Mark Shapiro’s World Cup commentary (Tribune, June 2) said things that nearly every soccer fan wished someone would say.
Most of us aren’t troubled by what the rest of America’s sports fans think. But we are eager to introduce what we consider a great sport to others. Soccer’s popularity among young people is easy to understand–the game doesn’t particularly favor the larger or stronger players. The Fire’s DaMarcus Beasley is listed as the smallest player in the World Cup at 5 feet 8 inches, 130 pounds. Yet he stands a chance of making an impact on a world stage. That’s something that could never happen in our homegrown sports, which strongly favor the large and the tall.
ABC is showing some of the top World Cup games on a tape-delayed basis on the weekends. They may provide a decent way to experience the game and the event. If the sport seems a little hard to follow at first, just enjoy the superb athleticism the players exhibit.
