SOCCER DOESN'T NEED CHANGED

Here's an excerpt from my latest column at TribLive.com:

The World Cup is underway in North America.

In keeping with the spirit of the times, Americans have chosen sides. They either love the World Cup or hate it.

The haters use familiar ammunition:

*“I hate the flopping!” As opposed to NFL receivers yanking out an imaginary flag every time they absorb an ounce of contact. As opposed to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

*“Change the offside rule!” The current law has existed since 1925, with a slight tweak in 1990. But you want to turn soccer into a pinball machine to suit your minuscule American attention span.

*“There’s not enough action!” Be aware that the average NFL game can have as few as 11 minutes of actual action and 85 minutes of huddles, substitutions, halftime and general loitering.

As a soccer lifer, my advice to the haters is, as always: don’t watch and shut up.

There are plenty of viewing options. I flipped the dial Sunday morning and came upon a bass-fishing tournament, pickleball, cornhole and competitive table-waiting.

To read more, click HERE.

The World Cup final has 10 times the audience of the Super Bowl.

If you hate soccer, be tolerant of the majority.