My in-person experience was quite excellent. The people make the event, and the people we sat with from Curacao, CDI, and interested neutrals, were all phenomenal. The vibes were excellent.

And the usual headaches (long lines at the gate) were actually not as bad as I had expected.

Things were wildly overpriced, but that was to be expected. Lines for concessions were quite short, which was nice.

Also, from social media, it looks like folks form all over are having a blast here in the US. So that's nice. It's a shame Trump had to involve himself. I hope the winning squad snatches the trophy from Infantino before he gets to touch it.

Benzo Park down in Hotlanta is STILL NOT gouging on concessions even at its WC events. It floors me only one goddamned stadium in this country can be cool about this subject. Continued hats off to them!

I hadn't read about MB concessions before. Combined with Augusta....wow....that's really refreshingn to read

-->Checks receipts from Wrigley Field last week and cries

You could get a refillable soda for like $4.50 in a souvenir cup.

There are still the expensive things, but there are specific family pricing - even beer that are not stadium gouging prices like everywhere else.

Heck, I paid more for food/drink at the local minor league stadium (high-A ball) than I did at the CFP championship

concession prices low lest his Augusta National buddies consider him gauche.
It's also funny that Falcons fans complain about the chick-fil-a not being open on Sundays, but as an ATL United ticket holder, I generally don't have that concern as soccer games are mostly held on Saturdays and the occasional Wednesday.

And somewhat justify the ticket prices. If I were to agree with your theory, he'd have had to make those changes at the Georgia Dome once he bought the Falcons. He didn't, unless my recollection is way off. It's possible the operating agreement was different, but I still think the Falcons had a lot of say.

And I don't think I've ever heard anybody complain about CFA being closed on Sundays at the stadium (MBS or Truist). People know.

Sundays?

Like, it's not CFA, but they still use the stalls?

space with CFA branding and equipment. That is just closed on Sundays and they don't sublease this space as far as I know. In one of the club sections, there is a local upscale burger stall that sells a chicken sandwich that would be similar, but I don't think there are any vendors inside the stadium that poke fun at the CFA Sunday tradition. Outside the stadium, one of the local celebrity chefs opened a restaurant that featured the "Closed on Sundays" or "COS" sandwich, but I'm not sure if that's still around.

still the best in my mind. Germany did a fantastic job hosting. While Spain shit the bed in 16s (curse you Zizou) you could see the markings of something special being built as the team transitioned from Raul’s era to Villa/Torres/Iniesta. France makes an incredible run even though people thought them decrepit and certainly not a favorite. The great Italian team with Cannavaro, Gattuso, Del Piero, Totti and Pirlo. Good German and Brazilian teams. Great semi-final wars. Final filled with drama. An excellent World Cup.

I don't think you could even consider it the best ever until after the final and some time has passed.

It has created a few one-sided matchups (predictably) but lots of great matches and the crowds have been terrific.

… and my answer after the sponsorship commercials is “nope”

I would rank 1998, 2002 and 2014 as far far better.

because of the additional games, but many/all of the outlets conveniently ignore that fact because that doesn't grab eyeballs. The tournament expanded from 24 teams to 32 teams in 1998, we now have double the teams that we had in the 1994 World Cup.

If we bid for the 2038 tournament, as is being rumored, I wonder if we go it alone or do it again with Canada and Mexico.

So a team that makes the finals plays 8 games instead of 7. I guess if Ford Frick hands out asterisks for 162 vs 154, you’re not alone in your thinking, but it doesn’t seem like a huge difference to me. Didn’t they score a lot more goals per game back in the 70s and earlier?

Now, to argue against myself, you did have teams like Uruguay and South Korea fail to get out of the group stage, which I wouldn't have expected.

I don't mind the records being broken but every time I turn on coverage, the Golden Boot status inevitably shows up on the screen.

The minnows have played surprisingly well, although playing weaker teams may have helped the goal total. Plus it has been easier for the major powers to get a 4th or 5th game and not crash out in the group stage.

The attendance records are definitely a products of additional teams and games

There weren’t all that many compelling matchups, and hardly any decent teams were ever in danger of not progressing.

But the knockout stage has been fantastic so far.

than necessarily indicatove of a lower relative entertainment value of the games themselves. I agree it was perhaps less... on edge drama with potential high profile teams crashing out early.

Not compelling evidence against your point, but there was minimal drama at least. But there was I thought similar group competition and excitement as other WCs. But not some heartbreak like you are saying as in WCs past.