World Cup Discussion Thread

[Occhidiangela]

Well this use of a cart or stretcher has something to do with the faking of injuries. Once they put you on that stretcher they don't let you in teh field again directly.

One reason soccer has little traction in American sports fandom is the well advertised, by soccer players at the professional levels, sissy factor. This is the fraudulent over acting by players who fall down near anyone on the opposing team. I want to see acting, I will go to a film or a play. On the pitch, I want to see a soccer/football match.

The over emoting, the drama, and the out and out whinging displays put on should be an embarassment to any soccer player, particularly when a few minutes later the same player is often back in play at full speed, doing what he should be doing: trying to beat the other team.

I played a lot of soccer. A couple of my team mates had legs broken as the result of rough slides. That is a reason to writhe about on the ground, I assure you. I've been slide tackled any number of times, but I never moaned and grabbed an injury that wasn't there. I got up, dusted off my shorts, and got on with it, or I limped off the field, in a few cases, where the shot to the shins (pre shin guards) made it painful to walk/run.

All this over acting cry baby nonsense sends a hurtful negative message to potential American fans about what soccer is about, and who soccer players are, and what kind of people they are. Given how hard you have to work to be a top flight soccer player, I'd think the players would have an interest in not being so blatant in their falsehood. The integrity of the game, and all that rot.

This image problem stinks to high heaven, and it is FIFA's own fault for condoning it. Rather than whinge at Americans for not being "sophisticated enough" to appreciate soccer, how about cleaning up the fraud? American baseball is having a similar problem, with the decades of turning a blind eye to steroids, and is having to clean up its act, slowly but surely.

I love soccer, a game I grew up playing.

While its popularity is growing in the US, its image is rightfully dimmed by its less attractive elements, just as Professional Hockey's idiotic penchant for endorsing lousy fisticuffs on skates is a deterrent to attracting fans. The core game itself, in either soccer or hockey, is a wonderful test of skill, coordination, strength, endurance, and speed. Trimming the fraudulent fat makes for a better sport, and for a better product at the professional levels.

Occhi