Extreme Sports News

Football Vs Baseball: What Sport is for Me?

America! The land of the free and home of the brave. America is a proud nation built on traditions, values, and a strong sense of purpose. It was built on the idea of strength, pride, and competitive nature that has forged the American people into some of the best and brightest in the world. And some of the great American traditions that are loved the world over are their sports.

Football (sometimes called American Football) and Baseball. The two pillars of the American sports world. The greatest sports in the country. Both are so uniquely different and attract people for many different reasons. But this guide is not just about what sport you should watch. Below we are going to look at the question, which of these two sports is for you? For someone about to take their first steps into the world of sports, it can be confusing to know what sport to go for. So let’s take a look at the pros and cons of these sports and find which one is best suited for you.

Baseball

Some would argue Baseball is THE quintessential American sport. The diamond filled to the brim with players. A stadium full of roaring fans chowing down on hot dogs and everyone hoping to catch a ball. But what kind of person would take to the diamond?

Baseball is a sport heavily reliant on hand-eye coordination and reflexes. The biggest part of the sport is, of course, stepping up to bat or pitching against the batter. Both these roles need someone who is dextrous, but strong and has the reflexes necessary to deal with quick actions. Pure power won’t cut it here. Your swing can be tough but if it misses, it’s pointless.

Baseball does not require any physical interaction with other players. No tackling or attacking of any kind. The most interaction that happens between players is tapping them out with the ball. So this sport will be preferable for anyone who likes to compete without having to deal with all that physicality.

Speed is an extremely important part of baseball. The batters need to be able to cover the distance between the bases as fast as possible to avoid being caught out. Those in the outfield need to be able to sprint after the ball and to get to the batter and tag him out.

For anyone interested in taking up baseball it is always worth doing a lot of research into the rules and gear needed to get started. There are a lot of great resources online for this task such as https://www.baseballbible.net or Sports world.

Football

Football is a sport of intense power, speed, and pride. Football is where people come to test their strength against some of the biggest, strongest, and most agile players in any sport. The players on a football pitch are ready to take a beating for their team. The crowd is always buzzing with fervent excitement and pride for their teams. It is a sport filled with the biggest highs and the most devastating lows.

So who is the type of person to play football? Firstly, anyone who takes to the football pitch needs to be ready to take a pounding. Whatever position you are in, you are going to be coming up against other players. Maybe you are on the scrimmage line, in which case you will be bashing skulls with the opposing team. Perhaps you are working the flank, in which case you are a prime target for marking and even some intense tackling.

When it comes to speed, only a certain position on the field will need to be fast. The quarterback or those on the flanks will be running as fast as they can. They need to be able to run into position, while avoiding a swarm of angry football players charging at them, catch the ball and run to the touchdown line without being caught. No small feat. So people looking to play these positions need to make sure they have the stamina for it.

Those on the line of scrimmage need to be tough. And not just weight lighting tough. They need to be ready to face down some seriously strong opponents. They will be diving headfirst into an absolute brawl. It is not enough to simply be able to hold back the opposing side, but they need to be able to fight back and bear down upon them.

Hopefully, this guide will have given you a bit more insight into what kind of person would be best suited for either sport. Both of them are incredible sports to be apart of. They build character, fitness, and teamwork abilities. Whatever you end up picking, give it your all, and never stop trying.

What is Sports Therapy and Why is it so Important?

When people hear the term sports therapy, it often confuses them. And that is an understandable reaction to have. The term itself seems like it should be clear enough, but leaves people scratching their heads. What is it really?

The medical field is a large one. There are hundreds of different avenues of medical care available, catering to the different needs of different people. And sports therapy is simply another one of these avenues.

There might be any number of reasons you need to look into sports therapy. Maybe you are an athlete looking for help. Perhaps you are opening up a medical spa and need more insight into this niche area. If that is the case our guide will take a look into what sports therapy is and why it is so important. A quick side note, for anyone looking to open a medical spa, this guide will not go into details about operations. For those interested, you can find help with marketing for a medical spa here.

What is it?

Sports therapy is, at first glance, exactly what it sounds like. It is a therapy based around sports. But this is quite a vague statement. So let us dive deeper. High-level athletes put a massive strain on their bodies daily. Whether this is in training or during a match. This strain on their bodies is significantly more than the average person experiences during normal healthy exercise. And it is because of this extra strain that athlete often requires greater physical recovery methods. And that is where sports therapy comes in.

The first big part of sports therapy is a sports massage. Sounds nice right? You would be wrong. A sports massage is one of the most painful and grueling massages you can ever get. Carried out not long after a match or intense workout, it is designed to remove all the intense knots and lactic acid build-up within the joints and muscles and stop cramps, tears, and stiffness. But this massage is intense. It requires moving the muscles and massages them with great, painful pressure to really get them to relax. Painful, but healthy. Without sports massages, athletes are much more likely to seriously injure themselves and cause irreversible damage to their muscles.

These massages are often followed by ice baths. These are designed to shock the body but also relax it. Ice is proven to reduce swelling and stimulate the body to work harder. That is why athletes take ice baths, it gets their blood flowing closer to the muscles and stimulates muscle repair while also help training lung capacity and reducing swelling.

Recovery

Athletes get hurt. It is a sad truth about the world of sports. Injuries happen. And athletes need to recover from them properly. Physical therapy is a huge part of sports therapy. The athlete often has varied dietary requirements and needs and, as such, need specialized physical therapy regimes to aid in their recovery efforts. But it goes further than that.

Athletes are people just like us. And their job is stressful. There is a lot of pressure on them to play well and win. And losing can put a massive strain on their mental wellbeing and confidence. Not to mention dealing with the press and being under the public eye is strenuous as well. And internal conflict within the team and the stress of training takes its toll.

That is why sports therapy also looks at the mental aspects of sports. It studies the impact sports has on athletes’ mental health and looks at ways to combat this and help them recover. The world of sports therapy has changed a lot and is now being more open to the mental issues that arise. That is why traditional therapy practices are being adapted for athletes as part of sports therapy.

A great example of this is certain sports teams now attend regular group therapy sessions as part of their training regime. Rather than everything being physical, they learn to open themselves up and respond to their emotions. And by doing this as a team they learn methods to support each other and be understanding of what other team members may be thinking or feeling. Tensions can run high out on the field. Fights happen. Words get flung. Damage is done. So these sessions serve as a point of calm and rest for these athletes.

Sports therapy is an often-understated field of medical care, but a very important one. Sport is a worldwide unifier. It brings us together in our communities. People love sitting down to watch their favorite team. But these athletes need the same care anyone does. That is why sports therapy is so important to athletes and the world as a whole.

The 4 Most Exhilarating Water Sports to Try

While it may be a while before any of us can go on holiday, it’s always better to be prepared with planned activities before you head away to your beach resort. With this in mind, what better activities are there for family fun than water-sports? There so many to choose from, with some being exciting, such as kite-boarding, due to their speed while others are exciting due to what fish you can see, as is the case with scuba diving. While there almost endless options, here are our top four water sports to get you started.

KiteBoarding

Kiteboarding, or kite surfing as it’s called in some places, is becoming much more popular around the globe. This is because waves aren’t needed for it to be possible as is the case with something like surfing, so you can basically do it anywhere.

So what actually is kiteboarding? Well, it essentially involves standing on a board while attached to a large kite that pulls you along the water. It works by catching the wind, so as long as there is even a little bit of wind it can work. However, obviously, if it’s really windy it can be even more exhilarating as you will go really fast and even get quite a lot of air time which allows you to do tricks and the like. Chances are you’ve seen somebody do this sport before, perhaps even at your local beach. Consequently, there’s no excuse for not trying it out on your next holiday!

Scuba Diving

Another great one to try is scuba diving, especially if you are somebody who enjoys exploring or is fond of exotic creatures. Scuba diving is particularly good because it reminds us to enjoy the world. As we become adults, we tend to become less enthusiastic about our fellow wildlife compared to when we were young. However, scuba diving can awaken this childhood curiosity that has been lost for so many of us.

That being said, scuba diving can be quite daunting for a lot of people, especially if you have a fear of sharks or a fear of drowning. However, the organizations that run scuba diving events will never carry out trips in shark-infested waters. There are also sites such as divingpicks that give guides on how to scuba dive (as well as information about places near you where you can dive).

Kayak fishing

While fishing isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when are trying to think of something exciting, I promise you’ll be surprised when it comes to kayak fishing. This is because kayaks are lighter and therefore more agile than canoes, and as a result, it is easier to get to the spots where the fishes are. In addition to this, fishing kayaks have compartments for things like bait and rod holders, so you don’t have to mess around trying to find things when you could be fishing. As for the excitement, there aren’t many feelings that match that one you get when you catch a good fish. Plus, even if you don’t catch anything it’s a pretty good workout for your arms!

Paddleboarding

Paddleboarding is another one that you might be surprised to see on this list but trust us, it can get pretty mad. It is true that it can be pretty slow when starting off but once you get good enough you can start doing races, and if you’ve ever seen paddleboard races you know it gets pretty hectic. However, it is a good one to start off with especially if the others are a bit too much.

5 Interesting Sports You Haven’t Heard Of

Sports are an integral part of our cultures. From cycling and running to archery and scuba diving, you think of an activity, someone’s probably made it into a sport. A lot of people want to find that perfect product to give them the edge they need in their chosen sport. If you’re a runner, I can’t recommend tiux.co enough for comfortable athletic compression socks. So we’re all aware of the sports that have annual competitions like the Superbowl in America but here are some sports that I guarantee you won’t have heard of.

Cheese Rolling

I know what you’re thinking. Cheese rolling? That’s not a sport. There’s no athletic skill to rolling a piece of cheese. But what if I told you, it’s not just a piece of cheese, but is in fact, a wheel of cheese, larger than a car tire? Have you ever tried wheeling a car tire? They’re heavy. And this cheese rolling doesn’t just occur on a flat surface. It’s on a hill. Every year, this bizarre cheese rolling race happens in Gloucestershire in the UK. The first person to roll their cheese to the bottom of an incredibly steep hill is the winner.

Extreme Ironing

I know what you’re thinking. Ironing is boring. Why would you want to do it as a sport? Well, not this ironing. Have you ever accidentally burned yourself while ironing in the comfort of your own home without any pressure to be quick? Well, good luck with extreme ironing. Here, you guessed it, ironing taken to the extreme. Players take ironing boards to remote locations and iron items of clothing. These locations can range from jungles to mountains and there is usually an element of danger. A lot of people will kayak or climb with their ironing boards to the locations. It’s all the fun of mountaineering and your clothes will be the nicest looking ones on the mountain. The real question is, where do they plug the iron in?

Man vs Horse

Have you ever looked at a horse and thought, “I could outrun you?” Well, that’s what players of this game think, day and night, as they train to beat the stallions in a 22-mile run. A lot of the race is through swamps and wooded areas. Again, this is a British invention, originating from a chat in a pub on a sunny afternoon in 1980. It’s probably the only race where you can bet on a horse and it loses to a human.

Underwater hockey

Has above water hockey always struck you as a bit dull? A bit boring after a while? After all, how hard can it be to hit a ball in a net with a stick when there are things like gravity and not much resistance? And ice hockey is definitely more fun to watch but imagine if that ice melted and players were now underwater? Well, that’s just what the players of underwater hockey, also known as octopush, do. It’s exactly the same as regular hockey but players wear snorkels and shorts. It was started in the 1950s as a way for people to play sports in the winter months.

Tuna Tossing

This sport started in Australia. It came about after people saw groups of fishermen throw tuna into the backs of trucks. It started out as a way to add interest to the local festival in Port Lincoln. Whoever manages to throw a twenty-pound tuna the furthest is the winner. The race is a little different nowadays as a rubber fish is used instead. This makes it easier to clean up and doesn’t smell nearly as bad.

From Player to Coach: 6 Tips to Managing a Sports Team

Motivation

A crucial aspect of managing your sports team to a high standard would have to be keeping them motivated. For your team to work well they must have the necessary motivation to win. Keep morale up with rewarding good performance, encouraging your team and reminding your team of why they enjoy sports. Highlight the importance of having fun, winning isn’t as valuable as having a team who wants to do well. Although it can be frustrating if your team isn’t bringing home the wins, in order for them to win they must be motivated to do it, your team is full of players who have a passion for what they do, they may lose sight of this passion as it can be a very stressful industry, your job as a manager is to ensure they are doing their very best.

Down Time

Competing in professional sports can be a gruelling experience for the body, the constant training and regular games can have a seriously tiresome effect on your team. It is important you allow your tea to have the necessary downtime to relax and allow their body to recover from their sporting ordeal. In the unfortunate case that a team player goes through an injury, you must ensure the player has the required recovery time in order to ensure their safety.

Communication

All too often do we see managers holding back information from their team, this not only reduces morale but can damage your rapport with your team. Ensure you keep your team with the situation regarding the financial position, how the team is doing and any other issues that could affect your team. Transparency allows you to build a genuine friendship and shows how much you care about your team’s progression. Many managers make the mistake of keeping information from their team, even if you have negative news, communicating with the team and working through any issues you may face together adds a sense of strength and creates a united dynamic.

Health

As previously mentioned professional sports can have a negative impact on the body, health is vital to ensuring your team is as strong as it can be and ensuring the safety of each and every team member. It is not acceptable for a player to not go through regular health checkups and to get the medical attention they need. An injured player should be taken out of the game for at least one game, is it at their physiotherapist’s discretion as to whether they are well enough to play again. Although it can be frustrating when a great player is injured it is important to remember the value of your player’s health, never place their health as less important as a game.

Team Building

A big part of keeping up team morale and ensuring your team works as a strong unit is spending time conducting team building activities. Games like never have I ever or a game of 21 questions are great examples of fun games that can help your team become more familiar with each other. Taking time to encourage your team to have fun together and get to know each other more is a great way of forging a strong bond across your team which can only improve their performance on the field. If you have a close-knit team and you as a manager gain a rapport with them management becomes a breeze and the team are more confident and comfortable.

Training

As a manager, you will have an input in how and when your team trains, ensuring there is a solid balance between different exercises will help improve your team’s overall performance. Training can be damaging to motivation if it is not conducted in a fun and engaging way, try implementing some fun variations into the training activities you do with your team and use it as a means to boost morale. Managers are required to think about all aspects of their team from training to team building you should be able to use any time you spend together to help make the team a stronger force rather than just focusing on sports performance.

Bushcraft 101: Learn wilderness survival skills

To be able to survive in nature is a fantastic skill. Whether you are a regular camper looking to hone your nature talents, a scout keen to explore or maybe a hard-core survivalist looking to brush up on the basics. Whatever the case, Bushcraft is a tough, yet rewarding skill to have. Particularly if you live in a more rural or country area, these skills will help you become more aware of your surroundings, adaptable and improve your quality of life. So below we are going to dive into some of the basic skills of Wilderness Survival.

Preparation

The most important skill of them all. Prep. Chance are you won’t have wandered into the wilderness by accident. More often than not you will be going on a planned expedition or camping trip. And to that end, planning is everything. And this goes beyond simply knowing when to arrive and when to leave. You need to know everything about your trip, your surroundings and most importantly your needs.

Firstly you need to decide how you will be sleeping. Tent or under the stars. Then you will need to invest in comfortable, yet sturdy, clothes. Special socks and shoes are a must as you will be traversing rough and possibly wet terrain. Investing in some special axes made for bushcraft will go a long way to improving your experience as well. You’ll be able to gather firewood, cut down thickets blocking your path and hack loose fruits and other food you forage for. Finally, you will want to pack a small first aid kit for emergencies. Which leads into the next point…

First Aid

While exploring nature is fun and freeing, it can be dangerous. Safety is always paramount. This ties into prep in a major way. Firstly you need to make sure you are bringing along a fully stocked first aid kit. This means everything from bandages and plasters to pain medication and ointments. There are all sorts of harsh foliage out there that can cause painful irritations and rashes. This is why it is vital to find out what dangerous fauna is present in the area you will be exploring and pack ointments that will be useful. But the first aid kit is not the only thing you need. You need to have a working understanding of the equipment and basic knowledge of first aid. What do you do if someone hits their head? How do you perform CPR? How do you deal with bleeding? These are the sorts of things you have to look into before you even leave your home.

Cooking

Everyone needs to eat. And there is nothing better than eating under the stars with a freshly caught meal. Whether you were fishing or hunting or even just foraging for wild fruits and veg, knowing how to prepare dinner, and also what you can prepare, is a useful skill to have. You’ll want to make sure you pack a few cooking essentials as well, cutlery, plates, frying pans and a steel grid to hold the pan over the fire. If you want to you could go as far to bring some condiments or if you prefer to forage for spices or nuts to add some zest to your meal.
Food poisoning is a serious threat when cooking wild food. So you need to make sure you know how to prepare the food you are making and when it is properly cooked and ready to eat. If in doubt, do not eat it. Make sure you bring some emergency food supplies along with you just in case.

Warmth

Staying warm is important. At night the temp can drop drastically, and hypothermia is a serious concern. Lighting a fire is useful but it won’t last all night, especially since you have to sleep sometime. To that end make sure you are packing the right clothes. Thermal leggings and shirts are extremely useful for the night. Also, it is worth investing in a heavy-duty sleeping bag. They may cost more, but they will be worth it. You’ll have a much more comfortable night’s sleep and wake up warm and ready to tackle the day.

Which Wristbands Are the Best for Sport

Fitbit Charge 3

The Fitbit Charge 3 is the most famous of the sport wristbands, and with a strong litany of features and a price point of only 150 dollars it is not hard to see why. The Fitbit Charge 3 holds a battery life of six days meaning you can have an almost full week of unbroken usage. The Charge 3 was voted the 2018 tracker of the year, and genuinely set the benchmark for what a sports wristband could be. The Fitbit charger 3 will track your sleep, heartrate and activity. Giving you in-depth feedback of your performance, the perfect all-round sports wristbands.

Garmin Vivosmart 4

The Garmin Vivosmart 4 is one of the most technologically advanced smart watches available on the market. The sports band has an advanced sleep monitoring system with top of the range REM sleep sensors and can actually gauge blood oxygen saturation levels during the night with the wrist-based Pulse Ox² sensor. The watches wristband is something quite reminiscent to something you would find on SleekWristbands.com with a soft, stylish and slinky band; that will provide you with a comfortable fit.

Huawei Band 3 Pro

The Huawei Band 3 Pro will allow you to have a stylish look, without breaking the bank. The Huawei boasts a battery life of fourteen days, allowing for a long stretch of unbroken feedback. The Huawei Band has a water-resistant screen, a GPS tracker and a heart rate monitor. The Huawei comes in at only sixty dollars, so is the perfect band on a budget.

Fitbit Inspire HR

The Fitbit inspire is the cheaper alternative to the previously mentioned Fitbit Charge 3. The Fitbit Inspire has a lower battery life at five days and a more stripped back design. The Fitbit inspire does this to simply focus on your performance and leave the thrills behind. With lots of tracked metrics, a waterproof screen and a heart rate tracker. Coming it at just under 130 dollars the band gives you every high price feature without the high price.

Garmin Vivosport

The Garmin Vivosport is Garmins entirely focused sports band. The Vivosport has one obvious one up on the other watches, that of its multi-colored screen which will give you a highly stylish and futuristic looking band. The Vivosport is cheaper than most other Sport bands, yet still providing you with the all-important water resistance and GPS tracker. The Vivosport is especially useful for joggers and cyclists, as its heart tracker is one of the best in the business.

Honor Band 5

Finally, the Honor Band 5 which is actually the cheapest band on this list coming in at just over 30 dollars. The Honor Band has a color touch screen, water resistance, excellent in-depth sleep tracking. For just one of these features the 30-dollar price tag would be worth it, but for all three the Honor Band is an absolute must. The perfect sports band for any first-time buyer or casual athlete.

A Complete Fitness Plan for Footballers

Football is loved the world over. It is, without a doubt, the most famous and played sport around. Football, Soccer or whatever name you call it, it unites people around the globe, brings communities together and gives people something to believe in. And not only is it an iconic sport but it is great exercise. But there is a huge difference between playing casually and taking your game to the next level. Below is a complete fitness plan for anyone looking to take their game up.

Running

A football pitch is by no means small. And you will find yourself running up and down it non-stop. Never a still moment during a match. So building your stamina and running ability is essential. But taking up running does not have to be agony. By investing in some quality running gear, clothes and shoes, you will find your self comfortable while running. And be sure to pace yourself. Start running for ten minutes a day, making sure you switch between running and walk-in intervals to avoid burning your self out. Set small, increasing goals to work towards and make sure you reward your self when you meet them.

It is important to not give up when things are tough. It is often too easy to pack it all in when the weather is bad, or you have had a busy day. Once you get over the slump of first starting you will find your self loving the run and will miss it when you don’t go.

Core Strength

You might not think it but having a strong core will be invaluable on the pitch. You will find yourself diving and sliding about the place and even, at times, body blocking the ball. And those things move with force. So dedicate some exercise time to strengthening your core as much as possible. Sit-ups and crunches, or using a medicine ball, will target the muscles such as your abs. Make sure you take regular rest days between and don’t push your self too much. Avoid hurting yourself and stay safe.

Study

This one is more about training your mind rather than your body. Football is as much as a game of tactics and knowledge than it is pure physical skill. And there are many ways to go about this. The simplest method is to watch football. And a lot of it. Watch football live with friends or simply study past games and tournaments. Study how the players move and when. And make sure you read everything you can about it. A particularly good source of knowledge will be biographies of the players and managers themselves. Getting a firsthand look into their thoughts and ideas will help improve your game greatly.

Diet

Any exercise regime change will need a change in diet. This does not mean a silly fad diet. Rather you need to start looking at your calorie intake and make sure it is matching up your needs in terms of muscle development or fat loss. For this, I recommend doing some research into tried and tested exercise diet plans or even speaking to your doctor or finding a personal trainer/ nutritionist. Make sure you are eating regularly and consistently. And don’t be afraid to indulge sometimes. While exercise and diet are important, they aren’t everything. Don’t let them consume your life.

Look into having lots of protein and vegetables. These will provide your body with all the essentials needed for muscle development. On top of that, anything that is good for your heart is a must. Superfoods such as nuts, raisins and oats are brilliant to have as a light snack whenever you feel peckish.

Team Building

Football is not won by one person. No matter how good any professional player is they have a whole team behind them. And on top of that, a manager is organizing them, drilling them and making sure they are working like a well-oiled machine. To that end, you will want to arrange group exercise sessions and make sure you practice as a team constantly. Not only will exercising with your team to boost your workout and your mood, but it will also bring you all closer together and make your bond as a team stronger. By practicing together you will come to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and even find out more about yourself as a player and push yourself further due to being motivated by those around you.

Whatever the weather

Football games don’t always take place on a sunny day. The pitch will often be muddy, cold, wet or frozen. And the kit doesn’t change to suit the weather. So you have to. Taking your self out and about during different weathers and preparing your body for any climate will be invaluable for your games.

Why You Should Start Watching Football in Vietnam

While Japan may be Asia’s top football team right now, it could soon have a little brother in the form of Vietnam, who are rising up the global ranks. The team’s success can best be seen in the Asian competitions, most notably the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup where last year they beat South Korea, Australia, Iraq and the future hosts of the next Fifa World Cup – Qatar. They went on to reach the final last year and only lost after Uzbekistan barley nabbed a winner in the final minutes.

However, while Vietnam may have a lost, the atmosphere in the streets of Hanoi was unbelievable, with the city being pretty much dead for the games 90’s minutes only to transform into the biggest party in South East Asia when the final whistle went. By the time the players stepped on to the pitch to face off against Uzbekistan, the players had already been crowned as heroes in Vietnam. They earned praise from the PM Nguyen Xuan Phic, were gifted a party by the Airline Vietjet in which they were awarded a celebratory display of bikini-clad models on the flight back to the capital, and arrived back in Hanoi to hear thousands of Vietnamese creating a deafening symphony using motorbike horns and kitchen utensils.

The team’s success is largely down to their youth development program, which has massively improved the available talent in Vietnamese football. Many pundits are now speculating that Vietnam will be a major force in football in the coming years, and this talent seen on the international stage is very evident in the national league. This is why you should start watching live football Vietnam, especially if you’re bored of the usual top 5 European leagues.

You may be thinking that surely this success isn’t just due to the youth development program though, and you’d be right. The country has also decided to use lots of foreign expertise to really develop their players and get the team to a level that can compete with those at the top of international football. What’s that old Vietnamese proverb? “Choose the wise man and follow”?

This policy of making extensive use of foreign coaches and trainers dates back to the 1980’s, but recently it has been extremely effective due to some really good picks. For example, Park Hangseo from the Republic of Korea was instrumental in guiding Vietnam into the final of the AFC cup. There are also a good few Europeans in the national leagues, with French coaches being particularly prominent. So, if you decide to watch some Vietnamese football you won’t be too far astray from the magic of European football. There are also a good few European and Latin American players in the top leagues, with one of the big names in Vietnam being Gonzalo Marronkle, an Argentinian who plays as the No.9 for Hanoi.

However, don’t think that its all Western players dominating the leagues, there are many young Vietnamese talents who are more impressive than you’d expect. One such talent is Nguyen Quang Hai, a lighting fast 19-year-old with seemingly magic feet who manages to get fans on the edge of their seat pretty much every time he gets the ball.

With that being said, the only damper on football in Vietnam is corruption, which is pretty widespread especially in the lower leagues. This isn’t too much of an issue in the top league, however, so what are you waiting for? Make a change and watch Vietnam rise up the world stage in real time!

by Jimmy

Learn the Up and Coming Sport of Bowling

In the 21st century it could be argued that no sport has seen growth like ten pin bowling. Competitions have started popping up around the globe as the sport has grown from a casual sport to a sport that now exists on a professional level. This new form of professionalism can be seen in the fact that for the times in the sports history it will be an official sport for the 2020 Tokyo summer Olympics. A sign of the sports newfound legitimacy.

It is not surprising that ten pin bowling is a sport dominated by Americans. With the rise of American beer leagues being instrumental in the sport’s infant stages. This trend of American dominance has recently been broken by perhaps the most dominate bowler in the sports history in Jason Belmonte. Perhaps Belmonte`s biggest strength is his ability to be a dual wielding bowler, having mastery in both his left and right hand. This dual mastery has giving Belmonte twenty-three 300 score games, the maximum score you can achieve in bowling, so the fact he has twenty-three is simply absurd. Belmonte has been instrumental in the sports growth reaching celebrity status in his native homeland of Australia, the States and the ever-growing Japanese market, throughout his career he has received a tasty $1.5 million from the PBA tour alone.

This foot of wealth is not simply for Belmonte with a top ten professional bowler reaching an average salary currently standing at just under $255,000, offering a nice pay day for those who find themselves complete professionals in the sport. As I previously mentioned Bowling competitions are becoming more and more common throughout the world. For the European market which bowling is currently trying to make indents into, the European Bowling Tour should be seen as the most exciting. First established in the year 2000 it is perhaps the fastest growing bowling tournament. First consisting of nine events in eight countries, the sport is now Europe wide with thirteen events in thirteen separate European countries. These competitions are the perfect family events, offering a laid-back environment which allows you to interact with some of the world’s top bowling athletes. I would highly recommend these competitions for people who find themselves new to the sport.

It is a common stereotype that bowling is quite an easy sport to enter, but this is simply not true with a number of variables acting as a gatekeeper to your entry into the sport. If for the reasons listed above you want to enter the sport of bowling, then perhaps the most important aspect of integrating yourself into the sport of bowling is finding the perfect ball for you. If you are a complete casual, then the first thing you need to find out is which hand you are best suited for in bowling- as unfortunately not everyone can be a dual wielder like Belmonte. For right handers I would recommend Storm Drive Bowling Ball- which is simply the Nike or Adidas of the bowling world offering a consistently solid product, and a ball that is easily in the top 10 for left handers would be the Brunswick Rhino Bowling Ball, coming in at 10lbs-16lbs and with a low hook potential, the ball is simply perfect for any dry medium lane- which is actually the most common form of competitive bowling lane. I would also highly recommend buying the ball in a black pearl color, as it simply looks cool.

The sport of bowling is fun, tense and ever expanding. If you would want to enter the sport this is perhaps the best time, with schools of professional leagues that are open to both men and women. I would highly recommend you go for a bowl and perhaps you can find your childhood love for the sport again. For the casual or the budding professional- bowling is simply fun, and with its new higher professional ceiling this may just be the sport for you.

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