The USA: a Future Powerhouse?

It’s been a little over a week since the World Cup came to its exciting end; taking with it the soccer fever that swept the nation. While this four year cycle where the country suddenly takes an interest in the world’s game for the better part of a month isn’t exactly new, it took on a whole new level this time. One simply has to look at the ticket sales by country to see that the USA had the most fans at the event outside the hosts Brazil. This has many people optimistic about the growth of the sport here in the States, and the prospect of us being relevant at the international level. It only took a dominant performance by Belgium (who was knocked out in the subsequent round) despite Tim Howard’s heroics to show us that we have quite a ways to go. So, after bowing out in the round of 16 once again, we are left wondering: just how soon can we expect the US to be a contender in the World Cup?

I believe that the answer to this question is sooner than most think. One of the most common arguments is that Americans simply just aren’t focused on soccer. This article highlights the revenue distribution among the major sports in the USA and in Germany. The numbers provided show that the Bundesliga and other soccer leagues in Germany rake in over 90% of the sports-related revenue in the country. This figure

is only about 2% in the United States. Despite this major imbalance, I don’t think that the MLS has to rival the NFL or even the NHL for the USA to compete at the international level. Realistically, it’s not feasible to expect the MLS to overtake the other major leagues with established markets anytime soon.

What the MLS has going for it is that its season does not overlap too significantly with three of the other major sports here. Therefore its only direct in-season competition is the MLB. The decline of baseball has been long overstated as its popularity is still very much relevant. However, with the current generation of soccer moms and youth soccer involvement second to only basketball in terms of participation, soccer will continue to grow its market. Franchises like the Seattle Sounders and the Portland Timbers have shown that it’s possible for MLS teams to develop significant fanbases. In addition, recent signings of players that are past their primes like David Villa to NYC FC and Xavi coming only help. They provide a big name to star for the team, and their knowledge and experience will only benefit young players emerging through the ranks. With an improved academy system, that gave rise to the talented DeAndre Yedlin, it can be expected that more homegrown players may get these opportunities to work alongside soccer legends.

This leads into another one of the most common arguments I’ve heard about soccer’s growth in the country: our best young athletes are opting for sports like basketball and football over soccer. This concept seems logical, I mean looking at Lebron James and Adrian Peterson, one can only wonder what may have been if they chose soccer. But this is America! I cannot agree with this argument when we have a population of 300 million and are consistently among the top countries in the Olympic Medal Count. If one country in the world does not have a shortage of talented, freakish athletes, it’s the USA. We just have to understand how to sift through these athletes and give them a chance in soccer. Up until recently with some teams in the US Soccer Development Academy, it has been the case that in order to play soccer at a high level, you had to invest quite a bit financially. Clint Dempsey has played his way into American folklore with his performance in Brazil this year. While now a USMNT legend, he was almost let slip through the cracks because of his family’s financial situation. In other countries, this is seldom the case. Talented players can find their way up the ranks regardless of financial circumstances.

Now we have a better system for identifying players, where do we go from here? Honestly, I can’t see us being competitors at the international level if we keep our players in the MLS past their early 20s. I think that the only way we quickly become a soccer powerhouse in the world is if we embrace a role like Brazil. For decades now, Brazil has been the best exporter of talented soccer players. While it’s no secret that their league has a large fanbase, young players continue to go overseas after their youth development as that is where the money is. I think we can get there if we allow our young players to climb the ranks and learn from these brilliant soccer minds that are ending their careers here. But then they must test themselves overseas. If we continue to produce quality young players, soon the European Market will be flocking to the USA and teams can collect the transfer fees that will come their way; further increasing their revenue.

So how long will it take before we can challenge for the World Cup? Who really knows, but I think that we are beginning to put into place a system that can bring us to be a powerhouse in the not too distant future.

Be sure to check out our previous post here.