Diego Maradona was a tubby bitch. Ronaldo (the Brazillian one, not the Portugese one) was a chubby bitch too.

Soccer most certainly does not have the world's best athletes. There are more people who play it worldwide, yes, but the most impressive athletes are still either hardcore decathaletes, rugby players, or NFL players. Soccer players lack the strength to really compete for the "all around best athlete" title IMO.

6/23/2008 7:35:16 PM

I don't think that's true at all. Just because these guys aren't hulking 6'5" 270 beasts doesn't mean they're not strong. They're definitely not as strong as NFL players, but they're probably just as fast if not faster and they would be able to run circles around them all day.

My list of sports with best athletes...

Rugby>Soccer=Lacrosse=Basketball>Hockey>Football>Baseball. I'm not saying there aren't special athletes in those sports and I'm sure I left out a couple, but on the whole, counting every player on the field/court soccer is pretty up there. Rugby is just brutal and you have to be a fucking man to play that shit though. It's in a league by itself.

6/23/2008 7:54:03 PM

What is with Americans thinking athlete = squat 500 lbs.??? or that a real sport involves really big dudes hitting each other as hard as they can??......

And.....why do black Americans hate soccer so much?

And...i'll never understand why the most widely played sport in the world has never taken hold in America.....oh yeah, refer to comment 1 above

6/23/2008 7:59:02 PM

blaks?

6/23/2008 8:00:35 PM

Let me recap a soccer game for you

1. player falls down, writhes in pain gets up and is fine
2. receives free kick
3. fails to score
4. player from other team falls down, writhes in pain gets up and is fine
5. receives free kick
6. fails to score
7. repeat

[Edited on June 23, 2008 at 8:47 PM. Reason : .]

6/23/2008 8:46:16 PM

Why do you soccer people think that just because you can run for 80 or so mintues that they are the best athletes in the world? Football players are excellent athletes they train to explode for 10 seconds and then break. Its a different kind of cardio.

6/23/2008 8:54:48 PM

Quote :

"What is with Americans thinking athlete = squat 500 lbs.???"

who said that? i think its more of Americans thinking athlete = speed, quickness, strength, agility, stamina, ie Lebron or Kobe or AI or Reggie Bush or Julius Peppers...not soccer players

6/23/2008 9:56:58 PM

im glad mantisstunna gets it

one thing i never ever claim is that soccer players are not athletes

but what you dumbfucks done ever get through your 5th grade heads is that athletes specialize in sport-specific movements and motions

you say "o those fat football players need 5 minute breaks for each play" you have no idea of anaerobic movements and conditioning v.s. aerobic conditioning

you cannot sprint for 3 hours, sorry, not those fat football players, not your beloved soccer playin dickheads

not michael johnson, not steve prefontaine

its called explosion folks, being an athlete is not just running around for three fuckin hours not hitting a single goal...running is only part of it


why doesnt the rest of the world get that? and btw it is pathetic that you try to separate yourself from america like you aint one of our sorry asses

6/23/2008 9:57:44 PM

but its the most popular sport in the world!

rice is the most popular food in the world...i like steak and crab legs

6/23/2008 9:59:02 PM

it basically boils down to a few pussy ass apologists and enemies of the United States

jk but you guys are nothing more than apologists

we eat ^(steak and crab legs) while ethopians and colombians kick cans down the street and eat tree bark so you automatically feel guilty and hate yourselves and where u are from

at least all those other countries have enough pride to kill members of opposing teams and through bombs made of their own blood

you american fans are pathetic, no wonder we scrapin algae with the plecos

[Edited on June 23, 2008 at 10:02 PM. Reason : s]

6/23/2008 10:00:21 PM

anybody in sports talk knows i'm not a fan of steve nash, but i am glad he was able to give up soccer and come from the 3rd world country of canada and his primitive soccer game to the great united states to play basketball and compete with a league of athletes...the same goes for Mike Vanderjagt

6/23/2008 10:08:26 PM

pad

6/23/2008 10:56:25 PM

Quote :

"Why do you soccer people think that just because you can run for 80 or so mintues that they are the best athletes in the world? Football players are excellent athletes they train to explode for 10 seconds and then break. Its a different kind of cardio."

I agree. These discussions about athletes from one sport being better than those from another sport is BS. No soccer player, or football player could do what Lance Armstrong did in bike racing. With that being said Lance Armstrong couldn't play on an o-line in the NFL either. Line men from the NFL couldn't handle playing midfield in a soccer game for 90 minutes either.

6/23/2008 11:15:41 PM

Also, soccer players do not run around none stop. There is a lot of walking when they are not in the near vicinity to the ball.

6/23/2008 11:23:16 PM

Quote :

"you should be done playin soccer by the time you stop watching Channel 1 "

6/23/2008 11:23:17 PM

easter nc bbq > western nc bbq

and soccer is for kids

6/24/2008 7:55:09 AM

fucking every team almost has 1 or 2 fags that flop around. dont let that speak for every guy out there.

6/24/2008 8:00:53 AM

RAWR RAWR RAWR KINGDOUCHEBAG HERE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!


THE SPORT I PREFER IS BETTER THAN YOURS !!!!!!!!!!!!!


YOUR SPORT IS FULL OF FAGGOTS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

6/24/2008 8:03:13 AM

would read again

6/24/2008 8:04:07 AM

Only read half of the first page of this thread, but I know its a pissing contest by now. So I'll just say this:

I've basically played every competitive sport there is at a decently high level (high school baseball, basketball, and track...high school and club soccer, and a local rugby team). The only sport I haven't played is football, but I did play rugby, so that more than makes up for it.

Conditioning wise, soccer is definitely the toughest followed extremely close by rugby.

"Tough" wise...Rugby is obviously the toughest sport there is out there...puts football to shame. But I will say this, I was just as beat up after every soccer game than I was rugby games. I think a little has to do with how I play, because my motor doesn't stop and I just go all out...but soccer is a fucking rough sport. Bodies flying, cleats up, multiple guys going for headers at the same time, goalies and forwards colliding. I personally think football, rugby, and soccer are in a league of their own when it comes to contact and "toughness" (hockey too)...then comes the basketball, baseball, and the other sports.

6/24/2008 8:42:42 AM

scrums are so tough

bunch of grown men hugging

6/24/2008 8:44:37 AM

People that think soccer is boring just don't understand the game. The movement of the ball and all the strategy that goes into placing and positioning the players is really complicated. This is comparable to strategy in Football and Rugby. If you don't understand, it's less interesting.

I also think that scoring runs are more impressive in soccer. Football teams running in the ball from two yards out isn't usually too suspenseful (settling for 3 pts is also very boring). Rugby on the other hand compares to soccer in that the intensity builds as the player gets closer to scoring because the situation can and usually does turn completely around almost immediately.

Don't take this as a call out to the people that don't like soccer. I would think it was boring if i held it to the scoring standards of Basketball or Football.

6/24/2008 8:49:43 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHCXNt4P8Xg

6/24/2008 8:50:43 AM

scoring from 2 yards out can be much harder than scoring from 10 yards out

6/24/2008 8:51:16 AM

average soccer career - 10 yrs

average football career - 4 yrs

6/24/2008 8:53:25 AM

Quote :

"scoring from 2 yards out can be much harder than scoring from 10 yards out"

i never said it was easy... just less exciting that a long run or unexpected plays

6/24/2008 8:56:55 AM

goalline is much more exciting to me


the defense is packed in and if it's a run it's gonna usually be a tough run for the tb

6/24/2008 8:58:40 AM

Quote :

"average soccer career - 10 yrs average football career - 4 yrs"

thats because you have so many people "on the team" that dont play and end up leaving. just look at how many 3rd and 4th strings you have

Statistics arent always what they seem

[Edited on June 24, 2008 at 9:00 AM. Reason : ok i need to get back to work]

6/24/2008 8:59:47 AM

Quote :

"I also think that scoring runs are more impressive in soccer"

because they happen once every three games

6/24/2008 9:04:59 AM

people should never put rugby and soccer in the same sentence. They should always be seperated by a period.

6/24/2008 9:09:52 AM

Quote :

"thats because you have so many people "on the team" that dont play and end up leaving"

no its because you have so many people on the team that get hurt and/or their bodies don't hold up to the constant contact...or they get too slow since they can't keep up with a 22 year old black dude

6/24/2008 9:31:29 AM

Biggest problems with soccer:

1. Field is too big - too difficult to get the ball into scoring position

2. Too many players - cut down the number of players to 7 or so and the game would be more streamlined

3. Offside rule - why should the offense be penalized for the defenders being out of position?

4. stoppage and injury time - The ref decides how long the game is? really?

6/24/2008 9:35:51 AM

Quote :

"Biggest problems with soccer: 1. Field is too big - too difficult to get the ball into scoring position 2. Too many players - cut down the number of players to 7 or so and the game would be more streamlined 3. Offside rule - why should the offense be penalized for the defenders being out of position? 4. stoppage and injury time - The ref decides how long the game is? really?"

1. The large field requires the players to be fast and allows for more strategy

2. This is justified by the large field (but i guess if you want them to shrink the field you should have less players. Soccer is horrible when there are too many people and it turns into magnet ball)

3. The defenders arent out of position. This gets rid of cherry picking. Also, there is no offsides if you are on your side of the field

4. They compensate for the down times caused by injuries and goals scored

6/24/2008 9:43:53 AM

Quote :

" they get too slow since they can't keep up with a 22 year old black dude"

bc theyre big and fat?

[Edited on June 24, 2008 at 9:45 AM. Reason : sdf]

6/24/2008 9:45:16 AM

no its because they're 28 years old and they have 3% body fat but thats still not good enough because the NFL is a real sport

6/24/2008 9:49:15 AM

^ lol yes football players have 3% body fat

6/24/2008 9:52:41 AM

no you're right they're all fat pieces of shit, especially the receivers and corners

maybe if they could jog around for somewhere around 90 minutes (no one really knows how long a soccer game is) they'd be real athletes

6/24/2008 9:56:29 AM

^^ lol yes every football player has exactly the same build



[Edited on June 24, 2008 at 9:57 AM. Reason : ]

6/24/2008 9:56:55 AM

btw in response to Ernie's post about Big Baby



look at this fine physical specimen

6/24/2008 9:58:52 AM

im just defending soccer to all the dumbasses who dont know what theyre talking about. im not trying to bash football damn

6/24/2008 10:03:03 AM

And man, soccer teams have some wierd names.

There's the AIG's



The Fly Emirates



and of course the Samsung Mobiles

6/24/2008 10:11:24 AM

^

6/24/2008 10:36:06 AM

any guy that hates on soccer is a fat ass closet homo.

/thread.

Quote :

"4. stoppage and injury time - The ref decides how long the game is? really?"

in real sports they don't stop the clock for a commercial break and a regroup.

[Edited on June 24, 2008 at 10:40 AM. Reason : .]

6/24/2008 10:38:11 AM

any guy that plays soccer past the age of 12 does so because they either live in a 3rd world country, or aren't good enough athletes to compete in real sports

/truth

6/24/2008 10:40:03 AM

^haha...and the pot head speaks.

your view on soccer is skewed because you only get to watch MLS here (which is as much of a joke as the NFL, NBA, and MLB).

Quote :

"live in a 3rd world country,"

all of Europe is a 3rd world country. +1 for education in America.

[Edited on June 24, 2008 at 10:43 AM. Reason : .]

6/24/2008 10:41:50 AM

Quote :

"We believe soccer is still relevant to our time. sincerely, Fiefdom, Serfdom, and Searching for spices in wooden ships"

6/24/2008 10:53:29 AM

Quote :

"your view on soccer is skewed because you only get to watch MLS here (which is as much of a joke as the NFL, NBA, and MLB)."

Hey I like America too, but I don't think I would call MLS the best league by far in its sport.

6/24/2008 10:55:54 AM

Quote :

"your view on soccer is skewed because you only get to watch MLS here (which is as much of a joke as the NFL, NBA, and MLB"

A. i dont watch MLS...its complete shit
B. the NFL, NBA and MLB are the best leagues in the world for their respective sports...the MLS is a joke internationally

6/24/2008 10:58:26 AM

Quote :

"Quote : "your view on soccer is skewed because you only get to watch MLS here (which is as much of a joke as the NFL, NBA, and MLB)." Hey I like America too, but I don't think I would call MLS the best league by far in its sport."

Which one of us is reading that wrong?

6/24/2008 11:00:23 AM

holy shit, this is the gayest thread on the Internet.

6/24/2008 11:07:37 AM