JCC Arena 2020 Summer Olympics - Tokyo Japan

America's motto for 194 countries.

 

Brisbane to be confirmed for 2032 Games.

I am embarassed and you should be too:

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer...-prepare-for-new-zealand-20210719-p58axh.html

 

That's gonna be a really easy Olympics for the Aussies if Australia isn't letting people in from other countries by then.

 

3-0 now. Boy if this were the US's only good football team, there might be a serious problem.

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To be fair it’s not like Americans even care about football. Well that football not the other football. The men’s team is absolutely atrocious so at least they have that going for them I guess.

 

I dunno, the audience for football there is growing pretty steadily despite some of the worst TV deals and teams in the world, it's kind of impressive. However, if the women's team is actually in trouble there would be a chance of it taking a long time for either side to be competitive on a global stage again.

 

They're usually great but in my experience it only rarely translates into mainstream recognition or coverage. Plus these days the US right has decided they're all traitors or whatever.

 

I'd say about two thirds of my American friends like football; two of them are passionate. It's a rapidly growing sport there. And they understand; it's not like they have no clue how the offside rule works, say.

The problem in the men's game is that the coaching system in the US is ****ed. It's difficult for young talent from poorer backgrounds to break into the game because of the ridiculous expense of sending your kid to train with clubs, as well as the way other sports have embedded themselves in the college scholarship system. Other countries basically pay talented kids to do this which is why most of their players come from working class backgrounds, and a lot of talent isn't wasted. It's pretty evident that football's movers and shakers in the US don't want to learn from how it is done in all of the major footballing nations. It doesn't help that commercial forces are ranged against a promotion/relegation system either, even though this set up hugely increases the competitiveness of the game and provides more drama and excitement for the fans.

The US had huge potential to improve. It can do so if it is prepared to acknowledge that it is doing it all wrong.

 

More popular and important than the men’s team yes, but a vast majority of Americans still don’t give a **** about soccer. Their only real interaction is that sport you drop your kid off at after school.

That’s how the people around me see it. I haven’t looked at an actual data.

Edit: looking at the actual data yes soccer has seen an increase in popularity about as many Americans think Soccer is their favorite professional sport as do Americans who think baseball is. Also Major League Soccer has seen a 27% increase in popularity over the decade. https://news.gallup.com/poll/224864/football-americans-favorite-sport-watch.aspx

 

it’s definitely growing in popularity here

for this match Sweden typically gives the US trouble, pretty sure they eliminated them last olympics

 

I didn't mention earlier that the best bet in the short term for young American players is to move abroad. The US's best young players are doing this, especially in Germany. That's how they can push on and play at a higher level of the game.

Also: check Atlanta United's attendance figures and compare them with some big European clubs, and you'll see the potential.

This has nothing to do with population, and popularity is relative: Croatia and Uruguay only have a few million people each. Both countries are conveyor belts of world class footballing talent. That's because they have talent spotters that nurture the game at youth level and bring them to major clubs. The US mens's team is bad primarily because of their coaching philosophy and set-up.

Sorry, not trying to turn this into a football thread.

 

Not as embarrassing as not having control of COVID down south

 

Reminds me of what's going on with volleyball as well. The volleyball olympian I knew (I was on the same basketball team as him for a couple years) is on the US national team, but plays in Europe otherwise.

 

I am sure America has the potential for soccer, but I still think it’s a decade or more away

 

- Americans in 1994

 

Oh, look, the only internet conversation more tired than the PT conversations in the "Star Wars is Bad" Thread

 

It seemed preferable to just forehead slapping frustration that anyone on the various Czech squads still isn't vaccinated.

Beach volleyball, table tennis, I expect the list will go on.

 

Over the years I’ve grown more and more tired of the Olympics. There needs to be more at stake. It needs more of a RISK™ element. I wouldn’t mind losing Florida to Japan because they beat us in diving or something.

 

How about a pit of lava after each hurdle in the horse-jumping? Or a set of spikes for the tumbling gymnasts to land on? Might even make those sports worth watching.

 

Tony, I think I’m in love.
Please bring these suggestions to the Olympic Committee immediately.

 

I would like to slightly revise my recommendation: Cancel all events except dressage.

I need my Olympic dressage.

 

This is a lot of work when you could simply hold those events concurrently and on the same field as all the shooting competitions. Mind you, this would give Americans a major edge.

 

The shooting events should definitely involve machine guns.