We differ somewhat then. Like you, I'm okay with booing, bad language, heckling an opponent, and unlike some US fans, I'm okay with the Zika chant as well; that's fan culture that happens in a stadium. I'm NOT okay with slurs of any kind to any person (whether it "fits" that person or not), be the slurs racist or about sexual orientation. That crosses the line, imo.
*3 golds in a row There's always luck involved in winning any tournament; always has been and always will be. Not that there's not skill involved as well, of course, but in a sport as cruel as the beautiful game can be, luck and the soccer gods have to be with you as well.
sorry, i don't know what i'm talking bout. Atlanta - Gold Australia - Silver Greece - Gold China - Gold London - who knows. Brazil -Quaters. but yes, they were mostly luck, except the 04 final. Norway also really played sophisticated soccer against us in Australia.
1996 Atlanta: gold 2000 Sydney: silver 2004 Athens: gold 2008 Beijing: gold 2012 London: gold 2016 Rio: let's not talk about it....
There's always a bit of luck involved. However, it's ridiculous to suggest anyone can rely on luck and still get to twelve consecutive medals. You don't flip a coin 75+ times and get 5 or fewer tails. You need top-level athleticism or skill (plus being at least slightly above average in the other) to win that much. It's not "mostly luck".
I'm not sure if you're replying to me or not. I didn't mean to imply it was all or mostly luck, just that luck is always involved in addition to the obviously more important factors of skill, athleticism, tactics, etc.
Ah, sorry, I was just trying to add to the conversation in general, hence no quote - though maybe I should've quoted @BrooklynSoccer since they're the one who gave the "mostly luck" line and how nothing else could explain the US's 7 titles. Luck only helps those who are prepared to use it.
Upsets occur in women's soccer in about 25% of games, roughly 10% ties and 15% with the poorer ranked team winning -- this is treating any tie or loss by a higher ranked team as an "upset." This includes for Elo-based rating systems such as FIFA uses for the women. So, if the US women have all those wins due to luck (rather than being better as is suggested by their FIFA rank), it must be a form of luck that is inherent to the US team. Wow, discovering there's such a thing as inherent luck is like discovering a new dimension. In fact, maybe inherent luck resides in that new dimension and comes out only when the US women play. Maybe there's such a thing as inherent bad luck, too. Maybe that haunts the US men. Or the French women, for that matter.
I'm not defending just stating a fact. I do NOT support any kind of racist slur. Zero tolerante for racism I hear you about homophobic slur, and you do have a point
In any football game, the higher ranked team has the benefit of the doubt and is far less likely to have calls go "the wrong way", so yes, inherent luck favours Germany and the US, and maybe even Sweden if they play a team ranked lower. I certainly see it when Crystal Palace plays Man United