Ok, say what you want about soccer being a contact sport, but stop saying it in comparison to or even in context with american football. there is NO comparison, and no annecdotal "i got a mean kick in the shins" story will refute the scientific evidence recently reported by virginia tech study that placed sensors used to monitor and deploy automobile air bags in football helmets.
http://cbs.sportsline.com/collegefootball/story/6976003
the result? football players sustain impacts with force equivilent to being hit by car, sometimes 30 to 50 times in a regular game. the hardest blows recorded in the study were in excess of 130 Gs.
so sure, soccer is more of a contact sport than badmitton, but just stop comparing it to football, where contact is an integral and intended part of the game. Really now, 16 out of the 22 players on the field at any time have only one job: to hit someone. Not throw the ball, not catch the ball, not kick the ball, not even touch the ball... their job is simply to HIT someone, as hard as humanly possible. there is no comparison, guys. sissies kick people in the shins, ok? it ranks with biting, scratching and pulling hair.
oh yeah, i've played soccer and still do once in a while. all that running winds me like a son-of-a-bitch, i have a lot of respect for guys and gals who can do that well. but i get damn sick and tired of hearing about how macho it is and how american football sucks.