Many sports fans we interviewed indeed supported Dr. Mason’s findings. Joe Buroski, an avid sports fan from Chicago said, “I’ll be honest. Before Beckham came I didn’t even know we had a professional soccer league. Now not only am I aware of the MLS, I’m also aware that I hate it.”
Bob Vernon of Cincinnati proffered similar feelings, “I didn’t really know anything about soccer before he came, so I didn’t really have any feelings either way. But since he came, I’ve seen a couple games. And thanks to him, I’ve realized just how boring soccer is. I mean, low scores, countless dives, hard-to-pronounce foreign names, ties!? Now I truly hate David Beckham, the game of soccer, and everyone and everything associated with it.”
But the news isn't all bad for MLS. There are two historically underrepresented sports demographics that oppose this general trend of hate. Since Beckham's arrival, teenage girls and gay men have both quadrupled their MLS attendance, skyrocketing their national attendance totals into the hundreds.
It should also be noted that not every straight American male feels utter disdain towards Beckham and soccer in general. Sports enthusiast John McCloud claims Beckham’s arrival has enriched his life:
“I’ll be honest. I wasn’t even aware I had a soccer channel on my cable. I guess I always flipped by it. But now I’ve programmed my remote to skip over it, saving me valuable time. So in a way, Beckham’s arrival has had a positive influence on my life.”
And with testimonials like that, it’s hard to argue that MLS’s $250 million investment hasn’t already paid for itself.
Study Finds Beckham Significantly Raises Americans’ Awareness of Their Hatred for Soccer
Thanks to David Beckham, more Americans are cognizant of the fact that they are thoroughly bored and disgusted by the world’s most popular sport.
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By Joseph Pack
LOS ANGELES—A recent study conducted by the American Institute of Soccer has proven that David Beckham has indeed had a major impact on American soccer. The study concluded approximately 60% of Americans are significantly more aware now of their hate for soccer than they were before the English star’s arrival.
Dr. John T. Mason conducted the study, “We based our results on three major areas of study: MLS stadium attendance, telephone polling, and average annual usage of the term ‘soccer fag’. And the results were clear: as a result of David Beckham’s arrival, more Americans are cognizant of their inherent antipathy for the ridiculous sport of soccer.”
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June 4, 2008
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