USA vs. Slovenia 2010 World Cup: Why America's 2-2 Tie Is Best Scenario for US

It was almost dejavu today for the US Mens National team in their match versus Slovenia in Group C.

The game was being played in South Africa and the underdog was leading the favorites at halftime 2-0. A quick goal to cut the lead in half just after halftime and a potential go ahead goal was disallowed, despite being shown it should have stood. A goal near the end of the match took victory away from the underdogs who 45 minutes prior were confident in victory.

It sounded very familiar to the US Mens team and they were determined to have this game play out the same way as last summers final versus Brazil when the US were the ones leading at halftime prior to a huge collapse allowing victory to slip away.

I believe this single game may have the ability to change the way people watch soccer in the states. Now, I'm not claiming because of a tie more people will enjoy the sport but I think that today's game was a crucial step towards overall acceptance of the sport in America.

We are in a time frame (World Cup) where more Americans are watching the World Cup than ever before and this tie is crucial to the development of a growing soccer culture in this country.

The team was able to come back from halftime and tie the once lost match and even took the lead (although the ref erased the goal due to a non existing offsides). This is the type of game that draws a persons emotions out and that is the first step America has to take to join the rest of the world with regards to soccer.

People today were shown that the US has the desire to win despite not always having the best players on the field during any match. If Slovenia had simply won 2-0 or even 2-1, the average American would likely not care about the third game seeing as the US would practically be eliminated. The bad call hits deep within the states, especially since the worst bad call ever made in baseball was made just a few weeks ago, and it will bring people to follow the team closer, wanting to see how they end up.

Having a victory stolen from you by a bad call is something the US has never seen and it results in emotions coming out from people that never before really cared about the national team. A victory in the final game will be huge for the US and the vast numbers a Americans that support their team.

In short, the emotion shown by the US team along with the unwillingness to quit will only arouse more Americans to watch. It gives them a reason to care about what happens from here on out, much more so than if they had given up at halftime. The US's third game will become the highest watched US soccer match ever, that is my bold prediction.