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Colin Cowherd: "Soccer is a Big Four sport."
- Thread starter joelef
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Panteras
“I’ll remember this hell of a journey”- Barkov
the only 2 team sports I watch are hockey and soccer. But if we're talking about league wise, if I catch 10 minutes of MLS in a single year it's a stretch. For me it's still unwatchable unless Miami finally gets it's team for which I would become an instant fan and go to games and watch them on tv. In the meantime, I have too much access to European and South American football to even bother.
Jumptheshark
Rebooting myself
this view just proves how much this joint views North American sports as being the end all to be all
Real FOOTBALL is the biggest in the world
Pavel Buchnevich
Drury and Laviolette Must Go
I don't think soccer will surpass tackle football or basketball. If concussions makes tackle football lose a lot of popularity, maybe it could surpass that as well, but I don't think that will happen. I think soccer is the third most popular sport in the USA, but I think it has a long way to go before its close to tackle football or basketball.
In recent years, I'm not as much of a baseball, basketball or tackle football fan. I do watch some important playoff games, some important college games, select regular season games at times, but I'm rarely excited to watch those sports. The exceptions are that I'm a Jets and Mets fan, so I will watch both those teams, and I'm really excited to watch those two teams play, but the average baseball, basketball or tackle football game is just not something that I am really interested in watching most of the time.
I could watch just about any hockey game, soccer game or golf tournament. Those are my three favorite viewing sports in recent years. It helps that I have favorite teams and athletes in those sports, but those sports are much more interesting to me even when I don't really care who wins.
In recent years, I'm not as much of a baseball, basketball or tackle football fan. I do watch some important playoff games, some important college games, select regular season games at times, but I'm rarely excited to watch those sports. The exceptions are that I'm a Jets and Mets fan, so I will watch both those teams, and I'm really excited to watch those two teams play, but the average baseball, basketball or tackle football game is just not something that I am really interested in watching most of the time.
I could watch just about any hockey game, soccer game or golf tournament. Those are my three favorite viewing sports in recent years. It helps that I have favorite teams and athletes in those sports, but those sports are much more interesting to me even when I don't really care who wins.
Eisen
Registered User
It grows, but even I, as a non NA, have heard that story before. Soccer is supposed to take off since Pele joined NY Cosmos. Meanwhile, when I was in Oregon, the bar keeper of a sports bar slandered me badly when I asked him to turn on a WC match (2014).
maclean
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- Jan 4, 2014
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Personally I'm ecstatic to not live on a continent where you have to hear about the "big three" boringest sports in the world baseball, american football and basketball. Here in the Czech Republic the only sports that really matter are hockey and soccer, with an honourable mention for non-team sport tennis, and as far as I'm concerned that is the most ideal constellation possible.
Power Man
Grrrr
Wouldnt expect anything different from you. Hitting that ball is the hardest thing to do in all of sports.
cgf
FireBednarsSuccessor
Not as hard as beating a grandmaster at chess...and no more a real sport than that either...
Chloraflora
NOLU
Except it isn't, given the best players all get hits at least 25% of the time they step up.
bluesfan94
Registered User
Chloraflora
NOLU
Not really, average hockey players scores on what, 15-20% of their shots? While in skates being buffeted by defenders? I'd say scoring in the NHL is harder than a base hit in MLB.
Scandale du Jour
JordanStaal#1Fan
Central PA Hawk Fan
Registered User
The problem for soccer ever passing the big 3 American sports is that we would have to become a legitimate soccer power with a domestic league that attracts the best players in the world to even think about overtaking them. Soccer offers the cool little difference to the American sports fan where we're actually the underdog, and there is obviously a growing appeal. But at the end of the day in a country with practically unlimited sporting options, the most popular sports are usually going to be the one's we're the best at, or at least were great at at one time (looking in your direction baseball).
Panteras
“I’ll remember this hell of a journey”- Barkov
I have a soft spot for baseball. Was the sport I was raised on and played most as a little kid. I barely watch it now days, I do go to some MLB games, so I still pay more attention to it than the MLS.
Power Man
Grrrr
dma0034
Registered User
This shouldn't be surprising for two reasons:
1. He's in California... even with the Kings winning 2 cups they'll never be looked at the same way as the Lakers. It's the same reason football hasn't survived there.
2. The NHL is the marketed the poorest. Forget about the players not being marketed.... the Stanley Cup wasn't even exclusively on NBC which lowers viewership. How can the NHL grow if no one watches the games? And since no one watches the game ESPN refuses to acknowledge its existence. BTW I'm pretty sure this isn't the first time Cowherd has said something like this either.... I also believe he has said that MMA is more popular too
1. He's in California... even with the Kings winning 2 cups they'll never be looked at the same way as the Lakers. It's the same reason football hasn't survived there.
2. The NHL is the marketed the poorest. Forget about the players not being marketed.... the Stanley Cup wasn't even exclusively on NBC which lowers viewership. How can the NHL grow if no one watches the games? And since no one watches the game ESPN refuses to acknowledge its existence. BTW I'm pretty sure this isn't the first time Cowherd has said something like this either.... I also believe he has said that MMA is more popular too
Duchene2MacKinnon
In the hands of Genius
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BGDDYKWL
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Colin's a soccer fan and big on the business of sports, and soccer is being pretty heavily promoted by his station so I think that factors in quite a bit. The NHL is dying in America, so I guess it's possible soccer eventually overtakes it. But if he's suggesting soccer is going to emerge into an actual big four sport, it ain't gonna happen. The NHL just might dip so low that there's only a big three.
To each their own, but to say soccer is more exciting than football or basketball is just unfathomable to me. Forget about the fact that there's no scoring (because that's a problem in hockey as well), there's no legitimate action (like scoring chances) for probably 90% of the game. Not to mention you have a sport where you can't use your hands and guys flop like they're getting shot. I know people worldwide are raised with it and naturally like it, but it doesn't have the most scoring, the most action, take the most skill nor athleticism, and the players flop around like pansies and essentially can't use half their body.
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maclean
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I think the main difference with soccer is it has the added value of watching a sport you also play, and soccer is one of the easiest sports to play anywhere and the one that most people in the world play. For me it's basically the only sport that's possible to play regularly.
I can understand the position of it being not as exciting as hockey. But for me american football is a sport where nothing is ever happening. For someone who didn't grow up with it it looks like everyone just standing around all the time - ten minutes go by then they play for like 30 seconds and then you have to wait again before anything happens. Basketball has lots of scoring, yes, but it's like the opposite extreme. The teams just go back and forth scoring and occasionally someone misses or gets blocked or the ball gets stolen but for the most part there doesn't seem to be much complexity to it.
