Blogs
S.O.C.K. in the USA!
Monday July 12, 2010
Posted 1 year, 10 months ago by
Sean Patrick
I have to say, I have watched more soccer in the last month than I have in my entire life before that, and I can honestly say my opinion of the sport has shifted. I didn’t grab hockey at first, because the strategy is executed so quickly, with possession of the puck going back and forth so much it made me dizzy. But eventually I saw the subtle nuances in the execution, the perfectly-timed pass, the man open in front of the net at the right time. Often the game has only a few breathtaking moments such as this, like a game 7 NHL Finals game ending in 1-0. I learned to appreciate that about hockey and I can say I appreciate soccer much more in that same way. I actually sat through entire matches (and even learned to call them “matches”) watching anxiously for these few fortuitous moments. And I have to admit that I initially did so to follow the US Team, and the thrilling, unforgettable sports moments they created showed me that this was not the Saturday morning soccer I played in my childhood! When my family, and my wife’s family visiting from Belarus all came out to get together and visit us recently, everyone wanted to start the next Saturday in a sports bar catching the Argentina-Germany match before hitting the beach at South Haven. I was watching the finals when Spain put a dagger in the heart of the Netherlands and wrote their chapter in the World Cup legacy. I can truly saw I’m sorry World Cup’s over, and it’s going to be a long four years to wait for it to come back.
A quick word of advice to futbol if I may. I’m sure longtime fans of the sport have come to accept blatant flopping and feigning injury if they “trip” on an opponent’s tailwind as part of the game. I mean, I thought it was bad in the NBA - it made Reggie Miller one of the lousiest players in the league in my eyes. But it’s just comical how these soccer guys ham it up like they’ve just torn an Achilles every time they take a dive, and when they see no yellow card forthcoming, they just spring back up and bound away like a gazelle. And the loose system of reffing and timekeeping I think seriously hampers its entrance into the American mainstream sportsscape, a place where people want their clocks setup for tenths-of-a-second and want more and more use of instant replay. I think if soccer in the US - I guess I mean MLS - wants to try to ride this wave of patriotism-tinged soccer fervor, they would do well to launch a campaign in which they draw a clear distinction from what people saw in the World Cup. Give the people what they want: clocks that stop when play is stopped so we know when the game will freaking end (sorry, drives me nuts, feels like I don't get closure), start yellow-carding people who fake too many mortal injuries, and some instant replay to make sure goals like the ones denied the US, England and the like are correctly allowed - I mean, the game’s low-scoring enough already guys!
A quick word of advice to futbol if I may. I’m sure longtime fans of the sport have come to accept blatant flopping and feigning injury if they “trip” on an opponent’s tailwind as part of the game. I mean, I thought it was bad in the NBA - it made Reggie Miller one of the lousiest players in the league in my eyes. But it’s just comical how these soccer guys ham it up like they’ve just torn an Achilles every time they take a dive, and when they see no yellow card forthcoming, they just spring back up and bound away like a gazelle. And the loose system of reffing and timekeeping I think seriously hampers its entrance into the American mainstream sportsscape, a place where people want their clocks setup for tenths-of-a-second and want more and more use of instant replay. I think if soccer in the US - I guess I mean MLS - wants to try to ride this wave of patriotism-tinged soccer fervor, they would do well to launch a campaign in which they draw a clear distinction from what people saw in the World Cup. Give the people what they want: clocks that stop when play is stopped so we know when the game will freaking end (sorry, drives me nuts, feels like I don't get closure), start yellow-carding people who fake too many mortal injuries, and some instant replay to make sure goals like the ones denied the US, England and the like are correctly allowed - I mean, the game’s low-scoring enough already guys!
