FIFA is the problem with soccer, not Americans
Jul 14, 2011, 3:07 PM | Updated: Jul 26, 2024, 1:40 pm
FIFA does more to hurt soccer in this country than the sport does.
The U.S. women have had an amazing World Cup. The goals of Abby Wambach should fall in the legendary moments of American sport and instead they fall into two unpopular categories: soccer and women’s sports.
Soon you will be bombarded with why you should care about soccer as we approach Sunday’s final. I wish you did, but I won’t tell you should because FIFA and soccer snobs are the problem, not you.
I have an intense passion and love for the sport. I wish most Americans did too. Although there are clear differences in soccer versus “our” sports that make it not an American favorite, FIFA (soccer’s world governing body) clearly doesn’t care to make the sport American fan-friendly.
If you don’t use the terms of soccer correctly, soccer fans immediately question your intelligence. It’s not a field, it’s the pitch. No one is fast, they have great pace. In hockey you shoot on goal, in soccer you shoot on frame. It’s not the sideline, it’s a touchline.
Time to change the game to bring in more Americans without terribly affecting the sport.
1) Soccer snobs need to quit saying soccer haters just don’t understand the game. Either educate or accept the opinion, but don’t attack potential fans.
2) Get rid of injury time. Put 45 minutes on the clock and count the clock down. When play is stopped, stop the clock.
3) If you’re “hurt” and the ref stops the game, you must stay out for 5 minutes before you can return. This will eliminate the ridiculous fake injuries that happen in the men’s game (wonderfully the woman’s game doesn’t include this).
4) The hockey “blue line” or whatever color you want will be added to the field. The offense can’t be offside until they pass the blue line instead of mid-field. This would double the scoring, create more space on the FIELD and lead to FASTER play.
5) Quit extra time. It’s a sudden-death overtime. Put 45 minutes on the clock and play till there’s a goal. You get one extra sub per period.
6) Get rid of penalty kicks. Obviously I mean at the end of games, but also throughout the whole game. Hand balls in the box and any foul on a breakaway scoring chance leads to a hockey-style penalty shot. Any other foul leads to a free kick no matter where it happens.
FIFA will never institute any of these changes because they think you are the problem. Maybe, for once, a sport trailing behind other sports will admit their game isn’t perfect and make it better.
