Why are we not interested in soccer?

10

by user SSreporters

Look at the MLS, on average, how many people do you see there? You have teams using stadiums that hold 61,000 people, and only get 10,000 to come. Most of them probably don't have a clue about soccer. It's a disgrace to see the most popular sport in the world, be neglected by America. Even Canada, the hockey capital of the world, sees soccer as more popular than hockey, and has overtaken hockey as the most popular recreational sport. Speaking of Canada, have you seen the fan support for their new club, Toronto FC? Well if you haven't, take a look. So I ask fellow sports fans, what will it take to make soccer more popular in the United States? If you say "Win the World Cup", then you're asking for too much. You'll never see them win the World Cup.

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InsanMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Actually I don't even think winning the World Cup would make soccer popular here.

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895 days ago

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Americans like action. Action is translated in sports as scoring. Seeing a game lasting over 90 minutes with maybe a goal being scored is not action. Hence, soccer is not a real sport in America.

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JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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What about basketball...

JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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No seriously...basketball has a ton of scoring...at least compared to most other sports...what about it...explain yourself!

JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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Same reason we're not interested in hockey...

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Tyrone BriggsHall of Famer

895 days ago

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I'm gonna guess that the NHL draws more game attendance while soccer (in the US) outdraws hockey on television.

BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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That is true. It is hard to beat out the attendence numbers of the NHL only the NFL is not jealous of them

BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Its the flow of the game that will always kill soccer in the USA. Same with rugby and hockey to a lesser degree. Football is broken play lots of pauses and what not you can take a break and be distracted. Basketball has 100 timeouts and what not. Americans need a break and some pauses to help with their short attention spans.

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InsanMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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LOL! Very true!

Manny StilesMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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It may have to do with the lack of hot, naked babes as cheerleaders to distract us from the lack of action on field. Maybe if they released hungry lions onto the field it would get more attention...

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SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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Take example, a 1-0 23 inning 5 1/2 hour game in baseball is exciting here. Of course not to me, that sounds very boring. But a 1-0 game in soccer IS? Plus the media coverage of soccer is poor here. Thank goodness for the CBC in Washington State, I'll be watching the U-20 world cup all month.

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Manny StilesMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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yeah but a 23 inning game happens once every other decade, it's a rare freekish feat of novelty whereas a 1-0 soccer match happens around the world dozens of times daily...

Willf123JV Squad

895 days ago

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Soccer was not born here in North America unlike baseball, basketball, football. Therefore we don't have that special connection like we "own" it.

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JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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Football and baseball weren't really made in the USA either...both are adaptations of other sports...only basketball truly started here...

BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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True Basketball and jazz the only 2 true american inventions. Football is a direct decendent of rugby

Manny StilesMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Jazz came from the Creole French and imported Africans while James Naismith was Canadian... Since we stole everything else from the Native Americans, let's just call Lacrosse the TRUE American game? Oddly enough, I always think of basketball being very similar to jazz - five people (players/musicians) doing different things with different objectives and talents playing for a common goal (the song/to win)

JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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I don't think its worth arguing over...but to say "stole" any sport is kinda a moot point. most sports are adaptions of something else...same with food...culture, religion, etc... Music is one of those things where you can see many evolutions...and then they seperate and become really crazy when they get back together

JuTMSY4Legend

895 days ago

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Like when Miles Davis met Jimmy Hendrix...

BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Youre right about that Manny Ive often compared jazz and basketball. A group of guys organized and yet improvising in a controled and uncontroled manor yet working in harmony

SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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Well technically, we don't own ANY sport right now. We even lost to Thailand in the Flag Football championships not too long ago.

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BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Flag football is not a sport. Might as well play freeze tag at the Olympics

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SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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Probably lose at that too.

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Manny StilesMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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...not if we were allowed to have tagbacks!!!!

SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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check that, the US lost to Germany in flag football, Canada lost to Thailand. OH, and David Beckham isn't going to do anything to boost attendance in MLS.

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BigPPupMajor Leaguer

895 days ago

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Ill watch Posh Spice at a MLS game... I mean Becks

ThecrookedcapAll-Star

895 days ago

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He already has. Ticket sales shot up after the announcement. Whether next year will go up is a different story.

Alex HolowczakHall of Famer

895 days ago

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You're not used to the tradition of supporting through the generations. The reason most support football in Europe is because they have the tradition now. It's almost tribal.

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Alex HolowczakHall of Famer

895 days ago

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What's with the "GOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL!"? Seriously... Why?

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ThecrookedcapAll-Star

895 days ago

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The elongating of goal is something that comes from Mexican announcers.

SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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I don't know, Martin Tyler or John Motson would do better than that, other than goaaaaalllll by the announcer, his other goal calls were fine.

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SSreportersLegend

895 days ago

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BTW, is Jacqui Oatley still with Match of the Day? She's awful. I may be American, but I'll never listen to those announcers on ESPN.

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895 days ago

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My class was talking to my History teacher about this, and this is what he said: Soccer IS popular in America, but the guys in America that play soccer really well could make a greater deal of money in football or basketball due to their skills that they have in that sport or because of their size.

I gotta agree with him. When's the last time you see an American soccer player who's 7 feet tall? You'd never see him there because he'd be better off playing basketball. When's the last time you see a 350 pound ALL MUSCLE guy out on the soccer field? You never see one of those guys cuz they'd make more money playing football.

Sports ARE widespread in America.. ALL SPORTS, including soccer. It's just that because of certain things that contribute to what sport they want to be in is the reason to why soccer is "popular" in the US.

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Willf123JV Squad

894 days ago

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Agreed. Football and basketball are at the top of the chain when it comes to taking from the talent pool.

False ProphetAll-Star

895 days ago

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Scoring is the reason. Why is Lacrosse growing as a sport in popularity? Because it's a lot like Hockey with immense physicality, and in gameplan, but instead of a 5-3 game, you have 13-10 games. That's more scoring than in Football. Oh, and ties. Ties suck. Especially 0-0 ties. Those are the games that kill Soccer in America

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895 days ago

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Yep, I gotta agree with you there. More entertainment in LaCrosse than in soccer. That's another major reason as well..

Gmaddux04Waterboy

894 days ago

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Wow, those Dallas jerseys are sweeet. Just because the rest of the world loves soccer doesn't mean we should. Soccer is an affordable attraction, everyone in the same huge stadium for a day means cheap tickets all around. Don't forget that a lot of those countries that love soccer are also less advanced and 2nd world (if thats even a term).

I have no excuse for the Europeans though. Except they do everything ass backwards there and love to drink, which accompanies soccer so well because of the lack of action.

Smaller fields, more pompous stars, less players could be the equation to a more entertaining sport. Basically top notch indoor soccer with loud mouth strikers like TO or Chad Johnson. Those, despite what anyone says, are GREAT for the game.

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SSreportersLegend

894 days ago

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Lack of action? And people find Golf exciting? There's more attention given to the golfer's walking than the action itself.

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