Soccer: Love it or Hate it?

[poorme]

I raise this issue knowing full well I risk the possibility of receiving anthrax in my e-mail.

I grew up in the 70s and 80s playing baseball. I played T-ball through "Colt", probably 13 or so years. Then throughout high school, I umpired games for a little cash. Trust me, I wasn't only doing it for the money. About that time I developed an intense hatred for soccer. When I was 7 or 8, soccer was only played by a few eccentrics, but by the late 80s I bet there were more kids playing soccer than baseball. I bet it's not even close now. This phenomenon has just broken my little heart. To see the game I love so dearly completely tossed aside....

I don't want to get into the pros and cons of soccer and why this occurred.

I just want to know if anyone else has the same unhealthy emotions that I have.

[Skip]

Soccer will never be my top sport but I appreciate it and hope its popularity grows in the US. This does not preclude baseball, which always will be my favorite. I've enjoyed coaching soccer as much as coaching baseball, and that really really surprises me.

[sweaver]

My kids are getting into soccer. They like baseball too, they'd just rather play soccer. I think one reason it catches on in the "third world" is that you don't need much equipment--just a ball. Nice for poor kids all over that way too.

[Craig S.]

I played organized soccer from age 4 up to my early 20s. I loved playing it, and I started following European leagues when I was about 11. I remember having to pay through the nose for those import English soccer mags, and how my local paper never carried any soccer news. I had to wait for the Toronot Star every weekend so I could see how teams were doing.

I love soccer, as I love a lot of sports. It's not my favorite, and I'll never know a quarter as much about it even as some people on here (Gyb). But it's a great sport with its own great qualities.

[poorme]

Originally posted by sweaver
My kids are getting into soccer. They like baseball too, they'd just rather play soccer.

Well, I'm not surprised given the historical pattern I described. Hey, I wouldn't mind soccer if I thought kids were playing it instead of playing video games. But they're not. Mom asks the kid, "Do you want to sign up for soccer or baseball?" Kid says soccer. End of story. I think we have gotten to the point where the quality of american born baseball players is decreasing because of the lack of interest in playing it. I guess that's not good or bad, just the way it is. It really bothers me though.

[spitball]

I played fullback on my highschool JV team and loved it. I learned how to cuss in spanish and was in amazing shape.
My mother's side of the family are all Manchester United fans and are nutso for the game.
I don't follow it as much as I did when I was younger but the World Cup is an awesome spectacle . GO ENGLAND!!
I think that baseball on the youth level has paid a heavy price though. Mostly because the soccer moms see it as a way to boost their little boo boo's self esteem. Baseball is too much about failure and we don't want our kids feeling like they've failed do we?

[moose]

I love baseball more than soccer, but i love soccer tremendously. i played it competetively growing up, and never lost the bug

[SmedIndy]

It may be more fun for kids to run around a lot and kick a ball.

Baseball has a lot of down time for kids. Soccer doesn't. You're always running, running, running, falling down....

[poorme]

Well, this is going even worse than I had expected. I think I need to see a psychiatrist, fast.

[KCBOOMER]

Watching soccer is like watching paint dry.

[Skip]

Originally posted by KCBOOMER
Watching soccer is like watching paint dry.

... But playing soccer can be a lot more fun (and definitely more active) than playing baseball.

Played from ages 7-25, until an ankle injury ruined me. Loved it!!

I love to follow the Euro leagues (go Ajax!), but it is so hard to keep up with in the states.

Never got into the pro leagues here in the USA.

[moose]

Originally posted by KCBOOMER
Watching soccer is like watching paint dry.

a lot of of people say the same thing about baseball. I'll take em both.

[gyb13]

Originally posted by sweaver
I think one reason it catches on in the "third world" is that you don't need much equipment--just a ball. Nice for poor kids all over that way too.

I think this is one of the main factors in the sport's popularity throughout the world. You don't even need a ball. Growing up, a lot of times our 'ball' was an empty soda can, socks rolled onto themselves, or even crumpled up pieces of paper.

Originally posted by poorme
When I was 7 or 8, soccer was only played by a few eccentrics, but by the late 80s I bet there were more kids playing soccer than baseball. I bet it's not even close now.

It's interesting that you see this 'substitution effect' of soccer. I think one factor in this is the way sports are organized in the US. Sports and school go hand-in-hand here - you play for your school's team and follow the 'seasons' as determined by the school calendar. Since baseball and soccer tend to fall during the same season (when the weather out is nice), there is this need for a choice to be made. In other parts of the world, you play on your free time or for a sports club that isn't linked to a school.

[Skip]

Originally posted by gyb13

I think this is one of the main factors in the sport's popularity throughout the world. You don't even need a ball. Growing up, a lot of times our 'ball' was an empty soda can, socks rolled onto themselves, or even crumpled up pieces of paper.

I think I've commented on this before, but one of my favorite memories is playing "can soccer" at recess during 5-6-7-8th grade in school. Never played organized soccer, but my shins are still scarred from various pop can collisions.