Episodicity
Another reason I don’t like soccer is its lack of episodicity. Just look at American football with all of the planning and executing that simply doesn’t exist in a sport where one’s progress cannot really be built upon and where what you gain is unratcheted and fenceless. In American football, physical brutality gets you territory —but so does extreme grace and athleticism. Does soccer? Sorta, but they’re always giving it up. They seem to be constantly losing the ball and squandering their progress and having nothing to show for their work. But are all scores equal? Of course not. Some points are scored cheaply. And not all fouls are the same. American football is more complex and compelling. It is more heroic.
