C'mon Ghana!!!! Kick that Ball...Kick that Ball!!!!!

[Coach34]

[curmudgeon]

If I understand the book of faces, we have to beat Ghana to have any chance.

So go Ghana. Death to soccer.

RUN UP THE FIELD
RUN DOWN THE FIELD
GHANA NEVER YIELD!

[DanDority]

When does this communistic event kick off?

[Dawg61]

[Intramural All-American]

Haha, you really are a miserable human being. Congrats.

This goes for you, as well, curmudgeon.

[smootness]

Good job being a douche.

BTW, a loss to Ghana is not going to kill soccer in this country. Honestly, there's not really anything that's going to slow it down at this point so you might as well just accept that there are going to be a lot of people who like it, watch it, and keep up with it.

I know that for some reason this will make your life worse, but it is what it is.

[esplanade91]

Good job being a douche.

BTW, a loss to Ghana is not going to kill soccer in this country. Honestly, there's not really anything that's going to slow it down at this point so you might as well just accept that there are going to be a lot of people who like it, watch it, and keep up with it.

I know that for some reason this will make your life worse, but it is what it is.

MLS already outdraws NBA and NHL in attendance.

I'm sure someone on here will tell me that's because of illegal immigrants though.

I read a long article yesterday on this very subject, America's sudden interest in soccer. I don't think a lot of people realize a massive part of it is due to Lamar Hunt (founder of the AFL, co-founder of the Chicago Bulls) dumping a fortune in MLS fully knowing he wouldn't make money on it. Just thought it would be good for the sport in America. And the reason the MLS even exists is because it was part of an agreement between FIFA and the US to be allowed to hold the 1994 World Cup, which to this day is the highest attended and most watched in history.

Soccer is growing in the US for the same reason it is so popular around the world. It costs $0 to play at its lowest form. It doesn't require pads, equipment, or much of anything. And here in the US every dipshit local government will contract a 17 ton of soccer fields to feed some construction company even if ony 10 kids play the sport in their area... Like Starkville. That in turn means that more and more kids will play.

[DudyDawg]

Don't understand what you're trying to accomplish by posting. If you don't like soccer, don't watch. Grow up

[Todd4State]

If you don't take that back, I'm going to write a letter to the newspaper in Lafayette and tell them how much you love Ole Miss.

[Todd4State]

MLS already outdraws NBA and NHL in attendance.

I'm sure someone on here will tell me that's because of illegal immigrants though.

That's interesting. Outdrawing the NBA really surprises me.

[curmudgeon]

Bigger stadiums and free tickets will always outdraw small arenas with hefty price tags.

The most expensive season ticket in the MLS ($400, Portland) is less than a decent ticket to two games in the NBA.

Until little boys in America grow up wanting to be midfielders and goalies instead of shortstops, point guards and quarterbacks, we are always going to suck at it.

[smootness]

That's interesting. Outdrawing the NBA really surprises me.

Yeah, part of that is because most NBA arenas don't even hold as much as MLS averages, but either way, it's still interesting and fairly impressive.

If they could get 5,000 more people in an NBA arena, they would build them bigger, so the fact that more people are watching MLS games is noteable. They also play fewer games, so I'm guessing the overall number of attendees is higher in NBA and NHL, but the MLS is still not a world-class product.

It's going to come down to money. The more fan interest increases, the more clubs will be willing to spend to attract talent. The more talent that is attracted, the more top players will be willing to come to the US. I honestly think we're probably only 10-15 years away from the MLS being seen as a fairly good league. I doubt it ever reaches the level of the top few leagues (England, Spain, Italy, Germany), but it definitely can compete with those just below that. And who knows, if soccer ever truly takes off and becomes one of the top few sports in the country, you could see an elite league at some point in the future.

[DudyDawg]

MLS already outdraws NBA and NHL in attendance.

I'm sure someone on here will tell me that's because of illegal immigrants though.

It's all the Hispanics in Seattle

[Charlie_Sheen420]

These 2 must have been pulling for the Soviet Union in the Olympics in 1980 as well....that's just sad

[smootness]

Bigger stadiums and free tickets will always outdraw small arenas with hefty price tags.

True, but the MLS is still a fledgling league, and soccer is still just in the very beginning stages of growth in this country. This is always the way things start.

No one is suggesting that soccer is more popular than basketball or that the MLS is a more successful league than the NBA. That would be absurd. But it's growing, and in some ways it's growing exponentially. Get used to it.

[curmudgeon]

I'm not pulling against the United States. I am pulling against soccer.

[esplanade91]

Yeah, part of that is because most NBA arenas don't even hold as much as MLS averages, but either way, it's still interesting and fairly impressive.

If they could get 5,000 more people in an NBA arena, they would build them bigger, so the fact that more people are watching MLS games is noteable. They also play fewer games, so I'm guessing the overall number of attendees is higher in NBA and NHL, but the MLS is still not a world-class product.

It's going to come down to money. The more fan interest increases, the more clubs will be willing to spend to attract talent. The more talent that is attracted, the more top players will be willing to come to the US. I honestly think we're probably only 10-15 years away from the MLS being seen as a fairly good league. I doubt it ever reaches the level of the top few leagues (England, Spain, Italy, Germany), but it definitely can compete with those just below that. And who knows, if soccer ever truly takes off and becomes one of the top few sports in the country, you could see an elite league at some point in the future.

Boom. Nailed it. Here in New York season tickets for the new MLS club playing in Yankee Stadium start at $500. $500! And I could see David Villa!

But the seasons are short, the product isn't what it is on TV elsewhere... But it's growing. Dempsey makes 8 figures, Bradley makes pretty close... And the stigma has largely gone away from the years of the backwards clock and all the America-isms. MLS is starting to bid and win players away from 2nd tier English teams. Ireland's league has gone to shit because of it.

This next CBA will be interesting. Chivas USA lost their team for being racist so that'll be interesting, and then they add 3 teams in key areas (NYC, Atlanta, and Miami). I expect a new minimum and a higher salary cap.

It'll never compete with European soccer (this is enough to make some people not want to watch) but it can be the forefront of the 2nd tier instead of Turkey or whoever.

ETA: NBA games are extremely cheap outside of large market games. Before I moved I could get Hornets tickets (with CP3!!!!) for around $10, and just for fun I looked up tickets this past season against the Grizzlies (after 4 starters were deemed out) and tickets were as low as $4. Knicks tickets never fall below $75, but I've caught a dozen Nets games against some marquee names and I've never paid more than $25 a ticket. And the Barclays is the smallest arena in the NBA, so none of them were bad tickets...

I tried to go to the Turkey game a couple weeks ago at Red Bull Stadium and the cheapest ticket was $135. It would take me an hour to get to Red Bull so I would never spend money to go to a regular game there, but on stubhub tickets generally run for around the same as non-Knicks tickets. So the whole free ticket thing? I don't know if that's the case. Maybe in the beginning. But I'm also not insinuating the MLS is more popular or in any way better than the NBA. It's just not that different as far as $$$$. It's the number of games that make me unable to afford NBA tickets.

[Charlie_Sheen420]

If I understand the book of faces, we have to beat Ghana to have any chance.

So go Ghana. Death to soccer.

RUN UP THE FIELD
RUN DOWN THE FIELD
GHANA NEVER YIELD!

The US is playing Ghana, and you are pulling for Ghana, therefore you are against the United States.

[curmudgeon]

I would cheer for Ole Miss if their winning would clinch us an SEC West championship.

I will cheer for Ghana if their winning would shut up the soccer crowd.

I hate soccer and Ole Miss equally.

[SignalToNoise]

Posts like this baffle me.

I bet you assholes stay up all night to get Olympic coverage of the US women's curling team but well SOCCER IS JSUT STOOPID AND BOARING LOL. Figured most of you turds would at least play the patriotic angle and root for the US tonight.