[video=youtube_share;QWV-veNHx3s]http://youtu.be/QWV-veNHx3s[/video] Seems to me they're the very thing our hardcore wants us to be, without the scrapping of course. Is being Americanised that bad? Good to see the US embracing the beautiful game properly.
I didnt expect them to be getting crowds that size. I know obviosuly population is big but I still didnt expect it.
This is actually the Europeanisation of America, rather than the Americanisation of football. Good luck to them, they seem to be doing a fantastic job. A supporters group that gets to meet the owners three or four times a year and who can sack the general manager once every four years sounds like a good idea.
Precisely my thought. They've clearly looked around at what are considered the best fans and copied them, but it may be from South America too rather than exclusively Europe. But either way it's not Americanisation.
The US national team was very enjoyable to watch in the last World Cup. Dunno if they're anywhere near winning the World Cup, but they'll keep on getting better as a side. They've got loads of fans getting up at god knows what time to watch Premier League matches on a weekend, so yeah fair play to them. A 50K+ attendance is fantastic. [video=youtube;X3LrQpCvs1A]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3LrQpCvs1A[/video]
My immediate thought when I saw the title this was hope its a MIFF post . If it was the answer would almost certainly have been no. As it is the answer is yes (and I've not played the clip).
So you think English football needs to be more Europeanised? What other clubs, in Europe, have supporters groups that meet their owner 3 or 4 times a year, have a general manager who can be sacked by them too? Wtf IS a general manager in a footy club too and do you think we should have them as well?
I didn't mention English football, I merely pointed out that the video you posted didn't show the sport being Americanised, it showed the Americans mimicking European football support. As far as football here is concerned, the biggest single issue is pricing, we charge far too much to watch it live. I'm no expert on fan arrangements accross Europe, though obviously in Germany the fans own the clubs, so they're directly involved in all the decisions the clubs make. A General Manager in America is responsible for the commercial activities of the club, it's what we would call a Chief Executive and we're the only Premier League club currently without one(though Ehab is currently handling that role).
Lots of clubs here get really nice support not quite the support though that Seattle gets. It isnt really that surprising, anyone who watches the NFL or college sports see the same type of fan dedication. The MLS could work on their chants though, the local club (SJ about 2-3 hours away from me) chants "Uh, San Jose" over and over again like 100 times. Its ****ing annoying as hell after the first 20 times you hear it. As far as 50,000 goes lots of our sports here get far more than that. Plenty of college teams here get 100,000 in attendance. Hell the baseball team I played in during high school used to pull in 10,000 people.
I don't know what this has to do with Americanization. Football (soccer) is finally getting big here in the US and I differ with the guy interviewed in the clip as to why. I think it is less the internet, as he said, and more the presence of European leagues, particularly the Premier League available on TV here. That's how I became a fan (and of Hull City, no less). I saw a match in Seattle this year, scoring a front row seat at midfield to watch them play FC Dallas (even had my FC Dallas shirt). Great atmosphere! Seattle is MLS' largest success story, but not the only one. Down the coast a bit, Portland ditched their AAA minor league baseball team a few years back and converted their stadium to soccer only. The Portland Timbers MLS club have a fan base most European clubs would be proud of. It's not just the west coast, either. Kansas City has a very devoted fan base in the heart of the American Midwest.
It's all good stuff. Big crowds for soccer in the USA and 83,000 gates for NFL over here. You wouldn't have thought that a couple of decades ago
3 of my mates went to the World Cup last year. After england where knocked out they thought it would be a good laugh to go rip the piss out of the whooping hollerin' yanks. They ended up having their best day in Brazil and said the yanks were great. My mates got their faces painted and pretended to be American all day without anyone questioning it. I've got a video somewhere I will put it on if I can find it
