FIFA Considering Eliminating Draws at The World Cup

As FIFA looks for ways to improve the Beautiful Game, soccer's governing body is looking into the idea of eliminating draws from the Group Stage of the World Cup in time for Brazil 2014. All matches that end in draws after ninety minutes would advance directly to a penalty shootout.

The current group stage setup is the common group stage scenario in most tournaments around the world. In the case of the World Cup, there are four teams per group. Each team plays each other once. Three points for a win. One point for a tie.

Apparently, the elimination of the draw would make the World Cup "more exciting."

The World Cup is not already exciting enough?

In fact, is it just me, or do draws make the tournament that much more interesting? Think about Group C from this past tournament. That was the Group of Draws. England drew with the United States, who drew with Slovenia, who drew with Algeria. In fact, it was the United States' two comeback draws that put them into position for the last sixteen heading into the Algeria match. The game nearly ended in a draw and sent the US home! They scored in the 91st minute from Landon Donovan to advance, to draw again with Ghana before falling in extra time.

The setup is fine the way it is. Draws make the group scenario interesting. The way I see it, if Spain needs a win (more than one point because changing would probably make it two points shootout win, one point loss) and their final match ends in a draw, you just know Spain's got the best shot of winning that shootout. Maybe that team only needed the one point to advance. Why tamper with the system that already works so well, and has for EIGHTY YEARS!

Basically what FIFA's saying is that draws make the tournament less exciting. Is that the case in the UEFA Champions' League? No. The Champions' League Group Stage is one of the best parts of the tournament. If a small club like Unirea comes into Old Trafford and ties Manchester United in a crucial game, that could blow the entire tournament wide open.

Every point is hard earned. If you have a team like the United States, who fought for their two incredible draws this past June, end up with one point and England and Slovenia each get two and their efforts go for naught (the United States won their group on goal difference in a tie with England and finished one point ahead of Slovenia), that is not fair at all. The excitement comes from a small team drawing with a big team and making things easier for themselves while putting the big team in a tough spot.

FIFA may want to think very carefully about this decision. The FIFA World Cup is the most watched, most celebrated tournament in the world. The world practically stops for this month long festival of the world's greatest sport. I refer to one of my favorite sayings: "if it ain't broke, why fix it?" The World Cup has run smoothly, with maybe some minor changes, for eighty years. There have been nineteen World Cups, nineteen remarkable World Cups. There is no need to change the Group Stage to add penalty kicks to draws. That is just absurd.