It's great to see the American support starting to grow. I've heard rumblings from "foreign friends," and I use the word foreign in quotations because these particular friends reside in the United States and have for years now. They were complaining about fans jumping on the "bandwagon" of American soccer. They're claiming that these people(United States fans) don't know soccer, so they have no right to cheer for the American team. And that they're going to be completely disenchanted with the tournament as soon as the American team was dispatched.
One such friend resides in the United States, has for four or five years, but is originally from Jamaica, and yet cheers for Argentina. A little national pride, despite the naivety of their fanhood, is still national pride nonetheless and should be treated as patriotism and attributed to the growth of a sport that has a limited fan-base domestically. That begs the question from me, "Is it more appropriate for a fan to cheer for his home country knowing nothing about a sport, or for a 'true soccer fan' to support a country he has no affiliation with?" For me the answer is simple, but maybe it's not as cut and dry as I think it to be.
Regardless of this, and the US disappointment during the cup, the sport does look like it is gaining popularity little by little. With the MLS season still going on, they are likely to have more viewers now that the country's interest in the sport have been raised with these disappointing, albeit resilient efforts from the United States team in South Africa.
With more international stars perceived to be making their way to the States to end their careers in MLS, the interests of the nation will increase. With the likes of Henry and Raul being rumored to come stateside, the nation has a lot to look forward to domestically in club soccer. The "Beckham Effect" is looked at a lot as a failure, but it still peaks the interests for whatever reason. And with the league likely gaining two more expansion teams next season, there is likely nowhere to go but up for the interest of American soccer fans.
Good article Tim.
ReplyDeleteThe game against Algeria and the game against Ghana were two of the most emotional sporting events I've witnessed. The bar I was at was packed with "real" and "bandwagon" fans but the overall atmosphere was amazing. I'm not sure MLS will be what turns the country, but the exposure to other, more quality, leagues will certainly help as ESPN and Fox are doing well getting the game to the American public.
Hopefully an increased interest coupled with the potential for some of our American players to play for bigger clubs will result from what I would call a relatively successful World Cup.
-Hunter