Why You Should Watch The World Cup With Your Kids

I know you are not into it, but you should be. [apologies to our non-American readers. Welcome and we"re glad you"re here!] The rest of of the world is captivated by it. The drama is huge. The biggest names in the game are all there. No, I”m not talking about the World Series of Poker, I am talking about the World Cup. It is probably the easiest sport to understand conceptually and the least complicated to actually engage in. Millions of kids play it in the US alone, and in spite of the fact that you probably also played soccer as a kid noodad, you could not care less about the World Cup. And why should you?

Great (Starter?) Sport for Kids
One good reason to get into the World Cup is that it is easy to get your kids into the game both physically and behind the idiot box (TV). Sports promote coordination, quick thinking and physical fitness. In this one, you will not have to explain a lot of complicated rule or strategies. Have you ever tried explaining balls and strikes to a 3 year old? “Daddy, what”s a pitch count?” You just tell your kids: There are 2 goals. Each team tries to kick the ball into the goal while the other team tries to prevent this from happening. Only 2 guys on the field can use their hands with one exception. They are called goalies. You will know the goalies because their shirts look different from the other shirts. Back to the exception; if the ball goes over one of those sidelines, someone can use their hands to throw the ball back into play. My 17 month old loves sitting on my lap watching the World Cup. He just points and says “sooocccceeeer”. He also can identify a hockey game. I”m working on baseball. My 3 year old also likes to watch the games. During half time, we go out in the yard and kick the ball around. She is pretty good at dribbling the ball, but does not understand passing yet. She just dribbles to me. She thinks she is really good and is interested in playing. Perfect. I have just taught my kids the joy of sports before they turned 4.

Predictable Time Commitment and Easy Rules
Soccer is a timed game with a constantly running clock. There are two forty-five minute halves. Time is added at the end of the half to take into account would-be stoppages for injuries, throw-ins, goal and corner kicks. There are no commercials or timeouts during play and the rules are a cinch. The game can be played anytime, anywhere. You do not need much special equipment. You only need a ball (Editor’s note: shin guards are recommended). It is a great sport for a lifetime of physical fitness. It is played worldwide so if you are traveling internationally, you are sure to be able to find a league or a pickup match.

Why don’t Americans like it?
Soccer is hard to understand for Americans because we like fast and furious action. We like points on the board and we like something to always be happening. Soccer requires a little bit of patience. We do not have the discipline to be excited about developing plays and how those are thwarted with good tackles. We just want to see the hard shots and the spectacular saves. Soccer has all the elements you love in football, they are just a bit slower to develop.
There is passing and catching, they are just done with the feet. There are set plays, you just need to learn how to recognize them. There are even long bomb type plays that can lead to exciting confrontations between the “receiver” and the goalkeeper. And there is tackling! It”s not quite as obvious or vicious, but soccer does have 200 pound men tackling other 200 pound men. These guys are wearing very little padding. When you get hit in a soccer match, you feel it.
Each continent seems to have a fairly distinct style of play. They differ on whether they prefer to attack or defend and strategies change significantly after a goal is scored. Soccer is a big picture game. Because scores tend to be low, it becomes crucial for teams to eek out every goal they can in order to advance in a particular tournament. Teams change their formations to counter the strengths of other teams.

Penalties are called for various fouls. Severe penalties are met with yellow card “bookings”. If a player receives two, they must miss a match. A player can also receive a red card for a very flagrant foul. This ejects them from the game and means the team must play short handed. In the US’s match versus Italy, Italy received a red card. The US then proceeded to get 2 red cards! This is pretty rare. The referee has been greatly criticized as a result.

What’s this World Cup Thing?
It is the world equivalent of March Madness, except it only happens every 4 years. The stage is huge. Every country wants to be there and International pride is on the line. For some teams like Brazil, Germany and England, nothing short of winning the whole thing will do, but other countries are hoping to do what teams like Ghana have already done, stun a major nation. Ghana dominated the Czech Republic, who obviously thought their match would be a cakewalk. They looked under prepared and frankly, hung-over during the match and Ghana capitalized with a 2-0 dominant victory. Ghana scored the game winner just over a minute into the match. It could have been worse if not for unselfish play by a Ghana attacker who, in a 3 on none opportunity, passed the ball offside when he should have shot.

South Korea also stunned France who is led by one of the top strikers in the World, Thierry Henry of Arsenal (in the England’s top league, the Premiership). In the final minutes of the match, France’s defense and their goalkeeper looked extremely confused and South Korea managed to lob a shot over the goalie’s head and into the net. In a fit of rage, one of the French fullbacks grabbed the ball out of the net and punted it into the crowd.

It’s pageantry, it’s nationalism, it’s pride, it’s energy. The excitement is huge! I went to the England during the World Cup in 2002. They were not even hosting and the buzz was bigger than the Super Bowl or the World Series! You could go to any park in England, any time of day, by yourself, drop a ball and a game almost immediately would break out. Give it a try noodads. There is plenty of time. We have only played 3 games.