Germany did quite well, no? They got past the first level but then lost. I have no problem with players, only with fans who convince to join their self-made political parties.
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Originally posted by taavi1337
Germany did quite well, no? They got past the first level but then lost.
Not really... and given their group, any result other than advancing to the Round of 32 would have been a massive shock.
Keep in mind that the German team is a four-time World Champion who has made it to at least the quarter finals in every World Cup from the 1950's all the way to 2014. They lost against Ecuador, who did not even qualify until 2002, and only once previously made it past the group stage. Ivory Coast didn't qualify until 2006, and never made it past the group stage until now, and Germany just barely snatched a win against them with a lucky last minute goal in extra time, after trailing for much of the game. I saw big parts of the game after my big Troll of a 10K race in Wiesbaden, first in a restaurant and then at the hotel bar. It was the moment when I realized that the German team probably won't have a good run this year.
Their game against Curaçao seemed good on paper, but they are a tiny island nation on their World Cup debut, so it was very much the expected score. And even in that case, the game was surprisingly close for much of the first half. In the second half, Germany looked more like the team people expected to see.
I'm not an expert on soccer, so I looked up some of the info above, but none of the teams they faced this year were historically giants on the world stage of soccer, to say the least. Germany, on the other hand, was considered a top team, at least until about a decade ago, when they started performing poorly in their World Cups - as the defending champion in 2018, no less.
Times change, of course, so with Germany out, I would love to see some of the "smaller" teams doing well. Either a team from a poorer nation, for a morale boost there, and possibly the first step to something greater in the future, or maybe one of the North American host nations, where soccer has often been an overlooked sport (not counting Mexico). Or possibly even England, who have often underperformed in their World Cup appearances, considering how popular the game is in that country.
Oh, I get it. People here were worried about Italy soccer team dropping out before the actual Soccer World Cup, which kind of leads these people closer to that specific sports.
Also Portuguese C.Ronaldo was behaving quite weird, shouting angrily: "We're back!" twice after winning a match at the World Cup. I guess people who are more into sports really rail the quarterfinals and so on... but yeah now the semis will be like Morocco vs Capo Verde islands 
Originally posted by taavi1337
but yeah now the semis will be like Morocco vs Capo Verde islands
That would be nice.Though about that particular case, I don't think it's possible for Cabo Verde to face Morocco until the Finals, if I read the schedule correctly. Not to mention that I highly doubt that Cabo Verde will advance against Argentina.
As for C. Ronaldo, judging from the small parts I have seen of Portugal's games at this World Cup, it seemed quite obvious that he is well past his prime.
That looks like a good estimation. With these really old physical team ball game athletes, I think Lebron James was really impressive with LA Lakers in NBA in the last playoffs, crushing it 40+, and I remember Figo from Portugal soccer to crush it in very old age, but there aren't very good examples of very old athletes performing on their correct level, they usually tend to aim for too much and end up disappointing themselves and everyone else. Lets see how Messi from Argentina performs, he's a bit younger (38) and can outsmart younger defenders, he's also on that kind of place where he already has that title so it isnt that crucial for them to win that again. But yea I also hate the "offense-hypes" that only focus on praising maximum offense, we all saw how that went for Netherlands etc; for example Spain with better defense actually works vs more teams, anyone can 90%attack for that one goal but then still finish 1:4 every single time, it is like a fish in HU makes a really crazy bluff and gets your 6bb put punts 41bb three hands later.
Originally posted by taavi1337
With these really old physical team ball game athletes, I think Lebron James was really impressive with LA Lakers in NBA in the last playoffs, crushing it 40+, and I remember Figo from Portugal soccer to crush it in very old age, but there aren't very good examples of very old athletes performing on their correct level, they usually tend to aim for too much and end up disappointing themselves and everyone else. Lets see how Messi from Argentina performs, he's a bit younger (38) and can outsmart younger defenders, he's also on that kind of place where he already has that title so it isnt that crucial for them to win that again.
Then again, that's actually something I kind of miss about professional sports these days. I may be blinded by nostalgia, but when I was watching national level soccer as a kid in the 90's, most teams had many more of these older players, who seemed to bring much more personality to the game. All those young players these days just seem mostly interchangeable to me. Many of them tend to perform well, sure, but I see little that makes them stand out as individual players.
The game has evolved since then, of course, and I can imagine that the players from back then would stand little chance in today's more fast paced soccer, but it's one of the reasons why I personally don't usually follow these sports anymore aside from events like this - and even that mostly just because of the prediction contest. I'm missing the unique charisma of the older players from back in the day.
Anyway, I'm personally enjoying the soccer discussions... but while I do miss Prim's input, who still often finds herself struggling with those Cloudflare verifications, I guess she is not missing much, as I know she doesn't like soccer. 
Let's not get too far off track, though. There shall indeed be poker today. TonyW4rriorz will be streaming some crypto poker again, starting at around 5 PM CET, and I plan to join for some Drawmaha - a game that deserves a lot more love, in my opinion, especially from the bigger sites. I would love to see this game on Pokerstars some day.
I originally wanted to do my 10K "Troll Back" run tomorrow too, but this one had to be postponed once again, as I signed up for a very lucrative overtime shift at work tomorrow morning. The run should finally take place on Monday, around 5:30 PM, giving me a few more days to practice - but today shall indeed finally be a rest day, when it comes to running.
signed up for a very lucrative overtime shift
I think very well done, I am kinda tired, given up those options. People love me as I am, stay-at-home father for cats, would be too crazy for me to attempt a job nowadays... I love grinding up to €0.20 tournaments.
Originally posted by taavi1337
I think very well done, I am kinda tired, given up those options. People love me as I am, stay-at-home father for cats, would be too crazy for me to attempt a job nowadays...
If you're doing well that way, I suppose there is no need to change that, but I wouldn't say it's too late to get into these options if you wanted to, certainly not at your age. I spent several years being unemployed after getting my bachelor's degree too, and it seemed hopeless at times - but it wasn't, even though my current job has nothing to do with what I studied, so I might as well have done it right after school.
Anyway, the overtime went well, and another thing that just came to my mind is that the marathon race I originally wanted to run - the one that was all booked up before I could reg - would have been just yesterday. Maybe it's for the better that I didn't get to join, or else I might have lost out on an opportunity to make some nice extra cash today. My informal 10K run should happen as planned on Monday, and after that, I should start practicing for the real marathon on August 30th - only about eight weeks left.
Drawmaha yesterday went well too, we finished ITM. Only a mincash in third place, I got quite card dead in the late phases. And then Tony himself busts me out when I make a bit of a desperation move while being short and actually hitting a good hand for once - except he had an even better one. Nice game, though, I might join it more often on Fridays.
Canada vs Morocco later. I would like to see Canada advance, but Morocco played well so far, so I honestly don't see it. Even at those odds, I will pick Morocco, but I would be glad to be proven wrong once again. I'll try to make the supposedly "safe" bet up with some riskier options in the side bets, like predicting two early goals. Probably won't happen, but with the other options being all guesswork too, I think I should at least go with a high risk, high reward option in my situation.
Oh, and Prim is playing tennis today. Too bad I wasn't given any odds on her matches.
Originally posted by Harrier88
Canada vs Morocco later. I would like to see Canada advance, but Morocco played well so far, so I honestly don't see it. Even at those odds, I will pick Morocco, but I would be glad to be proven wrong once again.
You know what? Screw it, I just changed my prediction to Canada. Safe bets won't help me in the contest right now, and since it's mostly for fun anyway, I might as well bet on the one I would rather see advance. I expect it will be than likely be wrong, but who cares - there's no money on the line, and if we still care about the potential prize money in the contest, my only chance to get there is to take risks.
Originally posted by Harrier88
You know what? Screw it, I just changed my prediction to Canada. Safe bets won't help me in the contest right now, and since it's mostly for fun anyway, I might as well bet on the one I would rather see advance. I expect it will be than likely be wrong, but who cares - there's no money on the line, and if we still care about the potential prize money in the contest, my only chance to get there is to take risks.
Sadly, not this time.
I drove all the way downtown to watch the game, but the power was off. Perhaps I should be glad I missed it.
Tied at the half, though it would have been an exciting 2nd half.
Yes canada got smashed by non-eu country, finally non-eu triumphs as the whole theme of this tournament is non-eu countries. It flat out says that with the opening cartoon of the tournament but kids are still: where is eu? Im like: you opened a non-eu tournament and wish to see eu, might not happen.
I think canada was stronger than morocco but the end was just ridiculous, they got completely smashed by that unknown power. I liked canada, but morocco even better.
Originally posted by VorpalF2F
Sadly, not this time.
I drove all the way downtown to watch the game, but the power was off. Perhaps I should be glad I missed it.
Tied at the half, though it would have been an exciting 2nd half.
I only saw parts of it, I watched the beginning on TV during dinner and later tuned in to a stream in the second half, when Morocco was up 1-0. Had it on until the 2-0, then I figured it was all over anyway. Didn't realize until today that there was a late 3-0 too.
I think Canada had a good run this tournament, I hope you guys enjoyed it. Would have been great to see Canada vs USA in the semis, but that would have been a long shot anyway. Let's see how far Morocco will get, they seem to do quite well this year.
Originally posted by taavi1337
Yes canada got smashed by non-eu country, finally non-eu triumphs as the whole theme of this tournament is non-eu countries. It flat out says that with the opening cartoon of the tournament but kids are still: where is eu? Im like: you opened a non-eu tournament and wish to see eu, might not happen.I think canada was stronger than morocco but the end was just ridiculous, they got completely smashed by that unknown power. I liked canada, but morocco even better.
Again, I'm not sure why you - or your kids, for that matter - are so hung up on the EU thing. It's national team vs national team at the World Cup, any political or economic alliances between those countries are highly irrelevant.
Not to mention that Morocco was the clear favorite in this game to begin with, as reflected by the posted odds, so they were far from being an "unknown power", and that Canada has not faced a single EU-country in the whole tournament (the only two European teams they faced, Switzerland and Bosnia, are not EU-members).
I also don't quite see that "theme of non-EU triumphs" you mention. Out of the 14 teams that are still in at this moment, half of them are European (though only 5 of those 7 are EU - which, again, is very irrelevant to the sport). And so far, the only surprising exits of European teams have been Germany and possibly the Netherlands, in my opinion.
Originally posted by Harrier88
Safe bets won't help me in the contest right now, and since it's mostly for fun anyway, I might as well bet on the one I would rather see advance.
Okay, here's a variation of it: I would personally rather see England advance vs Mexico today, but realistically, I think Mexico is more likely to win. Yet the odds see Mexico as the slight underdog. If the team I see as the more likely winner is also given the better "payout", I see little reason to stray from that option, personal preferences aside.
Besides, the reason I would prefer England to win is that they have historically often underperformed at World Cups, and since they seem to do somewhat well this year, I think the s̶o̶c̶c̶e̶r̶ football-loving population deserves a good result to cheer for. But a similar thing could be said about the Mexican team. Yeah, whatever, go Mexico! I had some nachos last evening anyway.
And yes, I'm aware that a draw is an option too. Might even be realistic, maybe we'll see the classic case of England losing on penalties again? I stick to my choice, though.
In this one, however, I'm mostly going for fun. Predicting a goal from outside the box at favorable odds just makes it more exciting to follow each team's attacks.
On second thought, I'm not sure why I'm predicting what makes it more exciting to follow when the match takes place at 2 AM my time and I won't be able to watch it anyway. Doesn't matter - once again, I will stick to my choice.
or your kids, for that matter - are so hung up on the EU thing
i dont know that either... trying to find out
Originally posted by Harrier88
I think Canada had a good run this tournament, I hope you guys enjoyed it.
We enjoyed what we saw of it. There were big-screen TVs set up in strategic locations all over Vancouver, and it was a tremendous party atmosphere.
Originally posted by Harrier88
Would have been great to see Canada vs USA in the semis, but that would have been a long shot anyway. Let's see how far Morocco will get, they seem to do quite well this year.
I would really rather not have had that happen. There is far too much emotional baggage tied to cross-border sports in North America as it is.
If the prediction contest wasn't over for me before, it certainly is now, almost none of yesterday's picks worked out. I will still keep doing it until the end of the World Cup for fun. It definitely did make me enjoy the event a lot more than I otherwise would have, especially in the beginning when everything was still up for grabs.
Another interesting thing is that I will still see typical betting odds for the teams, giving me an idea on who people expect to win. Check out today's odds for USA vs Belgium, for example - they're about as even as they get:
I guess I will be an England fan as long as they are still in. Otherwise, I will just be rooting for a team that hasn't won any World Cups yet (i.e. anyone but Spain, France and Argentina). Nothing against those teams, it would just be nice to see some brand new champions - or England, who haven't won the cup for 60 years now.
Things will continue to be sporty for Prim and me too, but more on that later, I still have some "business" to take care of.
Oh, and I played some FL Badeucy cash on Tony's stream last night. Didn't go too well for me, but it was nice to give it another go with the people from the stream. Badeucy is another very underappreciated game, though I much prefer it in its tournament form.
I told you we had unfinished business. It was time for:
The Troll-back Run!
You know the story. I got trolled at my 10K race, now I trolled back at the stadium track. 25 laps, one Troll, one stopwatch.
10,000 Meter Run (Stamina)
Bronze: 74:10 minutes
Silver: 65:30 minutes
Gold: 56:50 minutes
Olympic Record: 26:43.14 minutes by Joshua Cheptegei (UGA) at the 2024 Paris Olympics, August 2nd, 2024.
World Record: 26:11.00 minutes by Joshua Cheptegei (UGA) at Valencia, October 20th, 2020.
Trollympic Record: 60:01.4 minutres by Harrier88 (PS) at the 2024 Trollympics, June 29th, 2024.
Harrier's time: 52:07.05 minutes
NEW TROLLYMPIC RECORD!
How about that? Things can be so easy when people don't fire the starting gun while you're queuing for the bathroom.
Truth be told, I don't think you will ever get conditions like this in a public 10K race. Almost perfectly even ground, perfectly measured 10km, and not even any other runners to dodge. Fair enough, some kids were playing soccer on the field, I had to dodge a few shots that missed the goal, and some people were occasionally wandering around the track too, making me run some extra meters, but all of that was negligible.
I do plan to be back in future 10K races, and this 52:07 can now serve as a new benchmark to compare against. Taken with a grain of salt, of course, since the conditions at these races will likely be worse, as explained above, but it's something to put in the books.
I guess all that training was not "for the cat" after all. Sorry, Floxy.
New "Medal Table":
3,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Gold
10,000 Meter Run (Stamina): Gold
Standing Long Jump (Strength): Gold
100 Meter Dash (Speed): Gold
25m Freestyle (Speed): Silver
Sling Ball Throw (Coordination): Gold
Current Progress
Stamina: Gold (3,000 Meter Run) - 3 points
Strength: Gold (Standing Long Jump) - 3 points
Speed: Gold (100 Meter Dash) - 3 points
Coordination: Gold (Sling Ball Throw) - 3 points
12 points in total, 11 points are required for Gold.
Originally posted by taavi1337
Amazing! 10km in 52min07s definitely would win some huge crowd runs! Congratz
Thank you. I'm very happy with my time, but no, it certainly wouldn't win any public runs. The winning time in those is typically around 35 minutes, possibly closer to 30 minutes if the run is more competitive. 52:07 should often be enough for a decent placement in the middle of the field, however.
People who achieve those winning times have of course typically dedicated several years to become good at running, often as part of athletic clubs or similar groups with proper coaches and scheduled practice sessions. I only run in my free time, so I should have different standards - compared to the general population, it is surely a very good time. I won't ever get close to sub-40, but I plan to stay at it and see how far I can still improve.
For now, however, the marathon training will recommence, after the 10K interlude is now finally completely done. More on that later.
But yes, there will always be people who run much faster than me, not even close, and that's okay. What's important is my personal improvement, and I think I can be very satisfied with that so far when it comes to running and fitness in general.
What's This?! 
Finally some poker again? The break has lasted for almost two months now, disregarding the occasional crypto game, but yes, I finally played a real USD game on Pokerstars again. Just a little Five Card Draw SNG, to get back into it. I was looking for suitable side games, only found a $0.55 8-Game satellite close to the end of late reg, where I didn't cash.
But as for the SNG, it looks like I still got it.
So far so good, it was only one game. But nice to finally have some poker content here at all, isn't it?
More poker and non-poker content to come soon, I expect.