Who has some Pepto? C'mon USA!

[Fuzz]

This game is driving me crazy!

[gateley]

1. Is this online do you know? (Guess I'll go look!) nt

[Barack_America]

2. I wish the US wasn't playing the only African team left in the World Cup.

[proteus_lives]

3. Why?

[elocs]

4. Population Ghana: 18.4 million. Population U.S.A.: 309.5 million.

Go U.S.A.!

[frazzled]

6. Huh?

Bigger population means ... um ... what, exactly, in terms of soccer?

(I can't help rooting a bit for Ghana, since they're the only African team left.)

[elocs]

7. Well, maybe a country with a much, much larger population has a much, much larger talent pool.

The U.S. is hardly the underdog here. Probably most of the world likes to root for the underdog other than their own country.

Ultimately, it's just a game, but winning would likely mean much more to a small African nation than the U.S. We don't have to be #1 in everything.

[frazzled]

11. Well, considering every kid in Ghana probably plays soccer

and it's still not a very popular sport here, I wouldn't say the US isn't actually the underdog. We've got a long way to catch up with the world in terms of soccer. But the US team did damned good this time around.

My kids played soccer when they were really little (like 5 years old). I thought it was a great sport, because you can just keep running up and down the field and even if you never really get to do anything, you a) get a lot of exercise and b) don't get noticed that much (like when you strike out at bat). Somehow, nobody really plays it all that much into high school. I think it's way more fun to watch than, say, football--where it's like a bunch of padded Michelin men waddling a few yards and falling down.

[muriel_volestrangler]

12. The US has the second highest number of registered and unregistered players in the world

http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/bigcount/allplayers.html

In clubs it's down in 9th. It's ahead of Ghana on all counts, anyway.

[elocs]

15. Well good for them. It's nice to see a little country be good at something.

They undoubtedly have so little there that pride in their national soccer team really means something to them when they can beat a country like the U.S.

[Fuzz]

5. That goal from Ghana isn't helping.

[elocs]

8. It's helping Ghana, so I think that makes them and many Africans happy. n/t

[Fuzz]

9. Bah, I'm from Jersey

[elocs]

10. Well, that's on the same planet as Africa. n/t

[Fuzz]

13. What an annoying post that is.

[elocs]

14. Compared to what?

:shrug: