To selfie or not to selfie? In this day and age of social-media sharing, it's not even a question.
Thus, Sporting KC's Dom Dwyer turned to a borrowed smartphone, called over Soony Saad and clicked away after scoring against the Chicago Fire last Sunday. Dwyer got a yellow card for his troubles, but not everyone agreed that it was the proper reaction from referee Alan Kelly (see what the FIFA Laws of the Game say about celebrations here on page 126 here).
Two MLSsoccer.com editors attempt to bridge the divide between encouraging creativity and cultivating sportsmanship in the latest Big Debate.
Who do you agree with? Have other ideas? Give us your comments below.
<strong>The Debater</strong> |
<p class="rtecenter" style="">Simon Borg</p><img alt="" src="https://league-mp7static.mlsdigital.net/mp6/Borg_0.jpg" style="width: 50px; height: 50px;"> |
<p class="rtecenter" style="">Andrew Wiebe</p><img alt="" src="https://league-mp7static.mlsdigital.net/mp6/AndrewWiebe_1.jpg" style="width: 50px; height: 50px;"> |
<strong>The Argument</strong> |
Show up your opponents? Pay the consequences |
Stifling creativity is a mistake in a league that needs more personality |
<strong>The Defense</strong> |
<p>Think the selfie celebration is clever? Good for you. But even if you're a Chicago Fire fan who's OK with it, you have to admit that it was also inflammatory if you were a Chicago Fire <u>PLAYER</u> on Sunday.</p><p>Dwyer may not have had the intention of poking fun at the Fire -- after all, it was a celebration involving his team and his fans -- but he still showed up the opposition by celebrating a little too exuberantly per current pro soccer standards. And provoking the opposition could lead to issues during a match.</p><p>That's where the referee and <a href="http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/footballdevelopment/refereeing/02/36/01/11/lawsofthegameweben_neutral.pdf" target="_blank">the Laws of the Game come in</a>. The cautioning of players for celebrating is not meant to stifle creativity or personality. It's designed to promote sportsmanship and prevent taunting. We have enough of the latter going on across social media as is.</p> |
<p>Did you love Dwyer's celebration? Hate it? Honestly, I don't care which side you fall on. I care that you care (and that you might be discussing it with your friends, coworkers and family). If Dom Oduro can eat pizza and Kei Kamara can break out leprechaun hats to dance an Irish jig without getting yellows, I can't see why Dwyer has to go in the book for doing something that got people talking.</p><p>From the moment the ball touched the back of the net until the time he heads back to the center circle, I counted 20 seconds. To me, that's nowhere close to time wasting, and I don't think he's showing up the Fire, either. No more so than any other (boring) garden-variety celebration. Save your faux outrage and rule-book nerd sessions for aspects of the game that actually matter. Let's encourage our players to entertain. Otherwise, why watch at all?</p> |
Who do you agree with? Let us know in the comments below.
