Alright, E.Z. Messi. You got your laughs. You took your shots. And I’ll admit, some of them landed. Soccer players do roll around a bit too dramatically sometimes, and yes, the theatrics can make even die-hard fans like me wonder what I’m watching. But let’s set the record straight, because what you call “crybaby behavior” is just one tiny (and yes, frustrating) part of a much bigger picture.
Soccer or football, to most of the world isn’t about brute force. It’s about finesse, patience, anticipation, and vision. It’s not that we don’t love action. It’s just that not all action looks like blood on the ice or gloves being thrown off. Sometimes it looks like a perfectly timed through-ball that splits four defenders. Sometimes it’s a 90th-minute equalizer after a slow-burn of a match that made the payoff that much sweeter.
You mock the 0-0 draw like it’s a funeral, but to a soccer fan, that can still be a tense, strategic, edge-of-your-seat battle where a single mistake could decide everything. It’s chess at full sprint. Its athleticism married to creativity. It’s not lesser because it’s different.
And those players you call “soft”? They’re running an average of 7 to 9 miles a game, often under sweltering sun. They’re getting cleated, elbowed, shoved, dragged, and then expected to bounce back in seconds. Do some flop? Sure. But most get up and keep going because they have to.
You praise hockey’s speed and physicality and rightfully so. Hockey is brutal, beautiful chaos. But that doesn’t make soccer boring. The “beautiful game” earns that nickname not through nonstop action, but through its global language. Go to any city in the world, rich or poor, and someone’s kicking a ball around. You don’t need a rink, you don’t need pads. Just a ball and a patch of space.
Hockey might deliver raw adrenaline. But soccer delivers stories of underdogs, miracles, heartbreak, redemption. Just ask Morocco. Or Bosnia. Or anyone who cried when their nation scored its first-ever World Cup goal.
So yeah, soccer might not be for everyone. Just like hockey’s not for everyone. But don’t confuse drama with weakness. Don’t mistake grace for a lack of grit. And maybe just maybe those “crybabies” are just fighting a different kind of battle.