Interesting link procured from Fark today.
An article by a soccer-savvy American, published to target a soccer-savvy UK audience, about why Americans could generally care less about soccer.
The author Michael Mandelbaum raises some interesting points in the all-too-brief article, and I feel they're worth discussing. Here are Mr. Mandelbaum's key points:
#1. Unlike the rest of the world, Americans have plenty of their own sports.
Quite true. Baseball, basketball, football, and ice hockey are all juggernauts still in North America, and of those only hockey is all that popular in the rest of the world overall (though basketball has rapidly been catching up). Whereas the UK may have 20-billion soccer tiers or leagues, North America has a smaller amount of leagues spread over other sports. This is a no-brainer.
#2. Soccer and basketball are too similar.
I hadn't really considered or heard this comparison before. While it's not quiet exact, it is a viable comparison. Both are games oriented around maneuvers to get a ball into a goal, and a great deal of the time is spent maneuvering to accomplish this. Hockey is also similar, but unlike soccer and basketball, hockey is on ice with other instruments like sticks and skates, and is just a ton faster as a result. It's amplified in comparison.
So that leaves basketball as the comparison, and basketball still has higher-scoring and more action compared to soccer.
#3. Basketball is the American soccer because all you need is a ball and something to serve as a goal/hoop.
Just like soccer. That's why you see hoops everywhere you go. Everyone plays it and grows up playing it. It takes 30 seconds to organize a game of pickup basketball. You can play it anywhere. Basketball courts are all over the place -- from the inner-cities to the tiny towns. 3-on-3 tournaments abound during the summertime. Most every high school, no matter the size, fields a boys' and girls' team every year.
What's the moral here? The moral very well may be that soccer has no realistic chance in North America. It can just never be a major sport, and it'd be best for everyone to stop trying to make it one. Add in the fact that Americans now also look down their noses at soccer as "too European" and there are just too many things going against it. One of which is also that instead, American games are spreading to Europe.
Sports Illustrated did an excellent article on American Football in Germany recently. It's getting huge over there. Something about the sport has clicked with Germans. 4 of the 6 teams in NFL Europe now reside in Germany and they draw huge crowds to their home games. The fans show up to games rabid for their favorite team, and they paint their faces and come out in crazy getups just like their European soccer brethern or American football cousins.
It would seem a lot of other countries are finding room for more sports much like North America already has. And maybe in the longrun that's far better than just obsessing over why soccer never gets popular in America.
-- Primis.
I agree completely with your last point Rik.
Everybody has a preference, whether its food, cars, or sports. It doesn't make it wrong that someone else doesn't like what you like, or you don't like what they like.
Now do I think that soccer is going to catch on in America? Probably not. There are far too many other sports that children are introduced to at an early age and their interest remains with those sports throughout life. This doesn't mean that soccer won't enjoy some type of following, but in America where baseball is the American pastime and American football is associated with the start of autumn, and a basketball hoop is on every other garage, soccer won't have nearly the presence that the other major sports enjoy.
-- Just my 2¢
Interesting points, although I'm not sure I agree with all of them. The thing about soccer in Europe, and especially England, 'football' (as it is called in Europe, or 'fussball' in Germany) really is Europe's sport in the way baseball is America's sport. Professional soccer in England even started in a similar manner as professional baseball in America. Factory teams organized and begain playing other factory teams. This is how clubs such as Arsenal got their names and nicknames. In the case of Arsenal, the 'gunners' were the workers of the gun making factory for the British military. Anyone who is familiar with the north London club to this day knows that the cannon is Arsenal's logo, and is painted all over Highbury, where Arsenal play.
It is unfortunate that soccer hasn't really caught on over here, and I think somee of the points Mandelbaum brings up are true. But I think another element he is missing is that American culture is more aggressive and fast paced than European. As a result, Americans consider sitting for 90 minutes watching a game that often ends with a score of 0-0 as boring and pointless. Games like football and basketball are high scoring, offense oriented games with constant action. Hockey, while low scoring, is full of action. Baseball is simply part of America, if anyone doubts this, begin speaking your American slang to someone from Britain, talking about 'hitting a homerun' or 'striking out' at something, etc.. They will look at you and wonder what you are talking about. So, I think the cultural element is key. It's too bad though, as to sit and watch a soccer match between two good teams, such as Man United and Arsenal, is exciting and thoroughly entertaining. Great link Rik -
Dave
I've watched some good international soccer matches in the past. I watched some during the last World Cup and the final between Germany and Brazil was quite entertaining. I have another theory though about soccer to add to this all though.
My theory is this -- because of soccer's huge field, long timeframe, and low-scoring nature, unless it's a VERY important match players tend to spend a lot of time coasting along and trying to reserve energy.
This also contributes (I think) to why the game isn't popular here in America. We don't like games where the athletes aren't going all-out during the game to leave it all on the field, and you oftentimes get the feeling that soccer players aren't doing that unless it's a REALLY important game.
Soccer also often falls into what I call "Neutral Zone Trap Syndrome", much like in hockey, where teams are so focused on defense that you it makes the games nearly impossible to watch. Greece won Euro recently using this style -- and it may be fine for soccer fans that this boring sort of style is successful, but watching that kind of game won't win any new fans, for sure.
So I also think those two things contribute to soccer not being able to carve a niche as a major sport. Soccer is fun to play as kids, and whatnot. But as a true major sport, its very nature works against it.
-- Primis.
As an American and a soccer fan (one of the few) I think that it has such a Euro stereotype that Americans dont care about it. I am from the American south and the people around here have very straightforward views on things.
No offense to anyone, but the typical southern person likes good, all-American kinds of things and they dont consider soccer one of them. Soccer around here is referred to as a "f**" sport. Literally thats what they say. My boyfriend is on the Varsity soccer team for our high school and most of the guys who play on other Varsity sports such as the all-american sport, baseball etc. refer to the soccer team as a bunch of "grass fairies".
Anyway, Id love to see soccer pick up in America, I love it. I dont know why, but the typical American sees it as a wuss sport.
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