- We've proven we can host international matches. A friendly between Mexico and Venezuela this summer drew over 50,000 to the Georgia Dome. The AC Milan-Club America game, which I attended, also got over 50,000. I can't speak for the atmosphere at the Mexico game, though I'm sure it was amazing, but the Milan-Club America game was fantastic. Fans everywhere, cheering, singing, taking over the CNN Center food court before the game…it was awesome. Oh, and we hosted a little event called the 1996 Olympics, which you may have heard of.
- We've got the support. Over 14,000 people signed the GoUSABid petition for Atlanta. The only city with more signatures? Seattle, with over 19,000 (and I've got a strong feeling the Sounders had a lot to do with that). The Georgia Youth Soccer Association made a strong push for people to sign the petition and make a donation to the GoUSABid committee. Did anyone else do that? Not that I know of. (though I just found out about Atlanta's donation today, so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong)
- It's our time now. Atlanta has always gotten the short end of the stick for soccer. No MLS team, the Silverbacks sitting out the USL season in 2009 and then being dropped from the new NASL/USL second division, never hosting USMNT games, the Beat coming in as an expansion team and not automatically getting two USWNT players like the other teams did…it's time for Atlanta to finally step up and show why they shouldn't have been passed over all those other times. Shine on, Atlanta.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
on atlanta's selection as a bid city
This afternoon, Atlanta was named as one of the 18 cities that would be included in US Soccer's bid to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cup. As a current resident of Atlanta, and a lifelong Georgia resident, I'm obviously beyond thrilled that Atlanta was selected. There's obviously no guarantee that it'll be among the final 12 cities if we actually get the bid from FIFA, but the fact that it was among the 18 has me feeling quite proud to be an Atlantan, so I've decided to draft up a few reasons why I, as an Atlanta resident, think the city deserves the World Cup (this will, eventually, be followed up by a more negative post about MLS expansion, but that's for another day now):
Monday, January 11, 2010
on being a crew fan in georgia
I guess I have to start this off by stating, for those of you who didn't know, that I'm a Columbus Crew fan. Through 2007, I just sorta casually followed MLS, watched whatever game was on, not really cheering for anyone in particular because I didn't have a team within 9 hours of me, so there really wasn't much of a reason to. At the beginning of the 2008 season, however, I decided that I was going to really get into the league and pick a team and stick with them. It was a couple of weeks into the season when I settled on Columbus- they had US National Team players I liked (Frankie Hejduk, and to some extent Robbie Rogers), they had players I knew I would like (a crafty Argentinian midfielder, a Scotsman who scored a rocket of a goal, a keeper who looked like Ricky Bobby, a goofy blonde kid who looked like a Cabbage Patch doll, to name a few), they played a nice passing game which I respected, and, just as importantly as the other reasons, they wore yellow, one of my favorite colors. So I started following the Crew, and either I'm good at picking winners or I was actually their lucky charm; regardless, the Crew won the Supporter's Shield and MLS Cup and I was a content fan. In 2009 I was still a Crew fan. They only won the Supporter's Shield this season, but at least that's something.
I'd become really attached to the team, which I suppose is a good thing, but being a fan of a team nine hours away from you can pose some problems. For one, I've never met another Crew fan. Actually, I can broaden that by saying I've never met a fan of any MLS team outside of my family, who I've pretty much forced it on, but that's a whole different story. So other than a couple people on Twitter and, if I dared, Big Soccer, I don't really have anyone to talk to about anything specifically Crew-related. (My mom will listen to me rant and ramble, but I doubt she takes most of it in.) Another downside is that I can't just decide I want to go to a game and then go. I'd have to get a plane ticket and a rental car and a hotel room and find someone to go with and as much as I'd love to go to games all the time, it's just not feasible.
I had a nice long paragraph here about not being able to find Crew merchandise, but it just sounded really whiny so I scratched it all. I only have one piece of Crew merchandise, and it's the MLS Cup Champions t-shirt. It's also a mens large, since that's all they had in stock, so I can't wear it out anywhere. I plan on getting a jersey when the new ones come out in February, but I have nothing now. Recently, however, I took up knitting, and I bought yellow and black yarn and knitted myself a Crew scarf.
It's my first project, so it's not at all perfect, the stripes are different sizes and the stitches are loose in some places, but it's something at least. Of course, everyone is going to assume it's just a Georgia Tech scarf, but they don't know any better.
I'd become really attached to the team, which I suppose is a good thing, but being a fan of a team nine hours away from you can pose some problems. For one, I've never met another Crew fan. Actually, I can broaden that by saying I've never met a fan of any MLS team outside of my family, who I've pretty much forced it on, but that's a whole different story. So other than a couple people on Twitter and, if I dared, Big Soccer, I don't really have anyone to talk to about anything specifically Crew-related. (My mom will listen to me rant and ramble, but I doubt she takes most of it in.) Another downside is that I can't just decide I want to go to a game and then go. I'd have to get a plane ticket and a rental car and a hotel room and find someone to go with and as much as I'd love to go to games all the time, it's just not feasible.
I had a nice long paragraph here about not being able to find Crew merchandise, but it just sounded really whiny so I scratched it all. I only have one piece of Crew merchandise, and it's the MLS Cup Champions t-shirt. It's also a mens large, since that's all they had in stock, so I can't wear it out anywhere. I plan on getting a jersey when the new ones come out in February, but I have nothing now. Recently, however, I took up knitting, and I bought yellow and black yarn and knitted myself a Crew scarf.
It's my first project, so it's not at all perfect, the stripes are different sizes and the stitches are loose in some places, but it's something at least. Of course, everyone is going to assume it's just a Georgia Tech scarf, but they don't know any better.
Monday, January 4, 2010
really, someone else should be writing about cold weather. but i'll take a whack at it.
One of FIFA president Sepp Blatter's favorite topics is how the MLS should switch to a European schedule, playing from August to May like the leagues there do. Obviously, Sepp Blatter has never been to the US during the winter. I've never left the southeast, so I can only speak for the rest of the country on hearsay, but it was in the 20s and teens yesterday in Atlanta, so I can imagine how cold it is in places that actually get "real winter". Which would cover 11 of the 16 MLS teams.
I've sat out at Georgia Tech football games in almost-freezing weather. It was bearable, only because we were jumping around like crazy in 6 layers of clothing. I can't imagine being out in anything colder, so props to everyone who does. Over the weekend I watched an FA Cup match where Middlesbrough hosted Manchester City. The stadium was practically empty, with temperatures in the 20s and snow falling. I'd bet that the lack of attendance had a lot more to do with the weather than fans not caring about the FA Cup.
If the MLS were to switch to the "European Schedule" as Blatter wants, the league's attendance would really suffer. I'm sure the hardcore fans would still go out to a game if it was around ten degrees outside, but the casual fans most likely wouldn't. In a world where if you aren't Seattle, your attendance is mocked, dropping attendance is the last thing anyone wants to see. From a purely personal point of view, I like that the league plays through the summer because it gives me something to watch. I feel like I have more to say, but really, all I have is that I don't like the idea of the league switching to the European schedule. Let the Europeans keep their schedule, we'll do things our own way.
I've sat out at Georgia Tech football games in almost-freezing weather. It was bearable, only because we were jumping around like crazy in 6 layers of clothing. I can't imagine being out in anything colder, so props to everyone who does. Over the weekend I watched an FA Cup match where Middlesbrough hosted Manchester City. The stadium was practically empty, with temperatures in the 20s and snow falling. I'd bet that the lack of attendance had a lot more to do with the weather than fans not caring about the FA Cup.
If the MLS were to switch to the "European Schedule" as Blatter wants, the league's attendance would really suffer. I'm sure the hardcore fans would still go out to a game if it was around ten degrees outside, but the casual fans most likely wouldn't. In a world where if you aren't Seattle, your attendance is mocked, dropping attendance is the last thing anyone wants to see. From a purely personal point of view, I like that the league plays through the summer because it gives me something to watch. I feel like I have more to say, but really, all I have is that I don't like the idea of the league switching to the European schedule. Let the Europeans keep their schedule, we'll do things our own way.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
odds and ends
On the December Jersey Count
There won't be one, unfortunately. The only jerseys I saw on campus were the USMNT jerseys I wore, and since the stats are already padded in my favor, I'm just going to not count this month. Hopefully I'll see more in January.
On my Soccer Library
My Soccer Library has now expanded from 4 to 6, thanks to some awesome Christmas presents from my family. I've already started A Massive Season by Steve Sirk, and I also got Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski. They join:
-Bloody Confused (started, didn't have time to finish thanks to school)
-The Beckham Experiment (amazing, amazing, and amazing, a must-read for any MLS fan)
-Fever Pitch (a must-read for any soccer fan-even if you don't like Arsenal)
-The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup (skimmed through, though slightly out of date now, there are good stories and facts)
If I had time to read more, I'd spend all my money on Amazon buying soccer books.
On my upcoming first MLS experience
The Carolina Challenge Cup happens to fall on the front weekend of my Spring Break, and since Charleston's so close (and $25 for a doubleheader is a price nobody could pass up), I've already got my front-row tickets. Even though none of the teams participating are teams I really support, I'm going just for the experience.
Of course, MLS First Kick 2010 falls on the back weekend of my Spring Break. I'm still trying to convince my mom that it'll be worth the trip up to Columbus (Mom, when you read this, I still want to go. :) Also, kickoff is at 4pm.) but hopefully we'll make it up there at some point this season.
There won't be one, unfortunately. The only jerseys I saw on campus were the USMNT jerseys I wore, and since the stats are already padded in my favor, I'm just going to not count this month. Hopefully I'll see more in January.
On my Soccer Library
My Soccer Library has now expanded from 4 to 6, thanks to some awesome Christmas presents from my family. I've already started A Massive Season by Steve Sirk, and I also got Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski. They join:
-Bloody Confused (started, didn't have time to finish thanks to school)
-The Beckham Experiment (amazing, amazing, and amazing, a must-read for any MLS fan)
-Fever Pitch (a must-read for any soccer fan-even if you don't like Arsenal)
-The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup (skimmed through, though slightly out of date now, there are good stories and facts)
If I had time to read more, I'd spend all my money on Amazon buying soccer books.
On my upcoming first MLS experience
The Carolina Challenge Cup happens to fall on the front weekend of my Spring Break, and since Charleston's so close (and $25 for a doubleheader is a price nobody could pass up), I've already got my front-row tickets. Even though none of the teams participating are teams I really support, I'm going just for the experience.
Of course, MLS First Kick 2010 falls on the back weekend of my Spring Break. I'm still trying to convince my mom that it'll be worth the trip up to Columbus (Mom, when you read this, I still want to go. :) Also, kickoff is at 4pm.) but hopefully we'll make it up there at some point this season.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
November Jersey Count
The number of jerseys I'm seeing on campus is kinda dropping off, but I have a feeling it has more to do with the cooler weather and people not wanting to wear short sleeves. Nothing really exciting about the count this month, unfortunately.
USA 3 (Bradley 1, all me)
Liverpool 3 (Torres 1, Gerrard 1)
AC Milan 1
Barcelona 1
Real Madrid 1 (me)
France 1
Mexico 1
I updated my total jersey count through the four months I've been doing this, and if I discarded all of the jerseys I've worn, AC Milan and Liverpool would be tied for most-represented teams with 9 each. I feel like Milan became a popular jersey after the Milan-Club America match at the Georgia Dome, where I think a lot of people bought them. As for Liverpool's high count, I'm going to blame that on the guy with the Fernando Torres jersey who I see eating lunch in the Student Center all the time. All the Torres jerseys have been him (although I can't really say much about wearing the same jersey all the time). But since I'm counting my jerseys, Real Madrid is tied with Milan and Liverpool for second, and the three times a month I wear my USMNT jerseys (usually once each, though I apparently wore my Michael Bradley jersey twice in October?) brings the USMNT up to first place with 12.
Also, since the list was getting sorta crowded on the sidebar, I've split it up to have a teams list and a players list. The players still count towards the overall team count, but with the two it'll be less crowded.
USA 3 (Bradley 1, all me)
Liverpool 3 (Torres 1, Gerrard 1)
AC Milan 1
Barcelona 1
Real Madrid 1 (me)
France 1
Mexico 1
I updated my total jersey count through the four months I've been doing this, and if I discarded all of the jerseys I've worn, AC Milan and Liverpool would be tied for most-represented teams with 9 each. I feel like Milan became a popular jersey after the Milan-Club America match at the Georgia Dome, where I think a lot of people bought them. As for Liverpool's high count, I'm going to blame that on the guy with the Fernando Torres jersey who I see eating lunch in the Student Center all the time. All the Torres jerseys have been him (although I can't really say much about wearing the same jersey all the time). But since I'm counting my jerseys, Real Madrid is tied with Milan and Liverpool for second, and the three times a month I wear my USMNT jerseys (usually once each, though I apparently wore my Michael Bradley jersey twice in October?) brings the USMNT up to first place with 12.
Also, since the list was getting sorta crowded on the sidebar, I've split it up to have a teams list and a players list. The players still count towards the overall team count, but with the two it'll be less crowded.
Monday, November 30, 2009
on my european disinterest
So December is about to start, which means it's going to be a pretty boring month for me soccer-wise. Most soccer fans love December- sure, La Liga and the Bundesliga take breaks towards the end of the month, but the Premier League has a full schedule that would have any other fan mesmerized in front of the TV all day. And sure, I'll probably watch as much as I can, because I won't really have anything else to do and I love watching soccer. But I won't be nearly as into it as I would have been two years ago. For some reason, European soccer just doesn't interest me as much as it used to.
I have two schools of thought as to the reasoning behind my sudden disinterest. The first, which seems more logical, is that it's no longer convenient to watch games now that I'm at college. At home, we get Fox Soccer Channel and GolTV, and my weekends were always jam-packed with games from the Premier League, Bundesliga, and La Liga. I don't get GolTV at school, so I've almost completely fallen out with La Liga and the Bundesliga, simply because there's no way for me to watch matches besides streaming, and even with my newly acquired HDMI cable, it's a lot of work in comparison to the crappy picture quality I get from an internet stream. I still get FSC, but I always end up staying up late on Friday and Saturday nights and I can never bring myself to get up in time to watch a 10AM game. I'll occasionally put on the noon game while I'm eating lunch, but I'm always distracted by other stuff and I just can't get into it.
The other school of thought is that my newfound love (my parents call it obsession, but I beg to differ) for MLS has replaced my past love for European leagues. It is more convenient to watch- I don't really do much on Saturday nights other than maybe watch a movie with friends, so I'm not missing much if I stay in and watch a game, and midweek games are even easier. The 800k streaming on Match Center hasn't really given me problems with quality or freezing, so I don't mind taking the time to hook up my HDMI cable, although I mainly just use it for Columbus Crew games or the occasional "big game" that isn't on TV. As for games that are on TV, though, I'll generally watch whatever's on, unless I could honestly care less about both teams playing or I have an important prior engagement. I'm the rare soul who actually enjoys the commentary on FSC, with the "6 in 60" segment being a personal favorite of mine (the fact that they used my questions and sent me cool stuff has nothing to do with this, obviously). I've even started watching the Sunday Telefutura match, despite the fact that I have to put up with a crappy internet stream. They usually get a pretty good game, and the commentary gives me a chance to practice and improve on the six years of Spanish I took in middle and high school, so it's worth it.
But the fact of the matter is that I'll put up with a crappy, non-English stream to watch an MLS game, but I won't for a European game. I'll forgo hanging out with my friends to watch an MLS game, but I can't be bothered to get up early to watch a European game. It's a solid argument, and but it's not one that I want to believe. I'd like to think that I could potentially get back into watching the European leagues some day in the future when it becomes more convenient, because I really enjoyed watching them. But for now, I'll just spend my December disinterestedly watching European soccer, because why not?
I have two schools of thought as to the reasoning behind my sudden disinterest. The first, which seems more logical, is that it's no longer convenient to watch games now that I'm at college. At home, we get Fox Soccer Channel and GolTV, and my weekends were always jam-packed with games from the Premier League, Bundesliga, and La Liga. I don't get GolTV at school, so I've almost completely fallen out with La Liga and the Bundesliga, simply because there's no way for me to watch matches besides streaming, and even with my newly acquired HDMI cable, it's a lot of work in comparison to the crappy picture quality I get from an internet stream. I still get FSC, but I always end up staying up late on Friday and Saturday nights and I can never bring myself to get up in time to watch a 10AM game. I'll occasionally put on the noon game while I'm eating lunch, but I'm always distracted by other stuff and I just can't get into it.
The other school of thought is that my newfound love (my parents call it obsession, but I beg to differ) for MLS has replaced my past love for European leagues. It is more convenient to watch- I don't really do much on Saturday nights other than maybe watch a movie with friends, so I'm not missing much if I stay in and watch a game, and midweek games are even easier. The 800k streaming on Match Center hasn't really given me problems with quality or freezing, so I don't mind taking the time to hook up my HDMI cable, although I mainly just use it for Columbus Crew games or the occasional "big game" that isn't on TV. As for games that are on TV, though, I'll generally watch whatever's on, unless I could honestly care less about both teams playing or I have an important prior engagement. I'm the rare soul who actually enjoys the commentary on FSC, with the "6 in 60" segment being a personal favorite of mine (the fact that they used my questions and sent me cool stuff has nothing to do with this, obviously). I've even started watching the Sunday Telefutura match, despite the fact that I have to put up with a crappy internet stream. They usually get a pretty good game, and the commentary gives me a chance to practice and improve on the six years of Spanish I took in middle and high school, so it's worth it.
But the fact of the matter is that I'll put up with a crappy, non-English stream to watch an MLS game, but I won't for a European game. I'll forgo hanging out with my friends to watch an MLS game, but I can't be bothered to get up early to watch a European game. It's a solid argument, and but it's not one that I want to believe. I'd like to think that I could potentially get back into watching the European leagues some day in the future when it becomes more convenient, because I really enjoyed watching them. But for now, I'll just spend my December disinterestedly watching European soccer, because why not?
October Jersey Count
I figured since it was almost December I should probably post this. October was a special month- it was the first time I had seen someone at Tech wearing an MLS jersey. Which is the second time ever (outside of the Milan-Club America game) that I'd seen someone wearing an MLS jersey anywhere (guy in a Houston Dynamo jersey at the Palm Beach airport going home from Spring Break in March). So even though it was New York and I don't really like them, it was really exciting. Still no USMNT jerseys, though.
USA 3 (Bradley 2) (all me)
Real Madrid 2 (1 was me)
AC Milan 1
Italy 1 (Totti 1)
Galatasaray 1
Liverpool 1 (Gerrard 1)
Barcelona 1
New York Red Bulls 1
Manchester United 1
Bayern Munich 1
I'll update the cumulative count after I post November's count, it seems stupid to update it twice in such quick succession, especially since I doubt anyone cares anyways.
USA 3 (Bradley 2) (all me)
Real Madrid 2 (1 was me)
AC Milan 1
Italy 1 (Totti 1)
Galatasaray 1
Liverpool 1 (Gerrard 1)
Barcelona 1
New York Red Bulls 1
Manchester United 1
Bayern Munich 1
I'll update the cumulative count after I post November's count, it seems stupid to update it twice in such quick succession, especially since I doubt anyone cares anyways.
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