I’m not much of a TV person. My son is too young to need the TV and my siblings who live with me are banned from watching TV during the school term. This means that the TV stays off more than half the time. But everything changes once the holidays start. That’s when the fights over who watches what (and when) become regular. Considering that the long holiday is just around the corner, I’m anticipating those fights with part horror and part amusement. So I’m considering which rules to apply to keep the peace in my home when the TV remote control fights begin.
Don’t Touch!
Growing up, my dad was Lord and master of all he surveyed, including the TV. But this was even more accurate during football season and every Saturday or so. Some of my strongest memories of my childhood heavily involve football. During tournaments like African Cup of Nations and the good old World Cup, I was not allowed to even walk in front of the TV while a match was on, much less touch the remote control.
By the time my siblings came, my father had become more liberal. They could actually argue and negotiate with him about the TV time. 
But not even they could wrest the remote control from him when it came to football matches.
Taking Turns
I imagine the battle for the remote control is real in most homes like it was and still is in mine. And if it’s the average healthy home, everyone owns the remote control at different times. From morning till 2-4pm, it belongs to whoever is at home. From 4-7pm, it belongs to the kids. From 7-10pm/dawn, it goes back to the bill payers in the household. So this time around, I’m thinking of full-on drawing up a schedule that looks like this. Except it’s the holidays soon and everyone will be at home. #Sigh
However, a rotation like this may still work for your family. In the meantime, at least for this World Cup month, leave the remote control for the football lover(s) in your house. The battle for the remote control can resume when it’s over.