[MikeStrybel]

Jeff, you know I coach football and baseball besides umpiring. I am passionate about all three endeavors. My son played soccer while we were abroad. We were stationed in the Philippines for almost seven years and he learned a great deal from the game. He is now our kicker on the youth team and has a 37 yarder to his credit at just 11 years old. Yeah, I'm proud - soccer made him fast and strong while he didn't get dinged up by kids learning how to hit and tackle properly.

That said, soccer is huge in the rest of the world. It is a poor man's sport. You only need one ball and a bunch of kids can have at it. No hoops, shoes or refs needed. Here in the U.S. youth soccer is huge. But like many athletic endeavors, the attrition rate is incredible as kids age. Our football Bantams had 200 kids try out. We had 108 in Feather and less than a 80 for Middle. We could barely field two squads for Heavy this year. As kids get older they lose interest or are driven away by injury, bad coaching or other issues. That happens in almost every sport. Heading back towards the focus of this thread, I still see more adult baseball leagues than football or soccer (except the South of the Border and European leagues). Baseball is still beloved but horribly expensive to pursue. I just received the latest Baseball Express catalogue in the mail. $300 bats and $200 gloves are common place. We will cheer the Bears as they play in London but would rather see the Cubs in the WS!