Quote:
Originally Posted by Yontsey
AWR, it was the last WC where USA was ranked high in the standings. I don't know if they got up to 5 or 6 but I'm pretty positive they were at least top 8. Those rankings don't mean much anyway, you're right.
I'd definitely get in on a league or something if they have one. Never heard of one personally but there's leagues for everything.
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I remember now (I think!), they were as high as 6 but fell to 9 or 10 just before the draw. Quantitative number crunching aside, the US has never been near the 6th best team in the world qualitatively (in spite of all my support!). The only meaningful use for the ranking is seeding the teams for the WC, which essential means the top 8 ranked teams will not meet in the Group stage - which of course is better for the tournament. I think the US was the highest ranked team in pot two for the draw. The rankings are not without any merit, I think, but should be taken with a large dose of salt. Just two cents.
I'll look out for a format we could use; there must be one sponsored by a UK newspaper.