Eight Reasons World Football Is Better Than Baseball

Growing up, I loved two sports; Baseball and Soccer (World Football). Equally, I had two clubs I supported with a passion, The Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined them both having the same owner.

Having played equally as much of the two in all parts of my life, it makes this list much harder than one might imagine.

In the beginning, my love for both sports was equal as I enjoyed them immensely.

However, over time football continued to increase its hold over me the more I learned about tactics and the development of football strategy. 

The more I became a fan, the more I realized that World Football was calling my name and, as you can see, led me to be a Liverpool featured columnist over a Red Sox columnist.

I hope you enjoy the slideshow before you and get the conversation started in the comments section below.

Standard Game Times Increase Watchability

In world football, there is a standard length of time a match is supposed to last: two full halves of 45 minutes each with additional time if necessary, depending on game interruptions. The clock never stops once the 45 minutes begin.

However, in baseball, games can last hours upon hours, whether the score is 0 - 0 or 14 -14. Rather than having a standard game time in minutes or hours, it is recorded and tracked in innings. Innings can last five minutes or an hour, depending on what is happening.

The longest baseball game in recorded history was played on May 8, 1984 between the Chicago White Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers, lasting 25 innings and a total time of eight hours and six minutes with an ending score of 7 - 6.

There is a limit to the amount of time a football game can technically take. The longest a game can last in action is two hours, plus or minus stoppage time. There can always be penalties, but on the average, that takes about ten minutes.

That means that — technically — you could watch four football games go through extra time in the period it took to watch that one particular baseball game, if it were a record breaker.

On average, you could still watch two football matches in the time of a baseball game.

Amazing Fan Support

Baseball does see some great fan support. There is no doubt that tailgating a summer-time game or drinking a beer in the nose-bleed section is a great bit of fun.

However, America's greatest pastime sees a lot of fan-bases that are a rather reserved folk. Every section has its hecklers, but that is a far cry from the ultra support groups of world football clubs.

Perhaps, it is a different mindset due to the pace of the game, but there is definitely more passion in the majority of world football's fans.

When is the last time you saw the walls of a baseball stadium literally vibrate with a wall of noise like Boca Juniors' La Bombonera's vertical stand — with the fans yelling and bouncing in full unison?

Have you ever seen a group of baseball fans rival such a hostile atmosphere as Galatasaray in Turkey, with supporters that are so hyped up that they truly take the meaning of the, "Welcome to Hell," signs they raise above their heads to heart?

Nope, you probably haven't on either account.

I am not condoning any sort of racist or degrading chants or remarks, but it is true that football fans' passion and love of their club is untouchable.

Another one of the magical things about fans in football is the respect that is given between clubs in the time of need.

After the recent near death of Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba, players and clubs come to the support of one individual in amazing togetherness.

More Clubs and Nations Than Any Other Sport

World football is truly the world's game.

With more clubs, leagues, associations, stadiums and fans than any other sport in the world, it is clearly head and shoulders above all those that challenge its superiority.

Record Attendance

Ironically, both baseball and world football set their individual sports attendance records in the 1950's.

Major League Baseball's 1959 World Series saw the single game attendance record broken in three consecutive games for games three, four and five of the Chicago White Sox v. Brooklyn Dodgers World Series. The final top total was 92,706.

However, world football more than doubled that figure when 199,854 observers showed up at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana Stadium only to see the Samba men fall to an underdog Uruguayan side 2-1.

Looking at the current average-per-attendance numbers for the top-10 leagues in the world, five world football leagues are ranked with only two baseball leagues making the cut.

2. German Bundesliga

4. English Premier League

5. Major League Baseball

6. Spanish La Liga

8. Premiera Division de Mexico

9. Japan NPB (Baseball)

10. Italian Serie A

World Ffootball definitely takes the cake as the most watched sport in the world on a per-match average.

Biggest Sport-Specific Stadiums

No other sport in the world has more or bigger stadiums than world football. North Korea has the largest multipurpose association football stadium with the 150,000 capacity Rungrado May Day Stadium in Pyongyang.

India is the home of the world's largest association football only stadium with Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, which have a capacity of 120,000.

Mexico is home to North America's largest stadium that only hosts Association football matches with the 105,000 seat Estadio Azteca that houses the Mexican national team as well as Club America.

FC Barcelona's Camp Nou at 99,354 is Europe's largest and Africa's largest is the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa at 94,700 seats.

When it comes to baseball the Oakland Athletics O.co Coliseum in Oakland California is the biggest capacity venue that is a season long Baseball Stadium at 63,026. Los Angeles' Dodger Stadium is the second largest capacity Baseball stadium at 56,000.

In a world that sees bigger crowds and bigger revenues as a bench mark, football is certainly in the lead.

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo

There are few sports where a player at the age of 24 can already be considered one of the greatest of all time.

However, that is right where FC Barcelona's Argentine sensation, Lionel Messi, finds himself.

His competition with Real Madrid's 27-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo as to whom is the best ever continues to be one of the most hotly debated topics in World Football year after year.

In the world of baseball, the majority of the games best players do not even get to the league's until the age of 23 or 24. The last five MLB Rookies of the Year average the age of 24.

At 24, some players in world football could already be considered old and washed up. Others continue their career's well into their twilight years much like Ryan Giggs of Manchester United.

Lionel Messi just broke Barcelona's all time scoring record last week in emphatic fashion with a hat-trick against Granada taking control of a record that will forever be his in all likelihood that now stands at 234 as he overtook the 232 mark of Ceser Rodriguez.

Cristiano Ronaldo has spent time between multiple clubs, unlike Messi who has spent his entire senior career with Barcelona, but Ronaldo has more than proven his exemplary abilities. Since joining Real Madrid two and a half seasons ago the Portuguese has scored 130 goals in 129 games.

If there is a 24-year-old in baseball that has the pedigree of Messi or Ronaldo, please let me know.

Better Major Competitions

Major League Baseball is the largest professional baseball league in the world and its regular season boils down to the World Series. Although it may have that as the title, it is technically nothing more than the title of the United States.

The other major competitions of note for baseball are the Olympics and the Baseball World Cup. All in all, there is not much that is of note to much of the world for baseball other than Major League Baseball.

However, world football is king of world and domestic competitions.

The World Cup is the ultimate prize for a nation in sports. National competitions such as the UEFA European Championship, the South American Copa America and African Cup of Nation's are perhaps the most prestigious among national sides.

Club competitions also reign supreme in world football.

The UEFA Champions League is the most prestigious club competition in the world, even more so than the FIFA Club World Cup, which pits the winners of all six continental association championships against one another.

Domestically, the English FA Cup is the oldest and most famous association football tournament in the world.

Baseball may have a great storied history but it just can not keep up on the level of competitions.

Strategy, Tactics and Magic

Baseball is definitely a sport that involves strategy and tough player management; however, there are limited amounts of how much strategy you can implement in baseball as it truly is a sport that is as individual as team based.

While every position in baseball effects one another, just as in football, and you cannot work an outfield shift or play a close infield for a bunt without strategy more often than not baseball comes down to the skill of individuals with a bat in their hand or the pitcher on the mound.

Football however, is all about strategy, tactics and playing style and a little bit of luck. You cannot stop a ten man outfield attacking your goal without ten of your own men.

From game to game, you are more likely to witness a feat of amazing combined effort and skill watching football than you are with baseball.

Conclusion

This is one of the most heated topics I have covered since joining Bleacher Report and I hope you will get the conversation going in the comments section below.

As much as I love America's Greatest Part Time (baseball), it just does not have the world wide clout of football.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out more on Bleacher Report and at the links below. You can follow me on Twitter @thedailyatz and Facebook, or visit my website.