7 Misconceptions Amongst Americans

1. Soccer is not a contact sport. Soccer IS a contact sport. People do bleed. Players do loose their teeth. And unlike the NFL, players can't wear helmets to protect their face. Petr Cech can vouch for this point.
   
2. Soccer is just kicking the ball to and fro. Soccer is NOT just about kicking ball around. It is about passing the ball strategically while the opposition tries to snatch it away from you using their legs.
3. Not a lot of goals are scored.
   




4. Unlike real football and basketball and ice hockey and baseball, you are not allowed to use your hands in soccer. That is the number one misconception about soccer. Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona have perfected the art of "hand soccer". See video below for evidence.





5. Soccer has far too little scoring chances. Don't watch the Italian leagues. Don't watch Chelsea games. Watch the Man Utd games last season and this season. There is a scoring chance every 3 minutes. And you guys have TiVo. Just record the whole thing and fast forward to when the team scores.
   
6. The American soccer team does not do well in the sport. Well, the American female team is amongst the best in the world. The male team does a fine job of thrashing everyone in North American and qualifying for the four-year-once world cup every time.
7. It is a sissy game. Soccer, is not a sissy game. Let me repeat it in bold. SOCCER IS NOT A SISSY GAME. Let me quote Bill Shankly - "Someone said 'football is more important than life and death to you' and I said 'Listen, it's more important than that'." The beautiful game does not equate to the sissy game.