A LESSON ON DIVING AND EXAGGERATED ACTING

Something that isn't much discussed as much as it should be is diving (also known as simulating, flopping, falling without reasonable contact, being Italian/named Didier Drogba/Cristiano Ronaldo).  In a quick definition, diving in soccer is when a player with possession of the ball goes down on what seems to be a slide tackle, elbow, punch, jersey pull, etc. from the opposing player, but in fact, there was little or no contact between the two.  Of course this is frowned upon, and FIFA and other soccer governing bodies have cracked down on it recently, but let's take a minute to really think about why people do it.  Diving is not a recent invention to the game of soccer.  It's been a part of the game since its origins.  There was always a usual bunch of players who were known for diving back in the day just like there are known "actors" in the sport in today's game.

People usually tend to dive in order to get free kicks or penalties, but what has happened with diving now is much more than getting advantage of placement on the pitch; it's turned to getting other players sent off or into foul trouble.  Being a soccer player, I can justify for exaggerating to get a free kick.  It isn't something that an on-looker is in favor of, but there is no fighting it.  It's part of the game, and getting caught doing it should result in consequence.  Most of the time when a player is caught diving, there isn't much dispute from them because they knew what they were doing and take the slap on the wrist (usually a yellow card is given to the player who simulated a foul).  Should there be more punishment for diving in soccer?  I don't think so.  Diving, to me, isn't something as serious an elbow to the face or bringing someone down by their jersey or tackling them studs up.  These are the types of misconduct that shouldn't be tolerated, and diving really doesn't fall under that category.  No one is getting hurt, except if the player committing the "foul" gets a card.   Diving will always be a part of the game, no matter how strict FIFA gets on it.


Exaggerating during the game is also something that is often talked about negatively.  Here's a simple yet understanding reason to why acting is so important to the game: A SOCCER FIELD IS A LARGE AREA THAT IS OVERSEEN BY ONLY ONE REFEREE.  There are officials on both sidelines to help out and call an off sides play, but there is only one referee that is running up and down with the flow of the game, interacting with the players.  The problem with this is that the soccer field is the largest sporting area than any other sport.  This causes the referee to miss a lot of the action that is going on off of the ball.  It's not the referee's fault that he/she misses so many fouls, and that's why these athletes have to exaggerate it.  An elbow to the eyes and nose isn't something to go without punishment, even if it doesn't do any real damage.  Anything small but negligent needs to be overacted in order for the ref. to take notice.  This is why you see a player roll around in agony or cover their face as if they're stopping from bleeding out of the face.  At first glance, it looks childish and give soccer a bad name, but think about why it isn't used in other sports...


In basketball, the court is significantly smaller than a soccer field, and the referee's are in much closer proximity to the players and can catch fouls easier.  When there is an eye gouge or an elbow, it can be seen much easier and thus eliminates the point to fall onto the ground in pain.  In sports like football and hockey, the players are heavily protected against things that would be considered negligent in other sports.  That makes it easier to spot misconduct.  In a sport like soccer, where there is contact and physical play, these things come natural to the players and enable time to be momentarily paused for players to get short periods of rest.

It may not be respected in the outside sports world, but it is part of the game, and the fact that it is coined the beautiful game, shows it isn't a reason to give up on watching.


JOGA BONITO