Do American's care about Soccer/Football/Futbol?

Question

I mean, I barely know anybody who plays soccer. When I was in High school, the only people who cared were the soccer players themselves! Who were rejects in other sports. haha

But seriously, I know other people around the world are very serious, but Americans?

Answer 1

Football YES,

soccer - not once your kids are too old for it. It's soccer, I mean - who cares

Answer 2

With every World Cup and every season of MLS, more and more Americans care. Just because they may not follow MLS doesn't mean they don't like it at all. There are people here from practically every country in the world -- soccer loving countries and it carries over even when they move here. Btw, if you think soccer players are wimps, try running 5-7 miles every 3 days for 9 months. Watch Ronaldinho make a ball dance in the air. Anyone who doesn't think soccer players are great athletes is blind.

It's not accurate to say Americans don't care. It used to be true. It's not true anymore. Follow the advertising trail. They are throwing more money at soccer. They don't do that unless they have some guarantee of an audience.

Answer 3

YES! I started following the beautiful game after WC 2002 as the Americans' great run caught my attention. I've feverishly followed the game all over the world and particularly in Europe ever since.

I think the reason it's not big in America is because all of the big names, big money, and best players are in Europe. You have to be very motivated to follow the game, not just a casual fan. I mean, anyone can flip on the TV and watch basketball, baseball, hockey, tennis, golf, football etc. It's readily available. The only option for soccer is maybe one MLS game per week, where the standard of play is not very high, or maybe a dozen Champion's League matches per year. I think if Fox Soccer Channel was more of a standard cable channel, soccer would grow much quicker as it would allow the casual fan to follow a bit.

The main things soccer in America have going against it are coverage/availability and the MLS. The American style setup of the league just isn't as exciting as the points system everywhere else, where EVERY game matters. It's that excitement that makes it so enthralling.

Answer 4

Hell yes I care. I'm American and I watched 45 of the of the 64 games. I played basketball, throughout my youth and high school, but I'm sorry, NBA cannot match the drama and passion of the World Cup. The NBA cannot match the type of teamwork necessary to win a World Cup. Case in point: the Heat just won an NBA championship by doing this: 1) passing it to D-Wade, 2) passing it to D-Wade, and oh yeah...3) passing it to D-Wade. BOOOOOrrrrriiiiiiiiinnnnng.

What I don't understand is, if someone's not into it, fine. But why do some Americans have to bash the beautiful game just because they don't like it?

The great thing about America is we have an abundance of sports to watch. We have b-ball, baseball, football, hockey, football(soccer), etc. It's not like that everywhere else. Lets enjoy it.

Lastly, if you are an athlete, give soccer a chance. It requires the same amount of athleticism as basketball but with more teamwork and artistry. And for ballhogs, you can do that too.

Answer 5

I'd blame the MLS for giving the impression that soccer is boring and useless. I tried watching an MLS game and I wanted to severely hurt myself because it was almost too painful to watch. Not good at all. I think if Americans started watching other leagues like Italians, Spanish or English then they might have a greater appreciation for the game. Then again maybe soccer will never appeal to the majority of your country. Luckily for the non american soccer fans, it will always be a great sport even without the interest of the american public.

Answer 6

I'm american. I've been keeping up with the world cup since the early 80s. But, yes, I think the majority are not into football/soccer/futbol.

I did play when I was young, but they just didn't have the teams available. I played from 9 until 10. sad but true, but my kid plays and there are a ton of kids in clubs, etc. Just going to take time to catch on....

Answer 7

Not many seem to care, but it is growing. In my little town of 16,000 there are several new soccer fields being built for league play, and they had to install more bleachers at the high school to get all the crowds in - and this is in southern Indiana!

There were no soccer fields in the area when I was in high school either. It wasn't a recognized sport here.

Yeah, it's growing in popularity.

Answer 8

I love soccer, i think it's very exciting especially when it's a live or die kind of situation. I think it also depends on who you watch play the game, I don't find the MLS very exciting. Did you watch the World Cup Final? Those penalty kicks were so nerve wracking. The rest of the world loves soccer, I can't figure out why America hates it.

Answer 9

I'd have to say that most of my friends don't support football on an international or even national basis; but most of them play it really well. I think football has come a long way in our youth of today ( me included ). There are a lot of clubs and teams for kids. But as americans, we need to be more supportive of it; I mean EVERY other country but ours it's the national sport..that's deffinately a problem. I think USA would do better as a team if they had the support of other countries.

Answer 10

I can't really call myself a soccer fan, but I am definately a world cup fan. The thing is, I don't really have a team to root for other than USA, who only plays every 4 years, aside from qualifying rounds.

Answer 11

I am American and I love soccer! I watched every world cup game and, when I lived in PA, my family had season tickets to the local MLS team at the time...Harrisburg Heat. As far as I am concerned, soccer is the only sport worth my time. I love it!