SOCCER SPORT !

[meijlinder]

De Boer out at Palace and Hodgson in.

If they wanted to continue to struggle and play bad offensively, wouldn't it have been cheaper to just stay with De Boer?

[Raza]

De Boer out at Palace and Hodgson in.

If they wanted to continue to struggle and play bad offensively, wouldn't it have been cheaper to just stay with De Boer?

[Raza]

Just thought it was a very patronising reply. It might not be the same between non-British Man City and Man U fans, but the same thing exists between other fan bases. Red Sox-Yankees, Redskins-Cowboys, Vikings-Packers and multiple college rivalries to name a few. Same with teams sharing cities in all major soccer leagues.
Read up on the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry and I think you will find that type of "tribal aspect" exists outside the PL.

My fellow Philadelphians once threw D batteries at a player who refused to sign for the Phillies.

[meijlinder]

My fellow Philadelphians once threw D batteries at a player who refused to sign for the Phillies.

Forgot about Philadelphia. Remember reading this a while back: http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/washin...delphia-flyers

[OTGabe]

Just thought it was a very patronising reply. It might not be the same between non-British Man City and Man U fans, but the same thing exists between other fan bases. Red Sox-Yankees, Redskins-Cowboys, Vikings-Packers and multiple college rivalries to name a few. Same with teams sharing cities in all major soccer leagues.
Read up on the Michigan-Ohio State rivalry and I think you will find that type of "tribal aspect" exists outside the PL.

Well said. In the US it's definitely more common to have those rivalries based on true hatred in the college ranks. Certainly there are bitter rivals in professional sports, but many view it as more of a big business now, not really much different than the PL. College sports have been around longer and tend to be seen as more pure than at the pro level, where loyalty often goes no further than whoever is offering the biggest paycheck.

Say what you will about the personal feelings of those who live in Manchester and grew up on one side or the other, but the reality is those people are a very small slice of the fanbase. The big money to pay those stars comes from the outside. And international companies don't pay massive money to advertise their products to a segment of people in a city of 2.5m people in the north of England. Frankly it's a bit funny to hear about how Manchester is all about the roots in the city when they are funded by oil money and have bought up clubs around the world to gain more fans and bring in more cash. Maybe some fans don't feel it's about finances, but everyone running the club you love would disagree mightily. Without us clueless Americans and those elsewhere in the world supporting the club and pumping money into it, would City be in any position to challenge United for any trophies?

[Raza]

Forgot about Philadelphia. Remember reading this a while back: http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/washin...delphia-flyers

Yeah, that's pretty gross.

[tribe125]

Anything else I'm missing?

Pies. Nobody beyond the shores of our mythic land could grasp the full significance of pies.

[tribe125]

De Boer out at Palace and Hodgson in.

The irony is that they were apparently by far the better side against Burnley, even according to Sean Dyche.

[OTGabe]

Pies. Nobody beyond the shores of our mythic land could grasp the full significance of pies.

LOL. We have a comedy show here about the PL called Men in Blazers hosted by two British ex-pats. They have a guest every show and at the end they all take a bite of an English pie with hopes that it will give them soothsaying powers to predict an upcoming match result. Many guests are confused by this and some take a fake bite of the pie and are roundly ridiculed for it. True fans and of course English guests are always game, though. Robbie Earle took quite a bit of stick for fake eating his beef pie, but he's a vegetarian so it was understandable.





The pies don't lie.

[shameless]

like everything else in life , the pies aren't as good as in the olden days - or as cheap !! i have fond memory of a pie consumed at Oldham Athletic one winters day many moons ago