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Official 2014 World Cup Thread (Spoilers)

Biggest take away from the game is that the USA found a way to win. Ghana was the better, quicker, stronger team. They held possession, had more chances on goal, better runs, better seeking balls, just about better everything was better, but the defense held tight and Howard provided a few key saves to keep the states alive. The USA finally got the chance to take advantage and they did which is something they've never shown in a World Cup performance in recent years...

If they can manage a draw against Portugal and then maybe rest a few key bodies against what will surely be an ugly slugfest against Germany I think that will put us through group play and into the round of 16.

The Portugal game could go either way, Ronaldo is hurt and he is such a whiner that a couple bad touches or a foul that doesn't go his way and he will throw a fit the rest of the game rather than battle to play well. I was not impressed with what they showed against Germany and wouldn't be surprised if the USA was able to get the draw if not a tight win... I wouldn't EXPECT it, but I wouldn't be surprised.
 
Mark_UK said:
^^^^im still taking the tonne of positives out of the game, rather than being one of the constant England bashers that seem to surface every time we don't get a result! I'm confident we'll get out of the group, and maybe sneak past Columbia (probably) in the next round, and I think it looks good for Euro 2015, this is after all, a building phase.
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Yep. Agree with all that. Go en-ger-land..!!!!!
 
Not sure where I got Euro 2015 from LOL. 2016!!!
 
I thought that no one in this country liked soccer and that basketball was a big sport here?

 
Mark_UK said:
Not sure where I got Euro 2015 from LOL. 2016!!!
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Maybe the ladies or under 20s or something are playing then lol... Fancy our chances in qualifying for 2016 and could be exciting with some of the new guys...
 
arydolphin said:
I thought that no one in this country liked soccer and that basketball was a big sport here?

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World Cup fever...catch it!!
 
arydolphin said:
I thought that no one in this country liked soccer and that basketball was a big sport here?

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Only when they win I'm afraid.
 
adwillingham said:
Sports Media Watch says that average viewership of all the games has been 7.5 million people in the US (with Brazil/Croatia tops at 9.5 million) between the combined feeds of ESPN/ABC and Univision...not including yesterday's games.

http://www.sportsmediawatch.com/201...gs-opening-weekend-hot-for-espnabc-univision/
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US game got like a 6.9 also. that's a huge rating for soccer here, especially when it doesn't count online feeds or party places with hundreds or thousands gathered.
 
Looks like Belgium finally woke up to take command of this game.

Can't wait for the next match. Should be very well played on both sides.
 
mikeg_74 said:
Looks like Belgium finally woke up to take command of this game.

Can't wait for the next match. Should be very well played on both sides.
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Yeah I think it changed when they started playing a lot more direct. Their pretty football wasn't really getting them anywhere...
 
jhoefer99 said:
US game got like a 6.9 also. that's a huge rating for soccer here, especially when it doesn't count online feeds or party places with hundreds or thousands gathered.
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Here in Germany 26.36 million watched the Portugal game not counting millions at public viewings. And our population is much smaller than the US.
Maybe that shows how much more important football is around here.
 
dirkules said:
Here in Germany 26.36 million watched the Portugal game not counting millions at public viewings. And our population is much smaller than the US.
Maybe that shows how much more important football is around here.
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I expect the games are shown on the free view channels in Germany, like they are in the UK, which many aren't here. The level of interest is no where near the level of the UK, or Germany or probably most countries in Europe. But the important thing is, there is a level of interest and excitement here. And it's only gonna get bigger if true US get into the last 16!
 
Mark_UK said:
I expect the games are shown on the free view channels in Germany, like they are in the UK, which many aren't here. The level of interest is no where near the level of the UK, or Germany or probably most countries in Europe. But the important thing is, there is a level of interest and excitement here. And it's only gonna get bigger if true US get into the last 16!
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Yes they are shown on freetv. I did not know that they are on paytv in the US.
Nevertheless the level of interest does seem to be a lot higher in the US than 2006 or so. They are definitely on the right track.
 
dirkules said:
Here in Germany 26.36 million watched the Portugal game not counting millions at public viewings. And our population is much smaller than the US.
Maybe that shows how much more important football is around here.
Click to expand...

Mark_UK said:
I expect the games are shown on the free view channels in Germany, like they are in the UK, which many aren't here. The level of interest is no where near the level of the UK, or Germany or probably most countries in Europe. But the important thing is, there is a level of interest and excitement here. And it's only gonna get bigger if true US get into the last 16!
Click to expand...

dirkules said:
Yes they are shown on freetv. I did not know that they are on paytv in the US.
Nevertheless the level of interest does seem to be a lot higher in the US than 2006 or so. They are definitely on the right track.
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Every WC cycle, the interest in the US seems to increase. We are never going to be competing on % of viewers with the big European nations, but every cycle, the interest goes up to where now there are people in small cities getting groups together to watch the games, not just the big ones. The compelling nature of WC competition (even after US is eliminated) is really important because it introduces more people in the US to the game, which in turn allows MLS to grow, expand, and achieve better attendance. It is amazing to see the growth looking all the way back to 1990 and 1994 compared to where it is now.
 
Is it true that MLS is overtaking NHL for one of the top sports legues in the US. Interest wise I mean.
Do you know how the salaries compare?
 
What does grind my gears here is the coverage is awful. The actual games are good, ESPN have hired some of the top English commentators to call the games, but the studio segments are completely pointless! Absolutely no news from the camps, just a short talk of the half and a tonne of adverts. I'll watch the build up on the BBC (or ITV if I have too) then switch to ESPN for the game.
 
dirkules said:
Is it true that MLS is overtaking NHL for one of the top sports legues in the US. Interest wise I mean.
Do you know how the salaries compare?
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I don't have all the numbers, but I believe MLS is pretty close to NHL when you look at attendance and TV ratings. MLS has been very careful (overly depending on who is asking) on their wage structure to make sure that they didn't overextend themselves compared to incomes, so NHL average salaries are probably higher, but MLS is still very much in a growth mode and still has some big markets (like Atlanta in 2017) that do not have teams yet. NHL is doing well financially compared to a few years ago, but they are in much more of mode to sustain interest and increase in the markets they already have.
 
Mark_UK said:
What does grind my gears here is the coverage is awful.
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So true. Bob Ley isn't a bad host but he's not exactly interesting... Jeremy Schaap is terrible. Alexi "Oooh the back of my head is tingling" LaLas is boring. And I don't think Landon Donovan had ever spoke into a camera before yesterday...
 
Didn't watch this whole match but from what I have seen so far Mexico looks sharp.
 
Mark_UK said:
What does grind my gears here is the coverage is awful. The actual games are good, ESPN have hired some of the top English commentators to call the games, but the studio segments are completely pointless! Absolutely no news from the camps, just a short talk of the half and a tonne of adverts. I'll watch the build up on the BBC (or ITV if I have too) then switch to ESPN for the game.
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I can see your point Mark. I would wager that ESPN doesn't have reporters imbedded in each teams camps (outside of US, Mexico, and England maybe). I think 2010 was the first time that ESPN actually had announcers live at each stadium instead of calling the game from the global feed in a studio. 1994 was the first time that soccer on US TV went uninterrupted DURING the play, so they went to a advertiser heavy model at half to make up for it (along with on screen logos during play). As the advertisers get better value out of their sponsorships, the logos on screen (not the ad boards around the pitch) have diminished, but they want their commercials somewhere.

More importantly, enjoy the ESPN coverage this time, because I cringe to think what the Fox coverage will be like in 2018 and 22...I can only hope they see how NBC has done EPL and follow suit.
 
Official 2014 World Cup Thread (Spoilers)

adwillingham said:
1994 was the first time that soccer on US TV went uninterrupted DURING the play,
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LOL, that's ridiculous.
I obviously don't expect daily reports from the England camp on ESPN (although that would be very nice), but reports from the US camp and maybe even the Mexican would really add to the coverage. Have they even given any updates on Altidore this morning?

Fox have the rights for the next World Cup? Doesn't Gus Johnson work for Fox? Uh oh!!!!!
 
what a save
 
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