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DEL.ICIO.USLet the Cup Countdown begin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Associated Press
It’s exactly two weeks from today that the U.S. begins its World Cup quest against the Czech Republic, and the boys certainly looked a bit sharper in weekend wins over Venezuela and Latvia. Nice work by Convey on set pieces on Friday, and what a super example by McBride Sunday after getting a nasty knot to the head in a collision. His snap header near the end of the first half was classic “McHead,” and a terrific cross from Cher. Un. Do. Lo set it all up. Guess I’ll have to ease up on the lad a bit. Especially with Ber. Hal. Ter in camp, replacing the injured Gibbs.
(Why do I feel like the anxious parent of a teen driver when I think of the U.S. defense? Sometimes I think Keller does, too. OK, OK, I’ll keep my hand off the steering wheel — for now.)
A week from today, ajc.com launches its World Cup page that will feature daily installments of Off the Ball, including live-blogging off U.S. matches, and visits to reknown Atlanta watering holes to see how locals are soaking up Cup fever. We’ll also feature AJC coverage from Germany and link to other blogs, in this, the first fully-blogged World Cup.
In keeping with the true multimedia spirit of this medium, here’s an NPR clip from last week on the evolution of the U.S. team. A lot of the material is old hat to many of you, but the storyline is starting to resonate with the greater public — as long as the results from Group E back it up.
Hard to figure out what the mainstream media verdict will be if the Yanks come up shorter than last time. Quarterfinals or bust? Surely they are aware this is a much, much tougher road.
For a vast majority of the 32 nations that have qualified, just getting to Germany has been the objective, especially the four African sides that are making their World Cup debuts. The English-language version of the excellent German news magazine Der Spiegel (to shame, Newsweek and Time) has a wonderful two-part article on how soccer and civil war are inextricably linked in Ivory Coast.
Indeed, African ambitions of World Cup glory are probably as understated this year as ever, with the likes of Nigeria and Cameroon not making it. The British magazine New Statesman believes that this narrative will never change in “They can play but they can never win”, which gently faults Pele for amping up such dreams.
“O Rey” is interviewed in a Guardian podcast that’s well worth the listen if you’ve got a half-hour to spare. And no, you don’t have to have an iPod to hear a podcast. iTunes will do just fine.
This was my first podcast experience, and it’s a sheer delight, with one of the other guests quipping that “I’ve made several thousand pounds opposing Pele’s picks over the years.” He’s doubting Brazil to a certain degree, whatever that’s worth.
Another fascinating discussion included the journalist Gabriele Marcotti, who’s written for cnnsi.com, on the anxieties within the Italy camp, and not just over the current match-fixing scandal in Serie A that has scooped up the son of Azzurri coach Marcelo Lippi. Starting goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has been questioned about possible gambling on sports, a no-no for Italian athletes.
Here’s one dreadful referee who won’t be seeing any World Cup action. FIFA is sending home Jamaica’s Peter Prendergast due to injury. That he was originally assigned isn’t a reassuring sign that the whistle-blowers and offsides flag-wavers will be any more up to the task than in 2002.
Whether Wayne Rooney ever gets to Germany at all may finally be known on June 7, the new D-Day for the injured English striker. That’s supposedly when the doctors will reveal to a hyperventilating nation about the most famous sore foot in the English-speaking world.
Another countdown closer to home comes later this week, when the Silverbacks christen their new facility on Saturday (thanks for the correction, Chris, for some reason I’ve just had Friday stuck in my head) against Charleston. Atlanta is one of two winless squads in the USL first division after a 0-0 weekend draw with the Battery.
DeKalb CEO Vernon Jones is going to be there. Sports and footy don’t mix, eh? Unfortunately, I wish this were so in this case.
Off the Ball’s favorite poster this week (with all due respect to Henry, Chris, Nicholas, etc.) is Maya Lucia, who summed up the interminable Bonds melodrama perfectly: “Baseball? Who cares? Let’s get into some World Cup soccer!!!
Well Maya (if that is your real name), mark your calendar for June 5, when Off the Ball and ajc.com will get into it full throttle. Enjoy the Memorial Day holiday everyone!
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By Chris
May 29, 2006 11:49 AM | Link to this
If you are thinking about heading to the Silverbacks game you might be a little lonely on Friday night.
From Silverbacks.com
The amazing event at Atlanta’s first world-class soccer complex will undoubtedly be the place to be on (Saturday) June 3 as Atlanta soccer fans eagerly anticipate a fantastic summer season of soccer…
By Byron
May 29, 2006 8:29 PM | Link to this
You mean people outside of soccer moms of junior high school adolescents (because they don’t want their precious one hurt in a REAL sport) really give a flying pig about soccer in this nation?
Face it: soccer is dead in America as a professional or even college sport. It’s also boring as hell to watch… three hours and one or two or three goals during the entire game? Soccer was as dead 25 years ago in America as it is today. Thank God.
By fanaticodefutbol
May 29, 2006 9:29 PM | Link to this
As one of the few people in the US excited about the world cup, on paper I just don’t see how anyone can beat Brazil, but we all know about the on paper vs on the pitch difference.
Can’t wait for it to start!
By Chris
May 29, 2006 9:43 PM | Link to this
Byron,
FYI…soccer games are 1 hour and 45 minutes and that includes a 15 half time, and two 45 minute halves of continual play.
Gosh I bet you are very disapointed that the school systems in Georgia do not have Bullriding as a school sport. Each ride lasts 8 seconds (for short attention spans, need them breaks) the scoring is out of 100 (wow that is a lot of points fast) and the riders can get really hurt or even die (because in “Real Sports” people get hurt).
By Michael
May 29, 2006 9:46 PM | Link to this
Byron is right. Three hours of soccer is REALLY boring. Of course that’s mainly because when the game ends after 2 hours you probably spend one hour picking your nose. I do wonder how Byron felt about Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. It ended 1-0, took three hours, and is quite possibly one of the best World Series games ever.
Plus if you think people can’t get hurt, ask Brian McBride or the South Korean dude who got that nasty cut in the 2002 World Cup.
If you’re gonna slam something, at least know what the hell you’re talking about.
By Ned
May 29, 2006 10:11 PM | Link to this
This is a soccer blog we dont need a**es like Bryon talking crap. Theres a football blog, baseball,baketball so choose one. There are futbol fans in this country, and this is for them, not duechebags like some of these guys.
By scope
May 29, 2006 10:52 PM | Link to this
Soccer is boring at times, but hey, baseball is certainly boring at times. Even football(american) is boring when both teams play poorly. Same for basketball.
We should have the athletic talent to compete in this country, but it seems we’re sorely lacking in the ability to coach players to play creatively. It doesn’t help that FIFA won’t consider any worthwhile rules changes.
My beef? Too many fouls. Can you imagine how awful a basketball game would be if there weren’t a penalty for accumulating fouls? Basically, defenses’ fouls are limiting offensive creativity and refs will only card for the most agressive of fouls.
OK, end of vent. Go USA, but I’ll enjoy watching the “boring” 1-0 final whoever is playing.
By Henry
May 30, 2006 7:54 AM | Link to this
Of course Byron does not know the difference between his ,,,,, and his elbow. When I served in the US Army in Germany, I went to about 5 Bundesliga games. At each game I took 5 GI’s with me. I explained to them the game and it’s basic rules. Notice, I went to only 5 games in 2 years. My fellow GI’s after proper introduction went to every home game of the two teams in town. So maybe Byron should learn the ins and out of the game. Granted I only went to one major league game in New York, Mets than Champions vs the Dodger vice-champions. One to nothing was the sore after 3 houre with the most exitement in the stands, fighting not shown on TV. My work associate, at the nith inning got all excited that the right outfielder of the mets got a ball send into his direction and told me that after 3 houres all players made a play. Exciting sport Baseball is!!!!!
By Greg from Marietta
May 30, 2006 10:17 AM | Link to this
I’m sorry, I really am. I have tried over the years to get excited about Soccer but I just can’t. It’s just so slow and boring. I guess it’s something that you have to be raised with starting at a very young age (in the absence of baseball or U.S. football or basketball). I guess if it were the only game in town, like it is in most of the world, then it would be more captivating. I wish our team the very best and hope they do well in the World Cup, but even if they should win the whole thing I don’t think many Americans will even notice and that is truly a shame for the players who love the sport.
By kyle
May 30, 2006 11:25 AM | Link to this
Do you have any actual insight into the world cup or will this blog simply be a cheerleader on the sideline?
You’re writing is as lost as your analysis.
This paper’s total lack of coverage on the world cup throughout its history leaves it horribly incapable of covering it now. For anyone who makes it this far into reading check out:
yanks-abroad.com ussoccer.com fifaworldcup.com
and just about ANY other paper on-line for your soccer news. the AJC is a joke
By eric
May 30, 2006 12:04 PM | Link to this
Greg,
No problem with guys like you…I agree, some people have to see it from young age to find it interesting, and appreciate the intricacies of the game.
Believe it or not…most Europeans find American Football and Baseball to be utterly mind-numbing in much the same way many Americans view soccer.
I promise you, if we somehow win, many Americans will take notice, and the finals will be the most watched in US History. Americans have shown the ability to get excited about a National Team in a one-off qaudrennial event before (Miracle on Ice).
Will it translate into record crowds for MLS and the USL? Probably not…much like the ‘80 Hockey team didn’t propel the NHL to massive TV ratings for national popularity.
The team surely appreciates your support, thanks for an honest post about soccer, and not just bashing.
-Eric
By Rutuger
May 30, 2006 12:58 PM | Link to this
Wendy, great blog! Can’t wait to follow this throughout the Cup.
If we can win the Cup this year I PROMISE you it will not fall under the radar. Especially with the rest of the world rooting against us, for the US team to win the world’s largest sporting event (nothing else even comes close, even the Olympics) would shake the entire globe.
Granted, everyone may not be rioting or filling Peachtree, Broadway, Sunset Blvd, etc., in celebration, but there are more than enough people in this country who recognize and appreciate the significane of the World Cup to make it a memorable occasion.
As a longtime Falcons and Braves season ticket holder (and previous Hawks one), I love sports and can appreciate those who simply just aren’t interested in soccer, just as I think NASCAR racing is the most ridiculously inane event on the planet.
However, if you truly don’t think it’s a real sport or that the World Cup “matters,” then you are simply wallowing in either 1)your own ignorance, or 2)your own stupidity.
LET’S GO USA!!!
By Wendy Parker
May 30, 2006 4:21 PM | Link to this
Kyle,
I do have a bit of insight in that I covered WC 2002 for the AJC — hope that suffices for you. Since I’ve been primarily the person covering soccer for the paper for most of the last decade, I must correct your assertion that we’ve done little with the World Cup.
The AJC has assigned writers to every WC since ‘90, with the exception of France ‘98, and I made a pitch to go then. Sacre bleu, it didn’t work out, but c’est la vie. So this will make it four of the last five WCs that this paper will be there — not many American papers our size have that track record.
But we’re doing more than that, especially with our online presence now. I started this blog about a year ago, after making a major career shift from the print side, and will be maintaining a World Cup page on ajc.com that will be launched, as a I mentioned above, on June 5.
On days when the Yanks are playing, the focus of this blog will be the U.S. team since, well, we do live in the U.S. But as you can tell from the links on this entry, I do go global quite a bit of the time. And I will be checking out venues around Atlanta where denizens of other nations are gathering to watch their team.
Don’t know what you were expecting, Kyle, but please stay tuned and be a part of it. Unless you’d rather just gripe.
Rutuger — I like your positive thinking. I’d also like to know where you get your supply of relaxin’ tobacco.
By Nicholas Irwin
May 30, 2006 5:12 PM | Link to this
I think that if we ever make a World Cup final, people in this country will watch it. However, it will be much like the 1999 Women’s World Cup in this regard. People will watch it. If we win, people will celebrate. But it will be quickly forgotten. One think it certainly won’t do, in my opinion, is draw people to the MLS and the USL. I’m not sure the USL will ever draw people, and the MLS is going to have to do things like institute the “Beckham rule” to lure well-known players. If a few well-known players come to MLS, they will draw more people than they do now, but even then, soccer will still be a niche sport.
I just really don’t think soccer will ever be that big in this country. I hear talk of soccer one day becoming bigger than baseball and I just wonder what these people are seeing that I’m not. I mean, I guess it’s a good thing that they didn’t say bigger than American football…we wouldn’t want to be unrealistic or anything. Rather than making ridiculous claims such as these, maybe we would be better off admitting that soccer is a niche sport in this country, and marketing it as such. I can tell you that, as someone who is also a fan of the big American sports, I sometimes feel alienated by this talk of soccer taking over the country’s sporting consciousness. If soccer tried to find its place in the American sports landscape rather than attempting to blow up the whole landscape, it might actually find that people would be more receptive to it. At least, that’s my opinion. Soccer doesn’t have to be the most popular sport in America.
By tbflowers
May 30, 2006 8:39 PM | Link to this
Wow! A “World Cup page that will feature daily installments of Off the Ball, including live-blogging off U.S. matches, and visits to reknown Atlanta watering holes to see how locals are soaking up Cup fever. We’ll also feature AJC coverage from Germany and link to other blogs, in this, the first fully-blogged World Cup.” It’s the absolute least I’d expect Wendy.
How much daily print space are we going to get for the biggest show on earth? And after its over, what then? How about regular Silverbacks updates/articles in the paper. There are soccer fans in Atlanta. Some of us grew up playing in ATL and still play and watch professional matches. There IS an audience. But I expect us to be largely ignored post WC.
Despite all the AJC’s soccer shortcomings, thanks for your efforts on the blog Wendy.
By Chris
May 30, 2006 10:20 PM | Link to this
If you look at the Attendance numbers soccer is competitive with other sports in major markets. Look at Chicago, LA and New York City and compare average soccer attendance with basketball and hockey. Soccer is drawing 20k folks per game. In Los Angelas the Galaxy have a higher average attendance than the Lakers, Clippers or the Kings. Not exactly sure what consitutes a niche and what constitutes main stream. To tell you the truth I don’t give a crap. Soccer is a game and and at a professional level it is a form of entertainment. Some people find it entertaining and some people don’t as is the case with every other sport in the world.
By Chris
May 30, 2006 10:32 PM | Link to this
As of 2002, it appears that more people in this country were participating in Soccer than Baseball. Not sure what the current numbers are but soccer appears to have been growing rather quickly. Can’t imagine why anyone would think Baseball might be surpassed in popularity by Soccer one day. Those crazy landscape blower upper people:
Soccer participation in the United States has grown nearly 15 percent since 1987. In 1987, there were 15,388,000 players on adult and youth soccer teams in the U.S. By 2002, there were 17,641,000 players on teams. By contrast, basketball saw only a 2.4 percent increase in team participation, while baseball actually experienced a decrease in team play (31.1 percent decrease) as did touch football (26.6 percent decrease). Basketball still has the highest total of team players in the U.S. in 2002 with 36,583,000 players on teams. Soccer is the second highest with 17,641,000 followed by touch football (14,093,000) and baseball (10,402,000).
By Nicholas Irwin
May 31, 2006 12:40 AM | Link to this
Well, that’s the problem, I think. Lots of people play soccer or have played it, but far fewer people actually follow the sport. Nearly everybody in this country under the age of 30 played soccer as a kid, but then people start playing football, basketball and baseball more as they get older. Also, I would venture to say that they know very little about the game that they play. By the time they get to the age where the intricacies of the game would begin to sink in and they would begin to become curious about the professional level of the game, they’re on to some other sport. For instance, I played soccer as a kid, but I didn’t know the rules of soccer beyond the very basic until I started watching soccer years later. And the parents of these kids know even less about the game than the kids, so where are the kids gonna learn, especially considering that many of these youth teams are coached by parents?
Also, how “big” a sport is in a country, at least in my opinion, is measured by what kind of spectator following the professional level of the sport gets, not how many people play it. For instance, basketball, as you pointed out, is the most played sport in the country. However, it is the third-most popular sport behind football and baseball. Soccer is the second most played, but is well back of football, baseball and basketball, still a fair amount behind hockey and is also (lamentably) behind golf and NASCAR from this perspective. So until the amount of players in the country starts translating into fan support for the MLS and the U.S. national team (and admittedly, the national team support did improve a great deal between the last qualifying period and this one), it really doesn’t mean much in terms of the national consciousness. However, having that amount of people playing certainly bodes well for the quality of play, both in MLS and the U.S. national team, which I guess was my point. If the quality of play is good, who really cares how much media attention the game gets?
By Henry
May 31, 2006 8:19 AM | Link to this
Just remember that it took 100 years for soccer to be a world sport. In average only 10% of all players will attend regularly professional soccer games. I went to the Ft Lauderdale Strikers game regularly because my son was playing on my youth soccer team. Now I rarly go to games, mostly due to the distances. We are now growing the future of the game here and i probably will take another generation to fill the stadiums.
By Chris
May 31, 2006 9:56 AM | Link to this
A fair amount behind Hockey? In New York, LA, Washington DC and Chicago Soccer draws larger average crowds than Hockey. Hockey has no major network affiliations. When is the next National Hockey team game going to be on television? When was the last hockey advertisement you saw on TV?
By Michael
May 31, 2006 1:53 PM | Link to this
Greg,
If you have Fox Soccer Channel, check out some of the English Premier League games. They’re way faster than MLS games. Some are almost like hockey on grass. It IS really hard for people to get into a sport when they can’t see the best players (when the other sporting leagues have the best). I honestly doubt anything surrounding the World Cup would captivate the country unless the entire team came back here and played in MLS. If Brian McBride heads in a winner against Brazil in the late rounds, he’s going to be a hero and go back to…Fulham. You and millions of others probably haven’t a clue where Fulham is. That’s why with this new Beckham-Ronaldo Rule that is being discussed for MLS, it would be best if some teams would shell out the money for someone like Clint Dempsey, Eddie Johnson, or Kasey Keller. Keep the Americans here.
By fanaticodelfutbol
June 1, 2006 8:54 AM | Link to this
Another great league to watch is La Liga, Spanish premier league which you can see on GolTV or a few other channels if you have a Spanish language package. Or if you’re lucky and have Dish with the Voom package, WorldsportHD to see Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc in full 16x9 Hi-def. Now that is something that can show the full beauty of soccer/futbol. The Real Madrid vs Barca matches are hard to top, can’t wait for the world cup to start…
By BASSHound
June 1, 2006 1:50 PM | Link to this
MAN,
so much negativity on this blog. Growing up in DC, I can say that soccer is bigger and higher up on the priority scale in certain parts of the country, but that’s to be expected. Cities with major league baseball clubs are more likely to be interested in baseball than cities with a single A club. What I dont get is why these people who dont like soccer seem to HATE it so much. If you dont like it thats all well and good, I don’t like snowboard motocross, but I dont fire off swear words at people who do. Numbers dont lie, more people in the world play and watch soccer than any other sport. Soccer will probably never consistently outdraw the NFL, or even the NBA, but things change, just look at NASCAR.
By Kevin
June 1, 2006 3:55 PM | Link to this
I have played soccer since I was a kid and I love watching it! If you don’t like soccer then why comment?