Originally posted by Cross De Lena:
Thanks Busta - I can't believe I left off Landon. That's one of the biggest US exports since Beasley. I grabbed the list off of the United States National Soccer Team Players Association web-site and it probably isn't updated for 2005 yet.
As to your other reply, don't get me wrong - I never said the US would win or come close to winning WC 2006 (my bet is Brazil, but I would love it if England could pull it off - they were robbed in Euro 2004). I do think that each strong showing the US makes will bring us closer to being a "legit" sport in the US sports-fan's eyes. Look at the turn out for the ChampionsWorld Series that toured the US.
Cheers!
I see what you're saying. I did see the turnout for the Champions World Series and thought it was great. I even went to the game at Soldier Field between Man U and Bayern. There is no denying that there are a large number of die hard soccer fans in this country. However, I really don't see it growing that much more. I went to a game between Argentina and Mexico played at Soldier Field about 6 or 7 years ago and it was packed then. In fact there were more people there than it could hold. There have always been great turnouts for games that feature two great nations or two great clubs playing. As far as coverage and analysis of soccer, it is still rarely seen on channels like ESPN and shows like Sportscenter. When I start to see more games actually shown on national TV and more coverage of it on ESPN or other sports channels when it is not World Cup season, then I will know that it is starting to grow in popularity. However, I don't see that happening unless the World Cup is going on.
