Hello everyone, new here. Been a fan for a few years now and have come across some problems. I guess my local team would be ny redbulls. Being from the US I find the entire MLS pretty much boring, well when you compare it to quite a few other leagues. I've tried, I've watched many matches from many teams, and always find myself to get bored. So I've turned to other leagues. For about the last 1-2 years or so I've become a barca fan, I mean if your a barca fan I don't think I even have to explain why. Not really the league, however. I mean I'll watch any La Liga game over any MLS game anytime. Going for any league though and I'd have to pick Brazil Serie A. Only thing is I don't have a favorite club from the league. Well I have 3. Perhaps not locking into a specific club is because I'm not from there, but there are other factors too. None of these are my own nationality either. So is anyone out there in the same boat as me? One thing I've always wondered is how (lets say Brazilians) feel about others supporting their league or their clubs. I also enjoy watching the Brazil national team play as well. What are others stories on this. Anyone support a country or club other than there own?
welcome dude. Personally i was born in NYC but my family is Spanish. I've never liked La Liga or any of the teams in it. My dad and grandparents are Mallorca fans since thats where they're from. I never liked the Spanish national team either. I've always been a fan of Juventus and the italian serie A. I'm also a huge fan of the Bundesliga but i follow no teams, just the league because it's very entertaining. I also watch the Argentina Primera from time to time
Bombora,do you live in NYC? If so,please tell me you haven't been over to Harrison to catch a Red Bulls game. If you have and,didn't enjoy it. All I can say is that I think you're a poseur. Did you not watch sunday night's Red Bulls vs DC United game? That game had beautiful goals and an awesome atmosphere that would rival any La Liga match.
I see what you mean, my family doesn't follow the sport. My older grandparents did but even then I was smaller and I think they just followed the Italian national team at world cup time. If it was by roots I'd follow Palermo. I'm not sure if any of them did, and besides those pink jerseys are hidious I don't mind italian serie a but its not something I follow. I guess I am just curious really to what people follow and like. Kind of like you just said I just find the brazilian league the most entertaining to me, and when there is Brazil vs USA or VS Italy I support Brazil.
Yeah I currently live in NYC. I've also been to a few Red Bulls games. Like I said they are my local team and I will support them when/if I go or watch a game. But I'm a poseur because I like other teams and think that there are clubs and leagues that are much better than MLS and/or Red Bulls? Then thats fine with me. For myself, watching clubs from Brazil, Italy, Spain and England got me really into the game, not so much watching MLS. So I can care less about what you think. But thanks for your input anyway.
I have been a soccer fan since I was born. I was raised likeing Portugal and its teams. I left Portugal and moved to the USA when I was 10. Got a new team Cosmos, but still liked my other teams, you know Benfica, & Sporting. Today I still root for the Portuguese teams when they are playing international competitions, but that's about it. I don't watch their leagues because they are boring, I don't have a connection. MLS to me is a connection, I don't care if the play is a step lower than the european teams, I can go to a game. I don't understand people, they will root for a team 6,000 miles away but not a local team. I'm going to spend my money locally to support the league so they can go out and make the league better.
I agree with Ruict...MLS is getting better and we have a chance here to make our own history and our own traditions. I don't know about the other teams, but RSL actually listens to suggestions that supporters make. Everyone has their own favorite European teams and all, but my team actually wants my support and my money. Teams across the pond couldn't care less about you, your opinion or your money. Go to a game with an open mind and participate with the rest of the crowd and you're bound to become a fan for life. American Eurosnobs are only missing their chance to become part of history...
No offense, but if your focus is just on quality of the game, you are missing out one of the key things about being a fan of soccer: actually being a fan. I live in Mobile,Alabama and the closest team to me is Houston Dynamo some eight hours away. I fell in love with soccer between Euro 2008 and WC 2010. I LOVE the game. The play,the styles,the atmosphere,the fandom...everything. I admire quality and love watching any soccer I can get from my local college's NAIA team to the EPL and International Club Play. One thing I don't understand and experienced was attempting to be a "true" fan of a team. I like certain teams in the various leagues around the world,but I can never be a real fan of them. I have no connection. I am still looking for my team, my connection. It will probably take a move after college or a lucky expansion,but it will come. Just from my experience though, don't choose a team and expect the real experience. I have ha many infatuations that died as quickly as they started. On the national team side though, if you are American and can't support the USMNT because it's not good, I'm not sure what do say man. It's kind of messed up.
You're saying you'd rather root for another country when they're playing your own? If so, I don't think you understand what being a fan of football is all about. Takes a special kind of snob to do that.
I don't think there is anything wrong with enjoying certain clubs for their technical abilities or styles of play, but I do agree that you never really get the same level of connection you do when there is a tangible real life reason you started following somone--whether that's your local club, a year abroad getting ingrained into the culture of a specific club, etc. I don't get not cheering for your national team over any other NT though. It's a shared experience of going to a game and sitting w/ supporters or going to a bar and watching them with other followers that makes that fun. That's not to say that I don't support other NTs in games that don't involve the USA though. Of the 9 "elites" that regularly make quarterfinals, I kind of love to loathe Italy, Portugal, and Argentina. Brazil I'm indifferent about. England, Germany, France, Spain, and Holland I'm good w/. The first 4 are due to having either lived in these countries or having really close friendships to people from these countries and having seen them play in person in these countries. Holland more because I'd love to see them win a WC someday (as long as they don't have to beat the US on the way to doing so).
A person can root for any team he wants, and still understand what being a fan of football is all about. The usmnt is like the 4th most popular NT in the usa. The fans of other NTs definitely know what being a fan of football is all about.
Sorry, but no. Glory hunters do not get it, not when they root against their home nation for a NT that they've never personally visited or have no connection to via heritage. Also, your opinion on NT popularity is from 2006. It's 2012, the USNT is now consistently drawing >30k for qualifiers and friendlies, and has rapidly increasing TV ratings even against smaller nations these days. Dos a cero.
They do get it. And I don't think the usmnt has surpassed the #4 spot, yet. Just look at the crowd in their friendlies. 5-0 4-2
You're celebrating a win against our c-team? You're more desperate than I thought. I have looked at the crowd in the friendlies. The US/Brazil match in DC was 65/35 US fans. I was there. The match against Scotland was 80/20 US fans. If TV ratings is the metric it isn't even close. It's US/Mex then others. Hondo brings a ton of away fans, but really they're not in the conversation in terms of popularity. Same with the Argies. I was at US/Argentina back in 07 at GS, 65/35 US split again.
That's cause they played with NT that actually play better than the US, did you see all those Americans with the Brazil shirt and Argentina. LOL 2002 was 10 years ago feelsbatman.jpg
It was B vs B. And if you guys did the same thing, 5-0 on the road in GC Final, yall would be spazzing over it way more than we celebrated it. Just look at how yall act for friendlies and losses.
I am not going to call anyone out for being not a real fan, or anything like that, but I would have to agree that basing your support on how good the team is will not lead to the emotional investment you will desire as a real fan. I moved to Dallas 12 years ago from Scotland and never even gave the MLS a second thought until 3 years ago. long story short, I committed to trying FC Dallas for a few months to see what happened. I made new friends, got involved in a supporters group, got active on the teams forums, tailgated and met fans, and now have an emotional connection to FC Dallas. Bottom of the league, havent won in, what, 11 games, and I still cant wait for the next match. I travelled around Europe following Rangers in the champions league, and me getting involved here was born from missing that connection with local fans. I would encourage ANYONE to really give their local team a chance, meet fellow fans, roll up your sleeves, get involved, and give it a shot. Its so much more than about the quality of the match (which, is actually not bad at all in the MLS).
Well said. My neighbor is a Bayer Munich fan and a German NT fan and he's Asian, Go figure. I asked him if he ever went to a MLS game he said NO with a this look in his face like the MLS suck. I kept my cool and told him the league was actually very good and not 6,000 miles away. I invited him to a RB game but he said he was busy. Kept my cool. So I told him that I also have my favorite European teams like Real Madrid, Benfica, and Chelsea but still felt empty because they were so far away. MLS throughout the years has improved drastically with new stadium and well known players. Well, the only thing I can say is, he doesn't know what he is missing.
I think the way to get excited about a game is by caring who wins. Hard to put how to care into words, however.
Eso. During my sojourn in Korea I sat with the Suwon Bluewings supporters and sort of borrowed from their passion. It was just K-League, but it was much more fun than watching one of thsoe dreary matches in Mallorca on TV.
I can't fault someone for liking teams like Barca - I have friends who only cheer for the best, like Brazil - but I do think you are missing out on part of being a hard core fan by just cheering for the best. When I first became a soccer fan - I loved watching Brazil play - I was a huge fan of some of their stars - but honestly there is nothing like cheering for your underdog team beating a team like heavily favored Portugal in the World Cup - I was there for that game and I would never have experienced anything like that if I had stayed a Brazil fan. It's just not the same. MLS isn't the best league in the world - often the quality, when compared to Spain - is much, much worse. But cheering for a local team is about something more. I can still appreciate Champion's League soccer and still root for my home team. It doesn't have to be either/or. I like seeing great soccer by teams like Barca, but I also love following a local team - and seeing local talent develop, players from my team play for the national team, etc. Everyone is different, everyone has different preferences, I just am not sure you can be that big of a hardcore fan if you are only picking the best of the best for that reason alone, but that's just me.