Some nations are lucky, but even more so, some continents.
Europe, and South America both seemed steeped in footballing history because of the large migration between these two continents so early on.
It's not surprising then that citizens from European and South American countries love football -- the very air one breathes is permeated with it.
But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's as popular a sport as elsewhere.
- So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of football begin?
- What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching a match or in some way related to football?
- In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest in football stay the same?
- Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not so much?
Everyone in this world, as they say, has a story. And I suspect RSS'ers are no different. :)
In article <605fd56a6cbdf28e6c582a318a07d56a.69...@mygate.mailgate.org>, "Victoria Barrett" <victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
WC '94. usa v. colombia.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
how about attempting to learn another language? or bribing the stewards to let me look around inside anfield? hell, most of my countrymen thought i was nuts because i got up in the middle of the night to watch WC '02 matches at crew stadium.
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
i would say increased, but i do live in an mls city. the influx of mexicans has played its part as well.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
most of 'em are willing to go to a crew game and see what it's all about, but soccer is still way down on their list of favorite sports.
> Some nations are lucky, but even more so, some continents.
> Europe, and South America both seemed steeped in footballing history > because of the large migration between these two continents so early on.
> It's not surprising then that citizens from European and South American > countries love football -- the very air one breathes is permeated with > it.
> But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, > and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and > women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's > as popular a sport as elsewhere.
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
VB, I don't understand your post. There are very few countries in Africa where football is not #1, therefore I cannot say, for eg in Ghana, how we *came* to love the sport. Football is life in Ghana as in many other African countries
In terms of popularity, boxing and athletics are 2nd and 3rd in Ghana. In Cote d'Ivoire, it's handball, athletics or volleyball, not necessarily in that order
Kenya is the only African country I've visited where football is not that big; iirc their sports news begun with rugby, cricket, then "soccer".
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
Needed something to do when it's not hockey season, and where I grew up they didn't play lacrosse. Soccer was the next closest thing to hockey.
Well, also the school soccer team was a bunch of pot-smoking partyhounds which had it's attractions as well.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
Hmm, did I mention my teammates the pot-smoking partyhounds? That's about all, I was never a "die-hard" for the sport, still amn't.
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
Definitely increased. It was practically avante garde when I started playing and we were all required to wear berets. (Ok I made that last part up.) Northern Michigan is NOT soccer country.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
No, and my kid's only 2 so cut her some slack. But she's more of a clay/sandbox/scissors type than the run-around-kicking-things-or-people type.
> Everyone in this world, as they say, has a story. And I suspect RSS'ers > are no different. :)
Well, sure I've got a story about somebody else's car, a bridge collapsing, leaving the scene without a trace, but it's not soccer related. Besides, if I told you I'd have to ... you know.
I am American and grew up in a soccer MAD town in the state of Illinois, 10 minutes from downtown St. Louis, Missouri. We won 9 of 18 state high school championships during my youth, my brother even played keeper for one of the teams. SO, in our town you loved soccer, you had no choice. For a period of about 7-8 years or so i'd drift away from the game I grew up loving except for the world cup(s)....but when FSW started giving me an oppurtunity to watch soccer from around the world on a regular basis three years ago...I re-discovered my love of the game. I've been mad about it again ever since. Being from the St.Louis area it is hard to get people to pay attention to any professional soccer...but they still do love their high school soccer. You can't convince a bunch of guys who wactch professional "Football" in a redneck town to watch top intl. atheletes, without them calling the players a bunch of "yard faries", *sigh*..they'll just never know.....but unless the U.S. INTL. team is winning, basically most I'd say 75% of Americans don't care whats going on in pro soccer...Finally talking my brother, who is a high school keeper coach for pete's sake, to finally start watching the EPL, and France's League 1, etc on FSW has gotten his passion for the pro game reignited as well, and we are making plans well in advance to travel to Germany for 2006. Slainte' Mike
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
I have done many crazy things while following English Football on the BBC World Service; but around 1995/96, it became possible to watch some matches on ESPN and I was so appalled by the quality of football that I thought to continue to watch soccer would be crazier than anything I had done before.
I watched 1994 Brazil - Italy world cup final, from which both teams should have been red-carded out by half-time, with a few friends. A majority of them fell asleep and couldn't even make it to the start of the match. Lucky souls! During the second-half, a friend got up, watched the match for 10-12 minutes and contemptuously told us wakeful diehards : 'You people must be really very stupid to stay up all night to watch this rubbish.' Then he added : 'Morons, go to sleep.' And then he went to sleep himself but not before delivering the most accurate and damning verdict on the match : 'Those 22 guys are just doing time-pass.' McIlvanneys and Barclays (whose column I love and still read regularly) may consume acres of column inches but they don't speak truth that bluntly.
I still follow the scores before going to sleep on Saturdays but there is nothing more boring in the world (except Gridiron NFL ball and basketball) than football.
<kwameintorontotakethispart...@rogers.com> wrote: > VB, I don't understand your post.
I know, Kwams. :/
I knew the moment I posted that I had phrased it awkwardly. Basically what I was trying to get were people other than Euros/South Americans to post about how they fell into the whole soccer shebang, and since of course Africa is potty about soccer, I didn't include you guys or Asians in my post title.
I concentrated on South Africa in my question, since they have competing sports of rugby and cricket though.
> There are very few countries in Africa >where football is not #1, therefore I cannot say, for eg in Ghana, how we >*came* to love the sport. Football is life in Ghana as in many other >African countries
For sure!
>In terms of popularity, boxing and athletics are 2nd and 3rd in Ghana. In >Cote d'Ivoire, it's handball, athletics or volleyball, not necessarily in >that order
>Kenya is the only African country I've visited where football is not that >big; iirc their sports news begun with rugby, cricket, then "soccer".
Absolutely. Also, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia etc.
I don't know much about Tanzania, other than it was once Zanzibar of course. Wonder what legacy the Germans left behind regarding soccer. Anyone have a little insight about them football-wise?
>I don't know much about Tanzania, other than it was once Zanzibar of >course. Wonder what legacy the Germans left behind regarding soccer.
Zanzibar is an island on the Indian Ocean coast off Tanzania. Tanzania as a country was formed by the union of the repulbics of Zanzibar and Tanganyika (the continental part of Tanzania) in the mid-60s. Zanzibar still retains a fair degree of autonomy IIRC.
German influence probably diminished a lot after WWI when German East Africa was split up among Belgium, Britain and Portugal. Tanganyika became a British mandate. Can't remember exactly when they got independence, but certainly Tanganyika was one of the first 'new' African nations.
>Anyone have a little insight about them football-wise?
Not much. Though I can add Zanzibar competes independently in some competitions.
<victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote: >Some nations are lucky, but even more so, some continents.
>Europe, and South America both seemed steeped in footballing history >because of the large migration between these two continents so early on.
>It's not surprising then that citizens from European and South American >countries love football -- the very air one breathes is permeated with >it.
>But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, >and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and >women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's >as popular a sport as elsewhere.
>- So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of >football begin?
You may not realise, but football (soccer) is actually the most popular sport in New Zealand for boys up to about age 11 (girls tend to play netball in winter). So it's hardly a surprise that many of us have played the sport at some stage. After age 11 rugby tends to take most of the more athletic players (hardly surprising, is it?). My love of football followed that path too, and I gave up any competitive play at around 13 or 14 and played rugby/cricket after that. Though I have maintained an interest in football since then which many of my peers have not.
>- In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow >non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest >in football stay the same?
Probably a bit less. Though my football-loving time began at the height of NZ's international success (ie the 82 World Cup). As NZ has faded, so has the popularity. Nowadays NZ would be lucky to get more than a few thousand to attend an international at Albany.
>- Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not >so much?
My children are (see above) into playing, but not watching!
In article <7ainvv82iu3v1rnbj0drs038hk58m66...@4ax.com>, Myk Cameron <a...@image.co.nz> wrote:
>German influence probably diminished a lot after WWI when German East >Africa was split up among Belgium, Britain and Portugal. Tanganyika >became a British mandate. Can't remember exactly when they got >independence, but certainly Tanganyika was one of the first 'new' >African nations.
* 1922 Mandated by League of Nations to Britain * 1946 "Trust Territory" of the UN under British control * Dec 9 1961 Tanganyika independent * Jun 9 1962 "Republic of Tangyika" formed * Apr 26 1964 joined with Zanzibar to from Tanzania
Apropos of not much really I remember reading an article about the German army in East Africa in WW1. It had a lot of local volunteers, and the British were surprised that a largely African army tied up so many Imperial troops (http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_East_Africa gives the numbers as 14000 German troops occupied 300000 British. Using German and British *very* widely). Was there a point to this meandering?
Oh something on topic: ELO says Tanzania played (and lost to) Uganda in 1947. How -- was there a concept of Tanzania before the country formed? (The next game was July 1964 safely after independence and union).
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
[Canada]
Playing the game, realizing I was good at it. Started kicking around when I was 4 or so, but only really began to watch the game in 1989 (I was 10, and my family had just moved to a Canuck military base in Germany). Strangely enough, the majority of the games televised were from England.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
Missed numerous family gatherings with lame excuses. That's about it. Thank G-d for VCRs.
Also: have actually paid cash money to watch the Montreal Impact play "soccer".
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
Increased. Greater general exposure to the game, recent success of the women's team, and (the biggest factor, IMO) Sportsnet.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
I can convince my mother and sisters to sit through a game, but they're very yappy. My dad is a hockey guy. (I know, shocking.)
> On Wed, 7 Jan 2004 00:14:59 +0000 (UTC), "Victoria Barrett" > <victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
> You may not realise, but football (soccer) is actually the most > popular sport in New Zealand for boys up to about age 11 (girls tend > to play netball in winter). So it's hardly a surprise that many of us > have played the sport at some stage.
I believe that this is true of almost every country in the world. I can't think of a single primary or secondary school in Canada that doesn't have a soccer team, and it's by far the most popular organized summer activity in Quebec. (I'll let others speak for the rest of the country.)
Victoria Barrett wrote: > Some nations are lucky, but even more so, some continents.
> Europe, and South America both seemed steeped in footballing history > because of the large migration between these two continents so early on.
> It's not surprising then that citizens from European and South American > countries love football -- the very air one breathes is permeated with > it.
> But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, > and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and > women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's > as popular a sport as elsewhere.
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
> Everyone in this world, as they say, has a story. And I suspect RSS'ers > are no different. :)
On Wed, 7 Jan 2004 00:14:59 +0000 (UTC), "Victoria Barrett"
<victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote: >- So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of >football begin?
i'm still kind of a casual fan but i became interested in football when i moved to thailand..you should include asia with europe and south america because people are football mad over here
also, most of my friends here are english (i'm australian, by the way) so i spent quite a few nights watching live games in bars before i started to get into it...
>- What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching >a match or in some way related to football?
nothing crazy...like i said i'm really only a casual fan...i follow the results in the newspaper, read about it and catch a game or two on Tv every week...but nothing crazy
>- In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow >non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest >in football stay the same?
N/A thais and expats were football mad before i got here and i'm not sure how the profile of the game has changed back home as i haven't spent much time there over the last 6 years
>- Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not >so much?
my wife recently started betting on football....gambling's actually illegal here but everyone does it anyway...my kids are too young (4 and 1) but the oldest does like to kick a ball around with me
mr.tim ---------------------------- www.rmhh.com the rec.music.hiphop website ---------------------------- "One prince of the present time, whom it is not well to name, never preaches anything else but peace and good faith, and to both he is most hostile, and either, if he had kept it, would have deprived him of reputation and kingdom many a time." Niccoli Machiavelli, The Prince: Concerning The Way In Which Princes Should Keep Faith, Florence, 1532
"You can fool some of the people all of the time and those are the ones you want to concentrate on." George W. Bush, joking at a Gridiron Club dinner, Washington, D.C., March 2001
For reference, I am Canadian (insert appropriate beer commercial jingle here)
Summer 1982, just finished high school, trying to make some money to go to university by painting the houses of neighbours. Stopped for a break at lunch and turned the television on. I can't remember the first WC82 game I saw (the main Canadian broadcaster CBC was televising, I think it was probably a second round match) but I do remember being transfixed by the drama that was the France West Germany semi final. my lunch "hour" stretched out quite a bit over this period.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
Crazy - maybe memorable - definitely
Off the top of my head football related highlights include
1987 driving from Ottawa to Saint John, New Brunswick weekend roadtrip (a roundtrip distance of 2000 km) to see Canada beat the US 2-0 in an Olympic qualifier - they then manage to lose the return leg 3-0
1987 - Toronto FIFA U-17 WC Nigeria vs USSR - being surrounded by a boisterous pro-Nigerian crowd and being rib-crackingly hugged by a very large Nigerian woman every time her side came close to goal (I'm alternatively glad but saddened that they didn't score - USSR won 1-0 - Nigeria played with joy and flair and deserved better but if they did score I'm not sure my ribs could have withstood the squeezing!)
early 1990s - Ottawa - being one of a few dozen die-hards to stick it out through a torrential downpour to see Canada defeat Mexico 4-0 in a youth friendly (the Mexicans claimed they brought the wrong studs). Dancing on the metal stands in the face of an impending thunderstorm was perhaps not the most prudent of celebrations.
1992 - on my honeymoon - A funny thing happened to me on the way to the hurling match, or "always look on the bright side of life" Dublin - Manchester City v Celtic friendly, type
halchuk honeymoon hurling
in a google search on rec.sport.soccer for details
1994 Boston - WC94 Argentina 2-1 Nigeria (again the Nigerians deserved better) - from my earlier experiences I could not help but be a Nigerian fan. My friends and I were a lilypad of green in a blue and white swamp in the upper stands. The pageantry was great, especially when the garbage bags full of blue and white paper came out to be thrown. The crowd around us was flabbergasted but tolerant when we booed Maradona "how can they do that, how can they boo the God of Soccer?" Across the stadium we could see the Nigerian section, complete with a band that never stopped playing through the action. I can now say I personally saw the last match that "the little onion" played for his country.
2001 - Francophone games - a pageantry of games between Francophone nations held in Ottawa
in a google search on rec.sport.soccer for details
2002 - WC final
making Rivaldo and Kahn "scarecrows" with my daughter and sticking them out on my front lawn on the day of the final
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
Awareness has definitely increased and the media/general public will follow tournaments that Canada is in (and the World Cup) but it is hard to tell if there are many more avid fans.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
Not as much as I, but they're learning. I met my wife through an ad in the paper in which she mentioned soccer!
Having no real home club team of note for more than 10 years, I follow the national squad and the international game. In addition to the beauty of the sport, it attracts my interest in different cultures, geography, history, and pride in my home (is that soppy enough for you?)
cheers Stephen ------- S. Halchuk, halc...@seismo.nrcan.gc.ca "You as a Canadian have no right putting down countries in which soccer is a major sport" - Boz Sabeti, rec.sport.soccer, Jan 29, 1996
"Victoria Barrett" <victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> writes: > But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, > and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and > women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's > as popular a sport as elsewhere.
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
It's not that difficult really. India's a pretty sports crazy country.
I always liked watching just about every sport on TV. I got interested in domestic football by watching highlights of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal matches (also the PSV Eindhoven visit and subsequent thrashing of our national side).
I got interested in International football when I was around 7-8 (1987-88), would be my guess (maybe even earlier). I remember watching Italia '90 and already having a strong liking for Argentina and ardently following their progress during that cup (and also knowing that they had beat W. Ger in Mexico and hoping for a repeat in that final and being heart-broken).
I got *really* interested in international club football when I read a couple of books (around age 9-10 I guess) about European Club championships and learning about Busby's babes. I guess that explains the liking for Man Utd. ;-)
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
Not really crazy. But when I was in London last year, I found out that I could get tickets to a Chelsea-West Brom match. But I was supposed to fly out that morning. So I made a couple of calls, screamed at some airline people and got a late night flight so I could watch the match. Alone.
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
Increased. Mostly because of satelite television. Most kids I know back home have a "favourite" national and European club team now. They know probably close to nothing about S.American football though.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
Just the world cup and following the news once in a while.
> Everyone in this world, as they say, has a story. And I suspect RSS'ers > are no different. :)
"Shawn Cady" <sc...@sympatico.ca> writes: > "Myk Cameron" <a...@image.co.nz> wrote in message > news:32jnvv4771bj42401hj2gv9oli9c5n92rp@4ax.com... > > On Wed, 7 Jan 2004 00:14:59 +0000 (UTC), "Victoria Barrett" > > <victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
> > You may not realise, but football (soccer) is actually the most > > popular sport in New Zealand for boys up to about age 11 (girls tend > > to play netball in winter). So it's hardly a surprise that many of us > > have played the sport at some stage.
> I believe that this is true of almost every country in the world. I can't > think of a single primary or secondary school in Canada that doesn't have a > soccer team, and it's by far the most popular organized summer activity in > Quebec. (I'll let others speak for the rest of the country.)
Forgot to add in my other post, but it's the same in India. Cricket, football and hockey are played in just about every school (along with the regular track and field etc.). Hockey is probably the least popular among the three (surprisingly since it's the national sport) if you take a national view. In some regions it's more popular than others, of course.
Barrett <victoriaspursqu...@yahoo.co.uk> wrote: > Some nations are lucky, but even more so, some continents.
> Europe, and South America both seemed steeped in footballing history > because of the large migration between these two continents so early on.
> It's not surprising then that citizens from European and South American > countries love football -- the very air one breathes is permeated with > it.
> But in other countries, say an USA, a Canada, an Australia, an India, > and to a degree, a South Africa, etc. etc., the stories of how men and > women came to love our sport must be extremely interesting because it's > as popular a sport as elsewhere.
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
I owe it all to Fox Sports World. My cable company changed, I received FSW without asking for it, caught a couple of EPL games and was hooked. I had played soccer in high school but never really had an interest in the game. I am suprised at the extent to which I developed a passion for the game. For me it is the _best_ sport to watch on television by far, No timeouts, no commericials, just the uninterupted flow of the game. Its funny, I just realized I have never seen a live professional game.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
Tivoed and watched every game in the last world cup. I was totally addicted.
> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow > non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest > in football stay the same?
Soccer for adults in the US is just not happening. I keep trying to interest aquaintances in the game and they look at me very strangely. The lack of sustained interest puzzles me greatly, in that soccer is the top participatory sport now among youth in the United States.
> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not > so much?
I have no children but all my friends kids seem to play, a few really seriousily, camps and travel teams and the like.
As for me, I am trying to find a senior adult amateur team in Central Connecticut to take me on. I fancy myself a striker in the Alan Shearer mode. ( If there are any Connecticut rsser's that know of team, I am at chris.mer...@comcast.net )
> Everyone in this world, as they say, has a story. And I suspect RSS'ers > are no different. :)
> - So to these non-Euros and South Americans, how did your love of > football begin?
I was in Brazil during WC '90. I knew nothing of the sport until then, and was hooked immediately.
> - What is the craziest thing you've ever done in connexion with catching > a match or in some way related to football?
On that trip to Brazil (in the state of Espirito Santo ), some of my fellow American students and I snuck into an abandoned high-rise apartment with a roof overlooking the local soccer stadium and climbed all the way to the top for a free birds-eye view of a live match on the field. We had a backpack full of "chopp" bottles, and a couple of us nearly fell off towards the end.
|> - In your observation within your lifetime, have your fellow |> non-football loving citizens increased, decreased, or had their interest |> in football stay the same?
There is more reporting, marginally, but I think the mainstream media, which is also crap on so many other topics, has succeeded in containing this to the niches. It is as if they wanted to, but more likely simply a result of the innate status-quo'ism they have.
Among the people, there are more niche areas than in 1972 when I played in high school in Rhode Island, but they are still niche areas. I don't detect any serious cultural resonance.
|> - Are your children or other family mmebers into soccer as well, or not |> so much?
My father and great aunt are, and my brother sees a few international matches on cable TV, but the others are immune :-)
