为了提高广大学生的英语水平，提高英语专业学生的专四通过率，特提供以下英语阅读，供大家练习参考：
There are those who point with alarm at Americans’ relative lack of interest in the world’s most popular games, soccer, a sport many feel has important advantag es over football and baseball. Football and baseball of their very nature preven t mass participation; their popularity must therefore bear some of the responsib ility for turning America into a nation of spectators. The violence of football makes necessary specialized conditioning and elaborate equipment if injury is to be avoided; even so there are crippling accidents and deaths each year. Basebal l (hardball, that is) is so difficult that few can participate; throwing a ball demands special talents and training, while hitting is also difficult that a gam e with unskillful players is hardly worth the bother. Soccer, on the other hand, is a game anyone can play and enjoy.?
Since soccer’s superiority in encouraging active participation is so obvious, an d since soccer’s ability to arouse intense feeling of identification among spect ators is at least equal to football’s, why has it failed to become a major sport on the professional and college level? Soccer’s worldwide popularity may be jus t what is keeping it from becoming popular. Baseball is also an international sp ort, played in Canada, Latin America, Japan, Korea and, in a minor way, Europe. There are professional leagues in the Caribbean, Central and South America, and Japan, but about all this the American public neither knows nor cares. Spectator s here are interested only when American teams play other American teams. The ma jor league baseball teams from Toronto and Montreal hardly destroy this generali zation.?
1. Many think soccer has important advantages over football and baseball because ?______?.?
A. more people can participate?
B. it is an international sport?
C. it needs special training?
D. violence is involved in playing the game ?
2. What made the U.S. a nation of spectator??
A. The excellent performance of the players.?
B. Mass participation.?
C. Violence on the playground.?
D. Elaborate equipment. ?
3. Which of the following statements CANNOT be concluded from the passage??
A. The Americans have a different idea of value in regard to the sports. ?
B. Some games are more professionalized in the U.S.?
C. Football can arouse intense feelings among spectators.?
D. Baseball teams from other countries do not play in the U.S.
1. A) 根据第二段第一句，足球鼓励人们积极参与。因此，人们认为足球 优于橄榄球，故选A。但是，正是人人都能参加踢足球，美国人不喜欢足球，本题与美国人的看法无关。?
2. A) 美国人不喜欢看水平低的、人人都能参加的球类比赛，basketball 不一定需要多少装备，baseball不一定有多少拼抢，美国人喜欢的是球艺。?
3. D) 通过阅读文章可知只有选项D文章没有提及。