The soccer landscape has seen some major changes over the past couple decades. A Millennial reflecting on their soccer days will have some entirely different stories than a kid playing soccer today.
Here are some of those similarities between what a Millennial player and what someone from Gen Z playing today might experience.
Win at all costs. Even if you're playing for Balkan Botevgrad in the South-West division of Bulgaria's Third Amateur League, the mantra doesn't change.
Even if you're entirely safe from relegation and not chasing promotion, which is the current scenario for Balkan Botevgrad, you've got to have the garra charrua inside you.
What if the MetroStars still existed with their name and logo? What if the New York Red Bulls were as much a figment of our imagination as the U.S. winning a men’s World Cup? Such was the premise many members of The18 staff took and ran with, spending their most productive hours of the day creating New York/New Jersey MetroStars memes.
After a nerve-wracking 4-3 victory over Tokyo Verdy, Albirex Niigata reached 29 points last weekend and became one of the three leaders in the J2 League, the Japanese second division.
Despite there still being two-thirds of the tournament ahead, fans are already excited about a possible promotion, and players can't hide their joy either. In fact, once the game ended, the squad celebrated the victory and the chemistry created around in a sui generis way: becoming a human bowling alley and portraying a perfect strike.
After miraculous comeback victories over PSG and Chelsea in previous rounds to reach the Champions League semifinals, you'd think Real Madrid supporters would wait around until the final whistle against Manchester City despite needing two goals as we entered the 90th minute.
For those that've experienced relegation, it forever stings like the lasting memories of a once passionate love affair that only serve to propel you through the final months of simply going through the motions.
You know it's ending, you refuse to accept it's ending, it ends. It crumbles into nothingness — just nightmares of a disinterested Michael Owen trodding around the halfway line of your heart and all your good intentions deflecting off Damien Duff and into your own goddamn net at a gleeful Villa Park.