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I've heard the argument that the NFL is more exciting because more points are scored. That makes no sense...lots of NFL games end 14-7 or 10-3. A 14-7 score in the NFL is the exact same as 2-1 in soccer. Let's just make soccer goals worth 7 points and the weakness of that argument will be exposed.
As for the shootout, its much better than flipping a coin...and whoever wins the flip runs a couple of plays and sets up for a field goal. That sucks.
It's not the score.... that is a stupid argument. It's just the way the game is played, I guess. Besides, most football games don't end in overtime and ties.
I just don't think soccer is as exciting as football is. I'm just more into the hard hittin' Americanized rugby, a.k.a. "NFL style" football then the world's version, and you and I both know I'm not alone on that.
That's not a shot a soccer... it's just a fact.
Does that skill set include the ability to use steroids, shoot up strip clubs, fight dogs, cheat by video taping opponent's practices, etc, etc, etc?
Heard today that the Bengals have had 11 players arrested in 2 years. Yet most of you NFL fans fall all over yourselves to throw money at this crap.
Oh, for heaven's sake. Not everyone in the NFL is a cheater or a thug. I enjoy the game, in spite of the bad seeds -- which, unfortunately, are present in every major American professional sport.
It's fine if you don't like American football, but you don't have to start ripping on its fans or tarring all of its players with the same broad brush.
They show all NFL games in Europe in 30 minutes. In that 30 minute timeframe, they show every play including highlights for the big plays without commercial interruption. That is the only way they could get people to watch the games over there.
The fact that they are able to show every game including highlights in 30 minutes goes to show how much time is wasted in football.
But it's not "wasted," it's just the time taken to walk back to the huddle, make the call, line up at scrimmage, and so on. It's part of the game. That's just how it's paced. The action takes place in short bursts, and then the teams set up for another one. I could say a soccer match is mostly wasted with people aimlessly kicking the ball around, or that a baseball game is wasted on the pitcher taking his time up on the mound between pitches. People who love those sports would disagree, and they'd have every reason to do so. If people think too much time is "wasted," they just don't understand what's going on.
Maybe Europeans simply aren't attracted to the game, much in the same way many Americans aren't attracted to soccer. I don't think the long stretches of inaction would prevent Europeans from getting interested in gridiron. Ever see a cricket match???
i agree with X greensboro res
It is one thing to "play" soccer and not have much coordination...but if you play at even a little advanced level..talking a 12 yr old premier team you definitely need to be coordinated or you wont make the cut and you wont want to play!! Baseball and, football does not take half the coordination of soccer!!
And you gotta love all the commercials after a touchdown. then, they come back to the game...kick off...and right back to commercial.
what a great way to spend 4 hours of your life each sunday.
That's the part that drives me crazy ... all the TV timeouts. It's even worse if you're attending a game in person, just watching all these people mill about on the sidelines waiting for the commercials to end. At least at home, you have the ads to distract you!
I think it's the combination of the start-stop action of football and all the commercial breaks that make people think there's so much inactivity going on. If play were continuous, without the commercial breaks, I don't think a lot of people would find it so interminable.
It's like watching a European rugby match. There are lulls in the action, when guys get injured, or someone's lining up for a kick. But you don't notice the lull because there's never a breakaway for a commercial -- the game just keeps moving on.
Unfortunately, there's nothing anyone can do about pro football and all the ads. Someone needs to help pay those bloated salaries ...
I've heard the argument that the NFL is more exciting because more points are scored. That makes no sense...lots of NFL games end 14-7 or 10-3. A 14-7 score in the NFL is the exact same as 2-1 in soccer. Let's just make soccer goals worth 7 points and the weakness of that argument will be exposed.
As for the shootout, its much better than flipping a coin...and whoever wins the flip runs a couple of plays and sets up for a field goal. That sucks.
The people who say there isn't enough scoring will NEVER get into soccer. Those are the people with ADD who have to be constantly entertained. If there isn't constant scoring or constant action, they can't be bothered. I hear the same argument being leveled against hockey. Everyone wants smaller goalie equipment or bigger nets. Why? So the scores can be higher. Well, who needs more goals? Heck, a 1-0 defensive scuffle with amazing goalie saves is just as exciting as a 7-5 goalfest. Most of the time, the 1-0 game is MORE exciting. But there's just no convincing some people ...
One other thing I wanted to say in my last post...
Another reason why I think most Americans take NFL over soccer is because, unlike just about every other sport, there is more than one way to score in football. You can get a field goal for 3 points and a safety for 2. They may not be as high scoring as a touchdown, but different.
One thing I always say about why Americans don't embrace pro soccer like most of the world does.....
We don't have the metric system like the rest of the world and not too many complain about that. So why do we have to be a soccer nation?
The people who say there isn't enough scoring will NEVER get into soccer. Those are the people with ADD who have to be constantly entertained. If there isn't constant scoring or constant action, they can't be bothered. I hear the same argument being leveled against hockey. Everyone wants smaller goalie equipment or bigger nets. Why? So the scores can be higher. Well, who needs more goals? Heck, a 1-0 defensive scuffle with amazing goalie saves is just as exciting as a 7-5 goalfest. Most of the time, the 1-0 game is MORE exciting. But there's just no convincing some people ...
I agree, I don't dislike soccer because it's low scoring. I dislike it because good scoring opportunities are too easily disrupted or at least too difficult to put together, imo. There's a touch of drama every 10 minutes or so and compared to other sports it just doesn't excite me. Likewise, sports where scoring is too easy like basketball fail to excitement me just as much. Get rid of or modify the offsides rule and I'd probably get into it a LOT more.
I agree, I don't dislike soccer because it's low scoring. I dislike it because good scoring opportunities are too easily disrupted or at least too difficult to put together, imo. There's a touch of drama every 10 minutes or so and compared to other sports it just doesn't excite me. Likewise, sports where scoring is too easy like basketball fail to excitement me just as much. Get rid of or modify the offsides rule and I'd probably get into it a LOT more.
That's pretty much how I feel! I don't need to be constantly entertained, but there are just some sports that don't excite me. Baseball, auto racing, golf, and soccer and four I can think of off the top of my head. There's nothing wrong with them ... they're just not for me.
I don't like basketball for the same reason you mentioned. It's just score, score, score. Besides, there's something wrong with a game where goaltending is illegal.
I agree, I don't dislike soccer because it's low scoring. I dislike it because good scoring opportunities are too easily disrupted or at least too difficult to put together, imo. There's a touch of drama every 10 minutes or so and compared to other sports it just doesn't excite me. Likewise, sports where scoring is too easy like basketball fail to excitement me just as much. Get rid of or modify the offsides rule and I'd probably get into it a LOT more.
You're just making things up now. Even so, those 10 minutes are actually ten minutes, not 45 in the NFL. There's also an extra 30 of playing time, making the game 50% long and played in nearly half the time.
For the record, I'm a fan of both sports.
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