I admit my position comes from acculturation,

by Regular Joseph , Friday, July 03, 2026, 18:31 (18 days ago) @ HCE

not the intrinsic nature of soccer.

I can tell you lots of things I think are fascinating about baserunning and infield positioning, but I grew up playing baseball and among a community that appreciated it. In many possible worlds I became an upper middle class white millenial "football" hipster, but my sense that the game is not mine culturally is probably the biggest reason I haven't.

I think the offside rule is elegant. I think the philosophical discussion around the physics of replay in soccer reveals quite clearly the importance of human judgment and perception to sport by revealing how machines corrupt it. I'm glad people are into soccer.

In my position of willfull ignorance, I still think a wide open game is more fun to watch and I wish there was a way to require teams to come forward.