NationStates Jolt Archive

I love baseball. *humps baseball* I do know and am aware that some people think it's stupid and boring.......I don't particularly understand why, but you are entitled to that opinion, I suppose.

I also enjoy golf. I am well aware that nobody ever admits that.

I was thinking last night (while at a baseball game) what makes these two sports appealing to me.....and I've decided it's because I understand the rules and I've played both of them in the past.

My husband watches football with my 6yo, I tried to get into it, but I only have a cursory understanding of what's going on, no matter how many games I go to, or how many times I watch it on TV it's pretty stupid and pointless to me (American football btw)

Soccer (European football?) is also boring and stupid to me, I understand most of the rules, but it seems pointless......as does basketball, rugby, cricket and hockey (although the fights at hockey redeem it a bit)

so.......what makes a good sport? what is your favorite sport to follow? what's your favorite one to play? which sport is utterly stupid to you? why?

cheerleaders?

cheerleaders?

:( I forgot about that.

The number 1 reason for people liking a sport is that it was the sport they were brought up with as a kid. I love soccer and I could try and explain why American sports don't appeal to me but I doubt they'd be my real reasons because I'm pretty sure that if I was brought up in America I'd feel the same as most other Americans.

Team work.

Mud. *nod*

maybe if I had posted "what makes a sport bad?" I would have gotten more replies.

:(

Maybe it's the men, the hot, sweaty bodies clashing against each other and rubbing and... sorry.

I was never really into baseball myself. My father and uncles used to be HUGE baseball fans, but the two strikes killed it for them.

so.......what makes a good sport? Simplicity, action, the chance that somebdy could get seriously wrecked, historic rivalries, all of the above

what is your favorite sport to follow? Football, hands down. Nothing better than tailgating followed by watching the Packers beat the snot out of the Vikings(yet again) I also watch NASCAR and professional wrestling, although I will concede that they are not exactly what most people would consider 'sports.'

what's your favorite one to play? Football again.

which sport is utterly stupid to you?Soccer, followed closely by 95% of the events in the Winter Olympics.

History and the feel of the sport.

Pretty much the main reason why I don't like "American sports" like basketball and baseball and American football is the culture that surrounds the sports and how I feel when I'm watching the games (live, at the stadium). The announcers and the music and the eating and the sitting all really bother me for some reason and so it makes watching these sports really hard. And then the sports are presented as being packed full of action and super intense and are really glossed over with flashing lights and the like.

And that's why I'm so against the MLS even though I'm American and I like football (soccer), because to make it more attractive to Americans they dress it up like every other American sports league, and I don't like that. Football in countries like England is a beautiful sport. You're not constantly being bombared with things. And then there are the people who chant, and that will always sound better than those clips they play at random times during baseball and basketball games. I don't know, it's just a different vibe.

Also, I really, really, really hate cheerleaders.

When watching it's tactical teamwork and a quick pace. Have never played competitively but when playing casually ease of play is far more important than elaborate teamwork.

The competitions in P.E. class with names like ghostball, hunterball and tailgrabbing where the best, have never encountered them since then though. :(

To pick real sports my favourite is floorball. Orienteering is second, a nice way to stay in shape but boring to watch.

For me there is one and only one sport truly worth watching on TV and that is Hockey.

NHL, Olympic, doesn't matter. Hockey has it all. Steady play (no built in stops, only penalties), high speed, scoring means something, the players wear body armor and carry what amounts to weapons, in an environment of blades, ice and adrenaline. What's not to like?

Yeh, I know Hockey is prone to fighting and that used to bother me but now I embrace it. The fights never last long and people rarely get hurt, and it does add some flavor to the game when you see someone trip one of your guys with his stick and the ref misses it so he throws down the gloves and gets a little justice...

And the hits. OMG Nothing is funnier than watching an opposing team member smashed up against the plexiglass by one of your team's goons at excessive speed.

Field hockey is almost as good and it's the only sport I've ever shown any competence at (besides paintball) but ice hockey is always and forever my favorite.

Speacking of which, the Capitals got the SE Division championship last night. LET'S GO CAPS!

Hockey > Soccer/Football because: It's faster. A LOT faster. And fighting is OK.
Hockey > American Football because: Football stops and starts, stops and starts, stops and starts zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz (Although it is my second favorite game to watch) It gets points for body armor.
Hockey > Baseball because: Baseball, while having weaponry, still has to stop and start, stop and start, zzzzzzzzzz
Hockey > Basketball because: In basketball, a sincgle basket is no biggie. Ho hum. In a game where a team can get 110 points that's about 50 baskets or so. In Hockey, a Goal is HUGE and gives you an excuse to get up and dance.
Hockey > Golf because: Golf is not a sport. It's a game.

Stuff happening.

That's the biggest thing that should take place in a sport.

Watching people kick a ball around for ninety fucking minutes, take six shots on goal, and win 1-0 or tie 0-0 is not excitement. Winning 1-0 is exciting, or it can be. Winning 1-0 after taking three shots on goal for the entire second half is not.

Conversely, teams scoring every 30 seconds and the points meaning damn near nothing is not fun, either.

Slightly better is the anything-can-happen absence of a clock, but the long, drawn-out throwing over to first and an at-bat taking ten pitches routinely takes a lot of the fun out. I don't care if the games are long. Just make something happen.

American football is more fun to watch, but the potential for blowouts seems higher.

The ultimate sport? Hockey. A good hockey game is worth its weight in gold. And a bad one...well, people still beat the hell out of each other.

Simple rules and lots of action. I also believe most sports are best at the college level because people actually try there ... most professional sports bore me to tears, but I can watch college sports all day long.

Gatorade being dumped over the coach. Everything else is just foreplay.

Am I the only one who is more than a little tired of the huge abundance of sports that involve moving a ball or other object past the other team and into a goal of some kind?

Am I the only one who is more than a little tired of the huge abundance of sports that involve moving a ball or other object past the other team and into a goal of some kind?

I don't know - it seems to me that moving balls or other objects into a goal of some kind is a central part of life.

Am I the only one who is more than a little tired of the huge abundance of sports that involve moving a ball or other object past the other team and into a goal of some kind?
Which good team sports don't have any balls or goals?

Sports should be exciting and fun, simply, both to watch and to play. The basic concepts should be easy to understand but with a base of more sophisticated rules that can be explored as someone gets to know the sport better.

I prefer team sports in general as the social and group interactions are an added part of the experience. Having a large interest in a sport means more people to play with/watch, but too large and it can become cumbersome and annoying, and commercialised especially (common to the big American sports and to football in Europe).

My personal favourites? Field hockey, football (soccer), Badminton.

Which good team sports don't have any balls or goals?

That's my point. I'm saying I would very much like to see more good team sports that aren't all coming from the same mold, as it were.

That's my point. I'm saying I would very much like to see more good team sports that aren't all coming from the same mold, as it were.

Kabaddi may be the game for you

Sports should be exciting and fun, simply, both to watch and to play. The basic concepts should be easy to understand but with a base of more sophisticated rules that can be explored as someone gets to know the sport better.
I think that's a good starting point. But then, some people think football (soccer) is exciting and fun to watch and others don't. Others may think baseball is - I personally don't (mainly because it goes on for too long - a quick look on Wiki indicates that games generally take nearly three hours (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/columnist/bodley/2004-02-26-bodley_x.htm). You can't maintain a decent level of excitement for that long).

A good sport needs to have a balance between the skill and tactics involved, something that pretty much every major (or, indeed, minor) sport has. A person shouldn't be able to be a major success at a sport simply from having outrageous skill, otherwise that sport would get a bit dull. Likewise, a brilliant understanding of the tactics of a sport shouldn't make someone an excellent player of it.

A good sport can be easily understood at an intermediate level by the majority of people - obviously there's not really any point in a sport where any bloke off the street could be (football analogy warning) Alex Ferguson. But if a sport is too hard to understand people aren't going to be interested. This includes an appreciation of the skill and tactics involved - the spectator needs to understand why a player, coach or manager has made the decision s/he's made, and can also recognise a brilliant piece of play when they see one. I rarely watch American or Aussie Rules football (though I wish I could watch more of the latter - anyone who knows of a website that shows free games/highlights, let me know) but I know when a player, team or coach has planned and executed something well, even with a limited knowledge of the sport.

Um, yeah, that rambled a bit, but I hope people get the main points.

For me there is one and only one sport truly worth watching on TV and that is Hockey.

NHL, Olympic, doesn't matter. Hockey has it all. Steady play (no built in stops, only penalties), high speed, scoring means something, the players wear body armor and carry what amounts to weapons, in an environment of blades, ice and adrenaline. What's not to like?

Yeh, I know Hockey is prone to fighting and that used to bother me but now I embrace it. The fights never last long and people rarely get hurt, and it does add some flavor to the game when you see someone trip one of your guys with his stick and the ref misses it so he throws down the gloves and gets a little justice...

And the hits. OMG Nothing is funnier than watching an opposing team member smashed up against the plexiglass by one of your team's goons at excessive speed.

Field hockey is almost as good and it's the only sport I've ever shown any competence at (besides paintball) but ice hockey is always and forever my favorite.

Speacking of which, the Capitals got the SE Division championship last night. LET'S GO CAPS!

Hockey > Soccer/Football because: It's faster. A LOT faster. And fighting is OK.
Hockey > American Football because: Football stops and starts, stops and starts, stops and starts zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz (Although it is my second favorite game to watch) It gets points for body armor.
Hockey > Baseball because: Baseball, while having weaponry, still has to stop and start, stop and start, zzzzzzzzzz
Hockey > Basketball because: In basketball, a sincgle basket is no biggie. Ho hum. In a game where a team can get 110 points that's about 50 baskets or so. In Hockey, a Goal is HUGE and gives you an excuse to get up and dance.
Hockey > Golf because: Golf is not a sport. It's a game.

Ditto all of this. Except the part about the Caps. Fuck'em. Go B's.

Ditto all of this. Except the part about the Caps. Fuck'em. Go B's.

Trying to remember the score from that game last month.. what was it... *COUGH*10-2*COUGH* Caps over Bruins...

SNIP

sounds like you enjoy hitting things with clubs :)

so.......what makes a good sport? what is your favorite sport to follow? what's your favorite one to play? which sport is utterly stupid to you? why?

1) competitiveness and suspense are good (though also honesty in the game *looks at pro-football (soccer) players*)

2) Boxing which I chose to be more a spectator in because I like my pretty face

3) marathon running because it feels great :)

4) Formula 1, now don't get me wrong I can see how people might like it but waiting 20+ laps for someone to die a gruesome death just seems sick

I don't spectate much sport. I watch football from time to time and college basketball. I rarely watch any other sports as television dulls them badly.

I like playing them and my favorite sports to play are team contact sports. Especially rugby. I wish there were more rugby on television. I also enjoy playing football and paintball. In high school and early college, I wrestled and I enjoyed the sport. Unfortunately, I didn't hold the attitudes in college wrestling in particularly high regard.

As for my original statement, mud makes good sports better. If it can't be played in mud, it probably sucked to begin with. *nod*

Sports are alright, but I find the huge emphasis on them to be disturbing. So you can run really fast and carry a ball over a line. Whoop-de-doo, lets pay millions to watch!

I love baseball. *humps baseball* I do know and am aware that some people think it's stupid and boring.......I don't particularly understand why, but you are entitled to that opinion, I suppose.

I also enjoy golf. I am well aware that nobody ever admits that.

I was thinking last night (while at a baseball game) what makes these two sports appealing to me.....and I've decided it's because I understand the rules and I've played both of them in the past.

My husband watches football with my 6yo, I tried to get into it, but I only have a cursory understanding of what's going on, no matter how many games I go to, or how many times I watch it on TV it's pretty stupid and pointless to me (American football btw)

Soccer (European football?) is also boring and stupid to me, I understand most of the rules, but it seems pointless......as does basketball, rugby, cricket and hockey (although the fights at hockey redeem it a bit)

so.......what makes a good sport? what is your favorite sport to follow? what's your favorite one to play? which sport is utterly stupid to you? why?

It's subjective. There is no way of objectively saying what is a good sport. The only questions are: Is it fun to watch? Is it fun to play?

I find that most people who didn't grow up with (American) Football don't like it. Myself, I grew up going to college football games every week during the fall when I was a kid (my favorite team, naturally, has always been Cal). I never much watched pro football, so so as a consequence I find it boring and kinda lame. Same with Association Football (soccer).

Baseball was always a thing that you could watch without paying that much attention to. Going to a baseball game was a fun way to get some entertainment now and then, and hang out with friends while eating hot dogs.

I was always a fan of Crew (Rowing) as well, which is a very simple sport it terms of rules: First to the finish line wins.

Recently I've grown to like Rugby a lot. I don't understand what's happening all the time, but it's very exciting, and I can always ask my sister what's going on if I'm confused.

Trying to remember the score from that game last month.. what was it... *COUGH*10-2*COUGH* Caps over Bruins...
Hey now. I never said the Bruins were any good. I just said "Fuck the caps". And I stand by that. So there. :)

Trying to remember the score from that game last month.. what was it... *COUGH*10-2*COUGH* Caps over Bruins...
Hey now. I never said the Bruins were any good. I just said "Fuck the caps". And I stand by that. So there. :)

Strategy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategy) and tactics.

Although my concept of competitive sport is probably different from most others' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backgammon). But whatever the particular game, successfully setting a trap and watching the enemy walk right into it is fantastic. Especially when fighting back from the brink of defeat. A situation I find myself in a lot. :D ( :headbang: )