can it ever be a reality in england?

what about the part that said fans were spreading there own shit all over the walls? lol

 

That line reminded me of this meme:

 

How screwed up do you have to be to do something like that? You've made some really screwed up choices in life if you think that's a good idea.

 

Short answer is most thugs and ruffians(I love that word) are already devoted to another league like the NFL or NBA.

Long answer is MLS and soccer in general tend to draw a more tame crowd. Soccer is associated by lots in the US/Canada as a kids sport, a sport for soft soccer moms. Their loss, our gain. You have people here who grew up playing soccer, follow soccer around the world, and love the sport following this league. Keep in mind, MLS is all but ignored on TV here! From local news to national "sports media", it is either treated as nonexistent or treated with outright hostility. The thugs are out there - but they are directing their hatred towards the sport itself.

 

you couldnt be more wrong on this sir, thugs or ruffians as you call them, dont attend these games in the nfl and nba, they cannot afford it, especially nba. the occasional fan fights do happen at nfl games more then anything else, but it's scattered and random and it's not thugs, its normal people who are drunk off there arse.
and I dont even understand your comment about thugs being out there and directing hate toward soccer, what are you talking about? what evidence do you have that mls is being supported by soccer moms and thugs are hating the mls? you sound pretty ignorant.

 

"Thugs and ruffians" may not be able to afford NFL and NBA games, but that element tends to be more attracted to those two leagues, rather than MLB, MLS or the NHL, for whatever reason.

That being said, there has never really been an organized movement of violent supporters in the US. It's just individuals (usually drunk) engaging in isolated acts of violence.

 

the second part of your comment is absolutely true and sounds like a comment from a fan who has attended many sports events, still dont understand this "thug" image that people love to throw toward the nba/nfl. my guess is that it's a racial/ethnic thing. my racist cousin tells me he stopped watching the nba in the '80's because it became "too black". is that where your coming from?

 

You've obviously never been to a Dodgers game wearing Giants gear, or vice versa. Here's an example from last year. The guy suffered brain damage from the beating.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/...injured-after-post-Dodgers-game-attack-040111

 

Drive around the bad parts of American cities (actually, don't) and the guys standing on the corner slinging drugs tend to be wearing NFL or NBA merchandise, rather than MLB or NHL stuff. That being said, the percentage of the fanbase of the NFL or NBA made up of the drug dealer and gang member demographic is pretty low, in the grand scheme of things. Those leagues have massive fanbases, the vast majority of whom are just regular citizens.

With very few exceptions, fans of the visiting team are in no danger at American sporting events. I've sat in Fenway Park with a group of Yankees fans, and the worst that happened was some light jeering. There are only a handful of situations in the US/Canada where I'd be worried if I was wearing visiting team colors.

I got to talking to a guy from El Salvador at a DC United game a while back. I asked him how he liked going to soccer games in the US versus back home. He told me he much preferred it here because he could bring his wife and kids to the game and not worry about their safety.

 

except this ignorant comment you just made has nothing to do with the topic on hand which is why violent behavior is more common in Euro then it is in the States in fact it kind of contradicts it.

 

In Europe, the violent asshats tend to be soccer fans (that's because most peopple in Europe tend to be soccer fans). In the US, the "thugs and ruffians" tend to be drawn to the NHL and NBA. However, as noted upthread, many of them can't afford tickets and there has never been an organized violent fan movement here. Additionally, given the distances between many of our cities, it's tough for organized groups of away fans to travel to games out of town. Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders fans tend not to get along, but the two fanbases are about 1300 miles apart. Some of the more violent rivalries in Europe are between teams that are a few subway stops away from each other.

All of this creates two very different fan cultures.

 

now your saying these "thugs" are drawn to the NHL and NBA? I thought it was the NFL and NBA, and you come to this conclusion because when you drive around you see "thugs" wearing nba and nfl hats?
you have some amazing analysis here buddy

 

^FIGHT!!!

 

NHL was a typo. But, yeah, the thug and thug wannabe demographic tends to be drawn to the NFL and NBA. Don't know why you're so fixated on this point, though.

 

because it's one of those ignorant sounding comments that you didnt need to make, because the other half of your post made sense. my problem is, I've heard this comment, my son, who is black, and wears nba/nfl hats daily, has been called a thug even though he is the furthest thing from it. he dosnt hang out on street corners, but average white person who see's him wearing an nba hat comes to the conclusion that the NBA is a "thug" sport.

 

You know the old formula that goes that though all poodles are dogs, not all dogs are poodles, right?

The NBA and NFL have tens of millions of fans, very few of whom deal drugs for a living. But, of those who deal drugs for a living, the NBA and NFL tend to be the preferred leagues.

 

You have anyway of knowing this or is this just your belief?

 

exactly, if you have brown skin, you've heard this before

 

I feel a safe thing to say is that the portrayal of drug dealers tends to include NFL/NBA fandom much more than MLB/NHL fandom and as such, those leagues get tarnished with the reputation of being the ones with greater numbers of thug fans.

It may not be accurate, but I think that's why they have those reputations.

 

Well, thank you for not sounding like a condescending arse, Sounders fan who joined this site last year.

I never said other leagues were outright riots in the stands - of COURSE its isolated incidents. What I'm saying is thugs in the US already have devotions to one of the major leagues. Soccer is a niche market in the US and tends to at least draw a more "cultured" crowd. thats not to say there atent idiots, like the Galaxy fans that got arrested in SJ yeaterday. NFL tickets greatly cost more than NBA tickets, so whatever point you were making is bogus. Do you watch ESPN? Do you listen to sports talk radio? Soccer is treated as if it doesn't exist or is outright hated on. You obviously know nothing of what you're talking about but felt the need to critique my post? Get off.

 

I just re-read your original post, it dosnt make sense, you have no idea what "thugs" do in there free time or what sports league they care most about. and as far as you being angry because I'm a sounders fan, or new to the site, all that is completely irrelevant. and no, I wont "get off" as you put it, how about not being so emotional.

 

I'm not angry that you're a Sounders fan nor new to the site, it just sets up my counter to your attack on my intelligence. Here's an "Internet 101" tip: don't flame someone's post and say "you seem pretty ignorant" and expect to be returned with respect or have people not get "emotional." Frankly, from what you've posted, YOU are the one who appears to be "pretty ignorant" - you had no clue about ticket pricing across sports leagues, didnt know about the fights and violence which have occurred in recent years in the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, you have no clue what I'm talking about regarding how soccer and MLS are covered in the media, don't understand the context of "thug", don't see how MLS draws different types of fans in general. Don't start spouting your opinions as if they're fact when you don't understand what someone is saying because you just may get "pwned" in Internet speak.

 

1906 Ultras even if acbab