All about sports: FIFA Club World Cup 2025 (Page 2)

Patizi wrote on 06.12.2024 at 13:20:

How can you say that a Balotelli hasn't gone far in soccer? He's still a professional and he's made a lot of money from it. Have you only achieved something if you play at the top? Even the players from Schalke or Ulm have achieved an incredible amount. They are professionals and live a good life. Even those who don't know the numbers certainly earn more than most will ever earn. Achieving something doesn't always just mean winning trophies. Becoming a professional footballer is almost unattainable when you think about how many people want to get there. You have to be incredibly good and it's normal that you invest a lot of time in it and will continue to do so throughout your career. The argument that everything was different in the past doesn't count for me either. They didn't earn that much in the past either. I think they are well paid for what they do. And I still think that if they don't like it, they can certainly talk to the club and terminate the contract. Nobody is forced to live the life of a footballer, but there are plenty of people who would love to do their job.


In Italy, the stadiums have never really been full to capacity, at least that I know of. It's a problem that's been going on for umpteen years. But it's different in Germany. Your personal feeling is also absolutely ok, but the stadiums will still be full and the Club World Cup will also be watched by an incredible number of people. Regarding your call "but what does a Leverkusen fan want to watch at the World Cup?" there are plenty who simply enjoy watching soccer. I remember my grandfather, for example, watching a lot, regardless of the clubs. Certainly some "Leverkusen fans" are also betting fans and may watch it because of their sports bets or because Leverkusen is not playing. Why do I watch a European Championship or World Cup? Because there's nothing else on! If I had the choice between club soccer and the national team, I'd definitely watch club soccer. And you can also apply the principle of "because there's nothing else on" to the Club World Cup. In the end, I'm the consumer and I'd rather watch something like this than any friendly games or yawning emptiness.

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frapi07 wrote on 06.12.2024 at 13:34:

I've been a Balotelli fan since Euro 2012 at the latest and am always grateful that he shot us to the final, but you have to admit that his career was more of a flop. Balotelli made it as far as Serie A, but was unable to make it in professional soccer. He didn't lack talent, but maturity and discipline. He didn't live 100% for soccer, but relied on his talent. But talent alone is not enough in today's soccer. Let's be honest, he could have earned and achieved much more. Instead, he was playing in the Süper Lig or the Swiss Super League in his early 30s, while people his age (Lewandoski, Kane) continue to play for top clubs/leagues. As I said, this was also due to his attitude to life. It's not for nothing that he always gets into arguments with his coaches.

Of course there are some who like to watch soccer, but honestly... when the CL is on... do you watch all the games? I believe you follow them, but never watch them. It's just a Tournament spam and maybe there are people who could watch soccer all the time, but I certainly don't. So I think a break - especially in the summer - is a very good thing.

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Patizi wrote on 06.12.2024 at 17:37:

Am I wrong or didn't he shape his whole career in the pro game? He has earned a lot of money with it. Others would be so incredibly happy to go through his career. You can't always compare everyone with Kane, Lewandowski and the like, and yet the careers of many players were a dream. Footballers live the dream of soooo many people. I still think that for the money they get at the top clubs, they can run. If not, end your career and look for something else!


I've been to this conference many times. I also know what summers look like otherwise. It just varies from person to person. Some are happy that there is a break and nothing is happening, others are happy that at least every 2 years there is a European Championship or World Cup so that there is at least something going on. For most fans, the summer break is too long. For them it is enough if there is a break of 1 month. Nobody wants to watch friendly matches as a fan. They'd rather have competition.

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frapi07 wrote on 06.12.2024 at 17:57:

Yes, he was in the pro ranks, but look at his background



I don't know... he will have earned millions and currently he will certainly still get his 1-2 mil/year, but for the potential he has, it's really a flop. He's been chilling for years, so to speak, and he's 32... subtract 5 years from that and you're at 27. There are many in their prime and even if you can't compare Lewa/Kane, then with other strikers. Even Werner (28 years old), who doesn't really seem to have convinced since RBL (23 goals in 4 years, some score that in a season), is in the EPL, while Balotelli played in Ligue 1 at his age. From Serie A to EPL (upgrade), then again to Serie A and then Ligue 1 (downgrade). It's professional football, but as already mentioned, his career has unfortunately been over since Ligue 1. You can see that from the clubs that have signed him. Genoa signed him recently, he was without a club for a few months.

Yes, it's individual. I just think that the players are not only physically stressed, but also psychologically. You write that many would like a job like that. I'm currently of a different opinion. Sure, you get rich, but you sacrifice your younger years for it. Look at Ronaldo, he's fitter at 39 than I am at 32 xD He's only been drinking water for decades, eats extremely healthily and is very active in sports. It's not easy, believe me. I'm currently on a diet and changing my eating habits and when you go to the supermarket, it's tempting to buy something unhealthy.

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Stromberg wrote on 06.12.2024 at 18:12:

To be honest, I find it quite likeable and also totally understandable if you think to yourself as a professional: "I'll take my millions here and there, have fun with my job, but don't ruin myself because of it and don't let it take away my private life. I'd rather take a dump than win the CL."

There may be other reasons for this in the case of Balotelli or depending on the player, of course, but I think such an attitude is completely okay.
Pathological ambition has never been my hobby either.

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frapi07 wrote on 06/12/2024 18:43:
The funny thing is that he won the CL xD Was at Inter under Mourinho back in the day, where he won the treble in 2010-11. Otherwise, yes, everyone as they like. My posts are not meant as criticism. This is his life and he should decide for himself what he wants to do with his career. But what I wanted to point out is that you have to be 100% behind this lifestyle and that's exactly what he didn't do. There is so much behind it. I'm just an outsider, but I know that Ronaldo was always the first and last to come and go in training during his time at Juventus. He trains everything to perfection. Of course, Ronaldo is an exaggerated example, but you can see a difference in lifestyle when you compare other strikers with him. Mario Balotelli drunk, felt on the street 🤪 You would never, ever see anything like that from a Ronaldo (at least while he's actively playing). Not even from other strikers who are currently successful in European soccer.

If his private life was already too tight back then, then you can imagine that it's only gotten worse now.

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Patizi wrote on 06.12.2024 at 19:14:

But you always compare with the really big names in soccer. Compare with other professionals. Mahri Emreli, plays for Nuremberg. The guy is also a professional and would have loved to have Balotelli's career. Well, he's 27 and can still do something. You never know how it can and will go. And tens of thousands of others would like to have Balotelli's career. But just as many thousands would like to have the career of a Mahri Emreli. They are all professionals and the fact that they play and train a lot is their job for which they earn more than someone who has a normal job. I can't feel sorry for them!


Btw. a Brandt is looking forward to a Club World Cup because it's simply something new and you meet teams that are simply from another continent and play a different kind of soccer. And you might even find a few gems for yourself.

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