Off Topic: Soccer and NASCAR

[froot loops]

At the time, the women players were the household names. Mostly because that team was clearly the best team in the world and the World Cup tournament was held in the US. That game definitely was part of raising the profile.

The 'shot heard round the world' was very important just to get the USMNT to the 90 World Cup. That team was basically an amateur team, they were totally outclassed in Italy. But there was a chance that the 94 World Cup would not have gone to the US had they not been able to qualify for the 90 World Cup. Now that we see how bad these next two Cup countries look to be, maybe that fear was unfounded, but it was a real fear at the time.

[DeanUK]

I remember watching the NY Cosmos play on ABC Wide world of sports. They had Pele on the team then but it was the 70's

George Best also played

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8wGN5uDaVg"]George Best: Greatest NASL Goal Ever - YouTube[/ame]

[Panoptes]

soccer is terrible.

truer words have never been spoken

[Tony G]

George Best also played

George Best: Greatest NASL Goal Ever - YouTube

You may weep but chances are more americans know who pete best is than george

[froot loops]

George Best had the best quotes. Here is my favorite:

[Marko69]

If it took the womens game to raise the popularity, the men's game must've been extensively poor.

Not an attack on women at all, love them to bits, but with soccer being the absolute mutts nutsack, the womens game is terrible. Definitely a spectator sport for other women, but for the majority of men, definitely not.

Hey, I never said soccer is terrible, Panoptes ^^^....., stop twisting my words!

[Marko69]

The best Best goal.

[ame]http://youtu.be/LVT-cgqKJsE[/ame]

[DeanUK]

Nice, hope they won!

Me and George circa 1983!! I've got one of me and Mary Stavin who he was seeing at the time too!

[Marko69]

That is AWESOME, Dean.

[DeanUK]

It was at the filming of Superstars here in Oxford. He was with her in another field just relaxing and could see me and my mate hanging around and called us over, had a chat, signed a 3D picture I had of him from "The Sun" really, really nice guy. Shame the alcohol got the better of him.

The lovely Mary Stavin (One of his Miss Worlds!)-

[Marko69]

She certainly was very good looking.

That T Shirt Dean? Not really helping George, was it?!

[Fraquar]

If it took the womens game to raise the popularity, the men's game must've been extensively poor.......

It was, it still is. Signing all the over the hill former great players in the world aren't going to change that. When you spend all weekend watching the best leagues in the world playing then watch a U.S. league match - you just want to go to sleep.

The USMNT got themselves on the map qualifying for the big tournaments and getting some results playing boring, defensive formations and striking gold on the odd counter-attack. We are hoping Klinsmann can change that culture, but he needs skilled players to do that.

[froot loops]

Not only do they sign the over the hill players, those players don't do much in the league. Most of the time its the teams that play the boring defenisve style that are among the leaders in MLS. MLS really has to start getting bigger money involved. They are having the majority of the players making a pittance with a few big money players. It will be interesting when Man City ownership comes into the MLS.

Right now it is a moderately successful league than no longer needs billion dollar benefactors to keep it afloat. But its no threat to the top leagues. Just a league to park American players and old timers. But you can see it pains Klinsmann to have his top players parking themselves in the MLS.

[Fraquar]

There a Best goal when he played in the NASL where he broke like 4 guys ankles (or 1 guys like 3 times) in the 6 yard box and tapped home.

[CGVT]

Soccer: Sport of the future. Always has been. Always will be.

;)