We didn’t get the “Miracle On Grass” that some pundits expected yesterday. Instead, the U.S. showed determination and they took advantage of a lucky break they received to earn a tie. The problem is that even with a win, Americans wouldn’t have been transformed into soccer fans overnight. Yes, a good performance by the national team would excite fans and generate passion for soccer, but it won’t have a lasting impact because once the World Cup is over all that remains for the U.S. soccer fan is MLS.
Major League Soccer has certainly made strides in its seventeen-year history, but it can hardly be considered a mainstream sport. The Red Bulls have a brand new stadium and while attendance is up almost 50%, they are still only averaging 16,000 fans a game. That may increase when French striker Thierry Henry joins the club after the World Cup, but Henry’s arrival also shows the weakness of MLS — the best players in the world do not play here during their primes.
And why should they? The crowds are smaller, the checks are smaller and the competition weaker than what they would face overseas. Jozy Altidore and Tim Howard were Red Bulls (or MetroStars) early in their careers, but they left for Europe when the opportunity presented itself. Landon Donovan went to Europe for 10 weeks before the World Cup to play against tougher competition.
It’s a vicious circle. MLS can’t retain the top talent because of revenues, but the revenues won’t increase without top talent. It’s a shame because soccer is a wonderful sport and U.S. sports fans who watch the World Cup will enjoy it. The problem is that once the tournament is over, they will forget about soccer until 2014.
