I turned on the World Cup for my 4 year old daughter (Q) to watch. She didn't ask for it, I simply thought it would be interesting for her. Q is a future badass, and the US women's team is a team full of badasses. Also we switched to the most basic basic cable package, so there isn't much to watch.
"Sports?", she asks, rolling her eyes.
Q does not enjoy watching sports, I know this.
"Soccer." I say.
Our TV is also 4 years old. It isn't very sophisticated and we don't have HD, we have LD. Needless to say the picture is blurry and when the camera is at it's widest, the players are very small and the ball is more like a hockey puck.
The game was already more than halfway over, and the score was 4-1.
About a minute into it Q asks, "Are those girls?".
"Yep." I say.
If at this point you are expecting the story to unfold as a new soccer fan is born, I will disappoint you now. We watched for about 5 minutes. Q was impressed by the Minnie Mouse goalie gloves and the fact the goalies can wear different colors, and that's about it. Neither she nor I are soccer fans.
What truly impressed me however is the fact it took Q a minute or so to figure out who, or more accurately, what, was playing.
Soccer, when you zoom out and watch the whole game from afar, is pretty androgynous. Even as you zoom in the effective body type is essentially prototypical. Powerful legs and slim upper bodies afford quickness and stamina. The best players and the best teams are the smart ones.
"Are those girls?"
After the game I read somewhere that one of the US players said that from now on we should refer to it as "Soccer" and "Men's Soccer". Perhaps because I don't have a true appreciation for the game I cannot appreciate the physical differences, but honestly I can't see them. Neither can Q. It just looks like "Soccer" to us.