F*** them and the Queen ...............

THis

It's pretty simple. The reason Americans can't grasp the hold soccer has on the rest of the world actually has little to do with how good or bad of a sport it might be.

#1: Most other countries don't have multiple sports the way the U.S. does. They might have a freaky small regional sport, like cricket in England. But other countries don't have large nationally-televised big-money sports the way the U.S. does with football, baseball, basketball, hockey, and even golf. So, most other countries have become fiercely attached to soccer, especially their national team. Which is the other piece of the puzzle, because....

#2: Most other countries tend to be pretty damn small and pretty damn packed close together. As a result, the entire national identity has become wrapped up in their soccer team. In the U.S., we don't have densely-packed countries like Europe or South America or Africa; we have states, and the states don't have nearly the sense of cultural independence from each other as say, France from Spain and Spain from England and whatnot. Soccer, for the rest of the world, involves national pride and national identity. When the World Cup rolls around, it's like the Olympics.

For these two reasons, soccer will always be the biggest thing outside of the U.S., and for the same reasons soccer will never become anything here in the States. Unless the other major sports all fold, and each state in the Union creates a team, and we have a 50-team U.S. league. But even then, without the cultural differences, I doubt that a "Kansas vs. Oklahoma" soccer match would cause enough passsion for there to be rioting and tear gas needed. :D

When you get down into a specific country, sure, their games are more like our rivalries. When Madrid plays Barcelona for example, or when Chelsea plays Manchester United, those games are more akin to what we're used to. But, even then, U.S. city rivalries in a sport rarely reach the levels of dislike generated by these soccer matches. Some college football and college basketball games might, as well as some big rivalries (Red Sox and Yankees, for one).

Well put, besides describing cricket as a "freaky small regional sport"

It was the first thing that came to mind, but it was only to illustrate the point that there are few other areas of the world that cover as much territory as the U.S. and have so many major big-money sports like we do. You can substitute curling, lacrosse, or whatever. Even rugby and Australian rules football are more regional and less funded when compared to baseball, basketball, and hockey, I would think (but I might be wrong).

Ultimately, because of the way the U.S. was born and the way it grew (and the way the sports grew), I think it'll always be "soccer in the rest of the world" vs. "football, baseball, basketball, and hockey in the U.S.". (Not counting Japan, of course, which has had baseball almost as long as we have.)

And, ultimately, because of what I postulated, why SHOULD Britain give a shit about American football? I don't think they should, or would, until their own leagues of American-style football become popular and well-funded. Much like soccer to Americans, the NFL to Brits is unfamiliar, and ultimately they have no rooting interest in it.

Les Bleus gonna spank Ireland on the 14th of November.

:thumb:

Archie was right...England is a pillowbiter country!

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Just stopped by to say that I hate soccer as a sport for adult men. I tried to watch but there are never more than three people doing anything at any given time.

maybe LJ is an "All in The Family" fan

Say what you want about watching soccer, but the fact that i don't have to sit through commercials every few minutes greatly enhances its watchability.

:thumb:

Soccer is an art, it takes a much more finesse touch than football does, and there is much more creativity involved. The free flow of the ball allows for a wider array of strategy, ie points of attack, counter-attacks etc. Dribbling, passing, and kicking a ball is much harder than it looks, and then you see the kind of moves, passes and shots that professionals pull off..amazing! I would love to watch a bunch of football players try to play soccer.

Those that think soccer is boring don't really know what to watch for..to me it's always interesting to watch the match-up between the wingers and the full backs. The wings are such a pivotal point of attack, players like Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ribery attack from the wings and it's always fun to try and watch other players try to shut them down. I also enjoy watching defensive midfielders..they destruct opposing teams attacks but are also there to support attacks..Michael Essien is probably the best one out there on the top of my head. These are just a couple examples..

Though the greatest thing about the game is that there are so many levels of competition, from the domestic titles to the Champions League to the World Cup. Right now is the best time to watch soccer because the World Cup is right around the corner! Players are churning in order to make their teams squads. In November there will be Qualifier-playoffs for some big European teams like France and Portugal, win you're in lose you're out.

I do enjoy watching football though, maybe it has lost some of its burst because the chiefs have been terrible..

US Football > football, in the eyes of this limey.

It'll never catch on in the mainstream here because of the stigma attatched to the sport's name though. Shame really, since the game has a massive cult following.

They still haven't gotten over losing their "empire". F Limeys. go play succer.