SI Article About Unruly Foreign Sports Fans

[eric515]

Wild In The Seats (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/inside_game/steve_rushin/news/2003/01/21/air_and_space/)

I'm not going to say anything, just something I caught in the latest addition of SI.

A couple of sidenotes...later on in the Mag they have their little page of briefs (you know "died" "retired", etc.) and one of them was something to the effect of "Exploded": On to the British Soccer scene US National Team star Brian McBride with 3 goals in his first 2 games. They even included a 2 inch high pic of the McMan.

The other note...since the article references Millwall, my favorite tidbit about them lies on footballgroundguide.co.uk... The author includes places to drink, for visiting supporters, around each ground. In Millwall's "Where to Drink" section, all it says is "Do Not Drink Around the Ground, they sell beer inside." :P

[QPR Kevin H]

Pretty good article. Especially from SI.

I will say that I've been to Celtic Park, The New Den and The Vet. And the Vet is by far, the most dangerous of the 3. What they can offer in the first two is adequate security for away fans inside the stadium. You can even wear colors. No such luck at the Vet. Thats the one thing he failed to mention - segregation.

[Northside Rovers]

"The point is, Veterans Stadium may have been the wackiest venue in American football, and the Black Hole its most intimidating place to visit, but they are quaint -- and their denizens tame -- by international standards. This is, of course, a compliment. Even if that Raiders fan dressed as Darth Vader is unlikely to consider it one."

Hey - we may riot over here in the US, but we're just not as good at it.

Yet.

[PZ]

My one and only visit to the dump they call a stadium in Oakland was when Dallas was in Town the first year they were back in Oakland ('95???)

Honestly, I saw more fights in and around the stadium that day than all the top level matches I've been to in England (about 10 years worth) combined.

But that doesn't make for good media so I'll shut up.

[Chicago1871]

Easily the best paragraph in the article:

"Last week the condemned Vet was described on the front page of The New York Times as "the worst, and wackiest, stadium in pro football." Less prominently displayed was a story in the Daily Record of Scotland noting that the mascot of the St. Mirren's soccer team -- a man in a paisley panda suit -- was threatened with arrest for antagonizing rival fans from Queen of the South by simulating, in front of them, the violation of an inflatable sheep. British soccer fans may adore Man U action, but they will not tolerate, under any circumstances, man/ewe action."

[Jeremy Goodwin]

Methinks the sheep got off easily compared to what the Afusionados did to their Lizard down in Ft. Lauderdale.

[falcon6]

Did anyone happen to catch Frank Deford's proverbial flick a booger at soccer in the latest SI. It was an article talking about mismanagement at the US Olympic committee. The head of the committee stated how well the US did at the olympics while defending his record. Deford goes on to write " We're the USA, worlds only superpower, third most populous, richer, stronger. Good grief, to the chagrin of the rest of the denizens of god's green earth, we even fell into the quarterfinals of the world cup when we don't give a fig about soccer."

[goyoureddevils]

I have to agree with Falcon, yellow card or no. This guy likes to bash the sport because he thinks that's the popular view.

As for riotous USA soccer fans, you needed to be at the games vs Costa Rica and Mexico in Columbus.
In the Coasta Rica game I saw the linesmen and CR's goalie get pelted with beer bottles all game long, including a perfect crack in the noggin from about thirty rows up when the linesman on our side called Josh Wolf offside on a goal. During the Mexico game, pissed off, cold Mexi fans started to throw stuff on the field when Arellano elbowed Sanneh at the end of the game.......... the American fans responded immediately by pelting the the Mexi fans with bottles, cups, trash..... I even saw a guy throw his hot dog point blank at one of those jackasses. The mexis were aoutnumbered that day about 10-1 in the stadium, so they settled back down right away under the assault, they looked very very surprised!
It was one of the proudest days in my life.

[GreatGonzo]

Originally posted by goyoureddevils
I have to agree with Falcon, yellow card or no. This guy likes to bash the sport because he thinks that's the popular view.

As for riotous USA soccer fans, you needed to be at the games vs Costa Rica and Mexico in Columbus.
In the Coasta Rica game I saw the linesmen and CR's goalie get pelted with beer bottles all game long, including a perfect crack in the noggin from about thirty rows up when the linesman on our side called Josh Wolf offside on a goal. During the Mexico game, pissed off, cold Mexi fans started to throw stuff on the field when Arellano elbowed Sanneh at the end of the game.......... the American fans responded immediately by pelting the the Mexi fans with bottles, cups, trash..... I even saw a guy throw his hot dog point blank at one of those jackasses. The mexis were aoutnumbered that day about 10-1 in the stadium, so they settled back down right away under the assault, they looked very very surprised!
It was one of the proudest days in my life.

Whereas at the US-Mexico game in Denver, the ratio was probably 9 or 10-1 Mexico fans to US fans. In my section, there were maybe six or seven US fans and a good sixty or seventy Mexico fans around us, chanting and singing all throughout the game. Then Mathis scored. And us few US fans in the section started cheering and highfiving each other as the rest of the section went dead quiet and just glared at us...

Ah, happy memories.
Anyway, since the only professional sports games I go to are MLS games, I really can't say much about this article except that, well, he does have a point. Although I'm shocked that he didn't bring up the Cleveland Browns debacle that happened last year.

[monster]

Originally posted by goyoureddevils
I have to agree with Falcon, yellow card or no. This guy likes to bash the sport because he thinks that's the popular view.

Yeah, gotta stop that damn freedom of thought and speech thing.

Who gives a rat's ass about Deford. He's been trotting out the same tired old schtick for years and, in case you haven't noticed, hasn't had anny affect on soccer in the country.

he does it for one reason and one reason only - you. If people stopped listening and stopped sending him e-mails and stopped railing aboout him, he'd go away. He just craves the attention because he can't stand the fact that he has been an elitist all his life pretending to be a populist. And with times changing and furriners not giving a damn about his Gilman education, he has to have someone to talk to.

So he picks on people so they will speak with him. Let him fade away. It's the right thing to do.

[MikeLastort2]

I think Falcon6 has an unhealthy obsession with Deford. I mean, it's obvious he doesn't like the guy, but he reads his articles anyway.

Patient: Doctor, it hurts when I do this.
Doctor: Don't do that.

Oddly enough, the snippet he provides from Deford

We're the USA, worlds only superpower, third most populous, richer, stronger. Good grief, to the chagrin of the rest of the denizens of god's green earth, we even fell into the quarterfinals of the world cup when we don't give a fig about soccer.

does nothing at all to bash soccer.

[CrewDust]

Originally posted by QPR Kevin H
Pretty good article. Especially from SI.

I will say that I've been to Celtic Park, The New Den and The Vet. And the Vet is by far, the most dangerous of the 3. What they can offer in the first two is adequate security for away fans inside the stadium. You can even wear colors. No such luck at the Vet. Thats the one thing he failed to mention - segregation.

There are some colors I would not wear walking down Cold Blow Lane.