So I roll out of bed today, and I realize...

[JackMagist]

The worst sports day of every year is the day after the MLB All Star game.

Yeah Hos those are tough times...we have:

No baseball. (a Godsend)

No football. (always a bad day with no football)

No basketball. (it would be something interesting anyway)

No hockey. (see basketball)

No golf. ("and it's quiet here on the 17th green as...nobody...makes an approach shot")

No car racing. (and me with an iced down case of Coors and a "Yeeha" on the tip of my tongue...sigh)

No tennis. (no crick in my neck from looking right, left, right, left)

I hate that day with a purple passion.

(me too...except the no baseball part)

 

[JackMagist]

Ah ... but there's always minor league baseball!

You just HAD to go and ruin it didn't you?!?

 

[AbeBeta]

Long story short: the "celebrate diversity" folk want America to become athletically homogenous with the rest of the world.

I'm proud to be a "celebrate diversity" person and I can honestly say that exposing myself to what the rest of the world enjoys is truly enriching. That goes far beyond soccer.

Frankly, I see much of this as sour grapes among US fans - after the US hosted the cup in 1994 there was a surge of soccer appreciation that resulted in the founding of the country's first legit professional soccer league since the 70's (that indoor crap doesn't count). Then in the next world cup the US gets their butts handed to them and has an early exit. Bye bye fan base.

Waaaaa. We can't dominate a sport. We aren't going to watch anymore

 

[MC KAos]

i think its pretty accurate to assume that most people here dont like soccer with a PASSION!!! and thats fine thats your opinion and im not gonna try to shove it in your face. but in my opinion it is a lot more action that football and for SURE than baseball!!! there arent much goals score in soccer but there are a lot of exiting plays along the way that keep you in the game, plus the fact that a soccer game only lasts about 1 hour and 45 minutes(half that of a football game) because there are no stoppage in action. another thing about soccer is that they dont change the rules to make it more "exiting" like basketball and football do(as evidenced by the touching rules on corners Vr. WR to help offenses out to make the game high scoring and exiting) if they wanted to make soccer more exiting, they would just take out the offsides, and they would go back to scoring goals like in pele's day when games were constantly 5-4. but anyway soccer is a great game in my opinion, and its not the most popular game in the world b/c its easy to play if your poor. for instance, panama and venezuela are some of the poorest countrys yet they are great baseball players, same with cuba and the dominican republic, but anyway, just my opinion

 

[bbgun]

Hockey on grass.

 

[like a dog]

Bully for you.



They also cared about the Macarena. That makes them superior to me?



Here we go with the insults. "You better love my beautiful game or I will accuse you of being arrogant and insular!"

We don't shove baseball and American football down the world's throat; don't you dare shove soccer down ours.



Long story short: the "celebrate diversity" folk want America to become athletically homogenous with the rest of the world. To them, the tepid American response to the World Cup is evidence of our bigotry, our xenophobic failure to "get" with the global program.



Hey dummy: you wanna know why the world watches soccer? Because most of the world is 1) poor, and soccer is 2) affordable. You need a ball and that's about it. Americans didn't need to import soccer or rugby because we were wealthy and could cultivate our own variant. BTW, soccer ain't popular in Canada or Australia either, but I don't see you lobbing insults at them. Get lost.

You're right. Most of the world is so poor that Americans, at least in this generation, cannot begin to understand that sort of poverty. The nastiest ghetto in Newark, the poorest delta town in Mississippi has nothing on parched, rural Ethiopia or a favela in Brazil (incidentaly, the heavy favorite in this World Cup) or a famine stricken area in Bangladesh. It is ****ing sad that you somehow feel superior because of that fact.

Why would the fact that your country is rich enough to afford millions of youths, at the cost of billions of dollars a year, to play a sport that requires a significant financial investment in equipment somehow denigrate the game of soccer? Why are you so hateful that you would respond to an anomynous post on an internet message board with such overt hostility and anger?

American Football is a precisely orchestrated game that allows for the most amount of strategizing of any organized sport that I have ever encountered. It is chess with variables (extremely important variables) and that is why I love it. Soccer is an extremely similar game. Every player has a certain amount of individual freedom (eerily similar the amount of freedom that Juan Roman Riquelme has as compared to Roy Williams at OU) but must play within a precisely planned tactical system. Most American do not recognize this because they arbitrarily dismiss soccer as unimportant. However, eventually, America will care about soccer. The amount of participation has grown exponentially over the last 20 years, and shows no sign of abating.

h

 

[DallasEast]

Frankly, I see much of this as sour grapes among US fans - after the US hosted the cup in 1994 there was a surge of soccer appreciation that resulted in the founding of the country's first legit professional soccer league since the 70's (that indoor crap doesn't count). Then in the next world cup the US gets their butts handed to them and has an early exit. Bye bye fan base.

Sounds like a bandwagon fan analog. I would agree about that. A sport should be enjoyed for how it appeals to an individual over the long haul. It takes a shallow person to demonstrate appreciation for something only while it's popular.

 

[MC KAos]

oh, and also, altought a lot of you olden folk might not like it, the youth of america is greatly growing in interest in soccer. Better and better atheletes will play soccer and not other sports(you made the argument that soccer is easy to play for poor people, some of the best atheletes come from the inner cities of america, the ghettos, and if soccer is cheap, what do you think theyll start to play?) the "gooch" is a good example, he is a 6'4" beast who would normally have played another sport with his physical assests, but youll start seeing more guys like him, not like reyna or donovan who are tiny, and are only playing soccer cuz they were to small for anything else, i say that some time in the next 20 years the US will start becoming a soccer powerhouse and soccer will then become more and more popular and over take hokey as the fourth most popular sport

 

[DallasEast]

Hockey on grass.

At least, hockey has sticks.

 

[JackMagist]

I'm proud to be a "celebrate diversity" person and I can honestly say that exposing myself to what the rest of the world enjoys is truly enriching. That goes far beyond soccer.

Frankly, I see much of this as sour grapes among US fans - after the US hosted the cup in 1994 there was a surge of soccer appreciation that resulted in the founding of the country's first legit professional soccer league since the 70's (that indoor crap doesn't count). Then in the next world cup the US gets their butts handed to them and has an early exit. Bye bye fan base.

Waaaaa. We can't dominate a sport. We aren't going to watch anymore

The real problem with soccer IMO is that if your own kid isn't playing in the game it really isn't that interesting. Most of us just didn't grow up with it and have no emotional investment in the game. The plays are exciting when they happen (plays; not just scores) but they take too long to develop and are over too quickly. It is similar to what Southerners feel about ice hockey...except that hockey is a faster paced and more exciting game so we can get into it a little more easily.

But I have to say…I’ll watch a soccer game if it’s all that’s on. I’ll go watch the grass grow before I’ll watch a baseball game; and I grew up with baseball.

 

[like a dog]

"Superior athlete"? Superior, how? Superior to other soccer athletes? Or superior to N-F-L athletes?

No one should dispute that Rodriguez could run rings around Flozell Adams. Or that he could kick a round ball more accurately downfield than Roy Williams. But is he truly a superior athlete?

I doubt it. He's a great athlete. Most pro athletes, in most sports, are great athletes; but there are very, very few who manage to transcind the athletic community.

Is Rodriguez the 'Michael Jordan' of soccer? Or the 'Jerry Rice' of soccer? Is he even the 'Pele' of soccer? I don't know. You tell me.

Soccer is the world's most popular sport and it should be. It involves a bunch boys, girls, men or women running around kicking or head-butting a kickball around a field and into a very large net. The poorest country's kids in the world can afford to play such a sport and the popularity of the masses would naturally follow. Add the fact that both sexes are, quite literally, equal in ability and that would appeal to even more. The underpinning of suspense during each game itself is addicting. Everyone is waiting for someone to score 1 point per game.

GOOOOOOOOOAL!

Everyone's psyched out already waiting for one freaking point to be scored, thus each game itself is an emotional timebomb from the start. If someone DOESN'T score, people would go nuts and riot!

Wait a sec. They do that anyway...

Anyhoo, congrats to soccer, but c'mon. "Superior athletes'? Please. I respect Lance Armstrong over most soccer players.

Could Maxi Rodriguez run a faster 40 time then Terrance Newman? No. Could he jump higher? No. Could he change directions faster? Probably not. Does he have better stamina? Most certainly. Does he have better coordination? Most certainly. Does he have better balance? Ehh... Maybe...

The point is that it is a different sort of athleticism. Rodriguez is every bit as gifted as Newman.

 

[JackMagist]

oh, and also, altought a lot of you olden folk might not like it, the youth of america is greatly growing in interest in soccer. Better and better atheletes will play soccer and not other sports (you made the argument that soccer is easy to play for poor people, some of the best atheletes come from the inner cities of america, the ghettos, and if soccer is cheap, what do you think theyll start to play?) the "gooch" is a good example, he is a 6'4" beast who would normally have played another sport with his physical assests, but youll start seeing more guys like him, not like reyna or donovan who are tiny, and are only playing soccer cuz they were to small for anything else, i say that some time in the next 20 years the US will start becoming a soccer powerhouse and soccer will then become more and more popular and over take hokey as the fourth most popular sport

Basketball because concrete slabs are easier to find in the inner cities than big open grass fields.

 

[Kangaroo]

At least, hockey has sticks.

Hockey on Grass is LaCrosse and it is way better than soccer.

Oh and the people on the soccer high horse.
I do not give a rats arse if you think I am a bigot because I do not embrace a crappy boring game.

Soccer suxs it is boring no matter what you call me does not change my view on it. If you like it great go ahead and watch it by all means but don't come here and tell me what I should and should not like.

Ok rant is over

 

[Hostile]

I'm proud to be a "celebrate diversity" person and I can honestly say that exposing myself to what the rest of the world enjoys is truly enriching. That goes far beyond soccer.

Frankly, I see much of this as sour grapes among US fans - after the US hosted the cup in 1994 there was a surge of soccer appreciation that resulted in the founding of the country's first legit professional soccer league since the 70's (that indoor crap doesn't count). Then in the next world cup the US gets their butts handed to them and has an early exit. Bye bye fan base.

Waaaaa. We can't dominate a sport. We aren't going to watch anymore

I think that's a pretty broad paint brush to wield. Pardon me if I won't sit still for the attempt at a stereotype.

I can tell you point blank that we could be the most dominant country in the world in soccer and I wouldn't care one bit. Furthermore, I would object to anyone telling me I am less of an American because of that.

Until this post by you I had no idea the US "got their butts handed to them" in the World Cup, ever. In other words, that had zero influence on my opinion whatsoever.

I've had people say to me, "well, you just don't undestand the game." Actually, I do. I know the names of every position and I studied the game to give it a fair chance. I just don't find it that interesting to watch what basically amounts to a lot of running. It's sort of the same with watching a marathon. I just don't find it that compelling. I am further turned off by the flopping around on the ground acting. I'm even more turned off by the snobbish attitudes of the fans who feel the need to lecture me about how and why I feel as I do. As if they can read my mind and assign me an opinion.

In short, soccer fans make me like it less and less all the time.

What's more, I highly doubt I am the exception. I bet far more people than you can imagine feel the same way I do and are as oblivious of this as I am.

I don't look down my nose at you because you like soccer. Pity the same cannot be said in reverse. Trust me, I realize that some want to mock you for liking soccer. Mocking them back and lumping people like me in with them isn't doing your cause any good at all. Just like blaming it on Jim Rome isn't doing you any good at all.

You have the last word. I have nothing more to say on this matter unless insulted.

 

[DallasEast]

Could Maxi Rodriguez run a faster 40 time then Terrance Newman? No. Could he jump higher? No. Could he change directions faster? Probably not. Does he have better stamina? Most certainly. Does he have better coordination? Most certainly. Does he have better balance? Ehh... Maybe...

The point is that it is a different sort of athleticism. Rodriguez is every bit as gifted as Newman.

Sooo, basically...

Rodriguez <> 'superior athlete'.

Got it.

 

[AbeBeta]

I think that's a pretty broad paint brush to wield. Pardon me if I won't sit still for the attempt at a stereotype.

I can tell you point blank that we could be the most dominant country in the world in soccer and I wouldn't care one bit. Furthermore, I would object to anyone telling me I am less of an American because of that.

Until this post by you I had no idea the US "got their butts handed to them" in the World Cup, ever. In other words, that had zero influence on my opinion whatsoever.

I've had people say to me, "well, you just don't undestand the game." Actually, I do. I know the names of every position and I studied the game to give it a fair chance. I just don't find it that interesting to watch what basically amounts to a lot of running. It's sort of the same with watching a marathon. I just don't find it that compelling. I am further turned off by the flopping around on the ground acting. I'm even more turned off by the snobbish attitudes of the fans who feel the need to lecture me about how and why I feel as I do. As if they can read my mind and assign me an opinion.

In short, soccer fans make me like it less and less all the time.

What's more, I highly doubt I am the exception. I bet far more people than you can imagine feel the same way I do and are as oblivious of this as I am.

I don't look down my nose at you because you like soccer. Pity the same cannot be said in reverse. Trust me, I realize that some want to mock you for liking soccer. Mocking them back and lumping people like me in with them isn't doing your cause any good at all. Just like blaming it on Jim Rome isn't doing you any good at all.

You have the last word. I have nothing more to say on this matter unless insulted.

Well, Hos I respect that you've given the game a chance. But to me there is no getting around the fact that when the US does well folks get excited about the game and when they do poorly folks are less interested.

I totally respect that you've given the game a chance and don't look down on anyone who does that. I will however look down on fair weather fans and others use the game as a foil for their xenophobia. They do deserve to be looked down on because their opinions are based on something that isn't about the game at all.

 

[Hostile]

Well, Hos I respect that you've given the game a chance. But to me there is no getting around the fact that when the US does well folks get excited about the game and when they do poorly folks are less interested.

I totally respect that you've given the game a chance and don't look down on anyone who does that. I will however look down on fair weather fans and others use the game as a foil for their xenophobia. They do deserve to be looked down on because their opinions are based on something that isn't about the game at all.

Though not insulted I am responding.

Looking down on anyone never raised them or you up. Just what the world needs, more separatist propoganda.

By all means, full steam ahead.

 

[khurt]

...the fact that your country...

This thread would be more interesting if the people talking about the U.S. in the 3rd person would state where they're from.

I can honestly say that exposing myself to what the rest of the world enjoys is truly enriching. That goes far beyond soccer.

Exposing yourself to something new and embracing it are two seperate things. You might be able to call somebody arrogant for refusing to watch soccer because they feel it's beneath them. But, you can't call somebody arrogant after they've given it a shot and decided that it's boring. Not everybody has to like the same stuff you do.

I could easily call someone "arrogant" because they look down on anyone that doesn't follow their sport.

Waaaaa. We can't dominate a sport. We aren't going to watch anymore

Umm...yeah. I personally decided that soccer sucked before it was officially determined that the "U.S. team couldn't dominate it". I suppose I should quit following the Cowboys since they haven't "dominated" the NFL for a while.

Respectfully disagree.

I will however look down on fair weather fans

If you're that concerned about the number of U.S. citizens that support soccer, you should be happy to get any fans you can - fair weather or otherwise. Every sport/team has fair weather fans. I think it's natural that a newer sport (for this part of the world) should have a bigger percentage of fair weather fans (and as a result, wider swings in popularity). Eventually, those fair weather fans turn into die-hard fans (if you don't insult them into swearing off the sport).

Again... you've put yourself in a position in which you're labeling people and "looking down on them". Some might call that being arrogant or elitist...

 

[cowboyeric8]

"I'd rather be on a losing football team, than a winning soccer team anyday." Bobby Hill



This thread reminds me of that episode of King of the Hill, just thought it was pretty funny.

There is so much stereotyping going on in this thread its sad.

To me soccer really is very boring. But I'm not going to hold that against anybody, because well alot of people don't like baseball, and quite frankly I love it.

I've even tried to watch it, I watched part of US's tie (another thing ties suck). And I just found out today that they got eliminated by some country I never heard of. So if the US started doing good I wouldn't have cared.

There are only superior athletes to their certain sports. You can't compare a football player and a soccer player, they are completly different.

And this is just my opinion, but there is only one great professional sport anymore, and thats the NFL. Everything else is just blah. JMO

 

[arglebargle]

Everyone knows only their particular obsession really matters....Those other guys are just nuts to love that other xxxxx sport.