i'd rather watch paint dry than soccer dry

" Imagine the scene - the US emerges victorious in one of the world's biggest sporting events and only about 20 people in the US would actually care."

Would absolutely NOT piss off the 90% of the human race who watch real football.

In order of priority, most fans' objectives are:
1. That their team should win
2. Failing that, at least that hereditary rivals should lose badly. The USA is so far down the pecking order it isn't the hereditary rival of any serious football country, except possibly Mexico. So we get to:
3. That a plucky outsider overperforms. Whether that's the Cameroons, Algeria or the US doesn't really matter: we all like seeing the little guy do well, in the way we were all pleased to see Sri Lanka win the cricket World Cup a few years back.

In England, for example, a US World Cup win would mean France, Germany and Argentina would all have lost. Than which few things give us more pleasure.

One day, the US might rival, say, Portugal or the Netherlands as a team others take seriously. That day's a very long way away.

Unless you field your girls' team, of course.

flanner is shortsighted, as usual. The U.S. has i'd wager the largest kids soccer program on Earth - the most played participant sport in the U.S. is not football but soccer - and has been for years.

Now why this has not translated into really good soccer teams on the international stage (talking about national teams made up of nationals of a country, not the pro thing where say many English Premier League players are not English)

But it will - soon - sheer numbers and countless soccer academies - kids spend hours at soccer - soccer Moms are iconic, bussing kids around to matches in the SUVs

Sooner rather than later flanner, old boy. And it seems England has a bit of a way to go to yes rival today's Portugal and Dutch national teams.

You know flim it's that 'vision' thing!

palenque...what, exactly is soccer?

caroline...do you seriously think that italians eg wil not be watching games during a world cup?

>caroline...do you seriously think that italians eg wil not be watching games during a world cup?<

They may very well be but not in decent Scottish Italian restaurants during service. I cant think of an Italian restaurant in Glasgow or Edinburgh that isn't a chippy that even has a telly.

If the yanks won the world cup we'd laugh our socks off.

Then enjoy a delicious meal of flying pork.

3. That a plucky outsider overperforms.>>>>

My prediction: Ivory Coast. And as Flanneur suggests the world will be on their side. Even me, and I hate Drogba with a vengence. But he's bloody good.

Yes, but his strike partner, Dindane couldn't hit a cow's arse with a banjo.

Motty:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VCJVZ2I9zY

Whoever gets out of the Ivory Coast group wont face any better in the rest of the tournament. This really appears to be most open World Cup in decades. There's probably some ten teams that, with decent luck, could win it.

decent luck?you're talking about fifa here. there's no chance of an outsider winning anything

Who said anything about outsiders?

surely everyone apart from brazil and spain are outsiders...and spain will bottle it

Well we disgree.

*whispers softly* England will win it.

I bloody hope not. You lot were bad enough after the Ashes and Rugby World Cup wins. God knows what you'd be like after winning something people actually care about. :-)

Looks out passport, just in case.

You missed out the F1 title.

And all them gold medals. And the world heavyweight champion.

And not having to eat porridge.

Get back to your buckfast.

CW - thinks that if our first XI can stay fit we'll win it. Again.

flap, flap oink,oink !

Heavyweight champion? I am tuning in late but are you talking about boxing? The Britons had a heavyweight champion but he was Canadian. Lennox Lewis. Please educate me.

WIDKT - pondering the many wonderous ways Fabio's boys might snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.