Baseball vs. Soccer: popularity in the US

[Strenuus]

Alright lets put this demographic thing to the test in here. Yuyuza had a very good point here.



It does appear there may be an age gap of those who are pro soccer, and those who brush it off as a fad, in here.

I'm 28 and pro soccer.

Go!

I'm 31 and have been pro baseball my whole life.

 

[MARIS61]

Any way you spell it, futbol is and always will be boring.

Boring to watch and boring to play.

As America quickly becomes North Mexico, so rises the popularity of lying, cheating, stealing, and watching futbol.

 

[HailBlazers]

Any way you spell it, baseball is and always will be boring.

Agreed.

 

[MARIS61]

America’s pastime appears to be striking out with today’s youth.

Baseball program officials around North Jersey report declines in the number of kids signing up for baseball, mirroring a national trend.

In stark examples, participation in youth baseball in Cresskill, Paramus, Clifton, Montclair, Westwood, Closter, Demarest, Haworth and Glen Rock has lagged over the past five years, recreation leaders say.

Many children have moved on to other activities, such as lacrosse and soccer, observed Haworth Baseball Commissioner Bruce Celotto, who said his registration numbers have dropped 40 percent in the past five years: “It used to be too many kids would show up. Now we are lucky if we get seven kids.”

The number of children age 6 and up playing on teams nationally dropped to 12 million in 2012, from 16 million in 2007, according to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association.

Experts attribute the loss of interest to a variety of factors, including a recent wealth of choices, changing demographics and the psychology of today’s youth.

Marty Maciaszek, a spokesman for the National Sporting Goods Association, which showed a drop of 24 percent in baseball participation between 2004 and 2012, points to the recent emphasis on elite travel teams and obsession with electronic games.

Some local baseball overseers believe they’re a casualty of soccer, lacrosse and other newly popular sports, which often require year-round participation, even on the elementary school level.

Demarest Baseball Commissioner Don Morgan cites a 20 percent drop in registrations: “The demographics in our area have changed and there’s other sports played in the spring, so kids have more choices now. They’re all into soccer and lacrosse.”



http://www.northjersey.com/sports/n...er-kids-on-deck-1.735797#sthash.4QBnq29Z.dpuf


I agree with the 0-0 tie. But baseball averaging 3 hrs a game and people leaving games in the 12 or 13 inning not having the time to wait around to see who wins is also a bad formula. I like what hockey did when they instituted the shootout to decide a game . . . now that is american style sports. Football will always be king in the US.

Professional American Football, as we know it, will be outlawed in the next decade or so due to the obvious brain damage it causes. Some version of flag football is what it will morph into.

 

[Strenuus]

Football will be done in 20 years. Book it.

 

[MARIS61]

Watching soccer is like watching someone else play Pong.

 

[santeesioux]

24 and don't really care about either sport, but i guess i'm a casual baseball fan. The difference is though if we got a baseball team here i'd try to watch them, but i just don't care about the Timbers at all, and i tried.

 

[VanillaGorilla]

Watching soccer is like watching someone else play Pong.

Yeah? And what's baseball like?

I'm 22, played baseball for 6 years and soccer for none (football for 9). I'm 100% pro-soccer, haven't watched
a single baseball game in years. It's as boring as watching golf to me. Soccer is infinitely more exciting. I follow the MLS, the English Premier League and the Champions League.

 

[Natebishop3]

Football will be done in 20 years. Book it.

I just don't see it. I've heard this argument before and I simply don't see football dying off. People do things that are just as dangerous, if not more dangerous. I used to ski as a child, and you can't tell me football is any more dangerous than competitive skiing.

 

[Minstrel]

I also doubt football is going anywhere in our lifetimes. I think the rules will continue to adapt to counter the fact that players move faster, while larger, and hit harder over time. So the game will change, but I sincerely doubt it's going to end nor do I think it will end up a non-contact sport. Rules regarding targeting the head and using the head as a weapon have been implemented and will likely continue to evolve.

 

[BlazerDuckSeahawkFan94]

Football wont go anywhere. It's such a money grab and the ultimate team sport with the best atmosphere of any sport.

 

[Strenuus]

I just don't see it. I've heard this argument before and I simply don't see football dying off. People do things that are just as dangerous, if not more dangerous. I used to ski as a child, and you can't tell me football is any more dangerous than competitive skiing.

Parents are not wanting their kids to play the sport anymore because of the injuries.

Baseball is losing players because of the popularity of other spots. Okay, I can hear that. But Football will dry up talent wise in the next 20-30 years, and it will go downhill.

On your point about Skiing... it's skiing, you can do that recreationally... to play tackle football... it's different.

 

[Natebishop3]

Parents are not wanting their kids to play the sport anymore because of the injuries.

Baseball is losing players because of the popularity of other spots. Okay, I can hear that. But Football will dry up talent wise in the next 20-30 years, and it will go downhill.

On your point about Skiing... it's skiing, you can do that recreationally... to play tackle football... it's different.

I'm talking about competitive skiing though. You can play flag football with your buddies, but it's a completely different event as tackle, right? Well, competitive skiing is just as different from someone going out and skiing down the slopes for fun.

Football might waiver in a place like Portland, but I highly doubt places like Texas, Florida, or California will taper off.

 

[Minstrel]

Rules to increase safety will trickle down to every level of the game, and college, high school and Pop Warner levels will likely incorporate more rules than the NFL to reflect that younger players are playing and that it isn't professional. There's too much vested interest in college and high school football for the powers that be in each to simply let either one fade into irrelevance due to inaction. They'll adapt to make the sport less dangerous.

 

[The_Lillard_King]

Football is the most popular sport is the US for the past 30 years. It's popularity rises while baseball popularity decreases. The two aren't comparable.

Not only is football here to stay, it will continue to get more popular . . .

 

[Strenuus]

Football is the most popular sport is the US for the past 30 years. It's popularity rises while baseball popularity decreases. The two aren't comparable.

Not only is football here to stay, it will continue to get more popular . . .

I disagree. I saw what Minstrel wrote, and I see that side of it. But it won't gain in popularity. It'll go one of two ways:

1) It'll over-saturate itself, like it's already becoming, and people will want to move on.

2) Eventually, the talent pool will dry up. You really can't make tackling anyone "safer". The parents will pull their kids out. And whether the bigwigs want it or not, the product will suffer and fans will simply go away and find something else.

Think of it like Facebook. It started out as this hip new, everyone has to have it... now it's so saturated, in your face, that people (And it's a growing amount) stray away from it to something else or nothing else. Granted, some of that is for the privacy aspect... but for others they said "That's just too much, It's too much." and left.

I see it happening, not because of my hate for the sport, but because we're a society that can only take so much before we need a reprieve. Baseball was HUGE, and it went away, when I'm sure most thought it never would. (And by away, I mean lessened in popularity). I really believe that will happen in football.

 

[Wheels]

thanks for the age posts.. what I've noticed even people who are younger like SanteeSioux, who arent into it, still were somewhat "open minded" about it and tried.

I also noticed the old hacks who are so anti Soccer arent posting those ages (I kid cause I love)