HD makes the most difference with Hockey IMO. Best sport live AINEC

so this

this is how i feel about soccer also. i'm not going to pick a club team, i don't want to care about soccer any more than i already do. but it's a fun sports treat when it's happening.

I think you are missing out on the Champions League. It has become one of my favorite yearly sporting events. I just love the intercontinental nature of it with teams from the ****tiest leagues having a chance to play against those from the biggest leagues. It is pretty much the only club soccer I watch though, but that's mainly just an availability problem more than anything.

yeah i mean i get not getting into soccer bc you don't like it, or have too much other stuff going on, or whatever, but that reason is kinda whatever. i mean lots of ppl don't just support the closest team, but pick a favourite or have whatever reasons for supporting a team that are often pretty random or arbitrary. and with modern technology allowing ppl to record games, the time difference isn't the deterrent that it used to be, not to mention TV coverage has improved greatly.

so in the same sense that the NBA, NFL, or whatever can be global games, i don't see why the best soccer leagues shouldn't be either. if you're a fan of the sport. if you're not really then yeah i can see the appeal of international soccer. (but i mean club soccer is generally much better)

i don't begrudge anyone in north america for following club soccer but it's not for me.

My relationship with soccer is like that one person who's been on your facebook friends list forever but you never talk to or see in person. Maybe a step or 2 below "acquaintance."

I thought this was a pretty good article about soccer boredom:

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/...soccer-boredom

I certainly think there is an element of truth to this. Its so hard to score goals, and at times several things need to click just right for them to happen, so when it does happen its pretty special. Also, watching your team press hard for the last 15 minutes to score, or defend a result with their lives on the line is utterly thrilling and frustrating.

Add in the fact that its essentially a year round sport with leagues all over the world, and international games (qualifiers and tournaments), and I think its super easy to get sucked into.

Can you explain to me how the soccer players are aware that I'm not quite paying attention to the game and then choose that opportunity to score. I think I've only seen one goal live and in real time during the entire Euros despite watching most of the games. I always seem to be pissing/getting a drink/arguing on 2+2 at the exact moment when they score.

I mean fine if soccer is your thing, but I think is pretty much sucks. First, it only takes 90 minutes, like 90 percent of which is entirely devoid of action. Second, the refs have a huge impact on the game and they seem really bad. Third, the flopping and faking is completely out of control.

These 2 things take up 95% of the posts in the NBA Finals thread but it doesn't seem to stop people watching.

just think of the 'defender passes to defender who passes to goalkeeper' phase of play as the equivalent of huddle -> 'tango alpha foxtrot albany wigwam hut HUT'

90% of basically all sports is downtime

Not with Red Zone Channel. Plus I know when there will be no action in football, allowing me to drink more beer or eat more pizza. Watching 85 mins of a soccer game and missing the only goal because you were taking a **** just sucks.

fixed

and this is different from the NFL?

See this is the typical American way of thinking that action necessarily means goals.

I'd bet that 90% of you who don't like soccer have never played it. If I were to watch a game with you I'd notice like 10 times more than you and to me those things are interesting. Good passes, tactical positioning, first touches, whatever. Euros cheer for all of that because they appreciate it. Agree on your other two points though.

[Fwiw I am an American whose primary sport was soccer growing up. ]

One call or non call in soccer can single handedly shape a result. Some room for error in NFL/NBA.

Think you're about 20 years too late to this viewpoint. Soccer is the most popular sport among American youth, reach teens- no longer care. World Cup/Euros are fun enough but no American really has a dog in the fight with clubs.

yah that's why soccer viewership is going up in the US

I played soccer for 15+ years and I have a hard time watching a full match on tv.

Fair enough but what I meant was that you played long enough to have an intelligent view of the game, which won't happen until teens. Tbh you don't even have to play though as long as it is a part of the culture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_S...vision_ratings

FYI for dem haters

in b4 "7 games to 1" "lol Mexicans"

The Champs League Final was 4.2m apparently

Oh good another soccer debate

I played soccer for 8 years. It was my primary sport growing up, with just a couple seasons of baseball sprinkled in. I played both outdoor and indoor arena leagues, basically year round. I have no interest in watching it.

The problem is more of the fact that the general American doesn't talk about soccer more than the fact people are or aren't playing it. If more people were discussing it nobody would have any issue with it IMO.

I dated a girl for a few years who played low level amateur women's soccer. That's the most soccer I've ever really watched outside of World Cup stuff. Altho I spent most of the games contemplating my quick death.

I am being a little overly harsh/trolly tho. I obviously understand why people like watching the sport. I love baseball, but I can totally see why someone would be bored out of his mind watching baseball.

IT's sort of like the NBA to me (altho I do watch a lot of college bball). I don't watch the NBA all year long, but I do watch some of the playoffs and almost always the finals and enjoy it. Same deal with soccer, except instead of watching it at the end of every year, I watch it at the end of every 4 years.