Can’t believe I’m going into bat for F1 but success at football also depends on being part of the best team.
If you could be a sporting World Champion….
- Thread starter Wilt
- Start date
Agreed, driving an F1 car at max for up to 2 hours is absolutely exhausting, combine that with the concentration required and the heat generated in the cockpit.
Different type of fitness but F1 drivers are very fit.
If I was a woman, I'm sure I'd choose being the best tennis player, given that tennis has traditionally been by far the biggest sport for women. This year is the 50th anniversary of the WTA tour being set-up, and well before then, Suzanne Lenglen's huge popularity was the major reason why Wimbledon moved to a large venue (its current day one) in the 1920s. The 4 grand slams have traditionally been the 4 biggest annual sporting events on the women's side, though I'm not sure if the women's Champions League has caught up there.
Football overtaking tennis to become the undisputed no. 1 sport for women is inevitable though IMO. That will be facilitied by the the increased recognition of star players such as Alex Morgan, Alexia Putellas, Ada Hegerberg etc. including them appearing in FIFA games, the rising popularity, success and money of / in the top women's European leagues and the Champions League season by season, plus of course the women's World Cup and Euro tournaments, alongside the numerous inherent advantages that football has over tennis as a team sport (50% of games at home, significantly less travelling, guaranteed contracts, more expenses being subsided, getting to train, play and socialise with team-mates etc). Football will surely be seen more and more as the better career option for women / girls as well as men / boys.
Football overtaking tennis to become the undisputed no. 1 sport for women is inevitable though IMO. That will be facilitied by the the increased recognition of star players such as Alex Morgan, Alexia Putellas, Ada Hegerberg etc. including them appearing in FIFA games, the rising popularity, success and money of / in the top women's European leagues and the Champions League season by season, plus of course the women's World Cup and Euro tournaments, alongside the numerous inherent advantages that football has over tennis as a team sport (50% of games at home, significantly less travelling, guaranteed contracts, more expenses being subsided, getting to train, play and socialise with team-mates etc). Football will surely be seen more and more as the better career option for women / girls as well as men / boys.
I wouldn't be super rich but Rugby League for me. Football is the sport I enjoy watching, rugby is the sport I've always loved playing.
Guess the best thing about tennis and golf is that you're less likely to have to deal with hecklers or other players acting out, at the risk of either getting booted and the general decorum required to attend. Guess that's worth something. Though I think golf is boring af.
Football since it's my favorite sport.
Besides that, I'd pick Tennis or Chess(if we classify Chess as a sport).
Besides that, I'd pick Tennis or Chess(if we classify Chess as a sport).
If not football than maybe Cricket. It's a good lifestyle, pays well in the franchise leagues.
Marathon because you get to spend a lot of time outdoors.
Golf would have to be easiest physically of the main sports, tend to play at a high level until late 40's/50's, can choose events and the money seems to drip down more than say tennis, don't have to be a star to be making good money. Downside is you have to play golf and be around golf people.
But there's a clear correlation between footballers who train hard, gym hard, go teetotal than say your Adel Taarabt's, or Jack Wilshere who have bags of talent but 0 application. You could push yourself hard outside of being in the car in F1, but the difference maker is the car and the team that built it. That's what will separate you.
Ronaldo is Ronaldo because he has bags of talent, but we've all heard stories of him being the first one at training, last one to leave, always in the gym at 6am, etc etc etc. That's the point I'm making. Even players like James Milner, limited technically, made decisions at 16 years old (not drinking alcohol, no partying) which has benefitted him in having such a long, relatively injury free and successful career. You just can't get that same output in F1 even if you had a regime like Ronaldo if you're driving something that isn't McLaren, Red Bull or Ferrari.
Yep - every sport requires some element of a team, I'm not denying that. But with F1 it's the car, technical team that is the difference maker. Messi would still outshine everyone if he played for Stoke.
As much as I love tennis and enjoyed today's Wimbledon final, I still think that winning a big title / tournament in a team sport would feel far more / even more pleasing and enjoyable than doing so in an individual sport.
Celebrating with entourages on your payroll wouldn't quite feel the same as celebrating with team-mates and in many cases genuine friends.
Celebrating with entourages on your payroll wouldn't quite feel the same as celebrating with team-mates and in many cases genuine friends.
Yeah, 100%. The whole being part of a team thing in team sports is a big part of what makes them so enjoyable (when you’re winning stuff anyway!). No way can you recreate that buzz with your coach and your sponsors.
It actually seems to scratch some sort of deep limbic itch. That tribal group dynamic is baked into us.
And you can't recreate the individual, it's actually just you at the end of it all achievement in a team sport. So it equals out surely 
You can find that within a team sport. Moments in big games that you influenced. A big goal, big save, last ditch tackle. Plenty of scope for self congratulation within a team victory.And you can't recreate the individual, it's actually just you at the end of it all achievement in a team sport. So it equals out surely
Agreed.
And I'd imagine that defeats and losing streaks in individual sports could feel even worse, as you wouldn't have team-mates and friends around and you'd feel 'alone' and more helpless.
Also in individual sports, wins and defeats directly typically impact how much you get paid, increasing the pain and 'ramification' of defeats.
I don't think they are comparable in the slightest. But I mean, this is a very trivial thing to argue over, it's down to the person here really. If you like winning, it's a major buzz either way. I just preferred the good times more in individual sports than the team ones.... marginally. (At a no way near remotely good level
)True. It is a personal preference. The only sports I was ever ‘good’ at (relatively speaking!) have been team sports. So I’m definitely biased.I don't think they are comparable in the slightest. But I mean, this is a very trivial thing to argue over, it's down to the person here really. If you like winning, it's a major buzz either way. I just preferred the good times more in individual sports than the team ones.... marginally. (At a no way near remotely good level
Yes OGS's last gap winner at the Camp Nou in 1999, Iniesta's winning goal in the 2010 World Cup final, Michael Jordan being on the winning team and the individual MVP in all 6 NBA finals that he appeared in etc., would surely at least rival personal joy when triumphing in individual sports. In many cases as well players win big events with clubs that they supported as kids or at least have been associated with since they were very young, teams in their home cities / regions etc, adding to the euphoria.
Also team sports in general just seem far more prestigious than individual sports these days, due to the huge and increasing disparity in terms of money on offer. In the 70s, tennis was more popular than the NBA in the USA, which is inconceivable these days. I'd say that while Wimbledon, the British Open in golf are of course still a big deal, events like the Champions League, NBA finals etc., have pulled away from them.