Soccer was a part of my early childhood, just like anyone else’s. At the ripe age of five, my dad strapped shin guards to my legs and hustled me onto the large green field with one very simple instruction: “Kick the ball into the net.”
At the time it seemed like a monumental task, but since thinking back I’ve realized how elementary those directions were. So why would my dad, a man who, if allowed, would undoubtedly try to teach a new born baby the intricacies of the jump shot, given such basic instructions about competitive soccer?
The answer: He didn’t know anything to teach. Soccer was a mystery to him.
The only reason I was on that soccer field as a youngster was so my dad could evaluate my athletic ability. Once he saw that I could play, my shins guards were replaced with baseball socks and my cleats were shelved in favor of basketball shoes. I walked off the big green rectangle and never looked back.
I bet if you ask most people my age (22) and above about their childhood sports experience, a lot would relay a similar version of the story I just told. That’s just the way American sports operate. It’s a frustrating lot for true soccer fans, but that’s life in the big city.
Soccer will never be the first priority for mainstream American sports for two reasons:
Reason One: Exposure
- B/R Ticket Guide
Quick, name 10 teams in the MLS in less than 30 seconds (waiting…waiting…). Okay, stop. Couldn’t do it, could you? Are you surprised? Of course not. No one knows MLS that well. And that’s the problem.
The MLS isn’t popular in America. It has second-rate players, washed up has-beens, and no entertainment appeal. Americans who do love soccer look to Europe and the English Premier league for their fix.
So how can soccer flourish among the youth of America when they have no local players to idolize? Simply put: It can’t. The NBA and NFL are at the head of the class in American sports because they’re image is everywhere.
Kids grow up watching Payton Manning and Brett Farve become social icons for their accomplishments on the football field. Guys like LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are all over the television as ambassadors for the NBA.
It’s a cyclical thing. Kids grow to love these athletes and want to mimic their every move. So they pick up a basketball or football and go play with their friends. All the while trying to throw that 70-yard touchdown pass like Tom Brady or hit that fade away jumper like Paul Pierce.
And out of those playground sessions, athletic talent is sharpened. So when they enroll in high school and begin to play sports, football and basketball are invariably their first choice. It’s a cycle that perpetuates itself, and unfortunately soccer is on the outside looking in.
Reason No. 2: Money
Besides David Beckham (who isn’t even American), who has ever heard of a filthy rich American soccer player? By contrast, is there an athlete in the NBA, MLB, or NFL who isn’t swimming in piles of cash?
Take the NFL for example. Even if you’re a scrub who plays only a few snaps on special teams each week, you’ll earn over $400 grand a year! $400 grand! Professional soccer in the U.S. doesn’t have that type of financial security. Not even close.
So which sports do you think kids will gravitate towards? Or in some cases, which sport will all the money hungry fathers out there push their kids towards? The ones with fame and fortune or…soccer?
Dads have an enormous influence on the sports their sons and daughters pick up as young children. You can bet they’ll push sports that might have a potentially pay day at the end of the road.
In the end, soccer in the U.S. will always take a backseat to the larger, more profitable and popular sports. It’s a tough bullet to bite for soccer fans, but somebody’s got to do it.
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5 months ago
God, not this waste of article again. Didn't take 5 brain cells, did it? Because we've heard it before from zillions of sports writers trying to win that elusive Pulitzer. Hey, let's bash soccer again! Brilliant! Let's pretend that five people who think soccer will be the number one sport in this country speaks for all American soccer fans again.
Why such hatred for soccer? MMA will never be the number one sport, either, but nobody outside of John McCain is hating on it.
Lots of us enjoy lots of sports. Even from countries outside our own. Some of think that soccer will have a solid professional league for decades to come.
Apparently it's easier just to hate on soccer in a sports column than to do the actual legwork to cover the leagues in this country.
from 5 months ago
"Why such hatred for soccer? MMA will never be the number one sport, either, but nobody outside of John McCain is hating on it."
I really notice this as well, its as if its patriotic and cool to hate and bash soccer. It gets ridiculous among the sports newswriters in this country, have you ever heard Jim Rome talk about soccer? They act like soccer is a guy who raped their daughter, such knee-jerk hatred....
from 5 months ago
Gem,
haha your right but we don't act like soccer is the guy who raped our daughter but rather the gay brother or cousin we don't want to talk about. besides it seems the world gets more bent out of shape about us not caring about soccer, than we do hating on it. Generally we don't even talk about it or watch it unless its the world cup; out of sight out of mind kind of thing. Besides you guys should just enjoy it; because you'd all be much more upset if the U.S. did care and started dominating.
from 5 months ago
Actually if somehow america managed to be the best in soccer, the players would be the most popular athletes in the world, playing for Manchester United or Real Madrid or Milan or Arsenal or some other billion dollar club and hugely respected.
America's international image would drastically improve, and people would start to respect your soccer system instead of mocking it, and the nation would be filled with scouts and money would come pouring in which would help the MLS stop sucking. However the British would hate your guts, a former colony beating them in their game. But then again, everyone beats England these days :)
from 5 months ago
"Actually if somehow america managed to be the best in soccer, the players would be the most popular athletes in the world, playing for Manchester United or Real Madrid or Milan or Arsenal or some other billion dollar club and hugely respected."
-That would be nice but we have plenty of billion dollar clubs, and fans to be adored by in this country. Its gonna take more than that. Besides an american much rather be a Cowboy, a Yankee, a Celtic, a Laker, a Knickerbocker, a Packer, so on and so on.
"people would start to respect your soccer system instead of mocking it, and the nation would be filled with scouts and money would come pouring in which would help the MLS stop sucking."
-You fail to recognize that people here could care less if people mock our soccer team, its irrelevant. Soccer in America is a small notch above the WNBA and Bowling perhaps but thats it. Americans (not me) mock soccer itself and could care less if they're bad at it. Soccer is the game that we play when we are 7 and under before we move on to our sports.
"However the British would hate your guts, a former colony beating them in their game. But then again, everyone beats England these days :)."
Haha good point but we already beat them in the game that mattered; revolution 1776 haha. Besides it would be more than just the British hating our guys if we got good at soccer.
from 5 months ago
Why do you think america would be hated if your guys were good at soccer? What I was saying is that if america had the best team in the world, the nation would be more respected as are all winning soccer nations (except Italy), not less, assuming you win with style and honor (unlike Italy). The US Players would be hugely respected and people would look at the entire nation with respect. Brazil dominates soccer with style, and most people absolutely love Brazil for it despite them trouncing everybody and embarassing the opposition. The only winning nation I think that is hated in soccer is italy ('cuz seria a players are assholes and cheaters and they have no honor whatsoever especially that cunt giraldino). Unless you play a really ugly style like the Italian "catanaccio" system people will respect you if you win. But if you were say like the dutch and played the "total football" system or the brazilian "samba" style and won people would love america. True story. Plus all the club supporters would love the players who win the trophies from their club, no matter where they are from. As a prtsmouth supporter, I love Senegal because they produced Bouba Diop and he helps us win. If we had a good american midfielder who helped us get the points, I'd really really love america, I already do though :)
Plus england does suck so bad everybody laughed at Capello and the FA , good to see them going far in euro 08...oh wait ;) haha
lol even Karembeu is laughing at england for getting croatia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjYvH5elGRg
....kinda not related but damn his wife is so hot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5TAe0PJu40
5 months ago
We don't really need soccer to be "#1 anyway." If Major League Soccer merely got to the revenue levels of the NHL, we'd have the 5th or 6th best league in the world, and that would be a freakin' glorious time for me.
from 1 day ago
Now i want all you people bashing on england in the past few months to give us an apology. England WILL be a the major dominant force in 2010 mark my words. They are a completely different side from a year ago.... beating croatia 4-1 was my highlight of the year and germany 2-1 last night was icing on the cake for me. England all the way
5 months ago
"Why such hatred for soccer? MMA will never be the number one sport, either, but nobody outside of John McCain is hating on it. "
Don't forget Jim Lampley, who had to smack on MMA in comments after the de la Hoya/Mayweather, mainkly because its (MMA's) growing popularity is a threat to him and his livelyhood, just like soccer to most bashers, ironically
5 months ago
I can see soccer getting more popular over here; perhaps even surpassing fighting, hockey, and baseball; but it will never come close to NFL or Nascar (which i think is stupid personally, except attending one because they let you bring your own alcohol and smokes into the stadium) and I doubt it could surpass basketball. But hey #3 isnt so bad.........
5 months ago
Tired arguments.
Pathetic rant.
Seriously, James, your viewpoint is as earth shattering as writing about how the people living in Florida are more at risk for skin cancer.
Does anyone else ever find it intriguing that American Sports are not played elsewhere in the world? Does anyone else think the Red Blooded Americans are going to have an issue when David Stern moves the New Orleans Hornets, the Milwaukee Bucks, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Orlando Magic, the Portland Trailblazers, and the Sacremento Kings to London, Berlin, Rome, Madrid, Barcelona, and Paris?
Does anyone else realize that the NFL is quickly running out of new ways to grow revenues exponentially short of charging the casual fan out of the upper decks?
Go on and hate soccer, though. But please actually put down some factual information before you write again.
from 5 months ago
Actually American sports are played outside of the United States.
5 months ago
amercan sports are not commonly played around the world, especially when compared to football (sorry can't call it the 's' word), because;
- the rules and equiptment required for american football is ridiculous and would bankrupt you, so why spend all that money when you can just play the original game- rugby more freely.
-baseball is tedium pesonified, over-long and dull; kids would more likely play rounders.
-basketball, though, is an entertaining, fast-paced sport, that any football fan/player can appreciate and play.
I've actually tried to appreciate all the main american sports- the NFL i'll watch and keep up with, because it razzmatazz and over-hype is pure americana and the NBA-Jordan era reined me in, but as much as i've attempted, baseball just kills me. So, if some americans will never come round to football, so what? It's the bigger picture that counts. Name any country, except america, and guaranteed, football is a bigger, more lucrative, and adored game than any of the american sports.
from 3 months ago
"Name any country, except america, and guaranteed, football is a bigger, more lucrative, and adored game than any of the american sports."
Canada - Hockey
China - Basketball
Australia - Aussie Rules, Rugby*
India - Cricket*
Lithuania - Basketball
South Africa - Rugby*
Most of the Caribbean supports Cricket first*
Cuba - Baseball
New Zealand - Rugby*
Venezuela - Baseball
Panama - Baseball
Nicaragua - Baseball
Korea - Baseball
Japan - Baseball
Thailand - traditional Thai games
Phillipines - traditional Filipino games
*-non-American sports, but still not association football.
That list basically accounts for over a quarter of the world's population and I'm sure there are some countries I've left out.
I fully agree that association football is number 1, but I am so SICK of people making it seem like the US is the only place that soccer isn't #1.
Further to this article, in the 1950's the NFL was in it's death throes and people were claiming that it was DEAD. They aped the college bowl system and the rest, as they say, is history. Basketball was also supposedly dead in the 1970's and look where it is now.
Anything can change. The Euros were watched by a TON of people and MLS cup and the All Star Game both have gotten their best ratings ever the last 2 times around and MLS Thursday night up by almost double the audience last year.
More people are catching on that people think. In fact, if NASL hadn't gone bankrupt, I am pretty confident soccer would be no worse than #3 right now and probably #2. The fact is America mints $$$ and no player gives that much of a crap about the prestige of Champion's League if they can make a ton more money. Just look at all the players who took a hike from Europe to play in NASL. (they weren't all over the hill washouts contrary to revisionist history)
5 months ago
None of you are commenting on the article. You are just throwing out your own "tired and unoriginal" arguments for soccer/football because you like it.
I'll try to be unbiased here. Recently, soccer has begun to grow on me. I'll put it on and actually enjoy it. However, I've never put on an MLS game. Everything I watch is Euro or Premiership. Why would I watch MLS? They are MOSTLY players who couldn't play over in Europe. It is like watching the XFL or Arena Football. While, many people may have found those entertaining, they will never be number one. Why? Because they aren't the top athletes. So what was the article about? The reasons soccer will never be #1. Will arena football be bigger than NFL? Will AAA be better than the Major Leagues? Look at what the writer is trying to get accross.
James' article was not bashing soccer. It was just stating the facts that the best American athletes don't play soccer--and before you get mad about that--even if they did play soccer they wouldn't play in the US. It is not the highest level of competition.
I'm prepared for the personal attacks and the blind rage of comments to this post, but look at the facts and the article. I think it makes sense.
5 months ago
Time for a flamewar!
12 days ago
Cricket (8countries)
British Guyana, Antigua and Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Australia
Ice Hockey (4countries)
Canada, Finland, Latvia, Estonia
Baseball (9 countries)
United States- Baseball
Panama- Baseball
Venezuela- Baseball
Cuba- Baseball
Dominica Republic- Baseball
Japan- Baseball
Nicaragua
Northern Marianas
Chinese Taipei- Baseball
Rugby Union (six countries)
Fiji
Western Samoa
Tonga
New Zealand
Wales
Cook Islands
Rugby League (2 countries)
PNG
Basketball- 5 countries
The philliphines
Lithuania
Puerto Rico
Marshall Islands
Bahamas
Archery (1)
Bhutan
Mongolia wrestling
AFL (1)
Nauru
Gaelic Football (1)
Ireland Republic
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