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top 200 commentsshow 500

[–]Vicinus 39 points40 points ago

fun fact: the name of the player translates to argument

[–]TheAtomicPlayboy 471 points472 points ago

Full disclosure, I'm a diehard soccer fan, but diving is a marginal part of the game (not to mention a cardable offense). Having a reputation as a diver taints a player's career and turns the fans against the player. It's classless, the referees know it, his teammates know it, and the fans know it.

[–]PabstBlueJelly 455 points456 points ago

Ive played all my life, and the way players roll around on the ground over EVERY GOD DAMN LITTLE TOUCH these days makes soccer players look like a bunch of pussies. More cards are given for these acts than against them. It's ruining the sport IMHO.

[–]LifeIs_WhatUMake_It 131 points132 points ago

That is exactly how I feel, which is why I love watching Messi play. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfbQNuNmrL0

[–]kotoul 27 points28 points ago

I love watching pepe and his fair play, seriously why is he still allowed to play http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FI0fPq3UgeI

[–]Bealz 10 points11 points ago

What the actual fuck, someone should destroy him, soccer could use some real goons to make sure that doesn't fly.

[–]Saint_of_Gamers 9 points10 points ago

What a prick

[–]Inzight 28 points29 points ago

Now THAT is soccer!

[–]muffley 49 points50 points ago

Geeze... I try to stay away from soccer for a few reasons, but fake agony is definitely a big one. If everyone played like that instead of like little bitches, that could be great to watch.

[–]Makkaboosh 26 points27 points ago

If only everyone could play like one of the best players in history. :p

Messi actually just broke a few 40+ year old records this season. he's only 25.

[–]cfuse 19 points20 points ago

Messi actually just broke a few 40+ year old records this season.

Isn't it funny what you can achieve when you aren't rolling around on the ground going for an Emmy nomination?

[–]Melvar_10 21 points22 points ago

there are players and teams that do try to stay away from pansy acting. the worst imo are Italy and Ghana. While the US, Germans, and Japanese seem like the most noble

[–]Kaghuros 16 points17 points ago

The U.S. has a huge following for contact sports, so I think people expect to take hits while playing.

[–]bgbritt1015 7 points8 points ago

The Germans are the perfect example of a great team that plays the game the way it's meant to be played.

[–]Final21 9 points10 points ago

I'm not sure why so many people dive with the advantage rule. If he can stay on his feet and keep advantage of the ball the foul won't be called and he'll usually be ahead of the defender.

[–]sami055 2 points3 points ago

That's what I try to explain to my teammates. I get bitched at for not diving when I'm perfectly fine. I try my hardest to stay up and keep playing until I'm actually hurt.

[–]WeeBabySeamus 16 points17 points ago

The whole time watching this: "what a fucking boss"

[–]lightningentropy 10 points11 points ago

He just kept getting man handled and would just keep going. It made all the players fucking with him look like scum. So impressive.

[–]Italyrools 2 points3 points ago

I have never seen Messi subbed out of a game. Every game that he's in he's played the full 90, and he's in almost every game for Barca. He's a machine.

[–]IAmA_Black_Guy_AMA 7 points8 points ago

I looked like some players were actually expecting him to dive and were surprised when he didn't.

[–]gaping_your_mother 1 point2 points ago

The thing is, the American who posted this (for the 9000th time I've seen it here on reddit) probably doesn't realize that the German FA banned the manager in the GIF for months for this unusual incident.

And of course, they'd never show a player not diving despite big contact like yesterday at the Olympic soccer tournament:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4734coXo44

[–]drewster23 44 points45 points ago

The best is when a player gets fouled ( legitly) and they roll around on the floor. The ref gives then a free kick, and tells the player to get up with an annoyed look on his face. I saw it a bunch during euro cup.

[–]redleader 80 points81 points ago

The best is when a player gets fouled and he goes down and starts rolling around. When he realizes that there was no call, he gets up immediately.

[–]drewster23 6 points7 points ago

I like the one where beckham kicks the ball at the player rolling around and he gets right back up pissed off.

[–]TheKeggles 9 points10 points ago

Even when it does get called up he's acting like nothings happened straight away. And it's extremely prevailant in the sport.

Personally I think there should be a citing board like there is in rugby and just pick up on divers and fine/ban them accordingly, if it carries in past fines and bans then start docking the team points. It'll stop. But this won't happen as the big teams have so much money that they can pretty much mould FIFA anyway they wish, especially when you consider that FIFA is corrupt to the core. Football in general is. How does it make sense to pay someone who's skilled at kicking a ball around £150000 a week but then pay someone useful to society (police,fire,hospital staff) between £18000-£60000 a year?.

Rant over

[–]Izz2011 16 points17 points ago

I was with you until your dumb point about athletes being paid too much. It's simple supply and demand.

[–]CrispyButtNug 33 points34 points ago

It's ruining the sport IMHO.

As an American soccer player, I 100% agree. Faking a foul when not getting touched is one thing, but then acting like they just broke their tibia after absolutely nothing happening is, to me, as a competitor, the most insulting, aggravating action.

It also blows because most soccer players are generally good looking dudes and it frustrates us males to see girls swooned by such a large vaginas. The ones who dive, that is. I tend to see it as a Mediterranean and South American trend.

EDIT: Fixed generalization.

[–]shoegazer666 15 points16 points ago

Did you just call yourself a large vagina?

[–]CrispyButtNug 7 points8 points ago

The ones who dive, obviously.

[–][deleted] ago

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[–][deleted] ago

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[–]Motarded_Rider 4 points5 points ago

Sometimes it can be ridiculous. I've seen a guy lose his footing, trip, and fall then get carded for diving.

[–]Qurtys_Lyn 1 point2 points ago

One game I played while I was still in high school, there was a player on the opposing team that I was defending. The entire first half, he was tugging on my jersey whenever the ref wasn't looking, annoying the Hell out of me. Finally, gave him a little bump with my hip, and he took a dive. Ref caught it out of the corner of his eye, called me on it, and gave them the free kick.

You would not believe how smug he looked. Revenge would be mine though. The rest of the game, every time he touched the ball, I tackled him. The ref noticed this, and gave me the look that told me if I screwed up I was going to get carded, so I made sure every one was clean. The opposing coach finally subbed him when his nice white jersey was covered in grass stains. I never got carded, my coach did have a word with me after the game though.

tl;dr: I hate divers.

[–]BeyondSight 0 points1 point ago

You should see the way I play. Slide tackling a lot. Not that I dive.

I'm just down low a lot, roll with a collision, and spring up faster than anyone else. I do it a lot. Makes for great defense.

[–]twitch1982 2 points3 points ago

As a hockey fan, I found the FIFA world cup to be unwatchable.

[–]Askeee 102 points103 points ago

It's classless, the referees know it, his teammates know it, and the fans know it.

And yet it still happens :\

[–][deleted] 42 points43 points ago

Same thing is going on in NBA basketball with flopping.

[–]razorbeam 17 points18 points ago

As someone who has never watched NBA before, I find the term flopping hilarious. Thanks for that.

[–]Cam8895 9 points10 points ago

As an avid NBA fan I feel flopping is not that big of a problem. It annoys me but I've never felt that it is ruining the game. It should be a technical foul though if someone flops imo.

[–]jbick89 5 points6 points ago

To me, exaggerating contact, which is what happens in basketball 99% of the time, is not as bad as feigning injury, which is what happens in soccer. Basketball players might throw their arms in the air and fall back on their ass at the slightest touch, but they'll never act like they experienced any physical pain.

[–]lushiouslush 0 points1 point ago

Well the difference is, the way soccer is refereed now, if you don't go to the ground there likely won't be a foul. Them going to the ground is just their version of exaggerating contact.

[–]quakank 9 points10 points ago

Mostly because rolling around on the ground like you've just been stabbed is not the same as diving.

[–]BinaryRunt 26 points27 points ago

But then again, every player does it once in a while, if the situation is right. And most players aren't great actors so usually it's quite obvious. Slo mo gives them away 10/10 times.

[–]emohipster 13 points14 points ago

If only the refs were allowed to watch the replay... I get they don't want to slow the game down too much, but still... it's ridiculous.

[–]concept2d 10 points11 points ago

They could have an extra video referee (something like rugby), who check's each dive. The game does not need to wait (if the dive was outside the box).

If the video referee see's a dive that player gets a yellow card, red card if the dive was inside the box.

[–]emohipster 0 points1 point ago

Now if the fifa or uefa or whoever regulates this bullshit weren't a bunch of technology hating fossil thundercunts, maybe this could happen with soccer.

[–]CMRD 7 points8 points ago

I'd rather have diving than over an hour of commercials and only 10 minutes of actions.

[–]oceansurfari 4 points5 points ago

I agree, a players' character will be judged by fans and the referee; cards will be given accordingly. From my experience I find American soccer to be less theatrical. I've had a Mexican and German teammates and they were both finesse players. American soccer seems to have more contact and surprisingly less actors. Their skills didn't translate to our style as well as we had thought but they caught on quick and I think they really enjoyed playing here. I am interested to see what comes of the soccer as more international stars make their way to MLS.

[–]SOAR21 1 point2 points ago

Not really. Only the diving that results in a penalty, or some controversial decision, or really, really obvious diving on a consistent basis is noticed.

Besides those two situations, one could really just fake everything. It may not be strictly considered diving, but I've seen too many contact challenges wind up with some guy DYING on the pitch, but once the yellow comes out, oh hey, he's completely fine. On the replay, dude's leg hits the ass, but the player's on the ground grabbing his ankle. I've NEVER judged someone to be acting, then have it turn out to be a serious injury. Once the replay is shown it's easy to tell if it really was painful or not.

Acting is just as annoying as diving, and acting is done by every player every game. After all, if players smell goal, sometimes they'll shed every tackle and take the biggest hits like a champ. Then they miss the shot and suddenly they're screaming for a foul. If they had gone down earlier maybe a red card or a penalty. Ultimately at the end of the day they'll do any dirty thing they want to win.

[–]DannyKII 2 points3 points ago

And yet this type of thing happens :D Agree with most of you, there should be way more yellow cards for diving!

[–][deleted] 18 points19 points ago

I can't bear to watch it, makes the sport unwatchable. Grown men rolling around on the ground pretending to cry is pathetic.

[–]lefthomerow 5 points6 points ago

This is why watching women's pro soccer is refreshing. There's far less of this kind of nonsense.

[–][deleted] 28 points29 points ago

Horseshit. I'm a diehard soccer fan and diving is rampant. 99% of dives don't get called because you think it's just a foul. Protip: most of the times a player falls down, they're diving, because they didn't need to fall down. It's all playacting.

[–]ohshitnotyouagain 21 points22 points ago

This man knows nothing about soccer, but his viewpoint is deliciously inflammatory.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points ago

Seriously, have you ever played a sport in your life? If you had, you'd know that getting bumped doesn't require you fall down and clutch your head for five minutes.

[–][deleted] 15 points16 points ago

I play amateur football twice a week, and I think that the problem of diving in professional football is beginning to be overstated. When I watch football with mates it usually seems to be the ones who don't play who shout "DIVE!" every time a player falls over. If you're running at top speed while trying to change direction and control a ball, it only takes the tiniest touch to cause a fall.

It's the same thing when players are accused of feigning injury. Yes, sometimes they are feigning injury. But sometimes they aren't, and I can tell you, a knee-to-knee collision or an elbow to the ribs can definitely take a few minutes to recover from.

[–]cyberslick188 3 points4 points ago

You are being purposefully obtuse.

Yes, it's easy to knock these players off their feet, even with tiny touches. No one with half a brain is denying that.

The difference is, when you get nicked in the shin, you don't need to clutch your face and roll on the ground for 25 seconds, and then immediately get up and sprint off when the ref leaves. I have yet to see a single olympic football game, from men or women, that didn't have at least 35 dives.

You have no reason not to dive. It's extremely rare to get carded for embellishment, but it's not at all uncommon to draw a free kick by pretending you were hurt. If you are an honest player you are doing nothing but hurting your own team for the sake of your pride.

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points ago

Your post and my post don't contradict each other in any way. And I wasn't being purposefully obtuse. You act like my post is defending diving. I'm not defending diving, I'm saying it doesn't happen as often as people make out it does.

I have yet to see a single olympic football game, from men or women, that didn't have at least 35 dives.

You're really displaying your ignorance now, most football games don't even have 35 free kicks per game, the average is about 25-30.

[–]RedStill 16 points17 points ago

I must say that this is pure bullshit. I love soccer and I love sports in general, but watching club team soccer these days and for example the Euro 2012 this year is a joke. In most other sports payers take pride in being tough and standing up. Soccer players these days, in EVERY league, stays on the ground for minutes for almost nothing, and a lot of times, NOTHING literally. Soccer needs to be reformed. Get some kind of comissioner, like in most major sports leagues in america, that reviews questionable situations after the games and suspends and fines players for unacceptable behavior

[–]gaping_your_mother 10 points11 points ago

I can tell from your posting history you're a huge NFL fan and from your soccer bashing post you're probably not a soccer fan and likely an American. If you were a soccer fan, you would already know that virtually every large soccer league in the world has a commision that reviews questionable situations and fines players. FIFA is even allowed to fine on a global level if a team from a different league places an appeal for a dive.

This highly unusual situation in the GIF resulted in the German FA literally banning the manager from soccer for months. Euro 2012 was a very clean tournament and had very few dives. Diving is already against the rules, it already is punishable by expulsion from the game. 99% of the world realizes that this type of thing is an exception and does not define soccer and that it is not any way accepted. Soccer continues to be the most followed, most widely beloved professional sport in existence and needs no "reform".

[–]RedStill 0 points1 point ago

I was born and have lived my whole life in sweden, no american relatives. Grew up playing hockey and soccer and did that for 20 years. I've been watching club- and international soccer my entire life. Although, the american football is and has been my favorite sport since I was a kid. Huge packers fan. Like I said, I love the sport soccer as it should be played, not in its current state.

Now, I did not know that, but the thing is if that's the case, they're not doing a very good job. In every game I watch, and I watch most major games like the world cup, euros, champions league, el classico, london derbys etc, there is always diving, there is always people slow on getting up because of "contact", and I never see or hear about any players getting suspended, at least not in the major leagues.

I know the GIF is a pretty lousy example, and a pretty obvious one, but there is way too much horsecrap being allowed in soccer in general. The funny part is that they never stay on the ground if they're down a goal with ten minutes to play.

[–]ATownStomp 0 points1 point ago

This highly unusual situation in the GIF resulted in the German FA literally banning the manager from soccer for months.

This should be top comment.

[–]thedudeabides- 1 point2 points ago

do they ever even get away with this? it seems like there are so many cameras around now-a-days that it's pretty damn clear what happened

[–]trakam 4 points5 points ago

Actually it's a big part of top flight football, its a problem

[–]BetYouCanNotTellMe 3 points4 points ago

Given how a lot of soccer fans behave I am not sure that being classless will upset them.

[–]Broom_Shaka-laka 127 points128 points ago

Baseball, basketball and football: COMMERCIALS, COMMERCIALS, COMMERCIALS.

[–]JohnCavil 26 points27 points ago

Not really. That's just the American channels that do that. I watch Baseball with almost no commercials in Europe fairly often.

[–]Broom_Shaka-laka 11 points12 points ago

I would guess most people who watch Baseball watch it on American channels though.

[–]JohnCavil 28 points29 points ago

Yea but it's not really a criticism of baseball when you say that there's too many commercials, but rather a criticism of the channels.

[–]iownacat 0 points1 point ago

people still watch baseball?

[–]blowin_whistles 5 points6 points ago

Baseball, basketball and football: INSTANT REPLAY, VIDEO REVIEW, GOAL-LINE TECHNOLOGY

FTFY. if soccer could just get over itself and use things like goal-line technology and instant replay/video-reffing for difficult calls, the sport would be much more enjoyable, and play would probably stop less

[–]Broom_Shaka-laka 12 points13 points ago

play doesn't stop in soccer all that often, especially when compared to the other three sports.

[–]newb0rn11 67 points68 points ago

These posts always seem to imply that every soccer fan LOVES watching the players dive. Somehow we're stupid because we follow a sport in which some of the players play-act. We don't enjoy it, and the authorities are taking more and more action every year to get rid of the problem. If you don't like soccer, that's cool, I don't care, I've followed it my entire life and I love, but why does it bother you so much?

[–]recuringhangover 22 points23 points ago

Because for some they only notice football when there was a dive they can point at and say football is for pussies. Never mind that stuff like it or worse happens in every sport. American football players take hgh, baseball players find new ways to cheat every game, basketball is full of flops. Oh but once maybe every six games someone flops in a meaningful area and gets rewarded. Not two days ago a Brazilian was red carded for a dive. Don't see nba players getting technicals when they flop.

[–]redditaccuser 7 points8 points ago

The player just get to look really stupid when it gets replayed on the jumbotron.

[–]gaping_your_mother 0 points1 point ago

The only people who try to define soccer by diving are American sports fans who want to hate on it and talk about how tough and morally superior American sports culture is.

I guess for Americans whose only exposure to the game is one bad World Cup game every 4 years and and these 10 year old gifs on the internet of a manager who was banned for months for this stunt it can seem that the game is all about this and that fans accept it and the rules endorse it. In reality, its rare, its against the rules and punished (as it was in this instance) and fans openly hate the players who do this type of thing. The vast majority of Premier League games go without any blatant dive.

[–]here_for_the_follies 1 point2 points ago

I think international sensitivities inflame the issue. There seems to be anecdotal evidence (based on the comments herein) that pussy flailing is a core soccer strategy for Mediterranean/Latino players. When pussy flailing results in competitive advantage, as it so often seems to be rewarded with penalty kicks, it can be a frustrating element in what is otherwise a mildly entertaining sport.

[–]BaileyMD 62 points63 points ago

That gif also represents todays NBA.

[–]kilgore_trout8989 2 points3 points ago

Very rarely do NBA flops go further than dropping to the ground and getting up within a few seconds or just flailing one's head backwards. Every once in a blue moon the flopper will roll around faking an actual injury, but in general it's completely different than the constant "OH FUCK MY LEG JUST LITERALLY EXPLODED! I'LL NEED TO ROLL AROUND IN FAKE AGONY FOR THE NEXT 30 SECONDS!" you see in soccer.

[–]strawberryberet 21 points22 points ago

You could always try watching professional women's soccer. In the U.S., at least, flopping doesn't seem to be as much of a thing.

[–]DILLONyouSOAB 12 points13 points ago

There was an Olympic game the other day where the keeper took a knee of a sprinting player to the face and just got back up.

[–]strawberryberet 19 points20 points ago

Abby Wambach got sucker punched in the face and didn't react as strongly as some of the men players do when they get love tapped. (Though she did go down and made a WTF? face.)

[–]Camerongilly 3 points4 points ago

Brian MacBride was the US male equivalent. The other team beat the shit out of him on a regular basis and he just kept playing.

Edit: I got to meet him at an exhibition game against Honduras in Seattle before the South Korea/Japan World Cup. Genuinely friendly guy, class all-around.

[–]IMasturbateToMyself 241 points242 points ago

WHY THE FUCK DON'T THEY DO REPLAYS IN SOCCER ALREADY!? IT'S 20 FUCKING 12 FOR CHRIST'S SAKE.

It seriously pisses me off to see soccer players diving. It's so easy to stop people from diving yet they still let it happen.

[–]Mike81890 268 points269 points ago

The game never stops. When would they review replays?

[–]ThePixelPirate 50 points51 points ago

In the Australian Football League they don't stop the game either, but they review the footage later and deal out punishment after the fact.

[–]aMillionLasers 8 points9 points ago

you can get sanctioned afterwards in football ("soccer"), too. but only if it was worth a ban.

[–]Mike81890 16 points17 points ago

I feel like that's the only way to implement a similar rule in soccer.

It would pose some difficulties, but is surely the only real option.

[–]T00l00l 3 points4 points ago

Well they do this in European football soccer, too.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]PhoneDojo 19 points20 points ago

Fact, Messi never dives

[–][deleted] 16 points17 points ago

False. Messi does dive. You notice he gets a yellow card for it.

[–]klavin1 11 points12 points ago

Didn't look like a dive to me. I am a soccer expert.

[–]140dB 8 points9 points ago

I may not be a soccer expert like klavin here, but it didn't look like a dive to me either.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point ago

The referee is a refereeing expert and saw it from only a few feet away, and he gave a yellow for simulation.

[–]xlaxplaya 5 points6 points ago

Doesn't look like a dive. You can see that the other guy plants his foot in front of Messi and actually puts his hand on Messi's back. It could very well be an unintentional trip, but it sure doesn't look like a dive to me.

[–]mikejohnno 8 points9 points ago

He does trust me

[–]ThatCrookedBoy 4 points5 points ago

Really? What did you do to gain his trust?

[–]funkbefehl 12 points13 points ago

After the game. The officiating referee could issue retroactive cards for simulation, so that suspensions would become a deterrent.

[–]MaxPayneNarrative 13 points14 points ago

After the game. Anyone judged to be diving is given a large fine.

[–]CosmicChopsticks 7 points8 points ago

You're right. The only way to stop these players is to appeal to their wallets.

[–]stiverino 56 points57 points ago

Have you ever heard of booth review in (american) football? They could occur while the game was still in play.

Retroactive cards for blatant diving would be an effective deterrent.

[–]Bronzewik_Albion 1 point2 points ago

How would you be able to confirm a dive? Players have learned to manipulate their bodies do that it looks like they're being fouled; while sometimes a player who is genuinely hit looks like he made a meal of the contact.

It's not as simple as "the ball crossed the line or it didn't."

Oh, and also it's not actually ruining the sport. Yes, it's a flaw, just like the unnecessary roughness call in football. That's not perfect is it?

[–]Ingenium21 65 points66 points ago

football has 15 minutes of actual gameplay 3 hours of ads. that is why you can do a booth review in the nfl.

[–]Senor_Foster 20 points21 points ago

Ah yes, I love the smell of a fresh strawman.

[–]snailspace 78 points79 points ago

According to a Wall Street Journal study of four recent broadcasts, and similar estimates by researchers, the average amount of time the ball is in play on the field during an NFL game is about 11 minutes.

link

and another:

Not So Super Sunday: Eleven Minutes Of Actual Playing Time

[–]dnew 3 points4 points ago

That's a terrible title for the article. The planning is part of the game. It's like counting how difficult golf is by counting the number of seconds that a golf ball is in the air.

[–]alanpugh 7 points8 points ago

I'd like to see them do that for a college game with hurry-up offense.

Also, the strategic part of the game is at least as interesting as the action.

[–]ensockerbagare 7 points8 points ago

Yet the strategic part of soccer is often shunned by "LOL MOST INTENSIVE GAME EVER 0-0 SUPER ECCITING GAEM"

[–]imnotabus 3 points4 points ago

Your sense of smell is off, might want to get that checked by a 4chan doctor

[–]RayBoogs 1 point2 points ago

Well if the referee stops the game for a foul, which was in fact a dive, the game is already stopped so review it at the same time, it's not hard. I've never understood the argument "it messes with the fluid nature of the game". Bollocks, if it's a big enough decision to stop the game, stop it for longer and get the decision right.

[–]Mike81890 1 point2 points ago

But then it becomes American Football. Stopping the game for longer changes the nature of the game.

[–][deleted] ago

[deleted]

[–]OrbitalGarden 4 points5 points ago

No they don't, that's why there is additionnal time at the end.

[–]Mike81890 2 points3 points ago

Not always. The player on the ball is allowed to take the kick without stopping.

Additionally, the clock continues running

[–]Rich0 12 points13 points ago

Mainly due to Sebb Blatter being a ignorant cunt.

[–]admiralteal 32 points33 points ago

Let's post the real answer buried under the sarcastic ones!

Because FIFA wants the sport to be as accessible as possible. If they were encouraging, or even requiring in the rules, use of things like sensors or instant replay cameras, poor communities and even nations wouldn't be able to build soccer fields that would allow for FIFA-sanctioned games.

By writing the rules explicitly for person judges only, there's no problem. Everyone is on a equal playing field, literally.

[–]RayBoogs 4 points5 points ago

Yes but some tennis games have hawk eye and some don't, doesn't mean you can't hold a tournament without hawk eye.

[–]admiralteal 13 points14 points ago

Tennis is undeniably a MUCH less accessible sport than soccer.

Here's a fun, simple test. Pick a nation at random and type [nationality] kids playing soccer OR football into Google. Try the same thing with tennis.

[–]raul777him 6 points7 points ago

Because we don't want to stop the game every 30 seconds.

[–]stormrat 4 points5 points ago

I'm not a big fan of football but I watched a german football tv show recently where they were discussing a replay function for fouls, goals etc. . One of them said, if replays existed, the emotional part of football would be gone and it would be way more boring. IMO this is a really good point because when your favorite football team losses because one of their goals etc. didnt count for whatever reason, the fans will rage and turn emotional which will make football more interesting.

[–]JackieChanCan 5 points6 points ago

I'd rather see emotion from scoring a legitimate goal or a great slide tackle. The emotion that comes from seeing your team lose from a horrible call, or losing a player for over a year because his leg got snapped in half (Arsenal fan exposed) is uneccessary and is the worst part of the game.

Barclay's Premiere League will be instituting goal-line technology halfway through the upcoming season, last I heard, and I cannot wait. The arguememt for slowing down the game is a fair one on the sirface, but ultimately false. Think of how many less stoppages there would be if the game wasn't stalled every time a player tripped on his own foot and writhed on the ground like he just tripped on an IED, or every time a stretcher needed to be brought on the field and a player carried to the emergency room because someone just got away with almost decapitating said player because the refs head was turned and could not decide correctly if it was a red card, yellow card, or accident.

tl;dr Fuck FIFA

[–]LePianoDentist 21 points22 points ago

because the rules of football are not totally black and white. There are grey areas, you will see pundits analyse decisions in super-slow motion from multiple camera angles and they will sometimes manage to disagree or not be sure on the correct decision. Therefore what is the point of replay analysis in these scenarios when the decision will still not be universally accepted.

I agree that for goal-line (did it cross the line?) decisions that are much more objective cameras should be brought in, but not for anything more than that.

I feel the way to combat diving is harsher post-match penalties upon analysis. If a panel adjudges beyond reasonable doubt a player did dive (or feign injury) that player shall receive a 1 match ban and a fine. It will not mean every dive goes punished (again player can just claim "I fell" and unless blatant it can be hard to prove a definite dive) but it will give a very large incentive not to dive.

[–]actuallyitsnotokay 17 points18 points ago

You masturbate to yourself. WHY DON'T YOU USE INTERNET PORN?!? IT'S 20 FUCKING 12 FOR CHRIST'S SAKE.

[–]IMasturbateToMyself 94 points95 points ago

Because I am sexier.

[–]actuallyitsnotokay 47 points48 points ago

Fair enough. leaves quietly

[–]rozero1234 9 points10 points ago

A fair exchange of blows between gentlemen. Very nice indeed.

[–]kinkyslinky 9 points10 points ago

69

[–]rozero1234 3 points4 points ago

That is very kinky Mr. slinky

[–]jaggerestep 5 points6 points ago

Actually....

It's not okay!!

[–]jonosvision 18 points19 points ago

Yes it is.

[–]usesunblock 12 points13 points ago

Just as much flopping going on in the NBA. James is probably the biggest flopper in the league and one of the many reasons why he is still the most hated.

[–]sheriff_skullface 15 points16 points ago

[–]blackchucktays 22 points23 points ago

NBA flopping sucks too. The difference, though, is that NBA floppers don't usually lay on the ground for 30+ seconds acting like they just got shot in the leg.

[–]ZeniXeni 2 points3 points ago

Please, Harden flops significantly more than James. You're just looking for ridiculous reasons to irrationally hate James. I'm no Miami fan, so don't give me that bs.

[–]FoodIsProblematic -1 points0 points ago

Because it's part of the sport. I find hockey is too violent for my taste, and you'd never get away with that kind of behavior in football, but fights on the ice are expected, even demanded, by the fans. It's a different sport with different standards.

So if you don't like dives in soccer, or the lack of video replays, do what I do and watch football, or something else, instead.

[–]iBS_PartyDoc 3 points4 points ago

Probably the same reason they don't have it in the MLB for every pitch.

[–]Wilhelm_Amenbreak 14 points15 points ago

Reddit in a nutshell: this gets posted every week

[–]Chazmer87 3 points4 points ago

aaaaaaaaaaaaaand.. here's the other side of the game The problem with soccer the other problem

[–]croutonicus 2 points3 points ago

Terry Butcher, for anyone wondering.

[–]Laslo_Paniflex 89 points90 points ago

This is mens soccer. The womens is actually fairly badass.

[–]piewhistle 20 points21 points ago

I think you're right. Women athletes don't cotton to being seen as the weaker sex. Diving makes a player seem like a crybaby.

[–]lhbruen 24 points25 points ago

I came here to post this, actually.

As a male, and a soccer fan, I'm ashamed for us men.

[–]andyyyyyymc 10 points11 points ago

Surely you guys are watching the wrong fucking matches - you guys can't be serious?

[–]USMutantNinjaTurtles 1 point2 points ago

I came here to post this, actually.

Thanks for clearing that up.

[–]VikingMop 3 points4 points ago

Perhaps more badass, but not necessarily more classy, if you're into generalizing.

[–]I_Trust_OP 5 points6 points ago

I AGREE WITH YOU.

[–]laportez 33 points34 points ago

I'm Canadian, and I'm sure every Canadian would say the same, but I'm really proud of Hockey in comparison to other sports. We have players that will lose teeth or require stitches and be out the next shift.

[–]nawoanor 29 points30 points ago

That's not true, hockey players "dive" sometimes.

  • The offending guy gets a two minute penalty for this. He gestures, "What? Was that wrong? I can't do that?"

  • The other guy is back on his feet eight seconds later and keeps on playing. He doesn't seem to be angry, just surprised.

  • Everyone in the audience is cheering and clapping, nobody is booing.

American Football players are built stronger and tougher, no doubt, but hockey players are tanks. 200 pounds of armored human shooting across the ice faster than the fastest sprinter, whipping pucks faster than best fastball, into an opening only slightly larger than the giant guarding the net.

[–]Schgebbl 5 points6 points ago

there's a difference between diving and diving.

the clip you posted shows a guy getting ripped of his legs into a frontflip, who afterwards stands up and continues playing. nothing wrong with that.

often you may also see a player sliding into either another player or into the ball and after that into the other player. the player who is being slid into often jumps over the sliding player in a way he can not safely land on his feet, thus diving. as long as he gets up afterwards, there is also nothing wrong with that.

what is not ok is what is shown in the OP.gif. you see 2 people (coach+player) dive in a safe situation when no harm has been done, except for the symbolic headbutt. and that IS what is wrong with professional football.

[–]nawoanor 2 points3 points ago

It was a joke, that's why I put "dive" in quotation marks.

[–]puckbeast 6 points7 points ago

Diving in soccer is a lot more prevalent than in hockey. Even with hockey being that much more physical (full contact, legal body checks, etc.)

It's funny to see soccer fans try to even compare the two though. The players in your video are also European. Not Canadian. And it's not even a dive. Just an interference/tripping penalty.

But I guess basing your opinion on one youtube video is better than gifs, right? ;)

[–]SanJose_Sharks 4 points5 points ago

HUGE hockey fan as well and I agree. Hockey has it exactly right when it comes to how they handle and demonize diving and embellishing.

The one thing that does annoy me is when people say that hockey players are the toughest athletes in sports. I think they have more opportunities to show their toughness compared to players from, say, the NFL.

NFL players don't really get a chance to break their noses and continue playing because they wear facemasks. They dont get a chance to get cut in the face and continue playing, again, because of their facemask. NFL players don't get many of those superficial injuries that allow them to keep playing and look tough for the cameras. And I know NHL players regularly play with more serious injuries, but so do NFL players.

I guess my point is that Lucic, Clowe, Tootoo, and Chris Neil are not really tougher than Ray Lewis, Calvin Johnson, Brandon Jacobs, Patrick Willis, etc. I dont think any of those NFL players would miss a shift either if they played hockey.

[–]atticus_finched 22 points23 points ago

So fucking incorrect. Flopping in a nutshell, not professional soccer.

[–]KrazyEyezKilla 26 points27 points ago

Oh it's this post again. How many soccer matches have you ever seen OP? None? I thought as much.

[–]Cool_sandwich 3 points4 points ago

You havent watch alot of professional fotball have you? This clip is really old and alot of players have toned down on diving, sure enough it still happens but not at all like that.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

Do they ever get fined for shit like that? The NFL fines it's players for anything, Celebrating too much, Hitting someone the wrong way, talking bad about your coach or other players publicly. If you get in trouble with the law they fine the shit out of you.

[–]SchwettyTaint 2 points3 points ago

[–]chardos 3 points4 points ago

I wish I could find it, but there was a great article a few months ago about why professional players dive, and why it won't stop any time soon.

The gist of it was basically that there is too much at stake in bigger leagues for players not to dive if they see an opportunity. If its 1-1 late in the knockout stages of a cup or tournament (Champions League, for example) or a decisive league game then there is potentially millions of dollars teetering on whether or not the referee gives a penalty or threatening free kick.

• Best-case scenario for a diver in that situation would be a penalty given, converted, the team advances and gets tens of millions of dollars in revenue from advertising, ticket sales, UEFA money, etc. Even if the replay clearly showed the player diving, the only people who will hold it against him are the opposing team's fans, who chances are didn't like the player already.

• Worst-case scenario is a yellow card for simulation. Unless its a horrendously blatant dive (as in, no one near you and you flop around like a suffocating salmon) it will probably be forgotten within a few days anyway.

[–]Suddenly_Something 1 point2 points ago

Basketball isn't too far from being just like this.

[–]eschybach 8 points9 points ago

Professional baseball in a nutshell.

[–]thefirm1990 13 points14 points ago

That makes baseball look more fun than it actually is.

[–]xElmentx 5 points6 points ago

I used to play soccer, and one of the team that we had played, the coach actually did a horrific dive such as this. He got thrown out and we won by default lol.

[–]Schgebbl 12 points13 points ago

In the situation that is depicted in this GIF the player got a red card. post-game-analysis (red cards always get a post-game analysis, where a committee decides how many more games the player is blocked), they saw what he really did. he was not suspended further, but the coach got some kind of penalty. at least a little bit of justice ^

[–]fleckes 4 points5 points ago

but the coach got some kind of penalty. at least a little bit of justice

He got fined 12.500 €, was banned for 3 month by the DFB and lost his job as coach of Bundesliga club Duisburg.

He then got a job at a club in the 4. league, then went on to 3. league club Düsseldorf, with which he went on to get promoted two times. The promotion from the second league was accomplished last season.

So now, 7 years after this incident, he is now a coach in the 1. league again. I think justice is served. He got fired and needed 7 years to get back into the top league again, I think he learned his lesson. And other coaches are warned not to pull any of this stuff.

[–]DjangoTrumpet 6 points7 points ago

[–]BuckeyeBentley 3 points4 points ago

George Laraque is a gentleman when it comes to fighting.

[–]FuckMyLifeGooner 6 points7 points ago

Hardly anybody knows anything about Soccer in here. If you don't know what you're talking about, please don't comment. This isn't Professional Soccer 'in a nutshell at all. Ever been down to a Tuesday night game down at Stoke? I know the title specifically says profession Soccer, but you want to go and play in a Sunday League game and then come back and talk about how it's a pussy sport when you're covered in cuts and bruises from head to toe.

[–]Sir_Berus 26 points27 points ago

No it isn't. The majority of matches are played without problem. Dickheadery is present in a lot of sports.

[–]mjb88 16 points17 points ago

Not any worse than professional basketball.

[–]TehFalco 3 points4 points ago

Okay you use Manu Ginobili as an example. He is the worst of all floppers in the NBA. His career is tainted with him being a flopper. Example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjd07JiMF88

[–]Devanthar 13 points14 points ago

What's the difference really? He used an example, OP used an example. They both don't represent the sport at all, yet people still talk about as if they did, because they think one sport is superior to the other.

[–]jippe 2 points3 points ago

Albert Streit is one of the biggest dickheads. You cannot realy call him a professional football ( soccer for the americans ) his career is a big disaster.

[–]Quasigriz_ 0 points1 point ago

Simple solution: I play stops due to a down player, that player must leave the pitch. Currently, they can come back when the ref allows (usually instantly). Change this to a mandatory 5 minutes and this problem goes away.

Refs also need to call contact when players DO NOT fall, which currently they rarely do, hence the diving.

[–]daskamania 2 points3 points ago

the easy way to deal with it is to dicipline the offender after the match with fines and match ban then it will end

[–]Skelletonhand 1 point2 points ago

goolllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll

[–]daemon14 2 points3 points ago

I'm both a basketball and soccer fan (bigger fan of the NBA), and basketball needs to follow soccer's lead in giving yellow cards (or technical fouls) to players who dive/flop.

[–]armedwithturtles 1 point2 points ago

every soccer/football post on reddit: "IT'S FOOTBALL YOU STUPID AMERICANS"

[–]Keex13 3 points4 points ago

Try watching a game rather than judging a world wide sport based on reddits views

[–]DnWeava 4 points5 points ago

of course this turned into a circlejerk against american football....

[–]oonzboonz 20 points21 points ago

I'm getting a little tired of this stereotype spread by Americans who know nothing about the sport.

[–]billtimbob 60 points61 points ago

Yeah I've never heard anyone outside of the US complain about diving in soccer.

/s

[–][deleted] 11 points12 points ago

But we don't base an entire sport on a few bad aspects.

[–]Nikopolja 4 points5 points ago

''Soccer in a nutshell'' is just so wrong and even ignorant about the sport. I don't even think that OP thinks so, i'm sure he just wanted to use the extremely funny gif and thought that it would be a funny name, but that doesn't make the statement right.

[–]digga1301 27 points28 points ago

I am a huge football fan...but this is a huge problem in the sport. Don't be ridiculous.

[–]mcjoness 6 points7 points ago

He's right, you know. Because they're characterizing ALL of soccer this way ("in a nutshell").

[–]davecm010 0 points1 point ago

I'll say the same to europeans who love to generalize american football as being a pussy sport because the athletes involved are required to wear pads...that stereotype pisses me off to no end. Reserve all judgements until you've actually watched/played the sport! The same goes for Americans who've never watched a game of association football...they're both awesome sports IMO.

[–]Theonetrue 10 points11 points ago

I am German, play Handball and have to agree with this stereotype 100%

[–]sisyphuscomplex 3 points4 points ago

That's right Redditor, it's all those evil Americans. Just keep telling yourself that.

[–]oonzboonz 2 points3 points ago

Didnt say they were evil. Just uninformed. For example, I dont know anything about American football. To me its all pileups and commericals because I do not know anything about the sport. Something that looks like a dive to an uninformed viewer might in fact be a legitimate foul, especially when you're used to watching rougher sports.

[–]Rukooo 2 points3 points ago

AHAHAHAH SO FUNNY WE HAVEN'T SEEN THIS JOKE BEFORE!

[–]Sengura 3 points4 points ago

Professional soccer and professional WWE wrestling have more in common than you think...

[–]lakk 4 points5 points ago

well if you want replay implemented for this, might as well keep going and do it for offsides calls as well.

Diving is never okay by anyone, other than the player committing the act. There's another thing that players do, it's called embellishment. This is when a foul is clearly committed, but the player isn't sure the ref got enough of it so they make it look extra dramatic.

As a person who doesn't watch basketball, I could sum up basketball in a nutshell with people standing around shooting free throws. How exciting.

[–]MarcBoudy7 5 points6 points ago

It's true, a lot of soccer players dive, but people fake injuries in every sport, incluuuding your beloved NFL. Also, it hurts like fucking hell when you have a metal stud driven into your ankle bone...doesn't really have to be much contact for that to happen.

[–]CrispyButtNug 3 points4 points ago

It's not used as much as a strategy as it is in soccer. You can dive and get awarded a PK in a match that will end in 2-1. I've played long enough to have had been on both the winning and the losing side of it, and I don't wish it upon any team that drives their bodies into the ground for 90 minutes.

Please, compare soccer tackles and NFL tackles, I've played both. Not only do they sometimes feign getting fouled when not being touched, but then they writhe in pain which makes it 10x more cowardly.

[–]croutonicus 2 points3 points ago

But it gets them noticed. The sad truth is, if you want the free kick you deserve you have to make it look worse than it actually was because there is no video-ref.

[–]aclockworkoranje 1 point2 points ago

This is one marginal facet of the game and OP has no idea about soccer if this is all he sees. I never quite understood why American soccer portrayed soccer as a sport for sissies. There is diving and gamesmanship in any other sport, such as diving in basketball or a player trapping a ball in baseball and passing it off as a catch. I think soccer represents one of the most fluid and skillful athletic accomplishments.

[–]OHoulihan57 1 point2 points ago

This shit happens in every sport. NFL players faking injuries to get the timeouts and stop the offenses momentum, NBA players diving backwards to get a bullshit charging foul, batters in baseball leaning into pitches to get on first, etc. There are loopholes to every sport's rules, everywhere, and I think those loopholes piss off fans everywhere. Players will always find ways to give themselves an advantage over the rules and the other team. It doesn't make one sport much better than another, its all a matter of personal preference. In any case, go USA Soccer.

That being said, I fucking love this gif and it gets an upvote because it always makes me laugh.

[–]waydat 0 points1 point ago

OMG! Are those guys okay? What a tragedy...