Why is soccer (boring unwatchable sport) the most watched spectator sport in the world?

[nyelectric]

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

 

[Coupé It]

Originally Posted by Big J 33

Baseball can be very low scoring, as well as having FAR more points of no activity. While hockey has high activity, it too can be low scoring.

Simply because there are no goals doesn't make a game boring, there is plenty within the game to keep attention and interest. Part of the excitement of watching a match is experiencing several near misses, almost goals, the build of a play, then finally breaking through... it's a great feeling as a fan. It's simply a different kind of excitement, but for example with basketball, EVERY play isn't exciting. Teams will miss over half their shots, turnovers, bad possessions, etc. doesn't necessarily make basketball boring. But if you speak to some soccer fans, they'll tell you the constant scoring of basketball is boring to them, watching someone dribble down the court, take a jump shot, it goes in.. then repeat that the next 10-15 possessions, you can see how some might find that boring.

Another thing to consider when people say how boring the sport is, at least in soccer there are no timeouts and game breaks. People will complain how everyone flops and "fakes" injuries, but the game doesn't really stop. You get 45+ minutes of gameplay each half without a commercial break every three minutes of game time, without dozens of timeouts, without a break after each half inning, etc.

Agreed
Soccer is a beautiful game, thats all I'm going to say. This thread tho

 

[Coupé It]

Originally Posted by Big J 33

Baseball can be very low scoring, as well as having FAR more points of no activity. While hockey has high activity, it too can be low scoring.

Simply because there are no goals doesn't make a game boring, there is plenty within the game to keep attention and interest. Part of the excitement of watching a match is experiencing several near misses, almost goals, the build of a play, then finally breaking through... it's a great feeling as a fan. It's simply a different kind of excitement, but for example with basketball, EVERY play isn't exciting. Teams will miss over half their shots, turnovers, bad possessions, etc. doesn't necessarily make basketball boring. But if you speak to some soccer fans, they'll tell you the constant scoring of basketball is boring to them, watching someone dribble down the court, take a jump shot, it goes in.. then repeat that the next 10-15 possessions, you can see how some might find that boring.

Another thing to consider when people say how boring the sport is, at least in soccer there are no timeouts and game breaks. People will complain how everyone flops and "fakes" injuries, but the game doesn't really stop. You get 45+ minutes of gameplay each half without a commercial break every three minutes of game time, without dozens of timeouts, without a break after each half inning, etc.

Agreed
Soccer is a beautiful game, thats all I'm going to say. This thread tho

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

 

[hoosiers4life]

DUR SOCCER IS SO DUMB THEY DONT SCORE NO POINTS!!! DURRRR I LIKE REAL FOOTBALL WHERE THEY STOP FOR 40 SECONDS AFTER EVERY PLAY THEN A BUNCH OF OBESE PEOPLE SLAM INTO EACH OTHER, DURRRR

Seriously though, with the exception of basketball I can see every sport being able to be considered boring. Even basketball has too many stoppages in play on TV, imo.   I love baseball, but its a much slower paced game than Soccer. Just because they don't score a lot doesn't mean the game is boring. American football is agonizingly boring. Firstly, at any given time half of the players have no skill, they are just large human beings. Secondly, its 5 seconds of action, followed by 35 seconds of nothing. Thirdly, way too many commercial breaks in american sports.

 

[hoosiers4life]

DUR SOCCER IS SO DUMB THEY DONT SCORE NO POINTS!!! DURRRR I LIKE REAL FOOTBALL WHERE THEY STOP FOR 40 SECONDS AFTER EVERY PLAY THEN A BUNCH OF OBESE PEOPLE SLAM INTO EACH OTHER, DURRRR

Seriously though, with the exception of basketball I can see every sport being able to be considered boring. Even basketball has too many stoppages in play on TV, imo.   I love baseball, but its a much slower paced game than Soccer. Just because they don't score a lot doesn't mean the game is boring. American football is agonizingly boring. Firstly, at any given time half of the players have no skill, they are just large human beings. Secondly, its 5 seconds of action, followed by 35 seconds of nothing. Thirdly, way too many commercial breaks in american sports.

 

[drock2010]

Soccer boring??? really??? try playing it man even if you suck its still crazy fun. And like the guy said watch some Euro soccer as opposed to MLS or whatever it is you must of watched to judge soccer

 

[drock2010]

Soccer boring??? really??? try playing it man even if you suck its still crazy fun. And like the guy said watch some Euro soccer as opposed to MLS or whatever it is you must of watched to judge soccer

 

[bostonthreeparty]

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

 

[bostonthreeparty]

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

 

[big j 33]

Originally Posted by Rondembo

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

You're obviously trying to troll by saying things like "real sports" implying soccer is less of a sport than the American versions. But to answer your question it's because it's so accessible for the globe to play it. You need a ball, a field, and something to act as a goal... that's it. And shouldn't it tell you something that despite having access nowadays to such "real sports" like baseball, the rest of the world still loves to play soccer? 

 

[big j 33]

Originally Posted by Rondembo

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

You're obviously trying to troll by saying things like "real sports" implying soccer is less of a sport than the American versions. But to answer your question it's because it's so accessible for the globe to play it. You need a ball, a field, and something to act as a goal... that's it. And shouldn't it tell you something that despite having access nowadays to such "real sports" like baseball, the rest of the world still loves to play soccer? 

 

[rolaholic]

 

[rolaholic]

 

[flatbush147]

i think it has something to do with only needing a ball and some space, just like football in america, a cheap sport you can play all around the world if you are a kid growing up

 

[flatbush147]

i think it has something to do with only needing a ball and some space, just like football in america, a cheap sport you can play all around the world if you are a kid growing up

 

[drock2010]

Originally Posted by BostonThreeParty

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

 

[drock2010]

Originally Posted by BostonThreeParty

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

 

[ham city]

Originally Posted by Rondembo

We can all agree that soccer is boring to watch and has very little action (ie. scoring), one would accept that it would be a very unsuccessful sport and that superior more exciting sports like the NFL, MLB and NBA to dominate the global spectator sport market and get the biggest ratings. Yet the opposite occurs. As mind-baffling as it seems, soccer is watched by more people and actually excites more people than any other sport. Why haven't our better sports replaced soccer in other countries like our movies, TV and music have?

It would embarrass me to be so blatantly ethnocentric.

 

[ham city]

Originally Posted by Rondembo

We can all agree that soccer is boring to watch and has very little action (ie. scoring), one would accept that it would be a very unsuccessful sport and that superior more exciting sports like the NFL, MLB and NBA to dominate the global spectator sport market and get the biggest ratings. Yet the opposite occurs. As mind-baffling as it seems, soccer is watched by more people and actually excites more people than any other sport. Why haven't our better sports replaced soccer in other countries like our movies, TV and music have?

It would embarrass me to be so blatantly ethnocentric.

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by BostonThreeParty

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

Why do people in first world countries like Italy, England, Germany, Japan...etc watch it? Why don't third world countries watch other cheap sports like basketball instead?

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by BostonThreeParty

extremely cheap sport to play, so third world countries and everywhere, anyone can play. simple rules to pick up.
its not as hard as you think

Why do people in first world countries like Italy, England, Germany, Japan...etc watch it? Why don't third world countries watch other cheap sports like basketball instead?

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by Big J 33

Originally Posted by Rondembo

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

You're obviously trying to troll by saying things like "real sports" implying soccer is less of a sport than the American versions. But to answer your question it's because it's so accessible for the globe to play it. You need a ball, a field, and something to act as a goal... that's it. And shouldn't it tell you something that despite having access nowadays to such "real sports" like baseball, the rest of the world still loves to play soccer? 

Basketball and baseball are just as cheap to play and I'm pretty sure Europe can afford any sport they choose, so why choose soccer? Why do people willingly watch a low scoring sport when its so easy to get access to high scoring exciting sport?

 

[rondembo]

Originally Posted by Big J 33

Originally Posted by Rondembo

Originally Posted by NYelectric

Half the field size, half the players. Then it would be a watchable game. I have no interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way.

Why does most of humanity have interest in watching a bunch of skinny men run the entire length of a soccer field after a ball just for it to get kicked way the +$%! the other way? Why does soccer have more viewers than real sports like football and baseball? You would expect soccer to be dead yet it thrives.

You're obviously trying to troll by saying things like "real sports" implying soccer is less of a sport than the American versions. But to answer your question it's because it's so accessible for the globe to play it. You need a ball, a field, and something to act as a goal... that's it. And shouldn't it tell you something that despite having access nowadays to such "real sports" like baseball, the rest of the world still loves to play soccer? 

Basketball and baseball are just as cheap to play and I'm pretty sure Europe can afford any sport they choose, so why choose soccer? Why do people willingly watch a low scoring sport when its so easy to get access to high scoring exciting sport?