Call this a provisional part two of the previous post. I've had some additional thoughts that I wasn't able to work into that piece, and I'd like to get them out before they slide out of my head. I'm going for a much more informal feel on this one; I'd really love to do stream-of-consciousness, but there's a part of me that just won't let that happen. Hence, a few paragraphs, each touching a bit on an extension of concepts discussed in yesterday's post.

It seems to me that many Americans who take to soccer passionately often do so in a way that leads to the exclusion of other sports from their lives; soccer fans seem more apt than others to be fans of soccer and soccer only, either slowly losing interest in other sports over time, or choosing to consciously reject them due so some selected flaw (or justifying the rejection by comparing another sport to soccer, then declaring soccer superior). I have no statistical data to back up this observation, simply a general feeling I get from the soccer community (Internet version). On more than one occasion, I've heard Americans on soccer call-in shows extolling the virtues of the beautiful game while voicing a disdain for sports they likely grew up watching and playing. These choices are based on personal tastes, of course, and I'm not going to judge anyone who follows this path; I'm just concerned that these people make the game less palatable to the average American. I mentioned my belief that stubborn Americans are less likely to be receptive to soccer when they are "told" they should like it; Americans that have traded traditional sports for soccer are seen as the ultimate offenders, snobs who are forcing their game on "true" American sports fans. It's this type of exclusionary thinking on the part of soccer fans that results in a backlash from those American sport fans as well as from the mainstream sports media. A superior attitude about soccer emanating from fans of the sport creates a combative environment that feeds the competitive nature already latent in any sports fan, much less those who are already predisposed to hate the game. I myself have come to soccer after a lifetime of avidly following the mainstream American sports. Soccer is simply an addition for me, another passion I have made room for in my own daily sports routine. The game fits in nicely for me, and I've never felt as though I'm forsaking football or baseball, or felt the need to drop those sports in order to be a "good" soccer fan. The future of soccer rests on the ability of the sport to work it's way into millions of daily routines the way it has worked its way into mine; it's certainly possible this can happen, but it's made more difficult by those who want to use soccer an excuse to declare themselves culturally superior because they follow the game.

Here I am, back on Euro snobs. This is more of a practical thought about their effect, rather than the rant I threw up about them before. All vitriol aside, they do have a negative effect on efforts to get more Americans into the game.

The generational chain that bonds Americans (and others around the world) to their chosen national sports is so strongly related to our cultural identity that the two often interweave. Seminal moments in the history of the sports we collectively follow enter popular culture in a way that is disproportionate to their actual import; the death of a President is no more remembered than a monumental sports upset. I think it's the shadow of this collective history that has created the disconnect between youth player and fan (not to mention professional player) that so frustrates adherents of the game in the U.S. Estimates of American youth participation in soccer range anywhere from 4 million to 20 million; regardless of the actual number, this group represents a soccer resource few nations in the world posses. Despite this resource, professional soccer has yet to gain a significant audience in the U.S., and the number of quality professionals we produce remains well below what one would expect. In my mind, the problem is a simple one: soccer is not a sport American fathers envision their sons playing on a professional level. These fathers view the recreational soccer played by their children as distinct from other more American sports because they ignore its professional (and scholarship) possibilities, which did not exist during their own childhoods. The sport is instead seen as a diversion, a healthy activity that keeps children occupied while instilling in them the importance of teamwork. When the dream of becoming a professional athlete ends for an American male, those men transfer those dreams to their children. As soccer fans, our obvious frustration stems from the fact that this transfer almost never involves soccer. Instead, American fathers push their sons towards sports like football, baseball and basketball, sports with clear and established paths in the U.S. from amateur to professional. As these kids enter their teen years, years they spend playing other sports in place of soccer, the influence of the game, and the potential passion they may have had for it, disappears.

I told you I had more on my mind. Hope all of that made sense. There may be more coming, as I still haven't really addressed the issue of our overcrowded sports landscape. If you have any thoughts, I would love to hear them: my brain is threatening to overload on these issues.