When it's bad, is football the world's worst sport?

After watching Villa-Newcastle, got me thinking....

A 'bad' game in most sports still features most of the critical elements of that sport, i.e. a bad cricket match will still have wickets and runs and catches, a bad tennis match will still have winners and aces, etc. American sports are shit, I know, but again, even a 'bad' basketball or football game has all the normal elements of the game...

...whereas a bad football match can feature no goals, no chances, and no shots. There will be passes and dribbles, sure, but without chances, it's awful.

I love football, but it's pretty shit more often than not, isn't it?

Probably. At least with sports like cricket you know what to expect. There's teams that I avoid watching, especially when they play each other. A lot of televised football is decent. Especially if you watch some of the other elite European leagues. As cliché as it sound, I've rarely seen a dire Bundesliga game on the box.

That's one way of looking at it.

The other is that the lack of goals makes them incredibly special and the joy of them is greater than you'll experience in other sports.

When someone scores a basket in basketball, it's one of 100 baskets that will be made that game. It's hardly worth celebrating.

Every goal matters in football and it keeps you on the edge of your seat because of it.

There's shit games in every sport.

Agreed.

I can watch virtually any sport and get drawn in, even golf.

A crap match with average players and no needle is just plain dull.

Originally Posted by Grimson

After watching Villa-Newcastle, got me thinking....

A 'bad' game in most sports still features most of the critical elements of that sport, i.e. a bad cricket match will still have wickets and runs and catches, a bad tennis match will still have winners and aces, etc. American sports are shit, I know, but again, even a 'bad' basketball or football game has all the normal elements of the game...

...whereas a bad football match can feature no goals, no chances, and no shots. There will be passes and dribbles, sure, but without chances, it's awful.

I love football, but it's pretty shit more often than not, isn't it?

Formula 1. End of discussion.

a bad boxing match in pretty £#%&!ing dull tbhenryakinwande

Originally Posted by Lok

That's one way of looking at it.

The other is that the lack of goals makes them incredibly special and the joy of them is greater than you'll experience in other sports.

When someone scores a basket in basketball, it's one of 100 baskets that will be made that game. It's hardly worth celebrating.

Every goal matters in football and it keeps you on the edge of your seat because of it.

There's shit games in every sport.

I don't think I made my point very well. It's not about goals. I've seen hundreds of excellent 0-0 games. But all of those games had chances.

Football is the only sport I can think of where sometimes there is not so much as a sniff of a chance of the entire point of the sport taking place.

Last weekend and most of last season it was the worst sport in the world.

Football is mostly shit unless you have strong feeling for one reason or another, maybe just about the result or at least some of those involved.

Overkill of TV on the box is what kills it tbh, and yet conversely it's also what drives the sport - instead waiting a month for elton welsby's next shitfest there's now another game kicking off on TV almost as soon as the last one is over. thus the hype is constantly maintained even if it's merely window dressing

what i'm trying to say is that football is mostly shit

I suppose the hardest job is when either Sky or BT pick a game which happens to end 0-0, with nothing happening. It's not their fault but suddenly they're caught in a situation where they have nothing to talk about.

Some 0-0's can be good to watch. Plenty of chances, red card perhaps, missed penalty claim, disallowed goal. But mostly they're like Villa/Newcastle.

WWE - not a sport but many wresting fans think this is for real.

The only ´sport´ in the world where you can hit the ref with a chair and end up winning the contest.

Switch off.

Originally Posted by Tumescent Throb

Football is mostly shit unless you have strong feeling for one reason or another, maybe just about the result or at least some of those involved.

Overkill of TV on the box is what kills it tbh, and yet conversely it's also what drives the sport - instead waiting a month for elton welsby's next shitfest there's now another game kicking off on TV almost as soon as the last one is over. thus the hype is constantly maintained even if it's merely window dressing

what i'm trying to say is that football is mostly shit

It is, but we still can't give it up. As addictive as any Class A drug

Originally Posted by red in cumbria

It is, but we still can't give it up. As addictive as any Class A drug

get yourself a new dealer, pal

Originally Posted by red in cumbria

It is, but we still can't give it up. As addictive as any Class A drug

That's because as bad as it can be, it can also be incredible.

Originally Posted by Grimson

I don't think I made my point very well. It's not about goals. I've seen hundreds of excellent 0-0 games. But all of those games had chances.

Football is the only sport I can think of where sometimes there is not so much as a sniff of a chance of the entire point of the sport taking place.

There's probably still some good defending in those games I suppose

Originally Posted by dunk

There's probably still some good defending in those games I suppose

Who cares?

Originally Posted by dunk

There's probably still some good defending in those games I suppose

it could be shit attacking. International Rugby Union in the 80s was pretty dire

There's different kinds of enjoyment to be taken from games too.

everybody loves a 3-3, but a tense, cagey High - stakes 0-0 can be interesting.

eg, I found the world cup final fascinating. It wasn't aesthetically entertaining, but it was so tense because of the prize. and when the gotze goal went in, i didn't care, but you can sense the magnitude of it and that provides it's own drama.

Originally Posted by Grimson

Who cares?

Fair point

Football IS shit...Moyes proved it!

last season i understood how most women feel about football,its a waste of 2 hours of your life!i lived through United in the 80s but nothing came close to last season... i do feel the expense has changed how i feel,probably wrongly..

unless you have that connection and love for a team that gives you the nerves and joy then most premier league games are dire these days.