I always enjoy the "communist" jibes. Communist countries suck at soccer, unless Cuba, China, and Vietnam have some unknown trophies I'm aware of. I do know Cuba loves baseball and the NBA is very popular in China, outside of the Houston Rockets and Enes Freedom. You know which commies have universal health care, too? Canada. Better stay away from Bridgestone.
The folks spouting them have no idea how silly they are to be saying them, though. None. It's fine. I am not a baseball guy. But soccer is an athletic sport with a high skill curve, same as every other major sport.
I was critical of them, but a privately funded stadium? Props. Instantly makes them more favorable than the Titans
I go in the store, we are up 0-1. Happy as a clam, about to move on to the final. Come out of the store we are down 2-1. Wtf.
I like European finals without big teams. Big crowd energy, bigger effort from the players on the pitch. Well done to Frankfurt, they'll be singing Trapps name for decades to come. What heroic saves. Honestly I wish they'd get rid of the auto bids for the 3rd placed CL group teams.
No one mentioned it here, yet, but the pay dispute for the WNT was resolved today. Essentially, they are now going to pool World Cup money and divvy it up equally among the two teams, a kind of milquetoast solution to an often contrived problem. Fortunately, unlike 10 years ago, the money the members of the MNT make is usually pretty substantial and this won't be a major sacrifice for them. The women also don't have the guaranteed contracts and work on a pay by appearance format now. I'm glad this whole spectacle is now over, but I still feel a little distaste for how this went down from the women's side. I'm 100% for athletes trying to maximize their income. However, the push based on specious facts and a lot of shitting on the men's team made me a little indifferent to their successes.
It is being hailed as something it isn't. If this same deal was in place last WC cycle, the women make less because the men didn't make the WC but get half of the women's prize money. Not sure how this getting overlooked by the media, unless they just read the press release. This is literally a pay cut for the women if the men don't make the world cup. And they refused this exact deal twice on the last 10 years. This is just putting a spin of victory on it, while essentially betting on the upward trajectory of the men's team to start bringing in more prize money. Remember, originally they wanted to make as much in prizes as the WC men's champions. This deal is not what they've been asking for, it is what has been suggested and scorned for years. But the press release pretends it's some kind of concession so the story goes away. This is why hope solo is pissed.
The idea they wanted the same prize payout as the men, paid by the organization which doesn't control the money from the men's event, was so unbelievably asinine. The fact so few media figures hit on this point told me all I needed to know as to how this conflict was being approached.
I am 100% rooting for the women to lose every game they play for the rest of eternity. Since there is zero talent pool in women's soccer, this won't happen but in the words of a dumb man, "[uck fay] them all"
