The information that user "andrew" has provided in this thread has led me to rethink some of the arguments I've made in the past. For as long as I've paid attention to American soccer I've maintained that it has recieved the media attention it deserves based on the level of interest the general public has shown for the sport. So...here it is....I admit it....I was wrong. *looks around and waits for the heavans to split open and for the world to end* The most fascinating piece of information that Andrew provides, in my opinion, is the comparison between two ESPN programs from April. The first is the 10pm MLB game on 4/2. That was opening day of the season for baseball, by the way. The other was the Thursday night MLS game, also starting at 10pm, on 4/12. The two broadcasts garnered basically the same rating in the coveted Male 18-34 year old demographic. That's right...pretty much the same level of viewership. If I had been asked to guess what the numbers would be I would have said, at best, MLS would gain half the audience of an average MLB game (nonetheless one on opening day). Now, I still won't agree that the level of media attention given to MLS, and US Soccer for that matter, can be chalked up to some vast conspiracy to hold down the sport. The media typically lags behind such trends and takes time for them to wake up and smell the advertising revenue. But I can now agree that the level of coverage afforded the league is NOT consistent with the general audience's level of interest. That fans of MLS are well within their rights to expect additional coverage from their newspapers, their local evening news and other outlets. Pay attention, kiddos....I ain't wrong often....and I admit it even more infrequently. So mark the calendar....throw a party.....give me neg rep...whatever.
That's surprsing but not so much when you're focusing on younger viewers. Soccer, along with stuff like ultimate fighting, are sort of the 'new' sports amongst the Echo-boomer kids today. Baseball is your grandpa's sport, the NFL is your dad's sport, but Soccer blowing up is your thing. I've been shocked at the number of fellow college kids that I've seen in the student union skipping classes (or in-between them) watching Champions League games.
Pretty much every one of my friends outside the Inferno/friends I've made through the team tells me that they are trying to get into the sport more, it's just not on TV enough and they don't have enough ways to watch it. I know we've been saying this for awhile but give it one more decade and I'm convinced MLS will be pushing the heels of the big 3 sports. It'll never get bigger than the other big 3 sports and frankly, I don't want it to. I could give two shits about MMA.
True...but the total 18-34 year old demo is not really "young" when viewed by advertisers....it's basically the "core". It's exactly who they want to reach. Over 34 is significantly less important, and anything over the 40's is basically disregarded.
I don't think that the typical American soccer fan is depending on the old tradtional forms of media to get their soccer fix. I soon see the day when the internet sports reporting turns the rest of the media upside down. When that day arrives, soccer will be in the driver's seat. Some people even think it is cool, that you have to dig around to uncover the "real" soccer sports sites.
Yeah, well, they are consistently getting tons of people to plunk down $34.99 per broadcast.....that's pretty stinkin' impressive.
That's great for existing soccer fans, but when it comes to reaching out and growing the whole "underground" thing doesn't really help.
So does professional wrestling...I don't see MMA getting much bigger than it already is and will probably fade away soon. One thing they have on other sports is that there's no off-season so during the summer months where there's only baseball(for most sports fans) to watch it's an alternative.
I agree with you regarding the MMA not getting much bigger, but I don't think it's going away, either.
MMA gets many many more subscribers for their pay-per-views than wrestling does. And you're right, I couldn't give two shits about it either, but like NASCAR, unfortunetly there's a pretty big audience.
The problem with wrestling, as I see it, is because of the scripted nature it just gets old. There are only so many storylines. MMA is an actual competition, they dont' need storylines to keep it fresh. I don't know why that's "unfortunate". It has no effect on soccer. Like NASCAR, soccer is growing and the media will eventually catch up with the interest level. At the end of the day, money talks, nothing else matters.
Well you've gotta remember that in the late 90's professional wrestling was HUGE for a few years with The Rock and Stone Cold and people like that(yeah I liked wrestling when I was like 12). It's still got it's hardcore fans much like MMA is big right now but I think it'll fade a bit to become much like wrestling where you'll always see it on TV but it will be confined to a group of hardcore fans.
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat! OK, this is completely with caveats, but when I do a "category sort" on my DTV DVR at any given moment for Sports > Soccer, there are upwards of 1000 entries for approx 2 weeks. Granted, they consider whatever "paid programming" was on GOL or FSC to count toward that number, but there is soccer up the grand wazoo on TV these days. BUT, and here's the big caveat, DTV customers have to buy that $10 sports package. Otherwise, yes, options are more limited, but the Univision family of stations is pretty good about showing mucho futbol. But it's in Spanish. Here's what I am finding re: soccer n00bs (charitably): They need someone with soccer knowledge to tell them what's going on, but mostly it's about taking the time to actually watch a game. I contend that the live in-game experience at PHP is a major selling point, but not in a vacuum. Soccer can look confusing and random just as easily live as it is on TV. And of course, watching the game in Spanish doesn't help provide that context to the monolingual crowd. But anyway, it's out there. Unlike say, professional marbles. (It exists.)
What the hell Boomer... this is out of left field. UFC is not going anywhere but up for a long time. You do realize that it is a worldwide sport right? Pro wrestling is fake and only appeals to idiots. UFC and soccer are the fastest growing sports in America. Remember that martial arts are older than any of these sports we are talking about. UFC outdraws all boxing events. The Rock and Stone Cold were washed up athletes that got famous acting in a ring. The UFC fighters are the best competitors in the world at what they do.
I think soccer will overtake NASCAR and NHL within the next 20 years. Eventually, soccer should be 3rd after baseball dies and fades away.
Baseball will never die. NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER. As long as the flag is still red white & blue, baseball will always be one of the top 3 or 4 sports.
Oh I agree that there's plenty of options for the diehards, but if you're a college student who can't afford to plunk down $50 a month all together for the soccer stations and cable setup then the options are fairly limited, at least for the english speakers.
Let's give it a few years and then we'll see where it plateaus. I agree and I'm not a wrasslin fan anymore(though it's still fun to watch the old matches with jake the snake, rowdy Roddy Pipper, and Macho Man Randy Savage on youtube. I'm not trying to bash UFC or MMA(are the different?) or whatever. I'm just saying that soccer has been the most popular sport around the world for decades so it's not crazy to think that it could someday be very popular here. MMA is a new fad in America and whether it will stick around and crack the top 3 or 4 sports remains to be seen. Outdrawing all boxing events leaves you right between equestrian and those lumberjack olympics they show on ESPN during the daytime, however....it would be interesting to see a study involving how many people that used to be diehard boxing fans in the mid 90's when it was really big are now big MMA fans.
Soccer is already bigger than hockey in this country. Just not MLS. Mexican league broadcasts regularly kick the crap out of NHL games. With the population of this country skewing more towards Hispanic and further away from gringo this is only going to get worse.
wrasslin in Dallas circa 1980's had the following characters that I used to watch because I was an idiot: All the Von Erichs, Ice Man King Parsons, Kabuki, Gentleman Chris Adams, etc...
If it were possible, I'd give you a WCCW rep. But must spread rep in the meantime. It's the thought that counts, right? Wow, the Von Erichs. I haven't given WCCW a second thought in forever. I was a UWF/NWA guy, at its peak. Even had a job application. Anyway, all of that pales in the face of MLS! [/return to topic]