Pete’s Futbol Experiment Update: 4/6 Games Watched

I have now watched four games of this 2012 European Championships.

Poland 1, Greece 1 – Draw

Russia 4, Czech Republic 1

Italy 1, Spain 1 – Draw

Ireland 1, Croatia 3

*Missed Netherlands vs. Denmark, Germany vs. Portugal

My excitement level so far:  3

(Scale of 0-10, with zero being how excited I’d be to find a band aid stuck to the bottom of my foot and 10 being how excited I’d get to see the Pittsburgh Pirates win a World Series)

So far, I’m not overwhelmed in anyway. These games have been exciting at times, but for the most part I find myself disinterested. It’s the group stage, which means games can end in ties and no one is at risk of getting knocked out of the tournament.

I’m hoping that once we get by the group stage, the intensity will pick up, as well as the scoring. The two draws were probably the most entertaining games that I’ve watched so far, but they were still ties and at the end of the day, I can’t stand ties. I want winners.

A Few Notes

I’m guessing the three things that will continue to bug me throughout the tournament are flare-throwing fans, ties and flopping players.

Why do fans throw flares onto the pitch? It’s idiotic, makes the place smokey and it delays the game. Oh, and also it’s a FLARE. It could burn a player pretty badly. I’d compare it to the stupidity of fans in baseball or football running onto the field during the game, but it’s worse. It’s dangerous. You just don’t see that happen in American sports. At the most, morons might spill a beer on the players beneath them, but you don’t see any flaming debris being chucked onto the playing surface. Stop it. Soccer fans already have a bad enough reputation as it is.

Are soccer players really that easy to injure? Every time two players go up for a header, they both fall down and flail around like they were hit by sniper fire. Then, as the game continues, one or more players remain on the ground only to get up 30 seconds later, apparently fine. Are they really trying that hard to draw a call? It’s embarrassing to watch. You’re grown men, act like it.