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Why hasn't soccer caught on in America? (1 Viewer)

The 1970s NASL (an old Pele on the New York Cosmos, etc.) had 35-yard lines that served the same (?) purposes as the blue lines in ice hockey. That legalized some kinds of offsides.
yes you are correct.  

There are many ideas out there on how to adjust it(it can't be eliminated).  Even FIFA has experimented with some ideas in youth tournaments but never has pulled the trigger.

The only adjustment we have seen to this critical rule in the past 25 years was to make even with last defender be onside instead of offside.

 
big fan of the sport too and I am right there with you on this topic.  

7 goals a game on average probably would need too many changes, but I think 5 on average would be achievable with small changes that would not alter the fabric of the sport too much.

But FIFA moves at a tectonic like speed so I don't expect this in my lifetime to happen.
For me, the low scoring output is what makes the goals so damn exciting.  They happen at an almost perfect rate, IMO. Adding higher scoring waters down the game. 

 
Nope. This would just encourage defenses to play deeper to avoid letting people behind them. All you'd get was a bunch more low-percentage long shots.
right, it can't be eliminated, but there are adjustments that can be made.  I loved the one that you can't be offside if receiving a ball inside the 18.   Seems like that one kills 1-2 great chances a game.   I also liked the old 35 yard line rule that @Doug Bmentioned above.

 
The only adjustment we have seen to this critical rule in the past 25 years was to make even with last defender be onside instead of offside.
One thing I've seen some people bounce around on another forum was to put a distance limit on offsides. For instance, instead of measuring offsides by the exact location of the last defender, it would be measured by the location of the last defender plus 2 to 5 meters towards the goal (depending on the specific proposal).

Of course, that would introduce some difficult judgment calls. However, modern location-tracking technology could make offsides-plus judgment feasible in the near future. Getting FIFA on board would be another matter altogether.

 
It's AU's first season. They're a novelty for the millennials right now.  I'll be curious to see if their numbers hold up over time.
It's also the Braves first season at SunTrust - I'd guess their numbers are a little inflated by that but more so they just haven't had a great product for several years.  Their farm system is great right now so they should be decent again in two years - but again, the OP started with a premise I think is wrong - I didn't start a thread saying soccer > baseball or United  > Braves.

 
yeah, I guess if I had to do SOMETHING in increase scoring, I'd do some combination of the following....

- Eliminate offsides in the last 18 yards of the field

- only allow the goalie to use their hands inside the 6 yard box (to prevent them from going out and catching crosses/corners further out)

-Make the goal SLIGHTLY bigger (maybe like 10-15% more square footage). This is probably the lamest idea although it would probably be the most effective

-Maybe some sort of variation of the lacrosse offside rule where you can't have all 11 players on one end of the field at the same time. Nothing worse than seeing a team park all 10 field players in the 18 yard box. Maybe only allow 9 players on the defensive side of the field at any one time?

 
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. Getting FIFA on board would be another matter altogether.
this is the biggest issue.  As you know, this is the most corrupt organization in sports.  These guys make moves based on how much the suitcase of cash weighs they get sent.

 Since there is little incentive to bribe for rule changes, FIFA almost ignores them.

 
-Make the goal SLIGHTLY bigger (maybe like 10-15% more square footage). This is probably the lamest idea although it would probably be the most effective
This was actually tested many years ago.  I forget the size increase but the end result was that while scoring increased a little (it was less than expected) that the massive cost to adjust every goal in the world was not worth it.

Considering that keepers are bigger and more athletic than ever before, enlarging the goal is not as whacky as many think on the surface.  But I can appreciate the other issues with this.

 
Wild-hair idea: make hitting the crossbar or the side pieces worth a full goal? Talk about some controversial calls, though (did that ball scrape the bar or not?!?)

 
I don't enjoy watching sports that are not live. Since the best players in the world play either in Europe where it's hard to catch things live or South America where it's all in Spanish, it's hard for me to get into it.

I greatly enjoy watching soccer games with the worlds best players however. 

 
I'm not really on board with big rule changes to increase scoring but it seems you could maybe devise something where GF could be more impactful than GA in GD. Seems like that would encourage attacking but tbh I haven't thought it through to see what the potential negative aspects would be.

ETA - maybe I suck at math and that's not possible - maybe just don't factor GA at all???

 
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this is the biggest issue.  As you know, this is the most corrupt organization in sports.  These guys make moves based on how much the suitcase of cash weighs they get sent.

 Since there is little incentive to bribe for rule changes, FIFA almost ignores them.
Also little incentive to make changes so that the Americans might be more interested.

 
Baseball and soccer have a natural pace that should not be messed with just because our instant gratification culture doesn't respond to them well.

Attempts to jigger the way the games are played are, in the end, only attempts to increase market penetration.  

Leave them be.  If people want to watch they will.  

 
Also little incentive to make changes so that the Americans might be more interested.
Considering the growth I'm not sure anything drastic is needed but baseball, basketball and football all put in new rules to help the offense over the years so it wouldn't be too crazy to try something - I'm just not sure there's as obvious changes you could make as the other sports had.

 
Considering the growth I'm not sure anything drastic is needed but baseball, basketball and football all put in new rules to help the offense over the years so it wouldn't be too crazy to try something - I'm just not sure there's as obvious changes you could make as the other sports had.
yeah, FIFA sees the huge money flowing from the US and realizes they don't need to do anything specific.  The US World Cup TV rights are already the most of any country in terms of cost and FIFA has seen the MLS TV rights and expansion fees sky rocket the past ten years.  They realize they don't need to cater.

I think they are more focused on China's growth which they would love to see mimic the US's I believe.

 
How about this. Make the goal smaller. Allow goalie to only use their hands in a created crease. 

Then have 4-5 pugg goals around the perimeter of the goal line. Maybe even bring them in closer somwhere between midfield and the 18. 

Stops the possession game where 20 passes are made with no defending and increasing scoring. 

Dont stop play after a goal is scored. Defensive teams gets the ball and goes. 

 
LOL at FIFA changing the rules for the global game to fit American tastes when they already make a cool billion for the tv rights

 
Yeah let's change the rules of the sport that the entire rest of the world is fine with as is. This is why the world sees Americans as arrogant. 

 
yeah, FIFA sees the huge money flowing from the US and realizes they don't need to do anything specific.  The US World Cup TV rights are already the most of any country in terms of cost and FIFA has seen the MLS TV rights and expansion fees sky rocket the past ten years.  They realize they don't need to cater.

I think they are more focused on China's growth which they would love to see mimic the US's I believe.
Add in a billion Indians and you have a potential combined market of about a third of the globe's population. They're already footy-mad and that's with national teams that are either mediocre or putrid. A combination of a growing middle class and nowhere to go but up for the quality of domestic play and anybody can see the money potential in those two places.

 
LOL at FIFA changing the rules for the global game to fit American tastes when they already make a cool billion for the tv rights
yeah FIFA has already won the lottery in the US.  

Even in their wildest dreams they could not have imagined this.  in 2001 the World Cup tv rights sold for $40m.  In just ten years time they grew to $1 billion.   Even in the bubble with sports TV rights we have been in, that is extraordinary growth.

 
Yeah let's change the rules of the sport that the entire rest of the world is fine with as is. This is why the world sees Americans as arrogant. 
One simple rule change would be to attach a tether to the goalie & goal post to restrict movement 

 
Maybe we should ask the OP what the threshhold is for "catching on."

Andy, you should post that piece about Target switching its ad budget. Also, that crazy offer MLS just got for its media rights.

 
yeah FIFA has already won the lottery in the US.  

Even in their wildest dreams they could not have imagined this.  in 2001 the World Cup tv rights sold for $40m.  In just ten years time they grew to $1 billion.   Even in the bubble with sports TV rights we have been in, that is extraordinary growth.
Reminds me of the ufc sale.   Bought for $2m in 2001, sold in 2017 for $4b.  Solid profit.  

 
This is kind of it. The powers that be can't make the money they'd like off of it, so they don't promote it. 
But they can...the jerseys are walking advertisements...boards around the field with more ads...those awesome 3D things behind the goal.

They advertise differently for sure...but plenty of ad revenue for soccer.

 
Baseball allows to play keep away? :lmao: :lmao: :lmao:  

You do realize that's the only game where the defense starts play by pitching the ball to the offense?
Good snark, Bro.

Keep away is a bit of a stretch in baseball but there are strategies that uber fans would say is enthralling but(IMO) to me makes the game more boring; intentional walks, the D shift, playing your LP/RP bullpen matchups.

 
Remove the ability to pass the ball back to the goalie. Inatantly you would see less "bus parking" and inevitibly will increase scoring.

 
Remove the ability to pass the ball back to the goalie. Inatantly you would see less "bus parking" and inevitibly will increase scoring.
since we have determined that this thread topic is fairly meaningless with out a definition of what he means by catching on I guess rule changes have taken over.

I particularly like this one.  Over the years, goal keepers have gotten better and better with their feet and have become such an easy outlet for defenders to use as a 5th defender any time they get in trouble.

I would be concerned with how refs would apply this rule, based on things like deflections and other judgement calls.

 
On topic, I can get into just about any soccer match. In fact I'm watching TOL vs LEO on a spanish channel right now. I have no idea who these guys are, nor do I understand the announcers. I do know, however, that you would have to pay me to watch a baseball or NFL game unless it's the Vikings or World Series.

 
At one point about 25 years ago, when you passed in back, the goalie could pick it up.   Then they changed it where the goalie couldon't use his hands.  I'd think that removing the ability to pass it back would be the natural progression.  

 
On topic, I can get into just about any soccer match. In fact I'm watching TOL vs LEO on a spanish channel right now. I have no idea who these guys are, nor do I understand the announcers. I do know, however, that you would have to pay me to watch a baseball or NFL game unless it's the Vikings or World Series.
I am a Royals fan, but flipped away from Red Sox / Royals to watch TOR/NYC in MLS. 

 
Another soccer thread?

This question has been asked many times. Don't overthink it. Soccer hasn't caught on because it's boring.

 
I wouldn't want to see any rule changes other than one to decrease the diving. I think it really cheapens the game.  

I played competitively through college (in the late 80's) and don't remember teams regularly faking injuries to draw fouls. I realize this is a fairly common practice now in most men's leagues worldwide, and maybe it was back then and I just didn't recognize it, but is there a consensus on when this tactic became more common? Did a certain league or national team make this work to their advantage thus spawning copycats? 

 
I wouldn't want to see any rule changes other than one to decrease the diving. I think it really cheapens the game.  

I played competitively through college (in the late 80's) and don't remember teams regularly faking injuries to draw fouls. I realize this is a fairly common practice now in most men's leagues worldwide, and maybe it was back then and I just didn't recognize it, but is there a consensus on when this tactic became more common? Did a certain league or national team make this work to their advantage thus spawning copycats? 
And why are the officials so gullible? If they ignore the dives, the faking will stop.

 
I wouldn't want to see any rule changes other than one to decrease the diving. I think it really cheapens the game.  

I played competitively through college (in the late 80's) and don't remember teams regularly faking injuries to draw fouls. I realize this is a fairly common practice now in most men's leagues worldwide, and maybe it was back then and I just didn't recognize it, but is there a consensus on when this tactic became more common? Did a certain league or national team make this work to their advantage thus spawning copycats? 
Diving/faking is more common in Latin and South America. Much less so in the US and Europe. 

Hell, my 15 year old faces 2 Brazilian teams and a Costa Rican team in the USA Cup in MN a few weeks ago. Thise teams did a bit of diving. A few of thise dives were ridiculous. Thankfully the referees didn't bit on many of them. 

 

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