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***Official 2014 World Cup Thread*** (1 Viewer)

Bought a PS4 and bought FIFA. Sadly, no international tournament on it -- I assume they'll make you buy a whole new world cup version of the game.

However, it does have the international teams, so I can start playing some preview matchups. :nerd:

 
Notorious T.R.E. said:
Bought a PS4 and bought FIFA. Sadly, no international tournament on it -- I assume they'll make you buy a whole new world cup version of the game.

However, it does have the international teams, so I can start playing some preview matchups. :nerd:
Click to expand...
Not even in career mode? The Xbox 360 version definitely has World Cup/Euros/Copa America and qualifying.

 
Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
Notorious T.R.E. said:
Bought a PS4 and bought FIFA. Sadly, no international tournament on it -- I assume they'll make you buy a whole new world cup version of the game.

However, it does have the international teams, so I can start playing some preview matchups. :nerd:
Click to expand...
Not even in career mode? The Xbox 360 version definitely has World Cup/Euros/Copa America and qualifying.
Click to expand...
Hmm, maybe. Not sure. The FIFA I had before was 2-3 years old and I don't think you played the WC...

 
Notorious T.R.E. said:
Ramsay Hunt Experience said:
Notorious T.R.E. said:
Bought a PS4 and bought FIFA. Sadly, no international tournament on it -- I assume they'll make you buy a whole new world cup version of the game.

However, it does have the international teams, so I can start playing some preview matchups. :nerd:
Click to expand...
Not even in career mode? The Xbox 360 version definitely has World Cup/Euros/Copa America and qualifying.
Click to expand...
Hmm, maybe. Not sure. The FIFA I had before was 2-3 years old and I don't think you played the WC...
Click to expand...
It looks like they did remove custom tournament mode for the Next Gen systems. I can't dog them too much, because I don't use that mode myself, but you under the older systems you could have created the World Cup tournament through that option.

 
QuizGuy66 said:
10-match ban for the Croatian Nazi Salute dude so he'll miss the World Cup:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/soccer-croatian-simunic-miss-world-cup-10-match-172847797--sow.html

Yet another break for El Tie.

-QG
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The FIFA ban appears particularly severe, especially in view of the relatively light punishments that have been dished out to national teams and club sides for racist behaviour.
Click to expand...
The uneven enforcement of these standards is the problem here. You can bet that if this was a major soccer nation they'd not have handed down a 10-match ban.

 
Oh I mean the Nazi shouldn't get to play, certainly wasn't inferring that. The cloud in the silver lining is that it should (presumably) benefit Mexico.

-QG

 
QuizGuy66 said:
Stadium construction workers have walked out on the Manaus stadium site:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/workers-brazil-world-cup-stadium-173130138--spt.html

Citing safety concerns after the death of one of the workers there. These construction deaths are one of the sad legacies of these world cups that FIFA doesn't like to talk about.

-QG
Click to expand...
Did this haspen before or after the judge ordered a full work stoppage?

http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=699418&p=16320975

 
Notorious T.R.E. said:
Sinn Fein said:
Notorious T.R.E. said:
fatguyinalittlecoat said:
QuizGuy66 said:
So am I the only one that likes Honduras to advance out of that group?

-QG
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How twitchy are they?
Click to expand...
:goodposting:

I think I might be "slow twitch" :(
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Unfortunately, I had no twitch. Otherwise, I could have been a great soccer player. :kicksrock:
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Lol. Just picturing you standing there as the ball rolls by.
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Watch it, dude. You just described my 5 year old grandson.

 
NewlyRetired said:
QuizGuy66 said:
Stadium construction workers have walked out on the Manaus stadium site:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/workers-brazil-world-cup-stadium-173130138--spt.html

Citing safety concerns after the death of one of the workers there. These construction deaths are one of the sad legacies of these world cups that FIFA doesn't like to talk about.

-QG
Click to expand...
Did this haspen before or after the judge ordered a full work stoppage?

http://forums.footballguys.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=699418&p=16320975
Click to expand...
After, I believe. The article mentions the judicial order.

-QG

 
"Good said:
Does a World Cup need new stadiums? Or is this just an opportunity for graft, corruption, etc. I think I just answered my own question.
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I think only WC1994 did not feature a massive round of building/remodeling stadiums since WC1990 where it first became popular in Italy.

 
I bet that's why the UK didn't win the bribing bidding process for WC 2018. They had all the stadiums they need, the transport links, the history of holding giant sporting events, etc. etc. What the didn't have was guaranteed building contracts for friends / family for those nations that were voting.

I think FIFA would let Burma host the cup if they had enough scratch to throw around. :hot:

 
The Z Machine said:
I bet that's why the UK didn't win the bribing bidding process for WC 2018. They had all the stadiums they need, the transport links, the history of holding giant sporting events, etc. etc. What the didn't have was guaranteed building contracts for friends / family for those nations that were voting.

I think FIFA would let Burma host the cup if they had enough scratch to throw around. :hot:
Click to expand...
Don't forget the clement summer weather and diverse fanbase.

 
Good Posting Judge said:
The Z Machine said:
I bet that's why the UK didn't win the bribing bidding process for WC 2018. They had all the stadiums they need, the transport links, the history of holding giant sporting events, etc. etc. What the didn't have was guaranteed building contracts for friends / family for those nations that were voting.

I think FIFA would let Burma host the cup if they had enough scratch to throw around. :hot:
Click to expand...
Don't forget the clement summer weather and diverse fanbase.
Click to expand...
And the cheap, expendable labor.

 
The Z Machine said:
I bet that's why the UK didn't win the bribing bidding process for WC 2018. They had all the stadiums they need, the transport links, the history of holding giant sporting events, etc. etc. What the didn't have was guaranteed building contracts for friends / family for those nations that were voting.

I think FIFA would let Burma host the cup if they had enough scratch to throw around. :hot:
Click to expand...
The UK was going to spend some money upgrading stadiums and infrastructure. The only bid in the last cycle that featured absolutely no expenditures was the US bid. Guess that's one benefit of continually gifting billionaires hundreds of millions of dollars.

 
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
 
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.

 
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
1300 is a rather large number

 
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I agree. From 8 or 9 on, they get into a development program. But from the time they can walk, they are kicking a ball; in their homes, in their yards, in their schools, on their streets. There is a difference between a US kid who goes to practice and play two or three times a week in an organized way at age 5,6 or 7, and a Brazilian kid who spends every waking hour playing with his father, his brothers, the neighbors kids and the kids from school.

The ones who are picked for the development programs already have had years of skill training.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I did not know it was that wide spread in Brazil either.

As Guster said, 1300 players abroad is a frightening number when you consider they have a strong domestic league to fill as well.

 
Fifa officially announced that the spray will be used to demarcate 10 yards for free kicks.

I hope this goes global into every league next year.

 
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
lol- interesting, and correction standed.

 
DiStefano said:
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I agree. From 8 or 9 on, they get into a development program. But from the time they can walk, they are kicking a ball; in their homes, in their yards, in their schools, on their streets. There is a difference between a US kid who goes to practice and play two or three times a week in an organized way at age 5,6 or 7, and a Brazilian kid who spends every waking hour playing with his father, his brothers, the neighbors kids and the kids from school.

The ones who are picked for the development programs already have had years of skill training.
Click to expand...
yes- what I'm imagining happening as well. that's the "culture" part of things I've been trying to talk about.

I remember reading I thnk it was about Kaka being from a family wiht money (or at least middle class) and being outside the norm of Brasilan soccer players. Would put him square in the majority of what has been the typical US player in the structure I've seen for kids here. But I"m sure I'm outdated on that one too...

 
Having kids involved in professional sports academies is considered pretty extreme and not the norm in this country. The only sports that do this are niche sports, such as gymnastics or tennis. I'm just not sure that this can catch on quite the same way in the US as it does in Brazil, where a family's sole economic hope is their son's footballing future.

 
T Bell said:
Having kids involved in professional sports academies is considered pretty extreme and not the norm in this country. The only sports that do this are niche sports, such as gymnastics or tennis. I'm just not sure that this can catch on quite the same way in the US as it does in Brazil, where a family's sole economic hope is their son's footballing future.
Click to expand...
I agree it probably won't catch on in the amount we are talking about in Brazil.However, unless one has been living in a cave soccer wise, the speed and more importantly the acceleration of the growth of academies in the US, both in the all important infrastructure and in the investment in the players themselves, has been staggering.

It was nearly impossible to predict this level of investment and involvement just 5 years ago, so it will be difficult to fully predict end game but it is going to relatively enormous. The foundation being built is too strong and too wide spread for it to fail and as new teams come into MLS, the investments are only going to go up.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
El Floppo said:
DiStefano said:
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I agree. From 8 or 9 on, they get into a development program. But from the time they can walk, they are kicking a ball; in their homes, in their yards, in their schools, on their streets. There is a difference between a US kid who goes to practice and play two or three times a week in an organized way at age 5,6 or 7, and a Brazilian kid who spends every waking hour playing with his father, his brothers, the neighbors kids and the kids from school.

The ones who are picked for the development programs already have had years of skill training.
Click to expand...
yes- what I'm imagining happening as well. that's the "culture" part of things I've been trying to talk about.

I remember reading I thnk it was about Kaka being from a family wiht money (or at least middle class) and being outside the norm of Brasilan soccer players. Would put him square in the majority of what has been the typical US player in the structure I've seen for kids here. But I"m sure I'm outdated on that one too...
Click to expand...
Another thing about the culture; this is a guess, but if you asked 10 American 8 year olds at random who Clint Dempsey is, probably one out of ten would know. If you asked 10 Brazilian 8 year olds who Neymar is, probably 9 out of 10 would know.

 
DiStefano said:
El Floppo said:
DiStefano said:
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …

“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I agree. From 8 or 9 on, they get into a development program. But from the time they can walk, they are kicking a ball; in their homes, in their yards, in their schools, on their streets. There is a difference between a US kid who goes to practice and play two or three times a week in an organized way at age 5,6 or 7, and a Brazilian kid who spends every waking hour playing with his father, his brothers, the neighbors kids and the kids from school.

The ones who are picked for the development programs already have had years of skill training.
Click to expand...
yes- what I'm imagining happening as well. that's the "culture" part of things I've been trying to talk about.

I remember reading I thnk it was about Kaka being from a family wiht money (or at least middle class) and being outside the norm of Brasilan soccer players. Would put him square in the majority of what has been the typical US player in the structure I've seen for kids here. But I"m sure I'm outdated on that one too...
Click to expand...
Another thing about the culture; this is a guess, but if you asked 10 American 8 year olds at random who Clint Dempsey is, probably one out of ten would know. If you asked 10 Brazilian 8 year olds who Neymar is, probably 9 out of 10 would know.
Click to expand...
But I'd guess more American kids would know who Messi is than Clint. Doesn't matter what nationality the guy is.

 
dparker713 said:
DiStefano said:
El Floppo said:
DiStefano said:
roadkill1292 said:
NewlyRetired said:
El Floppo said:
Places like Brazil and... basically everywhere else... have the culture and the kids going out every day to play pickup on the street because they're too broke to play organized ball. It's a cliche the amount of times I've heard the story of the kid from poverty who HAS to make it- has the skills and ultimately the coaching but also has the chip on their shoulder about pulling themselves and their families out of poverty to give them the drive that your average middle class kid won't ever have to get to the next level.
Click to expand...
Thought this was an interesting tidbit about how Brazil develops players in the modern age.

“We have a mass production of players,” Parreira said. “I call it the factory. When a player is nine, he is already being evolved by a club. At 19, he has already had 10 years’ organised football. That’s why Brazil have so many good players, playing in the first division of Brazil aged 19.” …“There are no street players in Brazil any more. Players are built in clubs. This is the strength of Brazilian football. It is not about Pele, Kaka, Ronaldinho – it is about the system that produces them. This year we will transfer 1,300 players abroad. Ronaldinho at Barcelona and Kaka at Milan are role models for young Brazilian players to follow.”
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Brother NR, I think this pretty adequately explains why the African players continue to lag in development. This kind of infrastructure just doesn't exist on that continent. Heck, I didn't know it was that widespread in Brazil, either.
Click to expand...
I agree. From 8 or 9 on, they get into a development program. But from the time they can walk, they are kicking a ball; in their homes, in their yards, in their schools, on their streets. There is a difference between a US kid who goes to practice and play two or three times a week in an organized way at age 5,6 or 7, and a Brazilian kid who spends every waking hour playing with his father, his brothers, the neighbors kids and the kids from school.

The ones who are picked for the development programs already have had years of skill training.
Click to expand...
yes- what I'm imagining happening as well. that's the "culture" part of things I've been trying to talk about.I remember reading I thnk it was about Kaka being from a family wiht money (or at least middle class) and being outside the norm of Brasilan soccer players. Would put him square in the majority of what has been the typical US player in the structure I've seen for kids here. But I"m sure I'm outdated on that one too...
Click to expand...
Another thing about the culture; this is a guess, but if you asked 10 American 8 year olds at random who Clint Dempsey is, probably one out of ten would know. If you asked 10 Brazilian 8 year olds who Neymar is, probably 9 out of 10 would know.
Click to expand...
But I'd guess more American kids would know who Messi is than Clint. Doesn't matter what nationality the guy is.
Click to expand...
Messi is enormous amongst young American kids.

http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/relegationzone/id/1452?cc=5901

Yet the Argentinian star's most recent accomplishment may prove to be among his most astonishing: The 26-year-old has just become the first international footballer to break into the top-10 list of America's favorite athletes, according to the vast ESPN Sports Poll (October 2012-September 2013.)

"It is a staggering statistic" said Seth Ader, ESPN's senior director of marketing who oversees the company's soccer-related World Cup marketing strategy. "It is the first time in the history of this poll that a soccer player has shown up inside the top 10 for entire year."

Messi's achievement is even more seismic when viewed through the lens of the 12- to 24-year-old demographic, who proclaim the Barcelona star to be the fourth-favorite athlete in the United States (the study tracks the fan base sizes and demographic trends for all major sports through a monthly telephone survey of 1,500 Americans ages 12 and over).

 
That's fine. But to an extent, you're missing the point; I can readily see, as US kids get into organized soccer, they become much more aware of soccer as a sport worldwide. . The point is that 5 and 6 years olds in Brazil are running around playing like they're Neymar. 5 and 6 year olds in the US are playing video games and would say: Messi who?

 
DiStefano said:
That's fine. But to an extent, you're missing the point; I can readily see, as US kids get into organized soccer, they become much more aware of soccer as a sport worldwide. . The point is that 5 and 6 years olds in Brazil are running around playing like they're Neymar. 5 and 6 year olds in the US are playing video games and would say: Messi who?
Click to expand...
no, we understand the point. We were just saying kids are more aware of soccer players than you thought.

Ironically video games, specifically the EA FIFA game is one of the reasons kids are so aware these days.

Messi already has had fantastic penetration into the US youth market. Should he cap this all of with a run to the finals or a WC win, his profile is going to sky rocket into the tippy top of the most known athletes in the US. The fact that he is as high as he is already is amazing.

It will be a long time before the US has a male player in that level. It would take a very very unlikely long run in the WC, coupled with one player with some sort of personality (not Dempsey or Landon) being the stand out player.

 
NewlyRetired said:
DiStefano said:
That's fine. But to an extent, you're missing the point; I can readily see, as US kids get into organized soccer, they become much more aware of soccer as a sport worldwide. . The point is that 5 and 6 years olds in Brazil are running around playing like they're Neymar. 5 and 6 year olds in the US are playing video games and would say: Messi who?
Click to expand...
no, we understand the point. We were just saying kids are more aware of soccer players than you thought.

Ironically video games, specifically the EA FIFA game is one of the reasons kids are so aware these days.

Messi already has had fantastic penetration into the US youth market. Should he cap this all of with a run to the finals or a WC win, his profile is going to sky rocket into the tippy top of the most known athletes in the US. The fact that he is as high as he is already is amazing.

It will be a long time before the US has a male player in that level. It would take a very very unlikely long run in the WC, coupled with one player with some sort of personality (not Dempsey or Landon) being the stand out player.
Click to expand...
Fine. I'm going to quit arguing the point. Obviously we have a pool of 8 year olds who are just as talented as the Brazilians.

Peace.

 
DiStefano said:
NewlyRetired said:
DiStefano said:
That's fine. But to an extent, you're missing the point; I can readily see, as US kids get into organized soccer, they become much more aware of soccer as a sport worldwide. . The point is that 5 and 6 years olds in Brazil are running around playing like they're Neymar. 5 and 6 year olds in the US are playing video games and would say: Messi who?
Click to expand...
no, we understand the point. We were just saying kids are more aware of soccer players than you thought.

Ironically video games, specifically the EA FIFA game is one of the reasons kids are so aware these days.

Messi already has had fantastic penetration into the US youth market. Should he cap this all of with a run to the finals or a WC win, his profile is going to sky rocket into the tippy top of the most known athletes in the US. The fact that he is as high as he is already is amazing.

It will be a long time before the US has a male player in that level. It would take a very very unlikely long run in the WC, coupled with one player with some sort of personality (not Dempsey or Landon) being the stand out player.
Click to expand...
Fine. I'm going to quit arguing the point. Obviously we have a pool of 8 year olds who are just as talented as the Brazilians.
Click to expand...
I don't think anyone said this nor do I think anyone believes it.

 
DiStefano said:
NewlyRetired said:
DiStefano said:
That's fine. But to an extent, you're missing the point; I can readily see, as US kids get into organized soccer, they become much more aware of soccer as a sport worldwide. . The point is that 5 and 6 years olds in Brazil are running around playing like they're Neymar. 5 and 6 year olds in the US are playing video games and would say: Messi who?
Click to expand...
no, we understand the point. We were just saying kids are more aware of soccer players than you thought.

Ironically video games, specifically the EA FIFA game is one of the reasons kids are so aware these days.

Messi already has had fantastic penetration into the US youth market. Should he cap this all of with a run to the finals or a WC win, his profile is going to sky rocket into the tippy top of the most known athletes in the US. The fact that he is as high as he is already is amazing.

It will be a long time before the US has a male player in that level. It would take a very very unlikely long run in the WC, coupled with one player with some sort of personality (not Dempsey or Landon) being the stand out player.
Click to expand...
Fine. I'm going to quit arguing the point. Obviously we have a pool of 8 year olds who are just as talented as the Brazilians.

Peace.
Click to expand...
I certainly hope they're better at soccer than you are at logic.

 
Just a couple (or so) of thoughts - for all of the perceived advantages for the Brazilians, and their youth development, they still only have one Neymar. Its really hard to find/develop a player of Neymar's ability no matter where you grow up.

Also, there are so many different ways to skin a cat here. Northern Europeans play a different style of football than South Americans; Spain is maybe a hybrid of both styles, Africans play a different style, and Asians different still. So, the skills you need to excel in each location are different. I think one of the challenges the US faces, is we have never really committed to playing a certain style - that makes it harder to identify players who fit that style best, or encourage development of certain skills over others.

We might be making things more difficult on ourselves by trying to mix/match players from different styles into a single coherent team.

Or maybe our "style" really just is a "gritty" counter-attacking style.

 
Sinn Fein said:
Just a couple (or so) of thoughts - for all of the perceived advantages for the Brazilians, and their youth development, they still only have one Neymar. Its really hard to find/develop a player of Neymar's ability no matter where you grow up.

Also, there are so many different ways to skin a cat here. Northern Europeans play a different style of football than South Americans; Spain is maybe a hybrid of both styles, Africans play a different style, and Asians different still. So, the skills you need to excel in each location are different. I think one of the challenges the US faces, is we have never really committed to playing a certain style - that makes it harder to identify players who fit that style best, or encourage development of certain skills over others.

We might be making things more difficult on ourselves by trying to mix/match players from different styles into a single coherent team.

Or maybe our "style" really just is a "gritty" counter-attacking style.
Click to expand...
This. It's been by default as we've lacked the technical ability historically to even maintain possession well. I think we've traditionally had a defensive, pressing, speedy counter-attacking style, with our players being among the most fit. We would run other teams into the ground and generate counter-attacking opportunities sometimes because we were simply not as tired as the opposition. I think the 2002 World Cup was the best example of this formula working well.

The hope with Klinnsman is that he's establishing a better technical style that still incorporates the best aspects of that scrappy counter-attacking style we've historically used.

As for an American Neymar, we're probably still a generation away from anything like that. The good news about the US, however, is that even if our overall rate of participation in youth soccer might be lower proportionally than other countries, our massive population means that we still have a very large potential talent pool. It's just a matter of coaching them up.

 
Sinn Fein said:
Just a couple (or so) of thoughts - for all of the perceived advantages for the Brazilians, and their youth development, they still only have one Neymar. Its really hard to find/develop a player of Neymar's ability no matter where you grow up.

Also, there are so many different ways to skin a cat here. Northern Europeans play a different style of football than South Americans; Spain is maybe a hybrid of both styles, Africans play a different style, and Asians different still. So, the skills you need to excel in each location are different. I think one of the challenges the US faces, is we have never really committed to playing a certain style - that makes it harder to identify players who fit that style best, or encourage development of certain skills over others.

We might be making things more difficult on ourselves by trying to mix/match players from different styles into a single coherent team.

Or maybe our "style" really just is a "gritty" counter-attacking style.
Click to expand...
The US creating a defined style has been a constant point of interesting discussion in the modern (post 1990) time frame. Every new coach gets asked about it but it may very well be impossible in our country.

If we continue to mix the styles of hispanic's, african americans, islanders, and suburban white kids, it will be very difficult.

Perhaps in 25-35 years, the hispanic influence on soccer will be so high, that we will start to look more like a Mexican or CR style but my guess is that we are always going to have some sort of mix and the style will change based on who the coach is.

 
NewlyRetired said:
Sinn Fein said:
Just a couple (or so) of thoughts - for all of the perceived advantages for the Brazilians, and their youth development, they still only have one Neymar. Its really hard to find/develop a player of Neymar's ability no matter where you grow up.

Also, there are so many different ways to skin a cat here. Northern Europeans play a different style of football than South Americans; Spain is maybe a hybrid of both styles, Africans play a different style, and Asians different still. So, the skills you need to excel in each location are different. I think one of the challenges the US faces, is we have never really committed to playing a certain style - that makes it harder to identify players who fit that style best, or encourage development of certain skills over others.

We might be making things more difficult on ourselves by trying to mix/match players from different styles into a single coherent team.

Or maybe our "style" really just is a "gritty" counter-attacking style.
Click to expand...
The US creating a defined style has been a constant point of interesting discussion in the modern (post 1990) time frame. Every new coach gets asked about it but it may very well be impossible in our country.If we continue to mix the styles of hispanic's, african americans, islanders, and suburban white kids, it will be very difficult.

Perhaps in 25-35 years, the hispanic influence on soccer will be so high, that we will start to look more like a Mexican or CR style but my guess is that we are always going to have some sort of mix and the style will change based on who the coach is.
Click to expand...
We don't have to be a generation away from a world caliber superstar. Maybe it's this kid:

Joshua Pynadath

Maybe not, but maybe. A lot of plain luck in this thing. If we are looking for a Messi or a Neymar chances are we will be disappointed. Only two countries in the world have those two guys. No reason we can't have a player (or more than 1) in that next tier coming through our system right now though.

 
I'm normally a steak over sizzle type of guy, but I could watch that Pynadath kid throw stepovers, roulettes, and Cruyuff turns all day. Nobody had those clubs in his bag when I was playing youth soccer.

 
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