Air America's Mark Riley loves his Arsenal

[informed1]

being a fan of some american sports myself i have to agree with this:

there's no real sense of tradition about american sports. its all commercialized, overgrown drudgery, really. its too mechanical and robotic. at least our sport is still all about passion.

i mean, look at baseball or basketball. how many teams upped their franchises and left for another city because business wasn't good? i know something like this has happened to wimbledon (now mkdons) but in england that is such a tragedy while in the states its quite common.

Thats one thing I find bizarre that you just upsticks and leave a city because of financial gain. I remember when glazer first started with his takeover bid a US commentator was on sky saying that glazer threaten to move the team he owns in the US unless the city (or was it the state) built a new stadium.

 

[hujja]

Here in Canada, you kinda get the notion that most people here think that "soccer" is a girls game. They have the idea that football is a game in which "a long-haired European fag kicks a pig's bladder like a girl". :roll:

Women's football is bigger than men's football in North America. This kind of explains why they'll never have many internationally significant achievements ( I'm not dissing any aspects of women's football here...just thought i dug myself a deeper hole)

haha i know you canadians love your hockey but over here hockey is regarded as a womans game. not so much ice hockey but certainly field hockey!

Naaaah. I'm not a big hockey fan. I migrated to Canada and all I ever did back in the Middle East was play and think about football. I kinda carried on the tradition here and hopefully in about a weeks time I'll being playing for my first club.
What's quite remarkable is the fact that in most soccer (football) clubs here, most of the players are not of true Canadian descent. Almost 70% of the players were of South American, Asian and South Asian origins.

 

[Tangent]

Gunnertilldeath, I agree with your post 100%...spot on.


"Thats one thing I find bizarre that you just upsticks and leave a city because of financial gain. I remember when glazer first started with his takeover bid a US commentator was on sky saying that glazer threaten to move the team he owns in the US unless the city (or was it the state) built a new stadium."

That is true but you can't do that in England, at least with certain teams. for example Chelsea's name is tied to Stamford Bridge. They couldn't just move out to somewhere else and still be "Chelsea FC".

 

[kel varnsen]

I always thought it was becaue America is crap at football, they know they're never going to win anything, therefore they don't like it!

Seriously though, football is not just a sport, its part of a nations culture and history.. Its in your blood, and this kind of passion is very difficult to recreate..

Football has been a massive part of Europeans, South Americans and Africans lives for years, its a symbol of hope and national pride for develpoing countries... I don't think football will ever reach this level in North America.

This is spot on and very important.

In Brazil, Holland and Nigeria, a poor kid who is into sports will grow up playing with a soccer ball on the streets or dirt.
My grandpa from Britain never learned to play football from a Youth League like AYSO, he learned to play in the streets with his friends, only later entering into organized play.
Some have made the point that the socio-economic background of the USA national team is very different than other countries.

The Brazilian kid growing up in the favela with nothing but a soccer ball to help him escape is a common story.
Almost every player on the USA team comes from more confortable middle-upper class suburban families.
The equivalent to the poor Brazilian kid in American 'hoods is either shooting hoops at the local park, or tackling his homeboys on the street.

football is still beyond all that crap. "escape from poverty"... :roll: most kids play football because it's damn good fun and in hope of some day play for their favourite team. not like the american sports where all they want is a big paycheck...

 

[Canuck]

Gunnertilldeath, I agree with your post 100%...spot on.


"Thats one thing I find bizarre that you just upsticks and leave a city because of financial gain. I remember when glazer first started with his takeover bid a US commentator was on sky saying that glazer threaten to move the team he owns in the US unless the city (or was it the state) built a new stadium."

That is true but you can't do that in England, at least with certain teams. for example Chelsea's name is tied to Stamford Bridge. They couldn't just move out to somewhere else and still be "Chelsea FC".

Baseball and American Football must be the craziest I think in terms of the business of sports entertainment *gag* The NFL in particular have been purely about marketing the 'product' for so long they've almost perfected it. Only NASCAR can rival NFL for popularity and profitablity in the US. The NBA have moved franchises as well, and Hockey is getting more and more about business since they've over exspanded the league.

Football in Europe and elsewhere still has heart and soul. We'll Italians might have sold their footballing souls already.

 

[Chips&CurrySauce]

Well said Tangent... The thing with football its so much fun to play.. As a kid I grew up playing foootie with my mates in the park, every day... It doesn't matter how many players you've got, you can play 11 a side, 5 a side, 4 a side, or even 3 and in, if you've only got a few players... You can even muck around on your own, as a kid I'd practice my ball skill in the garden on my own, trying to learn to do the tricks great platyers were doing... You just can't do this with other sports, like Criket, Rugby, Basebal,l NFL etc...

Its also a total fallacy that footie is a game for 'wimps'.. I went to an all Rugby scholl and take it from me, their are far more injuries in football than rugby.. The reason being footballers use their legs, which is by far the strongest limb... If a tackle is mistimed in football or if a player tries to 'do you' you can very easily break a leg, or get an elbow in the face... In football the chances of breaking a leg or an ankle or rupturing your knee ligamnets is far more likely than any over sport.

 

[whoztheman]

plus....its BEAUTIFUL....its like an ART.....which other sport can claim that?

 

[Gurgen]

Football is the most beautiful and best sport in the world and Americans are just jealous they suck at it

No seriously, watching all American sports never fills me with excitement. Actually the only American sport I like watching is basketball, at least there is some flair and action in that. But baseball and AF? Come on, those don't even qualify as sports in my book. Dress up in full body armor, run very fast, catch an egg an get jumped on by 5 other men. Great.

 

[kel varnsen]

Gunnertilldeath, I agree with your post 100%...spot on.


"Thats one thing I find bizarre that you just upsticks and leave a city because of financial gain. I remember when glazer first started with his takeover bid a US commentator was on sky saying that glazer threaten to move the team he owns in the US unless the city (or was it the state) built a new stadium."

That is true but you can't do that in England, at least with certain teams. for example Chelsea's name is tied to Stamford Bridge. They couldn't just move out to somewhere else and still be "Chelsea FC".

Baseball and American Football must be the craziest I think in terms of the business of sports entertainment *gag* The NFL in particular have been purely about marketing the 'product' for so long they've almost perfected it. Only NASCAR can rival NFL for popularity and profitablity in the US. The NBA have moved franchises as well, and Hockey is getting more and more about business since they've over exspanded the league.

Football in Europe and elsewhere still has heart and soul. We'll Italians might have sold their footballing souls already.

the craziest part is the fact that teams move around from city to city. :roll:

 

[Canuck]

I think the fact that they call them Franchises just shows how open about it they are in regards to it being a business. You're not buying a F****** KFC, it's a team that had fans and a history! Well sometimes they have a history. Or a bit of one... :|

 

[RockyRocastle]

I hate Amerian sports and the whole culture that surrounds it.

You just have to look at the reactions of septics on here and other boards I have seen about the Glazer takeover of the mancs and proposed similar ones of Arsenal. Most of them have no idea.