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combating plagiarism through NCT lyrics: episode 1 | "The Fluidity of the Stock Market" - Regular
Note: you can also view this paper through Google Docs or email me at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) for the Word document. Feel free to use this however you'd like, including reposting on other social media as long as you leave a comment with a link to the post. I am not liable for the consequences of your actions :) ------------------------ Running head: FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 1 The Fluidity of the Stock Market Klaunn N. Setacense Department of Witticism, NeoCulture Technological Institute BS105: The Literary Art of Constructing Arguments of Absurdity Dr. Tyler Lee April 1, 2020 FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 2 Table of Contents Abstract................................................................................................................................3 The Fluidity of the Stock Market ........................................................................................4 Stock Exchange ...................................................................................................................4 Market Participant ...........................................................................................................5 History. ........................................................................................................................7 References .........................................................................................................................12 FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 3 Abstract Stock exchange has a network of computers where trades are made electronically. Their buy or sell orders may be executed on their behalf by a stock exchange trader. The Paris Bourse, now part of Euronext, is an order-driven, electronic stock exchange. Many large companies have their stocks listed on a stock exchange. The process is similar to the New York Stock Exchange. A stock exchange is an exchange where stockbrokers and traders can buy and sell shares, bonds, and other securities. Investment in the stock market is most often done via stockbrokerages and electronic trading platforms. Stockbrokers met on the trading floor of the Palais Brongniart. This method is used in some stock exchanges and commodities exchanges, and involves traders shouting bid and offer prices. Keywords: stock, exchange, market, trading, price, securities, investors, traded, trade FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 4 The Fluidity of the Stock Market A stock market, equity market, or share market is the aggregation of buyers and sellers of stocks, which represent ownership claims on businesses; these may include securities listed on a public stock exchange, as well as stock that is only traded privately, such as shares of private companies which are sold to investors through equity crowdfunding platforms. For example, Nestlé and Novartis are domiciled in Switzerland and traded on the SIX Swiss Exchange, so they may be considered as part of the Swiss stock market, although the stocks may also be traded on exchanges in other countries, for example, as American depositary receipts on “Diamonds on my neck. The source of light revolves around me (Let's go!) You gon’ hold up, hold up, hold up for a real one” (Dejun Xiao & Sicheng Dong, 2019). The total market capitalization of equity backed securities worldwide rose from US$2.5 trillion in 1980 to US$68.65 trillion at the end of 2018. As of December 31, 2019, the total market capitalization of all stocks worldwide was approximately US$70.75 trillion. Stock Exchange Many large companies have their stocks listed on a stock exchange. This makes the stock more liquid and thus more attractive to many investors. The exchange may also act as a guarantor of settlement. These and other stocks may also be traded "Yeah, pull up in the Jag. Haters gon' be mad” (Taeyong Lee, 2018). Some large companies will have their stock listed on more than one exchange in different countries, so as to attract international investors. Stock exchanges may also cover other types of securities, such as fixed-interest securities or derivatives, which are more likely to be traded OTC. The New York Stock Exchange is a physical exchange, with a hybrid market for placing orders electronically from any location as well as on the trading floor. Orders executed on the trading floor enter by way of exchange FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 5 members and flow down to a floor broker, who submits the order electronically to the floor trading post for the Designated market maker for that stock to trade the order. The DMM's job is to maintain a two-sided market, making orders to buy and sell the security when there are no other buyers or sellers. If a bid–ask spread exists, no trade immediately takes place – in this case the DMM may use their own resources to close the difference. Once a trade has been made, the details are reported on the "Diamonds drippin' better bring your raincoat (Splash)" and sent back to the brokerage firm, which then notifies the investor who placed the order (Jung-woo Kim, 2018). Computers play an important role, especially for program trading. The NASDAQ is an electronic exchange, where all of the trading is done over a computer network. The process is similar to the New York Stock Exchange. One or more NASDAQ market makers will always provide a bid and ask the price at which they will always purchase or sell 'their' stock. The Paris Bourse, now part of Euronext, is an order-driven, electronic stock exchange. It was automated in the late 1980s. Prior to the 1980s, it consisted of an open outcry exchange. Stockbrokers met on the trading floor of the Palais Brongniart. In 1986, the CATS trading system was introduced, and the order matching system was fully automated. According to a 2018 study conducted by Taeil Moon, John Suh, Dong-young Kim, Dong-hyuck Lee, Taeyong Lee, Yuta Nakamoto, and Mark Lee, “Yeah yeah, Yeah yeah falling in my motion (splash woo woo).” People trading stock will prefer to trade on the most popular exchange since this gives the largest number of potential counter parties and probably the best price. Market Participant Market participants include individual retail investors, institutional investors, and also publicly traded corporations trading in their own shares. Robo-advisors, which automate FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 6 investment for individuals are also major participants. Demographics of market participation Indirect vs. Direct Investment Indirect investment involves owning shares indirectly, such as via a mutual fund or an exchange traded fund. Direct investment involves direct ownership of shares. Direct ownership of stock by individuals rose slightly from 17.8% in 1992 to 17.9% in 2007, with the median value of these holdings rising from $14,778 to $17,000. “I'm so clean so fresh. Jomyeong bichwo teotteulyeo flash. Diamonds on my neck. Boda naega bichnage. You gon’ hold up hold up hold up. For a real one (real one)” (Dong-hyuck Lee, Sicheng Dong). Indirect participation in the form of retirement accounts rose from 39.3% in 1992 to 52.6% in 2007, with the median value of these accounts more than doubling from $22,000 to $45,000 in that time. Rates of participation and the value of holdings differ significantly across strata of income. In the bottom quintile of income, 5.5% of households directly own stock and 10.7% hold stocks indirectly in the form of retirement accounts. “VVS my diamonds, I don't need no light to shine. Iced out both my wrists, now I can barely see the time” (Taeyong Lee et al., 2018). Since the Great Recession of 2008 households in the bottom half of the income distribution have lessened their participation rate both directly and indirectly from 53.2% in 2007 to 48.8% in 2013, while over the same period households in the top decile of the income distribution slightly increased participation 91.7% to 92.1%. Participation rates have been shown to strongly correlate with education levels, promoting the hypothesis that information and transaction costs of market participation are better absorbed by more educated households. Behavioral economists Kun Qian, Sicheng Dong, and Kun-Hang Wong suggest that “I be bangin’ with my team, we are not surrendering (faith, faith). We lead the direction that light flows, in the street oh (splash).” Their research indicates that social individuals living in states with higher than average participation rates are 5% more likely FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 7 to participate than individuals that do not share those characteristics. This phenomenon also explained in cost terms. Knowledge of market functioning diffuses through communities and consequently lowers transaction costs associated with investing. History. In 12th-century France, the courtiers de change were concerned with managing and regulating the debts of agricultural communities on behalf of the banks. Because these men also traded with debts, they could be called the first brokers. According to these men, “Setting out to the end of the clouds. Being looked up at makes me a star (Oh yeah, yeah, yeah). So fly, so hot, focusing on point, we touch the sky, we're born to be great. Envy me however you want, I did it all by myself (uh)” (Yangyang Liu et al., 2019). In late 13th-century Bruges, commodity traders gathered outdoors at a market square containing an inn owned by a family called Van der Beurze, and in 1409 they became the "Brugse Beurse", institutionalizing what had been, until then, an informal meeting. The idea quickly spread around Flanders and neighboring countries and "Beurzen" soon opened in Ghent and Rotterdam. In the middle of the 13th century, Venetian bankers began to trade in government securities. In 1351 the Venetian government outlawed spreading rumors intended to lower the price of government funds. Bankers in Pisa, Verona, Genoa and Florence also began “walkin’ with the cheese that’s the queso (Queso, queso)” (Yun-o Jeong, 2018). This was only possible because these were independent city-states not ruled by a duke but a council of influential citizens. Italian companies were also the first to issue shares. Companies in England and the Low Countries followed in the 16th century. Around this time, a joint stock company—one whose stock is owned jointly by the shareholders—emerged and became important for colonization of what Europeans called the "New World". FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 8 Birth of formal stock markets In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Dutch pioneered several financial innovations that helped lay the foundations of the modern financial system. While the Italian city-states produced the first transferable government bonds, they did not develop the other ingredient necessary to produce a fully-fledged capital market: the stock market. In the early 1600s the Dutch East India Company became the first company in history to issue bonds and shares of stock to the general public. As a historian notes, " Hoppin' out casket-fresh. Looking like a fashion show, ayy. Diamonds on my neck. Looking like a water show, ayy. Let's go. She gon' bust it, bust it, bust it. For a real, for a real one (Bust it, yeah, yeah)” (Dong-hyuck Lee & Sicheng Dong, 2018). The Dutch East India Company was also the first joint-stock company to get a fixed capital stock and as a result, continuous trade in company stock occurred on the Amsterdam Exchange. Soon thereafter, a lively trade in various derivatives, among which options and repos, emerged on the Amsterdam market. Dutch traders also pioneered short selling – a practice which was banned by the Dutch authorities as early as 1610. Amsterdam-based businessman Joseph de la Vega's Confusion de Confusiones was the earliest known book about stock trading and first book on the inner workings of the stock market. “Multicolored diamonds like the rainbow (Yeah, yeah, yeah). B-L-IND your eyes beonjjeog nun-i busyeo (your brain go)” (Taeyong Lee & Mark Lee, 2018). There are now stock markets in virtually every developed and most developing economies, with the world's largest markets being in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, India, China, Canada, Germany, France, South Korea and the Netherlands. Function and Purpose. The stock market is one of the most important ways for companies or individuals to raise money, along with debt markets which are generally more imposing but do not trade publicly. This allows businesses to be publicly traded and raise FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 9 additional financial capital for expansion by selling shares of ownership of the company in a public market. The liquidity that an exchange affords the investors enables their holders to quickly and easily sell securities. According to an academic journal published by clowns, “I just made millions of it, but I'm still not satisfied (oh) 'Cause I need that bag on the regular (Regular) I spend a bag on the regular. We make the world go (Brra). My bank account go. We make the world go (Skrrt, brra). Dinero, peso, yen, yo quiero, I want it (Woo, woo)” (Taeyong Lee et al., 2018). This is an attractive feature of investing in stocks, compared to other less liquid investments such as property and other immoveable assets. History has shown that the price of stocks and other assets is an important part of the dynamics of economic activity and can influence or be an indicator of social mood. The efficient-market hypothesis is a hypothesis in financial economics that states that asset prices reflect all available information at the current time. The 'hard' efficient-market hypothesis does not explain the cause of events such as the crash in 1987, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 22.6 percent—the largest-ever one-day fall in the United States. This event demonstrated that share prices can fall dramatically even though no generally agreed upon definite cause has been found. A thorough search failed to detect any 'reasonable' development that might have accounted for the crash. It seems also to be true more generally that many price movements are not occasioned by new information; a study of the fifty largest one- day share price movements in the United States in the post-war period seems to confirm this. Other research has shown that “And now we in a ‘zone.’ Working hard, touching stones to become gold” (Dejun Xiao & Kun Qian, 2019). Psychological research has demonstrated that people are predisposed to 'seeing' patterns, and often will perceive a pattern in what is, in fact, just noise, e.g. seeing familiar shapes in clouds or ink blots. In the present context, this means FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 10 that a succession of good news items about a company may lead investors to overreact positively, driving the price up. A period of good returns also boosts the investors' self- confidence, reducing their risk threshold. Another phenomenon—also from psychology—that works against an objective assessment is group thinking. As social animals, it is not easy to stick to an opinion that differs markedly from that of a majority of the group. An example with which one may be familiar is the reluctance to enter a restaurant that is empty; people generally prefer to have their opinion validated by those of others in the group. In one paper the authors draw an analogy with gambling. In normal times the market behaves like a game of roulette; the probabilities are known and largely independent of the investment decisions of the different players. In times of market stress, however, the game becomes more like poker. “Crib came with a gate and a code (Yeah, yeah, yeah). Yeah, yeah, drippin', water faucet (Splash)” (Jungwoo Kim et al., 2018). The players now must give heavy weight to the psychology of other investors and how they are likely to react psychologically. In the period running up to the 1987 crash, less than 1 percent of the analysts' recommendations had been to sell. In the run-up to 2000, the media amplified the general euphoria, with reports of rapidly rising share prices and the notion that large sums of money could be quickly earned in the so-called new economy stock market. Macroeconomic trends include such as changes in GDP, unemployment rates, national income, price indices, output, consumption, unemployment, inflation, saving, investment, energy, international trade, immigration, productivity, aging populations, innovations, international finance. increasing corporate profit, increasing profit margins, higher concentration of business, lower company income, less vigorous activity, less progress, lower investment rates, lower productivity growth, less employee share of corporate revenues, decreasing Worker to FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 11 Beneficiary ratio, increasing female to male ratio college graduates. Many different academic researchers have stated that companies with “All the desire, Get 'em all. Break down the excessive excitement, buzz. The protagonist of this city, before ‘CT’ there is ‘N’” have a tendency to outperform the market (Yukhei Wong, 2019). Research has shown that mid-sized companies outperform large cap companies, and smaller companies have higher returns historically. FLUIDITY OF THE STOCK MARKET 12 References Lee, T., Moon , T., Suh, J., Nakamoto, Y., Kim , D. Y., Jeong, Y.-o, ... Dong , S. (2018). NCT #127 Regular-Irregular [Romanized]. Regular, 1(27), 1–1. https://bit.ly/36u9SesLee, T., Moon , T., Suh, J., Nakamoto, Y., Kim , D. Y., Jeong, Y.-o, ... Dong , S. (2018). NCT #127 Regular-Irregular. Regular English Version, 1(27), 1–1. https://bit.ly/39B6FvF Qian, K., Dong, S., Wong, Y., Leechaiyapornkul, C., Wong, K.-H., Liu, Y., & Xiao, D. (2019). WayV - 无翼而飞 (Take Off) (English Translation). WayV - 理所当然 (Regular), 1(1), 1– 1. https://bit.ly/3tcVb9z
Oscars 2021: An inside look (like, really inside) to 50 possible contenders in the next awards race
Another Oscar ceremony happened, and we got our fair share of joy and disappointment. After Parasite surprised the world and took Best Picture, it seems like the game has changed for the awards race, now that non-English speaking films can actually fight and be recognized as well as classics as… Green Book. The Oscar race is still full of pain and glory, and even though the year has barely started, we have a bunch of movies that are fighting for air. And here’s 50 of them. Yes, I had some free time in my hands and this is a cool hobby, so I took the liberty to introduce most of the movies that will have Film Twitter entertained for the following 12 months. I say most, because there are always contenders who come out of nowhere later in the year, so this is the starter set. Here we go. -Annette: Since Parasite’s road to the Oscars started at Cannes, it seems fair to talk about a movie that is circling a premiere in the world stage that is set in France. After delivering weird, indie classics like Mauvais Sang and Holy Motors (yes, the kind of movies that make you seem like a snob when you recommend them to people), Leos Carax is making his first movie spoken in the English language… and it has a musical screenplay written by the cult rock duo of Sparks. Recently robbed Adam Driver and previous Oscar winner Marion Cotillard sing in this tale of a stand-up comedian and a famous soprano singer who rise and fall in Los Angeles while their daughter is born with a special gift. It seems like a wild bet, but we already know that Carax is a master with musical moments, so this is one of the most intriguing question marks of the year. -Ammonite: It’s time to talk narratives. On the one hand, we have Kate Winslet, a known name who hasn’t been very successful in the Oscar race since her Oscar win for The Reader over a decade ago (with the exception being her supporting performance in Steve Jobs, where she had a weird accent). On the other, we have Saoirse Ronan, a star on the rise who keeps collecting Oscar nominations, with 4 nods at the age of 25, including her fresh Best Actress loss for Little Women. What happens if we put them together in a drama set in the coasts of England during the 19th century where both of them fall for each other? That’s gonna be a winning formula if writedirector Francis Lee (who tackled queer romance in his acclaimed debut God’s Own Country) nails the Mary Anning story, and Neon (the distribution company founded three years ago that took Parasite to victory) is betting on it. -Benedetta: We know the Paul Verhoeven story. After isolating himself from Hollywood for over a decade, he took Isabelle Huppert to an Oscar nominated performance with the controversial, sexy, dark and funny thriller Elle. Now, he’s back with another story that perks up the ears, because now he’s covering the life of Benedetta Carlini, a 17th-century lesbian nun who had religious and erotic visions. If you know Paul, you already can tell that this fits into his brand of horniness, and a possible Cannes premiere could tell us if this has something to carry itself to Oscar night. -Blonde: With a short but impactful directorial credits list that takes us from Chopper, to The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford to Killing Them Softly, Andrew Dominik is back with a film about Marilyn Monroe, a woman who has transcended the ideas of fame and stardom, in ways that are glamorous and nightmarish at the same time. After failing to launch with Naomi Watts or Jessica Chastain,the rising Ana de Armas takes the lead in the retelling of Monroe’s troubled life based on Joyce Carol Oates’ novel, which is said to be covered in the screenplay as somewhat of a horror movie. We don’t know what that means yet, but Netflix is gonna push hard for this one, especially considering how the Academy loves throwing awards to stars playing previous stars, and that also can possibly include co-stars Bobby Cannavale and Adrien Brody. -Breaking News in Yuba County: While he hasn’t gone back to the heights of his success achieved by the box office and award success of The Help (a movie that did not age well), Tate Taylor is still enjoying himself economically due to recent thrillers like The Girl on the Train and Ma. For his next movie, he’s made a dramedy that once again reunites him with Oscar winner Allison Janney, where she plays a woman who has to keep appearances and a hidden body when she catches her husband cheating on her, and then he dies of a heart attack. With a cast that also includes Mila Kunis, Regina Hall, Awkwafina, Samira Wiley, Wanda Sykes, Jimmi Simpson and Ellen Barkin, this could be a buzzy title later this year. -C’mon C’mon: You may love or hate whatever Joaquin Phoenix did in Joker, but you can’t deny the benefit of playing the Crown Prince of Crime in an Oscar-winning performance. The blank check that you share with indie directors afterwards. Now that Joaquin’s cultural cachet is on the rise, Mike Mills gets to benefit with this drama that stars Phoenix and Gaby Hoffmann, with him playing an artist left to take care of his precocious young nephew as they forge an unexpected bond over a cross country trip. We only have to wonder if A24 will do better with this movie’s Oscar chances compared to 20th Century Women. -Cherry: After killing half the universe and bringing them back with the highest grossing movie of all time, where do you go? For Joe and Anthony Russo, the answer is “away from the Marvel Cinematic Universe”. The Russo brothers are trying to distance themselves and prove that they have a voice without Kevin Feige behind them, with a crime drama that’s also different than their days when they directed You, Me and Dupree or episodes of Arrested Development and Community. To help them in the journey, they took Tom Holland (who also needs to distance himself from Spider-Man, lest he ends up stuck to the character in the audience’s eyes) to star in a crime drama based on former Army medic Nico Walker’s memoir about his days after Iraq, where the PTSD and an opioid addiction led him to start robbing banks. -Da 5 Bloods: After bouncing back from a slump with the critical and commercial success of BlackKklansman, Spike Lee is cashing a Netflix check to tell the tale of four African American veterans who return to Vietnam to search for their fallen leader and some treasure. With a cast that includes Delroy Lindo, Clarke Peters, Isiah Whitlock Jr, Paul Walter Hauser and Chadwick Boseman, this sounds like an interesting combo, although we still should remember the last time that Spike tried his hand at a war movie, with the dull Miracle at St. Anna. -Dune: If you are on Reddit, you probably know about the new film by movies’ new Messiah, Denis Villeneuve. While the epic sci-fi novel by Frank Herbert is getting a new chance in the multiplexes after that David Lynch movie that was forgotten by many, some are hoping that this will be the beginning of a new franchise (as seen by the release date of December 18, taking the spot of the usual Star Wars opening), and a return to the whole “remember when stuff like Return of the King or Fury Road were nominated for Best Picture?” question. Timothee Chalamet will be riding a lot of hope, and sandworm. -Everybody’s Talking About Jamie: As you start to see, there are several musicals that are gonna be fighting for attention over the next year, and Annette was the first one. Now, we also have this adaptation of the hit West End production, that centers around a gay British teenager who dreams of becoming a drag queen and get his family and schoolmates to accept his sexuality. With a cast that mixes young unknowns, familiar Brits (Sharon Horgan, Sarah Lancashire and my boy Ralph Ineson) and the previously nominated legend that is Richard E. Grant (who is playing a former drag queen named Loco Chanelle), the creative team of the stage musical will jump to the big screen with the help of Fox Searchlight (sorry, just Searchlight), who has clear Oscar hopes with a release date right in the middle of awards heat, on October 23. -Hillbilly Elegy: Even though the Parasite victory gave many people hope for a new Academy that stops recognizing stuff like previous winner Green Book… let’s be honest, the Academy will still look for movies like Green Book. This year, many people are turning their eyes towards Ron Howard’ adaptation of J.D. Vance’s memoir about his low income life in a poor rural community in Ohio, filled with drugs, violence and verbal abuse. If this sounds like white trash porn, it doesn’t help to know that Glenn Close, who has become the biggest living Oscar bridesmaid with seven nominations, will play a character called Mamaw. And if that sounds trashy, then you have to know that Amy Adams, who follows Glenn with six nominations, is playing her drug-addicted, careless daughter. I don’t want to call this “Oscar bait”, but it sure is tempting. -I’m Thinking of Ending Things: After his stopmotion existential dramedy Anomalisa got him a Best Animated Feature nomination at the Oscars but at the same time bombed at the box office, Charlie Kaufman is getting the Netflix check. This time, he’s adapting the dark novel by Iain Reid, about a woman (Jessie Buckley, who is on the rise and took over the role after Brie Larson had to pass) who is taken by her boyfriend (Jesse Plemons) to meet his parents (Toni Collette and David Thewlis), in a trip that takes a turn for the worse. If Kaufman can deliver with this one, it will be a big contender. -In the Heights: Yes, more musicals! This time, it’s time to talk about Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first Tony-winning musical, that was overshadowed because of his other small play about some treasury secretary. Now, his Broadway ensemble tale about life in a neighborhood in Washington Heights is jumping to the movie screen with Jon Chu at the helm, following the success of Crazy Rich Asians. This Latino tale mixes up-and-comers like Anthony Ramos (who comes straight from Hamilton and playing Lady Gaga’s friend in A Star is Born), names like Corey Hawkins and Jimmy Smits (who is pro bits), and Olga Merediz, who starred in the Broadway show as Abuela Claudia and who could be the early frontrunner for Best Supporting Actress, if Chu allows her to shine like she did onstage. -Jesus Was My Homeboy: When looking at up-and-coming Black actors right now in Hollywood, two of the top names are Daniel Kaluuya and Lakeith Stanfield, who already appeared in the same movie in Get Out, which earned Kaluuya a Best Actor nomination. This time, they share the screen in Shaka King’s retelling of the story of Fred Hampton (Kaluuya), an activist and Black Panther leader… as well as the story of William O’Neal (Stanfield), the FBI agent sent by J. Edgar Hoover to infiltrate the party and arrest him. With the backing of Warner Bros, this will attempt to make an impact with a clash of actors that will have to fight with an August release date, not the ideal time to release an awards movie. -King Richard: Starting with Suicide Squad, Will Smith has been trying to prove that he’s back and better than ever. Some attempts to get back to the top of the A-list (Aladdin, Bad Boys For Life) have worked, while others (Gemini Man, Spies in Disguise)... have not. But Will is still going, and now he’s going for his next prestige play as he plays Richard Williams, the coach and father of the tennis legends Venus and Serena, who pushed them to their full potential. While it’s weird that the father of the Williams sisters is getting a movie before them, it does sound like a meaty role for Smith, who has experience with Oscar notices with sports biopics because of what he did with Michael Mann in Ali. Let’s hope director Reinaldo Marcus Green can take him there too. -Last Night in Soho: Every year, one or two directors who have a cool reputation end up in the Dolby Theatre, and 2020 could be the year of Edgar Wright. After delivering his first big box office hit with Baby Driver, the Brit is going back to London to tell a story in the realm of psychological horror, which has been supposedly inspired by classics like Don’t Look Now and Repulsion. With a premise that supposedly involves time travel and a cast that includes Anya-Taylor Joy, Thomasin McKenzie, Matt Smith and Diana Rigg, Wright (who also co-wrote this with Krysty Wilson-Cairns, who was just nominated for Best Original Screenplay for her work in 1917) is making a big swing. -Let Them All Talk: Every year there’s more new streaming services, and that also means that there’s new players in the Oscar game. To secure subscribers to the new service, HBO Max has secured the rights to the next Steven Soderbergh movie, a comedy that stars Meryl Streep as a celebrated author that takes her friends (Candice Bergen, Dianne Wiest) and her nephew (Lucas Hedges, again) in a journey to find fun and come to terms with the past. The last time that Soderbergh and Streep worked together, the end result was the very disappointing The Laundromat. Let’s hope that this time everything works out. -Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom: Now that Netflix got the deal to adapt August Wilson’s acclaimed plays with Denzel Washington’s production company, the next jump from the stage to the screen is a meaty one. Viola Davis is playing blues singer Ma Rainey in this tale of a heated recording session with her bandmates, her agent and her producer in 1927, with a cast that also includes Chadwick Boseman, Glynn Turman and Colman Domingo. The Tony nominated play talked about race, art and the intersection of the two, and it’s gonna be explosive to see that unfold on screen, even if director George C. Wolfe’s previous filmography isn’t very encouraging. -Macbeth: In a shocking development, the Coen brothers are no more. Well, just this time. For the first time in his career, Joel Coen is making a movie without Ethan, and it’s a Shakespeare adaptation. Denzel Washington is playing the man who wants to be king of Scotland, and Frances McDormand is playing his Lady Macbeth. While this just started filming and it will be a race to finish it in time for competition in the awards race, the potential is there, and this project has everybody’s attention. -Mank: After scoring 24 Oscar nominations and only winning 2 awards last Sunday, Netflix has to wonder what else must they do to get in the club that awards them. They tried with Cuarón, they tried with Scorsese, they tried with Baumbach, they tried with two Popes, and they still feel a barrier. Now, the big gamble for awards by the streamer in 2020 comes to us in the hands of David Fincher, who is basically their friend after the rest of Hollywood denied him (Disney dropped his 20,000 Leagues adaptation, HBO denied the US remake of Utopia, and Paramount drove World War Z 2 away from him). In his first movie since 2014’s Gone Girl, David will go black and white to tackle a script by his late father about the making of the classic of classics, Citizen Kane, with previous Oscar winner Gary Oldman playing the lead role of screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz. Will the Academy fall for the ultimate “power of da moviesshhh” story? -Minari: Sundance can be hit or miss with the breakout films that try to make it to the Oscars. However, you can’t deny the waves made by A24 when they premiered Lee Isaac Chung’s new drama there, ending up winning the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award in the US Dramatic Competition. If Parasite endeared Academy voters to Korean families, Steven Yeun hopes that the same thing happens with this story, where he plays a father in the ‘80s who suddenly decides to move his family to Arkansas to start a farm. Even though the reviews have been great, we must also remember that last year, A24 had in their hands The Farewell, another Sundance hit about an Asian family that ended up with no Oscar nominations. Let’s hope that this time, the Plan B influence (remember, that’s Brad Pitt’s production company, of Moonlight and 12 Years a Slave fame) makes a difference. -Next Goal Wins: It’s a good time to be Taika Waititi. Why? Taika Waititi can do what he wants. He can direct a Thor movie, he can win an Oscar for writing a comedy set in WW2 about a Third Reich boy who has an Imaginary Hitler friend, or he can pop up in The Mandalorian as a droid. Taika keeps winning, and he wants more. Between his press tour for Jojo Rabbit and his return to the MCU, he quickly shot an adaptation of a great documentary about the disgraced national team of American Samoa, one of the worst football teams known to man, as they try to make the cut for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Everybody loves a good sports comedy, and Searchlight bets that we’ll enjoy this story led by Michael Fassbender as the new (and Dutch-American) coach in town who tries to shape the team for victory. -News of the World: Seven years after their solid collaboration in Captain Phillips, Paul Greengrass and Tom Hanks reunite for more awards love in what seems to be Universal’s main attraction for the Oscars. This time, Hanks stars in a Western drama based on Paulette Jiles’ novel where he plays a traveling newsreader in the aftermath of the American Civil War who is tasked with reuniting an orphaned girl with her living relatives. With a Christmas release date, Universal is betting big in getting the same nomination boost that 1917 is enjoying right now, and the formula is promising. -Nightmare Alley: Following his Best Picture and Best Director wins for The Shape of Water, everybody in Hollywood wondered what would Guillermo del Toro do next. Well, as Del Toro often does, a little bit of everything and nothing. Some projects moved (as his produced Pinocchio movie on Netflix, or his Death Stranding likeness cameo), others stalled and die (like his proposed Fantastic Voyage remake). But now he’s rolling on his next project, a new adaptation of the William Lindsay Gresham novel that already was a Tyrone Power film in 1947. This noir tale tells the story of a con man (Bradley Cooper) who teams up with a psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett) to trick people and win money, and how things get out of control. With a cast that also includes Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Rooney Mara and more, this could play well if it hits the right tone. -Nomadland: There’s breakout years, and then there’s the amazing potential of Chloe Zhao’s 2020. On the one hand, after making Hollywood notice her skill with the gripping story of The Rider, she got the keys to the MCU kingdom to direct the next potential franchise of Kevin Feige, The Eternals. And just in case, she also has in her sleeve this indie drama that she wrote and directed beforehand, with two-time Oscar winner Frances McDormand playing a woman who, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad. If Chloe nails these two films, it could be the one-two punch of the decade. -One Night in Miami: Regina King is living her best life. Following her Oscar win for Best Supporting Actress in If Beale Street Could Talk and the success that came with her lead role in the Watchmen show on HBO, the actress is jumping to a new challenge: directing movies. For her big screen debut, she’s adapting Kemp Powers’ play that dramatizes a real meeting on February 25, 1964, between Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown. -Over the Moon: After earning praise and Oscar nominations with I Lost My Body and Klaus, Netflix will keep its bet on animated movies with a film directed by the legendary Glen Keane. Who? A classic Disney animator responsible for the design of characters like Ariel, the Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas, Tarzan and more](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2jRkx2PNVr8), and who recently won an Oscar for Best Animated Short for Dear Basketball, which he co-directed with the late Kobe Bryant. Now, he brings us a musical adventure centered around a Chinese girl who builds a rocket ship and blasts off to the Moon in hopes of meeting a legendary Moon Goddess. -Passing: It’s always interesting when an actor jumps behind the camera, and Rebecca Hall’s case is no exception. For her directorial debut, Hall chose to adapt Nella Larsen’s acclaimed novel set in Harlem in the 1920s, about two mixed race childhood friends (Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson) who reunite in adulthood and become obsessed with one another's lives. With a premise that explores tough questions about race and sexuality, it looks like a tricky challenge for a first timer, but it would be more impressive if Hall manages to rise over the challenge. -Prisoner 760: An interesting part of following the awards circuit is looking at when it's appropriate to talk about touchy subjects in recent history. I’m saying that because this next movie tells the real life tale of Mohamedou Ould Slahi (Tahar Rahim), a man who, despite not being charged or having a set trial, is held in custody at Guantanamo Bay, and turns towards a pair of lawyers (Jodie Foster and Shailene Woodley) to aid him. Based on the famous journal that the man wrote while he was being detained, the movie (that also counts with Benedict Cumberbatch) is directed by Kevin Macdonald who, a long time ago, helped Forest Whitaker win Best Actor for The Last King of Scotland. Could he get back in the race after almost 15 years of movies like State of Play? -Raya and the Last Dragon: This year, Walt Disney Animation Studios’ bet for the Oscars is a fantasy tale set in a mysterious realm called Kumandra, where a warrior named Raya searches for the last dragon in the world. And that dragon has the voice of Awkwafina. Even though they missed out last Oscars when Frozen II got the cold shoulder by the Academy in Best Animated Feature, this premise looks interesting enough to merit a chance. One more thing: between last year’s Abominable, Over the Moon and this movie, there’s a clear connection of animated movies trying to appeal to Chinese sensibilities (and that sweet box office). -Rebecca: It’s wild to think that the only time that Alfred Hitchcock made a film that won the Oscar for Best Picture was with 1940’s adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s psychological thriller novel, more muted and conventional than his more known classics. Now, Ben Wheatley and Netflix are giving the Gothic story a new spin, with Lily James playing the newly married young woman who finds herself battling the shadow of her husband's (Armie Hammer) dead first wife, the mysterious Rebecca. The story is a classic, and we have to see how much weird Wheatley stuff is in the mix. -Red, White and Water: Between 2011 and 2014, Jennifer Lawrence was everywhere and people loved it. She was America’s sweetheart, the Oscar winner, Katniss Everdeen. But then, everything kinda fell. Those X-Men movies got worse and she looked tired of being in them, her anecdotes got less charming and more pandering to some, she took respectable risks that didn’t pay off with Red Sparrow and Mother!, and some people didn’t like that she said that it wasn’t nice to share private photos of her online. Now, she looks to get back to the Oscar race with a small project funded by A24 and directed by Lila Neugebauer in her film debut, about a soldier who comes back to the US after suffering a traumatic brain injury in Afghanistan. Also, Brian Tyree Henry is in this, and it would be amazing if he got nominated for something. -Respect: You know what’s a surefire way to get Academy voters’ attention? Play a real singer! Rami Malek took a win last year for playing Freddie Mercury, Renee Zellweger just won the gold after portraying Judy Garland, and now Jennifer Hudson wants more Oscar love. Almost 15 years after taking Best Supporting Actress for her role in Dreamgirls, Hudson will try to get more by playing soul legend Aretha Franklin, in a biopic directed by first timer Liesl Tommy that practically screams “give me the gold”. How am I so sure? Well, see the teaser that they released in December (for a movie that opens in October), and tell me. It will work out better for Hudson than Cats, that’s for sure. -Soul: Unless they really disappoint (I’m looking at you, The Good Dinosaur, Cars 2 and Cars 3), you can’t have the Oscars without inviting Pixar to the party. This year, they have two projects in the hopes of success. While in a few weeks we’ll see what happens with the fantasy family road trip of Onward, the studio’s biggest bet of the year clearly is the next existential animation written and directed by Pete Docter, who brought Oscar gold to his home with Up and Inside Out. The movie, which centers on a teacher (voice of Jamie Foxx) who dreams of becoming a jazz musician and, just as he’s about to get his big break, ends up getting into an accident that separates his soul from his body, had a promising first trailer, and it also promises a score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, as well as new songs by Jon Batiste. The only downside so far for the marketing was the fact that the trailer reveal led people to notice a suspicious trend involving black characters when they lead an animated movie. -Tenet: When Leonardo DiCaprio finally touched his Academy Award, an alarm went off in the mind of a portion of Internet users, who have made their next crusade to give themselves to the cause of getting Christopher Nolan some Oscar love. And his next blank check, an action thriller involving espionage and time travel, could pull off the same intersection of popcorn and prestige that made Inception both a box office hit and a critically acclaimed Oscar nominee. It helps to have a cast of impressive names like John David Washington, Elizabeth Debicki and Robert Pattinson, as well as a crew that includes Ludwig Goransson and Hoyte van Hoytema. In other words, if this becomes a hit, this could go for a huge number of nominations. -The Devil All the Time: As you may have noticed by now, Netflix is leading the charge in possible Oscar projects. Another buzzy movie that comes from them is the new psychological thriller by Antonio Campos, a filmmaker known for delivering small and intimate but yet intense and terrifying dramas like Simon Killer and Christine. Using the novel by Donald Ray Pollock, Campos will follow non-linearly a cast of characters in Ohio between the end of World War II and the beginning of the Vietnam War, with the help of an interesting cast that includes Tom Holland, Sebastian Stan, Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska, Eliza Scanlen, Bill Skarsgard, Jason Clarke and Riley Keough. -The Eyes of Tammy Faye: After being known as a sketch comedy goofball because of The State, Wet Hot American Summer and Stella, Michael Showalter reinvented himself as a director of small and human dramedies like Hello, My Name is Doris and The Big Sick. For his next project, he’s gonna mix a little bit of both worlds, because he has before him the story of the televangelists Tammy Faye Bakker (Jessica Chastain, who has been really trying to recapture her early ‘10 awards run to no avail) and Jim Bakker (Andrew Garfield, who was previously nominated for Hacksaw Ridge, instead of Silence, because why). With a real life tale that involves Christian theme parks, fraud and conspiracies, this is the kind of loud small movie that Searchlight loves to parade around, especially as an actors showcase (Jojo Rabbit being the most recent example). The first image looks terrifying, by the way. -The Father: It’s weird to be in the middle of February and say that there’s already a frontrunner for the Best Actor race at the next Oscars. After its premiere in Sundance a couple of weeks ago, every prognosticator pointed in the direction of Anthony Hopkins (recently nominated for Best Supporting Actor in The Two Popes), who delivers a harrowing portrayal of an old man grappling with his age as he develops dementia, causing pain to his beleaguered daughter (recent winner Olivia Colman, who also got praised). With reviews calling it a British answer to Amour (in other words: it’s a hard watch), Florian Zeller’s adaptation of his acclaimed play not only benefits from having Hopkins and Colman together as a selling point, because it was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics, a distributor with experience in getting Academy voters to watch adult movies with heavy themes. If you don’t believe me, watch how they got Julianne Moore a win for Still Alice, as well as recent nominations for Isabelle Huppert for Elle, Glenn Close for The Wife, and Antonio Banderas for Pain and Glory. They know the game, and they are going to hit hard for Hopkins and Colman. -The French Dispatch:If you saw the trailer, we don’t need to dwell too much on the reasons. On the one hand, we have the style of Wes Anderson, a filmmaker who has become a name in both the critics circle and the casual viewer, with his last two movies (The Grand Budapest Hotel and Isle of Dogs) earning several Oscar nominations, including Best Picture for the one with Gustave H. Then, we have a long cast that goes from the director’s regulars like Bill Murray to new stars like Timothee Chalamet, and also includes people like Benicio del Toro. The only thing that could endanger the Oscar chances for this is that the story, an anthology set around a period comedy with an European riff on The New Yorker, will alienate the average Academy member. -The Humans: There’s the prestige of a play, and then there’s the prestige of a Tony-winning play. Playwright Stephen Karam now gets to jump to the director’s chair to take his acclaimed 2016 one-act story to the big screen, and A24 is cutting the check. Telling the story of a family that gets together on Thanksgiving to commiserate about life, this adaptation will be led by original performer Jayne Houdyshell (who also won a Tony for her stage performance), who’ll be surrounded by Richard Jenkins, Beanie Feldstein, Amy Schumer, Steven Yeun and June Squibb. If it avoids getting too claustrophobic or stagey for the cinema, it will be a good contender. -The Last Duel: Always speedy, Ridley Scott is working on his next possible trip to the Oscars. This time, it’s the telling of a true story in 14th-century France, where a knight (Matt Damon) accuses his former friend (Adam Driver) of raping his wife (Jodie Comer), with the verdict being determined by the titular duel. It’s a juicy story, but there was some concern when it seemed that the script was only being written by Damon and Ben Affleck (who’ll also appear in the film). A rape story written by them after the Weinstein revelations… not the best look. But then, it was revealed that they were writing the screenplay with indie figure Nicole Holofcener, who last year was nominated for an Oscar for her script for Can You Ever Forgive Me? Let’s hope that the story is told in a gripping but not exploitative way, and that it doesn’t reduce the role of Comer (who deserves more than some of the movie roles that she’s getting after Killing Eve) to a Hollywood stereotype. -The Power of the Dog: We have to talk about the queen of the indie world, we have to talk about Jane Campion. More than a decade after her last movie, Bright Star, the Oscar and Palme d’Or winner for The Piano returns with a non-TV project (see Top of the Lake, people) thanks to Netflix, with a period drama centered around a family dispute between a pair of wealthy brothers in Montana, Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and George Burbank (Jesse Plemons), after the latter one marries a local widow (Kirsten Dunst). According to the synopsis, “a shocked and angry Phil wages a sadistic, relentless war to destroy her entirely using her effeminate son Peter as a pawn”. Can’t wait to see what that means. -The Prom: Remember the Ryan Murphy blank check deal with Netflix that I mentioned earlier? Well, another of the projects in the first batch of announcements for the deal is a musical that he’ll direct, adapting the Tony-nominated show about a group of Broadway losers (now played by the one and only Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Andrew Rannells and, uh, James Corden, for some reason) who try to find a viral story to get back in the spotlight, and end up going to a town in Indiana to help a lesbian high school student who has been banned from bringing her girlfriend to the prom. The show has been considered a fun and heartwarming tale of acceptance, so the movie could be an easy pick for an average Academy voter who doesn’t look too hard (and you know that the Golden Globes will nominate the shirt out of this). It’s funny how this comes out the same year than Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, and then it’s not funny realizing that Film Twitter will pit the two movies against each other. -The Trial of the Chicago 7: After getting a taste of the director’s taste with Molly’s Game, Aaron Sorkin wants more. For his second movie, he’s tackling one of his specialties: a courtroom drama. And this one is a period movie centered around the trial on countercultural activists in the late ‘60s, which immediately attracts a campaign of how “important” this movie is today’s culture. To add the final blow, we have a cast that includes Sacha Baron Cohen, Eddie Redmayne, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Jeremy Strong, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Frank Langella, William Hurt, Michael Keaton and Mark Rylance. If Sorkin can contain himself from going over the top (and with that cast, it would be so easy to surrender to bouts of screaming and winding speeches), this could be one of the top contenders. -Those Who Wish Me Dead: Having made a good splash in the directorial waters with Wind River, Taylor Sheridan (also known for writing the Sicario movies, the Oscar-nominated Hell or High Water or that Yellowstone show that your uncle raves about on Facebook) returns with yet another modern Western. For this thriller based on the Michael Koryta novel, Angelina Jolie stars as a survival expert in the Montana wilderness who is tasked with protecting a teenager who witnessed a murder, while assassins are pursuing him and a wildfire grows closer. -Untitled David O. Russell Project: Following the mop epic Joy, that came and went in theaters but still netted a Best Actress nomination for Jennifer Lawrence, the angriest director in Hollywood took a bit of a break (it didn’t help that he tried to do a really expensive show with Amazon starring Robert De Niro and Julianne Moore that fell apart when the Weinstein exposes sank everything). Now, he’s quickly putting together his return to the days of Oscar love that came with stuff like The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle, with a new movie that is set to star Christian Bale, Margot Robbie and Michael B. Jordan. Even though we don’t know many details (some people are saying the movie is called Amsterdam) except for the fact the movie hasn’t started shooting yet, David is a quick guy, so he’ll get it ready for the fall festival circuit. If there’s one thing that David O. Russell knows (apart from avoid getting cancelled for abusing people like Lily Tomlin, Amy Adams and his niece), it’s to make loud actor showcases. -Untitled Nora Fingscheidt Project: When Bird Box became one of the biggest hits on Netflix history, the streamer decided to keep itself in the Sandra Bullock business. Sandy’s next project for Ted Sarandos is a drama where she plays a woman who is released from prison after serving time for a violent crime, and re-enters a society that refuses to forgive her past. To get redemption, she searches her younger sister she was forced to leave behind. With the direction of Fingscheidt, who comes from an acclaimed directorial debut with Systemsprenger (Germany’s submission to the last Academy Awards), and a cast that also includes Viola Davis, Vincent D’Onofrio and Jon Bernthal, this will also hopefully try its luck later this year. -Untitled Paul Thomas Anderson Project: We don’t know if this movie will be ready for the end of the year (although last time, he managed to sneak Phantom Thread under the buzzer and earn several Oscar nominations, including Best Picture), but PTA is apparently gonna start to shoot it soon, with the backing of Focus Features. After several movies with prestige locations and intricate production design, Film Twitter’s Holy Spirit will go back to the San Fernando Valley in the 1970s, to tell the story of a high school student who is also a successful child actor. -Stillwater: Tom McCarthy’s recent career is certainly puzzling. After delivering the weird lows of The Cobbler, he bounced back with the Best Picture winner that was Spotlight. And following that, he… helped produce the 13 Reasons Why series. And following that… he made Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made, a Disney+ original movie. Now, he’s back to the award race with a drama starring Matt Damon, who plays a father who rushes from Oklahoma to France to help his daughter (Abigail Breslin), who is in prison after being suspected for a murder she claims she didn’t commit. -West Side Story: To close things, we have to see one of the possible big contenders of the season, Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the iconic musical that translates Romeo and Juliet to the context of a street gang war in 1950s New York. While the decision to adapt again something that has been a classic both in Broadway and in movie theaters almost 60 years ago is a challenge, the idea of Spielberg doing a musical closer to the stage version with Tony Kushner as the writer is too tempting for the average Academy voter, who is already saving a spot in major categories in case Steven nails it in December. However, there’s two question marks. First, how well will Ansel Elgort and newcomer Rachel Zegler stand out in the roles of Tony and Maria? And second, will In the Heights steal some of the thunder of this movie by being, you know, more modern?
[Next-Day Discussion Thread] Ajax 2-3 Tottenham (UEFA Champions League - Semifinals 2nd leg)
"The other day I had to watch the match between Barcelona and Real Madrid. Barcelona played the ball backwards, covered the width of the pitch and the public cheered. The public was always intolerant about the ball going back and the circulating movement. For me, Barcelona's greatest achievement, beyond having managed to play as it plays, is to have achieved that its public, and I would almost say that the universal public, recognizes its style and has tolerance and patience. Understand a way of playing. And that's indispensable in any project: how we're going to do things. It's not the same thing. We belong to an era and a society in which everything that is triumph is blessed, and everything that is not triumph is not forgiven. But the way of doing things, for me, is more important than what you get. It is a priority" - Marcelo Bielsa.
Tottenham staged one of the most remarkable comebacks in European Cup history to reach their first final, recovering from a first-leg defeat and a 2-0 second-leg deficit to progress at the expense of Ajax. Ajax extended their aggregate advantage as early as the fifth minute when captain Matthijs de Ligt lost Kieran Trippier to head in a corner, and though Heung-Min Son swiftly hit the post at the other end, that was a rare glimmer of hope for Spurs. Ten minutes before half-time it was 2-0, Donny van de Beek and Dušan Tadić combining to set up Hakim Ziyech for a fine first-time finish. Spurs refused to be downhearted, and after André Onana had superbly denied Dele Alli, Lucas Moura raced through to revive their hopes. Four minutes later, the Brazilian fired in the loose ball after Onana had made another excellent stop, this from Fernando Llorente, to level on the night. With both sides committed to attack, chances continued to flow at both ends, Ziyech's 20-metre shot coming back off the post while Jan Vertonghen struck the crossbar in a frantic finale. Just as it looked as if Ajax would resist, however, Moura swept into the net in the final seconds of added time, completing his hat-trick and a comeback for the ages. Another spellbinding UEFA Champions League match in the Johan Cruijff ArenA. Spurs controlled long spells of the first half yet went in two down at the break. After the restart, the Premier League side started stronger and deservedly levelled the match, only for Ajax to reassert themselves, but just as it looked as if their young side would withstand the late siege, Moura dashed their dreams at the last. Struggled to make an impact in the first half but was centre stage in the second, his two goals in the space of 204 seconds bringing Spurs right back into it. Both were assured finishes and the Brazilian was a constant threat thereafter, holding his nerve again in the sixth minute of added time to apply the crucial finishing
When everything changed, there were suddenly seven, eight, maybe even nine Ajax players flat out on the pitch, their faces buried into the turf, not wanting to see any more. Somehow, Spurs had done it and in those moments we were reminded, once again, about the glories of this sport, about how brutal football can be and how, every once in a while, there is a story that can make your bones vibrate. We have had two of them in quick succession bearing in mind Liverpool’s destruction of Barcelona the previous night. It will be an all-Premier League final in Madrid on 1 June and when Lucas Moura completed his hat-trick, five minutes into stoppage time, it was one of those rare occasions for every single member of the Spurs travelling party when it must have felt like the blood in their veins had been converted into the finest of red wine. Suddenly, there were players, coaches, substitutes and various members of backroom staff running across the pitch in jagged diagonal lines to join in the scrum beneath the away end. As etiquette goes, it was reminiscent of America’s Ryder Cup players trampling over the 17th green at Brookline in 1999. Yet, amid all the euphoria, perhaps the boys from White Hart Lane, as most of us would still rather call it, could be forgiven for overlooking that the game was still not, strictly speaking, over. There was still a minute to play before everything was confirmed and the Spurs fans in that far corner could start trying to make sense of a baffling, beautiful victory, having seen their team come back from 2-0 down on the night and 3-0 on aggregate. Or, to put it another way, a place where there no longer seemed to be any lingering hope. Until the ball came the way of Moura in stoppage time, it was shaping up to be a night of grievous disappointment for Mauricio Pochettino and his players. They had clawed their way back to 2-2 but Ajax were still ahead on aggregate and, with the clock ticking down, it had seemed as though the team wearing the Premier League’s badge would leave Amsterdam with so many what-ifs. What if Jan Vertonghen’s 87th-minute header had gone in rather than thudding off the crossbar? What if they had started better rather than letting Ajax build that first-half lead? What if Harry Kane had been fit, rather than watching the game in a coat, when the team needed one more goal to change everything? But then the clock ticked into the 96th minute and suddenly the ball was on Moura’s left foot. Again, Dele Alli, who chose an ideal night to rediscover his best form, had set him up. It was their final chance of an epic, lyrical night. And the ball was with the right player. All night, Moura had given the impression he was utterly determined nobody would end up blaming it all on Kane’s absence. Moura had already scored twice for Spurs in the second half and those goals, in the 55th and 59th minutes, changed the complexion of the evening. It was a brilliantly gutsy recovery and when Spurs needed a bit of luck they got that, too, in the form of Hakim Ziyech’s shot ricocheting off the post. Pochettino had brought on Fernando Llorente to replace Victor Wanyama at the interval. Spurs had gambled and, for the first time, they started to pin back their opponents. Ajax were sitting on their lead and it was a mistake. It encouraged Spurs to pour forward. Moura put in his first goal, running through the middle to drill in a left-foot shot, and suddenly their hopes were invigorated. The next one came four minutes later after André Onana, Ajax’s goalkeeper, had kept out Llorente’s effort from point-blank range. Moura was quickly on to the loose ball, eluding a couple of challenges, despite the close proximity of several defenders, and somehow finding a gap in which to fire the ball through a heavily congested six-yard area. More hope, again. All of which felt markedly different to a first half in which Matthijs de Ligt headed in a corner after only four minutes and Ziyech lashed in a diagonal left-foot shot to make it 2-0 and leave Spurs contemplating an ordeal in the making. Time and again, the question has been asked about whether this team can go up to the next level. The evidence of that opening half suggested they had come up short again. In those moments Ajax’s most boisterous supporters behind Onana’s goal, standing bare-chested behind their drums and their ‘F-Side‘ banners, could have been forgiven for wondering whether the strategically placed flags beneath the roof of the stadium, showing all the club’s trophies in order, year by year, might be getting a new addition. David Neres had been injured during the warm-up, meaning a shift in personnel for Ajax in which Dusan Tadic took over on the left, Kasper Dolberg was promoted from the bench to lead the attack and Ziyech switched to the right. Tadic, in particular, was a dangerous opponent and Kieran Trippier had a hard time restraining him during that opening 45 minutes, in keeping with what has been a difficult season for one of the key players in England’s World Cup adventures. Spurs had to improve and in fairness to Trippier, who had lost De Ligt for the first goal, he managed to shake the opening half out of his system. They all did. Llorente’s introduction gave the Ajax defenders a new problem. Spurs had Son Heung-min back from suspension and that gave the team even more energy in attack, especially taking into account the speed and directness of Moura. Danny Rose started to push forward more from his left-back spot. Christian Eriksen’s influence grew and, though there were still dangerous moments, that was always going to be the case. Another team might have crumpled after the struggles of the first half. Maybe Spurs were emboldened by the memories of what they did to Manchester City in the quarter-finals. Perhaps they had seen the miracle of Liverpool knocking the crown off a Barcelona side that likes to see itself as football royalty. Whatever the reasons – and, more than anything, it was competitive courage – Spurs are going to their first-ever European Cup final. There was even an encore, 45 minutes or so after the final whistle, as Pochettino and his players headed back out for a team photograph on the pitch. Moura had already taken the match-ball as a souvenir and, as he turned back to had to the tunnel, his teammates broke out in applause. One by one, all of them, clapping him as he went.
Ajax were beaten so hard by vertigo that they were left without a final. The adequacy with which they had knocked down Real Madrid and Juventus filling with exhibitions their visits to the Bernabeu and the Allianz Stadium evaporated in a second act of high tension. After holding Tottenham for a game and a half putting three goals ahead, the 'Spurs' rebelled against their fate. Pochettino's team knows how to dance on the wire. It doesn't matter if they lose 2-0 at half-time or if they are without Kane. They compete at any height and pushed the 'Ajacied' into the abyss in a second act of a go and back. Lucas Moura became the 'Spur' hero who kicked out the cool team. He took the ball home with the ticket to the Wanda after scoring three goals with his left foot, his wrong leg. Glory to Pochettino and Tottenham. A madness in Amsterdam. He was the most sane of the 'madhouse'. Surviving Etihad and Manchester City was a test of fire that 'trained' Tottenham for the battle of Johan Cruyff Arena. With no signings in summer or winter, and without Harry Kane, Pochettino's team has competed in all places. And they have triumphed by reaching the first final of their history. Used to overcome all kinds of setbacks and injuries, the 'Spurs', on the back of Lucas Moura, knocked out the 'total football' of De Jong, Ziyech, Van de Beek ... who is left on the doorstep of the final. Neither the London 0-1 nor the 2-0 of the first half protected them from their cruel fate. Before the drama, the script of the film was written by the 'ajacied'. The ball enjoys with the Dutch when they pass it over the grass and when it flies from the corner. And in the corners, when Ajax forgets about passing, they call De Ligt and his 1.89. The Dutch centre-back grew and headed a Schöne delivery into the net. The same move that gave them the advantage in Turin made De Ligt the fourth youngest player to score in the semi-finals (19 years and 269 days). This Wednesday, the prize was bigger: the first final since 1996. A feat for a team led by a captain who wasn't born the last time Ajax fought for a Champions League in the last match. They won't be able to live it. Neres' injury in the warm-up and Dolberg's entry into the eleven did not change Ten Hag's approach. He delayed Tadic and tried to braid the same football. Tottenham rebelled after De Ligt's blow, but Son ran into the wood and Onana. Also Eriksen, who was returning to Amsterdam. The Spurs went up... but Ajax 'hunted' them in an electric play between Tadic and Ziyech that the Moroccan sent to the net. But Tottenham didn't give up. Fernando Llorente and Lucas Moura unleashed the Spurs. In an electric counter with Alli, the Brazilian signed the 2-1 reviving the tie. And four minutes later, a shot from Llorente stopped by Onana with a save ... but Schöne's bad clearance gave the leather to Moura so that in a tile, and a cut, opened a hole and made the 2-2. Tottenham was one goal away from Madrid. De Ligt despaired because of the London onslaught. Ajax felt the pressure and Ziyech ran into the woodwork. He could not put the icing on the cake and prolonged the agony of the 'ajacied'. The local team came close to a 3-2 that never came. Tottenham were approaching and Vertonghen finished off the crossbar a chance that seemed to be the last. It was the penultimate. On the verge of added time, a long ball from Sissoko became the pass to the final. Llorente lowered it and Alli left it to a Lucas Moura who made it 2-3. Spur' ecstasy. Ajax drama that saw as a Champions almost perfect was left without a final. The generation of De Jong and De Ligt found their roof in the semifinals, the prize went from Amsterdam to London. The Tottenham, in an epic end as in the Etihad with the goal annulled to Sterling by the VAR, risking until the limit, made history. Liverpool will be their opponents in an unexpected English final where Kane could be playing. The Premier League is back in charge in Europe. Pochettino has done it. Wanda awaits them. POST-MATCH INTERVIEWS & QUOTES
"Football can be very beautiful and it can be very cruel, we have had to experience that today. Overall we had a fantastic Champions League campaign, we were one second away from the final, our team deserves a very big compliment, I am very proud of my players."
"I told the players in the break that it wasn't over yet, you could tell by the attitude of the Tottenham players. They still believed in it."
"Then that ball hits the post from Hakim Ziyech (in the second half), it's over and out for Spurs. But I can't blame anyone. We have had an incredible Champions League season and have grown a lot as a team. It is difficult to process."
"This is the cruel side of football that we have to endure tonight, but we'll have to go on. We can't do that in a couple of hours or a couple of days, I can't ask that of the players, but if you're so close and the Champions League is so unique, and the players all realise that a lot, you need time to get over that, but we'll have to. We'll have to get back on track before Sunday [against Utrecht] and we'll have to start with that on time. You cannot wait for too long or we won't be ready for Sunday."
Pochettino:
"Still difficult to talk. The emotion is amazing, thank you to football. My players are heroes - in the last year I was telling everyone this group are heroes. The second half they were amazing. Thank you football - this type of emotion without football is no possible. Thank you to everyone who has believed in us. To describe this in words is difficult.
"We were talking before the game that when you work and when you feel the love it's not stress it's passion of the team. We showed we love the sport and football. Today was amazing. It was a joy to watch this kind of game.
"It's difficult to compete at this level. I am so grateful to be a coach. To be in football and to live this type of football.
"They are all heroes but [Lucas Moura] was a superhero. From the first to last one - the tough moment to live in the five years before."
"I want to remember my family... it's amazing to reward them. We need to be ready for the next game on Sunday then prepare for the final."
The 2019 Champions League final will be only the third major European final in history to feature two English teams, after the 1972 Uefa Cup final (Spurs v Wolves) and 2008 Champions League final (Man Utd v Chelsea).
Spurs are only the second team in Champions League history to lose the first leg of the semi-final at home and progress to the final - the other was Ajax in 1995-96 against Panathinaikos.
Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt became the fourth teenager to score in a Champions League semi-final, after Nordin Wooter (1996, Ajax), Obafemi Martins (2003, Inter Milan) and Kylian Mbappe (2017, Monaco).
Spurs will be the eighth different English team to feature in a European Cup/Champions League final, after Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Leeds United, Liverpool, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest. England have had more different teams in the final of the competition than any other nation.
English teams have come from two or more goals behind to win on seven occasions in Champions League history - four more than clubs of any other nation. Indeed, four of the past five occasions have been English teams.
Spurs were the first team to come two goals behind to win in a Champions League semi-final match since Manchester United in 1999 against Juventus.
THE ROAD TO THE WANDA NARA STADIUM:
Round of 16
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Final
AJA 5-3 RMA
ATM 2-3 JUV
AJA 3-2 JUV
TOT 4-0 BVB
AJA 3-3 TOT
MCI 10-2 SCH
MCI 4-4 TOT
TOT vs. LIV
LIV 3-1 FCB
LIV 6-1 POR
POR 4-3 ROM
LIV 4-3 FCB
MAN 3-2 PSG
MAN 0-3 FCB
FCB 5-1 OLY
The Final:
Saturday 1 June 2019, at 20:00 GMT, in the Wanda Nara Stadium of Madrid, Spain.
POINTS OF DISCUSSION
I) Pochettino vs ten Hag: How would you rate the tactical decisions from the Argentinian and the Dutch? Was Pochettino's a masterclass? Was the Dutch a disaster in the last half as Mourinho said? why?
II) How would you rate this Ajax against other surprising teams of previous years?: Stronger or weaker than Roma 2018 or Monaco 2017? or Man City 2016? maybe even BVB 2013? How truly strong was this team in your opinion?
III) What do you think that will happen in the final?: An English final, what do you think will happen? is there a favourite team?
(the idea of creating next-day/the day after match threads is to offer a platform for those who have seen the match, and inform those who haven't, while also encouraging more in-depth discussion than in the original thread. Here is a link to the original Post Match Thread.)
I hold a number of (what I think are) interesting views which I like to be challenged on. I'm going to post them all here if anyone wants to weigh in and edit when more come to mind.
Amsterdam shouldn't be the capital of the Netherlands. As all governement affairs take place in The Hague, this should make the city a logical capital.
If you support Universal Basic Income you should support Universal Credit - the UK welfare benefit. While its implementation is contraversial, UC has many parallels with a UBI system.
Businesses and stores naturally need to close for other industries to take their place. I'm sure most countries has had many major bankruptcies or large scale store closes, think Sears or Blockbuster, but this is natural for leaner businesses to survive and individuals to go off and create the new better businesses of the future.
Everyone globally deserves free-at-the-point-of use healthcare and education. While there are humanitarian benefits for these, I also focus on the economic impact having well-educated and healthy communities can have. This means education for school aged children as well as universities, communities colleges and alternative/supportive schooling. Free healthcare including family doctor visits, dentists, prescribed medications and use of ambulance service.
There is no real advantage to getting involved in most wars or conflicts. The US only gets involved in the Stans for financial gain at the expense of many lives, while arbitation between nations would be a better resolution than resorting to violence.
As global powerhouses; the USA, UK and Sweden; sould have done more and sooner to prevent the spread of Covid-19. They did not lead in their actions taken to prevent the virus, dragging out the pandemic causing more death and suffering, adverse mental health and economic damage.
The UN (or a new global body) should introduce some basic laws for each country to follow in a similar vain to the EU. Each country would then add their own laws through their democratic (or not) system. Laws could include climate emergency action, dealing with pandemics and the right to education.
Canadian citizens are significantly detrimented by business monopolies. Major businesses such as Tim Horton's, GoodLife Fitness, Cineplex have no major competition. Even in fields where there are competitors such as airlines (Air Canada/WestJet) and mobile networks (Bell/Rogers/Telus) there isn't enough competition to ensure fairness for consumers.
There's no easy way to make money and no way to get rich quick. A trader can have months of heavy losses and they put a lot of effort into following announcements, tracking movements and researching. An adult model can spend a lot of time on promotion, at photoshoots and talking to fans, they also need knowledge of social media marketing and photography.
A parking ticket attendant is one of the least ethical jobs you could have. While a taxman collects monies for the public good and a debt collector stops creditors being out of pocket, a parking attendant takes advantage of people who need somewhere to park while they go and stimulate the economy. While you have to actively opt-in to buy drugs from a drug dealer and opt-in to vendors of other vices such as unhealthy food, smoking and gambling, ticket attendants are opportunitists that extort money out of everyday people.
Everyone who can vote should be required to vote in a democracy. Australia and Belgium for example already enforce this through fines. All over 16s resident in a country that are mentally capable should be enforced to vote, regardless of immigration status or if they are incarcerated. Steps such as public holidays on election days, online voting and convenient, accessible polling stations should also be introduced globally.
People should seek justice and equality over the status quo and their personal cirumstances as soon as possible. Movements such as #metoo and #blacklivesmatter should have happened a lot sooner than they have. Everyone has a responsibility to call out discrimination, do the ethical thing and make use of the justice system when they are being treated unfairly while also campaigning for fairer and better laws, even if they are detrimented by losing their employment, community, etc. by doing so, we all need to stand up and bring change.
You miss out by eating the same meals all the time and not trying new cuisines. There's a whole world out there and while you may not want to or be able to travel, you can explore and adventure new cultures easily by trying out restaurants with different cuisines or looking up recipes popular in other countries. Even something as simple as trying different meats such as duck, ostrich and lamb or trying out vegan meals and meat alternatives is a good thing.
There needs to be a compulsary re-education system of middle aged adults and elderly adults. As some people aren't going to pro-actively learn to be anti-racist or to use the internet these need to be universally taught so everyone has them.
Incest between adults, where consensual and non-reproductive should be legal and non-taboo. While incest is usually associated with child abuse or deformed children, there's no reason why incest can't exist as a type of consensual sex engaged in by adults using appropiate birth control.
People can have a great digital experience without paying money. By for example using free photo editing software, reading free news over buying a subscription, watching free shows and content. They can also not pay anything to Patreons, Kickstarters, Onlyfans and GoFundMes.
Job applications should allow presumptions from previous jobs and experience rather than implicit examples. For example, someone applying for a job in writing newspaper articles doing one newspaper should be able to just state what they did for another newspaper.
An Analysis of the Effect Derivatives and Speculators on the Volatility of the Stock Market, Written in a Pirate Voice and Exactly 1776 Words
So, ye be interested in building yer investment portfolio, but also concerned about the stability of the stock market, are ye? Well, show a leg matey, because I’m here to tell ye all about the connection between derivatives, speculators, and the ye old stock market. So the first thing ye be thinking probably be “what in the seven seas be going on here in this post?” Well matey, that answer be simple. This be a post concernin’ the relationship betwixt derivatives and volatility in the stock market, written in a pirate voice. I just told ye so! And it be in the title, so if ye be not gettin’ it then ye not be fit to even be a powder monkey, much less a successful stock trader. In the financial tradin’ world, derivatives be a means of tradin’ which sets an arrangement on a future transaction, and the value of the aforesaid transaction be tied to the value of some underlying asset. These kinds o’ barterin’ have been in use since the days of Hammurabbi, where it was said that a farmer must pay his mortgage in batches of grain but, if there be a poor harvest, the aforesaid farmer would not have to pay what few bushels he could muster. In this way derivatives can manage risk, like reefing yer sails in stormy weather. But, when ye take this concept and apply it on a larger macroeconomic scale, and we add to the equation the ambitious though perhaps mischievous sort of lads we call speculators, things be getting rather difficult. If ye hate the Spanish, then yer probably a pirate. If ye hate the Dutch... ye probably be Dutch yerself. The world’s first joint-stock company, the Dutch East India Company, was formed in 1602. Six years later, while honest pirates were making their pay off the backs of Spanish treasure fleets, a syndicate of Dutch merchants determined to make their own fortunes off o’ the aforesaid company. They be doing this by “shorting” the company. That is, by bettin’ against the company’s success by buying shares hoping to sell ‘em off at lower prices, thereby tryin’ to lower the aforesaid company’s value. These speculators are not using said derivatives as secure means of risk management, but instead takin’ something of a calculated gamble, indeed akin to attempting to bring down a brig betting that she be undermanned. For these traders, there is higher risk involved, but their potential payout is far greater. Yet, despite the efforts o’ these speculators, the aforesaid company held strong and banned short-trading. And many of them went bankrupt themselves once the company did not lose her value. In 1711, two years before the Golden Age of the pirate, the United Kingdom issued a royal charter to a joint-stock company which they christened the South Sea Company. Because this be the only such company operating in its market, it quickly brought in a fortune, both for the crown and its own investors. But stock traders began to think a bit like pirates themselves, and they be starting to create their own companies, simply to try n’ corner a share of this lucrative market for themselves. These new companies were known as “bubbles.” And in 1720, in the accursed year where Bart Roberts, the greatest pirate to ever live was struck by grapeshot, the British parliament passed the Bubble Act which eliminated the new aforesaid companies. The Act stated that the only company that could deal in the South China Seas was the aforesaid South Sea Company. This news caused the bubbles to burst. There be a great market crash, which affected not just the new bubble companies but the South Sea Company herself. The reason for this crash, they decreed, were a type of derivatives which be called “options” or “refusals.” Those interested in buyin’ shares of the South Sea Company stock were made to put down ten percent of the cost straight away, but were allowed the leisure of paying the rest in installments. However, like the farmers in ancient Babylon, they had the option to refuse to continue paying their installments should their share’s value tumble. And tumble it did, and refuse to pay they did. Parliament then banned options as well as short-sellin’. But, here be the critical question: What be the true cause of this crash? Be it the speculators who sought their fortunes off the back of their bubble companies? The unregulated monopoly of the aforesaid company? Or be it the attempted intervention of parliament at fault? This be the question which everybody think they know the answer to, but none truly exists. So this be the basic scenario for the derivatives market: Ye agree to a sort of deal in the future, however ye do not know fer sure just wat value yer gonna get. And it’s this here uncertainty that allows speculators to try and reap the rewards of being aggressive and indeed a bit selfish. And the government is then presented with a choice: Should she go regulatin’ or leave the market be? Let us move beyond the history o’ it now, and come to the present, wherein derivatives and stock exchanges are so intricate any man who claims t’know what they be all about is lyin’ to ye. (And here on me ship, if ye be liar, ye lose half yer share of plunder. Be that also a form of derivative? Me brain hurts...) In the year o’ our lord one thousand nine hundred and ninety five, there be a study done by the lads at Koc University in Istanbul. It be trying to answer that critical question of government regulation, and whether more of it was necessary or no, with its focus on the new nation known to ye as the United States of America. At this point in American history, there be many panics, but just one which truly shivered the timbers of every American, and that be the Great Depression. Before, there be not much in the way of regulation on derivatives and other such stock tradin’. After, there be some. The study be showing just how volatile said stock market was before and after the Depression. And its results be... confusing. If ye be not considerin’ the Depression herself, merely the years before and since, the stock market be extremely stable, with a standard deviation of its monthly stock returns around a steady .400 essentially from 1865 to 1993, with the one exception of the Depression. Now what be this saying? What’s a lad to take from this? There be stability before there be regulation, but there be also stability after. The author argues that there be not much advantage in government regulation, for the markets be stable themselves, and concludes the paper by elaboratin’ on the ways private markets protect themselves from collapse already. With regards to derivatives themselves, the claim be that they arise as a response to market instability, not be a cause of it. The author talks about the then-growing concern over a form of derivative called OTCs, which be standing for “over the counter” which had become tremendously popular (much like the advent of the Bermuda rig sloop) and unregulated. He dismisses these concerns, stating that there be no evidence that these OTCs be causing a market failure in the future. OTCs be causing a market failure fifteen years later. If ye be looking for a detailed, expert treatise on the factors behind the so-called Great Recession of 2008, ye be in the wrong place. I be simply a humble pirate, and do not claim to know everything here. But, I can provide ye with the basics. In fairness to the lads behind the Istanbul study, OTCs exploded in popularity immediately after their paper, taking off faster than a square-rigged snow at full sail downwind. In the year after the aforesaid paper’s publication, OTCs rose by 40%. And in the year after that, they rose by 47%. The winds of fortune be changing. By that fateful year of 2008, the notational value of all unregulated OTCs in America be over $600 trillion. (That be 37.5 trillion doubloons.) 5-10% of these OTCs be a particular type called Credit Default Swaps, or CDSs. In landlubber’s terms, the difference between these CDSs and most derivatives be the amount of risk involved. If ye remember, since the days of Hammurabi derivatives were a means of risk management. The Federal Reserve was estimatin’ that 3% of the value of a swap be at risk. This be far too low, but in the case of CDSs the entire value of the aforesaid swap would be at risk in case of a default. It be like hittin’ a ship’s magazine in the midst of battle. When the CDSs led to a mortgage crisis, it soon became a global one due to the high levels of risks involved. Uh... matey. That OTCs, CDSs in particular, played a central role in the Great Recession be not deniable. Like with the aforesaid South Sea Company bubble and the short-selling attack upon the Dutch East India Co. in 1608, these accursed forms of derivatives attracted speculators savvy enough to bet against the ye old mortgage market. And it be only through the government intervention in 2009 that saved the world from another Great Depression. (A mighty shame, as I could’ve recruited far more men for me crew. Thanks, Obama.) I know not whether the authors of the aforesaid paper from Istanbul offered their thoughts on the Great Recession, but ‘tis true that many a enemy of regulatin’ saw its virtues in the aftermath. Yet, derivatives on their lonesome be not a danger to the stock market. There be a treasure trove of statistics to support this. They be here since ancient times. Great nations rose off of financial systems which often depended on some form of derivatives. Indeed even many piratical ventures were insured in derivative-like agreements. They be like the keel of a ship, they must exist and they be supporting you in most times, but should she fail, she will take the entire structure down with her. Therefore they must be regulated, and maintained, with the ones causin’ trouble to be marooned. Just as I must haul me ship ashore to maintain her keel and clean her from barnacles, so must markets regulate derivatives of all sorts. Me ship would not sail without her keel, and with a poorly maintained one she would sink and me and me crew all marooned at the very most fortunate. They not be necessary evils, nor even evils. The devil be always in the details. Sources! Tinc, Seha M. "Derivatives and Stock Market Volatility: Is Government Regulation Necessary?" Journal of Financial Services Research, 1995. Cox, Charles C. “Futures Trading and Market Information.” Journal of Political Economy, vol. 84, no. 6, 1976, pp. 1215–1237. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/1831275. Washington, D.C. Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission Hearing. Testimony of Michael Greenberger. Government Publishing Office. 2010 Legislature. Robert E. Whaley, Derivatives: Markets, Valuation, and Risk Management (John Wiley & Sons: Hoboken, New Jersey, October 2006) Oscar Gelderblom and Joost Jonker, Amsterdam as the Cradle of Modern Futures and Options Trading, 1550- 1650 (University of Utrecht) 8-11 Saint_Button is a buttface
Blockchain sphere spread to offline for a long time ago. If you are tired of searching for crypto forums, contests and other events to visit, SwapSpace has already picked up information about the most popular huge crypto events worldwide. We find out TOP annual events. Check out the list and just choose the most suitable one to go.
Is Europe’s largest annual international Blockchain Conference About Blockchain EXPO is one of the largest blockchain conferences and exhibitions in Europe dedicated to the future of corporate technology. Leading experts of blockchain industry will give presentations, case studies in the field of the latest technologies and interactive group discussions will be presented. Seminars will also be held on research in the industries that will be most affected by this new technology, including legal sector, trade and real estate, financial services, healthcare, insurance, and much more, and even art. Thematic blocks of the event include cryptocurrency and financial services, Blockchain for enterprises, businesses, Blockchain platform and strategies, development of Blockchain apps & technologies, Blockchain seminars; as well as a zone of innovation and investors. Within two days, the event will feature top-level content from leading world brands in the field of advanced blockchain technologies. It is worth noting that the Blockchain EXPO event is held in collab with IoT Tech Expo, 5g, AI & Big Data Expo and Cyber Security & Cloud Expo, which you can learn about several technologies at once in one place. 500+ Speakers Among them: John Calian, Senior Vice President | Head of T-Labs & The Blockchain Group | Deutsche Telekom AG; Andrei Bolocan, Technology Specialist Supply Chain | The HEINEKEN Company; Arwen Smit, EMEA Lead Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative | MOBI, Dimitri De Jonghe Co-Founder | Head of Research BigchainDB | Ocean Protocol, Michelle Chivunga Chair — International Committee The British Blockchain Association. Next Event: 1–2 JULY | 2020 | Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Blockchain Life is another one of the largest in Europe international forums dedicated to cryptocurrencies, mining and blockchain at all. About Annually, the forum becomes the largest and most significant event of the blockchain industry in Europe. The forum brings together world leaders and those who are just starting to become interested in the industry of blockchains and cryptocurrencies. It gathers up to 6000 participants from more than 70 countries. Blockchain Life units world industry leaders, miners, business owners, blockchain developers, investors. It is a platform not only for professionals but for beginners also. During 3 years of its existence, the forum became an international platform for the development of hundreds industry companies, a place for meeting market leaders with government officials, for the contracts conclusion that influences the global technology development. Forum also includes Startup contest, where you can show your project and find investors. Speakers Among them: Felix Mago, co-founder Dash; Roger Ver, CEO bitcoin.com; Xinxi Wang, manager Litecoin Foundation; Tim Draper, venture capitalist, founder of Draper Associates, DFJ & Draper University and others. The last event was recent, 15–17 OCTOBER | 2019 | Moscow, Russia. Next Event: next year, somewhere in Europe.
About TNABC is one of the most important crypto meetups. The conference is dedicated to a wide range of topics, in particular, blockchain technologies, ICO specifics, features of Bitcoin and Ethereum, token sale mechanisms, investment and regulation. Over the course of two days, speakers present their reports in 20-minute slots. Among them are the world most famous speakers, including CEOs, investors, government officials. In a spacious exhibition hall, conference participants will be able to meet and chat with representatives of the most influential companies that set the tone in the cryptocurrency sphere. Speakers 150+ speakers, among them: Harry Yen, Managing Director Binary Financial; Jeff Mackdonald, Co-founder NEM Foundation; Colleen Sullivan, Partner & CEO CMT Digital; Vitalik Buterin, Co-founder Ethereum; and others. Next Event: 15–17 JANUARY | 2020 | USA, Miami.
About NEXT BLOCK is one of the most popular annual worldwide crypto events, which include various programs every year. NEXT BLOCK ASIA 2.0 “Affiliate Marketing in the Crypto Age” will be dedicated to CRYPTO and AFFILIATE. At the event, experts will discuss synergies and prospects for 2020. In addition, you can be represented in the exhibition area, where you will have the opportunity to show yourself to young professionals and move up the career ladder. The conference lasts one day, followed by the AW event, which will be dedicated to affiliate marketing, gambling and contracts in the Crypto era, and will include discussions leading to the mega event. At the event, experts raise the most relevant topics and each participant can take part in solving the problem. This is an opportunity to communicate with movers and shakers of both crypto and partner worlds. Speakers: 500+, among them: Neo Say Wei, Chief Executive Officer — Neo & Partners Global and RF International Holdings; Giacomo Arcaro, №1 European ICO Growth Hacker, ICO STO Advisor, University Professor; Felix Mago, Co-Founder of Dash Thailand; Eloisa Marchesoni, Europe n. 1 Token Model Architect; Itay Adam Owner of Adam Tech Media and product launch campaigner. Next Event: DECEMBER, 3 | 2020 | Bangkok, Thailand.
About Blockchain Live is an innovative festival of content and collaboration that brings together a fragmented ecosystem to hold meaningful discussions and debates about how best to expedite the global implementation of blockchain. Festival includes 5 Content Stages: Business Summit, Tech Connect Stage, Future Finance Stage, Crypto Impact Stage, GovChain Stage. Festival program will provide an open-plan educational and networking environment that allows for more hands-on training, meaningful discussion and face-to-face meetings between participants and exhibitors, and will lead an honest discussion about the problems and benefits. Unlike many other blockchain events, Blockchain Live does not dilute its content with joint technology demonstrations or overly crypto-oriented content. Instead, Blockchain Live focuses solely on the business potential of blockchain & DLT, encouraging conversations and debates about blockchain technology, while at the same time allowing hype and challenging critics to educate, improve their skills and direct long-term thinking on the strategic benefits of blockchain for business, governments and societies. Speakers Lucie Munier, Lead Project Manager | GovChain Research Naeem Aslam, Columnist | Forbes Nadeem Ladki, Director of Business Development | Ripple Caroline Casey, VP, Innovation, Partnerships and Labs — Europe | Mastercard Don Tapscott, Blockchain Live Festival Headliner — Co-Founder & Executive Chairman | Blockchain Research Institute, Co-Author Blockchain Revolution Next Event: AUTUMN | 2020 | London, United Kingdom. The date would be announced soon.
Devcon is the Ethereum conference for developers, researchers, thinkers, and makers. About Devcon is an annual event held by the Ethereum Foundation. For new explorers of the Ethereum space, Devcon is an intensive introduction to new worlds of thought. For those already embedded, it is a family reunion and a source of energy and creativity. Programming covers content ranging from the deeply technical to the profoundly human. This is a conference for builders of all kinds: developers, designers, researchers, client implementers, test engineers, infrastructure operators, community organizers, social economists and artists. We host Devcon to educate and empower the community to build and use decentralized systems. Our goal is to push the boundaries of possibility in our mission to bring decentralized protocols, tools, and culture to the world. Speakers: Vitalik Buterin, Creator Ethereum | Ethereum Foundation, Audrey Tang, Taiwan Digital Minister, Micah White, Co-Creator of Occupy Wall Street | Activist Grad School, Zoë Hitzig, PhD candidate in Economics | Harvard, Andreea Minca, Associate Professor | Cornell University. The last event was on October 8–11, 2019 at ATC Hall 2 Chome 1–10 Nankokita, Suminoe Ward. Osaka, Japan. Next Event: Next year, the date would be determined later. There are much more large crypto contests and festivals, and it’s almost impossible to select it by particular criteria, so we chose the most outstanding events to give you the ability to determine the most suitable for you. List of hugest crypto events
Festival of decentralized technology “Blockshow”, Singapore’ November 2019 https://blockshow.com/
If you still haven’t decided what the event you’re gonna visit, you can have a look at the list of events from CoinMarketCap: https://coinmarketcap.com/events/ So, now you’ll probably find the most suitable event for you. Stay with SwapSpace, check out for the hot news.
Trey's close friend Chris Cottrell passed away from cancer
Link to FB Post: https://www.facebook.com/treyanastasio/posts/10154506555242168 For the smart people without Facebook: My lifelong friend Chris Cottrell died tonight from adrenal cancer. My heart is truly broken. He leaves two beautiful daughters, Ayla and Kiara, his loving wife Amanda, and two brothers, Hamm and Trow. Chris was a deeply caring father, husband and friend, and at the same time, Chris was a true badass, as tough as nails on the outside, while Inside he had the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known. Chris and I were like blood brothers from the age of 15. Chris was always the first friend who would call when times were hard, he always knew exactly what to say, and more importantly, what not to say. He was also hilarious, and right up until his last day was cracking all of us up, including his nurses, who all loved him. He died surrounded by his loved ones in the comfort of his home. Chris was a wicked skier, and In the early 90s the four of us in Phish even sponsored him when he competed in the extreme skiing competition. He planned on skiing the competition in Fish’s dress, naked underneath, with the dress flapping up in the air as he went down the mountain. That didn’t actually end up happening, but we all had a good laugh picturing it, and he did well in the competition that year, despite wearing regular ski clothes. Chris loved elk and deer hunting in Colorado, and especially loved spending long hours above the tree line, he loved being up in the mountains. He also loved surfing, and he and Amanda loved spending time in Costa Rica, surfing, and being by the ocean. When our kids were all little, Chris took our families on 3 day rafting and camping trips out west. We’d go kayaking, and he was also an expert fly fisherman. He would take me fishing and I would never catch anything...while Chris would end up with 12 fish. It was like he could sense where they were hiding behind the rocks- he was in tune. Chris’s fingerprints can be found on the world of Phish and TAB. If you look in the liner notes of the live TAB album “Plasma” you’ll see that Chris was a co producer, helping me pick which tracks would make the cut. The song “Push on till the day” is packed with references to our countless adventures together. It begins with the line “C Cott is a friend of mine”, and among other things it includes a reference to “The Back of the Worm” which was heard at a Phish show at the Paradiso in Amsterdam in 97 but actually came from the night before that, when Chris and I were wandering aimlessly thru the dark streets of Amsterdam at 3am, completely lost and cracking up, when we both suddenly stopped in our tracks and realized at exactly the same moment that there were giant 100 foot long sand worms swimming just below the surface of the water in the canals right next to us. It was a horrifying thing to realize, but there was nothing we could do...the worms were there, and that was the end of it. So I looked sheepishly at Chris and sort of mumbled, “I think you know where you are....” and he replied, “.....you’re on the back of the worm”...which started us off laughing, whispering back and forth as we walked quickly away, “I think you know where you are...you’re on the back of the worm!” the chant continued all night and into the next day...right up onto the stage the next night. Stuff like that used to happen all the time with Chris. He lived in Boulder in the 80s and early 90s, and whenever Phish would come to town, which was quite a lot, we had a ritual where we would circumnavigate the entire city of Boulder, walking for hours at night, just talking and laughing. Chris and I both loved Jimi Hendrix so much...and we would always crank Band of Gypsies or Red House or some other Jimi track on the stereo when we were together, really loud, standing in front of the speakers together, and Chris, (whose nickname for me as “stain”, because my last name is Anastasio, which morphed into “Ain Stain”, which morphed into “stainus on the ainus”, and then into simply “stain”).. would lean into my face while Jimi ripped, at ear bleeding volume, and he would yell.... “stain!!! Listen to that sustain!” Meaning... not just sustain of one note, but the way Jimi always kept the energy flowing like a torrent...like whitewater rafting, how he would sustain, a roaring rapid of sustain. So when I walked onstage at the countless shows where Chris would be hanging backstage, he would always say to me, just as I walked out, “Stain!..... sustaaaiiiin!” Even when he couldn’t be at the show I’d often call or text him before the show and say, “Co-taage! (My nickname for him.. taaage is pronounced “taj” like in Taj Mahal) I’m gonna sustaaiiin!” And he’d say something like “well done, grasshopper” If you are ever in Crested Butte, there are many gorgeous homes in that town that Chris built. He had his own construction company, and built beautiful luxury homes, including his own, which was breathtaking, and always spotlessly clean. For the last decade of his life Chris was a grower in California. He loved and cared for his plants like a doting father, like they were his babies, watering and spraying for hours and hours every evening and early morning, building solar powered watering systems, or special air transfers and lighting systems for the indoor grow, dealing with pests, weather changes etc...He always took enormous pride in everything he did, and it showed...and of course he was a caring, loving expert as a grower too. Mostly, Chris loved Amanda, deeply and unconditionally. They had a rare and beautiful relationship. He was unwavering in his love for her, and she for him. It was such a heartwarming thing to witness. When he got sick, all he ever talked to me about, other than how proud he was of his beautiful daughters, was Amanda, and how he wished she did not have to go thru this. This post is way too long, so forgive me, but I guess I don’t care...because I’m so heartbroken, and I just want to share one more memory, if you will indulge me. Sometime in the mid 90s Mike was driving up the highway when he picked up the actor Courtney Gaines hitchhiking. Courtney was well known for playing the character of Malachi in Children of The Corn, with his wild red hair, he was the one who hacked everybody up. Mike started to contemplate a crazy gag, and at band practice and the gag came into focus.. So the next time we played in Vegas, we rented a giant suite with a balcony and a piano, and we invited tons of friends to a huge party in the room…Mike even hired two opera singers... The gag was this…Courtney and I bought the exact same clothes, because with my long red hair at the time, Courtney and I looked similar... we each bought an identical bright blue blazer, pants and shoes. Chris was chosen to be the target of the gag, because this was going to be so scary that we needed a person who wouldn’t have a heart attack when it happened, and Chris was literally the only person we could think of who would be able to withstand it. After taking some mushrooms just to add to the fun, I took Chris out gambling for a couple of hours while the party raged on in the room. Chris of course had no idea that Courtney was there...I was supposed to bring him back at exactly 2:45 am, which I did...When Chris and I got back to the room, everyone had left and we were alone, even though secretly they were all hiding up on the balcony looking down at us. There was a large screen TV placed in front of the couch and Children of the Corn was playing on the TV. Chris and I sat down on the couch...it was very dark in the room, except for the light from the TV, and just as we sat down, Courtney begin hacking furiously...with that weird curved blade thing and horror music blaring...at that moment I excused myself to go to the bathroom, Courtney and I switched in the bathroom, and Courtney returned to my seat on the couch dressed in the exact same clothes I’d been wearing, wearing my glasses, with his shaggy red hair, and sat right down next to Chris...the whole party and the opera singers, (who were instructed to scream at the top of their lungs at the exact moment that Chris screamed) were watching from above. Adding to the weirdness was the fact that Courtney is a professional actor, so he sat down next to Chris on the couch and then turned and made eye contact with him, with a horribly scary “I’m gonna kill you” face that i could see from the bathroom, and was so scary that even I was scared...this was only moments after I had been sitting next to Chris in the exact same spot...and meanwhile in the background, “movie Courtney” was hacking up a storm, with the movie cued to the exact worst spot. Chris stood up and started slowly backing away in terror and confusion...trying to get a handle on what was happening...at which point I sort of panicked because I felt worried that it was just all too much, so I ran out, thinking I’d make it would easier for him, but in reality, that’s when he really lost it because now there were two of me, in the dark, dressed identically, but one was Malaki. Anyway, my favorite part of this whole story is that by the next night Courtney and Chris had become pals, and while we were playing the show I kept seeing the two of them running around drinking and partying together (it was the Primus Halloween Harpua show), and that says more about Chris than anything. He loved the whole thing. We will all miss you Chris
Blockchain sphere spread to offline for a long time ago. If you are tired of searching for crypto forums, contests and other events to visit, SwapSpace has already picked up information about the most popular huge crypto events worldwide. We find out TOP annual events. Check out the list and just choose the most suitable one to go.
Is Europe’s largest annual international Blockchain Conference About Blockchain EXPO is one of the largest blockchain conferences and exhibitions in Europe dedicated to the future of corporate technology. Leading experts of blockchain industry will give presentations, case studies in the field of the latest technologies and interactive group discussions will be presented. Seminars will also be held on research in the industries that will be most affected by this new technology, including legal sector, trade and real estate, financial services, healthcare, insurance, and much more, and even art. Thematic blocks of the event include cryptocurrency and financial services, Blockchain for enterprises, businesses, Blockchain platform and strategies, development of Blockchain apps & technologies, Blockchain seminars; as well as a zone of innovation and investors. Within two days, the event will feature top-level content from leading world brands in the field of advanced blockchain technologies. It is worth noting that the Blockchain EXPO event is held in collab with IoT Tech Expo, 5g, AI & Big Data Expo and Cyber Security & Cloud Expo, which you can learn about several technologies at once in one place. 500+ Speakers Among them: John Calian, Senior Vice President | Head of T-Labs & The Blockchain Group | Deutsche Telekom AG; Andrei Bolocan, Technology Specialist Supply Chain | The HEINEKEN Company; Arwen Smit, EMEA Lead Mobility Open Blockchain Initiative | MOBI, Dimitri De Jonghe Co-Founder | Head of Research BigchainDB | Ocean Protocol, Michelle Chivunga Chair — International Committee The British Blockchain Association. Next Event: 1–2 JULY | 2020 | Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Blockchain Life is another one of the largest in Europe international forums dedicated to cryptocurrencies, mining and blockchain at all. About Annually, the forum becomes the largest and most significant event of the blockchain industry in Europe. The forum brings together world leaders and those who are just starting to become interested in the industry of blockchains and cryptocurrencies. It gathers up to 6000 participants from more than 70 countries. Blockchain Life units world industry leaders, miners, business owners, blockchain developers, investors. It is a platform not only for professionals but for beginners also. During 3 years of its existence, the forum became an international platform for the development of hundreds industry companies, a place for meeting market leaders with government officials, for the contracts conclusion that influences the global technology development. Forum also includes Startup contest, where you can show your project and find investors. Speakers Among them: Felix Mago, co-founder Dash; Roger Ver, CEO bitcoin.com; Xinxi Wang, manager Litecoin Foundation; Tim Draper, venture capitalist, founder of Draper Associates, DFJ & Draper University and others. The last event was recent, 15–17 OCTOBER | 2019 | Moscow, Russia. Next Event: next year, somewhere in Europe.
About TNABC is one of the most important crypto meetups. The conference is dedicated to a wide range of topics, in particular, blockchain technologies, ICO specifics, features of Bitcoin and Ethereum, token sale mechanisms, investment and regulation. Over the course of two days, speakers present their reports in 20-minute slots. Among them are the world most famous speakers, including CEOs, investors, government officials. In a spacious exhibition hall, conference participants will be able to meet and chat with representatives of the most influential companies that set the tone in the cryptocurrency sphere. Speakers 150+ speakers, among them: Harry Yen, Managing Director Binary Financial; Jeff Mackdonald, Co-founder NEM Foundation; Colleen Sullivan, Partner & CEO CMT Digital; Vitalik Buterin, Co-founder Ethereum; and others. Next Event: 15–17 JANUARY | 2020 | USA, Miami.
About NEXT BLOCK is one of the most popular annual worldwide crypto events, which include various programs every year. NEXT BLOCK ASIA 2.0 “Affiliate Marketing in the Crypto Age” will be dedicated to CRYPTO and AFFILIATE. At the event, experts will discuss synergies and prospects for 2020. In addition, you can be represented in the exhibition area, where you will have the opportunity to show yourself to young professionals and move up the career ladder. The conference lasts one day, followed by the AW event, which will be dedicated to affiliate marketing, gambling and contracts in the Crypto era, and will include discussions leading to the mega event. At the event, experts raise the most relevant topics and each participant can take part in solving the problem. This is an opportunity to communicate with movers and shakers of both crypto and partner worlds. Speakers: 500+, among them: Neo Say Wei, Chief Executive Officer — Neo & Partners Global and RF International Holdings; Giacomo Arcaro, №1 European ICO Growth Hacker, ICO STO Advisor, University Professor; Felix Mago, Co-Founder of Dash Thailand; Eloisa Marchesoni, Europe n. 1 Token Model Architect; Itay Adam Owner of Adam Tech Media and product launch campaigner. Next Event: DECEMBER, 3 | 2020 | Bangkok, Thailand.
About Blockchain Live is an innovative festival of content and collaboration that brings together a fragmented ecosystem to hold meaningful discussions and debates about how best to expedite the global implementation of blockchain. Festival includes 5 Content Stages: Business Summit, Tech Connect Stage, Future Finance Stage, Crypto Impact Stage, GovChain Stage. Festival program will provide an open-plan educational and networking environment that allows for more hands-on training, meaningful discussion and face-to-face meetings between participants and exhibitors, and will lead an honest discussion about the problems and benefits. Unlike many other blockchain events, Blockchain Live does not dilute its content with joint technology demonstrations or overly crypto-oriented content. Instead, Blockchain Live focuses solely on the business potential of blockchain & DLT, encouraging conversations and debates about blockchain technology, while at the same time allowing hype and challenging critics to educate, improve their skills and direct long-term thinking on the strategic benefits of blockchain for business, governments and societies. Speakers Lucie Munier, Lead Project Manager | GovChain Research Naeem Aslam, Columnist | Forbes Nadeem Ladki, Director of Business Development | Ripple Caroline Casey, VP, Innovation, Partnerships and Labs — Europe | Mastercard Don Tapscott, Blockchain Live Festival Headliner — Co-Founder & Executive Chairman | Blockchain Research Institute, Co-Author Blockchain Revolution Next Event: AUTUMN | 2020 | London, United Kingdom. The date would be announced soon.
Devcon is the Ethereum conference for developers, researchers, thinkers, and makers. About Devcon is an annual event held by the Ethereum Foundation. For new explorers of the Ethereum space, Devcon is an intensive introduction to new worlds of thought. For those already embedded, it is a family reunion and a source of energy and creativity. Programming covers content ranging from the deeply technical to the profoundly human. This is a conference for builders of all kinds: developers, designers, researchers, client implementers, test engineers, infrastructure operators, community organizers, social economists and artists. We host Devcon to educate and empower the community to build and use decentralized systems. Our goal is to push the boundaries of possibility in our mission to bring decentralized protocols, tools, and culture to the world. Speakers: Vitalik Buterin, Creator Ethereum | Ethereum Foundation, Audrey Tang, Taiwan Digital Minister, Micah White, Co-Creator of Occupy Wall Street | Activist Grad School, Zoë Hitzig, PhD candidate in Economics | Harvard, Andreea Minca, Associate Professor | Cornell University. The last event was on October 8–11, 2019 at ATC Hall 2 Chome 1–10 Nankokita, Suminoe Ward. Osaka, Japan. Next Event: Next year, the date would be determined later. There are much more large crypto contests and festivals, and it’s almost impossible to select it by particular criteria, so we chose the most outstanding events to give you the ability to determine the most suitable for you. List of hugest crypto events
Festival of decentralized technology “Blockshow”, Singapore’ November 2019 https://blockshow.com/
If you still haven’t decided what the event you’re gonna visit, you can have a look at the list of events from CoinMarketCap: https://coinmarketcap.com/events/ So, now you’ll probably find the most suitable event for you. Stay with SwapSpace, check out for the hot news.
The Saudis, in their time, knew much vice, while the people knew little, facing death if they even thought of violating their draconian laws. The times have changed though, and the Saudis are dead. So what happened to little old vice? It’s a big question, but one that needs to be addressed in a country as big as Arabia. What falls under such a broad thing as “vice”, though? In the context of this document, vice is defined as “pornography, prostitution, drugs, alcohol, and gambling”, i.e. all the fun stuff. These are the types of things that your standard puritan would sneer at, condemning whoever engaged in such vile actions to hell. Admittedly, some of these things can ruin a life with ease, so this topic much be approached with at least a little finesse. Let’s start with pornography. Possession, distribution, and production of pornography is totally legal within the Federation of Arabia. There is no caveat here beyond what is obvious: Child pornography is very illegal and possession, distribution, and especially production of child pornography is a heinous crime. Even when drawn it is reason for immediate arrest, and most paedophiles end up staying within the federal prison system permanently (despite the generally rehabilitative focus the federal prison system carries). The Federation of Arabia’s Ministry of Media Processing cooperates with the state-owned Arabian Internet Service Company, or AISCO (renamed from the Network Arabia Company), to purge all child pornography from the web. One of the MMP’s main offices is totally dedicated to purging the filth however they can. They send out takedown requests internationally every day, and have quickly earned a name for their efficiency in this niche field. What else but prostitution could come next? Arabia has followed down the path of countries like Germany. Prostitution is totally legal, as are brothels or other businesses organised around sex work. It’s all regulated, though. Sex workers are independent contractors, have the right to organise unions, are regularly checked for STIs, and must have a licence. Brothels must be registered, are restricted to specific areas within cities, are held liable for the spreading of STIs, and are restricted in advertising/solicitation. Street solicitation is generally illegal outside of the districts, but sex workers are totally allowed to use the internet and secure clients independently of brothels. Illegal prostitution under this system is still possible, and Arabia comes down easy on independent sex workers but hard on brothels. If an illegal brothel is found to be operating it is immediately shut down and sex workers there are directed to more legal options. Independent sex workers are simply directed to get a licence or face a fine of a few hundred Fadiralis. These laws have allowed Arabia to have a flourishing sex work industry. After Amsterdam’s red-light district, Arabia is one of the most popular countries for sex tourism. And, considering what other extravagant laws Arabia has in store for the average tourist, it’s certainly a good choice. Now on to drugs. Drugs! Drugs are just great, and what’s even greater is regulated drugs. Arabia does not criminalise the sale, production, or consumption of a fair few drugs. Cannabis, for one, is legal as long as the THC content is below 50%. Nicotine, and therefore e-/cigarettes, cigars, and vapes are legal, although public smoking is federally illegal. LSD and most other hallucinogens are legal. These drugs must be consumed in the home or at an approved space, such as a licenced drug den, akin to a Dutch coffeeshop. Production of all of it is legal too, but most provinces have heavy taxes for it. Basically everything else is a controlled substance. Very little is declared outright illegal as most things have a use (if you ignore whippets, most inhalants, or meth). Painkillers are treated very seriously within the public healthcare system and aren’t administered willy-nilly. Addicting drugs especially are administered only when somebody is in agonising chronic pain. The illegal drug policy is simple. It’s all decriminalised. The Federation operates hundreds of addiction treatment facilities, which have sterile bunks, hot food, and offer clean paraphernalia and pure drugs. This allows addicts to get their lives together at no immediate cost to themselves (most have to take out loans which can be paid back at a later point). As an afternote, pharmaceuticals production under one of the newer state-owned corporations, the Arabian Pharmaceuticals Research and Manufacturing Company (APRMCO, usually pronounced Ah-Prim-Co), has grown quickly to supply domestic dispensaries, and conducts much R&D instead of prioritising export. It was quite a costly enterprise to start up, but is much preferable to having to rely on foreign markets dominated by (((Israel))). Alcohol is a drug but it’s a drug near and dear to our hearts. The stereotype of most leftists in Arabia as drunkards rings true in some ways, as a common way of rebellion against paleo-Islamic parents is getting absolutely shitfaced constantly. Alcohol is federally totally allowed, but most provinces set their own laws regarding minimum age consumption/purchase and public intoxication. The average minimum age for purchase is 17, but has a wide range (lowest being 16, highest being 25). Most provinces allow for consumption at home at any age, although with parental approval. Most provinces prohibit public intoxication and therefore require drinking to be in bars or at home. Designated driver efforts are in full effect, but ridesharing services (a la uber) are also present. Obviously driving under the influence is illegal and can result in the revocation of driving licence. The new drinking culture in Arabia arose quite quickly. Respect for the drink is the golden rule, and as such most consumption outside of after-work moderation is frowned upon. Most universities revel in their own drinking and party culture though, as that rebellious attitude has yet to be crushed by the grueling reality of work. In a callback to the ancient Greeks, the intellectuals of Arabia have a developed taste for alcohol as well. When consumed in moderation it is viewed as a great tool, allowing for innovation and perception beyond what one may normally be accustomed to. In stark contrast to those ancient Greeks this mind-expanding culture isn’t limited to alcohol. LSD microdosing (and macrodosing) is quite common, and a lot of great Arabian works are produced under such influence. The last stop on our journey through the vice laws is gambling. Gambling is, surprise surprise, mostly legal but heavily regulated. No casinos exist within the country as they are outright prohibited. Gambling licences exist, but are hard to obtain. Generally, the legal forms of gambling are race betting, sports betting, and card-game betting, and these are all small-time affairs. Each province of Arabia has vastly differing laws regarding the legality of online betting, but generally is mostly outlawed. The Federation is a land of great vice and splendour. Its popularity in and out of the Middle East as a destination for tourism of unsavoury purposes is well-documented. There is generally great protest from the hyper-religious within the Federation, but the number of religious people is shrinking quickly. Soon primitive moral puritanism will not be the reason for looking down on these practices, and instead the Federation will be able to look in retrospection earnestly, determining what is best for the people from that.
1) The take-over by Vincent Tan has not yet lead to succes, on the contrary last season was one of the worst in years (lowest finish since 08/09 and smallest point total since the return to the first division). The future is uncertain as little progress is made on promises like a new stadium and receiving talented players from other Tan clubs like Cardiff City and FK Sarajevo. Idriss Saadi illustrates that such transfers can be succesfull. Whitin the club there is a lot of people (people apointed by Tan, sporting director Belocine, the actual coach) trying to influence the direction the club should take sporting wise. This has resulted in comical situations with people not having the right qualifications. For years the club has been losing its best players in the summer. They often have been replaced by players who were unknown but panned out in the end. This season is no different but they don't have the excellent coaching skils of Vanhazebroeck or Vanderhaeghe anymore. If things go wrong with this years transfers, it might be the end of the story in the first division. If that happens it is not sure whether Tan will stay. Him leaving might leave the club in problems it will take many years to recover from. The city is part of the Eurométropole, the agglomeration around the French city of Lille. But a language barrier (dutch speaking vs french speaking) prevents the club from capitalizing on the fan-, sponsor- and talentpotential that lies in the agglomeration. The club is at a juncture in its history: disapear in the anonymity of the lower division or secure its spot as a stable first division club. Goal: Top half
2) Key players: Elohim Rolland, Hannes Vander Bruggen, / Thomas Kaminsky
3) Talents: /
4) Hounours: /
5) Stadium: Guldensporenstadion, Cap: 9 399
6) Notable former players: Ivan Santini
7) Transfers: IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
Bennard Kummordzi
KRC Genk
Free transfer
CDM
Abdul Ajagun
Panathinaikos
Free transfer
CAM
/ Bryan Verboom
SV Zulte-Waregem
Loan
LB
Pylyp Budkivsky
Shakhtar Donetsk
Loan
ST
Cristophe Lepoint
SV Zulte-Waregem
?
CM
Sébastien Bruzzese
Club Brugge
?
GK
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
/ Lars Veldwijk
FC Groningen
€375 000
ST
Gertjan De Mets
SV Zulte-Waregem
Free transfer
CDM
Sidy Sarr
LB Châteauroux
Loan
CAM
Xavier Mercier
Cercle Brugge
?
CAM
Joãozinho
CD Tondela
?
LB
KSC Lokeren
1) The glory days under Peter Maes (getting top 6 consistently, 2 Cups and a succesfull EL group stage) lay behind them. If they were an american sports franchise they would currently be in the rebuilding fase. Some important players in recent past have left, even club/league/Ivory Coast legend Copa has been moved on. Incomming transfers have been somewhat unsuccesful recently and this year only one player (Marzo) who played first team football on a similar level has been brought in. Thus the others are a gamble. Coach Kristenson will have to use all his ability to create a working unit. Hopefully this will mean some of the players in the youth setup also get a chance, something what was lacking under Peter Maes. Owner Lambrecht is nothing short of a cult figure and is not afraid to fire people when things aren't going well. But he might not be around for long as he is looking to sell the club due to his old age. Offers from abroad have come in but Lambrecht would rather sell to somebody from Belgium who he trusts more. Whoever the new owner is, has a daunting task to continue the legacy. He will also find a club which isn't served by the circumstances of modern football. Being located in a smaller city and with a stadium located in poor spot. Already the result of the merger between 2 clubs, talks about merging with local rivals Waasland-Beveren have been subject of many discussions. With a merger the local competition would be eliminated therefore increasing the commercial potential. Lokeren will have to choose between being true to their roots or selling their soul for succes in more ways than one. Goal: Top Half
2) Key players: Kilian Overmeire, / Mijat Maric, Tom De Sutter, Davino Verhulst
1) After narowingly missing out on top 6 last year the ever ambitious coach Yannick Ferrera will look for improvement this season. The club continues to make progress every season since the financial troubles in the early 2000's but is still a long way from what it once was. The fans have always continued to support the club (and even saving the club with their own money). Thanks to the unique design (safe standing lenghtwise instead of behind the goal) of the renovated stadium, the atmosphere is something special. The bad apples who where in the squad last season have been sold in the summer. Replacing them are young players and players who have performed at the club in the past. If Kolovos and Pedersen can find the form prior to their injuries, it can be the x-factor to push them towards top 6. The youth setup has provided multiple first team players in recent years. This has been more neseccity rather than choice as star players continue to move to bigger teams in the league. Stopping that from hapening is a priority if the club wants to challenge the traditional top teams consistently. The situation with Bjelica is exemplary: being one of the clubs better players, he wants to move to a bigger club. But the club has received no offers to their liking, meaning he's staying. This is not to Bjelica liking who has spend preseason faking injuries, intentionally performing poorly and mocking the staff in the progress. Goal: Top Half
2) Key Players: Colin Coosemans, Mats Rits, Seth De Witte, Uros Vitas
3) Talents: Elias Cobbaut, / Andy Kawaya, Rob Schoofs, / Ahmed El Messaoudi
4) Hounours: 4x Champion (last 88/89), 1x Cup (86/87), 1x European Cup winners Cup (87/88), 1x European Super Cup (88/89)
5) Stadium: AFAS-stadion (Achter De Kazerne), Cap: 18 477 (further renovation/expansion in progress)
6) Notable former players: /
7) Transfers: IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
Rob Schoofs
AA Gent
€1 Mill
CM
Dimitrios Kolovos
Olympiakos Piraeus
€700 000
CAM
Nicklas Pedersen
KV Oostende
Free trasnfer
ST
Ahmed El Messaoudi
Lierse SK
?
CDM
Boureima Hassane Bandé
Salitas
?
ST
Stefan Drazic
FK Vozdovac
?
ST
/ Andy Kawaya
RSC Anderlecht
?
LW
/ Faycall Rheras
Heart of Midlothian FC
Free transfer
LB
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
Jordi Vanlerberghe
Club Brugge
€1,9 Mill
CDM
Jens Naessens
KVC Westerlo
Free transfer
ST
/ Reda Jaadi
Royal Antwerp FC
Free transfer
CAM
Nils Schouterden
KAS Eupen
?
LM
Nicolas Verdier
KAS Eupen
?
ST
Jordy Peffer
KVC Westerlo
Loan
ST
Alexander Corryn
Royal Antwerp FC
Loan
LB
Royal Excel Mouscron
1) Winning the annual legal battle with the league has secured the place in the first division. Mouscron keeps assuring that player agent Pini Zahavi is not the owner (which is prohibited), but the league has its doubts so it is up to BAS (Belgian version of TAS) to make the decision and it has ruled in favor of Mouscron. Unfortunately the problems don't end there, because almost the entire first eleven was on loan they are gone. So far they have been replaced by players from the U21's and some players they were able to get on loan. With the transfers of Bailly, Godeau and Mbombo they have some players who have played in the league before. Another problem which needs tackling is the poor home support. The league introduced a new rule saying tv-cameras have to be pointed at the most filled stand, in Mouscron they'll have a hard time choosing as neither of the stands are filled more than 25%. The lack of identity has not helped the club in attrackting fans, especially in area with Lille, Lens, Valenciennes, Kortrijk and Zulte-Waregem in close proximity. On paper the squad there is now has no chance of survival, so coming the transfer deadline we'll see the arrival of multiple new players who happen to be part of Zahavi's network. Whether that will be enough is dependent on the motivation of every one involved and considering no one has a personal connection with the club that motivation will need to be something other than club love/loyalty. Goal: Avoid relegation
2) Key Players: / Aristote Nkaka, Filip Markovic
3) Talents: / Aristote Nkaka, / Mërgim Vojvoda
4) Hounours: /
5) Stadium: Le Canonnier, Cap: 10 832
6) Famous former players: Demba Ba, Maxime Lestienne, ( / Nabil Bentaleb, but never played in the first team)
7) Transfers:
IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
Logan Bailly
Celtic FC
Free transfer
GK
/ Yannis Mbombo
Örebro SK
Free transfer
ST
Jean Butez
Lille OSC
Loan
GK
Omar Govea
FC Porto B
Loan
CDM
Clément Libertiaux
RSC Charleroi
?
GK
Jonathan Bolingi
Standard Liège
Loan
ST
/ Selim Amallah
AFC Tubize
?
CAM
Bruno Godeau
KV Oostende
?
CB
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
Theo Defourny
AFC Tubize
Free transfer
GK
Thibault Peyre
Union SG
Free transfer
RB
Deivydas Matulevicius
Hibernian FC
Free transfer
ST
Corentin Koçur
CS Fola Esch
Free transfer
CM
Fejsal Mulic
Hapoel Acre
Free transfer
ST
Mickaël Tirpan
KAS Eupen
?
RB
Daniel Graovac
FK Zeljeznicar Sarajevo
Loan
CB
KV Oostende
1)Investor Marc Coucke will be eager to see his team play in Europe for the first time. Despite the lack of European history they will hardly be out of place, many of the players have played EL and CL football at previous clubs. In recent seasons they have shown to be capable of destroying the top teams in Belgium what should mean they can win against anyone if underestimated. Other than reaching Europe an other step was made by sale of 2 young talents. Dimata and Marusic (and Lukaku the season before) moved for sums and to clubs normally only seen at the top clubs in Belgium. Incomming wise they attracted a mix of experience and young talent. If Lombaerts can stay fit, he should be one of the best players in the league and therefore a serious asset. So a step foreward was set, but will Coucke be satisfied or will he want more. The obvious next step is challenging for the title. To achieve that further investments will be needed, bringing new problems. European football means abiding by financial fair play, not an easy feat considering the high wages being paid compared to the small revenue from the fanbase. So Oostende will have to sell their best players every season or increase the fanbase to reach FFP-targets. Increasing the fanbase is easier said than done in an area dominated by Club Brugge. Oostende has been an asset to the league since its promotion and will likely continue to play an important role in seasons to come. Goal: Top 6
Europe: entry: EL qualifiers 3rd round, goal: reach EL group stage
2) Key players: Silvio Proto, Sebastien Siani, Franck Berier, Knowledge Musona, David Rozehnal
1) Not every club can say it has fared well by being part of the Duchatelet network, but is definitely the case for Sint-Truiden. Not only has the stadium been renovated, they continue to receive players who have an impact. A transfer policy of singing (loan or permanent) young players who were not given a chance at better clubs in Belgium or abroad has paid dividends. Both Gerkens and Peeters were sold at a serious profit. During the renovation of the stadium the choice was made to play on an artificial pitch. Being the only club in Belgium doing so has given the club an extra home advantage. It is not certain it will last as artificial pitches have come under scrutiny influenced by developments in the Netherlands. The benifit of the pitch is higher when playing a certain style of football (combination of short passing and trying to beat your man). Coaches have often been appointed because they are playing that style, so one should expect new coach Tintin Marquez to do the same. The dressing room is also cleaned up by getting rid of the dick-flashing stiker, the crowdfuded striker and the right wing who likes to break teammates noses. Continuity should be the number one priority and so far this summer has provided it. Goal: Avoid relegation
2) Key players: Steven De Petter, / Igor Vetokele, Cristian Ceballos
3) Talents: Steve Ryckaert, Kurt Abrahams, Babacar Gueye
4) Hounours: /
5) Stadium: Staaien, Cap: 14 600
6) Notable former players: Simon Mignolet
7) Transfers:
IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
Fabien Antunes
KV Oostende
Free transfer
LB
Marten Schevenels
KRC Genk
Free transfer
GK
/ Jordan Botaka
Leeds United
Free transfer
RW
Charilaos Charisis
PAOK Thessaloniki
Loan
CM
Stelios Kitsiou
PAOK Thessaloniki
Loan
RB
Samuel Asamoah
KAS Eupen
Free transfer
CM
Babacar Gueye
Hannover 96
Loan
ST
Cristian Ceballos
Charlton Athletic
?
LW
Jorge Teixera
Charlton Athletic
?
CB
Kenny Steppe
SV Zulte-Waregem
?
GK
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
Stef Peeters
SM Caen
€1,5 Mill
CAM
Pieter Gerkens
RSC Anderlecht
€1,5 Mill
CM
Nick Proswitz
?
Free transfer
ST
Donát Zsótér
Újpest FC
Free transfer
RW
Fabien Tchenkoua
?
Free transfer
RW
Panagiotis Kynigopoulos
Panachaiki Patras
Free transfer
ST
Soma Novothny
Újpest FC
Free transfer
ST
Pierrick Valdivia
Nîmes Olympique
Free transfer
CM
Wolke Janssens
Lierse SK
Loan
ST
Jorge Pulido
SD Huesca
?
CB
Rúben Fernandes
Portimonense SC
?
CB
Royal Standard de Liège
1) Life is never boring if you are a Standard fan. Past years have been a spectacle involving multiple owners, 9 coaches in 3 years, about 50 players and multiple fines/punishment because of fan behaviour. Although Sint-Truiden fared well under the reign of Duchatelet, the same can not be said about Standard. Under his ownership the best players were sold and the recruitment was questionable to say the least. The club was subsequently taken over by Venanzi a local businessman and longtime fan. He found a club not only in trouble football wise but also financially. It is still unclear how bad the situation was/is, luckilly they caught a break with the Batshuayi's transfer to Chelsea as they had a serious sell-on clause agreed with Marseille. This season the club looks on the way back: key players have stayed put and players were brought in. Pocognoli and Mpoku are key figures from the past and should be among the best players in the league in their respective positions (which also should be the case for Ochoa). If the team starts performing, two more problems need being dealt with. First and foremost is the fan behaviour, spurred on by poor performances the fans have build up an infamous reputation. Throwing pyrotechnics at opposing fans, players and the officials, trashing their own and the opposition's stadium and a controversial tifo were among the fans antics. Something what might calm the fans is better usage of academy players, which was somewhat lacking. The Dimata scenario (moved to Oostende after not getting a chance and was sold for 10 million only a year later) is a nightmare nobody at Standard will be keen on reliving. If Venanzi and new coach Sa Pinto can bring stability, Standard should be able to reclaim its spot among the league's elite. Goal: Top 6
2) Key players: Ishak Belfodil, Alexander Scholz, Orlando Sa, Mathieu Dossevi
4) Hounours: 10x Champion ( last 08/09), 7x Cup (last 15/16), 4x Super cup (last 09/10)
5) Stadium: Stade Maurice Dufrasne (Sclessin), Cap: 30 032
6) Notable former players: / Marouane Fellaini, Axel Witsel, Steven Defour, / Michy Batshuayi, William Vainqueur, / Eliaquim Mangala
7) Transfers:
IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
/ Paul-José Mpoku
Chievo Verona
€1,8 Mill
LW
Sébastien Pocognoli
West Bromwich Albion
Free transfer
LB
Guillermo Ochoa
FC Malaga
Free transfer
GK
Uche Agbo
FC Watford
€2,5 Mill
CDM
Merveille Bokadi
TP Mazembe
?
CDM
Christian Luyindama Nekadio
TP Mazembe
?
CDM
Jonathan Bolingi
TP Mazembe
?
ST
Moussa Djenepo
Yeleen
?
CM
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
Ibrahima Cissé
FC Fulham
€2,5 Mill
CDM
Guillaume Hubert
Club Brugge
€350 000
GK
Alassane Diallo
Újpest FC
Free transfer
CM
Birama Touré
AJ Auxerre
?
CDM
/ Samy Mmaee
MVV Maastricht
Loan
RB
Jonathan Bolingi
Royal Excel Mouscron
Loan
ST
Mohamed Yattara
AJ Auxerre
?
SY
Darwin Andrade
Deportivo Cali
?
LB
Benjamin Tetteh
FK Bohemians Praag 1905
Loan
ST
Jean-Luc Dompé
SC Amiens
Loan
LW
Waasland-Beveren
1) It has been a quiet summer so far for the club, other than the arrival of the new coach and one notable transfer nothing has happened. It's a break with the past as fans often had to use a cheat sheet to remember all the new players. New players will likely still come in and hopefully they'll continue their transfer policy of young Belgians signed from the league's U21 teams. By giving them a chance those players have often started performing. But a young team will always be inconsistent and make silly mistakes, those are not caracteristics you are looking for in a relegation candidate. New coach Phillipe Clement was destined to be the new Club Brugge coach, but choose a project out of the spotlights. But his job won't be any easier, many coaches have fallen trying to save the club from relegation. If the club's money isn't going towards the team, i hope they are fixing the ugliest stand of the league. The stands are not the only ugly thing, the kits are a mess of diferent sponsors. It's shame they can't capitalize on the club's proximity to one of the most important economic areas in Europe. The Port of Antwerp has a large share of big company's who's sponsorship would work wonders. As evidenced by the name the club is the result of the merger between 2 teams (Red Star Waasland and KSK Beveren). This still results in unease among the fans, former fans of KSK Beveren have started their own club in the lower divisions, further dividing the already small fan base. Goal: Avoid relegation
4) Hounours: 2x Champion (last 83/84), 2x Cup (last 82/83), 2x Super cup (last 84/85) (all these are won by KSK Beveren which legally doesn't exist anymore)
5) Stadium: Freethielstadion, Cap: 13 290
6) Notable former players: Yaya Touré, Gervinho, Emmanuel Eboué, Arthur Boka
7) Transfers:
IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
Ryota Morioka
Slask Wroclaw
€275 000
CAM
Jur Schryvers
Club Brugge
?
GK
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
Kjetil Borry
KSV Roeselare
?
CB
SV Zulte-Waregem
1) The rise of the club has largely been the work of one man, coach/manager Franky Dury. He has lead the club from the second division to the first, won 2 cups, was 30min. away from a title and will play EL group stage for the second time this season. All this has happened under difficult circumstances, the club has a limited budget and has to sell it's best players to survive. This is especially the case now as funds are needed to complete the renovation of the stadium. Unsurprisingly the club has parted ways with almost the entire first eleven from last season. Yet again Dury has build a team by finding bargains and (ab)using the loan system. He has an unparallelled ability to rehabilitate youngsters who have lost confidence (when Meite came to the club, Dury asked him were he wanted to be. Meite said: "at Man United", to which Dury responded: "lets get started"). If the team is strong enough to have an impact in the EL or the league remains to be seen, but the narrow defeat in the Super cup should give confidence that they are competitive. The sale of players plus the money from Europe should be enough to finish the stadium. When finished it will be only the second modern stadium in the country and give them a leg up on the competition. That should mean the next step is made and they hopefully won't have to sell their stars every season. The fact that Dury choose to stay despite having offers from Ligue 1, Bundesliga and La Liga is vital for the club. Goal: Top Half Europe: entry: EL group stage, goal: be competitive
2) Key Players: Onur Kaya, Timothy Derijck, Brian Hamalainen, Davy De fauw
3) Talents: Yoan Severin, Julien De Sart, Sander Coopman, Idrissa Doumbia, / Aaron Leya Iseka, Aliko Bala, Kingsley Madu
4) Hounours: 2x Cup (last 16/17)
5) Stadium: Regenboogstadion, Cap: 12 250 (renovation/expansion in progress)
6) Notable former players: Thorgan Hazard, Theo Bongonda, Nikica Jelavic
7) Transfers:
IN
Player
From
Fee
Position
/ Nill De Pauw
EA Guingamp
€350 000
LW
Michaël Heylen
RSC Anderlecht
€200 000
CB
/ Sandy Walsh
KRC Genk
Free transfer
RB
Gertjan De Mets
KV Kortrijk
Free transfer
CDM
Ivan Saponjic
FC Benfica B
Loan
ST
Ben Reichert
Hapoel Tel Aviv
?
CAM
Peter Olayinka
AA Gent
Loan
ST
Idrissa Doumbia
RSC Anderlecht
Loan
CM
/ Aaron Leya Iseka
RSC Anderlecht
Loan
ST
Sander Coopman
Club Brugge
Loan
CAM
OUT
Player
To
Fee
Position
/ Soualiho Meité
AS Monaco
€2,9 Mill (30% of 8 Mill)
CDM
Lukas Lerager
FC Girondins Bordeaux
€3,5 Mill
CM
Henrik Dalsgaard
FC Brentford
€1,1 Mill
RB
Christophe Lepoint
KV Kortrijk
?
CM
Kenny Steppe
Sint- Truiden VV
?
GK
/ Charni Ekangamene
KFCO Beerschot Wilrijk
?
CM
Stephen Buyl
Cercle Brugge
?
LW
Karim Essikal
KFCO Beerschot Wilrijk
?
CDM
/ Bryan Verboom
KV Kortrijk
Loan
LB
Jakob Ankersen
Aarhus GF
?
RM
Conclusion The change of the league system has been controversial, but for the neutral fan it has been positive so far. European performances have improved and the league is more competitive than it was before. But it is to early to tell whether the introduction of the play-offs was the main cause for it. It is possible that teams perform better in Europe thanks to having multiple high stake, high intensity matches in play-off 1 and because the play-off alow the to focus on Europe early in the season.. It is also possible that european performances have improved because countries with similar league's (Greece, Turkey, Ukraine and Portugal) have had both football and non-football problems plaguing them in recent years. Whether the league is more competitive because of small-teams receiving extra revenue from playing play-off 1 or because of sheer coincedence also remains to be seen. Even if the system has been a positive, work remains to be done. The way play-off 2 is done, is a bit of a mockery (theoreticly it is possible for the number 4 of the second divison to reach european football). But it is hard to find an alternative that doesn't screw the smaller teams or totally invallidates the regular season. If the league wants to solidify its position among the top ten in Europe then it should work on its markething. There is still (like most things in Belgium) a lot of negativity around the league. People think it's shit and rather watch one of the top leagues. This has always seamed strange to me as those league have plenty of horrendous matches too. The league should do a better effort of getting local people supporting Belgian clubs. But the market is limited with only 11 million people the league will theoreticly never be able to compete with the Ukrainian or the Turkish league, let alone the top 5. However there is stil plenty of untapped markething potential in the rest of the world. The league has an incredible amount of active national team players, particulary in Africa. Africa remains somewhat unknown territory (with Latin america focused on themsleves, Spain and Italy, and Asia focused on England and Germany). Should the league play its cards right, it could get a head start. The rise of the national team has already done the league favors in more ways than one but also had its perverse effects. Young Belgians are being poached from teams's academys by top teams around Europe. Many have left with big expactations only to find disillusion years later. Still some (Januzaj, Musonda, Bakkali,...) refuse to return despite it being benificial for their development. Stopping talent from leaving at an early age should be a priority, but one which needs to be done a European level. One last problem still needs solving: the infrastructure. Many teams play in stadia dating from the previous century and aren't suited for modern football. Progress has been made in recent years: AA Gent has their new arena and smaller teams have started renovation. Almost all teams have plans for a new arena or renovating the old one, but progress is slow as the Belgian legal/political system isn't friendly towards big projects. The proposed Eurostadion is an excellent example. Brussels, being the capital of Europe, knew it had an unique opportunity to get their bid selected for Euro 2020. But typical Belgian games involving poor planning, multiple goverments and big ego's have so far undermined the project. The future of the project looks bleak as Anderlecht refuses to be the tennant, there is no permit to start building and Brussels's politics are in turmoil. So although progress is been made in recent years towards the league's development, serious challenges still remain. But in the mean time an enjoyable league filled with drama has arisen. All statistics are from transfermarkt or wikipedia
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