Talk:2018 FIFA World Cup Group G

Serbia having lost its first three World Cup games
BBC says: "Panama's defeat means they have become the first nation since Serbia and Togo in 2006 to lose each of their first three World Cup games.", and this page quotes it. However, that's not accurate.

1) Not Serbia but Serbia&Montenegro competed in the 2006 World Cup. Serbia has been competing independently since after that World Cup, even though the two republics actually split shortly before that World Cup, and thus the team played there representing a nonexistent country. Independent Serbia first participated in 2010, where it won once and lost twice.

2) Serbia&Montenegro was just the new name of FR Yugoslavia; both had exactly the same territory (Serbia + Montenegro). And as FR Yugoslavia played in the 1998 World Cup, the team was not really "new" to the World Cup in 2006.

3) While the predecessor state SFR Yugoslavia, which consisted of Serbia + Montenegro + 4 more republics, could be regarded as a different team, FIFA recognises all SFR Yugoslavia (and its earlier predecessors), FR Yugoslavia, Serbia&Montenegro and the current Serbia as incarnations of the same entity. So, as far as FIFA is concerned, not even in 2010 or 1998 was the team "new" to the World Cup. --Theurgist (talk) 16:15, 4 July 2018 (UTC)