David Beckham: I don't get it (1 Viewer)

[Malcolm R]

As others have noted, soccer has been enjoyed by several generations of young people but it hasn't helped raise the sport's profile in the U.S. I think one reason it's so popular for school-aged kids is it's so cheap. There's no special equipment really...just a ball, a big field, and a couple of nets. I played in high school, but have no desire to watch the sport on TV or in person.

I don't expect America will care much about the Beckham's either. The tabloids might be in a tizzy for awhile, but the couple has already been somewhat of a fixture in the tabs here (along with everything related to Princess Diana and her sons) so it's not really going to be anything different.

 

[Christ Reynolds]

seems that there is a reason (besides a quarter of a billion dollars) for them to come stateside.

http://nydailynews.com/front/story/488357p-411202c.html

CJ

 

[Rob Gillespie]

If that story is true then they I hope they're prepared for the total onslaught they will get from the British press.

I imagine the Scientology freaks are alreayd eyeing up that $250M

 

[andrew markworthy]

You'll find precious few Brits who'd agree with Maradona being on that list ...

 

[Chris Lockwood]

> I played as a kid in the 70s and everyone kept saying how soccer was going to be this big, professional sport by the time I became an adult.

I was a kid in the 70s, & there were no kids in our area playing soccer... not sure if we were even aware of the game then. Everyone played baseball or football.

 

[Ricardo C]

The "Hand of God" was simply payback for the Rattin disgrace in '66

Look, Maradona is a dick, a cheat, and a junkie.

But personal animosity towards him aside, he WAS one of the three greatest players of all time.

 

[TimMc]

The kinda surprising thing might be that more kids in the USA play soccer today than any other sport. Things really are changing a bit from the 70s (when soccer wasn't invented yet, as far as the schools where I grew up would have you believe...).

The Becks deal isn't about player salary - any more than the deal to buy DC United is about owning a soccer team. As noted above, he'll receive just a fraction of that big number in salary from the league and the rest is all about endorsement & "show" money. If anyone has some specifics of how profitable his stuff has been for Adidas that might help explain the big number.

Doesn't matter if much of anyone here @ HTF cares about soccer, either (seeing as audio & HT phools are also an extreme minority) - the real money for that deal is in the future, and just the youth numbers & demographic trends will help raise soccer's impact here. And it's really not too much different than hockey in some ways - another niche sport that got injected into the limelight, but how many kids actually play hockey? Just 'cause we all didn't play it doesn't mean it won't become popular and lucrative. How many old farts ever skateboarded when they were teens? How many would ever have thought you could do that professionally and be featured on ESPN?

I'll studiously avoid the Posh & Becks blitz, but our kids will probably pay far more attention than most of us would ever guess.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I'm not sure where you grew up, Chris, but I grew up in a town of about 35,000 people in suburban Detroit. I was a referee for the younger age groups, and the city had many, many teams in these age groups -- 14/under, 12/under, 10/under, 8/under. Some of the neighboring cities made our town's program look small by comparison. This was from 1977-80.

 

[KurtEP]

My experience was the same in the 70's. We probably played soccer once or twice a year in gym class, but that was the limit of our exposure to it. One of my friends who transferred in had actually played in an organized league elsewhere, but nothing was available where we were.

 

[MarkHastings]

My childhood was SURROUNDED by soccer. My dad was a coach, my mom was part of the league, my brother played, etc. etc. - I liked the game as a kid (not enough to play), but I did start to play when I was older (in an indoor league), but I grew out of it and I really can't stand the sport...in fact, I don't think I really ever DID like the sport. I was into because it was there.

it is a very unusual phenomenon here in the US how most kids played soccer as a kid yet it never stuck with us through our teenage and adult years. I agree with Malcolm R, it's probably popular with kids because it can be easily played without a major investment. Also, it didn't take a whole lot of skill (no offense) for a bunch of kids to kick a ball at a net, which helped liven the game up a bit over something like baseball which can get boring when you watch little kids play.

That's why I don't think soccer will ever become popular here in the US. Most people who do play it, are kids, and I bet most of those kids are more excited about playing a sport than specifically enjoying playing soccer.

 

[Andy_Bu]

The Beckham affect is in full swing it looks like.

LA announced this weekend that have already doubled their previous high for season ticket sales and there is still 3 months to go till the season starts.

LA is creating a new field level seating plan that will sell at $3000 a pop.

Elsewhere, the new expansion team, FC Toronto has just broken the all time MLS record for season tickets and had to expand all ther ticket agents hours to handle the demand after the announcement. And with 3 months to go till season starts, a brand new stadium, a new team and hopefully a big name signing of their own, I expect their season ticket sales to continue to climb.

ESPN reported this weekend that all MLS teams are experiencing season ticket sales growth after the announcement.

With MLS opening two more brand new soccer stadiums this year (in Denver and Toronto), along with the new TV contracts with ESPN, Fox, HDNet and Univision the league has never been on better financial footing.

Just look at the list of some of the people who own MLS teams(some of whom have just recently bought into MLS). These pockets are as deep as any niche league could hope for.

Philip Anschutz
Stan Kroenke
Red Bull Corporation
Victor McFarland
Robert Kraft
Lamar Hunt (may he rest in peace)
Jorge Vergara

Andy

 

[Andy_Bu]

MLS also announced something very cool a couple of days ago(see below) which may help tie in the massive hispanic soccer fans who do not follow MLS at all

Andy

================================================== ==============================


World renowned soccer rivalry gives rise to SuperLiga
Major League Soccer and Mexican First Division clubs to compete for the new North American crown

LOS ANGELES - Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber together with the Commissioner of the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Primera Division (Mexican Soccer Federation's First Division), Decio de Maria, today announced the creation of SuperLiga™, the preeminent club tournament in North America that will not only decide the best in the region but will also award the heftiest winner's purse in North American soccer history.

Eight clubs - four each from the top flight leagues of the United States and Mexico - will vie to determine a singular champion of North America. The format, modeled after the UEFA Champions League, will include a group phase and a knockout phase with all games held in U.S. venues. SuperLiga will be played between July 24 and August 29, 2007. In addition to the prestige of capturing this continental honor, the club that emerges as SuperLiga champion will take home $1 million dollars in prize money, an unprecedented prize purse in North American soccer history.

http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news...._mls&fext=.jsp

 

[Andy_Bu]

For any non-bashers wanting to learn more about MLS (its history, attendance, sponsorships, ratings, teams, stadiums etc etc etc), just post your questions I will answer what I can.

Here is a quick look at the new stadium the NY Red Bulls are building which, when finished, will be the 7th new soccer stadium MLS has opened in the last few years along with Columbus, LA, Dallas, Chicago, Denver and Toronto.

http://www.redbullpark.com/images/rbp_aerial2.jpg


In a nutshell, MLS's first 11 years have all been about survival. That question has been answered with a strong yes. Now the next 8 years (the length of the brand new TV contract) will see if they can start to grow from niche status up to the level BELOW the big 3, alongside the NHL.

One thing you have to give MLS, no other niche league could ever generate as much press as MLS did with this Beckham signing. Whether that works out for them in the long term is certainly up to discussion, but the early returns (in terms of media exposure, general population awareness, and most importantly, season ticket sales) have been promising.


Andy

 

[Al.Anderson]

I think this discussion has missed the mark. Why isn't soccer bigger in the US? I mean, watching golf and racing on TV is to my mind comparable to watching paint dry. Yet those are pulling in big dollars.

I think the soccer guys are trying to find the right spark - and using a semi-controversial star who's name is recognized worldwide AND who has a good looking wife seems to be a decent approach. And as someone else mentioned, especially so in LA. (Think Gretzky).

My personal opinion is that they need to get some better anouncers. I'll flip past a spanish language channel on TV and stick on a soccer game just because they seem to be so damn excited. I don't speak spanish, so it takes me awhile to see if the game is really as good as it seems; but I enjoy the show for the enthusiasm. The US announcers seem to take the baseball approach and analyze the thing to death.

(And one final aside, what ever happened to Telemundo? I used to search out that station in college just so I could hear the station break guy say "Tele MUN dooo"!)

 

[Andy_Bu]

It is still around and is under the NBC umbrella of stations now. It has affiliates in almost every major city in America, and is still the second biggest Spanish channel behind the monster Univision.

Andy

 

[MarkHastings]

Probably because a LOT of adults play golf...A lot of adults are into sportscars, etc. - Not many adults play soccer. It will always be a "Kids game" to most adult Americans.

 

[Scott Merryfield]

I think golf's appeal is not only because so many people play it recreationally, but you can also get very close to the participants. It's rare to have that type of intimate contact with professional athletes while they are playing. Also, as a whole, golfers are much less controversial than athletes in a lot of other sports, making them very marketable. You almost never hear of one being arrested, taking drugs, spitting on fans/opponents, etc. They are a pretty clean-cut bunch.

I'm not a racing fan, and I have no idea how to explain the popularity of NASCAR.

 

[Andy_Bu]

Almost all sports are considered "kids games" by most american adults.

Why else do you think that 97% of Americans choose to tune out golf or why 96% of Americans choose to tune out NASCAR? And these are relatively "popular" nationally watched sports.

The number of people who watch any nationally televised sporting event not named the NFL is extremely small and people are just splitting hairs. The World Cup drew excellent ratings in comparison this summer even with the horrendous time slots for US tv.

There is a good reason ESPN just spent a ton of money on MLS while the NHL has been abandoned to the nether regions of cable space called Versus.

Andy

 

[Andy_Bu]

John Daly has had some issues, but out side of him and the occasional whining about a camera going off, the fan player relationship is excellent.

And also as you mentioned, golf has one thing that no other sporting event has (even Tennis), where in the majority of the viewers also actively play the sport.

Andy

 

[MarkHastings]

Not at all. How many adults play softball? How many shoot hoops? How many play touch football? etc. Most adults engage (whether for fun or for real) in some version of the 3 main sports - This also explains why hockey isn't as popular as the 3 major sports. Not many people play it as a recreational sport. The other 3 can easily be played at a party or picnic, etc.

You don't see a lot of adults saying "Hey, let's kick the soccer ball around", unless they are really into socceer. Hell, most adults don't even own a soccer ball.