Hooray for Mr. Gumbel!! It's the damn big corporate sponsors that pay people like Jay Mariotti to write the crap they do. They can't get enough commercial time into soccer matches so they have to denigrate the game.
I wish to bump this so more people see it and send messages to HBO in support of our sport. I wish HBO would do a segment on American Soccer.
I had originally posted this to a forum on the ESPN website. That was the 1st time I have ever posted to a forum of any kind, this is my 2nd. I would like to start off by saying that this is my first post to a forum of any kind, so please bear with me here. I know it is a long one, but like I said, my first time. I just really felt the need to speak out after watching a clip on the ESPN website. http://www.videonewslive.com/view/95948/ My concern is directed towards Beano Cook in particular. While watching this clip, I felt the need to listen to it over and over again. The clip was titled "BEANO'S NOT SOLD ON THE BECKINGHAM'S" I think the first thing was the obvious mispelling of the name, wheter intentional or not, it goes to show a certain level of ignorance associated with certain members of the media's failure to accept soccer in general. In one comment made in this clip by Beano cook, he states "Soccer is just boring for television." My response to that, and this in no way is an attempt to draw from the atheletes that participate in these sports, but is Golf exciting to watch? How about Nascar? Ok, maybe the crashes are, but at the same time I am not going to sit in front of a television for hours hoping to see a crash, and I truly dont think the fans of Nascar wish that the drivers of the cars are unfortunate to go through that. I think they watch it, because they enjoy it, exciting or not. I will then go on to ask how exciting is fishing? there's show after show dealing strictly with fishing. How about bowling? The list could easily go on and on. While to an extent, the tv watched by Americans is based on some excitement, I think televised soccer is much more exciting then alot of other sports that have gained an immense TV following. He goes on to further say "The reason they have so many wars over in England, is because soccer is so boring." While I get the sarcasm associated with that, I tend to think, if that is the opinion of many people in this country, maybe Golf is the reason the USA has an extremely high suicide rate. The fans in European soccer/football, have such a high level of excitement over thier teams it is unbelievable. I have yet to see that level of excitement over a football game here, which he seems to think will be then end all of wars for England. I think by far, the thing that troubled me the most by the comments made by Beano Cook were the following: "I tell you what, its not going to be a big sport in my time, in Americas time, or God's Time." This left me shocked, to say the least. In the United States, it is estimated anywhere from 16 million to 18 million Americans participate in the sport of Soccer. And most estimates tend to favor that within the 17 to 18 million range. My question is Mr. Cook, if soccer is not going to be a big sport in your time, America's time, or God's time, knowing that over 17 million Americans actively participate in the very sport, are you saying that your time is up? Or worsely that God's time is up. I certainly hope not. I think that your opinion is valuable to some people all across this country, and I dont think Soccer fans will beg you to accept the sport they hold passionately, but I do think that they will ask that you give the sport the respect that it deserves. Maintain your opinion, but let others decide for themselves. Allow them to attend a game/match or so, let them kick the ball with their children as opposed to sitting in front of a TV watching cars make continous left turns for hours and hours. I will say that he does seem to be somewhat, at best, sincere in his wishing soccer and the Beckham's alot of luck. But that is the only slight positive remark made. I think, while I am not the biggest fan of Bryant Gumble, it may be good for those out there with little positive to say about soccer to view closing statements from one of his shows. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEJ8m_MDaYU In closing Mr Cook, I guess the only thing I really would like to say, and I think I can speak for the American Soccer fan base and players in general when I say, maintain your opinion, but please leave God out of this. Thank You
Well it is quite a well known nickname for Becks and Posh, a play on Buckingham Palace, but it is usually used to describe their country pile. The fans are as passionate as anywhere else, though the atmospheres are more designed for families rather than the male orientated crowds in England. Is that not just a figure of speech? Well living in a country where less than 20% of the population practice a religion (and by religion I don't mean Scientology or Jedi, they are just a drunken joke gone wrong). If he had said 'for gods sake' would that have been better. Personally I don't think he knows a great deal about the sport, but as you said tens of millions of Americans play the game, if you had this a generation ago, and the new kids of the 1960's were now coaches, then US Soccer would be in a far better position. It may never overtake traditional US sports but it could be on a par.
I actually thought Beano's skeptic comments on Beckham was a positive. It wasn't "soccer bashing" IMO.While I don't agree with him, he actually had legitimate reasons why he believes MLS will never crack the American mainstream when compared to actual haters. I don't believe him when he says soccer's a harder sport to gamble on than any of the US's other sports, but if he does believe that's the case, then his point makes sense. And it's not like he trying to do anything to keep the sport from becoming mainstream (like the Marriottis, Jim Romes, Plaskes, etc.). He sounds sincere where he says he wishes the sport luck, and it doesn't sound like he has anything to lose if MLS does make mainstream revenue and ratings growth consistantly. It sounds like he's saying "I have to see it to believe it, but if I see it, I'll give him props for proving me wrong." I don't think Gumbel was referring to Beano in his statement. I think he was reffering to the media people like the ones I mentioned in the last paragraph. Journalists are free to be skeptical of the Beckham move and say so and why; the problem is when they're actually trying to do anything they can in their power to bring the league down and make Beckham fail because they're insecure about their favorite sports they grew up with.
I think the reason I took this personel, was because he seemed as though the thought of soccer doing well was above this country, refering to it being a boring sport, and Englands reasons for war being that soccer was boring. I know he was being sarcastic though. I agree with you, that soccer is a very bettable sport. I also agree that he did seem somewhat sincere in his wishing the sport and the Beckhams the best, but the rest just seemed a bit much. All you typically hear about in sports today in the U.S. is steroids this and that player was arrested for that. I wish the arguments of the press were more along those lines, those lines being legimate problems with the sport, not that it is boring in their opinion. Majority of the reoprters that cover soccer in a negative light, are tettering on the edge of what appears to be mental breakdown, so I rarely listen to or pay attention to those. As I had also read in a post somewhere out there, alot of the negative comments about soccer and the Beckhams are coming from shows on ESPN. Isnt that a bit hypacritical? ESPN will be airing alot of the games in question, unless the RPS (Rock Paper Scissors) is having a match. I just find it hard to believe, as Gumble said, that there just is no room for soccer in America, when events like that are aired. There is no way that Beckham being in the MLS will do anything but help the sport here. No matter what team he is on, people will pay to see him. Is he the best out there, in my opinion, no he is not. But he certainly is a great player. I also have this uneasy feeling that one of the reason the sporting media has a negative outlook on soccer is due to its popularity everywhere else on the planet. Something that is not American could be seen by them as a threat, and if that is the case, I would say that could easily approach very negative fanatical behavior. Which may be good, it may cause the sports media to clean house and rid themsleves of the closed minded reporters that are out there. I do think it is good to have an opinion, but if you are going to degrade something, there should be someone there to defend it. Not a one sided argument. To the reporters out there, giving soccer negative plubicity without allowing those knowledgable to defend it on the public forum that they have available to them, I have to give them a red card. Like I said, if soccer is the reason for the wars in England, golf must be the cause of suicide in America.
Me being new to posting on forums, but not to reading them, I have only one comment I would like to make. Wow, I never knew I had so much to say...lol
ESPN has a really strict policy about allowing those journalists to criticize the network. Gregg Easterbrook got fired a few years ago for criticizing a Disney film... and ESPN removed every one of his articles from their archives on the day he got fired. http://www.instapundit.com/archives/012081.php
Now. Let's all try to remember the good things we've said here the next time Gumbel says something about the sport that is unflattering - yet probably true.