Donovan
beer, I want beer
After today's game, I think I have finally figured out the secret of the world's view on Americans in "that" football sport.
They're fucking terrified.
It's the only scenario that makes sense. The rest of the world knows America could give a shit about 'soccer', that by and large we denigrate it as a sport for twelve-year-old girls, that we only nominally pay attention to what is the biggest sports event on earth for the rest of the planet; the world cup. That has been the status quo for years, and that's the way some would like it to stay. But in the last few years, something has changed: America got better. We found some players who actually care for the sport, and whattaya know we fielded a team that can contend.
And the rest of you know that, if we start winning, America may start caring. And throwing money at the sport until we own it. That's how we roll. Just like Canada and Hockey, once USA gets the idea that soccer is a worthwhile pastime and money maker, the rest of the world's teams can pretty much forget it.
So that's why we have phantom offside calls, and disallowed goals because the ref "felt like it", and rules that seem deliberately geared to bore and piss us off. Because the world wants us to shrug, turn off the tv, go outside to the barbecue grill, and get a little fatter while we wait for 'real' football to start back in August.
And to my American TK friends: now that I have discovered this insidious plot, I fully expect to be murdered by a FIFA-funded assassin team in some horrible fashion involving a vuvuzela and a red card. So could you please archive this post as potential evidence before Menty has it eliminated? Thanks!
They're fucking terrified.
It's the only scenario that makes sense. The rest of the world knows America could give a shit about 'soccer', that by and large we denigrate it as a sport for twelve-year-old girls, that we only nominally pay attention to what is the biggest sports event on earth for the rest of the planet; the world cup. That has been the status quo for years, and that's the way some would like it to stay. But in the last few years, something has changed: America got better. We found some players who actually care for the sport, and whattaya know we fielded a team that can contend.
And the rest of you know that, if we start winning, America may start caring. And throwing money at the sport until we own it. That's how we roll. Just like Canada and Hockey, once USA gets the idea that soccer is a worthwhile pastime and money maker, the rest of the world's teams can pretty much forget it.
So that's why we have phantom offside calls, and disallowed goals because the ref "felt like it", and rules that seem deliberately geared to bore and piss us off. Because the world wants us to shrug, turn off the tv, go outside to the barbecue grill, and get a little fatter while we wait for 'real' football to start back in August.
And to my American TK friends: now that I have discovered this insidious plot, I fully expect to be murdered by a FIFA-funded assassin team in some horrible fashion involving a vuvuzela and a red card. So could you please archive this post as potential evidence before Menty has it eliminated? Thanks!
Gagh
Χριστόφορος
TK, by large, doesn't care about you.
Dirk Funk
Evil Penguin
And I don't either. In fact, being an American means I'm genetically predisposed to dislike soccer. It's out of my control, really. However the banner looks cool regardless.
Kitty
Sinless and Purrfect
Loktar
Pinata Whacker
Well I'm an equal opportunity hater and don't care for most sports except woman's tennis, beach volleyball, and figure skating.
Eggs Mayonnaise
All In With The Nuts
The fact is, every professional sport is, at its core, a business that must sell itself to the customer. Even "world" league sports don't operate at a loss, nor are treaties between nations signed based on footie standings. Footie may have fans who are more obsessed/emotional, but it's no more historically relevant than the World Series or the Super Bowl.
Ultimately, the onus is not on America to simply start caring more about the World Cup. The onus is on the World Cup organizers and marketers to make the sport sexy enough to Americans to compete for their sport recreation dollars. And that market is already overcrowded.
(Personally, I wish the NBA and NHL would both fall off a cliff, both sports have become horribly irrelevant. But that's just me)
Ultimately, the onus is not on America to simply start caring more about the World Cup. The onus is on the World Cup organizers and marketers to make the sport sexy enough to Americans to compete for their sport recreation dollars. And that market is already overcrowded.
(Personally, I wish the NBA and NHL would both fall off a cliff, both sports have become horribly irrelevant. But that's just me)
Archibald Nixon
anti-life coach
If I fall asleep watching it on TV, it ain't a sport.
eloisel
Forever Empress E
I see you are out making friends.
America has a decent team and I feel for the players who play for you because they work their asses off and it's not a particularly popular sport over there but sinking money in to the sport will not make you suddenly better than the rest of the world and while there may be a sliver of truth that other nations don't want to see the US do well because they don't like football and so shouldn't have any success in it I don't think anyone is particularly worried. England and the US were in a piss easy group together and we both qualified from it. In England our performance has been seen as bordering on retarded and had the players lost or drawn yesterday they would have been lynched coming off the plane. It's been highly disappointing so far. In the US your qualification has been seen as a fantastic achievement.
I have no doubt WHATSOEVER that the US will continue to get stronger and stronger at football though and that your league (The MLS) will get stronger and stronger but we're literally decades away from you having what can be considered a pool of world class players. I honestly don't know why it works that way but it does. Americans by and large don't care about football but your country is so big and diverse that there are a lot of Americans who do care about the sport and that means talented kids are growing up in to the sport and that will translate to a better pool of players for you to pick from but money alone means little. It's culture alone that creates great football players coupled with high quality leagues for them to play in. Look at Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Portugal for the cream of the crop right now.
Another thing is that all the best American players play or have players (like Landon Donovan) that play in the English Premier League because their skills would be totally wasted in the MLS which right now is the equivalent to our League 2 and is turning in to a cash cow for over the hill superstar footballers to get one more big pay check and still totally dominate the league even though their legs are gone...*cough* Beckham cough*
Of course this will continue to progress and get better but while it is getting better and interest is slowly growing all your best players that you are cultivating are going to get stolen by the English, Spanish and Italian leagues and it's going to be an uphill struggle and a long arduous and slow job getting there. This is already happening to an extent but it does mean your national team is getting better and I don't think many would disagree that your national squad now is the best you have had and has real talent in it but still not exactly terrifying yet.
I honestly don't mean to turn my nose up at the US team or your football aspirations as a nation because as someone who lives and breaths the sport I have been well aware that the US have tons of potential in the sport and a very fit and well drilled team that can go and get results off any opposition and I do think it's a bit of a disservice to the US players saying that there is no home support because there is and America has been competing in football for a long ass time and have steadily gotten better and better at is as would be expected. The media is definitely responsible for underselling the US team but people that know the sport have known that the days of the US team being seen as a bit of a joke are long gone and that's a good thing.
With all that said you're still going to get murdered by Spain, Argentina, Portugal or Brazil and so are we unless our world class players actually start to bring their club form over to their national form which so far has eluded us.
We're going to stay terrified of the Ronaldo's and Messi's of this world for a bit longer.
[youtubehq]tYOhOUOYb2U[/youtubehq]
I have no doubt WHATSOEVER that the US will continue to get stronger and stronger at football though and that your league (The MLS) will get stronger and stronger but we're literally decades away from you having what can be considered a pool of world class players. I honestly don't know why it works that way but it does. Americans by and large don't care about football but your country is so big and diverse that there are a lot of Americans who do care about the sport and that means talented kids are growing up in to the sport and that will translate to a better pool of players for you to pick from but money alone means little. It's culture alone that creates great football players coupled with high quality leagues for them to play in. Look at Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Portugal for the cream of the crop right now.
Another thing is that all the best American players play or have players (like Landon Donovan) that play in the English Premier League because their skills would be totally wasted in the MLS which right now is the equivalent to our League 2 and is turning in to a cash cow for over the hill superstar footballers to get one more big pay check and still totally dominate the league even though their legs are gone...*cough* Beckham cough*
Of course this will continue to progress and get better but while it is getting better and interest is slowly growing all your best players that you are cultivating are going to get stolen by the English, Spanish and Italian leagues and it's going to be an uphill struggle and a long arduous and slow job getting there. This is already happening to an extent but it does mean your national team is getting better and I don't think many would disagree that your national squad now is the best you have had and has real talent in it but still not exactly terrifying yet.
I honestly don't mean to turn my nose up at the US team or your football aspirations as a nation because as someone who lives and breaths the sport I have been well aware that the US have tons of potential in the sport and a very fit and well drilled team that can go and get results off any opposition and I do think it's a bit of a disservice to the US players saying that there is no home support because there is and America has been competing in football for a long ass time and have steadily gotten better and better at is as would be expected. The media is definitely responsible for underselling the US team but people that know the sport have known that the days of the US team being seen as a bit of a joke are long gone and that's a good thing.
With all that said you're still going to get murdered by Spain, Argentina, Portugal or Brazil and so are we unless our world class players actually start to bring their club form over to their national form which so far has eluded us.
We're going to stay terrified of the Ronaldo's and Messi's of this world for a bit longer.
[youtubehq]tYOhOUOYb2U[/youtubehq]
Ghana are even worse than Algeria so the smart bet would be on another US win there since you're rated far higher than them. We have Germany next which will be a classic since England and Germany games are high tension and there is a LOT of bad blood to be settled. Germany are good and that's going to be a tough game.
Ilyanna
moral imperfection
Mmmmh, I agree... That's the one game I will so totally watch. For me, UK vs GER is the mother of football games.
Wouldn't be as much fun if one of our teams were weak, now would it?