Interview 1: An american perspective
Myles was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a sophomore at Mercer University. He has played soccer for most of his life and continues to play club and intramural soccer in college. He represents the American perspective on this topic
When I asked Myles to participate in this interview, he was eager to share his story and opinion on the subject. He loves the game and has dedicated his life to the sport. When asked about his current view on soccer and its culture, I received an interesting response. After playing soccer for many years and meeting all types of people from across the globe, it never ceases to amaze him how universal the “soccer language” is. He could meet a person from a totally different background from him at a pick-up game, and instantly make a connection with them just through playing a sport. During his high school career, however, he experienced a few fights with some soccer players. He highlighted on one game in particular, where his high school team beat a rival high school in a really close match. After the match had ended, tensions and emotions were still high and a fight broke out in the stadium. Players and fans alike were caught up in the brawl, and soon the police arrived to break up the scene. I asked Myles if any of these experiences affected his view on soccer and the culture surrounding it, but surprisingly it did not. He said, “No, I believe that it is just a really passionate game. It happens.”
"Violence in the US usually perceived as disrespect for the game, I feel."
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After hearing his story, I switched question styles and began to ask more thought-provoking questions. When people think of the sport ‘soccer’, they instantly begin to think of England as the center place for soccer. I asked him about for his opinion on the difference of how soccer is viewed here in the States and in England based on what he has seen or learned from other people. He believes that soccer is taken much more seriously in England. The people would treat matches like Super Bowl games. Entire cities would sell out stadiums weekly just for regular season games. The players are more aggressive, faster and played by players with a much higher skill level than Americans. He says the reason for this is because the people in England are simply more passionate about soccer than us Americans. England parents will put near infants into professional club academies just so that their child can compete in the intense environment over there. Finally, I asked Myles about how soccer violence is perceived in England and the United States based on his own observations. He responded by saying that he perceives soccer violence in England to just be a desire to win, so he believes it is unfair to call it soccer violence. In the U.S, however, he feels that the people find any type of soccer violence as a disrespect for the game.
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