World Cup 2014!

[ZeroAX]

Interesting chart.

The most mind-blowing thing is that you Americans watch baseball far more than any other sport when really.....it's by far the most boring sport I've ever watched/played xD

[catnip]

The most mind-blowing thing is that you Americans watch baseball far more than any other sport when really.....it's by far the most boring sport I've ever watched/played xD

Watching baseball right now, heartily disagree. It's one of my favorites to both watch and play.

EDIT: After reading the post below, this. God, going to baseball games is unreal. To be fair, I romanticized the shit out of the Yankees all my life (still do), and the first game I was ever able to go to was a few years ago on my 20th birthday. I wept like a puny baby.

[Blu]

I'm curious ZeroAX, have you been to a game in the country? Or is your perspective limited to what's on you've seen on different forms of media. I think the allure of a baseball game is you're given plenty of time to socialize with the people you come with and the people around you. The action happens in different stages and the buildup is actually quite similar to soccer.

Plus you get to spend time outside in some of the most beautiful conditions of summer. I enjoy baseball and it's hardly my favorite sport, but I'd easily go to a baseball game over a NFL game in a heartbeat. Having baseball on in the background isn't a bad thing either, but I'd still prefer soccer on the telly.

[ZeroAX]

I lived for 2 years in the US so I've played both games. As I've said: American football = fun to play, boring to watch (similar to normal football imo), basketball = best thing evar, baseball = zzzzzz (both to play and watch)

[catnip]

I lived for 2 years in the US so I've played both games. As I've said: American football = fun to play, boring to watch (similar to normal football imo), basketball = best thing evar, baseball = zzzzzz (both to play and watch)

Dude, NBA Finals this week! I don't normally watch basketball, but I love watching the finals

[Aramonde]

Interesting chart.

The most mind-blowing thing is that you Americans watch baseball far more than any other sport when really.....it's by far the most boring sport I've ever watched/played xD

Well you also have to factor in how games are played. MLB has 162 (i think, 160ish i know that much), while the NFL has 16 games (and a bye week), NBA and NHL have 82. Also weather is a factor with most of the baseball season in summer. And i think that the NHL & NFL tickets are more expensive than the MLB (not a 100% sure on that though).

I lived for 2 years in the US so I've played both games. As I've said: American football = fun to play, boring to watch (similar to normal football imo), basketball = best thing evar, baseball = zzzzzz (both to play and watch)

I don't like baseball that much either, i only watch it if my team is in the playoffs. I love watching the NFL. And Basketball WAS the best thing ever back in the 90's and older. When you could touch someone without getting a foul. The NBA used to be my favorite sport to watch but its so bad now i'd rather watch baseball. But the real best thing ever is Hockey.

Sorry to get off topic

[Blu]

I lived for 2 years in the US so I've played both games. As I've said: American football = fun to play, boring to watch (similar to normal football imo), basketball = best thing evar, baseball = zzzzzz (both to play and watch)

I still don't think you answered my question. Watching in what capacity? Did you go to a ballpark, sit with friends, and enjoy a nice leisurely afternoon game at the stadium? Or did you simply watch the game on TV? They're vastly different experiences.

In other news, public transit strike is hitting Sao Paulo. Looks like the railways need to get their problems resolved before most of the spectators get there.

[ZeroAX]

I still don't think you answered my question. Watching in what capacity? Did you go to a ballpark, sit with friends, and enjoy a nice leisurely afternoon game at the stadium? Or did you simply watch the game on TV? They're vastly different experiences.

oh, I meant boring for watching on tv. Watching games in a stadium is pretty different and well....you really can't compare experiences :/.

I mean very few people watch Formula 1 but when there's a Grand Prix going on, the racetrack is full of people there just to take part in the festivities....

And if you judge how interesting football is to watch by the atmosphere in the stadium....then Americans really can't comment on the sport cause there's no football culture. That's why I think you just can't compare "atmosphere" between sports.

I was just comparing them on how fun they are to watch on TV.

I don't like baseball that much either, i only watch it if my team is in the playoffs. I love watching the NFL. And Basketball WAS the best thing ever back in the 90's and older. When you could touch someone without getting a foul. The NBA used to be my favorite sport to watch but its so bad now i'd rather watch baseball. But the real best thing ever is Hockey.

clearly you haven't watched European basketball (I'm looking at you Spain you country full of floppers )

and yeah hockey is awesome but it costs a fortune to get all the gear to play it so it's really not popular around the world (compare it with football where we just needed a ball as kids and then found a pair of trees and used them as the goal)

[Blu]

I mean that's what the original graphic was representing -- attendance in person. There's some unique social identity pieces that are also at work here. Cost for an NFL game is much higher than the average price of an MLB game. It's much more affordable for people to attend a baseball game than most NFL games, even with your higher, more popular teams. And the season is longer and more accessible too.

I think in general most sports aren't as exciting to watch on television than they are in person. It gets down to which sports or teams you're really dedicated to watch on TV in lieu of seeing them on person.

The World Cup on the other hand is incredibly pricey for tickets depending on who you'd like to see, let alone the costs of even getting down to the host country.

[Sload Soap]

I quite enjoyed playing all the american sports at school (except NFL which we never tried) but I never really got into watching them. Then again, unless you had Sky or cable there wasn't any special programming for them. I watched a decent amount of the NFL season this year and sort of nominally tried supporting the Packers but I still don't fully understand what's happening and the season is very short.

OT, there's a fun little game on the BBC website today where you can make a perfect World Cup team. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-27699398.

My team: Lev Yashin, Cafu, Franz Beckenbauer, Bobby Moore, Paolo Maldini, Bobby Charlton, Andrea Pirlo, Zinedine Zidane, Diego Maradona, Johan Cruyff and Eusebio. Not bad.