Man, these people take their soccer (sorry, football) seriously. Then again, they could probably find an excuse to fight over ping pong.

Does anybody here actually follow this stuff? If so, please explain the appeal.


STUTTGART (Reuters) - Riot police detained around 200 England soccer supporters on Saturday after they clashed with German fans, throwing bottles and chairs and trading punches in a square in the center of Stuttgart.

Tens of thousands of English and German fans had gathered in the central area, many drinking throughout the day, to watch Germany's 2-0 second-round World Cup win over Sweden on big screen TVs.

England fans were in the city for Sunday's second-round match against Ecuador and trouble broke out shortly after the end of Saturday's German game.


Some 200 fans on both sides threw bottles and chairs before riot police moved into the area to separate them.

After an uneasy standoff, the two sets of fans again threw glass bottles at each other, prompting the riot police to drive the German fans out of the area.

They then moved in to detain the English supporters who were bundled into waiting vans and taken to the local police station in an operation that lasted for several hours.

"The cells will be very busy tonight," Stuttgart police spokesman Stefan Kielbach said.

"It's like a theater here, and if we don't arrest them there'll be trouble here all night."

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English fans are known for their hooliganism. England was banned from international matches for several years in the late eighties, due to the handiwork of their traveling hooligans.

It looks like the German fans were celebrating a victory, when the English fans (whose team did not play until the next day) decided to have their own kind of fun.

I guess it's progress. A century ago, the Germans and English fought world wars; now they only have soccer brawls.

As for the appeal of (what Brazilians call) The Beautiful Game, that's a tough one to answer if you don't watch it.

1. A POOR MAN'S SPORT: American sports require equipment. Baseball requires a bat and ball and rudimentary gloves. Basketball requires a goal and a basket, as well as a decent playing surface. American football requires an oddly shaped ball. To play organized, it needs a lot of equipment.

They say soccer can be played anywhere, without any equipment. City kids can kick a can for a ball. Rural kids can tie rags together. Soccer is perfectly suited to be played by poor kids all around the world.

2. THE INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE OF SPORT: You might as well ask why English is the international language. English is the international language because it was spoken by the British Empire and--by a quirk of fate--the American inheritors of British imperial responsibilities. It's the same with soccer.

Africa, South and Central America and Asia was colonized by Europeans. They brought their cultural influence, as well as their games.

Had the United States colonized most of the world (and baseball been invented at the time), then baseball might well be the international sport.

3. ALL THE STARS ON ONE STAGE: The World Cup is truly unique. It's like the Olympics, in that it only takes place every four years. So whole careers are defined by one or two of these tournaments.

Unlike the Olympics, though, The World Cup showcases the best of the best, the biggest superstars in international sports. These men are demigods in their home countries. World class superstars divide up by nation and fight for football supremacy.

The World Cup is the perfect storm, in that way. It is the biggest names in the world's biggest sport with the most on the line. You can be an MVP many times over and worth tens of millions of dollars, but if you score an "own goal" that puts your country out of the World Cup, you'll be known as a goat to future generations. Or if you happen to be the one to score the winning goal, you are immortalized by your countrymen.

4. AMERICANS SUCK AT IT: Finally, it's one of the few international phenomena on which Americans have little impact. Why, a couple of World Cups ago, the Iranians defeated the Americans. So we get back to where we begin. Even poor nations can compete, and even outshine, the wealthiest and most powerful nations on Earth.

It's a little like the United Nations in that regard.

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Well, the idea behind the World Cup certainly seems sound. Every sporting event should pit the best in the world against one another.

I've tried to watch it in the past, but the lack of scoring just sort of took the wind out of me.

And who knows? If I gave it another chance I might like it. I could see the English leagues with the assorted hooligans (both on and off the field) having an appeal to me.

Funny thing is, I've actually been to the headquarters of FC Barcelona when I went on vacation to Spain, once upon a time. I've never seen so many jerseys for sale in all my life.

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It's definately a live sport.

I've seen a World Cup match live. (Spain/Korea when the Cup was here in the U.S. in '94.)

There is much more action going on live. It's much more physical than it appears on television. There's constant activity. None of that translates onto the television screen.

Certainly, the sport is not for everybody, because the scoring isn't there. Here's one excercise. Pretend each goal is worth 7 points, like in American football. That way, you'll see an occasional 21-14 score.

If that doesn't work, watch any match with the Brazilian national team. It is the best in the world, and they put a premium on scoring, movement and beautiful passing. My guess is, if you don't enjoy watching a Brazilian match, you'll probably never enjoy international soccer.

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Well, it looks like the Italians are the champs.

MacGuffin, who were you rooting for?

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Here are links to a few articles which deal with the popularity of soccer.

http://www.sportingnews.com/archives...ds/159666.html

http://www.associatedcontent.com/art..._not_golf.html

http://www.sportsgeekz.com/archives/...er-so-popular/


Take is from a Brit, football (or, as you call it, soccer) is incredibly popular all across Europe and pretty much the rest of the world, with the exception of the United States. Certainly there are twits who follow the game, but I seem to remember reading about stadiums in Philadelphia and elsewhere having jails on the premises for all the violent drunkards.

Ultimately, I suppose it all comes down to a matter of taste. I like most sports, personally, as I view it as the ultimate display of unbridled masculinity.

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