@snarlcakes you don’t think Nigeria and Jamaica and the rest of the fastest people on earth haven’t tried? You think it’s just athletes. Power speed. It’s not. Xavi. Iniesta. Messi. Pirlo. Destroy those guys. It’s brain. Vision. Touch. Ago. It’s totally different skill sets. What you value in athletes isn’t what makes a great soccer player. We saw that with freeman’s kid and the others. Speed. Endurance. But that touch and knowledge are a different thing at the top
You really think Steph Curry doesn't have touch? Intelligence? Get out of here with this silliness. I'll say it another way. The other soccer teams that better have more players who could play in the NFL, NBA, or MLB than the U.S. Messi would be unreal as a slot receiver.
@mark-milton so if you take an accounting we are still probably 16-35 in the world depending on the day. Miles away from the elite countries. An argument can be made mls hasn’t done much. Pay to play stronger than ever. And Mo State U has become a very solid D1 program. This fall they will have 28 internationals. Not a single Gallagher Lou fusz city sc nxt kid.
The other major problem, and it might be the most significant problem of all, is that the cost for playing at the old Academies and now MLS is astounding.
I kept track of my boys' expenses, including travel for each year:
U8-U10: 6k each a year which included coaching fees, travel and extra training. 36k over 3 years for both
U11-U12: 8k a year each. 32k over 2 years for both.
U13-U18: Academy levels: 9k a year each plus. My oldest kid's team was ranked number 1 for much of the year and they went to Texas, San Diego, St. Louis, Florida and Arizona. 6 years at a combined 18k a year for 108k total.
By U15 I figured out it was all bullshit and nothing more than a money-making opportunity. I also figured out that even though both my kids started, neither was in the top 5 players on the team, and if you ain't in the top 5, you quicky discover that the coach doesn't give a crap about you.
I bet Scott Gallagher is right up there in costs.
You weed out a lot of really good athletes and players with the cost. Being a big fish in a small pond is important, but playing with better players is really important as well.
The most shambolic business model in sports.
This is not that different than other activities/sports (see AAU basketball or my $20K+/yr dance bill for a 10-year-old). That being said, the bigger clubs here give out plenty of scholarships and aid packages to those who need them.
More importantly, do you really think it is that much cheaper in Europe? If anything, I would expect it to be more (supply vs. demand, lack of alternatives).
Lastly, that doesn't explain why poorer countries in LatAm have so much success. The culture, playing style, and interest are just different.
By my last check, only the MLS teams provide scholarships/aid because they have some resources, but it isn't for everyone. 6 of both my kids' buddies went to the following: (1) Columbus Crew; (2) Sporting KC; (3) Philadelphia Union; (4) Portland Timbers and (5) Atlanta United. Nobody received a dime in assistance. Two of them are playing in MLS now.
Europe is different. If you are invited to play at an academy, the academies pay for it all. If you aren't in academy, the travel is significantly reduced, and the fees are way less. They aren't pricing out people.
None of these issues are mutually exclusive but rather additive.
That's surprising. I wonder if that will change as MLS Next grows and competes with ECNL. Our club is an ECNL club and they always ask about aid and scholarships. You have to meet income thresholds (don't recall what they are), but I know these are offered to those who cannot foot the full bill. My guess is that it doesn't cover travel expenses, but I have no idea. A few other clubs in the same status also offer scholarships from my experience.
@carramrod lmao he never played anywhere
Just look at the USWNT. They’re dominant. Take away MLB, NHL, NFL as an option. Deprioritize WNBA/ NBA and USMNT is the best in the world within a decade.
How can one even enjoy watching soccer with the knowledge all the best players in the world don’t play in the same league?
@snarlcakes why would he? Because he can shoot a basketball and is coordinated? That doesn’t mean anything as to whether he’d have touch. There are what 8 billion people in the world. Jamaicans. Africans. Russians. Incredible athletes all over the world. Touch is a very rare talent. The belief that someone like Steph curry would just have it like a Xavi Messi Pirlo etc is insane
@carramrod women are dominant because no one played in other countries. It’s older here and better funded here than around the world. The last decade that has changed and the U.S. women are already being passed
I'll contend that it's not just dad's, but kids getting out and playing with other kids. That's how I got better.
Well that and, like me, being 6'3"
I learned how to dribble on a gravel driveway. Dad had a hoop up on the side of the house by the time i was 7. Same thing though, friends in the neighborhood. used to play at a kids house in the winter. We'd shovel the snow off and dry the asphalt with newspapers. He lived with his grandmother and they had a wood burning stove. She'd bring out the ashes and some coals so we could keep our hands warm. Good times.
Young lars and friends...
I was really just trying to remind @bradstevens that both Boogie and I are 6'3". he seems to like that.
But we did run the picket fence in that driveway. Ahhh, the memories.
@bulk-vh why did you break tenor and my gif usage?
@snarlcakes why would he? Because he can shoot a basketball and is coordinated? That doesn’t mean anything as to whether he’d have touch. There are what 8 billion people in the world. Jamaicans. Africans. Russians. Incredible athletes all over the world. Touch is a very rare talent. The belief that someone like Steph curry would just have it like a Xavi Messi Pirlo etc is insane
”Touch” can be drilled.
@bar-down They'll never understand. I'm not sure I even agree with this list.
But, @snarlcakes @carramrod - this is touch, class, dna, whatever you want to call it. It's the same reason why no euro country has produced an Iverson or Steph.
This was all learned by kids clowning each other on a playground.
@snarlcakes why would he? Because he can shoot a basketball and is coordinated? That doesn’t mean anything as to whether he’d have touch. There are what 8 billion people in the world. Jamaicans. Africans. Russians. Incredible athletes all over the world. Touch is a very rare talent. The belief that someone like Steph curry would just have it like a Xavi Messi Pirlo etc is insane
Yes, Murt, those skill sets translate. Whatever, I don't give sh#t anymore. U.S. soccer sucks balls. And they'll continue to blow a#% until guys like PCA and Curry play it.
Hopefully, in 4 years we don't get a#% raped by a bunch Europoors again. I'd like to see us win a Cup. It would be a fun time .
@larsiu faxxxxx. 💯. Theyve made me so angry today
I didn’t want to have to pull rank on you, but here goes. You’re talking to the starting sweeper on an 8th grade soccer team that went 13-0.
When I stopped playing soccer, the sweeper role all the way up to the premier league started going out of fashion because it was bar that couldn’t be eclipsed.
Touch can definitely be drilled and Messi’s equalizer yesterday wasn’t all that impressive.