After visiting a local VFW with my father recently ( I don't frequent these establishments, I went for my dad). I was at the bar when the talk change to sports and the regulars badmouthed our beloved pastime. I took the liberty to remind them how well our boys did last summer and was again reminded that none of them are from this country. Well you can't fight with these types cause they can't hear you anyway and telling them that Claudio Reyna was born in Jersey isn't gonna fly. Look at the name, it doesn't sound Amurican to JoeVFWsixpack. Even though sports like baseball have the likes of Mike Pizza and Jason Jumblies all they would say is " those boys is amurican ". So US Soccer has started renaming our boys to fix this problem. And I think we should help by submitting some quality names for our boys. Claudio Reyna > Claude Rains or even better Rainman. I can see him mumbling "pass me the ball" a thousand times a game. Eric Wynalda > Eric Winnebago. Nothing more amurican than a big ass winnebago. Alexi Lalas > Lex Lawless Now US soccer has already done this on a few occasions. One is Clint Mathis. Yes he's from Georgia, it's just not next to Florida. His name use to be Iva Bagadoritos before they changed it. Ok this has been a big lame joke but what the hell, nothing really going on anyway. I'm sure you guys can do better so lets have a crack at Americanizing our team.
Not only players but other things too, like: Pitch: We can call it field. Kit: We can call it uniform.
1) Goal = Field goal 2) put a siren on top of the goal 3) Put all the foreign or players with foreign-sounding names in one MLS team..... all the All-American boys in another.... played them liked they did in WWF. 4) Teach all young players in MLS to smoke pot.... have they arrested liked they did in NFL? 5) A few spouse abuses would be nice, but not too many. WUSA will fold soon.... the WUSA fans might be turned off.... 6) more tattoos liked in basketball.... 7) Eddie Pope needs to do a gangster rap albrum.
Song Ideas for Fresh Pope and RUN DMB album... to promote the recognization (? how about awareness?) of Soccer as an American sport... 1) My Adidas (Run DMC) 2) I Go to Work (Kool Moe Dee) 3) Keeper Get Back (sung to Baby Got Back-Sir Mixalot in honor of Jorge Campos and all the other keepers who think outta the box) 4) Can't Touch This (MC Hammer) with back up by Freddy Adu 5) Pass, Pass Baby (sung to Ice Ice Baby) 6) Shoot It (sung to Push It by Salt-n-Peppa) 7) Move Up (for all the defenders out there, sung to tune of Word UP) .... running outta steam here. Surely somebody can do better than me.
Don't forget 10 points for a goal and instead of a penalty box a glowing arc that's like a 3 point line in basketball only it counts for 15 points. Take out the goalkeeper issue, they only prevent high scoring.
OK, give me a break, I have to take a deep breath before I can say anything about this ... USA: keep away from football, you are unable to join a world wide sport for this reason mentioned by the person above and some others. If football is not popular in USA is because you are unable to join a world wide comunity, and trying to change the nationality, origins, real names, character of people,and "americanizing" the game is destroying it. Is a shame you have to "americanize" your name just to be popular for donkeys.
I am going to take a long lunch today......my boss is out. I can't believe we are doing this again.....who gives an f-if the sport isn't as popular as football and baseball? I hate people.
Changing demographics factor against those VFW old-timers (even those under 50!). My dad was both American Legion and VFW, by way of WWII, but you couldn't get him to watch two minutes of a baseball game. He thought it was something you should go out and play in a sand lot, not watch on TV or (God forbid) waste your time in a stadium and pay to see. He felt the same about American football. Back in '85 we did get him to watch a few Bears games. Born and raised in Chicago, he took some pride in the team then. He took to soccer because he got a kick out of watching his grandson play. Now, my mother always tunes in National Team matches, and they both watch, along with the occasional MLS game. He thinks the sport makes sense: no time outs, and it's all over in about 2 hours. And the fact that he never played the game makes it even more attractive -- much like listening to an orchestra is all the more enthralling because he never played a musical instrument. He's always had a lot of repect for musicians, and never tuned them out becasue they played foreigners, like Beethoven or Strauss. So you just can't stereotype people - even when they go out of their way to behave like stereotypes. The USA has always been a 'go figure' kid of place. So it remains.
Re: Re: Why soccer is not popular in the US. [R] Its all so clear to me now!! Thanks worldwide community!!!
Thank God it's not NASCAR. Once upon a time, I really wished soccer would be a top three sport in the USA. Now, I'm very pleased with the almost cult status of MLS and the Nats. Do we need any more advertisements during games? Do we need the swooshy full-screen iterruptions that Mexican and some European stations carry during games? Sure $$$ means longevity for any league, but with Saints like Lamar and Anschultz AND the fan base currently in the USA, WE WON'T LOOSE THIS LEAGUE, EVER. There's only one way to go in the popularity contest and I hope that MLS is always a contestant, but never the three headed winner. Please keep the ravenous sports public of the USA away from this beautiful and growing game.
Re: Re: Why soccer is not popular in the US. [R] Have they discovered the miracle of humor and sarcasm where you live?
And in this album, he could diss all the El Salvadoran gangs in DC. This would prompt Carlos Ruiz to make an album in response to defend the Latin Americans in the U.S. As a result, you would have soccer's own "East Coast/West Coast" rivalry...brilliant marketing!!!! Of course, you'd have to have a couple of sacrificial lambs get shot to make it a "legit" feud...any suggestions?
Re: Re: Re: Why soccer is not popular in the US. [R] They had it, but lost it when the US did better then their team in Japan/Korea.
The JoeVFWsixpack's of this country will never view soccer as a man's sport. They see the game their kids play and/ or they see that awful Gatorade commercial with (ugh) Mia Hamm saying that she's playing for "millions of little girls". Why would they watch soccer when they see that and say, "Why would I watch that, when I can see overweight men like me pitch for the Yankees?" Also, if you want to make the game more American, tell DMB to grow an afro.
Soccer is popular, US Soccer is not. Good lord, I should stay out of this, but I am a fool for these threads. . . Anyhow, as so many have pointed out, what is shakin at the VFW is diminishing returns. The issue for Soccer in the US is this: It is a popular game. Popular with Hispanics, and many others who are on the front side of the curve of rising US population. The real issue is this: Why isn't US soccer popular in the US? Mexico soccer is popular, English soccer is popular, hell even El Salvadoran soccer is popular here, but US soccer isn't even the most popular soccer in the US. Don't think so? You missed the friendly with Mexico in Houston. So, what to do?
Re: Re: Why soccer is not popular in the US. [R] I'm still here(Desert storm) I hope I'm around a bit longer
Geez, I just wanted to have some fun with our boys names to make em sound more Amurican. I don't want to change the game at all. ************ the VFW and all that lot. Preki becomes Lefty Radkick Greg Berhalter becomes Greg Ballhalter Brian Mcbride becomes Mike Mcsegroves Sr So on and so forth.