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Could U.S. Soccer Eclipse Basketball and Hockey? $200M Adidas Pact Suggests Yes
CBS News ^ | September 2, 2010 | Jim Edwards

Posted on 05/04/2012 6:46:20 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican

Adidas (ADS.DE)'s $200 million sponsorship deal with Major League Soccer shows that the apparelmaker has noticed sports marketing's best-kept secret: U.S. soccer's audience is threatening to eclipse that of the National Hockey League and the NBA. The crucial thing to note in the new deal is that the $200 million pact is worth $25 million per year through 2018. It replaces, mid-contract, a 10-year deal for $150 million, or $15 million a year -- a 66 percent increase in annual value.

Why would Adidas make this expensive move? Consider: The MLS isn't broadcast to a large audience on TV (you have to pay for Fox Soccer Channel to see many of the games). The mainstream press's coverage of U.S. soccer is patchy at best and actively disinterested at worst (this means you, New York Times). And there's a cultural consensus that soccer just isn't important in America (ask any football or baseball fan).

Under that radar, however, the game that ought to be called American football is growing like mold. Here are some recent average attendance stats for the major American sports:

NFL - 67,508.69 (2009 season) MLB - 30,213.37 (2009 season) MLS - 18,452.14 (2010 season, as of 04/11/2010) NBA - 17,149.61 (2009/10 season) NHL - 16,985.31 (2009/10 season) Obviously, there's a caveat here: basketball and hockey teams play a lot more than once a week, so their total attendances are a lot greater.

(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...


TOPICS: Sports
KEYWORDS:
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To: safeasthebanks

I’ve been away for quite a few decades now. Don’t know who Heysel is.


61 posted on 05/04/2012 8:44:05 PM PDT by Ax
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To: Dr. Sivana

The question is obviously more rhetorical than anything. That works for gamblers who have access to casinos and sportsbooks, but what of the millions of Americans who like to make a wager on a winner, like the millions who make the weekly bets in college and NFL football. The vast majority of them are straight up bets.


62 posted on 05/04/2012 8:45:36 PM PDT by Crapgame (What should be taught in our schools? American Exceptionalism, not cultural Marxism...)
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To: Ax
Heysel Stadium Disaster
63 posted on 05/04/2012 8:46:56 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: Crapgame

You know what’s socialist....spreading revenues evenly across all NFL clubs no matter how bad a team sucks.

In the EPL, if you suck, you get relegated. Good teams get promoted....and the difference between being in the Premier League and the Championship (2nd Division) is huge.

Probably the richest sporting event in the world is actually the playoffs to determine which teams get promoted to The Premier League, in terms of impact to a team’s bottom line.


64 posted on 05/04/2012 8:49:43 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: dfwgator
Just for chuckles I went to 2 search engines and typed in, “who's better, Messi or..

that's as far I as got because both engines volunteered between 4 and 8 possible opponents. Cryuff wasn't one of them. And they all (Ronaldo, Maradona, Rooney, Pele, etc. were given 2nd fiddle to Messi when you checked the articles.

I then did the same thing using Cryuff instead of Messi.
I was able to type in the entire question and still no suggestions were given even after I hit search.

Normally I take pride in walking to the beat of my own drummer but this time, based on seeing most Barca games over the past few years, I'm comfortable falling in line.
Messi almost always does something exciting every time he touches the ball. You can see the panic in his opponents eyes as they try to deal with him.

65 posted on 05/04/2012 8:55:02 PM PDT by bramps
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To: safeasthebanks

I saw Maradona playing for Argentina against Peru in the Liberator’s Cup at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires in the late 80s. It was 88 minutes of blah and about two minutes of pure Maradona magic.


66 posted on 05/04/2012 8:55:31 PM PDT by Ax
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To: dsrtsage

“The only sport more boring than basketball is soccer.”

You’ve obviously never seen a cricket match.


67 posted on 05/04/2012 8:57:08 PM PDT by Rembrandt (Part of the 52% who pay Federal taxes)
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To: dfwgator

couldn’t agree more but you’re confusing the action on the field with the action in the boardrooms. I was referring strictly to soccer as a sport. There is no doubt in my mind that lib’ruls embrace it because it promotes that mythical equality of outcome bullstuff whever a game ends in a tie.


68 posted on 05/04/2012 8:57:29 PM PDT by Crapgame (What should be taught in our schools? American Exceptionalism, not cultural Marxism...)
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To: Ax

I don’t think there are as many good players today as in the 90s.

Bergkamp and Cantona were just flat out amazing players to watch.

Still the most amazing goal I ever saw (and the greatest homer call) as well.

Bergkamp scores against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsZkCFoqSBs


69 posted on 05/04/2012 8:59:14 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: MinorityRepublican

Real Americans pay zero attention to the organized crime owned game called soccer.

Its a gang centered “sport.”
.


70 posted on 05/04/2012 9:03:43 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: Crapgame
The vast majority of them are straight up bets.

I doubt that. As a 14 year old kid I made bets with my best friends, and of course we used point spreads. How else could you have bet on a game like Oakland (13-1 record) against Philadelphia (3-11)? $2 tickets where you pick four winners against the spread were pretty standard. There was only one office pool without point spreads, and it was based on picking the most straight up winners, which mainly meant picking upsets. That pool was run by girls.

And of course, you can have ties even with the point spread. I remember there was a Dallas-Pittsburgh Super Bowl where the Steelers won 35-31 with a four point spread. I was convinced that at least that game wasn't rigged, as even the vig is returned with a tie.

The reason football needs point spreads is because there are so many blowouts. A top NFL team can goes 13-3, and a crappy one goes 3-13. It is not like baseball where even the best teams don't do much better than 6 out of 10.
71 posted on 05/04/2012 9:04:19 PM PDT by Dr. Sivana (There is no salvation in politics.)
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To: Crapgame

You know what’s dumb is that a team gets the same amount of points for an overtime win than a win in regulation. But at least a tie in soccer causes you to drop 2 points.....it takes 3 ties just to equal 1 win.

An example is happening this year in the Italian Serie A....Juventus may not win the title, even though they haven’t lost a game all season, but they have so many ties.

The NHL needs to alter their points system so that a win in regulation is more than a win in overtime....it should be as follows

3 points - regulation win
2 points - OT win
1 point - OT loss
0 points - regulation loss

The NFL should do something of the same thing, an Overtime Win should not be rewarded the same as a regulation win during the regular season.


72 posted on 05/04/2012 9:04:57 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: Revolting cat!

>> “Is soccer boring?” <<

.
Yes, very.
.


73 posted on 05/04/2012 9:07:06 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: sean327

>> “Why is soccer continuosly pushed on us?” <<

.
Because it works by Marxist principles, and it is owned by organized crime, world wide. The ideal Democrap game.
.


74 posted on 05/04/2012 9:11:47 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: dfwgator

>> “I see a lot of people even here in Dallas wearing Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Manchester United jerseys now.” <<

.
Yea, but we were talking about the US, not Mexico.


75 posted on 05/04/2012 9:16:01 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: Ax

76 posted on 05/04/2012 9:16:36 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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To: Controlling Legal Authority

Wide screen HD is killing TV!

The distortion horizontally is absolutely unbearable; everyone looks like a dwarf.


77 posted on 05/04/2012 9:22:18 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: MinorityRepublican

Could US Soccer Eclipse Basketball and Hockey?

Only if Vuvuzela becomes our National Anthem.


78 posted on 05/04/2012 9:25:21 PM PDT by Waryone (Remember your ABCS (anybody but commie socialists) = ABM (anybody but Mitt), ABO (anybody but Obama))
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To: GeronL

>> “I do not know anyone who actually WATCHED a soccer game on TV or in person (except for childrens games)” <<

.
God has blessed you greatly!
.


79 posted on 05/04/2012 9:26:15 PM PDT by editor-surveyor
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To: Waryone

Outside of Africa, if anyone tried to bring a vuvuzela into a stadium, they’d get the crap beat out of them.


80 posted on 05/04/2012 9:27:41 PM PDT by dfwgator (Don't wake up in a roadside ditch. Get rid of Romney.)
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