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OT - Leicester City wins the Premiere League

Hungry Jack said:
That's like Japan beating South Africa in rugby.
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It's probably more surprising than that: As unlikely as that result was, almost anything can happen in a one-off game, I point to App State beating Michigan in 2007. To be as consistent as they were across 38 games is an unbelievable achievement for a club like Leicester. I say this as a somewhat put-out Tottenham fan whose team chased and chased but fell at the final hurdle.

The story that has been missed in the Premier League this season is the survival of AFC Bournemouth. They're a tiny club who almost went out of business in 2009 that plays in an 12000 seat stadium 2 miles away from the south coast of England. They were more likely than the Foxes to get relegated but survived comfortably and played a wonderfully attacking and pretty style of football. It's great to see smaller clubs break the hegemony of the Manchester clubs and Arsenal and Chel$ea. IF they get promoted, Brighton and Hove Albion's similar phoenix-like rise will be another great story to follow, along with Leicester's sink back to mid-table. Unfortunately for Leicester, the fairy tale won't last that long: They're not going to be able to compete at the top level long term: Their squad isn't strong enough to cope with a title defence and the rigours of Champions League football. However, their triumph is an incredible story, probably more surprising than any story in sporting history, and I include the Miracle on Ice in that. I could talk about this all morning, but I can't imagine many of you really care about the round ball version of football that much.
 
60657Cat said:
It's probably more surprising than that: As unlikely as that result was, almost anything can happen in a one-off game, I point to App State beating Michigan in 2007. To be as consistent as they were across 38 games is an unbelievable achievement for a club like Leicester. I say this as a somewhat put-out Tottenham fan whose team chased and chased but fell at the final hurdle.

The story that has been missed in the Premier League this season is the survival of AFC Bournemouth. They're a tiny club who almost went out of business in 2009 that plays in an 12000 seat stadium 2 miles away from the south coast of England. They were more likely than the Foxes to get relegated but survived comfortably and played a wonderfully attacking and pretty style of football. It's great to see smaller clubs break the hegemony of the Manchester clubs and Arsenal and Chel$ea. IF they get promoted, Brighton and Hove Albion's similar phoenix-like rise will be another great story to follow, along with Leicester's sink back to mid-table. Unfortunately for Leicester, the fairy tale won't last that long: They're not going to be able to compete at the top level long term: Their squad isn't strong enough to cope with a title defence and the rigours of Champions League football. However, their triumph is an incredible story, probably more surprising than any story in sporting history, and I include the Miracle on Ice in that. I could talk about this all morning, but I can't imagine many of you really care about the round ball version of football that much.
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Is any of this like the rise of Watford from 4th division (or was it 3rd) under Sir Elton John?
 
Not really. Leicester do have a history in the top flight, even if it isn't that recent. Obviously their success this season is unprecedented, given that they were dead and buried and certainties for relegation in March 2015.

Watford had no top flight history before their promotion in 1983 and have bounced around the top three divisions since then. There have been plenty of stories such as Watford's over the years, such as Wimbledon's rise from an amateur side to winning the FA Cup in 12 years and Swansea, Bournemouth, Hull, Brighton to name a few.

But no one survives relegation by a hair's breadth then turns around and wins the bloody league the next. It's ridiculous.
 
I kind of wonder if the odds-makers weren't a little bit too influenced by Leicester's long term record and lack of "tradition". They did win 7 of their last 9 at the end of last season. I'm not sure why virtually nobody thought that might represent significant improvement in the team, but I guess nobody did.

Now we need a remake of Back to the Future II. No record sports betting streak, just one big bet and lots of Leicester highlights. Better yet, a rags to riches movie about the team itself. Between the team and the downtrodden town, lots of ideas pop up: A remake of Oliver Twist with Ranieri as Fagan, Vardi as Oliver, and Riyad Mahrez as the artful dodger .... A 2 legged version of Seabiscuit featuring the whole team as losers who make good and Leicester as the depression racked country looking for hope. Hoosiers without "basketball rings"....
 
spartcat said:
I kind of wonder if the odds-makers weren't a little bit too influenced by Leicester's long term record and lack of "tradition". They did win 7 of their last 9 at the end of last season. I'm not sure why virtually nobody thought that might represent significant improvement in the team, but I guess nobody did.

Now we need a remake of Back to the Future II. No record sports betting streak, just one big bet and lots of Leicester highlights. Better yet, a rags to riches movie about the team itself. Between the team and the downtrodden town, lots of ideas pop up: A remake of Oliver Twist with Ranieri as Fagan, Vardi as Oliver, and Riyad Mahrez as the artful dodger .... A 2 legged version of Seabiscuit featuring the whole team as losers who make good and Leicester as the depression racked country looking for hope. Hoosiers without "basketball rings"....
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In all honesty the oddsmakers were exactly correct. They had a new manager who had failed horrendously when in his last post with the Greek national team. They had a bunch of unproven players who barely got out of relegation the year before and everyone around them apart from Aston Villa had strengthened. Personally I pegged them to survive, but had them around 16th.

No one could have foreseen Chelsea's shambolic defence of their title. I thought Manchester United would kick on under LVG in year two. Arsenal's lack of stomach for a fight was predictable, but one might have expected City to make progress. Tottenham's rise into the top four wasn't unexpected, but the title challenge was. Even if the traditional big four hadn't imploded, you had Spurs and Liverpool poised to take their spot. After them, you have the "middle tier" teams such as West Ham, Everton, Southampton and Stoke. Imagining Leicester would do anything other than scrape into mid-table obscurity was insanity.

It's the morning after Spurs lost the title and I'm for sure a little bitter, but if you were to read around, the Foxes' triumph is as unlikely as its being made out to be.

I hope you're finding my football posts fair and balanced. It certainly makes a change from posting about offensive schemes and shaky kickers.
 
Windy City Cat Fan said:
Wonder what odds were of northwestern winning the big ten and going to the rose bowl in 1995?
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I would place this on par with the improbability of what the 1995 Cats did. But nothing else I have ever seen or heard of compares to what NU football accomplished in 1995 and then validated in 1996..

GOUNUII
 
60657Cat said:
It's probably more surprising than that: As unlikely as that result was, almost anything can happen in a one-off game, I point to App State beating Michigan in 2007. To be as consistent as they were across 38 games is an unbelievable achievement for a club like Leicester. I say this as a somewhat put-out Tottenham fan whose team chased and chased but fell at the final hurdle.

The story that has been missed in the Premier League this season is the survival of AFC Bournemouth. They're a tiny club who almost went out of business in 2009 that plays in an 12000 seat stadium 2 miles away from the south coast of England. They were more likely than the Foxes to get relegated but survived comfortably and played a wonderfully attacking and pretty style of football. It's great to see smaller clubs break the hegemony of the Manchester clubs and Arsenal and Chel$ea. IF they get promoted, Brighton and Hove Albion's similar phoenix-like rise will be another great story to follow, along with Leicester's sink back to mid-table. Unfortunately for Leicester, the fairy tale won't last that long: They're not going to be able to compete at the top level long term: Their squad isn't strong enough to cope with a title defence and the rigours of Champions League football. However, their triumph is an incredible story, probably more surprising than any story in sporting history, and I include the Miracle on Ice in that. I could talk about this all morning, but I can't imagine many of you really care about the round ball version of football that much.
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Hehe
 
Fitzphile said:
Leicester were almost relegated last season. They have a great scorer in Vardy and a former Chelsea Manager, so the cupboard wasn't exactly completely bare. But no one saw this coming.
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You clearly don't watch soccer if that's your opinion. Vardy was in the fifth tier of England not too long ago and raineri managed Chelsea in 2004, and a bunch of other big clubs, and never won a league title. When he was appointed manager of Leicester, everyone thought he would be the first manager sacked this year and that Leicester would be relegated. The cupboard was completely bare making it even more unbelievable.
 
Curious if Vegas was taking odds back at the beginning of the season? That would be some payout with 5,000 to one.
 
I would posit that whatever the greatest upset / surprise in sports history is, it would have to involve a team sport, and almost certainly something that played out over a season or multiple contests. In individual sports like boxing, tennis, MMA, an individual can have an off day, injury, etc. and fall prey to a flukish upset. Team sports mitigate the outlier individual performances. And in a one-game scenario like the Super Bowl, shocking things can happen that defy expectation.

With this in mind, my list of the greatest upsets / unexpected championships in sports, in no particular order:
  • 1980 US Olympic hockey team - no one gave that team a chance in hell at winning gold
  • 1995 Wildcats - on the heels of the Dark Ages, no one saw this coming, not even the team
  • Leicester City wins Premier League - these guys sounds like the Cubs of English football
  • 1999 St. Louis Rams - a bit biased, but that was a shocker when Kurt Warner went from Arena League to NFL MVP
 
Hungry Jack said:
I would posit that whatever the greatest upset / surprise in sports history is, it would have to involve a team sport, and almost certainly something that played out over a season or multiple contests. In individual sports like boxing, tennis, MMA, an individual can have an off day, injury, etc. and fall prey to a flukish upset. Team sports mitigate the outlier individual performances. And in a one-game scenario like the Super Bowl, shocking things can happen that defy expectation.

With this in mind, my list of the greatest upsets / unexpected championships in sports, in no particular order:
  • 1980 US Olympic hockey team - no one gave that team a chance in hell at winning gold
  • 1995 Wildcats - on the heels of the Dark Ages, no one saw this coming, not even the team
  • Leicester City wins Premier League - these guys sounds like the Cubs of English football
  • 1999 St. Louis Rams - a bit biased, but that was a shocker when Kurt Warner went from Arena League to NFL MVP
Click to expand...

Leicester are not the Cubs. There isn't an equivalent of the Cubs. Its more like the Lehigh Valley Ironpigs winning the World Series.
 
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Hungry Jack said:
I would posit that whatever the greatest upset / surprise in sports history is, it would have to involve a team sport, and almost certainly something that played out over a season or multiple contests. In individual sports like boxing, tennis, MMA, an individual can have an off day, injury, etc. and fall prey to a flukish upset. Team sports mitigate the outlier individual performances. And in a one-game scenario like the Super Bowl, shocking things can happen that defy expectation.

With this in mind, my list of the greatest upsets / unexpected championships in sports, in no particular order:
  • 1980 US Olympic hockey team - no one gave that team a chance in hell at winning gold
  • 1995 Wildcats - on the heels of the Dark Ages, no one saw this coming, not even the team
  • Leicester City wins Premier League - these guys sounds like the Cubs of English football
  • 1999 St. Louis Rams - a bit biased, but that was a shocker when Kurt Warner went from Arena League to NFL MVP
Click to expand...
While I scoff at 5000:1 as a rationally set line professional sports in North America are by design more socialistic in nature relative to Europe (ironically) which is why it is hard to find comparable upsets to Leicester City.

Two more to add to your list 1969 Miracle Mets and the made for Hollywood upset team - 1954 Milan High.
 
thewildcat2011 said:
What about Greece winning the Euro in 2004? That was insane!!
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The only thing about unlikely tournament success is that it's over a relatively short period of time, usually a maximum of 8 games. The Premier League is a marathon of 38 games amongst various cup tournaments too.

If the Tennessee Titans turn round and go 15-1 and win the Super Bowl, then I think we might have an equivalent, or if Purdue gets it right, goes 13-0 and wins the playoff.
 
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