International Breaks

[Abseits]

All changing next season....

The two week breaks in September and October are being merged into ONE three week break where countries will play 4 games.

Effing hell! So just as domestic season is getting going, it shuts down for 3 bleeding weeks on 20/9/26.

Load of ######!

This change is locked in for 5 years at least.

[Fraggy]

Currently feels like there is an international break every 5 minutes.

[SheepRanger]

Gives us a long period to focus on our slow start that seems to happen every season due to our player turnover. It could work in our favour to help gell a new squad after the first batch of games.

It will hurt the teams already on a roll, but that isn't normally us.

[Abseits]

It's rubbish. I like going to games in me shorts, not me thermal longjohns - we are losing 5 or so games in the milder autumn period that will now get shoehorned into a crowded winter programme. I also feel pretty sure that our form massively dips EVERY season when the dark cold wintery nights kick-in (ie October in this flipping country).

I feel for L1 and L2 too. They don't have breaks but a handful of teams with some international players on their books can call their fixtures off and reschedule them. How will their leaguge tables look at end of October when clubs have FIVE games in hand? Will be ridiculous to manage.

[SheepRanger]

I'm in Vaduz, Liechtenstein right now having a few beers before the Wales game. I love the international breaks and its a great excuse to have a trip away and a bit of a party. I love supporting Qpr and Wales, so a three week break to support my country is fine by me.

Travelling and sightseeing in new countries and taking in an international is just brilliant. I've been to North Macedonia, Belgium, Kazakhstan and Liechtenstein due to international matches.

But I accept going with England away is a different proposition to supporters of the other home nations in the UK. I don't think you're as welcomed as the other nations are, so a lot have turned away from international football and it's club only and the break is a pain in the ar@e! Try telling the Welsh, Scots and Northern Irish that the international break is a waste of time.

[Stanfan]

Championship and below teams should just play on regardless of who gets called up.

[SheepRanger]

Championship and below teams should just play on regardless of who gets called up.

We'd play without Kone, Burrell, Haydon, Dunne, Smyth, Varane, Morgan & RND then.

[ragr]

Most teams would have a depleted squad availability. This is something that Rugby Union copes with by (mostly) carrying on through international series. Yes, there's a quality dip in the league games - it's a question of whether you'd put up with that in preference to nothing at all.

The other option during international breaks is to pick a non-league side as a second team and trot on down to one of those matches - the risk there is once we get a reminder of what football can be like there's a chance you'll reconsider re-entering the detachment zone.

[SheepRanger]

Who do we put on the field after nations have to release U21s at the same time? Also, Morgan was playing for England U20s wasn't he? I assume nation's U18s were playing too.....? Is the tea lady fit to play?

If missing QPR is such a strain at this time, I'm sure HQ will be a packed to the rafters today for the women's game against Luton.

[WeAreQPR12]

Too many international games because they want quantity over quality. Increasing the amount of teams to 48 for the next world cup is a ridiculous situation. I understand lesser sides want opportunities but it's crazy in terms of having a competitive competition.

[ragr]

Is the tea lady fit to play?

How’s her commitment?

[shaggy24]

How’s her commitment?

I bet tea lady fitter than jcs

[SheepRanger]

Too many international games because they want quantity over quality. Increasing the amount of teams to 48 for the next world cup is a ridiculous situation. I understand lesser sides want opportunities but it's crazy in terms of having a competitive competition.

Yeah, I went to Kazakhstan for the Wales game and that country is classed as being in Central Asia..same as the other "stans" that play in European Qualifiers. They should be in with Thailand & Vietnam. It boarders China FFS. What about Isreal, that's in the Middle East and is only in Europe because it would be too dangerous to play against the Arab nations.

Perhaps the likes of Liechtenstein, San Marino, Andorra etc should have a mini-play off just to get to the qualifiers to cut the numbers down?

But now they've formalised friendlies into the Nations League to create more TV revenue. You just know that if there's a gap they would put games in it. All this talk of a winter break in the Prem would get filled with promotional games in the USA and Saudi.

It's all about the money.........Just like Eubank's loss last night to set up the third of a trilogy so they get another £8m each.

[Abseits]

Too many international games because they want quantity over quality. Increasing the amount of teams to 48 for the next world cup is a ridiculous situation. I understand lesser sides want opportunities but it's crazy in terms of having a competitive competition.

It's not really, not much has actually changed international-wise, there have always been qualifying groups - theres just more groups nowadays, not more qualifying games for England.

For years the internationals were slotted in mostly midweek with no problems. The problem is that European club football, which used to be a fairly small knockout tournament, has morphed into a sprawling massive league format that has hoovered up dozens of midweek slots. The international breaks came about because it had become impossible to fit internationals into the schedule (though hilariously the narrative back then was the main reason for them was player welfare and protecting them from being run into the ground).

It seems inevitable to me that they'll bring in a 10-month league season soon. Season will start Aug 1 and not end until May 31, it's gradually crept that way over over past several years anyway.

[SheepRanger]

Two wins on the bounce after our players went on an international jolly and spa holiday.