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How soccer (football) is ruining America?

Obama? YES

Illegal Immigration? YES

Soccer?

Hardly. People often say music is the international language of the world ( In other words, if you travel and play an instrument, you can speak to others whatever their nationality)

I would put forward soccer ( football) comes a close second.

First, if you become an expatriate, one of the easiest ways to make friends is through soccer ( I'm currently the chairman of the JIFL ( Jakarta International Football League ) and we have teams from Japan, Germany, Latin America, Denmark, as well as numerous others. Our refs as well as approximately 20 players are also Indonesian, so we don't exclude the locals.

Second, soccer is the ultimate easy to play sport as you only need the ball. But most importantly, especially if you do business abroad, whether you are in Iraq, England, China, or Timbuktu, you are a real ignoramus if you can't talk Pele, Rooney, Zidane or Maradona.

Second, soccer is the ultimate easy to play sport as you only need the ball.

Or, famously, a sock stuffed with newspaper. :)

especially if you do business abroad, whether you are in Iraq, England, China, or Timbuktu, you are a real ignoramus if you can't talk Pele, Rooney, Zidane or Maradona.

Or at least learn certain phrases. For example, if you're anywhere but Italy, you can say "Materazzi deserved what he got from Zidane" and you'll get a nice round of agreement.

That was the biggest "What the ...!" sports moment ever for me. Completely unexpected, you couldn't see the taunting, just looked like Zedane turned around and laid him out for no reason. I never knew a head-butt could be so brutal.