the stephen hill reference doesn't fly here because he's competing against people with at least similar athleticism, not an entire step up from the crowd. Just look at these athletes in the NFL and NBA and compare them to your world cup guys. There is no comparison. You put a soccer ball in Lebron's hands (or feet - i guess) at age 5 instead of a basketball and he becomes the greatest soccer player on this planet. That's just one guy. These soccer players are probably good athletes but I highly doubt a team full of americans that play DB/WR/RB in the NFL where running a 4.5 40 yard dash is considered slow wouldn't destroy the competition. Especially if that sport was their dedicated craft instead of football. Lets get real
Sports in USA is dominant. If, USA's best athletes played soccer, USA would be a world power. No doubt. Even now USA soccer is among the Top 15 in the world. Much ahead of many European countries including some old powerhouses. For example USA is ahead of Netherlands who played the World Cup Final 4 years ago. I fully expect US Soccer to be Top 10 in the next decade and it won't surprise me if USA wins the World Cup one day.
What you undervaluing about soccer is that it aint as focused on gifted atheletes as football. and if you say Lebron would do this with his height and weight you prolly never played:
Yes, I have never played soccer and neither has lebron james or most of this country really and that's kinda my point in a way. I understand there are different skill sets and the top athletes I am referring to aren't professionals right now like a ronaldo, but you are insane if you think they wouldn't dominate if they decided to play soccer along the way instead. The U.S.A. would destroy everyone. I can't believe we are having this conversation, really, it's kind of a given... at least I thought
You regarding measurables too high there is the strategy part of the game that you are ignoring soccer aint a explosive game , like for istance you guys beat 100 meters records in the olympics how many marathons medals did you win? its not only bout skillset but about fast twitch slow twitch fibers.
one reason why we win the 100 meters instead of the marathon is because more people grow up running and competing in the 100 meters here than the marathon. Competition brings out the best. Soccer is king outside of the U.S. The best of the best compete for the national team. It's not at all like that here. If you are a budding superstar athlete its "boy you should join the football team" or the basketball team, or the baseball team or the hockey team or become a sprinter or become an MMA fighter... soccer is like way down the list. That's why we have the watered down team that we have and why the greatest of the great athletes HERE are built like trucks . ie. Like football players or basketball players... because they trained for it. If Soccer was king here, a Michael Vick would be an incredible soccer player. He'd also probably be 30lbs lighter. He'd LOOK like a soccer player.
If soccer were died in our wool as a nation, since back in the 1900s, if every top athlete in the USA played soccer, if football and baseball and basketball were minor sports--the USA would now be dominating the world in soccer. Every top athlete in the major sports today would be superstar soccer players. Size, weight, quick and slow twitch be damned. _
Slow twitch be damned? how many white cornerbacks do you know , or 100 meters gold medal winners. I dont mean this to became a racial argument but not all great atheletes are designed for all sports.
I have no doubt the USA would be a soccer power (and a rugby power too, for that matter) if the best athletes were focussed on those sports. But I'm glad they aren't, because I love the NFL and enjoy a bit of variety! There would be no place for offensive linemen in either soccer or rugby, obviously, but many defensive linemen would be great at rugby.
Our very own Allan Wells was a white 100m Olympic gold medallist. All it took was for the USA to boycott the Moscow Olympics and he was in there!
Look at how good Germany is at soccer. Lotta big white guys there, no? If our nation were a nation of soccer players, our white baseball players would be outstanding soccer players. _
that's just something slow white people say to make themselves feel better I know, because I am one. great athletes like the guys in the NFL here have awesome slow AND fast twitch athleticism and would likely be great athletes in whatever sport they dedicated themselves to
You have to remember, if players grew up with soccer as the #1 sport in America, all these athletes would be training for the sport since they were young. The one thing that could hold the US back if this was the case, the NCAA limiting the MLS. In Europe, correct me if I'm wrong, these players can just join a club and train with them when they are really young. They don't have to go through something like NCAA and pretend they are amateurs or students or what not. They get a great experience and great training in great organizations. If the NCAA still existed, all the best American players might go to Europe to play, but they would still be playing for team USA in the World Cup.
