Soccer Vs Other Sports In America

[FredMertz]

Nationally, soccer could very well pass hockey within a decade -- probably not in NY, but nationally. It will eventually pass the NFL after tackle football is banned for being barbaric, but that probably doesn't happen for another 25+ years.

As always, Scouse's spelling and general logic is flawed. Doomsayers have been warning about baseball for years and it's all nonsense. The NFL is the country's #1 national sport by a mile, but the regional power of baseball is remarkable. 2500 games a year, played almost every night. Total attendance has been between 70-75 million every year since 1998, the year TB and Arizona joined the league. 12 teams drew 2.5mm last year. If the Mets stay hot and the Yankees are decent, 2015 should be a record year. Rock-freaking solid.

Guess which major pro sport in America is the only one that has been seeing increases in youth participation? No, not baseball. That would have been too perfect.

The answer in the graphic below:

 

[NYCFCFan10]

The world changes faster than it ever has before. Due to soaring connectivity, over the next generation we are likely to see the rise of a global culture.

American football's downfall will be that it is a local game, with the aforementioned health issues the spark. There will probably be a similar move away from hockey. Basketball and baseball might do okay because they have an international reach. I believe these games caught on partially because they're cheap - with the US middle class suffering, especially relative to other nations, we might be the next one's seeking cheap entertainment.

Soccer will take over the world, with the United States included. It's just going to take another generation. (~25 years)

I don't particularly like hockey but I think it will be alright. It's pretty popular in Russia, Sweden, Norway, Germany, and Poland. It could suffer from the brain injuries issue that football does though.

I think Basketball will see the biggest surge, globally, in popularity going forward. Its a sport that the big boy nations seem to like -- USA, China, Brazil, and Russia. Its played indoors so fans are more comfortable and its a very flashy sport. Honestly, I think the sport has been a victim of America's success. We're just too good at the sport. If other countries can really consistently push and beat USA in the Olympics and Fiba World Cup, it'll definitely take off even more.

Baseball will have trouble expanding elsewhere because its slow paced, requires a lot of players, and isn't as flashy. Though I think its a helluva lot better than Cricket. Come on, India.

 

[NYCFCFan10]

The answer in the graphic below:
View attachment 2482

Problem with this is that you don't know where the losses are coming from. Are parents just not getting their kids involved at 6? Maybe waiting til they're 8?

High schools are reporting record sports participation for the 25th consecutive year!

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (August 20, 2014) — The number of participants in high school sports increased for the 25th consecutive year in 2013-14 with a record total of almost 7.8 million, according to the annual High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).

We have more kids in high school sports than every man, woman and child living in Norway.

 

[Mdrnsamurai]

As long as Congress takes an interest in the MLB, NFL, and NBA. MLS will never have a chance. Plus there's already a ridiculous amount of corruption in FIFA that they're not gonna share with anyone. The day after the first Congressional Hearing or when it becomes a Non-Profit then you will know the MLS has made it.

 

[ferrarinycfc]

If MLS became part of the big 4 and it became a big 5 then it would probably be the one of the richest leagues in the world.

However unless TV revenue improves dramatically then it's unlikely to happen.

Soccer on the whole will continue to make big gains in the future though

 

[Mario]

can i just make a point how youth soccer is going in the wrong direction by putting so much trust into the british coaches that come to train the future of america.

 

[Calmness Personified]

can i just make a point how youth soccer is going in the wrong direction by putting so much trust into the british coaches that come to train the future of america.

British coaches probably make up a tiny minority in the US so you don't a point, a bigger problem is how expensive youth soccer can be in the US, especially if you play at a high level.

 

[Mario]

British coaches probably make up a tiny minority in the US so you don't a point, a bigger problem is how expensive youth soccer can be in the US, especially if you play at a high level.

They make Up a lot more than a tiny minority... So I would have a point. There's a lot here. Especially here in New York. You don't know how many times I've heard "our kids have a new trainer from England, and he's great and he played professionally for barnstonworth rovers!"
They're trying to take over our youth systems, and worse, the college system where kids who've learned something are now taught the English way- the incorrect way.
Funny how you're so quick to dismiss my opinion, soccer expensive in Ny as everything else is. Field permits, training fees, club fees... All needed to keep your kids playing.

 

[Goodfella]

Hockey is losing momentum because of geography and weather.

A game played indoors in US and Canada. This kid fascinates me and troubles me simultaneously

 

[Goodfella]

can i just make a point how youth soccer is going in the wrong direction by putting so much trust into the british coaches that come to train the future of america.

@lawson will ruin this game!

 

[Calmness Personified]

They make Up a lot more than a tiny minority... So I would have a point. There's a lot here. Especially here in New York. You don't know how many times I've heard "our kids have a new trainer from England, and he's great and he played professionally for barnstonworth rovers!"
They're trying to take over our youth systems, and worse, the college system where kids who've learned something are now taught the English way- the incorrect way.
Funny how you're so quick to dismiss my opinion, soccer expensive in Ny as everything else is. Field permits, training fees, club fees... All needed to keep your kids playing.

Most coaches in the US will be American, you might get a few British and other foreigners in the bigger cities but as a whole Brits will make a small number of overall coaches in the US.

 

[PeteDahhSneak]

Soccer in America is so much better as a niche sport, not ruined yet by the masses. Enjoy it because it will not be the same if it becomes wildly popular

I get genuinely excited when I see someone wearing something soccer related. No matter the team, even if its United or Liverpool, I still say "what's up, nice ___, Chelsea's better".

 

[Nicholas Constantino]

Yeah in all my time playing highschool, and NCAA, and I've seen only a few coaches who aren't American.

 

[Ferdinand Cesarano]

I get genuinely excited when I see someone wearing something soccer related. No matter the team, even if its United or Liverpool, I still say "what's up, nice ___, Chelsea's better".

Soccer in America is so much better as a niche sport, not ruined yet by the masses. Enjoy it because it will not be the same if it becomes wildly popular

Very good points. Even fans of rival teams are in some sense kindred spirits in the current environment. Chelsea fans and Man United fans can banter with each other, but can still feel a kind of bond that is typically not present between fans of rivals in the big American sports.

A recent example: this past Saturday I was riding my bike all day, taking advantage of the first really nice day in months. I enjoyed listening to the Chelsea - Man United game on the radio on TalkSport. While still riding several hours after the game had ended in a victory by the mighty José's indomitable bunch, I on two occasions wound up passing people wearing Man United shirts. Each time I shook my finger at them and shouted "not today!" Their smiles showed their comprehension.

The closest that I ever came to such a pleasant interaction with a rival supporter back when I was a baseball fan was after the 1986 All-Star Game. In that game, Dave Winfield doubled off of Dwight Gooden, eventually scoring the run that gave the American League the lead it never relinquished, thus saddling Gooden with the loss. Aftwerwards, I, wearing a Yankee jersey, went into a fast-food place, where I saw a guy in a Met jersey. I instinctively thrust my arms upward in a "victory" sign. The guy in the Met jersey took it in good humour.

It probably helped that it was the All-Star Game, rather than the World Series or even a regular-season game. By the time the Yankees and Mets met in the 2000 World Series, I had already retired as a baseball fan, having been driven off by the abomination of interleague play. While I am out of touch with the current scene amongst baseball fans, I assume that such an exchange would have been less good-natured in that context.

So the point stands that being a fan of English football in the U.S. in the current moment is ideal. We can have our rivalries and also our common bonds.

 

[Z4CH3B99]

Down on the border with Mexico, where I live, soccer is practically a religion. This whole idea of soccer being a nich for sports fans is kinda foreign to me. Honestly, it kinda makes me laugh to think of people who root for rival teams to feel sense of "soccer bonds" with one another.

 

[nycmade]

Guess which major pro sport in America is the only one that has been seeing increases in youth participation? No, not baseball. That would have been too perfect.

The answer in the graphic below:
View attachment 2482

I think you need to tell the whole story with that graph.

I read that article and the way you worded it is misleading. The article talks about youth participation across the board declining and cited various reasons, such as video games, aversion to long term injuries, and students opting out of high pressure sports environments.


Below is an excerpt :

"The shift in youth participation worries youth-health officials who see organized sports as an antidote to growing problems like youth obesity. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has noted a sharp increase in youth obesity since the 1980s.

The percentage of inactive 6-to-12-year-olds—youths involved in no physical activities over a 12-month period—rose to near 20% in 2012 from 16% in 2007, according to the SFIA/Physical Activity Council survey. Inactive 13-to-17-year-olds rose to 19% from 17%.

Because organized sports provide supervision, coaching, structure, social interaction and team-building skills, many health experts believe they represent an ideal solution to youth inactivity. "Youth sports can become the choice solution to the public-health problem based around inactivity," says Dr. Bergeron of the sports-health institute.

Sporting-goods sellers are concerned as well. So far, new products and rising prices have helped sustain sporting-goods dollar sales, says a spokesman for the National Sporting Goods Association, which represents sporting-goods retailers and dealers. But, he says, "decreases in team sports participation are a significant concern in the long run for sporting goods retailers who sell team sports equipment."

There are a few rising stars in youth sports. By one estimate, from the SFIA/Physical Activity Council survey, 770,000 youth participated in organized lacrosse in 2012, up 158% from its 2008 estimate. The sport uses many of the same skills as football, though with less contact, and may be gaining some participation from football's losses.

The survey showed ice-hockey participation growing 64% from 2008 through 2012 among the 6-to-18 age group. But that sport, too, is small: The council estimates that 549,000 youth played it in organized teams in 2012, compared with about seven million participants in basketball and 6.6 million in soccer"


Link to original article :

http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303519404579350892629229918

 

[nycmade]

Also, if you want to get all geeked out and technical about it, below is the population table for the US.

It tracks not only raw population numbers, but also a separate table that tracks the percentage of population.

http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/tables.asp

The 0-17 group has steadily declined since 1970 and I believe, considering the fact that there are more unwed mothers and young adults who not only aren't able to afford having kids, but are choosing not to, will contribute to the long term decline of the youth population, which is also shown on the graph as it concurs with most population table projections.

But, that's just talking about youth soccer and sport numbers.

Rather than look at the population numbers as a whole, we have to look at percentage of participation on the youth table rather than graphing it on a sliding scale using numbers that are declining anyway.

 

[BxLio91]

I'm surprised we don't have more Mexican and South American coaches in our youth systems.

 

[nycmade]

I'm surprised we don't have more Mexican and South American coaches in our youth systems.

Very interesting point. I wonder what the numbers on that is.

 

[Mario]

Very interesting point. I wonder what the numbers on that is.

Wilmer Cabrera- ex-colombian national team player coached the US U-17s