Question For American's

[Guest Powerplay]

Hi, I'm kinda new here but I would like to get into this discussion and put forth my point of view.

 

My friends and I are huge fans of hockey (Detroiter), and we did catch a few games of the World Cup. They weren't bad, since we had to watch the slow, grinding Eastern Conference Trap style of the Carolina Hurricanes. But the difference, to me, is that sports like hockey, basketball, and football are sports where everyone on the team has to work their hardest all the time. Although Carolina's Trap style was dull, each one of those guys on the Carolina was giving his all everytime he stepped onto the ice. They were skating like there was no tomorrow. These guys pushed themselves to the limits of pain and sacrificed their bodies for their team. Detroit's Steve Yzerman, playing with on a very bad knee (will require three surgeries over the summer and may miss most of next year), lay down on the ice to block shots from Al MacInnis, who has one of the most powerful shots the NHL has ever seen. Yzerman didn't miss a game. Last year he played with the same injury against LA and felt bone scraping on bone. Colorado's Peter Forsberg was absolutely BRUTALIZED in every series he played in (Especially in the Los Angeles one where they were actively trying to injure the guy) but he played on. By the end of the Detroit series he was playing with a broken finger. Carolina's Sean O' Neil scored the game-winning goal against Toronto with one eye close to being swollen shut after a puck hit it. When the Cup Finals ended, we found out over a dozen injuries on various teams that we didn't know or notice because the guys were playing like never before. That's the intensity and dedication that these guys play at and that is why I like and respect the players that play it. Examples can be found in Football, Basketball, and Baseball as well, though I'm not as up-to-date with those sports to name specifics. I don't see that level of intensity in soccer. In soccer, most of the players seem to be walking the field. I think this takes a little away from the sport. And the guy on Brazil (was it Ronaldo?) who pulled one of the best acting jobs ever when he got hit in the shins with the ball, looked to see if the reffee saw it, then went down clutching his face. That really turned me off from that game. There seem to be a lot of dives in soccer games, and although NHL goalies tend to overplay hits, not like some of these guys do.

 

Yes baseball is dull, but only during the down time. When a hit happens, then it gets exciting. Double plays, triples, plays at the plate, sliding catches, and especially the mid-air turnaround throw to first; all these things are very exciting. Play gets stopped, but when play happens it is very exciting. Soccer has large periods of nothing happening even when play is going on.

 

Another thing Americans don't tend to like are sports where ties happen very often and are treated like victories. This may seem hippocritical coming from a hockey fan, but they do play an extra sudden death period before declaring a tie. Soccer doesn't do that unless it is in the playoffs. Americans tend to like a definite ending; one team won and one team lost. End of story. It's not that we don't like games that don't involve lots of scoring ( Hockey and Baseball teams live and die with both offense and defense or offence and defence, whichever you prefer). Just 0-0 games with few shots on goal and the teams are celebrating? It doesn't seem right to Americans.

 

Soccer also seems to have a lot of Nationalism and Jingoism attached to it. I remember back in 1994 when Brazil was ran the headline "OUTRAGE!" after they beat the U.S. team 1-0. Most recently an Italian blamed a South Korean player for ruining Italian soccer because he scored the winning goal that knocked Italy out of the tournament and banned him from returning to the Italian team he played for before the tournament. Russians rioted when their team was knocked out of the tournament. In one of the previous World Cups (I'm not sure if it was 1994 or 1998) a Saudi Arabian goalie was shot and killed because he let in the winning goal that knocked his team out. The World Cup seems to be more of a way of saying "Hey, we are better than your country" than a testing of great althletes. Americans like to play sports for entertainment more than National pride. When events like the above occur, it turns Americans off. Plus, we riot out of joy for our teams, not spite .

 

There are a few games that I really enjoyed, like the Sweden vs. Argentina game. But the others really didn't perk my interest.

 

Now I this is what I find wrong with soccer, and I think many Americans would agree with me. It doesn't mean I'm right, it doesn't mean this is the end-all be all opinions from Americans. But I believe many Americans would agree with me on at least one of the reasons I gave above. Personally, I think you should try pushing Rugby instead of soccer. You could get so much more appeal with that sport. I know I would watch it .

 

Vanilla Midget:

 

Hockey holds very much significance overseas, probably moreso than in America. In the Czech Republic they have Dominik Hasek (Please come back for one more year, o please, o please, o please...) on a stamp. They found a message outside of his house saying "Hasek isn't human, he is God!" . Slava Fetisov became Minister of Athletics when he was done in the NHL. All of Sweden was up watching Colorado games because of their native son Peter Forsberg.

 

Baseball is extremely big in Japan. I would think they care about it more than we do. Same in Cuba and other small Latin American countries.

 

Isn't there an NFL Europe? How about you start to watch it instead of soccer and we'll watch MLS instead of NFL. What, you say? It looks bush league? So does MLS .

 

Iraq produces biological weapons and is trying to produce nuclear weapons so it can use them on U.S. They've actively cooperated with terrorists and have used chemical weapons on innocent civilians. Kicking Saddam Hussein out of his dictatorship will help world security and the innocent people of Iraq who suffer under his repressive regieme. When he threatens the Western world, it becomes everyones responsibility to take him out of office so he doesn't hurt anyone. Look at Serbia. We got results there. Now they are a democracy and Milosevic is being tried for war crimes. He was exercising genocide, just like what Saddam is doing with the Kurds. The Kurds can't fight back against his army. So we will. And didn't the Aussies send in troops to Indonesia not long ago?

 

Anorak:

 

Thank you for putting across your opinion as simply an opinion, not as a statement against America or the world. I really respect you for that.

 

Well that's my dime, 'cause this post is too long to be just two cents B). I hope I didn't offend anyone.

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

aussies sent troops to indonesia to ensure the sovreignty of east timor, cos they asked for it. also note that we didnt blow anything up or try to change governments, etc. also, there were other countries there, such as britain, the us, and many other un nations. but they are totally different situations, as this was a peacekeeping role, not simply going out to oust a government or blow things up (and for the record, i totally agree with blowing up afghanistan)

 

also, while it is undoubted that iraq commits unspeakable horrors, which i freely admit, america is not some global policeman whose duty it is to decide what is right for the rest of the world. that is my beef, that america often oversteps the bounds of its sovreignty.

 

and powerplay: i agree totally, i lost the argument on the sports about halfway down the previous page, and i was clutching at straws to begin with

[Guest Powerplay]

aussies sent troops to indonesia to ensure the sovreignty of east timor, cos they asked for it. also note that we didnt blow anything up or try to change governments, etc. also, there were other countries there, such as britain, the us, and many other un nations. but they are totally different situations, as this was a peacekeeping role, not simply going out to oust a government or blow things up (and for the record, i totally agree with blowing up afghanistan)

 

also, while it is undoubted that iraq commits unspeakable horrors, which i freely admit, america is not some global policeman whose duty it is to decide what is right for the rest of the world. that is my beef, that america often oversteps the bounds of its sovreignty.

 

and powerplay: i agree totally, i lost the argument on the sports about halfway down the previous page, and i was clutching at straws to begin with

Yeah, I just wanted to put my reasons for not watching it. You were right to defend world football, just you took it too personal. It is a good sport, just some of us don't really enjoy it. Don't worry 'cause I do the same thing every now and then when someone disses Hockey as "Some stupid 2nd rate sport."

 

We, as Americans, generally feel that since we have more freedom than anyone else in the world, we should try and share that with other countries. We don't like to watch people be stripped of basic human rights. That's how America came into being, through the thoughtless ruling of George III. The government has no right to tax people with out letting them have a say. Hussein has no right to impose his rule without the people's approval. He has no right to take away the free speech of the Iraqi people.

 

Who said we were the policemen of the world? Teddy Roosevelt . Don't be dissin' the Ted B).

 

You guys were asked by the by the Indonesian government. The Kurds have asked many times for help from us, just like the Kosovars in Serbia. I, for one, would not turn down the pleas of a helpless people being tormented by some meglomaniac bully just as you didn't turn down Indonesia's pleas for help. Same concept. You helped because you had the power, and we WILL help because we do have the power.

[Guest gwf0704]

Hard for me to get behind a sport where when one team loses, half the stadium decides to riot!

[Guest Some Guy]

The "Center"/"Centre" and not liking Soccer making you inteligent things were jokes.

 

I did not take this into a global battle, you quoted me and started attacking my country, its people, and its President. I came back without attacking in a serious manner any country or its people. That shit belongs in Flaming or Current Events.

I do enjoy srguing although I vastly prefer it to be in person rather than type so this was fun for me.

 

BTW there was a reason i chose baseball, basketball, and Hockey as someone pointed out, they are otehr than Socer the most widely played team sports.

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

The "Center"/"Centre" and not liking Soccer making you inteligent things were jokes.

 

I did not take this into a global battle, you quoted me and started attacking my country, its people, and its President. I came back without attacking in a serious manner any country or its people. That shit belongs in Flaming or Current Events.

I do enjoy srguing although I vastly prefer it to be in person rather than type so this was fun for me.

 

BTW there was a reason i chose baseball, basketball, and Hockey as someone pointed out, they are otehr than Socer the most widely played team sports.

s'orright, i was just having a little fun, but i forgot that americans are *very* prickly about national honour (not a flame). anyways, it was a change of shoe for me, cos at uni im normally defending "evil, corporate america" against those ultra left-wing communist freaks which populate the australian university system. but anyways, this has been a bit of fun (its a pity there arent more non-americans here, cos i do know that many non-americans resent america a great deal), though i did cross the line and i apologise for that. what just pissed me off though was that people were calling soccer a stupid game just because they didnt understand it. you obviously understand soccer, and i feel i understand your american sports, but when ignorant people just make lame and foolish responses, it really does affirm the "stupid, ignorant american stereotype." but i digress, as im getting controversial again, so we'll just leave it at that.

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

aside: yeah i knew those were jokes, thats why i followed up with the simpsons reference rather than a diatribe

[Guest Some Guy]

Well there are a ton of Canaidians on the board.

 

There are a lot of foreign countries that resent America. Jelousy is a nasty thing isn't it?

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

certainly is, but when you are living in a shanty slum while people in first-world countries just waste food and throw things away, it isnt hard to see why.

 

canada: isnt that the 51st state of america???

[Guest Some Guy]

They keep asking to be and we keeo telling them no, eh.

 

::SG takes a bite of his hamburger and then throws it away::

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

hehe, we better stop now, or i'll have bloody canadians screaming for my head too eh???

[Guest Will Scarlet]

I think part of the reason that Americans do not care about soccer is that they have no emotional attachment to it. Why should they care about, say, South Africa vs. Brazil for sake of example? It is not like the United States is really expected to do much ever. Of course, I have actually enjoyed what I have seen of soccer, and have become a big fan of South Korea as a result. I just love the atmosphere of their games and how they seem to work hard and do well, despite seemingly huge odds against them.

 

I also like soccer because, barring a tie, the games seem to last around 2 hours, which is just perfect. Some of the American sports seem to stretch out for 3 or 4 hours, and, really end up boring me after awhile. This is my main complaint about baseball. Given, I can respect a good performance in baseball, in fact, when a Randy Johnson or Curt Schilling type pitcher is in the zone, striking out guys left and right, I really enjoy it. Of course, it is hard for me to get excited about the regular season since it is like 162 games, and it looks like a strike is on the horizon which will probably end up cancelling the World Series, thus making this baseball season essentially meaningless to me.

 

The thing that lures to me to soccer, and especially the World Cup is that there seems to be so much on the line. If your team loses, you go home, and have to wait 4 years before you can make a difference again. Plus, almost all of the 32 teams seem to belong there. I know I loved Olympic hockey this past year, the problem was that outside of the US, Canada, Russia, Sweden, and a few assorted Eastern European teams, no one else had a chance. Belarus and Germany were treated as prelim bums for the most part. In this World Cup, anything can happen, and has, with France, Portugal, Argentina, and a few other favourites going out in the opening round. Teams like South Korea and Turkey making it to the semis with powerhouses Germany and Brazil, both of whom could easily lose. That just interests me. Sure, I have found some games to be boring(Germany/Paraguay I am looking at you!), but I found games like Spain/South Korea and Portugal/South Korea to be pretty emotional, as I remember feeling terrible for the Portuguese who were desperately trying anything to score one goal so that they could advance, but Korea kept holding them off, and ended up getting the victory. In Spain/South Korea, my heart stopped a few times when Spain almost scored a few goals, only to be called offsides or hit the post. To finally have it be blown off with the Korean victory had me marking out like a madman. Sure, there was not much scoring, but every time Spain was getting close to scoring, or had a free kick, I was on the edge of my seat, certainly not a feeling I get from basketball or baseball. Every goal MEANS something. Someone could score in the first minute of the game, and that is it for the scoring, I like that. It is not like basketball, where I can skip ahead to the fourth quarter because the first three are essentially meaningless. Ah well. I like soccer, and this World Cup has been fun for me. I just hope I can find some good Euro league action every once in awhile, and that Spanish guy who goes "GOOOOOAAAAALLLL~!" is awesome.

[Guest Some Guy]

hehe, we better stop now, or i'll have bloody canadians screaming for my head too eh???

Don't worry i'm used to it. Just keep your eyes shut whent hey throw there Maple syrup at you. BTW they all wear plaid, flannel shirts so they're easy to spot.

[Guest Mr. Slim Citrus]

Am I the only American here who would rather watch soccer than baseball or football?

 

For the record, my favorite sport is basketball.

[Guest MrRant]

Am I the only American here who would rather watch soccer than baseball or football?

 

For the record, my favorite sport is basketball.

Yes

[Guest Some Guy]

I'll go with Mr. Rant on this one and say, "yes."

[Guest Mr. Slim Citrus]

Hey, it's cool... different strokes...

 

I played linebacker in Pop Warner, and Linebacker/Right Guard my first two years of high school, but it just didn't appeal to me. Broke my old man's heart when I told him I didn't like football anymore. He sulked for a year...

 

I've never liked baseball, though...

[Guest Hogan Made Wrestling]

"America is not the "centre" of the universe but we are indeed the "center" of it."

 

LOL, that is too funny for words. I guess you don't realise that the English language originated in England as it's name states, not in the USA. Americans are by and large just transplanted Brits anyway, several generations removed.

[Guest bob_barron]

I'd rather watch football than basketball but I think I prefer American football better than football.

 

As a soon to be Canadian- dont be dissing Canada Vanilla Midg. :-)

[Guest The Vanilla Midget]

actually, that is the one thing in this thread i *didnt* start... just clearing that up.

[Guest redbaron51]

I think this fire is too hot too control.

 

 

Anywho....

 

I wouldn't say America is the best at Football, but the CFL is damn well better than the NFL.

[Guest Powerplay]

I think this fire is too hot too control.

 

 

Anywho....

 

I wouldn't say America is the best at Football, but the CFL is damn well better than the NFL.

Never seen it, only heard of it. I would think that the NFL could beat them, but I've never been able to catch a CFL game. Since I got satellite I no longer get Canadian channels. It would be cool to watch a cross-over game between the two. One game with Canadian rules, one game with NFL rules.

[Guest redbaron51]

I'm just saying that the CFL is more exciting than the NFL, and probably most Canadians on this board would agree

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

that is my beef, that america often oversteps the bounds of its sovreignty.

 

Except, of course, when it's convenient to criticize us for not doing enough.

[Guest Some Guy]

"America is not the "centre" of the universe but we are indeed the "center" of it."

 

LOL, that is too funny for words. I guess you don't realise that the English language originated in England as it's name states, not in the USA. Americans are by and large just transplanted Brits anyway, several generations removed.

Actually we don't "realize" that the English language originated in England.

 

It was a fucking joke.

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

Some Guy, English people take things WAY too seriously. I guess that's the result of getting bitched by Ireland AND the good ol' US of A.

[Guest Some Guy]

I think they "realize" that we are the "center" of the Universe and feel that they have to "critisize" us because of it. Plus they stole our flag's "colors" those Limey bastards.

 

See look I out an emoticon there so maybe rather than correcting me on the hictory of the English language they might "realize" I'm kidding.

[Guest Hogan Made Wrestling]

Given the tone of the rest of your post it hardly came out as funny. Oh, and I'm not English as one person implied, I just try to use proper spelling of words from that language.

[Guest Some Guy]

Given teh tone of the rest of my post i thought it was inappropriate to put an emoticon next to those lines. I was just being a wise ass.

 

The proper and accepted spelling for those words are, "Center", "Realize", "Color", Organization", etc... in America. We won the war we get to rewrite the language as we see fit.

[Guest Spicy McHaggis]

Damn straight.