I think having a "European team" is pathetic, but it probably falls under one of the well-known exceptions to the "support your home town team or the team where you live" rule: 1. Your home town has no professional team. 2. You supported the other team before your home town had a pro team. Boston has no pro team, so people can support whoever they want.
Not to take this too far off-topic, but that is one of the things I absolutely hate about the modern TV era of sports. Why would you support the Cowboys if the Giants, Jets, and Patriots are all in your general area? OK, because those 3 teams all sucked in the 70s, but let's ignore that for now. The NFL is probably the worst when it comes to this, and there are a lot of people who are "diehard fans" of whatever team happened to be good (and on the national TV broadcasts a lot of the time) when they became interested in the sport. At least baseball is mostly local, and in fact most of the TV revenue teams get is local. That's part of the reason the Yankees are richer than the Royals. I've got less of a problem with people adopting an overseas team to follow--I think that's par for the course for a lot of US fans. I do have a problem with people who claim to be serious soccer fans but won't give their local MLS team the time of day. There will always be these types around, and some can never be converted, but it is the responsibility of the club to keep trying to give these fans a reason to watch the local MLS team. This is the Steve Sampson approach. When he was the US Nats manager, one thing that he did well was to reach out to the local Latino communities. It helped that he is fluent in Spanish and has coached in Latin America, and at least at the time was well respected there. He would say to Latinos living in the US that it was OK for them to support Mexico, Costa Rica, Honduras, or whoever as your #1 team, but we ask that you make the USA as your #2 team. For a lot of folks, they'd be rooting against CONCACAF rivals anyway, so why not pull for the US when they are playing your hated rivals.
Yes and no. The defense was good in the first half, so yes. But if ManU actually finished some of the chances they had (and there were plenty of them) ... this one could have been ugly, early. There was no offense in the first half though. It seemed like we barely actually had the ball in the offensive end.
That pretty much sums it up. People just want to watch a football match and a nutter walks into the bar and rants and raves about the conditions pertaining as to how you are to support a football club. I hate to tell you, but people from all over the world support European football clubs for all sorts of reasons, and since the world of the Revs and that of Man U don't overlap (except for the once in a lifetime friendly) who cares if you support one or the other, or both. As a matter of fact there are plenty of people in England who grow up not only supporting their local football club, but also have a favorite premier league club as well. Pink hatters are those who only support a team, not because they are fans of the sport, but simply because their team is popular and where they play is the place to be, and they want to part of a shared communal experience. Imagine if the Revs ever got to be that popular? Who cares if someone who has never been to England supports Man U? If that's the club you choose to support, learn about it's history and stick with them whether they have success or not, or else you will just be a pink hat. And yes I do have a connection to England and was supporting Man U even before there was an MLS.
When i first discovered soccer i liked France Netherlands and Arsenal. Sure I can appreciate the germans and spaniards but its not the same. When Henry left arsenal soon i realized that there wasnt much there. France didnt make rd 2 in 02 and Netherlands didnt make the WC but i still liked them. Recently i started cheering for japan (men and women). BUT NONE OF THESE HORSES ARE MINE GO CANADA. when you dont have a horse, you can pick a horse that brings you entertainment. I want usa to do well but not too well. Mexico has good young players. i watch the nhl playoffs because they are exciting. i pick a team in each series to cheer for. but watching the leafs or raptors in the playoffs is different.
And that's fine. I think his point was more not supporting your local club as well. Support whoever the hell you want in Montenegro's Premier League if you want, I don't care ... but if you're supposedly a "soccer fan" and you can't be bothered to even attempt to support your local club, then you're not a soccer fan (IMHO).
Bingo! Sorry to just hop in the NE Revs Thread but wanted to participate in this conversation. I support three Clubs. The Union (live PA), West Ham United and Fiorentina. West Ham was the first English team I watched on TV (vs Stoke City at Upton Park). So, West Ham became my English team for years still to today (even in the nPower Championship). And I visited Italy (Florence) and got to see Fiorentina Stadium, Bam Serie A team. But I have zero family ties or any other reason to those two teams and I still love them till I die. P.S. Watched the game last night. Loved that the Fort was there and strong. I remember last year (Union vs Man United at the Linc) was just horrible being outnumbered
You remember what it's like to watch the Leafs in the playoffs? ...kidding. Sort of. Anyway... what Monty said.
What, you're bwidell now? Then again, comment or don't, I really don't care. That's why I said it was my opinion ... so sorry that offends you enough that you have to roll your eyes at me. I'm so hurt.
The older I get, the less patience I have for the notion of "fan morality" -- what fans SHOULD do, how they SHOULD act, what makes one a real fan or not. Simon Kuper's "Soccernomics" makes a pretty good case that the diehard fan, the "real fan" is by far the minority; bandwagon jumpers and pink hats are the driving forces behind the biggest clubs in the world. Whether you or I like it or not is irrelevant. And, BTW, you're not going to have any success trying to shame people into supporting "their local club." That argument's not going to fly here, or in most of the world, nowadays.
Well you are pretty old. I'm not trying to shame anyone. I just gave my opinion that if you don't actually at least try and give your local team a shot, then you're not really a soccer fan.
I am surrounded by friends and family who follow Lazio, Inter, Napoli, and Roma. They did before MLS even existed. As a kid I was an Inter fan even though I lived in Pisa...Pisa was in Serie C at the time. Family is from Avellino..and although most of them follow Avellino, they each have one of the big Serie A teams that they folllow..That's Italy, fine. Here in the states, friends and fam(most) wrote off MLS as a bush league amateur mediocre afterthought of Bob Kraft. The Revs don't have Pirlo, Zannetti, etc,etc..therefore they suck or are relagated to Serie C status. Well, Serie C has its supporters but it's not 50k avg. More akin to our average. Ok, I get it...but for anyone LIVING in the USA and the struggles that the game has had in setting roots/foundation, no matter what CLUB you love somewhere in the upper echelons of Euro Football, you HAVE to support MLS, The Revs, The GAME..Somehow. Even if it's just defending it in conversation. Even if it's to buy a hat or a T. And please YOU CAN BE VOCAL when you feel frustrated with a rule of the League or an OWNER who doesn't GIVE a $HIT!! Cuz, support doesn't solely mean to blindly FOLLOW some wanker owner and his Apethic attitude. YES, it's frustrating...Yes, it can make you throw your arms up in disgust and give up...We sure as hell can name the people who have given Kraft the proverbial middle finger and told him to shove it and have never been back..! But, Yea...it was very depressing seeing families from the burbs all decked out in Man U garb, yet I didn't notice not even the slightest hint of English accent when they spoke. Man U played at home last night and that was sad..! ps. When we moved back to the States and I was 9 years old...I "liked" the Dolphins! Winning team, great players and cool logo...Pats? I honestly had no idea that they existed.
Support whomever you want. But a lot of those people last night are the same people who would go to Bruins/Red Sox games and taunt, try to fight anyone there wearing Canadiens/Yankees gear. And say stuff to them about not supporting the local team.
It's a poor analogy. Man Utd isn't the Revs' rival, as the Habs and Yanks are to the B's and Sox. Different leagues, different countries, different stature. And last night's match was a friendly, the polar opposite of an ALCS game or NHL playoff game.
Disagree if you are going to give someone shit and try to fight them for wearing another teams gear in your stadium. Then you damn well better not show up in another teams gear at your local stadium. To me does not matter if they are rivals or in the same league or not. That is hypocritical. And who said I was talking about playoff games, I have seen it at preseason games and spring training games in Florida.
Can someone tell me what the banner that was held up during the ManU player intros said, curious. I couldn't see it from the middle of 143.
Any post that contains this judgement "then you're not a soccer fan" deserves nothing more than an eyeroll. So, congrats on that.