James Lawlor

@WeAreTheOverlap Lazy predictions here based on nostalgia; for starters Brazil have not made a Semi since 2002! My guess is only 4/5 of these predictions even made the QF

🏆 Tonight, the World Cup begins! Until then, here's how the Stick to Football team sees the tournament playing out 👀🌍

@TBLCFC Agreed, they seem well short bar a couple of outstanding individuals. For me the best pundits do their homework but this is just a lazy prediction. No way this Brazil side is getting through 4 knockout rounds.

I’m still not hearing a good argument for Brazil being contenders for this tournament that isn’t just “they’re Brazil”

@TFHBs I think we might be reading too much into South American qualifying tbh, I expect Ivory Coast to match them physically and have a bit more going forward tonight. Lack of goals for Ecuador can really matter in these tournaments, doubt they reach QF but let’s see!

Ecuador 🇪🇨 are going to go far in this tournament. Genuine dark horses

@Nadeem83Shafqat Fake news on the Semis . But correct on a handful of group games but the vast majority were shown . Rte (Ireland) showed all games.

@obrien_jonathan We’ve only ever won 2 World Cup matches (Italy and Saudi) not sure we are in a great position to lord it over other teams

We're four and a half games into this thing and I've already seen three teams who are plainly worse than Ireland. And that doesn't even include the Czech Republic.

@FootballInT80s Can handle the kick off times but the hydration breaks are ridiculous. Kill the tempo

There’s a lot of discourse around the kick-off times in this World Cup. We all knew it was being held in the US, in a different time zone, didn’t we? Were the kick-off times the same in 1994, or, because England weren’t there, did we simply not notice? Or do people just enjoy finding something to be outraged by in the age of social media?

@NoDunksInc There is no tournament called the Eurocup…

Which 8 countries have won the World Cup?

@NeilMac555 @quarterfirst4 May as well put your money in the fire

@quarterfirst4 I seen 40/1 on Draftkings

What price are USA on the high street across the pond?

@robggill There was a vote by FAI general assembly not to play, which passed by massive majority, its call democracy…get over it 🇮🇪

Just a reminder no-one would have objected to Ireland playing in the 2018 World Cup in Russia if we had qualified - 4 years after annexation of Crimea; shooting down MH17; 3 years after flattening Aleppo. So spare me the endless handwringing from Irish football correspondents.

@TomOHanlon17 Based on the charges it’s seem fair enough

@FeedTheSpud Only ever lost 2 WCQ at Azteca, never lost a World Cup game in normal time (1970 and 1986)

Did I hear that right? Just 2 defeats for Mexico at the Azteca in 65 years?? That simply can’t be true? That’s outrageous.

@offtheball Best case 5 points, more realistic 4 points. Mexico are at home and Korea are a battle hardened outfit with some genuine quality. Irelands Results would have been imo: 1-1 🇰🇷 D 2-1 🇿🇦 W 1-1 🇲🇽 D (both already through)

🗣️ 'We would have topped this group!' 🗣️ 'It is tough thinking of the parallel world we could be in right now!' The (lack of) quality on display in the opening game of the World Cup has Dion Fanning and Eoin Sheahan wondering what could have been... | ⚽️ The Football Show on Off The Ball with @Novibet_ie Over 18s only | gamblingcare.ie | Please gamble responsibly

@paddypower England 2014

Who is the worst team to ever play in the World Cup?

@RTEsport Switches to ITV during water break

🇲🇽 v 🇿🇦 The player, the fan and the nearly man... Kenny, Stephen and Richie share their World cup memories Watch all 104 games from the #FIFAWorldCup on RTÉ

@AllThingsROI Yes worst performance by a team since Qatar in the last opening game!

No harm to them and all but this South Africa team is really, really bad. Makes that World Cup FOMO a little bit worse. #FIFAWorldCup

@gcooney93 Yea won’t be happening on ITV or BBC so…

RTE taking a full ad break during water breaks - not even a split screen business - is awful!

@DanielHussey2 Azteca looking top ⚽️

Buzzing to do the first one of these ♥️ 2026 FIFA World Cup on TV tonight 🎥 20:00 - Mexico vs South Africa (RTÉ/ITV) 03:00 - South Korea vs Czechia (RTÉ/ITV)

@DiseaseShaker @FootballInT80s 1990 also a banger

@FootballInT80s ITV wins this round. The great Rod Argent with his "Aztec Gold". He would come back to do ITV's theme for the 1990 coverage.

BBC and ITV’s World Cup themes from Mexico 86

@FearfulDiamond @NeilMac555 I don’t agree, sure there should be minimum quotas per federation but after that it should be on sporting merit imo . To give an example NZ now qualify every time with zero effort, it’s not right tbh

@EconFactual @NeilMac555 It’s the World Cup, not the European Cup, and UEFA has more than enough bids.

🇭🇹 Haiti won the following matches to make it to the World Cup 🇱🇨 St Lucia (Rank 166) 🇦🇼 Aruba (Rank 189) 🇧🇧 Barbados (Rank 179) 🇨🇷 Costa Rica (Rank 53) 🇳🇮 Nicaragua x 2 (Rank 131) FIFA messed up with these extra Concacaf places