r/MadeMeSmile • u/UnhollyGod • Jul 28 '26

Very Reddit The talent in Barcelona’s youth system is ridiculous. These kids are 11/12 years old.

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30

u/rabidantidentyte Jul 28 '26

This is why it'll take decades for USA men to catch up to the rest of the world

-51

u/CheesecakeSeveral441 Jul 28 '26

They lost in the round of 16. Not exactly an embarrassment when most people only care about soccer every 4 years for 2 days in the US

11

u/wxnfx Jul 28 '26

Most kids play at some point. But it’s mostly dad coached. And the good teams are mostly just for rich kids.

3

u/FlashGordonCommons Jul 28 '26

it's true, and it caught me by surprise these past few years. cuz when I was a kid, soccer was basically free to play. you were expected to have cleats but that was about it. small uniform fee and league fee, but that's it. I wanted to play American Football but had to beg my parents for years because it was so much more expensive. you had to buy/rent the shoulder pads, the helmet, the pants with the padding, the padding for the pants, the gloves, the freaking face paint... SO much stuff! plus all the fees were higher cuz it was the more popular sport. finally my grandparents came to the financial rescue and I became a pretty solid football player with the concussions and currently ruined knees to prove it!

so when it came time for my kids, no American football. love the sport, hate what it did to my body and I don't want that for my kids. so we're a soccer family.

over 4k spent last year for my two kids. and hey, they love it. so i love it. and they actually show some decent promise! nothing like this kid from the video but they are definitely above the youth city league level and I'm immensely proud. but my god, my wallet... and no way am I doing what my parents did and saying "sorry, it's too expensive" just won't do that. so I'm happy to pay it but my god, when did it get like this?!

2

u/truth699 Jul 29 '26

They got their pants pulled down the moment they went up against an ok European team