A while ago, the topic of Tsinghua University and school districts was a hot topic on social media. But a basic consensus is that Tsinghua and Peking Universities can be damn hard to get into.
When the World Cup expanded to 48 teams in January this year, there were many people who said, "What does the expansion of Tsinghua University have to do with you?" Well, what if there are only 8 players in your neighborhood? Of course, the national soccer team is still only ranked 9th in the neighborhood ...... but the dream doesn't seem so far away, does it?
Remember Yao Ming just joined the NBA when a Chinese reporter wrote: Yao Ming now has two choices, one choice is to beat O'Neal personally, one choice is to wait for O'Neal old, after all, the years have the power of immobility. But this looks very beautiful choice, eventually did not succeed in happening, Yao Ming O'Neal the same year to quit the rivers and lakes, but grudges.
As for the national soccer team, there seems to be two ways to go. One is to rely on their own efforts, and strive to grab a place in the current 4.5 slots, among the World Cup stage. The other, is to wait patiently until the 2026 World Cup expansion ......
Why 2026? As it turns out, one of the first big things the new FIFA president pushed for in early 2017 was World Cup expansion - in 2026, the World Cup will expand to 48 teams! This means that out of the 211 members of FIFA, close to 1/4 will be able to enter the World Cup.
This was good news for China, which was ranked 8th in Asia at the time, but with the standard of soccer in Asia not as high, it was doubtful whether they would get 7 places.
However, on March 30, FIFA announced the 2026 World Cup quota allocation plan recommended by the FIFA Commission Office, which was reached after deliberation between the FIFA President and the continental football associations, and the result of this plan is actually more favorable than what we projected!
Asia has eight seats, Africa nine, North and Central America and the Caribbean six, South America six, Europe 16, Oceania one, and the remaining two spots are for the host and the team from the host's continent.
From the distribution plan, Europe only got 16 seats, while the other continents' places have increased. Of course, this is partly due to Infantino's gesture of goodwill to a number of countries, and partly due to the fact that the UEFA representative made it clear in February that he hoped to get 16 seats after the expansion, so let's let you have your wish.
Of course, the proposal has not yet been finalized and will be voted on by the full membership at the FIFA Congress on May 9th.
Does expansion really mean Easy mode for China?
If we expand to 8 seats, will we really be able to advance to the World Cup? There are quite a few people talking smack - what's it got to do with you if Peking University and Tsinghua expand?
So, what if the expansion of NU-Qinghua coincided with an increase in enrollment in your neighborhood?
Of course, the Chinese team, which is currently playing in the 12-team tournament, is ranked 5th in the group with 5 points, and according to the current ranking, even if the expansion to 8 is not enough, it still needs to continue to move forward, and at least squeeze out Syria to be ranked 4th in the group to be able to do so.
However, if Asia really expand 8, the existing 12 tournament system is likely to also cease to exist, more groupings, more teams among the final stage of the Asian qualifying tournament is more likely.
If that happens, then we need to try to move up the rankings in order to get better signings and thus increase our chances of making it to the World Cup.
Analyzing from another dimension, we are currently ranked 9th in Asia. if we pick only 8, there is a lot of hope, but there is still work to be done.
Take Tsinghua University as an example, if you ranked 9th in the class in the monthly examination, and now the admission quota of Peking University from the top 4.5 in the class, increased to the top 8, your difficulty is naturally reduced. Of course, in order to really get into the "Peking University and Tsinghua University", you still need to really get into the top 8. If you can't, the expansion will be useless.
Therefore, in order to take advantage of the expansion, with the strength of the World Cup stage after the "expansion", what needs to be done, or to respect the laws of the development of soccer, and work hard to increase the score, and further improve their own rankings. They do not make progress, only rely on the "Beijing University and Tsinghua" expansion, is certainly not feasible.
In fact, since 1998, the World Cup has been in the structure of 32 teams to evolve and develop, in the minds of this generation of fans, the concept of "32 strong competition" is gradually ingrained in the minds of fans. But in fact, this is the third time that the World Cup has experienced the "expansion".
In 1930, only 13 teams competed in the inaugural World Cup; four years later, 16 teams participated in the second World Cup held in Italy.
In 1974, Brazilian Avilanchier pushed for reforms after taking office in order to gain the support of the newly added Asian-African Football Confederation (AFC), granting Asia and Africa one more spot each, increasing the total number of teams from 16 to 24, and in 1982, the World Cup completed its first expansion in history.
In 1998, the Brazilian Avilanje, who had ruled international soccer for 24 years, stepped down and Sepp Blatter took office, accompanied by the second major expansion in the history of the World Cup, with the familiar 32 participating teams making their debut in France in the height of summer.
The 32-team system continued until 2016, when Infantino became the new FIFA president. Reform, expansion, seeking broader support from the world's football associations ...... This is not the first time such a drama has been played out for a long time.
For the fans, they are worried about the competitive quality of the game, but in the high halls of FIFA, seeking a wider range of influence and interests is their main concern. Expansion, naturally, is a powerful means of bringing people together.
In addition to pulling people together, the role of expansion on an economic level cannot be ignored. Take a look at the Europa League, which has just completed its expansion in 2016, and see what it has delivered.
After the expansion, Euro 2016 broadcast rights distribution brought in about €1 billion, tournament sponsorships €450 million, and gate receipts about €500-€550 million, and with all three earnings added together we get the astronomical figure of €2 billion. Comparing vertically to the Ukrainian Euro 4 years ago, UEFA's earnings have increased by about 600 million euros.
Whereas the Euro was a regional tournament that added eight teams, the World Cup is adding 16 teams worldwide - and its increase in commercial revenue is already teasing the imagination.
Therefore, the expansion of the World Cup is undoubtedly a matter of great benefit, and even gives the World Cup a chance to further overpower the Olympics.
That said, it's too early to think about this. For China, no matter how much Beihang University and Qinghua University "expand", the most crucial thing is to try to improve their own soccer level. Not to mention the fact that if you go to the World Cup, you may be eliminated from the tournament in the first match under the new schedule. Even if the World Cup is hosted in front of the door, the Beijing University Qinghua moved to their own yard, a difficult to win, repeated defeats of the host, but also will make the game lost a lot of color.
No matter how the world changes, it's best to get down to business and improve yourself.
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