Pug wrote:
Honestly, WTF? Why this again?
Let the Brits bitch.
Unfortunately we lack the passion the Brits have for Soccer, etc., and cannot grasp why it's offensive to not like the sport.
Our understanding of Soccer is limited to experience - 1) I would guess that 75% of all US kids play organized Soccer but 2) quit before 7th grade because 3) soccer when compared to other popular sports is long and 5) lacks constant scoring and consequently 7) Americans lose interest and then 8) find something else to do so 9) no one plays Soccer or understands the sport here.
I'm talking about attention span here - US tends to have a shorter passion cycle in my opinion. This applies to sport variations outside of Soccer. Wrestling is different in the States. Hockey rinks are smaller to increase scoring. International basketball courts/rules are different than in the States. Golf courses have different design traits down to the length of the course.
The attention span thing has also affected Baseball's rules were slightly adjusted to speed the game along while certain rules and ballparks built to increase scoring. It also impacted basketball - college games have different rules than the NBA - to increase scoring in the pros.
It's a culture difference. Appreciate it.
I would love the US to have year-round passion about one sport like other countries. US only has this passion for a finite time - usually influenced by whether we think we have a chance or for certain international competitions. There's just a lot of different sports to focus on here, so there's not usually a dominant sport - its limited to a few diehard fans when compared to Soccer overseas.
A final note - the most popular spectator sport in the US is NASCAR racing. I'm not a fan, but I can see why people love it.
Wow, finally someone who has put some thought into their reply! Well done Pug. The rest of us are annoyed because the point of this thread was to put down British CULTURAL sports...but make it out like it was a national export not just a sport like billy-kart racing. We, In Australia have, for instance, Gumboot throwing, car-bonnet racing...crap like that. Fun to watch and particpiate in but not particularly popular or marketable.
By the way NASCAR racing. I never got it really (this isnt being derogatory...just a thought......). I like to watch car races where the cars do more than go round and round in an oblong shape....a few right hand bends perhaps?