Soccer

[Guest Jason]

This is a very controversial subject but that is why I am bringing it up.

 

Soccer is the most popular sport in the world but it may be lucky to crack the top 10 for popularity in America. Now here is the thread. Americans: Why are we not soccer fans and why the sport just has not taken off at a pro level? International Fans: Why is soccer so popular and why do you think the game just never took off in America?

[Crimson Platypus 0]

Soccer isn't even a sport, I put it on par with car racin

[starvenger 0]

I think pro soccer isn't as popular in North America mostly because the public has been trained to expect not just a lot of offence, but scoring as well. So if you don't know much about the sport, it comes off as rather boring on television. And if it's boring on TV, then you're probably unwilling to go see it live.

[Slayer 0]

Wise man once said

 

"Socialism, the Metric System and Soccer are three things that may work well for the rest of the world, but goddamn if you try to make it work in America..."

[razazteca 0]

The main reason is that it is not popular in USA is because it is not a sport that runs up the score. It is only a game for elementary age children to play when they can't play baseball or football and a reason for mothers to drive mini-vans.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I share Starvenger's thoughts regarding the lack of scoring. Add to that the "slow pace" (players plodding up and down the field -- granted they're running non-stop for 90 minutes, but that doesn't count) and you have something that most Americans wouldn't tune into watch. I'll watch soccer every now and then, but I don't tune into it like I do American football...

[Slayer 0]

In a past thread covering the same discussion, someone made the good point about how it wouldn't fly with American advertisers because of the 45 minute periods with no real breaks or built-in TV time-outs for them to stick commercials in every 5 minutes.

[Guest Mosaicv2]

Soccer isn't even a sport, I put it on par with car racin

Um... what? Soccer is a sport, sok?

[KingPK 0]

Soccer's just never had a mythic figure that (outside of a small percentage) Americans could fall in love with. The closest we've had is probably Pele.

 

The average American would just rather watch a baseball game (which has just as slow a pace as soccer) than a soccer match.

[starvenger 0]

Soccer's just never had a mythic figure that (outside of a small percentage) Americans could fall in love with. The closest we've had is probably Pele.

We'll see if Freddy Ad-who? can change things. I doubt it though.

 

The average American would just rather watch a baseball game (which has just as slow a pace as soccer) than a soccer match.

Baseball has the most glacial pace of any major sport. But it's popular here because it's a piece of Americana, and because you can go take a piss and/or get a beer without missing a thing. The thing with soccer is that even if the pace is "slow", it's always moving, so if you do get into it you don't want to go anywhere for fear of missing something. But that may be because we're not knowledgable enough to know when to get beers during games, I dunno.

[Red Baron 0]

Actually starvenger, when you go to a soccer game, go with a group of buddies, and each time you alternate on who's getting the food/drinks.

 

Besides, the atmosphere at a soccer game, is bar none the best sports environment there is.

[Slayer 0]

At European football games they just piss in their cups

 

...then toss them at the players

 

That or they recirculate it into the beer stock

[Red Baron 0]

At European football games they just piss in their cups

 

...then toss them at the players

 

That or they recirculate it into the beer stock

but see, European clubs don't sell Coors Light, or many American beers over there.

[King Cucaracha 0]

^ Outside of America

 

The problem with American soccer, from the bits I've seen of it, is that there just isn't the quality or the passion. Baseball, basketball, American football...all have great rivalries, passionate fans and the like. Soccer though. There's not the history that the other sports have.

 

In England, 'soccer' (or to most people football, seeing as you actually use your feet 90% of the match) has the history. There are rivalries, passionate fans. Soccer is I'm pretty sure the oldest team sport in England. Hell, we invented it after all. Hence, everyone grows up on it.

 

It's easier to enjoy a sport if you've watched it all your life. It's harder to get 'into' a sport. And it's certainly harder to get a vast number of people 'into' that sport.

 

 

To the people who don't see soccer as a real sport, joking or not...it's obviously a cultural thing. There's probably just as many Brits who'd never watch baseball, because they haven't watched it from youth so they don't enjoy it. Soccer is very much a real sport though, believe me. The Major Leauge lacks quality. Watch either Spanish or English football and you'll see a much different atmosphere and definately a much better quality of soccer.

[Crimson Platypus 0]

To the people who don't see soccer as a real sport, joking or not...it's obviously a cultural thing. There's probably just as many Brits who'd never watch baseball, because they haven't watched it from youth so they don't enjoy it. Soccer is very much a real sport though, believe me. The Major Leauge lacks quality. Watch either Spanish or English football and you'll see a much different atmosphere and definately a much better quality of soccer.

 

Heh, I was joking, but in all seriousness I know a lot of people who DO feel this way.

 

My main problem with soccer, other than the boring pace/lack of scoring, is that all of the players seem like prissy little bitches. EVERY TIME they get bumped, regardless of the amount of contact, they fall down like they just got Bertuzzied. It's pathetic and sad. GET THE FUCK UP YOU LITTLE BITCH! Then, after two minutes of rolling around like their leg just got amputated, they are up to run and "head" the ball into the goal - followed by 5 minutes of running around screaming and yelling like they just won the world cup (no matter what the situation of the game is).

[Some Guy 0]

My personal hatred for the sport since I was in elementary school notwithstanding (I have no use for all that fucking running and kicking, I prefer using my hands), I don't think Soccer will ever be popular in AMerica because it's rather boring, wasn't invented here, and it's a girl's sport. In my town, which is a "soccer town", soccer is still conseidered to be a sport for girls or guys who aren't big or tough enough to play football.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Besides, the atmosphere at a soccer game, is bar none the best sports environment there is.

I watch the World Cup matches for the crowd chants alone...

[Red Baron 0]

To the people who don't see soccer as a real sport, joking or not...it's obviously a cultural thing. There's probably just as many Brits who'd never watch baseball, because they haven't watched it from youth so they don't enjoy it. Soccer is very much a real sport though, believe me. The Major Leauge lacks quality. Watch either Spanish or English football and you'll see a much different atmosphere and definately a much better quality of soccer.

 

Heh, I was joking, but in all seriousness I know a lot of people who DO feel this way.

 

My main problem with soccer, other than the boring pace/lack of scoring, is that all of the players seem like prissy little bitches. EVERY TIME they get bumped, regardless of the amount of contact, they fall down like they just got Bertuzzied. It's pathetic and sad. GET THE FUCK UP YOU LITTLE BITCH! Then, after two minutes of rolling around like their leg just got amputated, they are up to run and "head" the ball into the goal - followed by 5 minutes of running around screaming and yelling like they just won the world cup (no matter what the situation of the game is).

There are no shoulder pads.

 

There are no helmets

 

There is no timeouts

 

There is no commercial breaks.

 

There is no weather delay.

 

And if you need any of those

 

Think about playing a different sport.

 

Wuss.

 

 

Thats just my poster in my room, which suits Some Guy's post.

 

To Platypus:

 

The diving has been toned down quite a bit, but there are lots of teams that do dive (mainly Italians, Spanish and Portuguese clubs) do this. Frankly if you are in the 18 yard box, or your getting a nice hard tackle, ya its going to hurt, and nothing hurts more than steel spikes into flesh and bone.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I think soccer's biggest problem is lack of star quality. The most popular sports organizations in our country (MLB, NFL, NBA) feature the world's best players. 95% of the best soccer players play outside of North America. The quality of soccer just isn't what it is in Europe.

[Red Baron 0]

There is no lack of star quality. You can ask every American I bet most would say Ronaldo or David Beckham, but do most Americans know who Henrik Larson, John Terry, Thierry Henri, Paulo Maldini, Pavel Nedved.

 

I doubt it.

 

BTW doesn't ESPN show any soccer covereage?

[rising up out of the back seat-nuh 0]

For most of Eaurope, and no doubt the rest of the world, football is a religion. You play it in the streets, you talk about it at work or when you're abroad on holiday and you watch it most nights of the week. It brings families together: when you get older and you stop having things in common with you're dad, you resort to talking about football and watching together. It's one of the most important things in a large number of peoples lives throughout the world.

 

Asking why Football never took off in America is like asking why Buddhism never took off in the states. It's too much of an institution to change with globalisation.

[Slayer 0]

You play it in the streets, you talk about it at work or when you're abroad on holiday and you watch it most nights of the week. It brings families together: when you get older and you stop having things in common with you're dad, you resort to talking about football and watching together.

But you could say that about a lot of American sports too

 

Hell, your quote about bonding with your father came right out of City Slickers, except that they were talking about baseball.

 

 

 

One thing I will give soccer (notably the World Cup) is that while here in the US, we may have cities hating each other because of sports (Boston-NY, LA-San Fransisco, Detroit-Chicago), but the WC gets whole nations to hate each other all over again (e.g. England vs. France vs. Germany vs. Italy, etc.)