Sitting in a recent staff meeting, a fellow writer said, “The only sport that matters is over,” alluding to American football. The same writer recently wrote an article about surviving the American football offseason. I contend that rather than eliminating football from your vocabulary, you should replace American football with another form of football — the one the rest of the world chooses.
I am not telling you to exchange American football, baseball, basketball or whatever you follow with soccer. I am simply giving you 10 reasons why soccer should become a regular part of your daily life.
10. Bob played. Even if you don’t like Reggae music, most of you will acknowledge the impact Bob Marley had on the world. Many youth in the world smoke illegal substances because Bob did, so why can’t they like soccer because Bob did?
9. Starting Feb. 19, the Champions League will resume where it left off last fall. Sixteen teams have made it to the “knockout” stage in hopes of being crowned the Champions of Europe. For those who don’t understand, pretend Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, the United States, Columbia, Uruguay and Canada had equally talented professional basketball leagues. Take the four best teams from each league, and have them play each other in a separate tournament. Now you understand the Champions League.
8. This summer, while baseball is dreary, take time to check out the UEFA EURO 2008 tournament. All the European countries have played in group stages last fall, and the top two from each group advanced to the EURO 2008 finals. Look for Germany, Italy, France and Spain to contend for the cup. Sorry, England, but you have to win games to play in this tournament.
7. There are no human growth hormones or balls marked with asterisks. Can you imagine David Beckham on steroids? That would not be a pretty sight.
6. No referees fixing games. Note: This could be argued, but no evidence has surfaced.
5. Players do not engage in or support illegal dog fighting, and coaches don’t illegally film other coaches’ signals. This is why ESPN doesn’t like soccer. Without controversies, it has no shows. Heaven forbid it actually showed highlights instead of court trials and senate reports.
4. Have you ever wanted to see the Salt Lake Bees play the Boston Red Sox? Or the Provo Angels play the Salt Lake Bees? I have. This type of game happens every year in soccer. The United States has a tournament called the U.S. Open Cup. More than 100 semi-pro and professional teams play in a tournament spanning eight months to find the best soccer team in the country, no matter in what league they play.
3. No TV timeouts. The only commercials you see are on the side of the field and during the 15-minute halftime. A game that starts at 7 p,m, and ends before 9 p.m. with tons of action in between is a great game to me.
2. The players play with passion because they enjoy playing the sport rather than playing for money. Most of the players in Major League Soccer make less than you and I will this year. They don’t have huge diamond earrings, big houses or fancy cars. Former D.C. United goalkeeper Troy Perkins worked in a sporting goods store while he was the backup goalkeeper to survive. Imagine Paul Millsap helping you find new Nikes next time you go into Dick’s Sporting Goods at The Gateway. Besides Beckham, Blanco, Donovan and a few others, most MLS players make between $30,000 and $45,000 a year.
1. The No. 1 reason you should like soccer is because your country needs you to like it. If you are not an American, you probably already like soccer, so thanks for reading. For the American readers, when was the last time the United States was not in the Top 10 of other major international sports? Never. But as of December 2007, the United States is ranked 20th in the world. In a country where dominance in sports is required, we have failed to make the grade in soccer. Our country’s soccer team has come a long way, but why stop now?