~Soccer Thread~

[TyphonInc]

Hataz gonna hate.

Yup, nothing against the players (6 of which are ex-crew.)
Nothing against the city, it's delightful.
 Nothing against the majority of fans, they just want a soccer team (there is a twitter group known as Hipster 6, who took joy in Columbus' agony that I avoid.) 

But I do have eternal hate towards the owner who tried for years to sabotage the Crew so he could steal the team and send it to Austin. It amazes me that the Crew was last in corporate sponsorship under Precum, but both Austin and Columbus are now in the top %25 of the league. When he bought the team a no transfer clause was included, he had MLS add an exception for Austin as soon as the sale was final. He let the stadium fall into disarray, he eliminated supporters groups, he ended game day giveaways, and other discounts to attract causal fans. He only attended one game. When the team was on national TV, he shut down gates delaying fan entry to support his narrative that Columbus no longer liked soccer. He claimed there was no sponsorship for the stadium or Jersey's but when that story became public it took less than an hour for Columbus Business Partners to come up with sponsors for both (Mapfre Insurance and Accura.) 

So, yes as long as the dirtbag owner has a team I'm gonna hate. And it's a hate that even eclipses my disdain for TTUN. 

[utee94]

ok

[ELA]

This would be massive


https://twitter.com/tariqpanja/status/1383768402091671568?s=19

And...thank goodness that sputtered almost immediately.  Talk about not reading the room


https://twitter.com/Stephen_Douglas/status/1384583496920936457?s=19

[Brutus Buckeye]

Yup, nothing against the players (6 of which are ex-crew.)
Nothing against the city, it's delightful.
 Nothing against the majority of fans, they just want a soccer team (there is a twitter group known as Hipster 6, who took joy in Columbus' agony that I avoid.)

But I do have eternal hate towards the owner who tried for years to sabotage the Crew so he could steal the team and send it to Austin. It amazes me that the Crew was last in corporate sponsorship under Precum, but both Austin and Columbus are now in the top %25 of the league. When he bought the team a no transfer clause was included, he had MLS add an exception for Austin as soon as the sale was final. He let the stadium fall into disarray, he eliminated supporters groups, he ended game day giveaways, and other discounts to attract causal fans. He only attended one game. When the team was on national TV, he shut down gates delaying fan entry to support his narrative that Columbus no longer liked soccer. He claimed there was no sponsorship for the stadium or Jersey's but when that story became public it took less than an hour for Columbus Business Partners to come up with sponsors for both (Mapfre Insurance and Accura.)

So, yes as long as the dirtbag owner has a team I'm gonna hate. And it's a hate that even eclipses my disdain for TTUN.

Who would you root for if Austin was playing a game against the Wolverines?

[TyphonInc]

Who would you root for if Austin was playing a game against the Wolverines?

In this fantasy scenario, does Austin still have Precourt? Cause again, it's nothing against the team or town, just the owner.
In that case, I'd root for the game to get canceled and Precourt would have to repay everyone for wasting our time. 
If no Precourt, then I'd prolly root for the 'amateur" team to pull an upset.

OSU used to scrimmage against the Crew and it was super fun to go and watch. I would root for a good match, but usually pull to see something special from the college kids.

[Brutus Buckeye]

In this fantasy scenario, does Austin still have Precourt? Cause again, it's nothing against the team or town, just the owner.
In that case, I'd root for the game to get canceled and Precourt would have to repay everyone for wasting our time.
If no Precourt, then I'd prolly root for the 'amateur" team to pull an upset.

OSU used to scrimmage against the Crew and it was super fun to go and watch. I would root for a good match, but usually pull to see something special from the college kids.

Yeah, the teams would have their current make up.

 
It would be patterned after the Conner Senn Memorial Match that they play every spring, where the Crew take on the Buckeyes.

Only in this scenario you would swap out the Crew for Austin, and you would swap out the Buckeyes with the Wolverines. 

[TyphonInc]

Yeah, the teams would have their current make up.

 
It would be patterned after the Conner Senn Memorial Match that they play every spring, where the Crew take on the Buckeyes.

Only in this scenario you would swap out the Crew for Austin, and you would swap out the Buckeyes with the Wolverines.

Go Blue!

Wow that felt dirty. 

[rolltidefan]

pulisic has a goal and assist in the semis of the champions league. him and chelsea will face man cty in ucl final. first american to (likely) play in the ucl final.

[ELA]

If we are going to get screwed by anti-US refs, we might as well flip to UEFA and play good competition

[utee94]

If we are going to get screwed by anti-US refs, we might as well flip to UEFA and play good competition

No doubt.  I've said this for years.

[ELA]

Well, that's a hell of a 180.

Mexico 2-0 goal overturned on review as being offsides, US instead gets the equalizer 2 minutes later

[LetsGoPeay]

What a game. I never thought I could like an American player as much as I like Clint Dempsey but Weston McKennie is rocketing up the charts for me. 

Tim Ream on the other hand....  I just don't understand why he's still around. He wasn't good when he was young. 

[ELA]

Next, maybe work on not playing these games at 9 PM on a Sunday on CBSSN?

You want to grow the game?  That was the game to do it.  And yet who even knew it was on?

[betarhoalphadelta]

Next, maybe work on not playing these games at 9 PM on a Sunday on CBSSN?

You want to grow the game?  That was the game to do it.  And yet who even knew it was on?

Chicken and egg... Do you devote primetime major channel resources to a sport that nobody cares about, with an opportunity cost of pushing off programming that might generate higher dollar value today, in an investment in growing the game for the future? Or do you put it on the off channel [where anyone who actually cares already knows how to find it] and know that you're going to reach the die-hards regardless?

That game could have been on ESPN or ABC and I would have tuned to something else. It wouldn't have grown the sport, at least with me. Despite clearly ending up to be an exciting contest. 

Yet I record every MotoGP race on NBCSN on DVR because that's what I'm into... Someone else, if MotoGP was on ESPN or ABC, would tune elsewhere, and the sport would be unlikely to grow significantly from that exposure.