BELIEVING IN THE BEAUTIFUL GAME
My family is British and everyone always expects us to be hardcore football fans--sorry, "soccer." Truth is, I've never seen a whole game until I starting dating a someone with a nice haircut and so much Timbers gear that people legitimately thought he must be on the team's reserves. I wasn't forced into the love of the sport; I go to school at University of Oregon, and I'm surrounded by rabid Duck fans screaming into the night and seas of red and black during Blazers games in Portland. The fast pace of basketball was a little more amusing, but I honestly just didn't get the craze behind sports. In American football, only roughly 10-15 minutes of action actually occurs in the game, and the rest is either commercials or talking. WHAT? How do people keep watching? The only part I liked about watching the Super Bowl was the food and beer, and I know I'm not the only one. Okay, as an ad major I loved critiquing the ads too, but that's a different conversation for a different time. But bottom line: I will never understand the love behind those sports, but soccer, I totally see it, and I only wish the USA was more passionate about the World Cup. According to the Associated Press, "the World Cup generated more interactions on Facebook than the Sochi Olympics, Super Bowl, and Academy awards combined," in its opening week.
Yes, Brazil is pretty messed up right now. And, some football players are paid ridiculous salaries and lead superstar lives. But as far as the US goes, our MLS players live rather modestly compared to NBA and NFL stars, or football players in any other country; so why do we ignore the sport so much? Why do we deem it as unAmerican (browse Ann Coulter's recent rant) and not worthy of our love and passion? It sometimes seems people are so keen on criticizing the sport that they lose sight of how simple and beautiful it is. Anyone could play it; all you need it a ball. You could use anything to make goal posts, and the purpose is so simple. No special equipment, no difficult rules. While certain sports tend to be unique to their countries, football is an international connecting force of its own; you don't need to share a language to pick up and play with others.
The official game is non-stop action, with every goal holding so much weight. American football and basketball allows us to feel pride for our cities, maybe even our state; soccer/football allows us to feel pride for our country. During the World Cup, it becomes the ultimate patriotism; so why are our fans so few and far between? Mexico national team jerseys are selling at a more popular rate than American jerseys in our own country.
I've never been an ultra-patriot. When I moved here, I thought it was weird that people read the pledge of allegiance at the start of the day. I found it impossible to memorize all these national songs. I could never sit still during a game of American football. But real football? That's something else. It's a chance for every country to unify under this crazy passion, no matter what background they're from, and that makes it a pretty beautiful game.
If you watch any sport this year, make it FIFA.
I'm rooting USA.