Is it sexist not to care about women's sports?

[Pappy13]

If the U.S. women's basketball team could beat the English men's basketball team, would that give you a new found respect for the WNBA?

No, but only because I don't care for Basketball much. If the US womens national soccer team played say Canada's mens national soccer team and beat them, you bet your ass I'd be impressed.

Beating the U.S. in soccer is not really something to be proud of.

Well there's more than a few people in the US that would tune in to watch the US Mens National team play in a world cup match, but they wouldn't watch the US womens national soccer team even though there might be a player or 2 more worth watching on the womens national team. Why is that? I don't get it.

[Spider-Dan]

No, but only because I don't care for Basketball much. If the US womens national soccer team played say Canada's mens national soccer team and beat them, you bet your ass I'd be impressed.

Brazil is a soccer-crazy nation.  Their women beating our men would not really be shocking.  Canada doesn't care about soccer either (I think?), so I'm not sure what beating them would prove.

My point is that just because Brazilian women are good at soccer (potentially good enough to beat our men), it doesn't make their sport good.  The Brazilian men would wipe the floor with them.  A poorly played sport is a poorly played sport; our women might be good compared to the Japanese men's basketball team, but that doesn't make the WNBA a good product.

However, I would like to highlight the earlier-mentioned point in this thread: people who bash the WNBA but love college sports are brazen hypocrites.

[Sunstroke]

However, I would like to highlight the earlier-mentioned point in this thread: people who bash the WNBA but love college sports are brazen hypocrites.

I disagreed with the point when Guru first posted it, and I still hold that position. Why would my getting enjoyment from watching superior athletes perform be considered brazen hypocrisy?

There is absolutely nothing about the WNBA game that appeals to me, but I absolutely love watching college football, basketball, baseball and even hockey. Part of it is the "heart" and enthusiasm I see with college athletes, but mostly I just dig watching outstanding athletes ply their trade. Please feel free to explain how that makes me a hypocrite...

(I already know it doesn't, but it should be entertaining to hear your explanation)

Also, unless you're a citizen of someplace like Madagascar and mistakenly believe the rest of us are as well, I'll call "bushwah" on this one as well...

Brazil is a soccer-crazy nation.  Their women beating our men would not really be shocking

There isn't a women's soccer team on the planet that could compete with the US men's soccer team. They don't run as fast, kick as hard or are even in the same neighborhood of athletic ability. If the Brazil women's team beat the US men, it would stand as the single greatest upset in the history of human beings playing with balls.

Quite shocking...

[Tenshot13]

This discussion reminds me of a P.E. class I was took in high school.  We were playing soccer for a couple of weeks.  Our class was split in half and the other team had one of, if not the best, soccer player on the girls team.  When I was on the football team, I could play anything from OLB to DT, so I was pretty athletic, but by no means the most athletic in the school.  I could not only keep up with this girl playing soccer, but half the time get the better of her, and I had never played a lick of soccer my entire life.  There is no way a woman's soccer team could take on a male's soccer team. 

[Spider-Dan]

I disagreed with the point when Guru first posted it, and I still hold that position. Why would my getting enjoyment from watching superior athletes perform be considered brazen hypocrisy?

The best college team in the nation would get their faces bashed in by the worst pro team.

If your argument is that you like watching superior athletes play, you should not be watching college sports.

[CF DolFan]

I don't like women's professional sports such as basketball but I'm not a big fan of men's either. If it was an Orlando team I may be more interested.  I do watch women's professional soccer but I coach girls soccer. Sadly my favorite team was purchased by satan and moved to Boca but that is a another story.

Though I'm not a fan of women's basketball I did watch them in the Olympics and found it exciting. I think it's hard not to get behind our national teams when it's USA vs. the world.  I even watch culing for gosh sake!!

[CF DolFan]

This discussion reminds me of a P.E. class I was took in high school.  We were playing soccer for a couple of weeks.  Our class was split in half and the other team had one of, if not the best, soccer player on the girls team.  When I was on the football team, I could play anything from OLB to DT, so I was pretty athletic, but by no means the most athletic in the school.  I could not only keep up with this girl playing soccer, but half the time get the better of her, and I had never played a lick of soccer my entire life.  There is no way a woman's soccer team could take on a male's soccer team. 

I'll let you pick any 3 boys that has never played soccer and put them against three girls I pick and they won't touch the ball. It isn't possible. They would run them into the ground. The more athletic they are the longer it would take but it would happen.

With that said if you put three good boys out there against them they will have no shot. The boys are so much faster that they can't keep up after about 13-14 years of age.

The parents used to play against our girls every year at the end of the season. At 12 they could no longer keep up. Now at U15 they are one of the best teams in the southeast and regurally play against boys 1 year younger who are very good. There is no way a boy who has never played and couldn't even get on a boys club team would out do them. That just isn't reality. 

The other thing in this is High School soccer in general. Well to be honest, it isn't very good for the most part. That goes for boys and girls. Teams are usually made up of a few club players and then many kids who are recreational players at best. If you were to play one of these girls it wouldn't even be close to comparing to a top girls player. There are world's apart between a girl who  plays in a recreational league vs. a girl who plays in regional or national leagues and is in the Olympic Development system. 

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I prefer women's basketball to mens basketball.  I am a traditionalist who prefers the passing and shooting game and feel the game was a vastly superior game in the days of old when it was played below the net instead of above the net. 

[Phishfan]

Brazil is a soccer-crazy nation.  Their women beating our men would not really be shocking. 

Yes it would.

[Sunstroke]

The best college team in the nation would get their faces bashed in by the worst pro team.

If your argument is that you like watching superior athletes play, you should not be watching college sports.

Here we go on the Spidey-go-round again... I never said that college athletes were better than professional male athletes. I said they are better than women's professional athletes. I watch male professional sports AND male collegiate sports...for the same reason: They both claim much more gifted athletes, making them more enjoyable to watch (imo) than the fundamentally-sound women superstars of the WNBA.

I'll give the WNBA some credit though... If I was forced to choose between watching a WNBA game or the Special Olympics, I'd begrudgingly watch the superior athletes of the WNBA...unless "turning the TV off" was also an option.

[Dave Gray]

Yes it would.

Agreed.  And it would never, ever, ever happen.  We would beat the mercilessly.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

Brazil is a soccer-crazy nation.  Their women beating our men would not really be shocking. 

It would shock the hell out me.  I would be surprised if the women's brazilian national team could beat a division I mens college team.  Division II I would bet on the women. 

[CF DolFan]

It would shock the hell out me.  I would be surprised if the women's brazilian national team could beat a division I mens college team.  Division II I would bet on the women. 

Two different games. The men's game really is much different once they get past about 15 or 16.  I can't see any women's national team beating a men's college team even at the Div II level.

On a side note I don't know if you guys remember but Heather Mitts played for our club's women's team a while back. It was during AJ stint with Miami. Anyway...  she will make the least soccer dad watch a game!!

[Phishfan]

I remember. I never made it to see her though. 

[Pappy13]

Brazil is a soccer-crazy nation. Their women beating our men would not really be shocking.

Oh yes it would be. Brazil's women's national team isn't even the top rated women's national team, the US women's national team is and the US mens national team is pretty highly ranked, Canada's mens team is not. Even with Marta, Brazil wouldn't beat the US mens national team. However that's not what I said, what I said was that there was 1 player from Brazil (Marta) that might be better than someone on the USMNT. That IS a possibility even if it's remote.

Canada doesn't care about soccer either (I think?), so I'm not sure what beating them would prove.

You're missing the point. I was trying to offer a possible scenario where a womens soccer team might beat a mens soccer team. The USWNT beating Canada's mens national team is not that far fetched and if it did happen it damn well WOULD be quite impressive to me. It may or may not be impressive to you. What does it prove? It proves that women CAN play the game at a level equal to some men, not necessarily all men. That's what it proves.

My point is that just because Brazilian women are good at soccer (potentially good enough to beat our men), it doesn't make their sport good.

I never said it did. I said that I didn't understand why people automatically assume that any women's team couldn't be as good as a men's team. That's what Dave seemed to imply in one of his posts and that is what I responding to. The US Womens national team is very good. They are ranked #1 in the world for women, yet few people in the US give a damn, they would rather watch the mens national team that is not in the top 20 in the world of mens teams. Is the men's team better than the womens team? Absolutely, but I don't really care. I'd rather watch the US Women's team win the World cup then watch the US Men's team get beat in qualifying.

The Brazilian men would wipe the floor with them.

Yes they would. They would also wipe the floor with the mens national team and yet people still watch the men's team play in the world cup. Dave seemed to insinuate that he only watches mens teams because they are the only teams capable of playing at a high level, well if he'd be willing to watch the US mens national team get smoked by Brazil, why wouldn't he be willing to watch the US womens national team get smoked by Brazil? Better yet why wouldn't he be intrigued to watch the US womens national team play Canada's mens team? That actually might be a pretty good game, the US mens national team against Canada mens national team would be a snoozer.

And here's the real question. Why wouldn't he be interested in watching the USWNT beat Brazil for the womens world cup? That just doesn't make any sense to me.