The-Hogs.net - Washington Football Discussion, Redskins to Commanders Era

I mean, WOW.

Question for you soccer/football fans out there: can I just adopt Liverpool as my team or is that sacrilege? I'd really like to follow soccer more closely (and yes I know calling it soccer is frowned upon) but I need a team to do that and the MLS teams just don't do it for me.

nice freakin shot man...

Fios wrote:I mean, WOW.

Question for you soccer/football fans out there: can I just adopt Liverpool as my team or is that sacrilege? I'd really like to follow soccer more closely (and yes I know calling it soccer is frowned upon) but I need a team to do that and the MLS teams just don't do it for me.

Good luck finding games to watch on TV. . .

I can't defend the MLS against the likes of the EPL but I must at least say that it really isn't a bad soccer league to watch. The MLS is not what it was 5 years ago, and it is light-years ahead of where it was 10 years ago. Not that it is comparable to the top European leagues, but I guess I'm arguing that it's certainly worth following, especially since you're an American who isn't likely to get all of (say) Liverpool's games.

I would compare the MLS to NFL Europa, whereas 5 or 10 years ago the Arena Football League (or even afl2) would have been the better analogy. If I lived in Europe and got every NFL Europe game but only a handful of random NFL games per year, I would probably be an avid fan of my local NFL Europe team, and would be grateful for any NFL games that I could catch. But, if all I had was the Arena Football League (or the afl2), I would just watch baseball or basketball instead.

Plus, the MLS is very much changing and it's doing so for the better. There are more fans going to the games and the rosters consistently improve from year to year. After years of initial investment, teams are just now beginning to turn profits. Beckham is the biggest name in a series of players who decide to play their last few seasons in the US, and that trend will continue. The MLS really is competing for those second-tier players, too, and we are drawing in some very good talent that isn't quite up to EPL or La Liga standards.

Plus, we are only now seeing some promising youth development in the US come to fruition. . .it's an exciting time to be a fan of US soccer. I've really become a dedicated fan to American soccer over the past two years, and I think that it's worth being a part of. Just my , though.

I get a lot of epl games on Fox Soccer Channel. I haven't picked a favorite. I do like the Tottenham HoffSpurs FC of the Islington Soccer Sixes Premier League. They've got two Hurrey's and renamed after David Hassellhoff.

JansenFan wrote:I get a lot of epl games on Fox Soccer Channel. I haven't picked a favorite. I do like the Tottenham HoffSpurs FC of the Islington Soccer Sixes Premier League. They've got two Hurrey's and renamed after David Hassellhoff.

I get those too, but I think it's only one EPL game per week. Unless you're a fan of Arsenal of Man U, you won't see "your" team more than 3-4 times per season.

Don't get me wrong, I still watched about 80% of those games this past season, but I guess I also want a pro team that I can follow consistently. Then again, UK Skins Fan manages to follow the Redskins almost entirely online. . .

Back home I had Setanta and FSC on direct TV and saw 4 to 5 games on Saturday and 2 or 3 on Sundays, as well as coverage of the Coca-Cola Championship, the FA Cup and various other European domestic leagues.

Keep in mind if you follow Liverpool, "You'll never walk alone."

YES! You may absolutely adopt Liverpool. I have been a fan since the late 80s. Great team to root for with a ton of tradition. Gerrard, in my opinion, is one of the classiest players around and arguably the most complete midfielder in the EPL. And yes, You'll never walk alone!

FSC carries a multitude of different teams but the big four (Liverpool, ManU, Chelsea, and Arsenal) are on a lot. Liverpool plays Chelsea this Sunday at 11.

Also, I love the EPL but don't knock the MLS too much. One of the biggest tragedies in the DC area is the lack of recognition that DC United is given. They have won the most championships of any team in DC ever (including our beloved Skins) and can't even get a decent place to play (RFK was a great field until baseball destroyed it). And more importantly MLS has alot of quality that has been introduced in the last few years. Admittedly it ain't up to EPL quality but it is a good league to watch.

Fios wrote:I mean, WOW.

Question for you soccer/football fans out there: can I just adopt Liverpool as my team or is that sacrilege? I'd really like to follow soccer more closely (and yes I know calling it soccer is frowned upon) but I need a team to do that and the MLS teams just don't do it for me.

Well, there is of course absolutely no reason why you can't support an EPL and an MLS team - there's no conflict there.

Your deciding to support Liverpool would be much the same as me deciding to support the Redskins all those years ago. Personally, I'd ask "why Liverpool?". Just because of Gerrard? There are plenty of reasons to support Liverpool - the tradition, the tradition, and the tradition to name just three. But really, the reason for supporting them doesn't matter. Just like any sport, the defining moment is whether that team gets into your heart, and that might take a while when you're supporting them from afar, and don't get to see many (any?) games. I "chose" the Redskins over the Raiders by pure luck really (and I wasn't hooked at that point), and then two weeks later, the Raiders hammered our boys in the Superbowl, and I was hooked on two important facts - I now loved the Redskins, and I hated the Raiders. I personally think that your true team chooses you - it's not so much a conscious decision, as a combination of circumstances.

Just don't become a Chelsea fan right now - that would be glory hunting of the worst kind. 20 years ago, when they were a joke, things would have been different, but please not now. Chelsea fans are crawling out of the woodwork everywhere.

Oh, and it was a great free kick.

Ahhh. Now that's what you call "upper 90"