World Cup Soccer

[rjv71]

Any of you going to watch the biggest sporting event in the world, the world cup soccer in Germany? Were, including qualifying stages, more than 150 countries battle for a title of TRUE world champion? (Unlike US sports where if one's lucky Canada competes with the US)...

In any event, I'll be rooting for the Netherlands...

anyone else??

Ron

 

[With The Grain]

....

 

[jer]

It's the beautiful game, the stamina and grace these athletes show is remarkable. The best midfielders run the equivelent of 10-12 miles in a 90 minute game, and still have to sprint, shoulder off opponents, and score! . I've been to plenty of Baseball, basketball, hockey and football games where I have heard horrible racist and stupid comments from the crowd.

Watch the games and ignore the stupid reports from the totally stupid anti- fottball US media. Ronaldinho, Lampard, Rooney, Shevchenko, Totti, Messi, Essien, Henry, Cech, Ballack etc. No better tournament wil you see than the World Cup, and here in the US every game is on TV live on ESPN or ABC.

Why would you let some stupid journalism stop you watching a great sporting event?

INGERLUND and Chelsea!

 

[roughrider]

I'm not much of a sports person but I love watching the World cup. Looking forward to seeing some great soccer.

 

[drP]

"Soccer is a game wich lasts 90 minutes and in the end the Germans win"

(quote from Gary Linneker, English soccer player)

I'm gone watch, and yes, Holland/The Netherlands has good chances to get into the semi-finals at least...

Peter

 

[water]

I cannot wait for the games to begin. Hopefully we will get to see some beautiful football and not Grecian "10-men behind the ball" tactics.

 

[guenron]

I cannot wait for the games to begin. Hopefully we will get to see some beautiful football and not Grecian "10-men behind the ball" tactics.

Hear! Hear!
Let's watch the punters have at it!

 

[AJS]

Living in the UK, everyone expects me to be football mad; but honestly when the game is forced on you during every waking minute you tend to get a little sick of it. I do not watch much television, but every Saturday and Sunday football dominates the schedules and any time that I do actually decide to watch something that seems vaguely interesting it usually gets cancelled because of football. Even when the season is over, the media is still dominated by talk of football.
During the last world cup, a man in my home town was foolsih enough to go out on a weekend wearing a Sweden shirt after they had played England, and he got stabbed for his troubles. Oxford United are the team closest to where I live, and eventhough they are a small team way down in the divisions, they have the largest percentage of fans who have been banned from travelling abroad due to their involvement with football hooliganism, so I have a better idea of what it is like to be around these mindless thugs than most.
Whilst I can appreciate the skill and the level of physical fitness it takes to play the game, it is just that, a game. There are a number of people who take it to an obsessional level, and when people are killed because of that it is too much.
As an example, my father is a Burnley FC fan. During one of their games a young boy only 17 years old was murdered because he was wearing the wrong team kit in the wrong area.
Also, this year. English fans face threats from neo nazi German supporters and Polish fans who have promised to attack them with meat cleavers. Once again that is too high a price to pay.
the vast majority of fans are dedicated supporters, and if I am honest I admire their dedication and their loyalty, on some levels I can even identify with their passion; when my beloved Minnesota Timberwolves lose (something they have always been good at) it physically hurts me, but I would never attempt to kill someone just because their sporting views don't match my
own.
Warm regards,
Alex

 

[water]

Even though I used to live in England and am familiar with how crazy the media can be, they still surprise me with their over-the-top attention to the national squad.

They have been following Rooney and his injured foot like he is the Holy One. I am surprised they are not arranging shrines that will allow people to devote prayer sessions to its recovery and reincarnation ("The foot, it will save us all"). It is almost laughable except that it becomes very scary when one sits back and really looks at it. I can certainly appreciate how the role of England manager just may be the world's most difficult job. No wonder the pay is so good.

 

[AJS]

Having reread my earlier comments I realised that they came across as rather aggressive. My rant was in no way designed to lessen the enjoyment of those who are actually looking forward to the world cup. If it is something that you enjoy then I hope this years tournament entertains you, it's just that the media frenzy the world cup creates amongst an already football obsessed nation is a bit much to deal with when you are not a fan.
Apologies,
Alex

 

[rjv71]

Alex...

Response was not too aggresive. Although living in the US, I am originally from the Netherlands. Being an FC Groningen fan, I know and have been to many intense rivallary games both at home and away that they have with certain other teams in the Netherlands. When there are sometimes over a 1000 military police in and around the stadium if certain fans of other teams visit on match day... horses, teargas, fires, running thru streets, when one can only travel with police escorts to other towns to visit a game.... I know exactly what you are talking about. I don't like it either, nor was I involved in any of it, but I just love the game. As a 'regular' spectator one hears and sees a lot of things but I can take it. And although the fans and 'so called fans' sometimes go overboard in rivalary games, a lot of games are actually just nice to go to with friens and or family. In general games are A LOT more fun to watch and attend that US sporting events. Where the wave goes thru the stadium if the home team is way behind, where a game is nerve biting exiting sometimes but 'fans' leave cause they don;t want to wait in the parking lot.....

 

[With The Grain]

...

 

[SSLStudio]

Quite shocking all those stories from the UK..yes the word Hooligans was invented there I believe.

but horrible things happen in Brasil aswell ,players get death threaths and Oh boy if they make a score in their own goal ! thats like signing your death sentence and not to talk about their mothers being kidnapped..awefull..awefull

still I hope the Netherlands goes far .. I just hope im NOT working that nightshift when they play I usually never care for soccer but only watch the mania hype when our international team Oranje plays the EK or WK .

 

[yasuo200365]

Before certain people take the moral high ground on sporting events and how peaceful and friendly they are - just take a look at how violent your society is outside the stadium.

Most people who follow football (in the UK at least) are decent and law abiding - they are not neo-nazi thugs.

I'm not a big football fan by any means, but the World Cup is the one sporting event to rival the Olympics in stature. Personally I enjoy the World Cup more than the Olympics.

I would love England to win the tournament. The last time was 1966 and after 40 years of reminding the Scots that they never have, it is wearing a bit thin. A win will give England the ammo to remind them of their footballing status for another 40 years

Regards
John

 

[IshavedMyFaceOff]

I cannot wait for the games to begin. Hopefully we will get to see some beautiful football and not Grecian "10-men behind the ball" tactics.

Well who cares...they did win whole european championship and thats the most important.

 

[water]

Well, that is typically the feeling of those who support the winner. However, for the neutral, negative football as displayed by Greece in Euro 04 is horribly boring.

 

[IshavedMyFaceOff]

Well, that is typically the feeling of those who support the winner. However, for the neutral, negative football as displayed by Greece in Euro 04 is horribly boring.

Still they won People doesent care about fun or boring football att all. The most important is who is winning.
What is boring or fun football anyway? Its just subjective and depending who´s watching it. You just sound a bit depressed becuse your country didnt win thats all. Accept it, go further. Remember: Its just a game

 

[ouch]

I'll confess that I'm not much of a soccer fan. Every time my friends try to convince me that it is a game of nuance and subtleties, something happens to convince me otherwise. Two days ago, I heard a jubilent fan from Tabago on a sports talk show who was absolutely beside himself with joy because his team had tied with Sweden by a score of-- get this-- 0-0.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't that the score before the game started. I guess I must have missed out on a whole bunch of nuance and subtlety.

Call me an ugly American, but I just don't get it.

 

[yasuo200365]

Dear Ugly American

You just don't get it!

 

[Justso]

here's another ugly American who doesn't get it nor cares to get it. Soccer to me is as boring as it gets. I rank it just a bit above golf in boring factor.

This ugly american can't wait for the NFL football season to start...Thankfully, we only have about another month and a half wait until football is back in season..

oh well, to each his own.