On rivalries.
On Sunday, I attended the much hyped Sounders vs. Timbers matchup. The MLS seems to be banking on the Cascadia Cup (which also includes the Whitecaps) becoming a rivalry that not only equals that of other US sports but potentially creates the same sort of heat as matches do across the pond. That ESPN would give a game between an expansion team and a 3 year old franchise such marquee treatment says a lot about the state of soccer in the rest of the 46 contiguous states 15 years after the MLS was initially founded.
Yet beyond the underdog card, I found myself struggling to arouse much hate for the Emerald City Supporters. Despite having the same geographic distance, Seattle/Portland doesn't quite generate the same sort of cultural friction as does New York/Boston. When I encountered a couple of Sounders fans enjoying a slice at Hot Lips before the game I felt more inclined to point them in the direction of a good brewery than to engage in any "Among the Thugs" hooligani behavior.
In my mind the perfect rivalry will always be Utah vs. BYU which cuts - perhaps too much so - across so many rich lines of antagonism: public vs. private, secular vs. religious, liberal vs. conservative, good vs. evil. The 2008 Holy War just week after the election felt like a referendum on the entire Bush administration and Prop 8. At the match over the weekend, I couldn't even muster up the appropriate level of condescension over the classic Stumptown vs. Starbucks angle now that the former has sold out to corporate overlords. Even the Oregon/OSU rivalry has better class dynamics. Worse still: I will be heading up to Seattle this weekend for a ambient music festival -- and I will mostly likely have a quite pleasant time in Washington state.
Yet, In spite of all of that, here I am nursing a wounded pride after the referees determined the outcome of a 3-2 game with a questionable red card in the 83rd minute.
Perhaps a rivalry only needs two factors: history and a insatiable desire for retribution.
Yet beyond the underdog card, I found myself struggling to arouse much hate for the Emerald City Supporters. Despite having the same geographic distance, Seattle/Portland doesn't quite generate the same sort of cultural friction as does New York/Boston. When I encountered a couple of Sounders fans enjoying a slice at Hot Lips before the game I felt more inclined to point them in the direction of a good brewery than to engage in any "Among the Thugs" hooligani behavior.
In my mind the perfect rivalry will always be Utah vs. BYU which cuts - perhaps too much so - across so many rich lines of antagonism: public vs. private, secular vs. religious, liberal vs. conservative, good vs. evil. The 2008 Holy War just week after the election felt like a referendum on the entire Bush administration and Prop 8. At the match over the weekend, I couldn't even muster up the appropriate level of condescension over the classic Stumptown vs. Starbucks angle now that the former has sold out to corporate overlords. Even the Oregon/OSU rivalry has better class dynamics. Worse still: I will be heading up to Seattle this weekend for a ambient music festival -- and I will mostly likely have a quite pleasant time in Washington state.
Yet, In spite of all of that, here I am nursing a wounded pride after the referees determined the outcome of a 3-2 game with a questionable red card in the 83rd minute.
Perhaps a rivalry only needs two factors: history and a insatiable desire for retribution.
posted by d l wright at 7/14/2011 11:27:00 AM
2 Comments:
liked this post.
i had been meaning to ask you about the game/rivalry.
can't you work off the fact that seattle is kinda good and portland is kinda bad?
Everybody in the stadium cheered when they announced that Seattle lost to Manchester United 7-0.
I mean if I was a Seattle fan I probably wouldn't be so pleased with myself for beating an expansion team in its first year.
Real Salt Lake finals seems to have righted itself after the Gold Cup loss. Just try not to beat the Timbers 7-0 during the last game of the season ;)
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