I was going to write something topical on here, but then I left yesterday morning at 7am for an 800-mile roundtrip from Connecticut to Washington, DC. The trip including a couple of hours hanging out in RFK watching some kid, kick a ball with some older guys. It wasn’t a glorious debut for Mr. Adu, but it was a glorious day for soccer in the US and for BigSoccer. While driving through New Jersey on some sort of turnpike or another I was thinking how cool BigSoccer really was – I had spent the day with some of my West Ham friends who were vacationing in DC and just happened to want to see an MLS game. They aren’t BigSoccer guys, but one of my buddies, Wahlat, made the trip down with me. At the match we ran into GoDC, yes he is as small as he says, but a giant smile and very friendly face. Then Wahlat (Wahlly as I call him) wanted to know the Metro score, so I called Frieslander who was hanging with Batcave Brigade. Friendships, dates, and from what I remember even some courtships and marriages have begun thanks to BigSoccer. Last year I met Jamison, Magpie, johnOO, Mutinygirl, and I'm sure quite a few others that I can't remember with my old age memory creeping in. I've gotten West Ham updates from Pething101, chatted with Alberto on a regular basis. Spoke to Monster, Caddman and Sachin on my drive from New Orleans to Connecticut. Exchanged cd's, tapes, scarves with various BigSoccer geeks and who knows what I'll do next. One of my regrets on the day was that I didn’t get to find some other faces to names, no chance to meet Monster, Sachin, Barbdett, The Vicar, MikeLastort or Miklastort2, or Nancyb, or I’m sure any of the other 1,000 DC United supporters on the boards. This crazy website creates friendships with a common thread – we all love soccer in some form or fashion, we all have the passion, some more than others, others more than should be legally allowed by the Federal government, but we all have it. Players are rated, loved, loathed, discovered, argued over, praised like no other, or just speculated where they should move to, change positions or name their children. It’s all discussed on the site. Travel plans are made, confirmed, discussed, reviewed and later diaries are posted complete with pictures. For those of us who love the leagues of the world, well join a forum ask a question and within hours you’ll have more information than you thought possible. If Graham Chapman had come to BigSoccer looking for an argument we could direct him to the forums for politics or US Men’s National team, and he’d get more than contradiction. Whether it’s “Is MLS as good as the 2nd Bundesliga?” or “What is the best pizza in your town?” it is all discussed on bigsoccer.com, but its so much more than just a soccer website, its the one must see site for me and probably all of you as well. Panicfc
Great work Eddie and it was nice to finally meet you after years of "talking" here. And of course I had a smile on my face, free beer at the tailgate and DC United had 2 goals at halftime!!
Should have been at least 2 more goals after halftime as well. Free beer? I wish we hadn't gotten lost in NY and traffic tied in DC!
Panicfc - that was all very well said. It's funny how BS is more than an internet board, but basically a soccer cybercommunity, which even (and often!) overspills into real life. A place to be passionate about not only soccer, but life. I do wish some posters were a tad less...childish shall we say...but life is never perfect, that I learned long ago, and anyway, it does give BS a certain spice as it were. I hope you had a great weekend and good luck to your Hammers and everything else.
Thanks for the nice comments and well wishes. Life's not perfect, and for certain neither is bigsoccer but its the best we have - maybe if they played the Stone Roses as background music it would be a tad cooler.
In the true spirit of BigSoccerism, I'm going to ignore your apt, well-written prose and only point out that it was Michael Palin who went to the argument clinic, not Graham Chapman.
If you wanted an argument, you should have gone to USMNT or Politics of course you are 100% right, Graham Chapman was abuse right?
Someday when MLS fills its SSS - with luxury boxes - every week and American soccer stars sell their autographs for $25 a pop, we'll look back on today as the good old days.
eddie, eddie, eddie... if you dont stop ruling, people may confuse you as royalty now go get a real dutch side to support
Kudos for a thougtful thread. For those of us to remember the bad old times before NASL, and then after NASL, this is soccer heaven and Big Soccer a big part of it. Back in the day we gathered arround eye straining black and white sets and watched week old, or older matches from the English First Division (pre-EPL) and the Bundesliga on PBS. Now I watch the Bundesliga live, same day EPL, Brazil same day, France same day, and Dutch Eredivisie same day, Argentina, Asian highlight. Mexican -- it's all good. Am I wrong, but do we not get the best coverage of international soccer right here in the US? MLS is a feast of live broadcasts, a post Soccer Saturday hour wrap up, and all those USMT and WT matches shown live. Hells bells there is even live A league action. Now top it all with SSSs with the atmosphere and celebrations the rest of the world takes for granted. From BA to Adu, these are best days of American Soccer, including the WC 1994. Here is the best part. The trend is up. The future is now. I pity the fools who cling to their distrust of the new and unfamiliar. Being a soccer fan today is like being a NFL fan in 1950. The next ten years will bring all you can dream and more.
well it certainly isn't contradiction!!! M: It's just contradiction! O: No it isn't! M: It IS! O: It is NOT! M: You just contradicted me! O: No I didn't! M: You DID! O: No no no! M: You did just then! O: Nonsense!
"Shut your festering gob ya tit. Your kind really makes me puke. You vacous, coffee-nosed, malodorous pervert!"
M: I-dbct-fd-tq! I don't want to argue about it! O: Well I'm very sorry but you didn't pay! M: Ah hah! Well if I didn't pay, why are you arguing??? Ah HAAAAAAHHH! Gotcha!
Well done E, as always. It's never half-arsed with you. It was certainly a great trip, even though I was surrounded by West Ham fans and 1 over-fretful Gunner supporter (and with good reason).
I've told people many times how Bigsoccer has brought me into contact with like minded soccer nutjobs. Posting on Bigsoccer: God bless the right.
Re: Bigsoccer and Me (and the future) Surely you jest. pbs? same pbs that brings us NOVA, News Hour and that Big Bird???? All joking aside - great thread - and first post - even great fake arguments. I can genuinely say I love BigSoccer - and sometimes even feel guilty for spending too much time here - it is as the f.a.q. says - a party with plenty of rooms. WIth that said - I would love to live in a place where it's soccer 24/7 on the TV, radio, newspapers - like it is around the world - but as long as BigSoccer is around - the passion is always here. The bickering, the predictions, the arguing, the laughing and the joking - I'd be lying if I said I didn't check every single morning right after checking my email to see what great article somebody ran into.... While I try not to predict the future - things look good. The league's play has slowly gotten better over the years - and I'm sure that if the product keeps improving on the field - the fans will keep come in droves. In time - teams will build strong rivalries - the "can't miss" games we'll arrive. Good strong expansion cadidates will arive - b/c every one we'll want thier own MLS team - if this happens ! Watch out ! Imagine having a Barry Sanders going against a Micheal Vick - playing soccer b/c it's "the" game everyone wants to play like baseball was years back.... imagine the great immigrant traditions that are here from Europe who still follow thier teams from back home - but maybe not MLS. Imagine all those great soccer traditions from Latin America - who again follow thier teams from back home - but again maybe not MLS... -Imagine the young talent playing in junior high soccer fields right now - when I did 12 years ago we ddin't have an MLS - and stories/logos of the NASL seemed as ancient as time itself - at the time soccer seemed as logical of a future profession as Australian Football. Why even following ITALY 90' was like trying to find the 10th planet of the solar system using a straw - sure you could get to it - but it wasn't "so out in the open" Now imagine those kids being the next........ With more revenue from SSS and higher attendence(s) players we'll get better salaries here - while the leauge makes a healthy profit.... and finally the fabled ratings.... will follow the fabled great games.... the fabled rivalries ... the cross-town derbies... it will surely all come..... Back to earth: While "Freddy-mania" is too early to tell how he'll do/turn out - I am happy that I was alive at such a time - I never thought I'd see this country (yes, even PTI) get all hyped up over him or heck, any soccer player for a number of years.... outside of the WC.... sure did EVERYONE know who adu is? No. But we've sure got a lot of curious on-lookers, non-soccer fans, ppl with a brother or siter who is into soccer 'but maybe they're not we even got into the mania a bit ...." "non-mls" regulars who could 'potentailly' be MLS fans checked out the leauge- that again is great - a sure sign that inroads have been made.... now the challege will be getting all the ppl that love to play soccer but not watch soccer to start following the league.... Sure the greatest soccer league of all time will not come over-night, or over weeks, hell it might take years but once it gets here.... you'll know. ~s94
And I'm young enough that I will definitely see this someday. That's so scary. Right now we're this special elite group with this special elite secret. Eventually everyone's going to know about it and I'll be there to see it.