The World Cup: Better than the Super Bowl?
Seth Dixon
Issue date: 2/6/08 Section: Opinion
By Elizabeth Johnson
Although we Americans love our football, the Super Bowl doesn't seem to excite those beyond our borders in quite the same way it excites us. The Super Bowl was broadcasted internationally on both delayed and live feeds this past Sunday, but those who tuned in probably did so out of curiosity, not because they love American football. It is quite evident that our beloved sport has a major competitor in the international market, and it happens to go by a familiar name.
Soccer, or football as it is called virtually everywhere else, is the most popular sport on the planet. That's right, it's not horse racing as many people around here would lead you to believe. It's soccer, and while soccer moms are scattered from coast to coast and David Beckham currently calls our country home, we still have a long road to travel when it comes to this other "football" form.
Major League Soccer is slowly growing in the U.S. as stadiums built especially for the sport are being completed and new teams are being formed. Hopefully, the league will continue to operate and eventually develop into an internationally competitive institution. This can only happen if Americans invest their time and money in the league. With that said, can we make room for another powerhouse sport?
Not only do I think we can, I think we should. I had the chance to experience international "football" on its most hallowed day when I traveled to Italy in the summer of 2006. Italy won the World Cup that year, and I was in the heart of Florence when they did. The celebration that followed was unlike any American equivalent. Even when it comes to the Olympics, we are not fully engaged in a comparable way. Obviously, the Super Bowl does a much better job of getting everyone involved, but some people still come out on the losing end.
In a time where we find it increasingly difficult but no less important to come together as one nation, soccer stands to be a uniting force of the future. The World Cup, its greatest event, promises to create an even more outstanding experience than our divisive American Super Bowl.
Although we Americans love our football, the Super Bowl doesn't seem to excite those beyond our borders in quite the same way it excites us. The Super Bowl was broadcasted internationally on both delayed and live feeds this past Sunday, but those who tuned in probably did so out of curiosity, not because they love American football. It is quite evident that our beloved sport has a major competitor in the international market, and it happens to go by a familiar name.
Soccer, or football as it is called virtually everywhere else, is the most popular sport on the planet. That's right, it's not horse racing as many people around here would lead you to believe. It's soccer, and while soccer moms are scattered from coast to coast and David Beckham currently calls our country home, we still have a long road to travel when it comes to this other "football" form.
Major League Soccer is slowly growing in the U.S. as stadiums built especially for the sport are being completed and new teams are being formed. Hopefully, the league will continue to operate and eventually develop into an internationally competitive institution. This can only happen if Americans invest their time and money in the league. With that said, can we make room for another powerhouse sport?
Not only do I think we can, I think we should. I had the chance to experience international "football" on its most hallowed day when I traveled to Italy in the summer of 2006. Italy won the World Cup that year, and I was in the heart of Florence when they did. The celebration that followed was unlike any American equivalent. Even when it comes to the Olympics, we are not fully engaged in a comparable way. Obviously, the Super Bowl does a much better job of getting everyone involved, but some people still come out on the losing end.
In a time where we find it increasingly difficult but no less important to come together as one nation, soccer stands to be a uniting force of the future. The World Cup, its greatest event, promises to create an even more outstanding experience than our divisive American Super Bowl.
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