**OFFICIAL CLUB SOCCER THREAD**

[clenz]

Discuss the 14/15 season here.

I'll work on merging some posts that may be relevant from other threads if wanted.

Make sure you state who your club team/teams are when you join the thread so we can know which posters we should hate because of the badge they wear on their kits.

Also, proper terms only - pitch, nil, kit, cheeky effort, etc...

[clenz]

Tottenham and Bayern Munich are the two I consider myself a supporter of. Tottenham I follow much more closely than Bayern though because it's easier to follow them more with the way the BPL is covered vs Bundisliga...and the whole English forum vs German forum to follow the team on. Joined the THFC wagon last season, which was my first season actually following soccer in any real form. It really is quite a defeatist fan base from reading their forums. This week signed Vorm and Ben Davies, and both of those signings were met with "meh, we suck again" reactions. I'm more optimistic and really thing Davies can help the club this year. Last season was real rough to follow and still managed a 6th place finish. Really hoping for a CL push this year.

I really wanted to get to the Tottenham match in Chicago this weekend, but that isn't going to happen for a variety of reasons.

Missed the Liverpoo/AS Roma and Tottenham/Toronto matches tonight because I was in class. Watching Man U/LA right now. Surely, there isn't *that* much difference between ManU and the MLS. They were disappointing last season with a 7th place finish and should be better...but not this much better? Up 3-0 at half. Rooney has 2 (PK and just a silly goal that isn't scored anywhere after 3rd grade with how bad the defense played it) and Welbeck with 1.

[Vidav]

I am a follower of AFC Wimbledon because of reasons. Go league 2!!!

[clenz]

I am a follower of AFC Wimbledon because of reasons. Go league 2!!!

Had to do some reading on that one....interesting to hear the reasons on that one.

[clenz]

As proof with how defeatist the THCF fan base is this is a summary of a post after tonight's friendly against Toronto

"There is no reason to feel enthusiastic about anything for this club after tonight. "A bunch of second and third rate MLS players dominated the second half." If ever you needed proof that this club might as well not try tonight and last weekends game in Seattle is proof."

[Vidav]

I am a follower of AFC Wimbledon because of reasons. Go league 2!!!

Had to do some reading on that one....interesting to hear the reasons on that one.

A group I am a part of is a sponsor (and as of this year has a patch on the shorts of the team). Honestly I don't follow a lot of English Futbol but I like the idea behind AFC Wimbledon.

[clenz]

Man U being complete dick heads right now.

Scoring 3 times post 80th minute. Up 7-0 now.

Oh...and they are smiling while doing it. Hope 93henfan doesn't see this.


Seriously though, no need for them to attack the way they are at this point.

[clenz]

Every BPL kit for this season with some nice, and funny, commentary on each

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/footba ... ml?image=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

A couple highlights

Liverpool – Home, Away and Third
The Dennis the Menace meets Robot Wars inspired third kit is another attempt by Warrior to provoke people into shelling out 60 quid on something that essentially makes them angry. As marketing approaches go, it’s certainly thinking outside the box which is handy as it should leave some room inside the box for the shirt to be stored away and never seen again. By contrast, the home and away efforts evoke no strong feelings whatsoever.
Verdict: Relegation battle

Arsenal – HomeForget for a moment the imagery which suggests that someone found a genie in a bottle and one of their three wishes was for Mikel Arteta and focus instead on Puma's maiden effort at an Arsenal kit. So tight, it may as well be body paint it remains to be seen how this will look on the more flesh rich members of the Emirates crowd
Verdict: Mid-table

Arsenal – Third
Does this look like the kind of thing the Premier League champions elect would wear? Possibly, though they look more like the staff of a cruise liner struggling to persuade some holiday-makers to get involved in some aqua-aerobics.
Verdict: Mid-table

Tottenham Hotspur – Home and Away
Anything these kits lack in design they make up for in marketing guff. The words 'Echo of Glory', taken from a Bill Nicholson quote are woven into the fabric of the home shirt, while the hi-vis away shirt is not only safe to wear on a construction site but features “11 stripes representing the 11 trophies won during Bill Nicholson’s reign as manager”. Of course it does.
Verdict: Top half

Arsenal – Away
Just how Alexis Sanchez is meant to hoist those shorts up to his crotch remains to be seen. The striking yellow and blue harks back to the FA Cup finals of 1971 and 1979 and in these troubled times, we should at least be grateful of that.
Verdict: Europa League contenders

THOSE ARE FUCKING HIDEOUS...HOW ARE THEY ONE OF THE TOP RATED?

Manchester City – Home
Sleek, simple and so streamlined that it may as well be from the future, the champions will certainly look the part this season. And with the strategically positioned speed-holes inside each arm it’s going to be extra hard to catch Sergio Aguero and Co.
Verdict: Champions

Can't really argue with their champion.

[Skjellyfetti]

I am a follower of AFC Wimbledon because of reasons. Go league 2!!!

hell yeah. i like them... but, find it hard to follow league 2.

they're drawn to face the MK dons this year in the capitol one cup.

crazy, crazy story to this rivalry.

short documentary on it here:
http://www.vice.com/en_uk/rivals/the-first-ever-derby" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

fuck mk dons.

[Ibanez]

I'm new to soccer but I'm following Bayern and Liverpool. But honestly, i'll watch it all. Last night I caught the first 40 minutes of Manc City and Kansas City. Not bad, it was 1-1 by the half but the teams seemed evenly matched.

[bandl]

Liverpool
FC Porto
PSV Eindhoven

[clenz]

How do you follow your clubs most?

I struggle to follow a club in a non-English speaking language because I don't speak another language and a message board is the best way I can do so. Do you stream their matches online? Most aren't even on TV.

[bandl]

I have a tough time following Porto and Eindhoven. Every once in a while they will be on espn3. Otherwise I can only follow the play by play on my phone app and check on scores/news via the interwebs

[andy7171]

FUCKING
COMMUNISTS!!!!!

[clenz]

I have a tough time following Porto and Eindhoven. Every once in a while they will be on espn3. Otherwise I can only follow the play by play on my phone app and check on scores/news via the interwebs

That's all I do with Bayern and to me it doesn't seem to create a good sense of "support" for the team.

I'm also new enough that to understand the 1,575,231,256,513,693 divisions that exist and 6,930 trophies that exist that I've pretty much decided I"m going to be a BPL snob and really only follow the BPL. I'll be clueless when Tottenham plays in 99% of their cup matches, but that's okay.

I get so lost just trying to follow along on the Tottenham boards. All of the transfers, loans, and billions of players I have no idea who they are....

I'm learning who the "good players" are...so there's that


Seriously though, to follow international (and international domestic) soccer you need a PhD in the damn sport.

[clenz]

FUCKING
COMMUNISTS!!!!!

Extra credit points to anyone that can tell me who that is, and from what, without googling it.


You're girls play freaking lacrosse. George Carlin said it best when he said "Lacrosse is not a sport; lacrosse is a faggoty college activity. I don't care how rough it is, anytime you're running around a field, waving a stick with a little net on the end of it, you're engaged in a faggoty college activity. Period."

Spoiler: show

I actually like lacrosse....

[tribe_pride]

I have a tough time following Porto and Eindhoven. Every once in a while they will be on espn3. Otherwise I can only follow the play by play on my phone app and check on scores/news via the interwebs

That's all I do with Bayern and to me it doesn't seem to create a good sense of "support" for the team.

I'm also new enough that to understand the 1,575,231,256,513,693 divisions that exist and 6,930 trophies that exist that I've pretty much decided I"m going to be a BPL snob and really only follow the BPL. I'll be clueless when Tottenham plays in 99% of their cup matches, but that's okay.

I get so lost just trying to follow along on the Tottenham boards. All of the transfers, loans, and billions of players I have no idea who they are....

I'm learning who the "good players" are...so there's that


Seriously though, to follow international (and international domestic) soccer you need a PhD in the damn sport.

Wait until the season starts. It'll get easier then.

This is the craziness time like if you started following the NFL around when the Free Agency signing period opened up and the draft was coming up. Now we are starting in preseason so it gets easier and you'll start to get to see the players on the field though like in preseason games for the NFL, it's not always the best players that will play now.

[clenz]

That's all I do with Bayern and to me it doesn't seem to create a good sense of "support" for the team.

I'm also new enough that to understand the 1,575,231,256,513,693 divisions that exist and 6,930 trophies that exist that I've pretty much decided I"m going to be a BPL snob and really only follow the BPL. I'll be clueless when Tottenham plays in 99% of their cup matches, but that's okay.

I get so lost just trying to follow along on the Tottenham boards. All of the transfers, loans, and billions of players I have no idea who they are....

I'm learning who the "good players" are...so there's that


Seriously though, to follow international (and international domestic) soccer you need a PhD in the damn sport.

Wait until the season starts. It'll get easier then.

This is the craziness time like if you started following the NFL around when the Free Agency signing period opened up and the draft was coming up. Now we are starting in preseason so it gets easier and you'll start to get to see the players on the field though like in preseason games for the NFL, it's not always the best players that will play now.

I followed some last season - mostly only scores and watching games on TV. I couldn't tell you 98% of the players on the pitch at any given time but it was fun as hell to watch.


Oh, I have picked up that Tottenham fans are really sorry they let Bale go and then blew all his transfer money on players that amounted to shit last season - or what is now known as "pulling a Tottenham"

[Grizalltheway]

How do you follow your clubs most?

I struggle to follow a club in a non-English speaking language because I don't speak another language and a message board is the best way I can do so. Do you stream their matches online? Most aren't even on TV.

I've been streaming Bayern matches since I started following them in 04/05, although the quality is usually shit and most of the time I don't feel like waking up at 7:30 on Saturday.

With Fox picking up the rights to the Bundesliga this season it should be a lot more enjoyable.

[tampajag]

I follow Sunderland, why? A few years ago I picked them on FIFA and didn't want to follow the popular teams
























they finished 14th in the Premier league

[Skjellyfetti]

How do you follow your clubs most?

I struggle to follow a club in a non-English speaking language because I don't speak another language and a message board is the best way I can do so. Do you stream their matches online? Most aren't even on TV.

I watch a lot of the Mexican soccer league and intriguing matches from La Liga. I speak enough Spanish to follow the announcers.

But, seriously. Liga MX is entertaining as fuck. It's wide open... lots of scoring... and lots of quality goals. The announcers are entertaining as hell... whether you understand Spanish or not. There is a ton of parity and the big clubs do not dominate. And, the matches are widely available in the US - all of the games are televised in the US and you should have most of them with your cable package.

[clenz]

How do you follow your clubs most?

I struggle to follow a club in a non-English speaking language because I don't speak another language and a message board is the best way I can do so. Do you stream their matches online? Most aren't even on TV.

I've been streaming Bayern matches since I started following them in 04/05, although the quality is usually shit and most of the time I don't feel like waking up at 7:30 on Saturday.

With Fox picking up the rights to the Bundesliga this season it should be a lot more enjoyable.

I can't wait for the Bendesliga to be on TV.

BPL games start at 7am Central Winning Time. With my kid waking up at 6-630 every day it works out great for me.

[Skjellyfetti]

One of the things I love about club soccer is the promotion system - and, the possibility that a small club can rise all the way to the top of european soccer (see Brian Clough and The Damned United).

Eibar got promoted to La Liga this year. They have a stadium that seats 5,000. This tiny place will host Ronaldo, Messi, Iniesta, Bale, Neymar, etc. etc. Pretty awesome.

[Ibanez]

I have a tough time following Porto and Eindhoven. Every once in a while they will be on espn3. Otherwise I can only follow the play by play on my phone app and check on scores/news via the interwebs

That's all I do with Bayern and to me it doesn't seem to create a good sense of "support" for the team.

I'm also new enough that to understand the 1,575,231,256,513,693 divisions that exist and 6,930 trophies that exist that I've pretty much decided I"m going to be a BPL snob and really only follow the BPL. I'll be clueless when Tottenham plays in 99% of their cup matches, but that's okay.

I get so lost just trying to follow along on the Tottenham boards. All of the transfers, loans, and billions of players I have no idea who they are....

I'm learning who the "good players" are...so there's that


Seriously though, to follow international (and international domestic) soccer you need a PhD in the damn sport.

Same with Liverpool. Those Kops lose me before the conversation begins.

[clenz]

To divert to CFB for a second, since the relegation system was brought up..

On AGS there was a thread about a WSJ article and setting up divisions rather than conferences that got me thinking this morning (dangerous, I know).

I posted this on AGS, and the more I think about it, the more I want to see it.

It would be interesting to see a relegation style set up done for football conferences and the FCS/FBS.

The conference set up goes away and some convoluted and controversial computer system is put in place to put all 250ish D1 programs into 10 team leagues and 5 divisions.

The basic set up would be
Division 1:
League 1
League 2
League 3
League 4
League 5

Division 2
League 6
League 7
etc...

Those leagues play all of their 9 league games

The top 3 from each league get promoted to the leave above and the bottom three get relegated to the league below.

On top of those 9 conference games you take the top team from leagues 1-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20, and 21-25 from the year before and they play each other (keeping a 13 game schedule total) and the team with the best record from those wins the "champions league" for their divisions

The hilarity that would ensue with a team from League 10 advancing to League 2 and a team from League 1 falling to league 10 would be awesome to watch.

No, we wouldn't have a "true" national champion through a playoff, but it would be some good stuff.