Posted via web from jaymeydad’s posterous

Notes:

• A packed Rose Bowl with all the pre-game activities outside the stadium provides an amazing atmosphere for a soccer game
• There is such a huge potential to make soccer really big in the US as there is such a hunger by so many people to see the top players play locally. I am certain that if more European players will join the MLS, this league could be really successful. And if the MLS champion will start participating in the Champions league (similar to some discussions related to European basketball team(s) joining the NBA) that could be a real booster for success.
• Barcelona is coming to this season well trained and prepared.It was amazing the see how 2-3 players of Barcelona put pressure on a Galaxy player the second he had the ball
• I have a feeling Zlatan Ibrahimovic will score over 30 goals this season with Messi, Henry and Xavi feeding him with assists
• Galaxy fans are still not over their David Beckham booing. But when he scored a fantastic goal from a free kick, he was god to them. Go figure…

I uploaded plenty of pictures and videos (including Barcelona’s first goal) to this Flickr set but here is a taste.

]]> http://www.meydad.com/2009/08/03/reflections-from-fc-barcelona-vs-los-angeles-galaxy-game/feed/ 6 http://www.meydad.com/2008/12/18/state-of-israeli-football-thru-my-tv-watching-habbits/ http://www.meydad.com/2008/12/18/state-of-israeli-football-thru-my-tv-watching-habbits/#comments Fri, 19 Dec 2008 01:48:36 +0000 JayMeydad http://www.meydad.com/?p=483 I am big football (a.k.a soccer) fan. I love to play, I had a season ticket for many years for Maccabi Tel Aviv‘s home game (I’ve been their fan for more than 30 years), and recently also coach my oldest son at AYSO which is something I highly recommend doing. It is very fun, rewarding and bonding.

Shortly after we moved to the US more than 6 years ago, we got our house connected to the Israeli Network. It is a pretty expensive premium TV channel ($20/month) and the programs are not that interesting (mainly news, politics, Israeli soap operas and reality tv) but the channel has the broadcasting rights for the Israeli Premier League games, and that was the main motivation for me to get connected.

In the first 3 years for our live in the US, I used to wake up early on Saturday morning and sit for 2 hours to watch the game of my beloved team. Using the DVR was not even an option back then since my mentality said that a game had to be watched live. There were a few games that were not broadcasted on the Israeli Network due to rights issues and I found myself watching games on a laptop in terrible quality on sites like Tapuz and others (imagine a guy who points a webcam at a TV and provides his own commentary using the microphone).

The last 3 years have been a disaster. My team sucks. And it is getting worse and worse every year. This led me to completly change the way I watch Israeli football. First, I started DVRing the games and watched them late at night once I am done with family activities during the day. This did not last much. I quickly switch from normal speed to a x4 speed which basically has 2 advantages:

• The game suddenly looks like it is an English Premier League / Spanish La Liga game. You can see players that are actually running!

• You don’t hear the terrible commentary.

That did not last as well. Even at the x4 speed I quickly got bored since no goals were scored, and the ball was not even getting close to the 16 meters box. Nothing was really happening at these games.

So, I increased the speed to x15, and then to x60 and later on to x300. Yes, you can not really see much when watching at this speed, but honestly, there was nothing to see. I simply kept my eyes focused on the upper left corner where the score/time label is and waited for the label to change. Once it changed, I would switch back to normal speed, rewind 30 seconds, watch the goal re-run and speed again to x300.

This year, since my team looks really pathetic, I have completely stopped doing that. I switched from wathing the full 90 minute games to watching only the Weekends Highlights show. But the truth is that the other teams in this league do not play much better compared to Maccabi, and all the games looks boring when watching at normal speed. So, the latest for me is that now I am watching the highlights show at x60 speed.

This is in a nutshall the state of Israeli football in 2009 from my point of view. And If you are one of those who look at FIFA ranking and thinks it tells a true story, you might want to think twice.

I would like to thanks my friend Roy Klieger who used to sit next to me at Maccabi’s home games for many years for the inspiration. A note he sent me regarding our team’s pathetic situation led me to turn a reply email into a post.

And if you are curios to know why I think this is the biggest thing in the history of basketball, read further:

• At the end of the previous season, Hapoel Holon qualified from the 2nd league to the premier league. After less than a year (!) they won the title.
• The team is coached by an unknown and inexperienced coach – Michael (Mickey) Dorsman, a charming businessman that bought the team who has been a fan of since childhood, then took also the coach position and did amazingly well in it. Yesterday he received the ‘Best coach of the year’ title. Tonight he won the championship.
• Hoolonia’s opponent in the final game was Maccabi Tel Aviv, one of the most successful clubs in European basketball. For decades Maccabi has been dominating Israeli basketball with 47 championship titles (since 1970 they lost the title only once in 1993).
• At the beginning of the season, the team was penalized due to the behavior of one stupid fan who threw a stun grenade in a game and wounded a guard. The stupid guy is now in jail and the team have overcome the difficulties and ended the season in the first place in the Israeli league.

I have been a fan of this team for more than half a decade, attended many games in the good old Holon City arena, watched many more on TV and a few on my PC (thanks to RayV’s player). Today was the best day ever and it was worth the long wait.

A few months ago, he had fun with some Argentinean tennis players who tapped him impersonating a few of his colleagues to the tour.

Three days ago, after winning Benjamin Becker at the Australian Open, he impersonated Maria Sharapova in front of a thousands and proved once again that he is a true star.

Watch Here.

June 22nd:  Henry is no longer a gunner.

Go figure…I thought that these type of promises and dynamics exist only the Israeli football league.