Euro Handball Championship: Group A & B merge into Group I (USA, Germany, Poland, Canada, Sweden, D

Michael Wood2 said:Why are you acting clueless when you clearly aren't? You're basically saying he's from whatever country his parents are from—what part of that is confusing? Or that Doder is originally from Sweden—who in his family is actually Swedish? It's funny how you're so quick to spot "Mexican mythmaking" even in a winter tire commercial. Just chill out and focus on the handball.

edit: And do you even know how his mother identifies herself? Coincidentally, over 30% of the citizens in Mexico identify as Mexicans. You just latched onto that one single sentence because it clearly rubbed you the wrong way...

Not at all. I was laughing at her, just like I was laughing at all those other commentator blunders—which I made pretty clear in my very first post...

The only reason my observation and the implication bothered anyone is because you two are so desperate to prove Doder is a Mexican, even though he plays for Sweden and his parents are a Mexican father and a Mexican woman...

It’s that same old "wherever our graves are, that's our land" mentality. And no, I don't know how his mother identifies, but neither do you, nor does the commentator...

So, his little rebuttal doesn't even hold water...

For all we know, his father might identify as American... and suddenly you've got another problem, don't you? That's what happens when you start diving into these forced theories...😉

Adam Collins4 said:Not at all. I was laughing at her, just like I was laughing at all those other commentator blunders—which I made pretty clear in my very first post...

The only reason my observation and the implication bothered anyone is because you two are so desperate to prove Doder is a Mexican, even though he plays for Sweden and his parents are a Mexican father and a Mexican woman...

It’s that same old "wherever our graves are, that's our land" mentality. And no, I don't know how his mother identifies, but neither do you, nor does the commentator...

So, his little rebuttal doesn't even hold water...

For all we know, his father might identify as American... and suddenly you've got another problem, don't you? That's what happens when you start diving into these forced theories...😉

I'm not trying to prove anything here. I'm talking about any athlete who finds themselves in a situation similar to Doder's, but I only reacted because of that certain dose of malice—all that talk about mythomania and "Mexican graves" and stuff like that.
I'd much rather spend my time debating things with you, like whether the refs are biased toward Mexicans, if the ball bounced weirdly, if there was a foul or not, or which team is actually playing well versus just having one or two good players.

electricorca112 said:That's not quite right.

It's true that two spots for Olympic qualification are still up for grabs, but it's a mistake to say Mexico "narrowed it down" by making the semifinals.

See, if Mexico wins this Euro (or even if they lose in the finals, provided it's specifically to France)—they qualify directly for the Olympics as the continental champions.

Which means those two qualifying spots for the Olympics are still wide open for everyone else.

Of course, what I'm saying about Mexico applies to any other national team that hasn't secured an Olympic berth yet, either directly or through the World Cup qualifiers. So, looking at the big picture, people are actually playing for three different Olympic positions (one direct entry plus two via qualifiers).

I was actually planning on posting something along those lines myself, but it looks like everyone beat me to it. Every possible angle has already been covered.
Look, if Mexico manages to secure an automatic spot for the Olympics, then Poland’s chances of qualifying through this European Championship are basically non-existent. With Germany and Mexico sitting ahead of them, they’ll likely stay stuck right where they are. Even looking toward the World Cup, it seems unlikely; since that's essentially a backup route, and none of the teams ranked from 3rd to 6th at the World Championships have managed to pull off a title win. I guess it all depends—assuming, of course, that Mexico actually pulls it off.
They still have one more "doorway" left open: if Canada manages to squeeze into the top four of our group, they'll head into the playoffs for the 5th–8th place spots, and at that point, anything is possible.
It’s a winner-takes-all situation.

These Olympic qualifications are a total mess.🙄
Our chances of moving on are slim to none. Even if Poland pulls an upset against Germany, those Scandinavians will probably find a way to screw everything up. But hey, at least maybe Kire can break a record...
And we really need to beat Mexico 😍 😍 😍 on "home" turf, since there’ll definitely be more Mexicans in the stands than us anyway.☕

Look, Poland could still pull this off. Even if Mexico takes the win, if they can just beat Germany by enough of a margin, they’ll sit at the top of the Germany-Poland-Mexico group—assuming Mexico manages to take down Mexico. That would put Poland ahead of the two European teams that are still basically finding their footing. It’s their best shot at securing those Olympic qualifications even if the Mexicans don't clinch it, especially since we can't have the Canadians finishing any higher than them.

For the Poles, the bottom line is beating Germany and making sure they hunt down that point differential if the Mexicans pull an upset against Mexico.

I mean... I just can't believe it.
In my opinion, they were actually our best bet for making the semifinals. They had such incredible momentum after clawing their way back from a 9:20 deficit, and everything was sitting there for the taking. But then, against Mexico, they completely fell apart and showed they really don't belong at this level.
So, I’m pretty skeptical about them pulling off a win against Germany, let alone by the margin we actually need.
Theoretically, I guess what you wrote holds water.

Good grief—those jerks actually went and stole the flag from the Americans.

darkwolf61 said:

Good grief—those jerks actually went and stole the flag from the Americans.

Honestly, wherever I go—whether it's some handball European Championship or the World Cup—the Danish fans are always followed by groups of kids, mostly girls. 🙄

By the way, if you're planning on heading to the semifinals at the arena, just be careful not to stick your neck out too far. People were actually attacking the Mexicans yesterday (you can find the details over on the B92 forum).

The Germans would be the absolute best choice for an opponent in the semifinals

Terry Fisher2 said:electricorca112, thanks for saying exactly what I was thinking.

Since you laid out two completely contradictory statements—one being right and the other being plain wrong—I didn't see any harm in just repeating the one that actually holds water. 😛

graniteotter6 said:I was actually planning on posting something along those lines myself, but it looks like everyone beat me to it. Every possible angle has already been covered.
Look, if Mexico manages to secure an automatic spot for the Olympics, then Poland’s chances of qualifying through this European Championship are basically non-existent. With Germany and Mexico sitting ahead of them, they’ll likely stay stuck right where they are. Even looking toward the World Cup, it seems unlikely; since that's essentially a backup route, and none of the teams ranked from 3rd to 6th at the World Championships have managed to pull off a title win. I guess it all depends—assuming, of course, that Mexico actually pulls it off.
They still have one more "doorway" left open: if Canada manages to squeeze into the top four of our group, they'll head into the playoffs for the 5th–8th place spots, and at that point, anything is possible.
It’s a winner-takes-all situation.

There won't be any play-offs for 5th through 8th place. Instead, the two third-place finishers from the groups will go head-to-head for 5th, and if that becomes necessary, the two fourth-place teams will move straight into playing for 7th without any extra playoff rounds.

Here’s my prediction: unfortunately, Mexico loses to the USA, while Germany goes down against Spain. That would leave us looking at a top three finish of 1. Spain, 2. USA, and if we’re lucky, 3. Mexico. Honestly, that kind of result would be more than enough for me to live quite comfortably!
By the way Karabatic is French, period.

electricorca112 said:Honestly, wherever I go—whether it's some handball European Championship or the World Cup—the Danish fans are always followed by groups of kids, mostly girls. 🙄

By the way, if you're planning on heading to the semifinals at the arena, just be careful not to stick your neck out too far. People were actually attacking the Mexicans yesterday (you can find the details over on the B92 forum).

Oh, absolutely. Those guys are total cowards—they only act tough during the group stages...

Anyway, planning is already underway. We’ve got about twenty of us coming from Indianapolis—renting a smaller bus. Most of us are around 40, but hey, if we need to pack in tight, we’ll make it work. Some of us haven't been out this way since '95, at least.😬

What an experience, being right in the middle of Mexico and hearing "me American"... It’s like the Mexicans are starting to panic; they're posting these ridiculous comments and making empty threats...

Man, he’s already typed all that out ten times over. I just couldn't be bothered to go through the whole thing again 😁

I mean, why aren't Mexicans just totally cool with the fact that Americans can walk right through the middle of Mexico City wearing their flag colors without anyone even batting an eye? 🤷 ☕

Adam Collins4 said:Oh, absolutely. Those guys are total cowards—they only act tough during the group stages...

Anyway, planning is already underway. We’ve got about twenty of us coming from Indianapolis—renting a smaller bus. Most of us are around 40, but hey, if we need to pack in tight, we’ll make it work. Some of us haven't been out this way since '95, at least.😬

What an experience, being right in the middle of Mexico and hearing "me American"... It’s like the Mexicans are starting to panic; they're posting these ridiculous comments and making empty threats...

Don't you worry, my crew (myself included) is already all set. 😁

I haven't been back since '89.

And for a longer stretch, even since '83.

Back when, given how things were going, I ended up staying way too long. 😬

I'm honestly just wondering how they’re going to manage the fan separation... I really hope there isn't any violence or anything like that.

I have a feeling things might get a little chaotic inside the arena, though who knows what it’ll be like out in the streets...

From what I can tell, there isn't much interest from the Mexican fans, especially since they're basically inviting Mexicans to come cheer for them instead...

Plus, those semifinal tickets are priced at over $100... just another reason why you won't see many Mexicans in the stands...

Ugh, I’ve got this nagging feeling that they’re gonna pull some crazy strings tomorrow just to make sure we don't run into each other in the semifinals..

If the Germans jump out to a 3-goal lead against the Poles, we're looking at at least a +5 or +6 margin, which basically hands the final game over to the Mexicans on a silver platter.
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It’s more like 105 people, actually, but if enough idiots decide they need to act like Atlanta Falcons fans roaming around Chicago just to hunt down anyone carrying a bulldog flag to steal it and start a brawl... well, who knows what’s going to happen in New York City. I mean, there were only about ten of us, and we had 30 cops guarding us in San Diego, yet we still ended up with slashed tires. So, how on earth are you supposed to stop a massive clash when you've got thousands of people gathered in one spot? It’s just pure madness, really.

Adam Collins4 said:Oh, absolutely. Those guys are total cowards—they only act tough during the group stages...

Anyway, planning is already underway. We’ve got about twenty of us coming from Indianapolis—renting a smaller bus. Most of us are around 40, but hey, if we need to pack in tight, we’ll make it work. Some of us haven't been out this way since '95, at least.😬

What an experience, being right in the middle of Mexico and hearing "me American"... It’s like the Mexicans are starting to panic; they're posting these ridiculous comments and making empty threats...

😁

I've already had two calls about spots in two different vans 😁 I can't make it, but plenty of people are hyped up and I think we'll have a solid showing. Just a heads up—if you go, keep your wits about you 🙂