I like seeing the USA getting better at football. It makes them seem more normal. It's got to be healthier for one of the world's biggest countries to play out with all the other kids on the block, rather than staying at home and playing with themself. (Metaphorically speaking.)
But I've got to admit that it is funny when they get beaten at one of their own games. Like when the USSR beat them in the Olympic basketball final.
Well, I meant that the boring part came from US possession of the ball. The Czech team was great. Great setup for the first goal. I don't remember the other two. With the Iran/Mexico game, I enjoyed Mexico's possession of the ball a lot more.
Look, US soccer needs to get greater acceptance among the US public (more TV coverage, stadium attendance and $$$). Soccer here is not attracting as many talented youth aspiring to be great players as does other sports such as baseball, football and basketball.. Only then will we start seeing consistent higher level of play and talent coming from the US, this is really the only realistic way we can have higher expectations and achieve greater success in the World Cup.
As a realistic optimist I say we are three to five World Cups away from it
The impression I get is that support for football (i.e. what you call 'soccer' in the USA) is very regionalised.
For example, where one of my mates lives near Boston, there is massive participation in football, originating mainly among the Italian, Portuguese, Brazilian, etc. communites, but spreading from there out into the wider community. All the kids play football at school. But the media coverage of the game hasn't caught up with it's actual popularity yet.
Whereas it seems that in places like the mid-west, it's all American sports like baseball and American Football, with very little interest in football.
Yes that is fair to say.
Soccer is indeed more popular among groups of immigrants, mainly central Europeans and Latin Americans.
The U.S. Open Cup has been held since 1914. The North American Soccer League was formed in the U.S. in 1968 with the goal of promoting professional play.
Pele, the popular Brazilian athlete considered by many the greatest who ever played the game, joined the league’s N.Y. Cosmos in 1975 which sparked interest here in the US with the sport. He retired in 1977 and the league slowly lost popularity and fan support and was no more in 1985.
The men’s World Cup competition, was held in the U.S. for the first time in 94' and renewed interest in the sport, and Major League Soccer (MLS), another professional soccer league was founded in 93' and began its first season in 1996.
Basketball still holds the higher percentage of team percentage participation