A lot of good points in the thread. The United States has a long way to go to catch up the rest of the world in soccer. Yes, sometimes boring to watch. As far as athletism, it is much easier to catch a football and or simply take a football and run to avoid a tackle( and those are "skill positions")vs the skill and foot eye coordination to play soccer. Athletes can start football late simply because they are fast and or big. Typically not the case in soccer. The best athletes playing HS soccer could make a much easier transition to football ... The best athletes playing football would have a much tougher transition.

 

Are you really making the argument soccer takes more skill?

I'm going to back to my marketing argument from many pages back.

 

Hurling is the Number one (far and away) in Ireland - Not Curling, but Hurling.

It is played at the pee-wee level, high school, amateur, and pro levels. The players and fans are passionate about it. Here in the states, we've never heard of it, BUT if we were born in Ireland we would all have experience playing Hurling and knowledgeable about the sport. When Irish kids are born it is Hurling that is available to them, they think its cool, and want to participate.

 

Gaelic Football is Number Two - Looked to me like soccer expect they pick up the ball and heave it.

 

Rugby, the third most popular sport, played mostly by college aged guys who are really into Rugby.

 

Soccer is Number Four - Probably explains why you don't see the Irish in the World Cup for long.

 

No sign of American football or baseball.

 

Again, It's what you are born into. The pictures below are of youth Irish hurlers. If they were born in the states they would be playing soccer or knothole baseball. If our kids and those of you who advocate for soccer were born in a different country we'd be having the same argument about different sports. Somebody introduced soccer, it caught on, because kids are impressionable and we've been stuck with it ever since.

 

Are you really making the argument soccer takes more skill?

 

No kidding? If that's the argument, then we all need to sit down, share a Coca Cola and hear both sides of this story because I can give you countless arguments for the other side (why other sports require more athleticism and skill) and countless examples of athletes that chose soccer as their sport because they weren't good enough to play the others. They landed on soccer because at a young age because they were fast. Once they realized they couldn't keep up in the other sports, they defaulted to soccer and took all their time developing foot skills while others worked on other sports. Sure, by the time you're in high school, your foot skills would be better, but I could take any high school Bball guard and put him on the defensive end of a soccer field and he would be just fine. I bet you couldn't take many soccer players and insert him into a basketball game and he have much success.

 

I was like TAC. Never played soccer in my life. But as an adult, I was asked to play in my younger days and thought it might be a good way to get some running in. We played against ex high school and college players and I was easily able to hold my own because I was an athlete with decent speed and skills sets and coordination from other sports that allowed me to be just fine playing soccer. In fact, the soccer dudes on the team continued to ask me back, but I just didn't like it enough to continue to play.

 

That's not a "bragging session". It's an example that I feel if I would have dedicated myself to learning the foot skills, it's hard telling what I could have done in soccer. Never played it in my life and was able to compete with people that played the game all their life. I have seen soccer players cross over to other sports...it's not pretty!

 

Elite soccer players are great athletes. No doubt! And in great shape. But non-elite soccer players are nowhere near as full body skilled and coordinated as as other athletes they played at the same comparison level in many other sports.

A lot of good points in the thread. The United States has a long way to go to catch up the rest of the world in soccer. Yes, sometimes boring to watch. As far as athletism, it is much easier to catch a football and or simply take a football and run to avoid a tackle( and those are "skill positions")vs the skill and foot eye coordination to play soccer. Athletes can start football late simply because they are fast and or big. Typically not the case in soccer. The best athletes playing HS soccer could make a much easier transition to football ... The best athletes playing football would have a much tougher transition.

 

If you can run, and I mean if you have bursts of speed like most all good football and soccer athletes have, you could transition to both. The degree of that transition? TBD. But, in most cases, I'm betting there would be a place for you.

No kidding? If that's the argument, then we all need to sit down, share a Coca Cola and hear both sides of this story because I can give you countless arguments for the other side (why other sports require more athleticism and skill) and countless examples of athletes that chose soccer as their sport because they weren't good enough to play the others. They landed on soccer because at a young age because they were fast. Once they realized they couldn't keep up in the other sports, they defaulted to soccer and took all their time developing foot skills while others worked on other sports. Sure, by the time you're in high school, your foot skills would be better, but I could take any high school Bball guard and put him on the defensive end of a soccer field and he would be just fine. I bet you couldn't take many soccer players and insert him into a basketball game and he have much success.

 

I was like TAC. Never played soccer in my life. But as an adult, I was asked to play in my younger days and thought it might be a good way to get some running in. We played against ex high school and college players and I was easily able to hold my own because I was an athlete with decent speed and skills sets and coordination from other sports that allowed me to be just fine playing soccer. In fact, the soccer dudes on the team continued to ask me back, but I just didn't like it enough to continue to play.

 

That's not a "bragging session". It's an example that I feel if I would have dedicated myself to learning the foot skills, it's hard telling what I could have done in soccer. Never played it in my life and was able to compete with people that played the game all their life. I have seen soccer players cross over to other sports...it's not pretty!

 

Elite soccer players are great athletes. No doubt! And in great shape. But non-elite soccer players are nowhere near as full body skilled and coordinated as as other athletes they played at the same comparison level in many other sports.

 

Nailed it!

Passionate people on both sides in this thread.

If the best US athletes played soccer we'd win every tourney ever played in the history of the world.

 

Do you know why they don't play soccer?!?! Because it's boring and they are man enough to play a REAL sport.

Word.

 

Lol

 

Seriously? I played football and I played a few sessions of soccer. Slide tackles scare me far worse than anything I came across in football.

If you can run, and I mean if you have bursts of speed like most all good football and soccer athletes have, you could transition to both. The degree of that transition? TBD. But, in most cases, I'm betting there would be a place for you.

 

Watch flag football. The best teams are comprised of the same build/body type. Skill players, or former bball and soccer players. Everyone is talking like athletes exist in a vacuum and never play anything else. Again, I played a French pro team while in college. Their skill players were all ex-soccer players. In only a couple seasons of playing American Football, in terms of being dangerous in space, moves, balance, they were on par w/ anyone that we had and we had a couple of guys get time at pro camps. Good to great athletes transition a lot easier than people are allowing here.

A lot of good points in the thread. The United States has a long way to go to catch up the rest of the world in soccer. Yes, sometimes boring to watch. As far as athletism, it is much easier to catch a football and or simply take a football and run to avoid a tackle( and those are "skill positions")vs the skill and foot eye coordination to play soccer. Athletes can start football late simply because they are fast and or big. Typically not the case in soccer. The best athletes playing HS soccer could make a much easier transition to football ... The best athletes playing football would have a much tougher transition.

 

This analysis is dead on correct in that the best athletes in soccer could more easily transition to play football. Take a Ryan Massie on the CCH soccer team. Very fast and probably 6'-3" or so with great leaping ability.......you don't think he could find a starting spot on the CCH football team? Some good examples the other way are three current or former CCH football players (Sam & Ben Dressman and Cam Pitzer). All three of them were soccer players up until 6th grade if I recall. As good athletes they were all good soccer players but none I would put in the "elite" category. When they made the move to football, all three were some of the best players on the field almost immediately despite never having played the sport. While Ben and Cam could come back and make the soccer team this year, neither would start nor receive significant minutes. The athleticism is there but not the skill level.

 

I'd have to add that it's pretty mind boggling that it took the football brain trust so long to figure out that the Pitzer kid can catch and run with the ball. If Ruthsatz ever sees him rebound on the bball court he'll be knocking on his door as well.

Edited October 13, 201510 yr by groinpull

Watch flag football. The best teams are comprised of the same build/body type. Skill players, or former bball and soccer players. Everyone is talking like athletes exist in a vacuum and never play anything else. Again, I played a French pro team while in college. Their skill players were all ex-soccer players. In only a couple seasons of playing American Football, in terms of being dangerous in space, moves, balance, they were on par w/ anyone that we had and we had a couple of guys get time at pro camps. Good to great athletes transition a lot easier than people are allowing here.

 

You said it.

Watch flag football. The best teams are comprised of the same build/body type. Skill players, or former bball and soccer players. Everyone is talking like athletes exist in a vacuum and never play anything else. Again, I played a French pro team while in college. Their skill players were all ex-soccer players. In only a couple seasons of playing American Football, in terms of being dangerous in space, moves, balance, they were on par w/ anyone that we had and we had a couple of guys get time at pro camps. Good to great athletes transition a lot easier than people are allowing here.

 

I played in 3 NCAA National Championships. Never had any soccer players on our teams or to my knowledge the teams we played against. All former hoops, baseball or football stars with a few track/XC guys thrown in. Than again soccer was not in this area way back in the day. Buddy of mine was on a basketball scholly in college. Had never played soccer in his life. His roommate did so he asked him to play. He walked on and started on a college team with ZERO soccer knowledge or skills. I don't think you could take a kid that grew up only playing soccer and have him walk on to a college basketball or baseball team though.

Great athletes can play any sport given the opportunity to.

The issue here is not the elite athletes who can do it all. It's more the not so elite player that can play a particular sport.

This analysis is dead on correct in that the best athletes in soccer could more easily transition to play football. Take a Ryan Massie on the CCH soccer team. Very fast and probably 6'-3" or so with great leaping ability.......you don't think he could find a starting spot on the CCH football team? Some good examples the other way are three current or former CCH football players (Sam & Ben Dressman and Cam Pitzer). All three of them were soccer players up until 6th grade if I recall. As good athletes they were all good soccer players but none I would put in the "elite" category. When they made the move to football, all three were some of the best players on the field almost immediately despite never having played the sport. While Ben and Cam could come back and make the soccer team this year, neither would start nor receive significant minutes. The athleticism is there but not the skill level.

 

I'd have to add that it's pretty mind boggling that it took the football brain trust so long to figure out that the Pitzer kid can catch and run with the ball. If Ruthsatz ever sees him rebound on the bball court he'll be knocking on his door as well.

 

Why did they leave soccer???

Why did they leave soccer???

 

You'd have to ask them but Pitzer is from a football family but in general the cultural pull for kids to play football is pretty strong. Grant Beagle, receiver for Ryle, was on the same soccer team as Pitzer/Dressman. Good player, not great, but doing pretty well at football I believe.

Watch flag football. The best teams are comprised of the same build/body type. Skill players, or former bball and soccer players. Everyone is talking like athletes exist in a vacuum and never play anything else. Again, I played a French pro team while in college. Their skill players were all ex-soccer players. In only a couple seasons of playing American Football, in terms of being dangerous in space, moves, balance, they were on par w/ anyone that we had and we had a couple of guys get time at pro camps. Good to great athletes transition a lot easier than people are allowing here.

 

 

I played at a very competitive level of flag football. Traveled all over the country. Finished very high in nationals and consistently ranked in the top 5 in the country. We did not have one soccer player or not did the top teams we were competing with at national...for the most part. Everyone that was in the top 5-10 were made up up of mostly ex-football and basketball players. Maybe a few really fast soccer players scattered across a few of the top ten teams, but the vast majority were Bball and football. If they were soccer players they were most likely on defense and most likely rushers.

Seriously? I played football and I played a few sessions of soccer. Slide tackles scare me far worse than anything I came across in football.

 

Is this the ones that actually trip you or the ones that don't even touch you and you pretend it does with the equivalent of a sniper shot?!?! Then hold your shin and roll around on the ground writhing in pain...only to be up and running full speed again 60 seconds later?

 

The best US athletes don't play soccer and they never will.