Forgive me if this post sounds a bit like it is being written by a crusader, but I consider myself to have been a part of the generation of U. S. soccer players and fans who have had to fight for the beautiful game. It has not been easy being a soccer fan in the USA, but the persecution we experienced over the past few decades has only fueled our passion even more.
There has not been a shortage of American youth soccer players for a long time. Twenty five years ago, when I was playing U-12 soccer, the sport had the largest number of youth participants of any sport in this country (it is even more so now). But I also grew up in an era where the first World Cup I watched, Mexico 1986, I watched in awe of Diego Maradona’s ability, but watched without a home team to support. In fact, soccer fans in this country in 1986 hadn’t been able to support their home team in the World Cup since 1950. We recorded every match we could on VHS because we knew that it would be the only soccer we would be able to watch on television for a long time. We wore those tapes out. My brother and I watched them for 4 years.
My generation got excited about a group of amateurs who had no domestic league in which they could play professionally scratch and claw their way through qualification for the 1990 World Cup. ESPN even televised some of those games, our home games almost exclusively being played in St. Louis at some complex which must have had a capacity of less than 2,000. I’ll never forget Paul Caliguiri’s goal in Trinidad which sealed a 1-0 victory for the USA and qualified us for the tournament. We were the epitome of “we’re just happy to be here” in Italy (we lost 5-1, 1-0, and 3-1). We had no business being on the same pitch with most of those players.
We hosted in 1994. The bar was raised. Our players were better. We tied Switzerland in Detroit. We then accomplished the unthinkable – beating Columbia 2-1, a team that Pele had picked to win the tournament. Our loss to Romania didn’t matter – we advanced to the round of 16! We lost to Brazil 1-0 but WOW. It was a performance that gave us hope, and a performance that we could be proud of. This was exactly what our country needed as Major League Soccer was birthed the next year. I’ll never forget watching that first ever MLS match in 1996 and, as a 17 year old, beginning to dream about what could possibly be. But just last week I had a 50 something year old casual sports fan ask me, “when do you think we will ever host the World Cup.” I was a bit surprised by the wording of his question so I reminded him, “Well, since we hosted it in ’94, I don’t think we will get it again for a while.” He was dumbfounded, “We hosted the World Cup in 1994?!”
We have come a long way since then, so why is there still a sporting cultural anchor that the sport cannot seem to shed? I recently heard a sports talk radio host say the words, “I can’t stand soccer.” I’ve never heard a sports junkie media guys say “I hate tennis” (by the way, the USA is historically bad at tennis right now, especially on the men’s side), or “I hate golf”, or even “I hate NASCAR.” But "I hate soccer" is still acceptable, even in the sporting biz, because it has been a common refrain of derision and disdain for a long, long time. Most media folks get it. During this World Cup Colin Cowherd and Dan Patrick are stuck in. ESPN, even in the midst of a crazy sports schedule (NBA Finals, Stanley Cup, US Open, MLB, College World Series), has gone all in with this World Cup. ESPN doesn’t do things to drive culture, there is no money in that, they do things that reflect culture. We are a soccer loving nation!
No, that’s not a typo. And no, I’m not crazy. We are a soccer loving nation. Consider the evidence. We have qualified for every World Cup since 1990, advancing out of the first round in ’94, ’02, and ’10. English Premier League games are now shown live in our country, every one of them! MLS has not just survived, but is thriving, and continuing to expand! There are MLS players on 8 different teams in this tournament including Brazil (Julio Cesar - Toronto FC) and the scorer of arguably the best goal of the tournament thus far (Tim Cahil - NY Red Bulls). The ratings for the World Cup, especially when you add the Spanish numbers, have been enormous. Outside of the World Cup, it is still mostly a niche sport. It is also much more popular among internationals living here, but the truth is that we are a nation of internationals - ignore them at your own peril (just ask Republicans).
It has been slow growth, and will continue to be slow. But it is undeniable that the statements “soccer will never catch on in the US”, and “we stink at soccer”, and “the MLS is not good soccer” are all statements made in ignorance. Whatever happens tomorrow vs. Germany won’t change that fact that this tournament will be another nice boost for soccer in this country. I can’t wait. And even though it is a noon kickoff, I know America will be watching.
No comments:
Post a Comment