Full disclosure: I do not like soccer, and I've stated that here before. However, I love athletic competition and I certainly appreciate the athleticism and conditioning required to play soccer at an international level. So, out of support for the American team and USA in general as a host country, I've tried to tune in to watch world cup games when I can (I only have over-the-air TV, so I can only watch games broadcast on Fox when I am home after work on or the weekends). There have definitely been some intense games, such as Argentina vs. Cape Verde and England vs. Mexico, and I will openly admit that I have enjoyed watching those more than I ever expected I would enjoy watching soccer. However, there are too many things about the sport that prevent me from becoming a true fan and continuing to watch after this world cup ends. Lots of these have been discussed and nauseum, so I won't belabor the points, but a few of these are: -The arbitrary nature of timekeeping, as others have noted in this very thread -The flopping. It needs to stop, because it is horribly obvious. I know that supposedly there are penalties for faking a foul, but I have yet to see that actively called in any of the games I've watched. -The way yellow cards and red cards are used drives me nuts. The red card issued on the U.S. player (whose suspension has now been waived for tonight's game) was ridiculous, in my opinion. Again, I fully recognize that as a non-soccer fan, I know absolutely zero about what the rules say when it comes to penalties, but from my novice perspective, that play was simply two guys going after a ball with their feet and colliding. I feel like that type of play likely happens dozens of times in any professional soccer match. Should it be a penalty? I don't know...when things like that happen at full speed, I feel like it is very difficult to punish one player because the opposing player got to the ball a millisecond sooner and got his leg in the way, but I'm willing to accept that it is ruled a penalty. But should it be worthy of an ejection and suspension in the subsequent game? Absolutely not - that is absolutely ridiculous in my opinion. If the rules state that type of play should warrant a red card, then I think the rules are stupid and should be changed. If the rules are vague and leave that up to the discretion of the referee, then I think FIFA has a credibility problem. I feel the same way about the red card given to England's player last night - the guy played the ball, which rolled up under his leg forced his cleat up into the leg of the defender. There was no malice involved in that play. It seems to me that the referees are penalizing players for making plays with their feet (in a sport that is played entirely with feet), meanwhile allowing all kinds of nonsense with jersey grabbing, throwing elbows, and outright arm tackles without blowing the whistle. To me, those are the kinds of plays that should be whistled as fouls rather than two guys whose feet/legs collide at full speed while going after a ball. You soccer fans can tell me I'm not cultured enough to understand the nuances of the game, and I won't argue. But it's the interest of fans like me that U.S. soccer needs to capture in order for the game to grow here stateside...and I just don't think the way the game is officiated resonates with a lot of folks who are relatively new to the sport. ** Edited by MP4VT2004 at 7/6/2026, 2:55:30 PM