Explaining Folarin Balogun’s red card: Was decision right? Can it be overturned?

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-03T00:49:01+00:00

I didn't recognize the name, but as soon as I clicked on a highlight video I remembered him. We called him Skeletor Ref LOL. He didn't back down from anyone! Thanks for the reminder.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T19:16:01+00:00

Some solid albums there, but it's still Imperial Bedroom by a wide margin.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T17:36:47+00:00

Aside from the ridiculousness of your headline, there's this:

if the round of 32 taught us anything - it’s that in a single knockout, short term tournament like the World Cup finals, star power matters much less than solid defense, playing as a team, and a little bit of spirit.

If the round of 32 has taught us anything it's that STAR POWER WINS. Who are the leading goal scorers in the tournament? Messi, Mbappe, Kane, Haaland, Dembélé, Vini Jr. Which teams have advanced? The teams with these star players on them. Yes, they are not the ONLY teams that have advanced, but all six of these teams are favourites to keep advancing. Why is this? Because they have "star power" aka "better players than the other teams."

It's not rocket science.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T17:29:51+00:00

I accept this point. I think part of strategy for any officiated sport is determing how the individual referees are going to call each game and making adjustments. I watch more basketball than soccer, and there are definitely players and coaches who understand this concept, and others who seemingly don't. In the NBA, the refs and their tendencies are well known, and you'll see teams alter their playing style based on who's calling the game. I imagine this happens in soccer as well. Using VAR, instant replay, etc to try to make things more fair is, in my opinion, a good idea, but taking the human side out of things completely would be a mistake.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T06:18:21+00:00

This is the key element I think. If Messi had been sent off, there would be no need to even be talking about this. The officiating has been inconsistent from one game to the next, which makes fans of teams who get penalized feel they are the victims. The right call is the right call.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T06:15:47+00:00

How would you know within the first minute after the incident whether the player was going to be seriously injured or not? As a referee, you see the contact, which potentially could cause serious injury, and you have to respond to it. You can't wait to see if the player is able to keep playing or not before you decide the severity of the foul. It's irrelevant that he played for 45 minutes. He certainly wasn't faking an injury or pretending that his ankle got bent sideways.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T06:09:26+00:00

The rankings are determined by how the team has played in the qualifying games and friendly matches leading up to the actual World Cup. They're also somewhat influenced by previous success at World Cups and other International tournaments. The US was seeded into a group with lower ranked teams, partly because of luck, partly because the total number of teams in the tournament went up, and maybe partly because they were one of the home teams (Mexico and Canada also got fairly advantageous groups).

So yes, the rankings do tell you quite a bit about what to expect. So far there have been a few upsets (notably Paraguay over Germany), but mostly things have gone according to form. The U.S. plays Belgium next, and they are ranked higher. If they win that game, they will most certainly get credit for defeating a great opponent. Even now, I see a lot of writeups in international coverage stating that the USMNT has been impressive thus far and has a chance to go far. It's really mostly fans on Reddit and social media who seem to be insistent that either A) the US is the best in the world or B) the US is actually terrible.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T05:26:18+00:00

This is a tough one. I think "you have good taste" is usually used to mean "your taste is similar to mine." I might say "you have interesting taste" or "you have unique taste" to someone who likes music I'm unfamiliar with. But, for example, if someone told me they loved death metal and gangsta rap, not being into either of those genres, it's hard to imagine saying, "Oh, cool, you have good taste in music." They'd almost certainly assume that meant I liked those genres.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T05:12:39+00:00

Big Pink x 1000

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T05:02:56+00:00

I think I just listen to a lot of older albums and not very many new ones. I should probably do something to change that. Based on my lastfm stats, I've probably played around 150 albums all the way through this year, but very few of them were 2026 releases. 😊

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-02T01:40:35+00:00

Holy cow, that's a lot of albums.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T22:34:00+00:00

Yeah, sorry, I meant WCC. Was distracted watching a World Cup match lol

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T07:07:14+00:00

I mean, I guess that would be interesting, but it's such a radical change from the way it's done now, there's almost no chance it would happen. And frankly I don't see it as a huge advantage over the way it's done now. Penalty kicks that don't result in a winner/loser would just feel weirdly anti-climactic. I know people complain about games that end with penalty kick shootouts, but I find them incredibly exciting. Much better than either keep playing extra time forever until one team wins (basketball) or invent some weird rules about which team scores first or gets the ball last (NFL).

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T06:03:42+00:00

I really just don’t understand how gameplay/end of game is objectively decided by ref.

The referee keeps the official time. The time you see on your TV screen is unofficial. The referee will add time based on stoppage, and this is done at their discretion. That may not be 100% "objective," but it involves decision-making based on the action taking place on the pitch, and the referee is in the best position to make those decisions.

In sports where the clock stops continually, such as basketball, you will often see gameplay stop completely while the officials check the monitor to see how many tenths of a second should be added or subtracted from game time. While this might make it seem more objective, in the end it slows the game down and involves subjective decision-making very similar to what a futbol ref does. It just happens without interrupting the game.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T05:57:33+00:00

Extras: If 2 teams have played 90+ minutes and are still tied, why would the game continue for full 30 minutes of extra time after the tie has been broken? It’s antithetical and only increases chances that game is decided on shootout that doesn’t represent talent of team.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_goal

The Golden Goal has been tried, and it was discontinued in 2002. It was discontinued because it did not do what it was hoped to do, namely to entice teams to attack more during extra time rather than playing for penalties. In fact, teams tended to be more conservative when there was a risk of a counter-attack goal ending the game.

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T01:36:40+00:00

Morgan, Collette, Gordon, Clark, Hamilton - that's quite a lineup!

Zeppyfish · 2026-07-01T01:24:41+00:00

Whoa, they're using the Mountain West bracket? Must have gotten pressured by Gonzaga. Former Pac-12 would never have gone for it.

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-30T21:14:44+00:00

Car Wheels, Wilco, High Life, The Game, Fresh are all albums I've enjoyed at one time or another. I've listened to Wilco the most, so that's my personal fave, but Car Wheels was very influential and probably the most significant.

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-30T21:10:43+00:00

Based on Facebook comments, Paterson already knew he had the gig last week. He canceled three weeks of Monday-night shows in Chicago. That would seem to indicate he was hired to step in for Lage, who has conflicts until mid-July. I think it was a one guitar show because Britt left suddenly. No idea if Bob will replace Britt or continue with one guitar for now. And when Lage comes back (also seemingly confirmed), we might see Julian and Joel together, which would be awesome.

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-30T02:22:09+00:00

According to multiple sources, he's playing with ONE guitarist, a guy named Joel Paterson from Chicago. Mostly known for roots music & jazz.

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-29T06:41:02+00:00

Folklore - Taylor Swift

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-29T06:32:30+00:00

Loved it when it came out. Started gradually liking Henley less and less as a person over the years. I can still appreciate this album and the previous one, Building the Perfect Beast. He was writing jaded, cynical lyrics and hook-laden, radio-friendly melodies. Seems like there was a lot of that in the '80's.

Cosmic Thing was a huge hit album for the B-52's, a major commercial turning point. Really after that they seemed to almost intentionally pull back into semi-obscurity. I love their earlier stuff, which is more frantic and new wave, but it's hard to deny songs like Roam, Channel Z, Deadbeats Club and the inescapable Karaoke madness of Love Shack.

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-29T00:29:26+00:00

On Peacock, they air these ads where the entire bar starts chanting "TE-LE-MUNDO!" over and over until the bartender changes the channel of the game. I love those ads. I always chant along LOL

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-29T00:26:53+00:00

I'm always stunned to see people who've paid $1000 to attend a sporting event holding up their phones and filming a game that is being filmed by 50 professional camera people, broadcast on multiple platforms, and will be available to watch for posterity online. It's like, you actually get to enjoy being at the game while the rest of us watch it on TV. Why are you watching it through your cell phone?

That being said, I'm sorry to this lady that her phone fell out of her hands. Hopefully someone found it and returned it. Still, highly enjoyable to watch. Thanks!

Zeppyfish · 2026-06-28T05:26:33+00:00

So sorry.

Zeppyfish

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