11/21/24
January 24, 2017
SportsFilter's 15th Anniversary: Fifteen years ago today, SportsFilter began with this Oliver Willis post on The Rookie.
posted by Ufez Jones to general at 05:47 PM - 31 comments
Wow, 15 years!
posted by yerfatma at 12:04 PM on January 24, 2017
Happy birthday, SpoFi!
posted by MeatSaber at 12:49 PM on January 24, 2017
Happy 15 SpoFi!
posted by BornIcon at 02:06 PM on January 24, 2017
Happy 15th
posted by ic23b at 06:06 PM on January 24, 2017
Wow, 15 years. That's almost as old as my truck. To be serious, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to keep something like SpoFi going for that long. Congratulations and thanks, rcade, for what you have accomplished here. I just looked it up, and I have been hanging out for nearly 11 of those 15. Where has the time gone?
The metaphor I think of when I try to describe SpoFi is that of a bunch of guys in a sports bar. These guys know and respect each other, not everybody shows up each night, but all stay current on what's going on. The discussions are lively but not rancorous, and they sometimes get really fun. Every once in a while some guy at a nearby table cuts into the conversation with inappropriate comments, but he is soon quieted. A few of these guys have understood and have stayed around, usually to the benefit of the rest of us. The common thread is that most of us learn something every time we check in.
posted by Howard_T at 06:32 PM on January 24, 2017
Thanks @rcade! Life wouldn't be quite as good without my mostly daily dose of SpoFi.
Out of curiosity, do any other SpoFites live in the Portland area? We got burned out on Silicon Valley and moved up this month.
posted by billsaysthis at 07:10 PM on January 24, 2017
Speaking of which, how does one edit his profile? I didn't see an edit link on that page.
posted by billsaysthis at 07:12 PM on January 24, 2017
Click on the customize link at the very bottom of the page
posted by NoMich at 07:36 PM on January 24, 2017
Things I learned from SportsFilter:
1. Soccer is great.
2. Nothing in sports beats the World Cup.
3. Football season begins in Canada.
posted by rcade at 07:51 PM on January 24, 2017
Out of curiosity, do any other SpoFites live in the Portland area?
I used to live in Portland and now split time between Portland and Tacoma, WA. Welcome to the 503!
posted by Goyoucolts at 08:06 PM on January 24, 2017
^^ What these guys said. It's been a pleasure to hang out with you guys for the last decade or so.
And thanks rcade - if you're ever in this part of the world, the Beer Lao/Matilda Bay is on me.
posted by owlhouse at 08:48 PM on January 24, 2017
Wow, that's really awesome! I don't comment much but have been subscribing since the site was 2 weeks old. Thanks for all the great #content!
posted by emoeby at 09:15 PM on January 24, 2017
Nearly 12 years? In that time I've lived in five residences in New Jersey. Where has the time gone, indeed! I've learned a few things:
1. I'm lousy at picking winners.
2. I'm lousy at fantasy sports (which carries beyond SportFi).
3. I'm lousy at being active on the site (I hope I contribute positively when I post).
Thanks for keeping the site going, rcade. I've liked the mix of "news of the day" articles with those that are hidden under the radar or are thought-provoking.
posted by jjzucal at 10:14 PM on January 24, 2017
Happy Anniversary!!! Thanks to everyone that makes this site so great.
posted by jagsnumberone at 11:35 PM on January 24, 2017
While I hate to compliment ESPN, it's funny that's the one link from the first post that still works.
posted by yerfatma at 09:16 AM on January 25, 2017
Awesome! It's been a fun ride and looking forward to future intelligent sports discussions and articles.
posted by jmd82 at 11:06 AM on January 25, 2017
Wow. Happy Birthday to you/us. I'm a newbie, I suppose, only being around 10+ years, but this is still one of the first sites I check every day.
posted by tahoemoj at 01:46 PM on January 25, 2017
Woohoo!
posted by DrJohnEvans at 02:05 PM on January 25, 2017
+1
posted by sbacharach at 02:23 PM on January 25, 2017
I offer a long-overdue thank-you to rcade and huddle.
posted by Etrigan at 03:15 PM on January 25, 2017
Huddle really is the unsung hero around here. He's got a quality we all grow to appreciate as we age: regularity.
posted by rcade at 04:13 PM on January 25, 2017
I've just realized that I've been a member of SportsFilter longer than I've been married.
The membership has definitely shrunk since the high times, but that has also weeded out the "[team A] RULES, [team B] DROOLS!" people as well.
(It has something to do with dropping off Yahoo!'s recommended sports page, right?)
I am sometimes saddened to see nothing new posted on SpoFi for a couple of days, remembering when the front page would have more than 5 new items a day. Of course, most of those items would barely qualify as "front page material", so putting them in the daily huddle is actually a better idea now.
Things that SpoFi has done for me over the years:
1) I now understand (and will watch) cricket.
2) I sharpened my skills at analyzing sports statistics so that I win every argument about sports. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. ಠ_ಠ
3) Reading about lots of different sports has increased my awareness for many different leagues, meaning I've expanded my sports jersey collection quite extensively.
posted by grum@work at 04:28 PM on January 25, 2017
Congratulations on turning 15! Does this mean we qualify for a learner's permit now?
posted by NerfballPro at 07:46 PM on January 25, 2017
Thank you SportsFilter.
rcade, I don't know what your current MLS team allegiance is, but I have an early version long sleeved Adidas FC Dallas jersey that I'm going to send to the whois St. Aug. location unless I hear otherwise. A small token of gratitude.
posted by beaverboard at 12:09 PM on January 26, 2017
1) I now understand (and will watch) cricket.
I've always enjoyed your posts on sports stats, and have learned quite a bit at the same time, including a great deal about baseball. I even went to my first MLB game last summer (Mets v Pirates at Citifield), and tried to explain some finer points to my bemused spouse and son.
They tolerated me.
So, already knowing your interest in data, and now cricket, here's something that could have been written just for you.
posted by owlhouse at 08:18 PM on January 26, 2017
😊
posted by tselson at 02:19 AM on January 27, 2017
In the vein of "Things that SpoFi has done for me over the years", I picked up a copy of FIFA for the first time in 6 years and spent 4 glorious seasons as Idrissa Gana Gueye taking Everton to multiple league and Champions League titles even as I cranked up the difficulty. Looking around for an even more Don Quixote-esque challenge, I created a player in honor of the recently departed Lemmy Kilmister and assigned him to St. Pauli, who I assumed would be overjoyed to have such a young go-getter.
They loaned me out. I am far and away the best player on Morecambe F.C. and the lone positive I can take from it is I now know they are The Shrimps. Aren't they just. We are in the playoff positions in spite of being the lowest scoring team in the league. I don't know how. My one hope is a glitch in the game that trades my forward players' first touches for their shot attempts as the former go much further and straighter than the latter.
posted by yerfatma at 10:00 AM on January 27, 2017
SpoFi has given me the ability to quickly and correctly type "Saskatchewan" every single time. 10,000 hours etc. etc.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 10:37 PM on January 29, 2017
Saskatchewan is worth approximately one half a Krzyzewski.
Which in turn is only worth a partial Wojciechowski.
posted by beaverboard at 02:20 PM on January 30, 2017
Happy 15th(!) anniversary, SpoFi. And thanks for basically single-handedly keeping it up and running, rcade.