MidWest said:
Akula said:
JamesW95 said:
Did someone just say that the atmosphere in America would be more intimidating than Turkey?
You guys are nuts.
hah - you fell for my bait
And no - nobody said what you just stated.
First, I (we) never mentioned Turkey specifically but spoke of Europe in general. Second, yes I did specify that certain Mexican games would essentially be "home games" and thus about as intense as most of the European leagues. Maybe moreso than many countries in Europe, but maybe not England, Spain, Italy etc. Turkey? I dunno - do the Turks throw bags of urine and batteries at the opposing players & fans like they do in Mexico when they play the US sometimes? But I never specifically mentioned Turkey.
Anyway, I'd say the Mexican fans are about as die-hard as anywhere else in the world I've seen. So to clarify - are you saying that the Mexican fans are not as intense as European national team fans in general? That Mexicans in particular don't live and breathe football like many Europeans? Well, I think they do, and thus some of the games featuring Mexico will almost be like home games if the WC was played in the US, so yeah it would be very intense. Almost as intense as a home game hosted in Mexico - but not quite I'd say.
Nowhere did I imply that the US team would get the same support or have the same atmosphere, but it would still be good.
If you guys think Europe generally has this special sort of "super intense fan game" that's somehow better than Mexico or many other places in the world I think you're over-inflating the intensity of your fandom vis-a-vis many other countries. But I guess it of course depends on the country.
To add to this, cool fact,
Guess who bought the most tickets after Brazilians for the 2014 world cup? That's right, the U.S. with around 155,000 tickets bought, and it is estimated that over 50% of those tickets came from Mexican Americans who made the trip down to Brazil to root for Mexico.
It's no surprise that Brazilian fans have bought more tickets than any other nation for this summer's World Cup but the second-biggest buyers might not be so obvious.
The USA isn't regarded as a hotbed of football fandom but supporters from across the pond have snapped up 154,412 tickets for the showpiece event.
That's more than three times the amount of any other country, with Australia (40,681) and England (38,043) trailing in third and fourth.
Full Source
Also
The number of fans cheering Mexico at the World Cup has taken observers in Brazil by surprise. But talk to those waving the green, white and red, and it becomes clear that when the tournament ends, many will return home not to Mexico, but to the United States.
"That's the talk here," said Juan Chacón, a Mexico supporter who lives in Texas. "We're asking each other, 'Where did so many come from?'"
The U.S. has seen steady growth in its Hispanic population, which now makes up 17 percent of the total population, or 53 million people. About two-thirds of those trace their roots to Mexico. At the same time, strong earning power in the United States makes it easier for Mexicans and Mexican-Americans living there to afford the trip to Brazil. Per-capital annual income in the U.S. is $47,000, compared to $9,000 in Mexico.
Full Source
This was so fascinating, that many Brazilians were shocked at how many Mexicans were speaking English with each other at the World Cup
The fact that Mexico is so integrated with the United States has surprised many Brazilians in Fortaleza in recent days, as locals were initially confused why some groups of soccer fans in Mexico jerseys spoke to each other in English, or also cheered for the U.S.
Full Source
A lot of people are underestimating the passion of Mexicans-and Mexican Americans for soccer in the U.S. Can you imagine having the U.S. host the world cup and rich Mexicans from Mexico making the easy trip to cities all over the southwest? It would be unbelievable.
I understand that the English love their football, but so do we.
I wouldn't underestimate the Mexico vs. USA rivalry either. Its not only a rivalry of teams, but it extends beyond that and it becomes socially and politically as well. And describes an issue of identity for many Mexican Americans. Whenever these two teams face-off, best believe it gets packed and the atmosphere and passion is off the charts.
Damn Midwest, you beat me to the point.
However, I would like to add a few additional points.
1. Nine years ago, during the 2006 world cup, nobody, (at least non-hispanic Americans) who I knew of, knew about the big clubs in Europe, namely Man United, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Milan, etc. Now, I would say at least half (most likely more than that though) of non-Hispanic Americans know about the big clubs and players in Europe. In another seven years until the world cup, the sport would only get more popular here in the States.
2. As someone else has already said, almost every American will support the national team even if they do not like or watch soccer. The Americans, who do not like or watch soccer, will love to see the national team beat other teams because they will see it as "we [US] beat the world at their sport." Meanwhile, Americans, who do like soccer, would be thrilled, just as any other fan, for hosting the world cup.
3. Hispanic-Americans. I do not think I really need to elaborate on this point, since it has already been mentioned. However, I guarantee that Mexico would be a home game, especially if they play in Southwest of United States. If Mexico plays in the Rose Bowl, LA Coliseum, or any large venue, I guarantee you that it will feel as a Mexican home game in the Estadio Azteca. Furthermore, I know that there are huge pockets of Central American Communities in the US (I know for a fact that LA has a large Salvadoran Community). Hence, the Central American teams that qualify will have huge support base in the United States.
4. The concerns that the United States is too large for a World Cup or the hot climate during World Cup will have a negative impact on the World Cup are exaggerated, at best. Brazil had both of these concerns and, as far as I know, no one brought up these issues, so I do not why these issues are being brought up.
Overall, I think that US would host a great World Cup in 2022. Furthermore, for everybody arguing that the England should host the World Cup instead of the US, your argument is of inconsequence since the 2022 World Cup will be hosted outside of Europe given that Russia, a European Country, will host the 2018 World Cup. The last time Europe has hosted consecutive world cups was in the 1950's. Having said that, what would you rather have a World Cup in the US, which already has everything to host a huge sporting event and not interfere with the FIFA club calendar, or in Qatar?
