5 ms·

I don't see them as mutually exclusive - it doesn't have to be American football loses / futbol wins. I guess part of what I'm saying here is - look at where Am

I don't see them as mutually exclusive - it doesn't have to be American football loses / futbol wins. I guess part of what I'm saying here is - look at where American football was in the 1960s. Some player still worked other jobs in the offseason. Formations were very simple. Max McGee famously partied the night before the first Super Bowl. Today, the NFL is big effing business to the point that it plays a role in our politics. The game itself is being played with sophistication way beyond just even a few decades ago. So, it is not hard to imagine a future for [soccer | futbol | football] where over time that same sophistication will grow for the game here in the US.

ghaff 8y ago
Attention is somewhat zero sum though. Arguably the rise of the NFL has come at least somewhat at the expense of baseball. (And, for that matter, I wouldn't be surprised if soccer has cut into the number of kids playing baseball.)
- poulsbohemian 8y ago
  You know what I think would be really interesting? Some kind of urban vs. rural study on this. I live in the middle of nowhere, USA. The number of kids that turn out for sports is truly amazing. You drive past a soccer pitch on the weekend and there are hundreds of kids out there playing. Same is true for the baseball field. But, I talk to my urban friends and it isn't the same; their kids are either playing even more exotic sports like lacrosse, or they simply aren't playing. Baseball is a funny one, because even though the Mariners are top of their division at the moment, you can walk right up and get any ticket you want any day of the week - serious lack of fan support. So yes, baseball has declined overall, but I'm also left to wonder what role urban vs. rural interests play in this, as here in the heartland, baseball is still very much a big deal.
  - ghaff 8y ago
    I assume there are people who know these things but I only am familiar with some things anecdotally. There are a lot of demographic dimensions. Basketball tends to be associated with inner cities although, historically, there were some other groups like Catholic schools where hoops was popular. Ice hockey was a northern sport; at one time a large percentage of NHL players were Canadian. Today, I expect that the availability of frozen ponds and lakes is much less important although I also expect its popularity is still fairly skewed to the north. "Friday Night Lights" high school football obsession tends to be associated with the South. It's an interesting question especially as some college-educated parents choose to increasingly live in certain dense cities where the soccer-mom lifestyle doesn't necessarily fit very well.

ghaff 8y ago

Attention is somewhat zero sum though. Arguably the rise of the NFL has come at least somewhat at the expense of baseball. (And, for that matter, I wouldn't be surprised if soccer has cut into the number of kids playing baseball.)

poulsbohemian 8y ago
You know what I think would be really interesting? Some kind of urban vs. rural study on this. I live in the middle of nowhere, USA. The number of kids that turn out for sports is truly amazing. You drive past a soccer pitch on the weekend and there are hundreds of kids out there playing. Same is true for the baseball field. But, I talk to my urban friends and it isn't the same; their kids are either playing even more exotic sports like lacrosse, or they simply aren't playing. Baseball is a funny one, because even though the Mariners are top of their division at the moment, you can walk right up and get any ticket you want any day of the week - serious lack of fan support. So yes, baseball has declined overall, but I'm also left to wonder what role urban vs. rural interests play in this, as here in the heartland, baseball is still very much a big deal.
- ghaff 8y ago
  I assume there are people who know these things but I only am familiar with some things anecdotally. There are a lot of demographic dimensions. Basketball tends to be associated with inner cities although, historically, there were some other groups like Catholic schools where hoops was popular. Ice hockey was a northern sport; at one time a large percentage of NHL players were Canadian. Today, I expect that the availability of frozen ponds and lakes is much less important although I also expect its popularity is still fairly skewed to the north. "Friday Night Lights" high school football obsession tends to be associated with the South. It's an interesting question especially as some college-educated parents choose to increasingly live in certain dense cities where the soccer-mom lifestyle doesn't necessarily fit very well.