World Cup Fever
Posted by: j_john
Every four years for a month I am overcome by a passionate condition known as World Cup Fever. For the next few weeks my life will consist of four things: working, eating, sleeping, and watching football(soccer). Proud of myself for maintaining a job which allows me to watch all matches live, I have been averaging 5-6 hours of televised World Cup matches/coverage for the past week...and while it will let up slightly as we enter the second round, I won't be able to get much else done. Please help in reminding me to feed my turtle, take showers, call my parents, and check email...
From: July 23 | Comments (0) | Permalink
Me And Byron
Posted by: j_john
Byron Alvarez, the Portland Timbers leading offensive player (check out this goal from last year) was red-carded in the previous Lamar Hunt US Open Cup game against Seattle and therefore couldn't play in last night's match against the San Jose Earthquakes. Apparently Byron figured it would be better to watch the match with the Timbers Army in section 107, and was nice enough to pose for a photo.
Also--I just posted about my gradual dedication to the Timbers over on True Fan.
From: July 23 | Comments (0) | Permalink
How Soccer Explains The World
Posted by: j_john
Book Report time:
I recently finished (okay, a few weeks ago) my first book of 2005--the entertaining and engaging "How Soccer Explains The World" by Franklin Foer.
Drawn to the book by its intriguing title, I was impressed by the variety and quality of the writing, although it did seem like Mr. Foer made a few too many broad generalizations when describing the history of the sport as it pertained to specific nations. Also, I wasn't completely convinced that the title of the book was justified. Sure, there were some great soccer-related stories from around the world, but nothing that ever made me think there was an overall theory on globalization. However, I found the chapter "How Soccer Explains the Jewish Question" to be particularly insightful, especially this quote from Mark Lilla, a University of Chicago political theorist:
"Once upon a time, the Jews were mocked for not having a nation-state. Now they are criticized for having one. Many Western European intellectuals, including those whose toleration and even affection for Jews cannot be questioned, find [Israel] incomprehensible. The reason is not anti-Semitism nor even anti-Zionism in the usual sense. It is that Israel is, and is proud to be, a nation-state--the nation-state of the Jews. And that is profoundly embarrassing to post-national Europe."
I've always advocated that my love of the sport has made me more curious about the various cultures that all unite over a shared interest in the beautiful game. Now I was able to take it one step further and delve into the world behind the matches on the pitch. Foer writes about the usual hooligan culture, but also about the history of racism and xenophobia that surrounds certain clubs like Glasgow Celtic and Rangers, London's Tottenham Hotspurs and Ajax of Amsterdam.
I also found myself enlightened by the concluding chapter, "How Soccer Explains The American Culture Wars" where Foer gathers commonly held beliefs about American skepticism toward soccer. He claims that there is an aversion to accepting soccer because of its European labeling. To accept soccer would be to give in fully to the concept of globalization, and America is certainly skeptical of globalization's implications. As Foer states, "globalization increasingly provides the subtext for the American cultural spirit." However, there was no doubt that soccer experienced a huge boom in popularity in the 1970s, and he credits our parents' progressive thinking as a main factor.
"Soccer's appeal lay in its opposition to the other popular sports. For children of the sixties, there was something abhorent about enrolling kids in American football, a game where violence wasn't just incidental but inherent...soccer represented something very different. It was a tabula rasa, a sport onto which a generation of parents could project their values. Quickly, soccer came to represent the fundamental tenets of yuppie parenting, the spirit of Sesame Street and Dr. Benjamin Spock."
Well, that's enough from me, anyone want to borrow my copy?
From: July 23 | Comments (4) | Permalink
Political Endorsement
Posted by: j_john
So So Deep supports the soccer-playing candidate.
While trying to beat the heat yesterday, I found myself reading the British football magazine FourFourTwo at Barnes and Noble. The air-conditioning was a nice change of pace from the Hott Denn, and I just happened to stumble across an interesting article about John Kerry's soccer-playing past. FFT may not have a Web site, but this LA Times article has excerpts from it.
It seems Senator Kerry was a mild soccer star at Yale, although he might want to downplay his associations with the sport as Republicans are already making him out to be a man of priviliged, foreign upbringing. Whatever, understanding soccer helps someone understand the world! Don't believe me, then check this out.
From: July 23 | Comments (5) | Permalink
Euros!
Posted by: j_john
I'm writing daily entries for the Euro 2004 Football Championship over at True Fan. Today was an exceptionally rewarding, victorious finish for the French over England--I won my friendly $10 bet with Miles when I had almost already conceeded defeat!
From: July 23 | Comments (4) | Permalink
As requested...
Posted by: j_john
we're not only cute, we also play soccerball
From: July 23 | Comments (0) | Permalink
This just in...Swedish soccer players are good and good-looking
Posted by: j_john
Okay, so maybe this is a bit obvious, but I hadn't seen the 2003 Women's World Cup Swedish National Soccer Team play before, so I didn't know what I'd been missing. Not only can they play some damn good soccer, but they are real nice to look at even when they aren't busy trying to fake out 3 defenders in a row. Sure wish they would have won the match so I could have seen them jump all over each other, errr...because they deserved to win based on their high style and flair on the pitch!
At least the victorious Germans were sporting adidas.
From: July 23 | Comments (3) | Permalink
