Is Soccer Displacing Football in the US

NFL TV ratings are down almost 30% this year vs last season...I grew up as a die hard second generation Baltimore Colts fan...but ever since my DD began playing soccer watching the beautiful game has caused me to see football differently. For example I now I notice how little actual football action there is in a televised game. Most of it is filler...chatter from the announcers, meaningless random statistics, human interest stuff, time outs, official reviews, penalties. In contrast, soccer flows and there is almost constant action...once I got over my need to focus on how many goals were scored it freed me up to enjoy the suspense, beauty and flow of the game...now with cable and the internet I get to watch soccer all over the world and find it much more satisfying as a consumer...

Here is another take from the NY Post...

http://nypost.com/2016/12/03/american-football-could-fall-like-the-gladiators-of-ancient-rome/
 
I will disagree with HBE. I think it is just a matter of time for many reasons. Here are just a few.
1. One of the biggest is the fact that girls don't play football. Many of today's soccer girls will go on to become soccer moms that know and love the game. What sport do you think they will sign their kids up for? These future soccer moms will be better volunteer coaches than most rec coaches today due to their better understanding of the game and better skills.
2. Soccer is a better game for little kids. The rules are relatively easy to understand and everyone gets to do something. Once they try soccer, many kids become hooked. I know several "my kid will never play soccer" football loving dads who now stand on the side of the pitch watching their kid play soccer due to the kid picking the sport.
3. Ten years ago it was rare to spot a kid at the mall or airport wearing an EPL, La Liga, Bundesliga or NT jersey. Now it is common. This trend is not going to reverse itself. I even see the occasional MLS jersey now and then.
4. Optics. It would be hard to design a game that is more optically easy to watch. It has a relatively large ball that contrasts with the grass and is almost never hidden by a player. The pace is fast, but not so fast it can't be seen. The action rarely stops, so boredom doesn't set in and encourage someone to change the channel.
5. Little towns in the middle of the USA now have soccer complexes where 40 years ago you would be laughed at for even mentioning soccer. See number 1 above.
 
All good points, but the US Soccer federation has no respect for the women's side. Did you see that piece on WNT I think on 60 minutes. They might go on strike over pay, and NWSL is struggling.
NFL is a cash cow! Hell the Commissioner made 40 Mil last year, 40 Mil! Soccer has come a long way but no way will it over take NFL anytime soon.
 
Football, basketball and baseball are hard to watch. Many people that follow the sport just do so based on their fantasy or Draft Kings teams. Football has very little actual action and for those that played through High School you usually have some kind of chronic injury to go along with it (head, back, knees). Basketball is a game with little flow as their are constantly fouls (free-throws) and time-outs called and the hack a shaq where you are purposely fouling to get the ball back. Basketball needs a re-design, lol. Soccer on the other hand only has occasional fouls are ball out of bounds but is usually restarted right away.

I believe the thing limiting soccer's popularity in the US is the "fast food" mentality of our culture where we want our food (goals, points etc...) and we want them now. Our society is dumbed down and needs to be entertained by high scoring games (see the NFL and NCAAFB now) and violence (hockey, football).
 
Football, basketball and baseball are hard to watch. Many people that follow the sport just do so based on their fantasy or Draft Kings teams. Football has very little actual action and for those that played through High School you usually have some kind of chronic injury to go along with it (head, back, knees). Basketball is a game with little flow as their are constantly fouls (free-throws) and time-outs called and the hack a shaq where you are purposely fouling to get the ball back. Basketball needs a re-design, lol. Soccer on the other hand only has occasional fouls are ball out of bounds but is usually restarted right away.

I believe the thing limiting soccer's popularity in the US is the "fast food" mentality of our culture where we want our food (goals, points etc...) and we want them now. Our society is dumbed down and needs to be entertained by high scoring games (see the NFL and NCAAFB now) and violence (hockey, football).

There is always indoor soccer - fewer balls out of bounds, higher scoring, looser substitution rules, no offside calls.
 
Football, basketball and baseball are hard to watch.

TV contracts are worth ridiculous money because these sports allow the stations to shove plenty of commercials and station advertising down our throats, they LOVE the stoppages, its made for TV. That's what makes it hard for soccer to compete with financially, at least for now. 45+ mins without a commercial? I could see Stephen Burke cringe every time NBC shows a soccer match on channel 4. Actually not a bad deal because EPL or Bundesliga games will never be in prime time, so the loss (if any) may be minimal.
If based solely on popularity in the US, soccer is definitely trending way up, in my opinion.
 
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TV contracts are worth ridiculous money because these sports allow the stations to shove plenty of commercials and station advertising down our throats, they LOVE the stoppages, its made for TV. That's what makes it hard for soccer to compete with financially, at least for now. 45+ mins without a commercial? I could see Stephen Burke cringe every time NBC shows a soccer match on channel 4. Actually not a bad deal because EPL or Bundesliga games will never be in prime time, so the loss (if any) may be minimal.
If based solely on popularity in the US, soccer is definitely trending way up, in my opinion.
DFBMike I hear you but my kids don't watch TV....at least not on a TV..."TV is like so Grandpa"...they watch on laptops or phones...that is the opening for soccer...the internet along with cable are giving us more options...like HBE said the NFL and TV and radio broadcasters are all in it together but the internet and the youth will force change...I think the USC vs WVA Womens College Cup Final was a better competition than Rams vs (_____fill in the blank)...and cheaper too...
 
Football, basketball and baseball are hard to watch. Many people that follow the sport just do so based on their fantasy or Draft Kings teams. Football has very little actual action and for those that played through High School you usually have some kind of chronic injury to go along with it (head, back, knees). Basketball is a game with little flow as their are constantly fouls (free-throws) and time-outs called and the hack a shaq where you are purposely fouling to get the ball back. Basketball needs a re-design, lol. Soccer on the other hand only has occasional fouls are ball out of bounds but is usually restarted right away.

I believe the thing limiting soccer's popularity in the US is the "fast food" mentality of our culture where we want our food (goals, points etc...) and we want them now. Our society is dumbed down and needs to be entertained by high scoring games (see the NFL and NCAAFB now) and violence (hockey, football).
Tango, I just think its a matter of education. I always thought soccer was ridiculous. How hard can that be? You kick a ball around people and then into a net...C'mon anyone can do that easy peasy...but once you appreciate what incredible skill it takes and how it takes years to develop then I think people appreciate the sport better...
 
NFL TV ratings are down almost 30% this year vs last season...I grew up as a die hard second generation Baltimore Colts fan...but ever since my DD began playing soccer watching the beautiful game has caused me to see football differently. For example I now I notice how little actual football action there is in a televised game. Most of it is filler...chatter from the announcers, meaningless random statistics, human interest stuff, time outs, official reviews, penalties. In contrast, soccer flows and there is almost constant action...once I got over my need to focus on how many goals were scored it freed me up to enjoy the suspense, beauty and flow of the game...now with cable and the internet I get to watch soccer all over the world and find it much more satisfying as a consumer...

Here is another take from the NY Post...

http://nypost.com/2016/12/!03/american-football-could-fall-like-the-gladiators-of-ancient-rome/
Imagine this, if each goal was worth 7 points instead of 1, scores would be, 14-7, 7-0, 21-7 or 21-14! There you go higher scores and let's say there are 5 goals to 3, which some times happens, it would be 35 to 21, there is your high scoring game! It is all about how you look at the score
 
Imagine this, if each goal was worth 7 points instead of 1, scores would be, 14-7, 7-0, 21-7 or 21-14! There you go higher scores and let's say there are 5 goals to 3, which some times happens, it would be 35 to 21, there is your high scoring game! It is all about how you look at the score
Lambchopster as an American I am embarrassed to concede that might work...
 
I think there are multiple reasons why the NFL ratings are down recently. I think the biggest contributor to the decreased ratings is the overabundance of games on tv now. When I was young, you had Sunday football and Monday Night Football. Now we have the NFL on Thursdays (crappy games to say the least), all day Sunday and Monday night. Pretty soon we will have Saturday games too. The games are suffering from the quick turnaround times these players have to recover from game to game. Another reason I think the ratings are down is that people just change their viewing tastes frequently. With the internet (Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, etc.) we have the ability to watch shows/movies on our schedule, not be subject to a predetermined schedule.

I was a big NFL fan growing up. Now I don't watch more than a few minutes of any game. I cannot handle the amount to tv timeouts, breaks between action, advertisements for their network shows, incessant close-ups of players, coaches, fans, owners, etc. One of the great benefits of football (soccer) is the ability to watch 45 minutes of a game without commercial interruptions. Sure they have in-game product advertisements, tv schedule advertisements, etc., but at least they stay with the game until the half is over.

Now that I watch football (soccer) on tv most weekends, I have grown a much greater appreciation of the sport and its athletes.

I would rather watch a football (soccer) match on tv more than an NFL, MLB, or NBA game.
 
It's an Election Year or more like a Reality TV Election Year. NFL ratings will be back where they're suppose to be next year.....
 
It's an Election Year or more like a Reality TV Election Year. NFL ratings will be back where they're suppose to be next year.....
Well taken HBE but the article said the NFL ratings were mixed even after the election ended. The NFL has increasingly lousy content but dominant distribution. It's everywhere. Soccer has better content but practically NO distribution in the US. If the tv channels showed more games at better hours and invested in marketing and distribution soccer would be able to tap into frustrated NFL fans like me. I think it's inevitable but will take years more.
 
There is always indoor soccer - fewer balls out of bounds, higher scoring, looser substitution rules, no offside calls.
Word. Mark Cuban earlier this year purchased a principal owner stake in the Professional Futsal League and promised to bring the best futsal talent from all over the world.
 
Imagine this, if each goal was worth 7 points instead of 1, scores would be, 14-7, 7-0, 21-7 or 21-14! There you go higher scores and let's say there are 5 goals to 3, which some times happens, it would be 35 to 21, there is your high scoring game! It is all about how you look at the score

No offsides and you won't need to raise the point total!.... GOALS ALL OVER THE PLACE!!!
 
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