The third in a series of posts as we head towards the FIFA Men's World Cup football tournament.
Expect a lot of retailers to try to leverage the World Cup for the sales of additional products including food, clothing, alcohol, flags etc etc. - most things can be given some sort of World Cup branding. Here's some cupcakes for example.
TV and electrical firms have been trying to get us to upgrade our TVs as usual. This sort of unnecessary consumption, and the e-waste that it will generate as a consequence is something that we investigate with our Year 8 students.
Please send me your most tenuous World-Cup-connected items.
Going to the matches in person?
MetLife Stadium hosts eight World Cup matches this summer, including the final on July 19, with more than a million fans expected to visit the stadium and surroundings.MapMe have shared a free interactive stadium map which helps visitors plan ahead: preview views from each seating section, locate gates, concessions, restrooms, parking, and nearby transit before arriving at the venue.
Follow the link here.
It's the summer and in many of the locations where the matches are being played, the temperatures are going to be blazing hot.
There was a message from FIFA that fans would not be able to take their own drinks to the stadium for safety reasons... but could then buy a drink inside. The drinks of course will be sold at inflated prices.
They later posted another video saying what they meant was no hard bottles or drinks containers which could be missiles... although they then sell cans of beer apparently...
Given the temperatures, it could be a bit pricy with water at $9.00 a bottle.
Canada is already concerned about the potential financial deficit if the tournament is not a success but it has not invested as much in it as the USA.
Travelling to the matches is turning into something of a saga too. The Iraq team were delayed in border control for hours and their team photographer was denied entry.
Some Scottish fans had their visa applications rejected too.
UK citizens who want to go to the United States for up to 90 days without a visa need to apply to the country's Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA).But dozens of fans who filled out the form have said on social media that their application status had changed this week from "approved" to "travel not authorised".
Some have told BBC Scotland News they could lose out on thousands of pounds in travel costs due to the changes, with Scotland's first World Cup game kicking off in less than two weeks.
Some cities are pedestrianising city blocks for the duration of matches to keep visitors safe. There have been an unfortunately high number of examples of vehicles being deliberately driven at crowds at sporting and other events in recent years. The chances of some high-profile incident at some point during the tournament is high. Some cities have closed off large areas or made them car free. The stadiums are also a long way from the city centre in some cases due to the huge size of US cities, and the expectation that everyone will drive to them.
There are concerns over the condition of the pitches too and safety for the players.
The Norwegian team photo was making the news too - not everyone was in favour of linking the team to the Vikings... who weren't always welcome when they arrived in places.
Plenty more to come in future posts. This is a World Cup that will keep giving...
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