels has declared that if Liga MX create a super League with the MLS, it would be a war... AND A LOT OF MEXICANS WOULD JOIN THE FIGHT.
@elkaliban Жыл бұрын
Agreed man. I member watching those teams back then, and all of a sudden, boom they’re gone, just like Jaguares de Chiapas
@otakumouse3308 Жыл бұрын
As a Nigerian we don't do youth development well. We've won the U17 fifa world cup five times, and have produced a lot of good national U17 and 20 sides (Osimhen is part of that legacy)...but translating that to success at senior level seems to be the problem. Also, our good performances at youth level hides a lot of cracks. We also have a big corruption problem (though not as bad as Brazil's in my opinion...having read Alex Bellos' excellent book on Brazillian soccer, it's a wonder they won world cups with their bad federation) and leadership. And as you said, money. Money. A good youth setup of the likes of Germany and Belgium needs a lot of investment...and when our clubs can't earn enough money...that's where issues start (the money issue is why we end up having most of our players going abroad) Finally, Alaba and Saka and Musiala all grew up abroad, so technically speaking they won't feel that much allegiance to Nigeria. Maybe if they did grow up in Nigeria a bit (though we have had players like Abbey George, Reuben Agboola and even Shola Ameobi who did play for us, the latter after starring at U20 level for England even). Better stop here , because writing about Nigerian football is going to be a long tale.
@eddyjolo Жыл бұрын
I feel Nigeria and Mexico face the same demons
@BhBc8f8 Жыл бұрын
There's also the domestic league problem that aren't broadcasted or supported as much by the media. Bad roads are also a deterrent for fans and local support
@sammiesoul5 Жыл бұрын
We have won U17 with over aged players, hence we can't transition to the main scene
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
same problem as mexico
@takehirolol5962 Жыл бұрын
You are already immigrating quite early to Europe, not waiting for the u17 and u20 World Cups for exposition and get contracts. Even being a player on a 3rd Division League on a Top Football European country is much better living.
@HRHPrinceFarouk Жыл бұрын
As a Nigerian, I don’t know why tears came to my eyes when you spoke about us. We have players like Osimhen, had legends like Jay Jay Okocha but we steady underperform. Sigh. Although there is some hope with the academies and the like.
@jimshelley883112 күн бұрын
Why have tears ? It's only a game of football ,get a life .
@seandelap8587 Жыл бұрын
Egypt I would say considering how dominant they have been in the African Cup of Nations they have often flattered to achieve during the World Cup or indeed often haven't even qualified at all while less successful African countries have indeed often performed better on the international stage
@josephcarland Жыл бұрын
And probally most of the middle east as well.
@yehiatamer3633 Жыл бұрын
Egypts problem is corruption there is group of ex players they control every every single thing in Egyptian football they turn everything into scam with nothing but money in mind
@ahn2908 Жыл бұрын
yes as an egyptian i reckon we wouldve done pretty well in the world cup had the senegalese little pricks not shone those stupid lasers in our players faces
@moderatemapper9440 Жыл бұрын
@@josephcarland No, not most of the middle east, they're either poor and wartorn or they're rich and only recently started developing football, other then a few like Egypt
@ahmedlo1 Жыл бұрын
Agree with you as a Egyptian, it's a shame we have a shitty football federation
@mikyokalabacos366 Жыл бұрын
the hoever and ndidi slides never get old
@YetAnotherGeorgeth Жыл бұрын
Let’s not forget Eddie Howe (anyhow)
@skyrothman8651 Жыл бұрын
@@YetAnotherGeorgeth And without further Adu
@Hilversumborn Жыл бұрын
And Watsmore (What's more)
@notthatcreativewithnames Жыл бұрын
Still waiting for (Nicky) But(t), though.
@wrestler-kickboxer2524 Жыл бұрын
@@notthatcreativewithnames Or a picture of an actual butt 😂
@wandilenxumalo735 Жыл бұрын
I'd argue that South Africa and Egypt are more underachievers than Ethopia. This is based on the quality of the leagues and their domination in Africa and yet their national teams are doing so badly in Africa (more South Africa than Egypt) and in world football. I'm not expecting them to win the world cup, but they must at least consistently qualify for the tournament.
@clarenceonyekwere5428 Жыл бұрын
How much are the few spots for Africa to blame for teams not qualifying? 5 spots for 54 teams looks bad
@chamaaimable-kapumpa7497 Жыл бұрын
Totally agree
@soundscape26 Жыл бұрын
@@clarenceonyekwere5428 54 teams?
@VictorMurp Жыл бұрын
Egypt have consistently overperformed in AFCON though. This is biggest underperformed NTs, not unperforming world cup NT
@damiananonim1925 Жыл бұрын
@@soundscape26 He probably meant number of national teams in Africa
@leonardoflorentin Жыл бұрын
The nigerian situation is really sad. I remember in the '90 argentina often played them on the first stage of the WC and we all knew that it was a really tough opponent, i wish to see them again being that tough team i remember as a kid.
@Benjamine5784 ай бұрын
Everything fell apart as soon as corruption stepped in our football federation coupled with poor investment in local leagues and sport facilities by our government.
@cesarpolese7303 Жыл бұрын
The popularity of the sport has been growing in the U.S. I can see the U.S team getting stronger in the coming years.
@biggdig6669 Жыл бұрын
they sayin this since 2000
@bluescale8626 Жыл бұрын
They are currently the best North American team. Mexico has given up that title in these recent years.
@avery.a59485 ай бұрын
@@bluescale8626so how was your run in coppa America 🤣🤣
@snorkelwackjr5 ай бұрын
@@avery.a5948 Went about the same as Mexico's 🤷
@William-Tyndale4 ай бұрын
America would benefit heavily if their culture around the game wasn't so soft and effeminate. They could easily produce the talent if they could attract it and could better apply the talent they do have if they went with more traditional American sporting principles. Also they need to find a way to have better youth development and increase the popularity of the college game if that's the route they're going to go.
@alejandrovillamil1734 Жыл бұрын
As a huge mexican fan there has been talks of "implementing " changes such as better exchange programs for thr youth, and thr national team to be in more competitive tournaments, but from what I can tell, there has been little to no progress. It's sad because we have HUGE talent, we always win almost all U-mexico games from each age group but the players either don't have the opportunity to show there skill at there club, or they quite. The biggest issue in my eyes is that the mexican federation is complacent to where they're at same thing with the players, they dont wanna move out since theyre already making good money at home, luckily now the US is more competitive and we have been performing worse, so now they HAVE to change, but they probably won't, the other issue is the price of mexican players, they're SUPER over priced, for EX. Uriel antuna was gonna cost 15 million for a Greek club, while Julian alvarez costed around 17 million, and ngl Julian is a way better player. I don't want to play like argentina nor Brazil or Spain, I want us to play our own unique way and with talent pero the possibility of that happening anytime soon is small
@adam01101 Жыл бұрын
Mexico has to be number 1, I was surprised when I found out it was the most played sport in that country because they don’t produce really anyone
@simoncaton1226 Жыл бұрын
Mexico has some good players like Chucky Lozano. But it’s telling that you can say that Canada and the USA have approached Mexico in terms of their ability to assemble a good team. It’s great to watch in Canada, where it sometimes felt like the men’s team didn’t even exist. You do a good job of outlining the issue. Can a lacking institution turn things around, especially in the face of a better US team and Canada coming out of nowhere? My thought is that they will try but sometimes you can’t turn a ship like that.
@simoncaton1226 Жыл бұрын
But I feel you when you say that you just want a team that you can support and feel a real connection to. That’s all I wanted as a child for the Canadian men’s team
@takacolon2792 Жыл бұрын
As a Brazilian, Mexico should come back to Libertadores, or we need to have an competition for all Americas. Mexico could evolve a lot of playing more often against Brazilian and Argentina teams. Also, Mexican teams are strong a lot to compete in high level.
@yetekt6953 Жыл бұрын
America has won every CONCACAF youth tournament aside from the u17 one and they didn’t have some of their best for that one lmao
@kozukizaki8675 Жыл бұрын
As a Mexican I was scrambling to think who could top Indonesia, then when he revealed top spot my head just sunk and I said "yup" lol Agh, that would be an amazing video Alfie to document how uniquely terrible the Mexican Federation is.
@markmolino679 Жыл бұрын
I wasn't surprised. Seeing that Mexico is a mediocre and overrated team like the US.
@etp4899 Жыл бұрын
I would absolutely love for Alfie to do a video on Mexican football.
@FelixMCFrosty Жыл бұрын
i still think he was being a bit too generous/bias towards the uk.
@nicandrorodriguez4640 Жыл бұрын
My poor Mexico always breaking our hearts,, and that last world cup was just unforgivable, and whats worse is that they also failed to qualify for the olympics
@evryfckinnameistaken Жыл бұрын
unforgivable lol damn they just barely missed the 2nd round it wasnt like another 78
@anophelesnow3957 Жыл бұрын
Nicandro, it is a shame. I'm English and I hope I cheer you up when I say I have seen Mexico win something! I was at Wembley Stadium in 2012 and saw your Olympic team rightly beat Neymar and his Brazilians for the gold medal. I celebrated, put a sombrero on my head and drank tequila! Get a better team, mate. :)
@mexicansavage1782 Жыл бұрын
@@anophelesnow3957 yeah that 2012 Olympic team did good but none of them became good players 😢unlike Brazil with Neymar, Danilo , Alex Sandro , pato
@jesusalcazar8779 Жыл бұрын
I blame Tata 😒😒
@isaacveynaflores1105 Жыл бұрын
Mexico missed the Olympics and the U-20 World Cup because they rested the qualifications for both teams on Mexico’s U-17 team in the concacaf championship where Mexico lost on penalties to Guatemala after having over 30 shots. The kids failed but the U-20 and U-23 teams shouldn’t be punished for it
@nathanjm000 Жыл бұрын
I remember when Turkey had a slim chance of taking three Champions League spots about five years ago but they have just one now
@daghanor1620 Жыл бұрын
We don’t even have one anymore 😢. Our champion has to play 2-3 elimination rounds for qualification to UCL now.
@luanchanquini6787 Жыл бұрын
Seeing North America's football leagues growing makes me dream for that one day can have a continental competition between all Americas, merging teams from Libertadores and Concacaf Champions League. I believe that such league would have a lot of potential to be huge in terms of sports, competition and revenues like UEFA Champions League. Can you imagine teams from USA, Mexico, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and other countries challenging each other to win the trophy? That could be a big tornament, and i'm sure that it could contribute to the develop even more the football in those countries. It's make no sense to me a whole continent having more than 3 "continental" competitions separated by regions. BTW, i miss the old times when mexican teams used to compete in Copa Libertadores.
@luanchanquini6787 Жыл бұрын
@@sonyw55 I personally believe It would bê interestinf for both confederations, cause todas in Libertadores we can see a Lot of teams from less tradiction countries struggling to compete against teams from Brazil or Argentina. For the last 10 years, the champions were only from these two countries. In CONCACAF there is some teams with more money than south america's most tradictional teams, with star players coming from Europe that soon Will be able to compete in equal terms with SA's potencies, thats why I believe It could benefit them all
@luanchanquini6787 Жыл бұрын
@@sonyw55 i believe that for CONMEBOL, the best part of this would be the revenue that such a tornament would bring to its teams, cause South America dont have strong currency, so If you dollarize a tornament, Just by participating in It you could earn tons of money when converted tô their currency, and it Will reflect directly on the teams
@luanchanquini6787 Жыл бұрын
@@sonyw55 as for the CONCACAF's teams, there is a Lot to earn technically-wise speaking when you face the best teams of the continent from any nation
@CypherSteve Жыл бұрын
South Africa, definitely South Africa. Has the largest league in the Southern African region, with a big footballing culture, we love the sport, talented youngstars who show potential, but corruption and poor management leading to disappointment after disappointment.
@grobariza Жыл бұрын
absolutely
@jackmehoff5541 Жыл бұрын
You guys are talented to play in Africa not Europe, please tell me a South-African player who made it in the Top 5 leagues in Europe the after the WC2010?
@katleholehlokoane9663 Жыл бұрын
@@jackmehoff5541 Very funny comment this because the video explained, in the case of Nigeria, for example. In the modern era there are few African born superstars who succeed in Europe. And convenient of you to state " After the 2010 WC" because it seems you have knowledge of previous South African football players who've made it in European leagues before, if you don't know them I'm happy to name a few.
@kris5885 Жыл бұрын
I thought South Africa was more into Rugby or Cricket?
@S1LVAW0LF Жыл бұрын
@@kris5885the africans are more into football. euros like rugby and cricket and south asians like cricket. Coloured people like all 3 i suppose....im just guessing lol.
@Iguana-Power Жыл бұрын
I’m surprised to not see South Africa (Bafana Bafana) mentioned in here. They are one of the largest countries in Africa by population, their rugby team has won 3 world cups, their cricket teams are usually contenders in their respective competitions, and while Bafana did win the AFCON in 1996, the team are massive underachievers otherwise.
@Videosfut3878 Жыл бұрын
Cause SA is not a football country. Psl matches are always empty same as Bafana Bafana matches… nobody cares about football.
@lontongstroong Жыл бұрын
Maybe because all of the talented South African kids stop playing football and switch to rugby sevens after all?
@rumblebird9888 Жыл бұрын
Probably has to do with ban they received for a while
@DarkHorseF.C6686 Жыл бұрын
It’s much easier to have success in rugby and cricket as those sports aren’t nearly as popular globally as football. Plus those are the sports of the white South Africans so a lot more money gets funnelled to rugby and cricket than to football.
@Sabundy Жыл бұрын
Good grief.....so many wrong things in this comment. You obviously are not South African. 1) Cricket 🏏 is the 2nd most popular sport in the world after ⚽ football (the IPL literally being the 2nd richest sports league in the world). It is not by any stretch of the imagination "easy" to win games or the Cricket World cup. Or to be a major team in Cricket. 2) Rugby has not been the sport of the white South Africans as you out it for the last 15-20 years. You have obviously not seen the South African rugby team as they are half black and coloured players. Hardly a "white" team. And if you watched videos of South African high school rugby you would see that anywhere from 50-60% of the kIds playing are black. You clearly have no idea what you are talking about. If anything the high standards of South African rugby that have been maintained, how well managed it is (youth development and selection), and the fact that they win games and world cups has drawn more South Africans (from all ethnic backgrounds) to rugby. It's never been played by more South Africans and watched and supported by more of the population. If anything..... football ⚽ and Cricket 🏏 have probably lost support due to many years of poor performances from the national teams.
@baquithemonkey5330 Жыл бұрын
I would say Colombia deserves an honorable mention. Colombia has the second largest population in south America, it's a crazy football nation, and a well established domestic top flight. Yet the national team only has one copa America to their name and has only qualified for the world cup in 6 occasions. Having missed out on the last one with a team than on paper was better than Ecuador, which qualified, and Peru, that unfortunately missed out in the international playoffs. Heck even domestic teams seem to have gotten worst over the past decade. The Colombian teams have performed terribly at the both copa libertadores and sudamericana. I don't think It's even an argument to say the Ecuadorian league and teams have surpassed Colombia.
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
this is true because independiente del valle won two sudamericana tournaments in the last four years
@Luizfelipe-g8v Жыл бұрын
Colombia had its best chance in 2014.
@Roberto-fg9oj Жыл бұрын
Colombia is not a south american country
@Drp2021Xc5 ай бұрын
@@Roberto-fg9ojdid you pay attention to geography class?
@simon.a.deportes5 ай бұрын
@@Roberto-fg9ojwho is this man’s geography teacher
@AmbitiousAlgiers Жыл бұрын
Algeria, the number of talents playing for France or Algeria is already immense : Zidane, Benzema, Mahrez, Mbappé, Nasri, Fekir...etc
@Nazim909 Жыл бұрын
Our mbappe could play for Cameroon
@beno1129 Жыл бұрын
Nigeria actually made it to the second round of the 1994 world cup, not the quarter finals. They haven't been able to reach the quarter finals yet. They did get very close in 1994, where they were one minute away from beating Italy before the great Roberto Baggio equalised to send the game to extra time and then score a penalty 2 minutes to the end.
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
the final could've been brazil nigeria who knows
@jimmyyue238 Жыл бұрын
@@vlz.matthewthe final was supposed to be Brazil v Germany
@voidvector6676 Жыл бұрын
Hey Alfie, this might be a long shot but I feel you would love the history of São Caetano. From a Copa Libertadores final in 2002, to nowadays playing in, if I remember correctly, the second division of their regional league in Brazil. It's a bizarre story of triumph, a rise like so few clubs have done not just in Brazil but in the world, tragedy, and a cataclysmic fall
@krisztianbalogh7677 Жыл бұрын
They just newly relagated from the state league (not the country just the Sao Paulo state) second division.
@Diamond-OSCandMarblestuff Жыл бұрын
I know about Serginho in 2004 R.I.P
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
a lot of brazil teams are like that the brazilian league is crazy even palmeiras has been relegated and they are the best club in brazil
@Lancasterphodaum Жыл бұрын
@@vlz.matthewtwice actually
@SmearyImpala517 Жыл бұрын
Could you do a video on the state of South African football, I'm sure you'll find stories of corruption, mismanagement, and disappointment for a nation thats so in love with the game
@nhlakaniphozulu1533 Жыл бұрын
Juicy stories, plus the in fighting between SAFA and PSL
@afellownerd Жыл бұрын
As a South African, I'd love a video like this
@BoereViking Жыл бұрын
Exactly. People forget we were ranked 16th in the world in 1996.
@siphesihlejiyana9242 Жыл бұрын
I asked him for this on the previous video
@chesbaret Жыл бұрын
YEEESSS
@jude8728 Жыл бұрын
I would love to see a similar video to the Ireland golden generation one for Nigeria. Alongside Osimhen, they've got so much attacking talent coming through right now (Gift Orban, Moffi, Chukwueze, Sor, Awoniyi)
@Ninja-gt3zi Жыл бұрын
Nigeria have insane strikers but such a weak defense. They need to try develop some cbs and gks cause it seriously holds them back
@opinionatortv6457 Жыл бұрын
We Nigerians have never lacked quality in attack. Even in midfield, we tend to produce strong and technical players. However, our defensive areas are seriously lacking. Add coaches that can't seem to properly organize the team, we always falter
@Ninja-gt3zi Жыл бұрын
@@opinionatortv6457 try get tosin adarabioyo to switch hes good. Caleb Okoli from Atalanta aint bad either. Fullbacks needed too. Okoye has some work to do in goal
@krisztianbalogh7677 Жыл бұрын
@@Ninja-gt3zi They need anty Blue Lock XD
@GreekHouseEffect Жыл бұрын
honestly, this is such a good generation of Nigerian players, I was gutted they didn't qualify for Qatar
@josuaerick9670 Жыл бұрын
As an Indonesian, it is unbelievably sad here because literally almost 90% of all young boys love or at least have played football at some point in their young lives but the PSSI corruption destroyed all of our hopes and dreams of becoming professional 😢
@PawnsorKings Жыл бұрын
Yes, when I coached football in Indonesia all my players told me that only rich Indonesians get to play professional and they get there by directly paying the team to play. While I was living in Jakarta the PSSI collapsed and had no games for nearly a year. Very sad.
@josuaerick9670 Жыл бұрын
@@PawnsorKings yeah exactly, fuck corruption
@diegogalvan1810 Жыл бұрын
Thank you for pointing out the flaws of Mexican football, I’d say Mexico has an unhealthy habit of underachieving at virtually everything given all the resources, talent, and size the country possesses, not just in sport. I’d love for you to make a full video on all of the deficiencies of Mexican football
@ishrendon6435 Жыл бұрын
Sadly mexico is a drug cartel ran country with so so much corruption
@ishrendon6435 Жыл бұрын
Sadly mexico is a drug cartel ran country with so so much corruption thats only one of the many reasons
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
i can see them failing to win the next few gold cups as other countries like usa and canada have gotten much better
@diegogalvan1810 Жыл бұрын
@@vlz.matthew me too, it’s honestly really pathetic to see either their decline or lack of progress, imo it’s a decline and Canada and the US have certainly progressed. It’s nice to see more competition, and I’m hoping this helps improve CONCACAF as a whole, but I’m rather doubtful considering they all did rather mediocre at the WC (Canada imo was very unfortunate)
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
@@diegogalvan1810 usa should've at least tied the netherlands. but canada didnt play well against belgium either
@ivaneurope Жыл бұрын
Ethiopia, as well as East Africa in general lean more towards producing top level track and field athletes and some of the top male athletes in the 5000 and 10000 meters are from either Ethiopia or Kenya. So it's understandable why football has taken a backseat. Same could be said about other countries where they worship different sports - Canada with ice hockey, India with cricket, Norway with skiing (primairly the nordic disciplines + biathlon) and Venezuela (the only South American country to have never qualified for the World Cup) with baseball
@thatleroy98 Жыл бұрын
Mexican fan here, what I really hate about mexican football, is that we have a lot of potential in the sport, but we're sinking ourselves with decisions that the FMF has done for the last couple of years. Not only they want to sell players with prices way higher that they should be, but the whole mexican league has a big problem with it, and with that it reflects on the national team. Yes, Liga MX is a competitive league at some point, but there's many problems the league has. There has been no relegation since 2020, teams pay the recently promoted franchiases just so that they're not relegated, we get more foreign players than we send local players to other leagues, teams from lower divisions can't be promoted unless they pass a bunch of "requirements" just so that they aren't able to be promoted. Not only that, but there are owners that own two or more teams in the league, which is something FIFA condemns but it not badly seen in here. The national team is a joke aswell, not only Mexico has been stuck in the Round of 16, but I was actually happy when they got eliminated in Qatar. Not because I hate my country, but because it is a concequence of the bad management this national team has gone through. Our team plays in the US more often than in our country, they sell a bunch of merchandise in the States rather than here, and the younger players that win lots of games and make it to their world cups aren't given a chance in the national team. Overall, I see a lot of potential in my country, but the federation isn't focused on that, they want to sell a brand rather than making a good team.
@craydussy Жыл бұрын
As an American I really hope both of our countries are able to step it up and be better at the sport.
@sdot5389 Жыл бұрын
As a Canadian I triple this hope. May the three of us challenge each other and provide good competition for the decades to come.
@lucasVazquez77755 Жыл бұрын
@@craydussy US will become a top level team in the next few years and that will help Mexico & Canada to grow as well.
@federicofuentes6146 Жыл бұрын
A couple of factual errors: Mexico have been finalists at Copa America two times, with three additional third places out of 10 total participations. And when Mexico beat Saudi both were very much alive, and Mexico fell short by one goal by virtue of yellow cards vs. Poland. Still, everything else you said is spot on.
@eduardo8652 Жыл бұрын
Yep, sadly, we’re still pretty shit
@Eayala17 Жыл бұрын
Lol like he said, mexico is the biggest under achiever in all of football.
@Lavarball-official Жыл бұрын
andddd they lost to USA by 3 goals
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
maybe they should'nt have drawn against poland thats all
@alejandrolagos9603 Жыл бұрын
and lost 7 a 0 to chile, you really sucks 😂
@cochise_715 Жыл бұрын
As a filipino, I agree with the dishonorable mention. There just isn't enough interest in the sport as that space is very much taken by basketball. That's not going to change anytime soon but hopefully with the Women's team being in the world cup, it can spark something in the younger generation.
@xvgm24 Жыл бұрын
Good job beating us Kiwis in the world cup!
@johhn_e15215 ай бұрын
Honestly it's just a culture thing; Football has potential to be a dominant sport in the Philippines, it's just that Filipinos see it as being too boring, slow paced and often compared to the explosive pace basketball has. American colonization simply enforced basketball over football within Filipino culture, which sucks. We literally have the build for it; we're of similar body shape with Indonesians, and were just as fast with them. (Also I was called feminine for playing youth Filipino football but it was a different world compared to now)
@PawnsorKings Жыл бұрын
I used to live in Indonesia where I coached U-12 to U-18 football the whole time. There is plenty of talent all over the country but the development and professional leagues are a gigantic mess. Even in the youth leagues I coached in the corruption was the most open and blatant I have ever experienced, with teams not even trying to hide their monetary bribes to the referees. Since being a referee in Indonesia puts you in quite literal mortal danger, each team would hire their own refs from their own organizations to officiate their home games where the calls would be as one sided as they possibly could be. Once I remember my teams goal getting chalked off because my player "smiled sarcastically" when he scored which apparently showed "open disrespect to the other team" (who the ref was a week day coach for). I had to be carried away by my fellow coaches before I put hands on that ref as he openly taunted me from the field. On top of this there is the issue of young players picking up smoking as young as 8 and eating a diet of rice, fried chicken, and coca cola. Serious youth players who have the money will normally attempt to immigrate to Australia or the Netherlands with hopes of declaring for those nations to avoid the even messier professional Indonesian league. During the short time I was a resident I witnessed two leagues declare themselves the top tier, go to war with each other, and get banned by the association for corruption and violence. Match fixing was so common many fans didn't think it was worth it to support their teams. Instead Indonesians fanatically support their English Premiere League and La Liga teams, seeing their domestic leagues as a lost cause. It is a very sad state of affairs because there are many bright talents and a deep love of the game among the people.
@ScottFree-GB Жыл бұрын
It honestly baffles me that there's been more players from Trinidad than from India to play in the Premier League
@Nakoz007 Жыл бұрын
Genetics
@matthewhernandez8342 Жыл бұрын
@@Nakoz007 They’re kinda related to each other lol.
@Ninja-gt3zi Жыл бұрын
@@matthewhernandez8342 usually the black ones from Trinidad who will be playing professional though
@williamcross210 Жыл бұрын
@@Ninja-gt3zi Except for Chris Bircham whose long range banger put T&T in the Worle Cup
@matthewhernandez8342 Жыл бұрын
@@Ninja-gt3zi That is true but, they can still have Indian grandparents or great grandparents.
@jaroslawmajkusiak629 Жыл бұрын
I always found surprising that India is not better international football team. I used to play on Sundays with a lot of fellas that were born in India and they were very good - fast and technical.
@dd-uf9nw Жыл бұрын
In India we don't have any strong league system and no good scouting system as other countries have. you will find so many adults , kids playing football in the park and if you ask them which club they play for their answer will be we don't play for any club and we just play for the fun. There are many talents in India who have never played a single professional game in their life because their region doesn't have any local league. All their lives they play local Cups sponsored by some local authorities/businessman/politician without earning any money.
@Bis5566 Жыл бұрын
@@dd-uf9nw Not to mention 99.9% of Indian parents absolutely refuse to let their kids pursue anything even related to sports
@yesitssreemen4652 Жыл бұрын
@@dd-uf9nw soo true and it's the reality
@devaanshduggal824 Жыл бұрын
The ISL Football League is very popular in India and the Indian national football team is pretty strong and have beaten teams such as qatar, but due to a minor corruption scandal in 2014, FIFA has suspended the Indian team for a while
@BigPurp9 Жыл бұрын
I do think culture is also a big thing, when I lived in London there were a few Indian lads in my year and a couple of them were some of the best at football in our year, but they had no interest in playing it outside of school while they did play for the local cricket team
@anggungunara Жыл бұрын
I, and many other Indonesians, will likely say that our most memorable WC qualification is for Mexico 1986, when we won the group contained of India, Bangladesh, and most importantly: Thailand. We lost the Second Round to South Korea, who went on to kick hard in Mexico against Bulgaria, Italy, and god himself. The 2002 one had lots of goals but come on it's against Maldives and Cambodia, nothing like winning home and away against Thailand and playing knockout round against the Koreans.
@dan_tr4pd00r Жыл бұрын
It should be said that the Philippines went from near rock bottom of the FIFA world rankings in the 2000s, without even a domestic league of its own, to one that can seriously compete with its neighbours in just 10 years. It's underachieving because there was very little interest for it but things are on the up.
@JakeStevyson Жыл бұрын
the media and PFF are very incompetent TBH.
@stephentyas4698 Жыл бұрын
they are basketball crazy.
@jaysonsernachannel1624 Жыл бұрын
Philippines here! For a time football had a promise despite being not the most popular sport. We were able to reach the ASIAN Cup through qualifiers for the first time in 2019 (almost for 2024 but unlucky in GD). I just hope that the men's side would improve with 50/50 ratio of overseas born and Homegrown talent, and a competitive league. Our women's side had great achievement too, so excited to see my country in the FIFA Womens World Cup in a few days. I hope they do well so it can encourage more Filipinos to love the sport we think is best suited for us.
@JakeStevyson Жыл бұрын
don't forget that Media have been overshadow to Basketball and PFF is very incompetent..
@rks5457 Жыл бұрын
It was a loong long time ago but there was Alcantara who played for Barcelona. Most goals ever for Barcelona til Messi broke the record.
@robertotampioc7318 Жыл бұрын
It will not happen since basketball still the king there… especially Gilas won gold medal in Asian games basketball… it is all basketball there… it will not happen in our lifetime
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
How Mexico is still ranked within the top 20 is baffling to me
@edgzta Жыл бұрын
Literally finished top 16 in seven consecutive World Cups.
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
@@edgzta yeah fair enough, but going off their recent form you seriously cannot tell me that they should be ranked higher than Japan for example
@yetekt6953 Жыл бұрын
@@bababababababa6124 recent form isn’t the only thing taken into account
@Diamond-OSCandMarblestuff Жыл бұрын
@@edgzta and failed to top 8 in ALL of them
@edgzta Жыл бұрын
@@Diamond-OSCandMarblestuff if you would learn how to read...we're talking about top 20 not top 8.
@bolso4 Жыл бұрын
Mexican football is known in South America for being “soft”. Basically, Mexico historically does well vs. easy teams in the group stage, but falter whenever real glory is on the line. They’re basically the exact opposite of teams like Argentina or Uruguay, who usually struggle in the groups but have won their legendary status on world titles and Copa Americas
@ishrendon6435 Жыл бұрын
Football sucks 😊
@ishrendon6435 Жыл бұрын
Combat sports are tougher. Football in general is so called "soft" lol how can anyone be tough in a girly sport like football lol tell me !!!??? Lol kicking balls
@ishrendon6435 Жыл бұрын
MMA is tougher and harder sport
@krumbleme2 Жыл бұрын
Yet Mexico has a great record against your mighty Brazil
@relasoft Жыл бұрын
@@krumbleme2 ¿Great record? Brasil beat Mexico 24 times; Mexico beat Brasil 10 times... i think that Mexico has a poor record against Brasil.
@sdeepj Жыл бұрын
Before the war, hockey in Russia is more integrated with the wider hockey world. You have Russian superstars in the NHL, like Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Andrei Vasilevskiy, and Karil Kaprisov. The KHL (Russia’s top league) has North Americans, Swedes, Czechs, Finns, etc. playing & coaching in the league. You don’t see that in Russian soccer.
@lkrnpk Жыл бұрын
issue is that ice hockey still is much less accessible sport than football, you need ice rinks, yes Russia is cold but most places not 12 months a year or even 6 months and number of ice rinks in Russia is not enough for such mass popularity as in Sweden or Finland
@augustusfreeman4032 Жыл бұрын
I remember a Russian journalist saying that comparing the popularity of Ice Hockey to Football in Russia; is the equivalent of comparing the population of Mars to Earth.
@lkrnpk Жыл бұрын
@@augustusfreeman4032 I would say so, ice hockey is still more expensive and less accessible and less competitive in the world overall
@sdeepj Жыл бұрын
@@lkrnpk yes, ice hockey is expensive. However, in North America, our love for the sport is developed through playing street/hockey. Either playing on our feet or on in-line skates.
@GooseGumlizzard Жыл бұрын
its the same in the US. USA produces some of the best players in the NHL even though hockey is possibly even less popular than soccer nowadays, however the US development program is very good and hockey still has deeper cultural roots than soccer, especially in the northern states.
@Sfx8411 Жыл бұрын
I personally think the US National Team should be much better at it considering how wealthy they are they could literally buy any talent it is also a Mystery to me why they can't still hire a top-class coach, Zinedine Zidane is currently not coaching anyone why not ask him?
@reddiamond66 Жыл бұрын
Because he only wants to manage one national team: France
@ChristianLopez-wl5gd Жыл бұрын
While USA is emerging as a force, the pay to play system, although seems to be changing as of recent in some clubs, has hindered talent here that would probably thrive in a different setting to nurture talent from youth. That and how soccer (or football) here tried to run similarly like the NFL and NBA by drafting talent from universities, and not really having much of a youth system like we have today really slowed us down. But we do have some of the best athletes in terms of physicality and size and we’re tapping in
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
the US is good at soccer they are better than mexico, but they should've played better against netherlands in the world cup
@afa78djd Жыл бұрын
They abandoned it early on, but they were really good. The failed attempt form the 70s to make it popular again failed, and I thought the MLS wouldn't last either but here we are. Given them 10-15 years and we'll see a team contending in World Cup semifinals, watch.
@MAJIN_MAGIC Жыл бұрын
GREAT VIDEO, I agree with all of your picks!!
@willflint5014 Жыл бұрын
The problem with US Soccer, US sports in general really, is the “pay to play” model or just how expensive everything is. The parents are another issue at time in all sports here. I am sure parents are an issue everywhere but situations like the Reynas happen at youth levels everywhere and in every sport in the US it seems at times.
@TheNormalJuan Жыл бұрын
The "pay to play" model is surely an issue with football (the one you call soccer), but in most of the other sports in the country, talented kids are given the opportunity to focus on their sports career, while also ensuring a professional degree, with the scholarships and sponsorships they receive, and theres huge investment in facilities and scouting making it possible for kids that come from economically difficult situations to make it into the highest level. But that's the thing, US doesn't invest as much in football (soccer) because they simply don't have that much interest, with Basketball, Beisball and American Football all hugely more popular in the country. The interest has been growing slowly in the last couple of decades, and with a fairly good young generation that has made it to the world cup a few times, as well as several young american talents playing at some of the top european leagues regularly, it seems there could be even more interest in years to come, with children probably looking at Pulisic or McKenny the way they see Lebron or Tom Brady (ok, maybe not quite at that same level, but not too far either). There seems to be a positive short-term and mid-term future for the sport, but only serious interest, both from government (facilities and promoting) as well as private (academies, sponsors, schools) will guarantee stability on the long-term.
@yetekt6953 Жыл бұрын
Pay to play doesn’t really exist in the US anymore. Every MLS team has an academy and USL is also great at producing youth players.
@moderatemapper9440 Жыл бұрын
@@yetekt6953 Don't you have to pay good money to try out for those academies?
@yetekt6953 Жыл бұрын
@@moderatemapper9440 no they’re free
@willflint5014 Жыл бұрын
@@yetekt6953 beyond that at the local level it does.
@nicholas5905 Жыл бұрын
Rarely comment video ideas but would love to see a video on Celtic and how dramatically Ange Postecoglou has turned the club back around to unrivalled dominance in Scotland since the disastrous season where Celtic lost out on the last of ten league titles in a row. Think it would be an interesting video!
@Alfie_1 Жыл бұрын
Yes. Ange. Yes. Ange please.
@SanFranFan30 Жыл бұрын
shout out Cameron Carter Vickers.
@soundscape26 Жыл бұрын
Unrivalled dominance after not winning the league just once in 10 years? The dominance was never lost, just briefly interrupted.
@GreekHouseEffect Жыл бұрын
damn, Celtic winning the Scottish league and a Champions League group stage exit. Truly a video-worthy season
@HustlerHorstRuediger Жыл бұрын
I can confirm - I've never seen him comment any video ideas.
@SanFranFan30 Жыл бұрын
I can't believe there was no Freddy Adu joke at the beginning of this video as of course he is an underachiever hailing from one of the biggest underachieving football nations.
@johnmichel4865 Жыл бұрын
Good vid again. South Africa and USA also both strong contenders for me (Clive).
@westcoastmex629 Жыл бұрын
The difference between Mexico,Argentina and Brazil is that the corrupt officials in futbol in Brazil and Argentina actually are passionate about the sport and actually want to see their national team win but in Mexico pesos and self gain comes first and futbol glory maybe third😅
@rafaelg092591 Жыл бұрын
I can say Football maybe in Last but not Least. I am not saying that they should focus on a 100% in the Sport, they can combine it on a 50-50 split with the business and with the sport
@Roberto-fg9oj Жыл бұрын
They re only good at making Coke
@michaelkay5268 Жыл бұрын
Nigeria has to make this list. And the main reason we are not competitive is the corruption of the NFF.
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
We did make the list, Nigeria is so bad, what happened to us 😢
@globoiitsuna Жыл бұрын
Ofc we made the list. We have great players but a horrible federation and bad coaches
@michaelkay5268 Жыл бұрын
@@globoiitsuna very correct terrible coaching, and corrupt federation
@George-jc3mt Жыл бұрын
i have yet to see a good nigerian defence including the gk tbh
@icantthinkofanamejustallow4199 Жыл бұрын
@@George-jc3mt exactly man, our defence is always atrocious.
@dronesclubhighjinks Жыл бұрын
When the size of Russia was mentioned, I was wondering if Canada was going to be next on the list. However, it was mentioned that Russian football's popularity faces stiff competition from ice hockey and Olympic sports. In Canada, ice hockey has a popularity that football has elsewhere. Canadian men's football has only started to become slightly more popular with the recent relative success of the national team, and with more immigration from football loving countries. Canadian women's football is strongly supported even by hockey-loving men and the women's team has been very successful, especially at the Olympics, winning gold in Tokyo 2020 (2021). Football is seen more of a kids' sport and women's sport in Canada but that may change if the men's national team continues to improve. Thanks for the video!
@matthewpaulsen3732 Жыл бұрын
Not just hockey but basketball is more popular as well, having grown up in the toronto area. Canada has the most nba players outside of the usa and the raptors are easily on par if not bigger than the maple leafs. The only reason Canada hasn't seen international success is the players don't care to represent the country.
@unlockedaccount Жыл бұрын
@@matthewpaulsen3732 yeah i follow the nba and toronto and montreal are really producing nba talents , usually kids from carribean backgrounds
@darkoanton5 Жыл бұрын
Women's soccer is not as competitive.
@dronesclubhighjinks Жыл бұрын
@@matthewpaulsen3732 thanks for letting everybody know! I was not aware of the popularity of basketball to the extent you describe.
@dronesclubhighjinks Жыл бұрын
@@darkoanton5 that’s very true. There’s a reason Canada funds women’s sports much more than men’s. They analyze every Olympic sport to see in which there is the least competition, and then pour money into developing Canadian women’s talent for that sport. This strategy has been very successful. Since Canada is co-hosting the World Cup in 2026, they would have had no choice but to put funding into men’s football as well.
@depekthegreat359 Жыл бұрын
You are totally right,particularly on the Nigerian national team where they can create more impact like they have done during their best years and with the new President of Nigeria who is going to be appointed in near future,the national team will be capable of going to the next level,good friend Alfie!!!Shoutout to the rest of the respective nations which you have listed and keep up your good work but I am totally disappointed with your beloved Hull City that lost 3-1 at home to Burnley,good friend!!!🙏
@clipflix4315 Жыл бұрын
What does the new president have to do with anything?
@depekthegreat359 Жыл бұрын
@@clipflix4315 He has the power to appoint a fantastic sport's minister to make sure she or he would boost the Nigerian national team with full confidence and with the help of the Nigerian Football Federation for the squad's development and infrastructure,the team would come back stronger than ever,good friend!!!🏋♂️
@jamez3002 Жыл бұрын
@@clipflix4315 corruption 😑
@cydc08 Жыл бұрын
🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡
@swee2251 Жыл бұрын
The Soviet Union football team won gold medal in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. The team beat Brazil in the final (gold medal match). The coach (Anatoliy Byshovets) was hired by South Korea after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. According to the Korean press, this coach was the first in South Korea to use video reviews of other teams to prepare for the matches.
@Divad6686 Жыл бұрын
Alfie, count me among those who are pleading with you to make a "What On Earth Is Going On In Liga MX" video
@sebastianpim469 Жыл бұрын
Alfie sneaking Hull City into the honorable mentions as if we wouldn't notice...
@मृदुलशर्मा Жыл бұрын
When I saw the title, the first country that came to my mind was Mexico, they should be as good as Brazil and Argentina, but they are not where close to them. And the second country unsurprisingly was India, as we have a population of over 1.4 billion people still we are no where close to the top countries of world football, for which popularity of cricket is partially to be blamed but it seems like the administration in itself is not serious, our team doesn't get good training, we don't have a good manager who focuses on improving and playing attractive football, our govt. is not serious at all as they didn't have any idea that a minister from previous govt. is still operating Indian football even after 8 years due to which we were even suspended by Fifa.
@Rassalcon Жыл бұрын
I feel like Mexico is the first country I'd think of for a list of the teams that are exactly as good as they should be, consistently about 15th best in the world. what makes you say they are under achievers?
@मृदुलशर्मा Жыл бұрын
@@Rassalcon the fact that they have never really challenged to win the WC like Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay have. Football is the most popular sport there and Mexicans are passionate as hell about football, they also have well established leagues and there are no civil wars and all going on there. Yes, there are problems in Mexico, just like many other countries but still they are just not as good as they should be.
@NendyaYT Жыл бұрын
@@Rassalconbro we are not 20th best we are 15th to 10th every time but we never can burst out and became a top competive and we should be
@Rassalcon Жыл бұрын
@@NendyaYT Right you are
@isaacveynaflores1105 Жыл бұрын
@@Rassalcon Mainly because Mexico is a world power at the youth level and street level regularly contending or winning world cups in those categories. They should be better than top 15 in the world but they aren’t for multiple reasons.
@zardsire2012 Жыл бұрын
My county, Mexico has the passion be up with the likes of Argentina and Brazil, but something always prevents us from performing.
@coffeyallday Жыл бұрын
1 thing about Ethiopian soccer: Gedion Zelalem who was at one point a wonderkid in Arsenal's academy who ultimately chose to play for the US, was eligible to play for them, as well as Germany. He currently plays in the Dutch 2nd tier after a few injury plagued seasons in the MLS
@LennyBanter Жыл бұрын
I worked in China as a teacher a few years back. I taught a few really good footballers whilst there including one who won an U18 cap. That particular student was told to give up a football because it was not seen by his parents as his honourable career. The culture of the place might be holding them back as well as all of the other things you mentioned.
@Sabundy Жыл бұрын
All East Asian countries (China, Japan, South Korea etc...)have that same problem. It's a common mentality that academies far succeeds sports. Also, they all have pay to play systems. If your family doesn't have the money to pay for you to attend a football club and get good coaching and training.....you aren't going anywhere. And we know that no country with a pay to play system has ever come close to succeeding at the World Cup.
@BoereViking Жыл бұрын
South Africa...🇿🇦 It's our most popular sport but we are kak now. In 1996 we were ranked 16th in the world.... Rugby and Cricket our second and third most popular sports we are world beaters in!
@seanrichardson3485 Жыл бұрын
Yeah. We rose up the ranks really quickly in the first few years after apartheid when the boycotts were lifted, only to stagnate for a decade and then fall off the map completely after hosting a world cup. It's really disappointing.
@abdullaali1799 Жыл бұрын
No one else plays cricket and rugby other than former British colonies.
@soundscape26 Жыл бұрын
@@abdullaali1799 Cricket yes, but rugby is played outside of former British colonies.
@BoereViking Жыл бұрын
@@abdullaali1799 tell me you know nothing about cricket and rugby without using the words...
@stackhat8624 Жыл бұрын
But theres historical factors to football problems in South Africa. While rugby and cricket arent as popular as football but due to apartheid those 2 sports, ie white sports, were much better funded and supported by the government than football. Sure, you can point to South Africa having much more success in football after apartheid was lifted but you could argue that was due to just having a good team at the time. But it is disappointing that in the 30 years since the end of apartheid that the structural problems of South African football haven't been fixed.
@gabestapleton1003 Жыл бұрын
Australia. We’re systematically a fantastic sporting nation, competing at the top of the top in many other sporting code, but due to mismanagement and more importantly the price point to play football at youth leaves football as an afterthought down under.
@nendest Жыл бұрын
100%.
@cranmeyer Жыл бұрын
Australia would be on any list of overachievers. Lucky to be the 4th most popular sport in a country the size of Shanghai.
@poonoo87 Жыл бұрын
It only appears that way from the inside since we tend to do so much better with Cricket, Rugby and the Olympics where we are in the world's top 10 usually, while in Men's football we have never been there. We overachieve so much at other sports that even slightly overachieving like we do in football looks like a disappointment.
@MartijnterHaar Жыл бұрын
I think it's more that Australia overachieves in a lot of other sports compared to its size than that it underachieves in football.
@DresdenShuffle Жыл бұрын
If the MLS structure had relegation and promotion and the youth academies didn’t cost so much to get into then America would have a much better team.
@stackhat8624 Жыл бұрын
No. Relegation and promotion is not only idiotic and a joke that promotes corrupt, lopsided leagues it would be even worse in countries like the US (also Australia, Canada, New Zealand) where populations are located in large cities. Combined with stricter salary caps in those countries and teams from large cities like LA and NY could get relegated. No LA and NY teams would spell financial doom for the MLS. And the US isn't going to tolerate the same 1-3 teams dominating every year. Not when the NBA, NFL and MLB have a much more wide open leagues than Europe. Tell me, who is leading Ligue 1 and Bundesliga right now? Let me guess ... the same team as last year and the year before that and the year before that and the year before?
@DresdenShuffle Жыл бұрын
@@stackhat8624 If you actually watched the Bundesliga this year instead of being arrogant and assuming you’re right you’ll see your argument is invalid when Union Berlin had lead the league for nearly half of the games and are only a few points off the top. This is a team who a few years ago was in Bundesliga 2. They are also in the Europa League. None of this would’ve been possible if promotion/relegation didn’t exist. Your argument is invalid.
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
@@DresdenShuffle I agree with you don’t get me wrong but he kinda had a point with the Bundesliga. Union is doing well now and there are finally other teams challenging Bayern, but Bayern still won the dam thing 10 times in a row… I doubt you’d see something like that in the MLS or any other American League. Not defending the MLS though, that league still is a joke compared to European leagues. Just saying that you cannot argue against the fact that Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga are essentially the Paris and Bayern show. The Prem, La Liga and Serie A are slightly better in that regard
@murilomartins2055 Жыл бұрын
Lol That would change nothing, even if football was the number one sport in the us, you guys still would be nothing in football. The us play in concacaf against weak teams, while the europeans and south americans play against each other, facing much tougher opponents. You can't increase the level of your game, facing lower level teams
@Eibarwoman Жыл бұрын
@@murilomartins2055 Only solution is to leave CONCACAF for the US and Mexico if they are to improve.
@jonsaltberry8167 Жыл бұрын
The beautiful thing about football is that it doesn't matter how much people you have in your country or how much money your country has. It all influences on culture and the love for the game.
@samuelnaibaho4107 Жыл бұрын
Also, don't forget the competence of the football association
@viperswhip Жыл бұрын
Russia and Canada have similar problems with this. The huge country means transport costs are extreme. Canada and Russia have a lot of smaller cities that wouldn't support a premier league-level team and thousands of km between them.
@tristanjohnson822 Жыл бұрын
As someone who grew up in Ethiopia in a family who worked with the sports federation, I clicked on this to make sure Ethiopia was on the list. Everyone loves and plays the sport, but there is no infrastructure for it. You can be the greatest player in the world on road or dirt, but that rarely translates to playing on a proper pitch. The clubs and football federation all have youth programs, however getting into these programs is less about talent and more about who you know and how much money you have. Any money that clubs or the government try to invest tends to end up in the pockets of high up businessmen. However the Ethiopian Premier League is quite a fascinating league, but don’t watch if you can’t handle dreadful referees.
@lontongstroong Жыл бұрын
At least you folks are still very good at long distance running.
@JinZanmato Жыл бұрын
As a good news to any Nigerians fans out there. Norwegian clubs have started to invest in acadamies in Nigeria. The clubs invest in African talents. Keeping communication with them until turning 18, then signing them. Nurturing them in Norway in a safe environment where they can focus on football. Many of them sold to clubs in bigger leagues for a big profit after 2-3 years.
@kris5885 Жыл бұрын
Sounds like they’re grooming them for Norwegian naturalization but hey😭
@JinZanmato Жыл бұрын
@@kris5885 5 born and bred Nigerian players in Eliteserien right now. Players don't get signed as a ploy to ditch their country of birth and join Norwegian national team.
@icantthinkofanamejustallow4199 Жыл бұрын
@@JinZanmato good, don't want a situation where we might have an mbappe calibre player and all of a sudden Norway wants them for their national team, i still think it might be the case though.
@JinZanmato Жыл бұрын
@@icantthinkofanamejustallow4199 they are brought here because they strengthening the squad and sometimes get sold to one of the big leagues in Europe for a hefty price. Like Datro Fofana for example. Chelsea bought him from Molde for about 100 mill dollars. Only players with African heritage that ending up playing for Norway are those with a Norwegian father/mother. Joshua King has a Norwegian mother and a father from Gambia. Or they came to Norway as refugees when they were children. Like the Kitolano family with 2 Kitolano brothers playing for Norway U-21 and U-18.
@icantthinkofanamejustallow4199 Жыл бұрын
@@JinZanmato thanks for the explanation.
@safebans1369 Жыл бұрын
Hiya Alfie. You talking about the failures of Russian grassroots football made me think about which nations have the best grassroots football system? Could be a good idea for a sevens video
@some_waffle689 Жыл бұрын
As an ethiopian, its so sad to see the downfall, the poverty, the wars, and the fact that the kids there play football every single day and being 142nd rated country out of 211. Everyone here, no matter gender, size, or age play football all the time, but the fact how poor we are is sad. Were even of of the first places ever for people to live there.But really, east africans are known for racing and having an exteme amount of pace, so depending on where in ethiopia we talk about, it isnt all about the wars, and the poverty.
@Winfeldjr Жыл бұрын
Not seeing Mexico in the first few nations I was surprised but then you hit me with the flag when you announced number 1 LOL. As a Mexican I agree, corruption in the Mexican federation is insane, they had removed relegation from the league they made it impossible for Mexican young talent to move abroad and locked them into the liga mx. Very sad stuff.
@ΓιωργοςΠαναγουλακος Жыл бұрын
Greece, we have won 2004 Euro and we were featuring constantly in the national tournaments but the last 8-10 years we have fallen a lot
@jonwarren8926 Жыл бұрын
And I don't think the achievement of that euro win will ever be beaten, incredible underdog story.
@samykiani944 Жыл бұрын
Greece will make a comeback soon.
@jonwarren8926 Жыл бұрын
@samykiani944 that will happen before England win anything 🤣
@samykiani944 Жыл бұрын
@@jonwarren8926 Greece will qualify for EURO 2024 and might spring a surprise there.
@ΓιωργοςΠαναγουλακος Жыл бұрын
@@samykiani944 let's hope we qualify we have some young good players
@matiasorcio Жыл бұрын
Romania definitely is one of them because we absolutely *LOVE* Football ⚽ 🇷🇴 *FCSB* also won the world cup in 1986
@amorphous7474 Жыл бұрын
It's Champions League not World Cup.
@cyberskull95 Жыл бұрын
Steaua won the Champions League (not the World Cup). Not FCSB.
@milesjcarter Жыл бұрын
Can we get a video about the current FIFA confederations? Looking at where they do and don't make sense - especially with regard to the OFC since Australia left and huge travel times for some AFC members. Should there be a new conference for West/Central Asia and Oceania be merged into the current AFC? Could the minor island nations of the OFC field a representative team?
@skyzaid263 Жыл бұрын
As someone from NZ this is an interesting idea. OFC is so stuffed up rn, not just on the international scene but the club scene as well, so many what ifs, questions and problems
@stanleylayzell2506 Жыл бұрын
Splitting Asia into West Asia and Asia-Pacific (incorporating Oceania) would be a great idea imo. The weaker nations would have to play in earlier qualification rounds in any case, so you wouldn't have the travel issue of Tonga having to go to Nepal & vice versa.
@lilbtyt7928 Жыл бұрын
i was waiting for mexico and then we got number 1. beautiful.
@mannii0082 Жыл бұрын
The talent Nigeria has is incredible
@cristiandumitrescu1744 Жыл бұрын
In a smaller scale I would say Romania. 20M population(Higher then the Netherlands, 2x times Sweden and Portugal, 5x Croatia) , with football as its primary sport and still doesn't produce enough talent to even compare them to the countries previusly mentioned. ATM the most valued Romanian player is Razvan Marin from Empoli. Even Montenegro (which has 600k population) has a more valued and stronger player then Romania(Stefan Savic)
@soundscape26 Жыл бұрын
Romania (and Bulgaria) had great teams in the 90's. It all went downhill at the turn of the century.
@charliecooper1646 Жыл бұрын
I feel like you could do this video again but in real footballing terms as opposed to social and political factors. E.g England haven’t won a trophy in over 60 years despite having the best facilities and group of players at times or Ireland losing players or Romania underachieving
@jacquesbryan2811 Жыл бұрын
England 🤣🤣. Bro they have reached the final of the euros, semis of the 2018 wc.
@charliecooper1646 Жыл бұрын
@@jacquesbryan2811 and we bottled it 😂
@ianmacfarlane1241 Жыл бұрын
England might have improved in recent years, but it's not unreasonable to think that they should have actually won at least one more World Cup and a European Championship.
@jonasmaseko9194 Жыл бұрын
I remember myself and a group of friends used to have weekly FIFA nights where we'd play tournaments on PlayStation & argue everything football. The ONLY thing we ever seemed to agree on is that the English national teams have always been the most overrated. I sense that may be a common view here in Africa🤔
@unlockedaccount Жыл бұрын
@@jonasmaseko9194 overrated because we hear about it the most
@robertwilloughby8050 Жыл бұрын
It's weird, we just flame out every time. I'm with you on the European Championship, but I think it should be more semis and finals for the World Cup rather than us winning it.
@ianmacfarlane1241 Жыл бұрын
@@robertwilloughby8050 It's not unreasonable to suggest that England should be in a broadly similar position to Spain and France, if not Germany and Italy. There's no reason to think that England couldn't do what France and Spain both did, and dominate for a few years, but changes are going to be required. For one thing the overzealous, toxic media will have to temper their expectations, that places a huge amount of unneeded pressure on the manager and squad. England are placed among the favourites in every tournament, often without doing anything to merit such a position. Nothing wrong with being optimistic, but the media often has the tournament w¹on before it even begins - this can't be helpful for the players and management.
@robertwilloughby8050 Жыл бұрын
@@ianmacfarlane1241 Yep. That sounds about right. We almost need to say we WON'T win to make sure we will.
@mattczech1473 Жыл бұрын
Fun fact: Mexico has made it farther in the World Baseball Classic (think the World Cup of baseball) than in the football World Cup. ⚾️=semifinal this year, ⚽️=quarterfinal
@lolz6337 Жыл бұрын
Yeah but u forgot context. WC =32 teams. 41 next WC. WBC = 16 teams
@vlz.matthew Жыл бұрын
mexico still lost to colombia lol
@Juannyboi-gl7kj Жыл бұрын
Being Colombian, I would say Colombia are big underachievers. There are lists of great young players but just never pan out . I think if Colombia got their act together, they could easily be a rival of Argentina and Brazil
@kpunk Жыл бұрын
United States, China, and India are large countries with money but football is still a niche sport there so it's difficult to assess them until the sport grows more there. Indonesia, Nigeria, Mexico on the other hand is baffling in how their federations do not deserve the passionate fanbase they have
@ayushmankar4100 Жыл бұрын
Russia , Israel too .
@makenvaega Жыл бұрын
Very curious to hear why the Philippines was included in the (dis)honorable mentions list. I suppose you'd think 300 years of Spanish colonization would do something for us, but it's now a country where 95% of the population probably have never even heard of Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. We showed some promise like...100 years ago, when we used to be competitive regionally. I mean... to this day, the very few football fans here celebrate the legend of Paulino Alcantara, who played in the 1920s 😆 not much has happened since then
@stackhat8624 Жыл бұрын
Well, you can take solace in that fact that Philippines sucks at basketball too.
@yosuasiregar341 Жыл бұрын
Because football only started to develop in the late 19th century, when you guys were already in American hands. No wonder that you guys prefer basketball than football
@makenvaega Жыл бұрын
@@yosuasiregar341 yeah good point so it really makes me wonder why we were in the short list
@Zephyrling Жыл бұрын
I made a similar comment here but had completely forgotten about Alcantara. I’d definitely like the HITC Sevens treatment on his story.
@DioGram Жыл бұрын
As a Nigerian I strongly agree. We’ve lost too many players to other countries due to our negligence.
@jesusvillasenor3322 Жыл бұрын
Excellent video and very accurate in the Mexico case.
@amonducius Жыл бұрын
Top 7 Highest-scoring GOALKEEPERS.
@seandelap8587 Жыл бұрын
A lot of African countries I would say because football is by and large the most dominant sport on that continent but they have had very little international success outside it and have yet to have any WC winners from there
@bababababababa6124 Жыл бұрын
That’s what happens when countries fail to develop their domestic facilities. Potential superstars in the game leave for Europe and eventually play for their new homes over there instead of their native home. Don’t blame them though
@stackhat8624 Жыл бұрын
Was going to say Asia but football is not the most popular sport in the vast majority of Asia.
@lukealvarez3744 Жыл бұрын
Countries like Morocco and Senegal are starting to show the potential as highlighted by Morocco semi run
@MihailParshin Жыл бұрын
Well, their biggest stars are now playing for England, France and other Europe´s best nations. We already saw how mainly `Afrikan` France made 2 WC finals in a row. Those players could easily play for their countries, but money, fame, potential for WC win and other factors prevents them from playing for their truly nation of birth.
@Sabundy Жыл бұрын
@@stackhat8624I would not say vast majority. More like 50/50. Football is the most popular in West Asia, South East Asia, and Central Asia. That's easily half of Asia.
@TheProffa8719 Жыл бұрын
Nigeria keeps losing players to bigger nations like England and Germany. Imagine seeing Saka and Musiala playing for the Super Eagles.
@antoinegodin1 Жыл бұрын
Good thing their parents escaped and were able to let them join the best youth camps
@villek3722 Жыл бұрын
They didnt lose the players. They lost the parents
@lappwv Жыл бұрын
they all developed their football career in england you wouldnt even know if they would be as good if they always lived in nigeria
@captainCaybrew Жыл бұрын
To me, Jamaica really should be so much better than they are. When you look at a lot of the top talent in Europe, especially England, so many of them are originally Jamaican. If those players played for the reggae boyz, they would dominate concacaf
@franciscodonizetidasilva9570 Жыл бұрын
England, no European titles, one fake World Cup. By far the most exciting league in the World. Absolute passion from their fans. Small relevance in the World of football .
@rolloxra6709 ай бұрын
I agree but wdym by one fake World Cup?
@franciscodonizetidasilva95709 ай бұрын
@@rolloxra670 66
@chesterdonnelly12125 ай бұрын
Having a good league doesn't mean we have the best players. The best players in the Premier League are mostly foreign.
@franciscodonizetidasilva95705 ай бұрын
@@rolloxra670 That ball never got in.
@Psychadelicio5 ай бұрын
Man stfu. They won 5-3. You're saying in all of the 5 goals , the ball didn't go in 😂 @@franciscodonizetidasilva9570
@carloscalo3667 Жыл бұрын
Wow great knowledge about mexico, all he said in this video is true!!!
@kalomboC Жыл бұрын
Nigeria is the LARGEST country in Africa by population..
@ranjanbiswas3233 Жыл бұрын
Turkey's youth football scouting system is so modern still they can not reach the heights of World cup 2002 and Euro 2008. This is absolutely shocking. What Morocco has that Turkey didn't?
@ROL4NDpkmnguide Жыл бұрын
Poland also an honourable mention imo
@Musaiftekhar Жыл бұрын
Mexico is actually the only side to beat Croatia twice in the group stages in world cups. Also Mexico has never lost to a traditional big Euro team (France/Germany/Italy/Holland/Belgium) in the group stages of any world cup between 1986 and 2022 though they have played such big teams 8 or 9 times
@jimmyyue238 Жыл бұрын
In 1998 and 2018, Mexico should've been eliminated in the group stage of world cup based on the opponents.
@RoxChaseDi9 Жыл бұрын
It still Shocks me how Dominant Egypt is in the african cup of nations yet they missed out on so many World cup Opportunities especially during that 28 year drought they had all the way until Russia 2018
@abasudoh7459 Жыл бұрын
I knew Nigeria was going to be here🤣. We don't miss these negative lists🤣🤣🤣
@thabomjiyako8894 Жыл бұрын
It's actually not a negative list, it's a compliment to be expected to be a top team
@icantthinkofanamejustallow4199 Жыл бұрын
@@thabomjiyako8894 it is tho.
@constablekennedy7705 Жыл бұрын
Here before HITC gets Taken Over by the Saudi SportsWashing …. 👀. ⚽️
@jmorrison230582 Жыл бұрын
Another country worth a shout for this (IMO) is South Africa. I thought they were going to kick on in the late 90s/early 00s and be a top African team, but they've done almost nothing since then other than hosting 2010.
@PessiXPenaldo34 Жыл бұрын
It's not about the population it's about their passion for football