The Beautiful Game

Everyone still thinks that Americans hate soccer, and to be fair, the World Cup is still not nearly as big a deal here as in Brazil or Latin America. There are many reasons that Americans aren't crazy about the sport, and the more I think about it, the more reasons I come up with. Americans prefer homegrown sports (baseball, basketball, American football) to foreign sports (soccer, rugby), since they've become so ingrained in our culture. In sports as in many other areas, Americans have short attention spans and want instant gratification, neither of which jive very well with soccer. Plus, Americans tend to prefer regional and domestic championships to international games, not to mention that we are very set in our ways.

Despite how big American football is, it can never compared to Brazilian soccer culture, something you are practically born into, something that is often a fundamental part of each family history and personal identity. Americans don't quite have the same devotion as Brazilians, like this adorable little girl who sobbed, "My life is over!" when her soccer team lost a game. "How could they do this to me? I root for them!" she wailed.

We also don't have the same cult of devotion to athletes like Brazilians have, where Pelé has become something of a deity. (If you haven't watched this wonderful commercial/short film about Pelé's last goal, you should - plus, this one has subtitles).

But like I mentioned last week, Americans seem to be paying more attention to the World Cup. When Landon Donovan scored the winning goal during the last game, putting the US in the next round, I was at the office, but I heard screams echoing from people watching the game. Those screams were heard all over the country, like these videos show below (the Arkansas guy is especially entertaining).

That night, The Daily Show joked that the US had now joined "the Third World" now that we're becoming a soccer country.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
World Cup 2010: Into Africa - US Beats Algeria
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

But to me, we're on the right path to joining the rest of the world in what is essentially the world's only global sport, one that manages to unite people like no other game. The United States' political and economic power is eroding, and it's time we got off our high horse and joined the rest of the planet in one of the few things we can all love. Loving soccer is one of the simplest and most gratifying things we can do to gain goodwill outside our borders and to win the respect of our fellow soccer fans--even if we can't agree to call it football.

Comments

[andressa]

I'd love to see the J.Stewart video but not available for Ireland..
This week I posted sthg similar in my blog. I read an article from PAtricia Campos Mello a Brazilian in USA and blogger from Estadao which she said the following lines..

"Vários comentaristas americanos estão atacando a popularização do esporte nos EUA, dizendo que se trata de uma modalidade esportiva “de pobre”, coisa de sul-americano, resultado da crescente influência dos hispânicos no país e ligado às “políticas socialistas de Obama”."

"O pessoal do Tea Party está assoberbado: xinga a expansão do governo, a reforma do sistema de saúde, duvida da certidão de nascimento do Obama…e agora, o futebol, essa coisa de estrangeiros que mancha a cultura Apple Pie."

http://blogs.estadao.com.br/patricia-campos-mello/

Welcome to the 3rd world country America! :D

[Brazilian]

Estados Unidos de cu é rola! :)

[Bruno]

Resta saber se os americanos vao entender o espirito da reciprocidade em aeroportos.. ai sim eles vao se juntar ao resto do mundo. VEJA:
http://g1.globo.com/rio-de-janeiro/noticia/2010/06/piloto-e-autuado-por-desacato-apos-ficar-de-cueca-em-aeroporto-do-rio.html

Tudo bem que eh um caso isolado, mas se fosse um brasileiro que resolvesse fazer isso nos EUA...

[Erik]

Andressa,

I work for big oil in the South of the united states, where many teabaggers call home.

I haven't heard of anyone bashing futebol, besides as a joke. The bars here open up early in the morning and are packed with people (mostly republicans) watching worldcup games

Do people overseas actually view the tea party as the majority of Americans?? That is ridiculous and naive. They make up a small but obnoxious portion of the American people.

Usually, it is the majority that is quiet and never speaks up, and almost always the obnoxious few who make all the ruckus.

[Luciana Oliver]

Oh! Poor United States. Coming too late to what not only South America and third world countries but also Europe have elected as the best sport ever with the power of uniting people from all backgrounds. Considering the complains and the offensive commentaries and jokes of reactionaries Americans against real football, thanks God U.S. is in decadence.

[Ives Semprebom]

I'm sure if FIFA world cup was just a match of good teams of rich countries, some racist conservative Americans wouldn't mind about Football popularity in America. Well, I think it indicates how disconnected Americans and their ass lickers have been from the world when just seeing the rest of the planet as their backyard where they command and decide what they consider appropriate for them. I appreciate the potential fact that U. S. is loosing its supremacy and that people everywhere reject its imperialist concerns in a more multipolarized world. Bye bye America - watch your sunset.

[James Miller]

It isn't that the world doesn't like America because we don't like soccer. The world doesn't like us because Bush was controlled by people like Douglas Feith, Paul Wolfowitz, and Richard Pearle who told him to invade Iraq.

[erik]

Ives,

When one superpower goes down, one fills the void. I hope you enjoy the future Chinese superpower!!! I am sure they will be much better!

[Claudia]

Well, watching the Americans' enthusiasm and nice vibe in the videos in this post and despite of some stupid few Americans who think football is just a third world poor thing, welcome Americans to the integration football (soccer sounds a stupid name for me) gets to promote worldwide between rich and poor nations and people from all origins. Better late than never.

[Ives Semprebom]

I think the world tends to be concentrated into regional country leaders - reason why I told previously that the world is becoming multipolarized. I.e, not only one pole country ruling but multiple leaderships, so I don't believe in an only country coming up to the top. Anyway, just my point of view. I know the U. S. tended to be more criticized and less tolerated for Bush's actions, but soccer is just a symbol of how some few irritating annoying square Americans misunderstand its symbolism - a world where everybody shares mutual concerns. An utopia? May be. But at least it's good to know that in a soccer world championship poor and rich countries share the top in the winner's ranking. By the way, I also appreciate that Americans had been so excited with their team in FIFA's World Cup. A unique chance to know and feel why the rest of the world loves football - for me, the true foot-ball.

[James Miller]

It will be funny to see Brazil collapse when the United States and Europe collapse. Maybe then Brazilians will see that they need to the rest of the world to have any chance at prospering, because Brazilians don't make enough to power their own domestic economy with internal consumption. The average Brazilian makes 600-1000 Reis a month, that is bairly enough to survive here, and after seeing how Brazilian bosses treat their employees I don't see their wages rising dramatically any time soon. I won't even go into the fact that Brazil is over heating and how property in Ipanema has increased 100 percent over a two year period. Can you guys say bubble?

[Natalie]

Twenty years ago, "soccer moms" were supposedly the voters US politicians hoped to woo, so I guess now that their children are grown, we have more soccer fans. The guys in the "epic" video look like they are of that generation. My city built some lovely pitches in the park nearest us (maybe 8 years ago?), and they are well-used. I bet soccer will have an even larger fan base here in another 20 years. Culture shifts slowly!

I have to admit I have been pleased to see bars around here with signs outside announcing game times, and the local English-style pub has been packed to the gills during games. I don't remember seeing any of this during the last World Cup (except for at the pub).

[Ebarteldes]

Whatever anyone may think, I do believe that the US needs to become, as the Jon Stewart show said, "part of the third world." Not really that, but just part of the rest of the world. World Series? Sheesh. How about a real World Series with the baseball champions of the rest of the globe? As a nation, we have to stop looking at our navels. I saw a comment on Ew.com that the World Cup was going on forever... I felt like smacking them in their shnozzes.

Soccer is one of the only sports that unites the entire planet. Please join the world, US. Seriously.

[Ebarteldes]

Miller

What exactly are you talking about. Nothing you wrote makes any logical sense

[James Miller]

Next time Brazilians want to think of themselves as an economic power house consider this it might be a little off topic for this subject but it makes a good point:

On paper, Brazil is an economic powerhouse. It's a part of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) emerging economies. However, in reality, Brazil is a poor country, where a small white elite controls everything. The vast majority of Brazilians don't have enough food to eat, hence President Lula's "fome Zero" program. The Zero Hunger program feeds millions of children and women who otherwise would be starving to death.

[James Miller]

Ebarteldes:

I said what I was saying was a little off topic. I'm just saying that if you read the New York Times, watch CNBC, and read the Economist Magazine like I did to get an understanding of Brazil you would think that Brazil has magically figured something out and they are a world power and economic power. After spending 7 months here I won't ever take what the New York Times, CNBC, and the Economist say seriously because if you spend a little time here, more than just two weeks, you'll see that Brazil is a developing country and will always be a developing country.