Lesson
Football, or soccer, is the most popular game in the world. From Madrid to Milan, Manchester to Mexico City, football packs thousands and thousands of cheering spectators into stadiums worldwide. Why then, is football not popular in The United States?
Some say it's because Americans have a short attention span. In other words, Americans don't like low-scoring games. But this doesn't make a lot of sense because American football is also a low-scoring game. Each touchdown in American football is worth seven points, so if the final score of an American football game is 28 to 14, the actual score is 4 to 2.
Another reason people say soccer is not popular in the United States is because Americans think it's not aggressive enough. American football, like ice hockey and rugby, is a very aggressive game. However, soccer is also very aggressive. Anyone who has watched Wayne Rooney play football knows that.
In reality, soccer is becoming much more popular in the North America. Many young children are choosing to play soccer instead of American football. The television ratings for the World Cup were much higher in 2006 than 2002, and many Americans know the names Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Zidane and David Beckham. Speaking of David Beckham, he's going to play soccer in the United States with the LA Galaxy starting in 2007. There's no doubt that he and his wife Posh will get on well in Los Angeles. Why do you think football is not as popular in North America?
Vocabulary
To Pack: In this context, to pack means "to bring."
Cheering Spectators: Loud, excited fans.
Short Attention Span: Having little focus. Easily distracted.
Low Scoring Games: Games like soccer, which have a low score.
Television Ratings: The percentage of people who watch a program or game.
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