I've never understood the appeal of soccer, but I in general do not follow a lot of sports. To me it ranks up there with baseball to watch.
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Soccer Is Fucking Gay
- Thread starter m0rtal
- Start date
One thing that is different with real football to American football is the heritage element. In Europe, you don't choose your football team, it chooses you. It's about where you're born, and who your father supports.
For example, I've been a season ticket holder for coming up to 15 years now. My dad has been for nearly 50 years. My granddad on my mothers side, played for them professionally for 8 years in the 50's. So the team is intertwined with mine and many people from my areas history. This makes football into the tribal thing that it is, it transcends sport.
I remember being told that in the US, they have NFL teams moving from one place to another looking for more profits. At first I thought that was a joke, but it's true. One team that I know of, in the history of England, has tried that and they were mocked and laughed at so much they just gave up and made a new team (MK Dons).
It doesn't matter how good or shit your team is, you support them regardless, because it's your team.
I don't know about other sports, but I just don't think NFL has that in it.
For example, I've been a season ticket holder for coming up to 15 years now. My dad has been for nearly 50 years. My granddad on my mothers side, played for them professionally for 8 years in the 50's. So the team is intertwined with mine and many people from my areas history. This makes football into the tribal thing that it is, it transcends sport.
I remember being told that in the US, they have NFL teams moving from one place to another looking for more profits. At first I thought that was a joke, but it's true. One team that I know of, in the history of England, has tried that and they were mocked and laughed at so much they just gave up and made a new team (MK Dons).
It doesn't matter how good or shit your team is, you support them regardless, because it's your team.
I don't know about other sports, but I just don't think NFL has that in it.
Teams don't move that often and the supporters in the pro leagues solidly back their teams, but I think it's even stronger at the collegiate level. The heritage is certainly there.
NFL teams don't change very often, and it's usually a result of a shittastic team getting taken over by a new owner and moved to (hopefully) greener pastures. The game is a business like any other, and the league has changed severely since it's inception.
National Football League franchise moves and mergers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I know of no other sport that can get those kind of reactions. Amazing scenes and we could see more tomorrow when USA meet Ghana!
Actually, soccer is pretty popular in the US for kids, until the 7th grade or so. Then most kids start playing football instead.
Everyone I knew played soccer growing up. We played outdoors in the fall, indoors in the winter. But 80% of them, including myself, switched to football. And this is upper midwest, not California.
almost all kids in the us play soccer growing up, around middle school / junior high many switch to us football.
I play soccer, basketball and I love watching them because I can "relate" myself into the game when I am watching it.
I like watching football too, but I since I never play football, I feel like something is "missing"
I hate golf, worse sport ever, wtf, putting a ball in the hole?
Btw, NBA is gay, I only watch college basketball. NBA first half are typically lazy, boring and there is a lot flop too.
I like watching football too, but I since I never play football, I feel like something is "missing"
I hate golf, worse sport ever, wtf, putting a ball in the hole?
Btw, NBA is gay, I only watch college basketball. NBA first half are typically lazy, boring and there is a lot flop too.
As someone who markets to sports fans around the world. I can tell you that The World Cup is far and away the most watched sporting event of all time. It would take a half a dozen of our most watched SuperBowls to equal just one bad World Cup. The World Cup is just a behemoth. And ESPN is smart for jumping on the bandwagon.
I am starting to really like the game. But like others, I get annoyed by the drama-queen part of the game. It makes you start to understand why Europeans in the NBA, like Pao Gasol, are so good at taking a fake dive. They've learned to make it a part of the game. I couldn't be on the same field as them. I'd have to fight hard the urge to make honest men out of them.
- Oh and by the way, I think we're beating around the bush on the real reason we Americans don't like soccer....
McDonalds! - We're too damn fat and lazy to chase a bag of wind around all day.
I am starting to really like the game. But like others, I get annoyed by the drama-queen part of the game. It makes you start to understand why Europeans in the NBA, like Pao Gasol, are so good at taking a fake dive. They've learned to make it a part of the game. I couldn't be on the same field as them. I'd have to fight hard the urge to make honest men out of them.
- Oh and by the way, I think we're beating around the bush on the real reason we Americans don't like soccer....
McDonalds! - We're too damn fat and lazy to chase a bag of wind around all day.
I agree with the flopping but this is just something that coaches and players think is need to win games. If you are in the penalty box you just have to wait for someone to touch you and you fall, chances are you will get a penalty. One of the masters in this is Luis Suarez from Uruguay (he already got one this World Cup).
Sadly you see this in the NBA too. Dwyane Wade is very good at this. So is Derek Fisher. Pau Gasol does alot of flops but you don't see him laying around 1 minute because he needs to lose the reputation of being a "softy". But he will continue flopping because that will make the refs call an offensive foul on his opponent.
btw. I watch and play all major sports.
Sadly you see this in the NBA too. Dwyane Wade is very good at this. So is Derek Fisher. Pau Gasol does alot of flops but you don't see him laying around 1 minute because he needs to lose the reputation of being a "softy". But he will continue flopping because that will make the refs call an offensive foul on his opponent.
btw. I watch and play all major sports.
ESPN has a business interest in helping soccer grow and trying like hell to build a customer base for it here in the US. This is the "slow" time of the year for sports since the NBA and NHL playoffs just ended, college football and basketball are long since over and football hasn't started yet. That leaves only baseball until September so it's the only possible time of the year that you could get that many American's to watch a soccer event - don't think the timing is an accident, it's smart business. You will never see soccer attempt to get viewers after September because very few people would watch it once football starts and anyone that thinks otherwise is delusional.
ESPN needs something other than baseball highlights this time of year to maintain fans interest and viewership (you're marketers, so you should understand ad rates and all that), so soccer fits the bill. More importantly, World Cup is only once every 4 years like the Olympics so Americans will watch just to have something to talk about at the bar or over the water cooler. But there won't be any new love of the sport, any sooner than there would be for the Olympics. It's just a placeholder until football starts September 9th.
Say what you will, and you will probably never like football, but you guys have just experienced 90 minutes of pain and frustration, and won with a last minute, injury time goal to get through to the world cup last 16.
Shit like that gets under the skin fast.
I think you meant 90 minutes of pure boredom. I would be excited too if something finally happened after wasting my 90 minutes.
