interview with Mrs. Woodward

Mrs. Woodward is a reliable source because she has worked with the McDonald's World Cup sponsorship for 8 years. Mrs Woodward and I exchanged emails for the past two weeks.

• 1. Well my big overall question is why and how soccer has changed throughout different countries?

In South America, the game is much, much faster.  And the teams play for years together, so they are really good at making plays.  This is why the South Americans do so well in the World Cup.  Most of the Europeans and Americans don't play together very much.  The South Americans spend so much time together, they are truly a 'team.'  The game in Europe is more strategic and defense oriented.  Over time, this has been a great style of play.   As for the Americans, well, it will take generations.  Phil Hersh, who is the international sports reporter for the Chicago Tribune, is a friend of mine.  He once told me, "When parents throw a ball to a 2 year old in the US, they encourage the baby to catch it with his hands.  In the rest of the world, they encourage him to catch it with his feet."  The difference in our countries is fundamental, right down to how we teach our babies to catch a ball!

• 2. While some of my sub questions are how have Nike and Adidas also changed how it has been played? 

Nike and Adidas are very competitive, and they have state of the art science to develop equipment.  They have developed balls that are more balanced, lightweight and flexible to move faster and make the state of play faster.  Their shoes have spikes that can dig in deeply so players can turn on a dime.  And, they have led the way in uniforms that repel sweat and keep players cool.  The sporting goods industry deserves a lot of credit in every sport for how scientific the games are today.

• 3. How have some of the players like Lionel Messi, David Beckham and Diego Maradona have caused the sport to change?  

Two ways:  first, when they are so good at what they do, they make everyone else better, too.  Do you see that on your own sports teams?  Everyone wants to be as good as the best player.  The second way they have caused the sport to change is by turning themselves in to celebrities.  That makes them very visible, which enhances the sport, makes it special, cool and visible.  Then, the best athletes in the world want to be like them.  It has definitely helped in the US, where the celebrity sportsmen are still pretty much NFL and NBA players.  When a young kid trying to decide which sport to play sees the celebrity status that Messi or Beckham has, it might make them change their mind away from the NFL.

• 4. And last how the countries influenced each other through different tournaments like the world cup of the UEFA world championships?   

Two ways:  first of all, I've had so many sportsmen and women tell me that there is just nothing as important as competing for your country.  The pride, the patriotism, the knowledge that millions of your country people are cheering for you -- it's an incredible, indescribable feeling.  So, that patriotism can make sports a point of unity across nations.  In fact, you might have heard of the "Olympic Truce."  During the Olympics, countries agree not to be at war.  Pretty awesome, right?!  The second way is, again, playing the best means everybody takes their game up a notch.  And so, the game continues to improve, and be more interesting and exciting -- which makes more fans watch and more players want to be their best, and so the never-ending cycle continues!