Like many Americans, I played youth soccer growing up. I enjoyed my brief heyday as Concord Township's most feared goalie but, alas, my talent and height proved lacking after graduating to the "over-ten" demographic. My dreams of professional soccer (such as they were) fizzled out fairly soon and so did my interest in the game as a spectacle. Though I grew up to be a sports fan, I just never got soccer. Too little scoring. Not enough carnage. It lacked the basic sporting necessities.
That changed after the 2006 World Cup. Though I didn't follow it intensely, I managed to watch a few matches and found that I really enjoyed the finesse, skill and passion of the game. The anxious buildup to goals and the accompanying groans or cheers thrilled me. I've been a soccer nerd ever since.
If only my fellow countrymen felt the same way. I try and try to convince friends to watch matches with me, but am met by the same disinterested looks every time. Hence, this attempt to evangelize the American Midwest. In the coming weeks, this blog aims to bring my slice of America up to date with the world's game. By supplying news and information about soccer, readers will hopefully familiarize themselves with futbol enough to chat it up with the hardest soccer hooligans in West London.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Three Swell Soccer Blogs
Good sports reporting is a rarity these days, so I've combed through the wastebin and plucked out three honest-to-goodness decent soccer blogs for you. If this humble site doesn't sate your craving for soccer news, head on over to these fine blogs for your footie fix.
1. The Guardian's Football League Blog - England's Premier League is full of unimaginative tactics and overpaid stars. The UK's finest paper has deftly side-stepped that mess and put quality writers to work covering the land's lower leagues. For Americans who aren't familiar with the rich soccer tradition in England, this blog can serve as a wonderful jumping-off point.
2. Zonal Marking - The undisputed champion of soccer tactics writing, Zonal Marking dissects matchday strategies with an obsessive attention to detail. Nerdy and probably overwhelming for soccer newcomers, the blog nevertheless sparkles with wit and imagination. To understand the intricacies of the beautiful game, there is nowhere else to turn.
3. When Saturday Comes - A quality sports magazine is even rarer nowadays than a quality sports blog, yet When Saturday Comes is both. Though it delivers good enough straight news, WSC really shines in the editorial department. Its writers offer up unique and innovate views which can't be found in the more sanitized realm of mainstream sports newswriting.
1. The Guardian's Football League Blog - England's Premier League is full of unimaginative tactics and overpaid stars. The UK's finest paper has deftly side-stepped that mess and put quality writers to work covering the land's lower leagues. For Americans who aren't familiar with the rich soccer tradition in England, this blog can serve as a wonderful jumping-off point.
2. Zonal Marking - The undisputed champion of soccer tactics writing, Zonal Marking dissects matchday strategies with an obsessive attention to detail. Nerdy and probably overwhelming for soccer newcomers, the blog nevertheless sparkles with wit and imagination. To understand the intricacies of the beautiful game, there is nowhere else to turn.
3. When Saturday Comes - A quality sports magazine is even rarer nowadays than a quality sports blog, yet When Saturday Comes is both. Though it delivers good enough straight news, WSC really shines in the editorial department. Its writers offer up unique and innovate views which can't be found in the more sanitized realm of mainstream sports newswriting.
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