Ahem. One Extra Indulgence Today, Please
by Adam Jacobi on Jun 23, 2010 1:47 PM CDT
in Iowa Hawkeyes News
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"There's nothing better than being an American. And so, this is the greatest feeling, if you don't love it or leave it, USA, number one!" - Ricky Stanzi, patriotic and prescient in equal measure
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GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL!
Futbol is well on its way to being the 4th (and possibly 3rd) most popular sport in this country.
Fuck tOSU
I can see it at least battling for 4th or 3rd with the NBA and NHL in the next decade
"I shoot, I score. He shoots, I score." - Dan Gable
by ClaybornSmash on Jun 23, 2010 2:10 PM CDT up reply actions
i see it battling with mlb and nhl for new fans, a lot of mlbs fans are going away which is sad because its a great sport and i think nhl is recieving a resurgence in popularity after the olympics, but soccer is definitely starting to move on up
by theonewith(out)theanswers on Jun 23, 2010 2:26 PM CDT up reply actions
baseball sucks
nhl is ok. hope soccer moves way up.
by Mr. Rosewater on Jun 23, 2010 3:30 PM CDT up reply actions
I love baseball
But hate MLB, so yeah, I’ve given up on the league and would watch soccer over it (but would rather play baseball).
Tweeting via @jtkimbell
Quadrennial Fans
Well on its way… but a long way away.
There is very little visibility for the MLS, America’s top league, and as much fun as it is to root for the USA during the World Cup, that quadrennial rooting interest is more akin to the Olympics than that of the NHL, MLB, NBA or NFL. If you ask the most ardent futbol fans you know who their favorite team is, the response is vastly more likely to be an English Premier League team than an MLS team. I live in Chicago and the local MLS franchise is almost invisible to casual fans, the tickets are expensive, and the stadium is not easily accessible. As long as it is hard to be a casual fan, it will be difficult for the sport to grow
I think that it is much more likely that the expansion of popularity for futbol in America will follow demographic trends and achieve genuine credibility as the 4th most popular sport only as the American Latino population grows and their enthusiasm for futbol is integrated culturally along with other cultural traditions (like great food).
by Randy Oldgoat on Jun 23, 2010 3:38 PM CDT up reply actions
I would agree with that
The MLS really needs to grow their local fanbases and the national following will come from there. Maybe the increased exposure to the EPL on tWWL will bring more fans to their local MLS fanchises. Maybe they’ll see the difference in the quality of the products and be turned off. Who knows. All I know is that if as more people who grew up playing soccer get older, the number of casual fans is increasing, which is a good thing.
Also, the Fire stadium and experience is great – Section 8 especially. The commute to get out there sucks. Every game I’ve gone to I’ve taken the “drunk bus” from Fado’s Pub. You get driven there and back with beer provided. Great deal, but combine the cost of that ticket with the game ticket and it starts getting pretty pricey.
"I shoot, I score. He shoots, I score." - Dan Gable
by ClaybornSmash on Jun 23, 2010 3:51 PM CDT up reply actions
I totally agree with this...
I know little about soccer. Though since moving from Iowa to Texas, being unemployed, having 20 Mexican TV channels at my disposal, and being able to bet fake dollars via centsports, I have become acquainted with the sport. The sport has a long way to go in the USA for gaining casual fans. I have been to one FC Dallas game. What I took away was one bank account severely drained of funds. Tickets were either $20 or $30 and beers were $8. Not good. Though there was a rap contest at halftime which was almost worth the price of admission. I can go to Rangers or Mavs games for $10 and see worlds greatest athletes in their respective sports. Not so with the MLS. I would say the average age of fan at game was 14 years old and kids outnumbered adults by a lot. Seemed most the adults were there to babysit a group of kids. All in all not my scene. I did dig cute college girls wearing team scarfs when it was 80 degrees though.
I see the NBA getting the squeeze
It really is in rough financial shape. The NBA is moving to a place where a few superteams ~ that is, the only teams making money ~ compete for titles and strip mine the rest of the league for talent.
MLB will do OK. Baseball is a Latin sport, and so has a built in following with America’s fastest growing demographic. Soccer has deep roots in our Spanish speaking communities.
Hockey has reconnected with its fanbase. It’s getting stronger after about a decade in the wilderness.
The NFL is the beast.
Excuse me for my bellicosity. And spelling. Bellicosity and spelling.
by Blackheartnopants on Jun 23, 2010 5:26 PM CDT up reply actions
NBA Money
The NBA has been downward trending for a while in terms of ticket sales and TV ratings, but doing extremely well at merchandising and in video game sales, not to mention expanding in to eastern Europe and China much, much better than any other American sports.
The NBA is down in some areas, but overall, is doing very well financially.
Idle talk and hollow promises; cheating Judases; doubting Thomases
I don't think I can buy that.
The salary cap has gone down last year, and probably this year. Attendance and other indicators were down, Stern said the league was set to lose $400 million, and video games and jerseys can’t make up for those issues.
Here are some interesting articles:
http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/11934840
http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/61537
http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/64887
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/2010-06-11-finals-financial-impact_N.htm
I see what you are talking about here (merchandise revenue up 12%):
http://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/article/64021
However, if global merch sales is at 3 billion for this past year, and that is up 12%, that increase would probably still not cover the $400 mil loss Stern claimed (or the $200 mil credit line they took out.) And if they project a larger sal cap cut for 2010-2011, I don’t see the NBA growing their way out of it real soon. Unless LeBron (’s new team) and the Boston v. Lakers series have done more than I think.
I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them.
-- Judge Smails
by WaterlooChazz on Jun 23, 2010 11:36 PM CDT up reply actions
You know how soccer fans say non-soccer fans don't know what they're missing?
Yeah.
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 24, 2010 9:11 AM CDT up reply actions
Howard's throw to mid-pitch made that all possible.
Over half the Algerian team were still back by the box when that ball landed in front of Donovan.
"You don't become a Hawkeye fan, You're born with Black and Gold in your veins." - Me
Can you imagine that guy in a punt pass and kick competition?
He threw a soccer ball about 45 yards, and regularly kicks it 75+
And he has to hold back on his kicks in order to keep it from getting to the opposing keeper or out of bounds
He could probably punt around 90 yards, kick 80-85 and throw 60 yards pretty consistently
"I shoot, I score. He shoots, I score." - Dan Gable
by ClaybornSmash on Jun 23, 2010 3:53 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm pretty sure its "If you don't love it, leave it, USA, number 1."
Also I turned on the game at 6 am and fell back asleep due to how exciting soccer is. At about the 88th minute I woke back up. Started watching and three minutes later I was screaming and clapping. God if only they could make stuff like that happen more then once every 2 hours…soccer would be great.
blah blah blah
Life - it's bigger...bigger than you and you are not me.
by hawkeyeguy85 on Jun 23, 2010 4:06 PM CDT up reply actions
Look
Just because you don’t see the beauty in soccer doesn’t mean others don’t. I can watch a game played by just about anybody remaining, and be mesmerized by how incredible it’s being played. I get it, as do other soccer fans — you think it’s boring. Just shut up and keep it to yourself.
by imadirtyoldman on Jun 23, 2010 4:21 PM CDT up reply actions
Jeez…
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 23, 2010 8:07 PM CDT up reply actions
Just because you can't see the paint drying comparison...
doesn’t mean others can’t. Opinions are like assholes, everyones got one…even me.
So if you don't like soccer...
…the fuck are you doing in a soccer thread?
I got more rhymes than Wade Lookingbill's got dunks
by Adam Jacobi on Jun 23, 2010 11:08 PM CDT up reply actions
Commenting how even not liking soccer...
One can get caught up in moments like the 91st minute.
It's the snide comment
that makes you sound like a whiny bitch. “God if only they could make stuff like that happen more then once every 2 hours…soccer would be great.” We get it. You don’t like soccer. So don’t watch, shut up, and allow those of us who do like it to not have to listen to you all the damn time.
by imadirtyoldman on Jun 24, 2010 8:26 AM CDT up reply actions
I really didn't think it was that snide.
There was only one moment like that in the two hours or however long they played. I’ve seen the same opinion from non-hockey fans. It’s all about taste I guess.
Besides, gnome did mention the fact that he was excited for the goal. The U.S. soccer team is picking up casual fans!
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 24, 2010 9:14 AM CDT up reply actions
That was really what I was going for.
I don’t get why there is so much anger.
PS: I love Hockey.
But a 1-0 soccer game can be exciting in the same way that a 1-0 hockey match can.
Just because people aren’t actually scoring doesn’t mean that it’s not exciting. Between them, the US and Algeria launched like 40 shots yesterday. The US alone had 10-11 on goal, as I recall. That is actual stuff happening — which is exciting.
It’s one thing if it’s just aimless passing or dribbling the ball that leads nowhere — I agree, that can be tedious in the extreme. But yesterday’s game was anything but that; both teams were flying up and down the field (moreso the U.S., but Algeria had some good counter-attacks too) and attacking and shooting. That it wasn’t a 3-2 game was due to some unlucky bounces and good saves by goalies.
I recall watching a few NHL playoff games this spring where the score was low, but it was still exciting — there were lots of shots, but the goalies were just making unreal saves. That’s what yesterday’s USA-Algeria game seemed like.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
Yeah, I am definitely not saying that soccer cant have its great ones.
In fact, quite the opposite. I’m saying that, in general, there is a lot of time in between great moments. I was not awake for the whole game, so I could not make that observation about it. I’ll say the 7 ish minutes that I got to see were amazing :).
I think for alot of people, the 45+ minutes to a half are a big killer.
It’s the ONLY sport in the world that plays longer than 20 minute period or half.
"You don't become a Hawkeye fan, You're born with Black and Gold in your veins." - Me
by BStylin Hawkye on Jun 24, 2010 2:47 PM CDT up reply actions
There's no doubt it gets long at times.
But I think it’s the anticipation of something to happen and the thrill of it actually happen that makes soccer exciting to people. I by no means am a soccer fan but you cannot deny a sporting event that brings a nation of people so close together.
by Pain in the Sash on Jun 24, 2010 3:09 PM CDT up reply actions
It's a continuous clock.
You’re telling me that with timeouts and commercials that an NBA half is over in less than 50 minutes?
by The Mexican't on Jun 24, 2010 7:07 PM CDT up reply actions
We're used to something like you describe.
It’s just….odd to go from four fifteen minute quarters with plenty of stops to something like soccer.
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 24, 2010 7:22 PM CDT up reply actions
I understand someone saying that they can't focus for 45 continuous minutes.
But I didn’t think that was the argument. Needing commercials to break up the half is one thing. However, if someone complains that the game is too long, then they’re out of their damn mind.
by The Mexican't on Jun 24, 2010 8:20 PM CDT up reply actions
I wasn't saying it was too long.
Because in the terms of professional sports, soccer is the quickest game to be played in actual time. You stated in words what my thoughts were. A lot of people are so used to the commercial breaks and play stoppage that it probably becomes almost second nature. I for one like soccer, but i would say one downside is with out a break until halftime, I would have to get up during gameplay to go get a beer, and who knows what I could possibly miss.
"You don't become a Hawkeye fan, You're born with Black and Gold in your veins." - Me
by BStylin Hawkye on Jun 25, 2010 8:47 AM CDT up reply actions
I agree that the continuous clock is definitely not what Americans are used to.
And understand that complaint, entirely.
by The Mexican't on Jun 25, 2010 10:40 AM CDT up reply actions
It's better than an 11 hour tennis match
or whatever it was
"There are only three certainties in college football: all players will eventually leave, the ACC will be bad, and Joe Paterno ", Clay Travis, CNNsi Fanhouse
I was not trying to argue about this.
I’ve been through that at BSD and it’s a never ending spiral.
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 24, 2010 7:20 PM CDT up reply actions
That's fine.
I don’t think I was disagreeing with you all that much; I just wanted to make a point about why you can argue that it wasn’t really “boring” despite being 1-0.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
Bingo
The quote was that it was boring up until the goal was scored. Soccer fans don’t see it that way. Americans put so much value, so much pressure, on putting points on the board, that soccer is “dull” to them. But for those of us who love watching the game, there is nothing boring about it. And to presume it IS boring simply because it doesn’t match up to one person’s (or many people’s, for that matter) definition of “exciting” is, yes, a bit smug.
Rambler, I hear what you’re saying. But you’re giving him the benefit of the doubt. I’ve listened to enough of his type of argument to believe he was saying it to speak poorly of soccer.
End of the day, the U.S. won, and that’s all I care about. I’ll bow out of the argument now.
by imadirtyoldman on Jun 25, 2010 6:18 AM CDT up reply actions
Another thing...
and yes, I don’t love soccer like a lot of people (I have been watching some of the World Cup, and I have been studying up on the big three leagues via Fox Soccer Channel and wikipedia).
This is supposed to be “our year” in USA soccer. By that, I mean that we might be a threat to make it to the quarters or the semis (I do not expect us to win the world cup).
To watch us tie with England was OK (until we figured out how much England is struggling this year). To tie with 25th ranked Slovenia was very slightly disappointing (although I called it the day before that they might even beat us). To go 90 minutes without getting a goal against 30th ranked Algeria is just sad.
Now, when people are expecting us to be better than this, and for us to barely sneak out of group play (while England is crapping the bed), I think you can see why Americans have trouble saying “Wow. That’s exciting.”
I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them.
-- Judge Smails
by WaterlooChazz on Jun 25, 2010 4:40 PM CDT up reply actions
Who said it was "our year" in USA soccer?
I didn’t see ANYONE making any sort of halfway realistic predictions about making it to the quarters or semis until we won the group and discovered that we had a draw that wasn’t going to be murderous. To the contrary, most expectation I saw were that the U.S. should make it out of the group and anything past that was gravy. Now having not just done that, but won the group and been placed in a relatively manageable bracket, expectations have been raised a bit — but that’s expectations as they are now, not as they were 2-3 weeks ago.
To go 90 minutes without getting a goal against 30th ranked Algeria is just sad.
A) World rankings are not gospel. The US was somehow ranked 4th a few years back. We were in no way the 4th-best team in the world.
B) There’s no set formula by which higher-ranked teams beat lower-ranked teams. You can’t say “well, we’re ranked XX spots higher, so we’ll score once in the first and twice in the second and cruise to a 3-0 win.” If the U.S. had played terribly, had almost no chances, and then got some miracle late goal to win… yeah, that would have been disappointing. They shouldn’t be dominated by a team like Algeria. But they weren’t — they played well, attacked strongly, and had multiple good chances — they just wouldn’t go in (or they would and the referee would disallow them).
You continue to have no idea what you’re talking about.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
So...
how is anybody supposed to get into this game if you can’t have any idea who will win, and a team can play well but not ever score?
And, if there is so much parity that ratings mean nothing, why do the same five teams always win the World Cup?
Eventually, soccer has to choose if it is actually a sport, or just a giant game of pinball. I don’t love soccer, but I want to like it, and I want to call it a sport. If nobody can ever score (we have 4 goals in 3 games), it is difficult to do that.
You can’t have it both ways.
I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them.
-- Judge Smails
by WaterlooChazz on Jun 26, 2010 12:11 PM CDT up reply actions
Expectations.
Yes, this is anecdotal, but one dude outside the USA had the USA in the World Cup Final:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2010/jun/10/world-cup-guardian-predictions
I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't want to do it. I felt I owed it to them.
-- Judge Smails
by WaterlooChazz on Jun 26, 2010 12:16 PM CDT up reply actions
Soccer has millions of fans.
I don’t think it’s really sweating whether or not you ever “get it.”
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
You have all the answers already, so this is pointless, but:
how is anybody supposed to get into this game if you can’t have any idea who will win,
I said nothing of the sort. You can predict who will win with a reasonable amount of accuracy, but you cannot predict how the games themselves will go. The fact that it took the US 92 minutes to score a goal does not mean, in and of itself, that the US played poorly.
and a team can play well but not ever score?
Really? Welcome to sports, Chazz. Good play is not always rewarded with the ideal result.
And, if there is so much parity that ratings mean nothing, why do the same five teams always win the World Cup?
I never said there was a great deal of parity, I simply pointed out that ratings are untrustworthy — just as they are in many other sports. England is ranked in the top 5 in the world, but they certainly haven’t looked like one of the five best teams in the world. Like any sports, ratings are an inexact science, often based on comparisons of unequal worth.
Eventually, soccer has to choose if it is actually a sport, or just a giant game of pinball.
This is stupid.
I don’t love soccer, but I want to like it, and I want to call it a sport. If nobody can ever score (we have 4 goals in 3 games), it is difficult to do that.
And now we’re back to your long-stated desire for more scoring. Look, if scoring is the be-all, end-all measure of a sport for you, feel free to wrap your arms around basketball or arena football.
Also: the idea that you can’t call something a sport if it doesn’t feature “enough” scoring is moronic.
"I want to be a cowboy. I don't want to be a panda. Pandas are boring, stupid and boring. Bad panda!"
Yeah, I am giving him the benefit of the doubt. I also think everyone is way too on edge for some reason.
"Now we can no longer hold back. It will be a terrible war." - Emperor Jim Delany I
by ReadingRambler on Jun 25, 2010 11:11 PM CDT up reply actions
Soccer is much the same as golf
Or the military, in that it can be described as “Obscenely long periods of boredom, punctuated by moments of sheer exhilaration (or terror) (or both)”. Personally, I don’t watch, especially since it’s the goddamn summer and half the games are on before 8 in the morning. Way too early for students like myself.
The Gram stain is useful in classifying bacteria because....it gives me another reason to hate biology?
Boredom aside, though...
I’d like to say, America, fuck yeah.
The Gram stain is useful in classifying bacteria because....it gives me another reason to hate biology?
Pretty sure you're plum fucking wrong, pal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=0wIm_41OIOM&feature=related
There’s an “or” tucked in there. Makes it all the better, anyway.
I got more rhymes than Wade Lookingbill's got dunks
You could definitely be right. I just like how it sounds...
Love it or leave it just has that love the US or get the fuck out if you aren’t all in.
Gentlemen!
Save your anger for Ghana!
Excuse me for my bellicosity. And spelling. Bellicosity and spelling.
by Blackheartnopants on Jun 23, 2010 10:36 PM CDT up reply actions
What time zone were you in when you woke up at 6 am?
The game was at 9 am central (there were no 6 am games that day), so maybe you weren’t actually watching soccer when you fell back asleep.
Here’s something that might make you appreciate it more… go sprint around for 90 minutes, while sliding, diving, jumping repeatedly. At least you’ll appreciate the kind of athleticism involved. I don’t particularly love “professional wrestling” (I know, it’s a sin), but I can watch it and marvel at the crazy things human beings are able to do in the squared circle (or octagon if it’s TNA).
Oh, and the “or” is there if you listen.
by Eyeheartfreedumb on Jun 25, 2010 8:38 AM CDT up reply actions
Truly a thing of beauty...
…the 91 minutes preceding that goal only make it all the more sweeter. I say “Stanzi” and kudos to US Soccer
"Conan, what is best in life?" "Crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentation of the women"
by Natty Bumppo's Murderous Gaze on Jun 23, 2010 4:43 PM CDT reply actions
I like this one.
Check this version out. (Language NSFW)
"You don't become a Hawkeye fan, You're born with Black and Gold in your veins." - Me
by BStylin Hawkye on Jun 24, 2010 9:08 AM CDT up reply actions
GOAL GOAL USA!!!
I could watch and listen to that clip 500 times and still get these same goosebumbs.
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