Okay, so that’s an extremely long time however, I can only make sufficient space to title an article. So let me clarify the subject for you. So long as the scoring in soccer (football for foreigners) stays the same (2.2 total goal per match) the sport is not likely to become a major sports team (top 3 in terms of popularity) within the United States in the 21st or 22nd Century.
The tastes of people can change drastically in just 200 years across any culture or country, however they don’t change as fast when it comes down to the most popular pastimes. Baseball (first game that was played outside the US 1846) as well as football (1869), American football (1869)Â livescore as well as basketball (1891) and even hockey (1893) have been around for quite a while and aren’t going anywhere anytime in coming years. On the other hand in the early 50 to 25 years in the twenty first century the three only “major” sports that existed in the US were boxing, baseball along with horse racing. The last two are slowly dying. So, let me go back to the never-ever comment. After all, I wanted to catch your attention.
It is true that soccer is the most viewed sport around the globe and 175 countries consider “football” to be their preferred sport of choice. While this isn’t completely unimportant to us (after all, it is possible to argue that soccer is a highly commercially viable sport) soccer’s massive global popularity is not a factor in it’s popularity within the US. It could be a problem in the event that a large number of people migrate into America from countries where soccer is extremely popular. US in countries that have soccer extremely well-known. With the current status in immigration law, for the purposes of this article I’m going to think that this will not occur in the near future.
If you’re not born today (in the case that you do have remarkable reading skills for a baby of one day) If you’re reading this, then you already know that soccer isn’t very popular in the US since it doesn’t have enough scoring, action , and/or contact to suit the majority of Americans like. For Americans who enjoy football, the NFL (arguably the most popular sport and league in the US) soccer is the game of chess, which usually can result in a draw. Americans enjoy sports that are action-packed with the possibility of an eventual return. We don’t want to be watching a game where an opponent is up by to 2-0 within the first 15 minutes is like an unsurmountable advantage! Baseball isn’t a sport with many action scenes or contact, but it does have enough scoring to keep its fans satisfied. In addition, comebacks are often feasible in a baseball game that keeps the interest of fans. Basketball is a great sport for scoring, as well as lots of contact and action. Basketball is a great sport for score and activity, but very little contact. Hockey is full of scores and actions, however it has much more interaction than it needs to. Soccer is apathetic, with not much scoring, and a lot of contact. This is not a great combo for Americans.
Be aware that it doesn’t matter if you enjoy soccer in the way it is. It is only a matter of whether the average American sports fan is a fan or not, no whatever the reason. It is possible that you will appreciate the soccer game’s strategy but I’ll respond with why should I be watching the boring “strategy” sport when I have the option of watching a game that has scores and action, as well as plenty in strategy (i.e., American Football)?
Sorry soccer fans you face been fighting for a long time for acceptance within the US. So long as soccer is highly popular across the globe (which is to be very probable), FIFA will make no major rules changes. Without major changes to the rules, there won’t be a significant growth in scoring which, of course, would hinder soccer’s growth within the US. Except, of course, Major League Soccer wants to follow different rules from FIFA which is highly unlikely.
The soccer organizations and their supporters are very similar to MLB and its supporters with respect to tradition as well as their refusal to changing. Tradition has a place in all aspects of our society and sports, but there’s always a balance between the sacredness of traditions and the positive impact that a change can bring. Soccer must make adjustments to increase scoring opportunities if it truly would like to become a part of the US.
I’m less resistant towards change than most baseball or soccer players I’ll offer some suggestions for improving soccer. The first is to eliminate the rule that restricts substitutions to three per game. There is there is no reason why we shouldn’t permit unlimited substitutions just as you do in American basketball and football (my two most favorite sports to enjoy watching). Fresh bodies mean quicker, more efficient play as well as more excitement. This will likely boost the scoring a bit however, it’s only a tiny amount however, as the defensive players will also be more fresh. The second thing is to have the official time available to everyone. Presently only the referee, who is able to include “injury time” to the official time is the only person who can tell how much time remains. This is definitely absurd. It takes some tension away from the players in a game that is close and can also hinder the ability of players to plan their strategy towards the time of the game’s conclusion.
Thirdly, allow players to play with their hands. Okay, I’m kidding. I’m just preparing you in my 3rd suggestion. Are you are ready? Let’s eliminate the rule of offside. In the beginning (1856/1863) the offside rule didn’t let the attacker play with the ball “unless there are more than three of the other side before him.” In the 1870’s after numerous discussions between clubs the rule was modified to three defenders. In 1925 it was changed to two defenses and a rapid increase in scoring occurred (from 4,700 goal to the number of 6373, which was an increase of 36 percent.) Hmm. Of course, you’d need to limit offsides to say, two players who are not offside, otherwise the team could be several players the direction of the goalkeeper.
There are soccer purists who would hate this idea, as they believe it would ruin the fun. Their arguments are inconvenient (especially when I suggest that I would restrict the number of players to two, even for corner or direct kicks). There will be more excitement with more action, faster breaks, and of course the scoring. In high school, I was a soccer player. I tried to follow games during the three previous World Cups. The Brazilian males were dull. Certain games were a bit painful and I am a fan of all sports.