the no1 football nation

U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

give it your best shot!

Think there's a tournament underway just now which will answer this question more effectively than some corporate muppet.

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

Some stats like
pro players per capita
amayeur players per capita
average crowds
tv viewing

might be a better measure than the opinion of a sportswear businessman

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

Clearly the sport is extremely popular in America among sports that people choose to play -- and it's one of the staples of fall sports at middle and high schools. Perhaps not as glamorous as that other sport called football, but still extremely popular.

The main issue in the US is that association football is a sport that people find much more fun to play than to watch. So, (unless the World Cup is being played) the sport lags far behind the major sports in the TV ratings.

I think we can all agree that it's slowly growing. Maybe the time isn't right for its explosion yet, but it's a good sign that it's catching on.

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

I gotta say, soccer is perhaps one of the most popular sports to play in the states for the youth. However, in terms of fan interest there is no comparisan to the other three major sports which is basketball, real football, and baseball. I will also conceed that soccer is growing in popularity, especially with increased immigration to the states, however, for now people I know could care less about the World Cup of soccer, even when the US was in the race.

Originally posted by whodey
I gotta say, soccer is perhaps one of the most popular sports to play in the states for the youth. However, in terms of fan interest there is no comparisan to the other three major sports which is basketball, real football, and baseball. I will also conceed that soccer is growing in popularity, especially with increased immigration to the states, however, f ...[text shortened]... w people I know could care less about the World Cup of soccer, even when the US was in the race.

... real football...

LOL, what a joke.

how can that american anomaly be called "football"? most of the time they're using their hands!

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

how many world cups has the US won again?

oh yeah, none, not even close.

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

That's easy.

USA!

USA!

USA!

er... you meant futeball. Nevermind. It would still be USA! if they changed the rules to make it full contact!

Originally posted by zeeblebot
U.S., according to the head of Adidas. (Time magazine)

18M soccer players, and the most females

Well if they are mostly females, that explains why they didn't do so well in the world cup. Otherwise, if you have the most players but not the best players, then there is something wrong with your coaching.

How many players per capita do they have compared to other countries? What constitutes a player?
In Zambia, every boy child has played some sort of football. Sadly not that many girls have.

Originally posted by twhitehead
Well if they are mostly females, that explains why they didn't do so well in the world cup. Otherwise, if you have the most players but not the best players, then there is something wrong with your coaching.

How many players per capita do they have compared to other countries? What constitutes a player?
In Zambia, every boy child has played some sort of football. Sadly not that many girls have.

It has nothing to do with coaching, it has to do with money. Being a premier soccer player in the US doesn't pay as much as in other countries.

There used to be a time when professional American football teams used to get beat by the best college teams. But this was also back when the players used to play for peanuts. As soon as the sallaries of players grew to enticing levels this trend swiftly ended.

Money making sports in the USA: Baseball, American Football, Basketball and Hockey. Of the three the only sport where America's best don't completely own is hockey, but the US still ranks among the best. Canada is better, but then hockey is a bigger sport in Canada and they also participate in the NHL.

Edit: Also, there are other sports as well like boxing. Imagine if the US allowed pros like Floyd Mayweather to compete in the Olympics.

Originally posted by Redmike
Think there's a tournament underway just now which will answer this question more effectively than some corporate muppet.

Redmike's back!

Originally posted by Melanerpes
Clearly the sport is extremely popular in America among sports that people choose to play -- and it's one of the staples of fall sports at middle and high schools. Perhaps not as glamorous as that other sport called football, but still extremely popular.

The main issue in the US is that association football is a sport that people find much more fun to ...[text shortened]... ss the World Cup is being played) the sport lags far behind the major sports in the TV ratings.

soccer has got football beat re the equipment cost, risk of injury, and gender disparity.

probably nowhere close in ticket sales, tho.

why should per capita count?

NK's probably got an extremely high military population per capita, should we worry they're going to cross the pacific and kick our butts?

suppose luxembourg has got 100 pct participation, grandmas and grandpas in there, too.