Free Republic

Okay, before you go nuts, hear me out. Soccer just isn't our sport. We suck at it. The USMNT is going nowhere, and they're just a bunch of virtue signalers anyway. The Iranian team almost literally is playing for their lives. They have been protesting their government by not singing for the anthem, and there are reports their families are being threatened if they don't "behave". If they lose, there is a decent chance a few of them will just be disappeared. So lets say they beat the US. They will be national heroes. It will be very very difficult...

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Germany’s opening World Cup game against Japan will set the tone for the rest of the tournament — both for the team and the fans who may or may not be watching at home. Germany’s buildup to Wednesday’s game has been fraught by fan protests, political statements, calls for a boycott and underwhelming performances from a team still trying to rediscover its spark following a surprising group-stage exit as defending champion in 2018. It was the first time the four-time champions were ever knocked out of the competition in the group stage. “We all know that...

England’s national football team was roundly booed in Hungary for taking the knee prior to what proved to be a 1-0 loss to the Central European country. The English national side, managed by Gareth Southgate and captained by Harry Kane, has doggedly persisted in carrying out the gesture, derided as virtue-signalling by some and leftist politicisation of football by others, long after players from most other countries — and indeed, English players in other sports — have quietly moved on since the height of the Black Lives Matter unrest in 2020, and it was poorly received in Hungary on June...

Police say they are working to "establish the full circumstances" after a woman accused Manchester United footballer Mason Greenwood of assault. On Sunday video, photos, and an audio recording were posted on the woman's Instagram account before being deleted. Greater Manchester Police said it was "aware of images and videos circulating on social media". Manchester United said the player would now not return to training or matches until further notice. The club earlier said they "do not condone violence of any kind" and had been made aware of the allegations on social media but would make no further comment until...

Klinsmann Offers Brutally Honest Assessment Before Team Even Arrives In BrazilThe United States men’s soccer team has its work cut out for it at the upcoming World Cup. The United States is in what has been dubbed this year’s “Group of Death,” containing Germany, Portugal and Ghana. It will be very difficult for the U.S. to get out of Group G, and head coach Jurgen Klinsmann isn’t expecting a miracle in Brazil. In fact, he’s being brutally honest and realistic about his club’s chances. “We cannot win the World Cup because we are not at that level yet,” Klinsmann said,...

Writer Michael Mandelbaum has produced a column called, "Why America hates (soccer)". Mandelbaum speculates that Americans dislike "footie" because... -- Baseball, basketball, & football are already popular here -- it's so similar to BASKETBALL (that's simply a bizarre argument) -- the games end in draws too often. Of course, this ignores the "elephant in the living room," perhaps because the pachyderm in question is conked out asleep & laying in a puddle of his own drool after being forced to watch a game of soccer. Put quite simply, if there were a competition for the "most boring, least action packed...