FIFA To Eliminate Ties at World Cup?

By: Stephen Patterson

There have been reports that FIFA will consider eliminating ties in all World Cup games, which is a common ending during the group stage of play. If tying were no longer an option, teams would be forced to play the entire game, and not waste huge amounts of time passing the ball to preserve a tied game and help them in their group standings. Personally, I don't see how it could possibly hurt the sport and event to eliminate the draws and force teams to play to win.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter said today that the elimination of ties would make the tournament more exciting, which raises this question to me: Did he really just now realize this? I mean honestly, how many of you have spent two and a half to three hours watching a World Cup game only to see it end in a tie? I know I'm never content with the ending, especially if it was an intense contest.

The worst case scenario is when two teams are playing each other that both mutually benefit from a tied game. Those games usually involve about 30 minutes of useless passes without trying to advance the ball. I know I've never once turned on my TV hoping to see a tie in a sporting event. Even if two of my favorite teams are playing each other, I make my decision and cheer for the team I like more. Not very many people watch sports hoping to see a game end in a draw, and obviously most would prefer to see a clear winner and loser.

If soccer's governing body decides to make the change, all games would either end in penalty kicks or go to a sudden-death overtime. In the knockout stages of this past World Cup, teams would play an extra 30 minute period and if their was still no winner, the game would go to a shootout. Group games have always ended in draws if tied at the end of the game. While that may be nice for some of the teams involved, it's not good for many of the people sitting through the game at the stadium or at home. The elimination of draws would probably increase the ratings for the World Cup during the opening round and draw in new viewers.