Last soccer post - cougarguard.com — unofficial BYU Cougars / LDS sports, football, basketball forum and message board

jay santos · 07-11-2006, 09:08 PM

As we wind up world cup discussion, here's my last take on it.

I love soccer. I didn't play much but fell in love with it on a mission and watching subsequent world cups. I love the passion other countries have for it. I love the athleticism on display when top teams play. Stars like Ronaldhino, Ronaldo, Zidane, Christiano Ronaldo, Nedved, Drogba, etc. are simply fun to watch.

International soccer has now become my second favorite professional sport next to football. I think I might get the Dish package with Fox Soccer channel just to keep up on it.

That said, there are some serious problems with it. And I'm sorry soccer fan, but this is not American arrogance.

Nearly all the problems arise from one issue. Average scores are 1:1. One score can win or lose a game for you. 80 something% of teams that score first win.

Because the average score is so low, you have many sub-problems arise.

1. Teams are so afraid to give up a goal, they focus on D, clog up the field, and don't risk the imaginative and creative playmaking that really makes soccer a great sport.
2. Offenses that attack one on three need any advantage they can get, so they're willing to take chances with offsides calls constantly. They figure they go offsides three times but on the fourth one if they get a half step advantage it's worth it. This calls attention to the strangeness of the offsides rule to Americans.
3. Players flop like crazy because getting one PK or free kick close to goal has a great chance to win the game for you. One good flop in soccer in the penalty box is as valuable as a grand slam home run in baseball. Even outside the penalty box, if you can draw a red card, it's nearly as valuable. When your incentive is that high, of course you're going to do it. Even soccer announcers talk about the art of the flop like it's a valuable thing.
4. You have a lot of games end in ties, giving the sister kissing tie outcome or the anti-climactic shootout outcome. Most of this is due to the low scoring. If there are less than 3 goals scored, your outcome is either 0-0, 1-0, or 1-1. Two out of three of those are ties.
5. Tournaments are less satisfying knowing the big giants could go out in early rounds and once you get to the semifinals it's about 50:50 who will win, despite the talent level. The best team wins less in soccer than in any other sport, IMHO.

Nearly all of these could be satisfied with more scoring. Widen the goals, take out offsides rule, decrease # of players from 11 to 10 or 9, do whatever you have to do to raise the scoring. If average score moved from 1:1 to 3:2 it would make a drastic difference in the quality of the sport, IMHO.

This is not because I'm impatient and need gratification in the form of a goal. Notice one of the five problems I noted is NOT something like "goals are exciting and I only get the excitement of a goal once or twice a game".

The other problem in the game that is not related to scoring is the yellow/red card issue. It's crazy that the World Cup could happen once every four years, and a star player could accumulate two controversial yellow cards over a few games and be forced to miss a knock out game. There needs to be a revamping of how they handle fouls. Hockey's penalty box might be the best solution.

I love the sport but it could improve.

fuegote · 07-11-2006, 09:59 PM

<side note>

Fox Soccer channel is the greates channel on the face of this earth. You'll also get Gol TV.

Fox Soccer: home of EPL matches, Bundisligua matches
Gol: La Ligua and Sirie A.

good stuff.

il Padrino Ute · 07-12-2006, 12:51 AM

Can you get the Italian Serie A with Fox Soccer?

07-11-2006, 09:08 PM	#1
jay santos Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 6,177	Last soccer post As we wind up world cup discussion, here's my last take on it. I love soccer. I didn't play much but fell in love with it on a mission and watching subsequent world cups. I love the passion other countries have for it. I love the athleticism on display when top teams play. Stars like Ronaldhino, Ronaldo, Zidane, Christiano Ronaldo, Nedved, Drogba, etc. are simply fun to watch. International soccer has now become my second favorite professional sport next to football. I think I might get the Dish package with Fox Soccer channel just to keep up on it. That said, there are some serious problems with it. And I'm sorry soccer fan, but this is not American arrogance. Nearly all the problems arise from one issue. Average scores are 1:1. One score can win or lose a game for you. 80 something% of teams that score first win. Because the average score is so low, you have many sub-problems arise. 1. Teams are so afraid to give up a goal, they focus on D, clog up the field, and don't risk the imaginative and creative playmaking that really makes soccer a great sport. 2. Offenses that attack one on three need any advantage they can get, so they're willing to take chances with offsides calls constantly. They figure they go offsides three times but on the fourth one if they get a half step advantage it's worth it. This calls attention to the strangeness of the offsides rule to Americans. 3. Players flop like crazy because getting one PK or free kick close to goal has a great chance to win the game for you. One good flop in soccer in the penalty box is as valuable as a grand slam home run in baseball. Even outside the penalty box, if you can draw a red card, it's nearly as valuable. When your incentive is that high, of course you're going to do it. Even soccer announcers talk about the art of the flop like it's a valuable thing. 4. You have a lot of games end in ties, giving the sister kissing tie outcome or the anti-climactic shootout outcome. Most of this is due to the low scoring. If there are less than 3 goals scored, your outcome is either 0-0, 1-0, or 1-1. Two out of three of those are ties. 5. Tournaments are less satisfying knowing the big giants could go out in early rounds and once you get to the semifinals it's about 50:50 who will win, despite the talent level. The best team wins less in soccer than in any other sport, IMHO. Nearly all of these could be satisfied with more scoring. Widen the goals, take out offsides rule, decrease # of players from 11 to 10 or 9, do whatever you have to do to raise the scoring. If average score moved from 1:1 to 3:2 it would make a drastic difference in the quality of the sport, IMHO. This is not because I'm impatient and need gratification in the form of a goal. Notice one of the five problems I noted is NOT something like "goals are exciting and I only get the excitement of a goal once or twice a game". The other problem in the game that is not related to scoring is the yellow/red card issue. It's crazy that the World Cup could happen once every four years, and a star player could accumulate two controversial yellow cards over a few games and be forced to miss a knock out game. There needs to be a revamping of how they handle fouls. Hockey's penalty box might be the best solution. I love the sport but it could improve.

07-11-2006, 09:59 PM	#2
fuegote Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 724	<side note> Fox Soccer channel is the greates channel on the face of this earth. You'll also get Gol TV. Fox Soccer: home of EPL matches, Bundisligua matches Gol: La Ligua and Sirie A. good stuff. __________________ http://www.cavaliersbrigade.com home of the greatest fans in MLS.

07-12-2006, 12:51 AM	#3
il Padrino Ute Board Pinhead Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: In the basement of my house, Murray, Utah. Posts: 15,941	Can you get the Italian Serie A with Fox Soccer? __________________ "The beauty of baseball is not having to explain it." - Chuck Shriver "This is now the joke that stupid people laugh at." - Christopher Hitchens on IQ jokes about GWB.