Football is not my first love. And I suppose it's likely that it won't be my last, but with that said, I don't think that I have ever had a more clear understanding of why I love something in my life. Usually our passions or diversions aren't reasoned and that is part of what makes them enjoyable and liberating. During the latter part of my university career, however, I really started buying into the Socratic idea that "the unexamined life is not worth living." A number of my friends have pointed out that this statement has its limits, but I am not writing to discuss that here (I tend to be tangental, trying to restrain myself); this is, after all, a blog about the beautiful game. What is relevant is that this need to examine, for better or worse, has found its way into almost every part of my life, even into my hobbies. Since my real immersion into the world of football began at roughly the same time as this intellectual/philosophical development, my engagement with the sport has been especially open to thoughtful analysis and comparison with other things that I either mightly enjoy now or felt a similar love for at other points in my life (hip-hop is one good example; basketball is another). This arrangement has produced the following list of reasons that I am in love with/things that I love about football.*
(Note: Numbered, but not to denote any kind of hierarchy)
1.Promotion and Relegation: The System and the resultant battles
-No tanking for draft picks
-Makes bad teams interesting
2.The World is our Transfer Pool
3.Distinction between League Champions and Cup Champions aka The Season Actually Matters
4.Qualification for Elite Cup Tournaments
5.The World Game and International Competition
6.Being in the "Bubble" Phase of the relationship - All The Intrigue/Drama I don't know I hate yet. (a massive copout, but I am still putting it. Have you seen this episode of Parks and Rec?)
7.90 minute matches that actually last 90 minutes
8.The Card System
9.Trading Shirts After Matches
10. Bad Blood and the Euro Head Grab
11. Feet
12. Rich Cultural Ties and Analysis
13. "As a spectacle it offers space for inspired individuals and dogged collectives, creates instantaneously comprehensible narratives, operates in a perpetually changing three-dimensional space and balances the exhilartion of flow with the orgasmic punctuation of the goal." - David Goldblatt
Since this basically devolved into a list waiting to be explained, I will compensate by telling a story that touches on a lot of these factors. Earlier tonight I watched the United States' Men's National Team** take on Mexico in the final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. It was, in a lot of ways a very exciting game to watch and had quite few crazy turns (4 first half goals and 3 first half substitutions between the sides). Ultimately the U.S. lost 4-2 after taking a 2-0 lead in the first half, (an occurence which I am wont to blog about in itself -- I may very well undertake such a pursuit tomorrow) but my enduring memory of this game will be watching the second goal the U.S. scored.
After rushing home from my nephew's 5th birthday and getting inside 4 minutes into the match (just soon enough to see first goal -- Bradley's header from an Adu corner), I was now standing in front of the TV in my parents' living room, delighted that we had gotten off to a good start and trying to get a feel for the tactics and lineups each team (but mainly the U.S.) was employing. I was watching the match, like I had watched all of the other team USA Gold Cup matches, in Spainish on Univison.*** In true nerd fashion I was wearing my U.S. Soccer T Shirt and was basically just way too excited/invested/giddy about this whole thing. Then it happened.
My new favorite U.S. player Freddy Adu (most creative guy we have on the ball) made a move on the right wing and made a great centering pass to Clint Dempsey just outside the box. As Adu hit the ball to Dempsey I could see Landon Donovan begin an incisive run in the box and I knew we were going to score. I just knew it. I could see it. I was ecstatic. Dempsey played the through ball to Donovan who took one touch to the left and buried his shot to the keeper's right in the back of the net.
Judging from my reaction you would have thought I had scored the goal. I screamed about as loud as possible. Several times. I am not totally sure what I said. Some unintelligble sounds, "YES!!!!!!", and "WHAT A GOAL!!!" are all candidates. I leapt in the up and then took off full sprint into the kitchen and pounded the counter several times, and then the table several times and then ran back into the living room, leapfrogged a couch and made a dramatic fist pump. It was nirvana. Or joy. Or Delirium. Or something. Whatever it was, it didn't last long but it was more than good. It was perfect.
I can only recall one other time I have felt that emotion in relation to sports and I am pretty confident that I was not even 11 when that happened. I thought I had entirely gotten over feeling united with a team or with other supporters, but football seems to trump my cynicism somehow. In addition, between ages 11 and my current 25 I have watched an inestimable amount of SportsCenter. So much so in fact that I rarely am awed by anything I see happen in sport. Fortunately the virtuosity of football still has some transcendence for me. In this case the build up play had gone from middling to perfect in matter of seconds and I had watched it unfold, eyes widening I am sure, realizing how perfect a play it was, realizing that it was coming together right, feeling that I as a supporter was somehow a part of the team and that my hurrying to get home and adorning myself in the team's colors somehow helped to score that goal. Or at least knowing that when it went in I would celebrate like it did. It was beautiful. It was, like I said, perfect. Maybe this explanation doesn't really stand to reason, but it does stand to my own examination. And you can't really blame me. After all, I am in love.
*I have been meaning to write this post forever, but I am better at generating ideas than content. That said I have opted to just stick to a list with no/short descriptions that will hopefully turn into individual posts over the coming weeks. There is really too much to say.
**I'm sure I didn't need to clarify but did anyway I believe both the U-17s and the USWNT are in tournaments right now, you can catch all the Women's World Cup coverage on the ESPN family of networks if you so desire.
*** At first this was a mild inconvenience and left me wishing that I owned a subscription to Fox Soccer Channel. In the end I loved brushing up on my Spanish.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Who Loves the Champions' League?
In a word: Nike.
I am sure that the athletic apparel giants are delighted with the results the past two days as the big name clubs they sponsor emerged victorious in both semi-finals. First FC Barcelona managed, despite plenty of ill-tempered exchanges and controversy, to slip past rivals Real Madrid in one semi-final (more on those two soon) and then today the biggest club in England, Manchester United, handily finished off their over-matched German opponents, Schalke 04.
Though the brand war between between Adidas (not coincidentally the sponsor/equipment provider for both Madrid and Schalke) and Nike may not seem as heated in the U.S. as it was in the mid to late 90s, when Adidas briefly threatened Nike's Air Jordan-induced hegemony on the basketball court*, it has certainly not died**. In fact, the inverse scenario has been true on the football pitch, as Nike started in the mid nineties to pull out all the stops, including the clandestine inking of a massive sponsorship deal with the Brazilian national team, in hopes of breaking Adidas' choke hold on the world football market. Fifteen years later that battle is as intense as ever.*** Nike has made some huge strides but is still struggling to end the dominance of the competitor that has remained the world's premier football company since founder Adi Dassler introduced screw-in studs for the West German national team in the mid 50s. With that established, this is a significant coup for the American company, as they now will have sole possession of center stage advertising in one of the most watched television events in the world.****
Well, almost sole possession.
Nike's plan of attack in conquering world soccer has been clear from the beginning, quality over quantity. "We may not get a lot, but we will get what sells most." It's a strategy that has been largely successful. In addition to long term sponsorship deals with the U.S. national team (the home market)and Brazil (perennial favorites at international tournaments, base of an international diaspora, international following), Nike has dealt with other notable national teams like Holland (runners up in South Africa) and Mexico (the other home market). Of equal or perhaps greater import, however, are the conspicuous swooshes worn by some of the most recognizable club sides in the world like Manchester United, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, and Celtic. Since these teams play far more often than national teams do, they offer more consistent opportunities to cash in. Add to that individual sponsorship deals with big names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, and the now aging Ronaldinho and if you're Nike, you have quite the stable of advertising thoroughbreds for all seasons. However, even when rolling out a seemingly all-Nike affair like the Champions' League final in question, things are not quite so simple or so one-sided. For example, the UEFA Champions' League uses only specially made and officillay licensed Adidas match balls*****,so the competition won't be out of the picture completely. But even with that accommodation Nike probably feels pretty good about itself. The more troubling matter is when individual and team sponsorships collide. For example, when Lionel Messi, undoubtedly the most famous player in the world, walks onto the Wembley pitch for Barca, his kit will be made by Nike, but his boots will unmistakably evidence his personal sponsorship deal with Adidas. No doubt both sides will try to make the most they can out of/off of that. So even though Nike won't have to worry about the result of the match****** it can't quite win them all, either.
*And other American sports where Nike had successfully used the same big-star marketing approach (i.e. Baseball with Ken Griffey Jr.). This was an especially interesting time on the hardwood as Fila (Grant Hill) and Reebok (Allen Iverson) also attempted to carve out part of the basketball market for themselves, but the big competition remained between Nike (Jordan, the incumbent; Barkley; Kidd; etc.) and Adidas (Kobe Bryant, later Tracy McGrady). Certainly only Nike sought to get into the world football market, where they easily flew past smaller players in that arena like Puma, Diadora, etc.
** Seen any commercials lately? In addition to ensemble casts of sports stars, Adidas, though not the only one using this move, has been especially aggressive in trying to cross over to pop-culture figures to boost American sales (Katy Perry, B.O.B). I could go on, but I won't.
*** Watch any commercials during the last World Cup?
**** In the US, The Champions' League Final live from Wembley can be viewed on Fox with coverage starting at 2pm eastern time on Saturday, May 28.
***** Fortunately Adidas has a much better track record with these than with their specially designed world cup balls, like the ill-fated Jubalani last summer.
****** In the 1998, 2002, and 2010 World Cups Nike sponsored sides faced off against Adidas sponsored competition in what added a commercial aspect of globalization to the sporting one most readily noticed. In '98 and 2010 Adidas won (France, which is now sponsored by Nike, over Brazil; Spain over The Netherlands). In 2002 Nike got the better of the deal with Brazil beating the Germans.
I am sure that the athletic apparel giants are delighted with the results the past two days as the big name clubs they sponsor emerged victorious in both semi-finals. First FC Barcelona managed, despite plenty of ill-tempered exchanges and controversy, to slip past rivals Real Madrid in one semi-final (more on those two soon) and then today the biggest club in England, Manchester United, handily finished off their over-matched German opponents, Schalke 04.
Though the brand war between between Adidas (not coincidentally the sponsor/equipment provider for both Madrid and Schalke) and Nike may not seem as heated in the U.S. as it was in the mid to late 90s, when Adidas briefly threatened Nike's Air Jordan-induced hegemony on the basketball court*, it has certainly not died**. In fact, the inverse scenario has been true on the football pitch, as Nike started in the mid nineties to pull out all the stops, including the clandestine inking of a massive sponsorship deal with the Brazilian national team, in hopes of breaking Adidas' choke hold on the world football market. Fifteen years later that battle is as intense as ever.*** Nike has made some huge strides but is still struggling to end the dominance of the competitor that has remained the world's premier football company since founder Adi Dassler introduced screw-in studs for the West German national team in the mid 50s. With that established, this is a significant coup for the American company, as they now will have sole possession of center stage advertising in one of the most watched television events in the world.****
Well, almost sole possession.
Nike's plan of attack in conquering world soccer has been clear from the beginning, quality over quantity. "We may not get a lot, but we will get what sells most." It's a strategy that has been largely successful. In addition to long term sponsorship deals with the U.S. national team (the home market)and Brazil (perennial favorites at international tournaments, base of an international diaspora, international following), Nike has dealt with other notable national teams like Holland (runners up in South Africa) and Mexico (the other home market). Of equal or perhaps greater import, however, are the conspicuous swooshes worn by some of the most recognizable club sides in the world like Manchester United, Barcelona, Arsenal, Inter Milan, and Celtic. Since these teams play far more often than national teams do, they offer more consistent opportunities to cash in. Add to that individual sponsorship deals with big names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, and the now aging Ronaldinho and if you're Nike, you have quite the stable of advertising thoroughbreds for all seasons. However, even when rolling out a seemingly all-Nike affair like the Champions' League final in question, things are not quite so simple or so one-sided. For example, the UEFA Champions' League uses only specially made and officillay licensed Adidas match balls*****,so the competition won't be out of the picture completely. But even with that accommodation Nike probably feels pretty good about itself. The more troubling matter is when individual and team sponsorships collide. For example, when Lionel Messi, undoubtedly the most famous player in the world, walks onto the Wembley pitch for Barca, his kit will be made by Nike, but his boots will unmistakably evidence his personal sponsorship deal with Adidas. No doubt both sides will try to make the most they can out of/off of that. So even though Nike won't have to worry about the result of the match****** it can't quite win them all, either.
*And other American sports where Nike had successfully used the same big-star marketing approach (i.e. Baseball with Ken Griffey Jr.). This was an especially interesting time on the hardwood as Fila (Grant Hill) and Reebok (Allen Iverson) also attempted to carve out part of the basketball market for themselves, but the big competition remained between Nike (Jordan, the incumbent; Barkley; Kidd; etc.) and Adidas (Kobe Bryant, later Tracy McGrady). Certainly only Nike sought to get into the world football market, where they easily flew past smaller players in that arena like Puma, Diadora, etc.
** Seen any commercials lately? In addition to ensemble casts of sports stars, Adidas, though not the only one using this move, has been especially aggressive in trying to cross over to pop-culture figures to boost American sales (Katy Perry, B.O.B). I could go on, but I won't.
*** Watch any commercials during the last World Cup?
**** In the US, The Champions' League Final live from Wembley can be viewed on Fox with coverage starting at 2pm eastern time on Saturday, May 28.
***** Fortunately Adidas has a much better track record with these than with their specially designed world cup balls, like the ill-fated Jubalani last summer.
****** In the 1998, 2002, and 2010 World Cups Nike sponsored sides faced off against Adidas sponsored competition in what added a commercial aspect of globalization to the sporting one most readily noticed. In '98 and 2010 Adidas won (France, which is now sponsored by Nike, over Brazil; Spain over The Netherlands). In 2002 Nike got the better of the deal with Brazil beating the Germans.
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