Well, I agree as far as the Bundesliga goes, my 1st non MLS football experience was making friends with 3 VfB Stuttgart season ticket holders while I was stationed in Stuttgart from 1999-2002. So, thank goodness for GolTV and it's AWESOME Bundesliga coverage. I find I don't really like Mediterannean football much. The Italians and Spanish are certainly fantastic football nations, but the way I see fans and players behave in international matches make me actively dislike them. What I meant by the language comment is that until the sattelite TV boom and Fox Sports World er, I mean Fox Soccer Channel... (am I showing my age?) The only football you could get on the television in English was English football.... But mainly I was commenting on the fact that someone thought it was some sort of crime for posters on an american soccer website to care about what happens in the CONCACAF region more than what was going on in La Liga.
LOL LOL I see that you don't like the conspiracy theorists of the world! lol I disagree but I understand completely what you mean! lol I feel like that sometimes as well!
i voted for the BEGINING THE SEASON OF MLS..why? you ask..well i live here in the usa.. sure i watch the EPL ..love FSC. BUT COME ON GUYS.. support your league..if you live here ..it should be the MLS and the start of a fantastic and exciting new season. this year is going to be crazy good.
i wish you luck.. you must think its a done deal that Toronto fc will roll all or most of the mls teams..?lol I AM VERY GLAD THAT YOU GUYS GOT A TEAM.. so we here in the states can enjoy the spankings you will resive ....atleast in the first season. good luck:-O
Well....I'm HOPING for a dominating team. Judging by the squad Mo has put together for us, I think we'll definitely be competitive.
The Spanish League only recently has grown in popularity? Is that staement some kind of joke? The Spanish league has ALWAYS been popular. And it has ALWAYS had the best players in the world. (Alfredo Di Stefano, Puskas, Maradona, Johan Cruyff, Gary Lineker, Romario, Ronaldo, etc.). So please review your history before making that kind of statements.
You mention what may be the main reason why the EPL is the most popular league here in the US: the language. Because the English speak the same language as we do, most of us Americans feel more comfortable following a league where the names sound more familiar and where we can understand the players without having to listen to a traslation. If, let's say, German was the official language in the US the Bundesliga would be more popular here than tne EPL. A true soccer fan looks for quality in soccer. In doesn't matter if the players speak English, Spanish, Catalan, Italian or Chinese.
Puskas - 50's, 60's Maradona - early 80's Di Stefano - 50's, 60's Cruyff - 70's Lineker - 80's Romario/Ronaldo - recently Now I didn't say that the Spanish Liga wasn't popular but that it has gained in popularity. It has gained so much popularity that it has eclipsed the Italian Calcio in terms of ratings. I didn't say it sucked. By all means no. But the reality is that Calcio had the bigger names and the bigger ratings for many many years!
Hey, don't get me wrong, I like the MLS too. I usally go to the stadium. I've always said that the MLS is OUR league and it needs our full support. What I didn't like was seeing the title hunt in Spain last in the list. For example seeing the Wembley stadium reopening get more than a hundred votes when the title hunt in Spain gets 62.
Maybe they don't find it as appealing. Nothing wrong with that. I speak spanish and I would rather see the EPL before I watch La Liga. Yeah I won't miss Barca v Madrid and the other derbies. But I'm not interested in Recreativo v Getafe.
yeah that is why they only call the Barca/Real derby "El Classico" in italy, other than the rome derby and the milan derby, the rest aren't anymore exciting than the local derbys in spain.
Don't underestimate Getafe, they beat Valencia 3-0 in a great match recently. Just as watching Recreativo is not very exciting, watching an EPL game between Wigan and Watford is more boring than reading tax law! And even a game between Chelsea and Arsenal for example might be very fast-paced but lacks the skill and the beauty in La Liga.
Gotcha. I follow now. I wonder about that Wembley posting too....that many people can't possibly think it will be open by then, can they? The England/Scotland womens match scheduled for the week prior to the FA Cup has already been cancelled...
Listen I like Getafe but while they might play a great game I'm sure that Milan v Inter/Juventus/Lazio/Roma holds more allure. And has a greater possible audience.
Of course AC Milan vs. Inter holds more allure than watching Getafe. But it also holds more allure than most EPL games. And in my opinion, no EPL game is more intensely heated than the Real Madrid Barcelona derby. Every time the two giants in Spain square off it's the Spanish Civil War recreated. It's more than just soccer. The only derby that might come close is the Celtic Rangers one, where you the the Catholic and the Protestant teams in Scotland facing each other.
I always thought the fact that the Catholic/Protestant aspect of the Glasgow derby was ridiculous. Maybe it was that way, in the past...but not now...the only religion in football is cash... Or are you going to tell me that Nakamura is Catholic and Maktar N'Diaye is a Protestant?
I'm sorry but the greatest club derby of all time is Boca v River. Now that's fire. The whole country is on pause. Nothing happens until after the game.
But there are PLENTY of guys who aren't from Scotland...or even Britain for that matter. I've always thought that using something like a soccer match to represent something as trancendent as religion in some way is just sort of debasing to the religion.
I am not going to disagree there. Big James Randi fan here. But I often wonder about folks who think religion and sports are related in some way. If you thank Jesus for the win, why don't you blame Jesus when the ball hits the woodwork?