Hockey is better than soccer

During the course of the debate my opponent by the act of not opposing has conceded to the following points a) Soccer is the most popular game in the world with a following in almost every country on the planet, a completely global sport b) By his own admission the game of soccer is vested with simplicity in rules and requirement of play whose importance will be deliberated later in the argument Further more the opponent was guilty of stating wrong facts in the course of his arguments. The facts being a) Mentioning golden goal rule which has not been used in competitive games for the past 10 years and has been abolished by the world governing body b) Diving which is a rarity in soccer has been projected as a norm. Moreover the factually inaccurate statement was made that a referee would always allot a penalty kick for such incidents which is wrong. Usually the players are let of with a card in the first instance and the second such instance results in a suspension. Now to rebuttals 1) Opponent has harped relentlessly how the average soccer players spends most of his time standing or moving slowly through his paces and how hockey players keep moving. All these statement were made without any reference to official stats. Now as per a study an average soccer player covers a distance of 7 miles in the course of his game compared to Ice hockey players who spend roughly 4 miles every game. Here's a linc to the study. Hence the claim stands defeated http://www.runnersworld.com... 2) The fact that IH players ply their trade in snow is proudly displayed in his comments. What he fails to recognize is not just the harshness of conditions but the wide range of the conditions that a soccer player is subject to. From hot and humid maracana in brazil to the icy cold weathers of zenit st. petersberg. From the rainy weather in england to the dry weather of Qatar. Something a IH player cannot even think of going through 3) Embellishment - Ice hockey players are rarely punished for faking injuries , and more often than not they get away with embellishment with more impunity than a soccer player. NHL is filled with players who fake injuries who do it for short term gains. 4) By his own admission my opponent has claimed that the average IH match yields 4 goals which is more than soccer, Now for some facts in last champion league the average output of a soccer game was 5.33 goals . So the claim stands defeated at the outset itself. http://en.wikipedia.org... 5) And now to the point which according to my opponent is the most important aspect for determining the success of any game its "BRUTALITY". I for a while was sucked into the belief that we were still in the time of gladiators and the people throng to modern day Colosseums to watch blood bath from players. He gives the example of players who were badly injured on the playing field and romanticizes their pain and injury with sadist delight. If it is about the mortality of a game then we need to do some introspection ourselves. There have been deaths on the soccer field too , but that is not something I am proud of and by quoting something like that it reflects poorly on my psyche itself. I mean what sort of an individual would take pride in the extent of injury of some of his players. More than anything I am ASHAMED that the opponent would post a youtube video to highlight the plight of his players. And what is more SHAMEFUL is the fact that he would defend how the protection provided to IH players is not fool proof and how it inflicts injury. I CAN STAND the sight of blood , what i don't is how several talented careers are ended because of such rash tackles. This is NOT mixed martial arts , or boxing for God's sake where the only means to succeed is to injure your opponent. And therein lies the greatness of soccer the BEAUTIFUL GAME . Players reflect their charisma not through brute force but through skill , this is why millions of people are mesmerized by the symphony that Lionel messi weaves with the ball at his feet. But this Beauty will forever elude those who look at it with the prism of brutality. Now to summarize Soccer is a game which is widely appreciated , globally patronized and simple to learn, an aspect which is crucial in its acceptance by the global audience. It is a beautiful game which incites passionate followers . It is a fast-paced game with ample excitement and vigour. The global stage is lit -up by its prima donnas who inspire the upcoming generations . A game which is said to be a great leveler in this world of inequalities . A game for the heart and inspiration for the soul.