Major League Soccer (MLS) has come a long way over the last decade. As “football” continues to dominate as the most popular sport in the world, soccer has been in a constant battle in the United States against sports such as American Football, baseball, and basketball.
After reading this article, you should be able to understand why soccer is so popular around the world, except in the US, and hopefully, if you don’t practice it, you may want to give it a try. What makes soccer so popular? It is incredible how people around the world live the sport of soccer, as if it was a religion.
But what is contributing to the major growth in popularity of soccer in the United States?
Expansion of the MLS
The MLS currently has 24 teams with FC Cincinnati becoming the 24th, there is also plans of adding Miami and Nashville in 2020.
Not Enough Offense. The biggest reason soccer is not such a prominent sport in the United States. Soccer is not popular in the us because the only soccer that really matters is the European circuit. If they built soccer stadiums here for that league of soccer and our american team actually got good at the game then soccer would catch on. But they will never do it so it wont ever happen.
Expanding the league will establish national presence and help to secure television rights that will aid in the growth.
Why Soccer Is Not Popular In The Us
FC Cincinnati(FCC) achieved over 30,000 ticket sales in their first-ever MLS home game at Nippert Stadium. Following their first game, FCC announced that the next game is going to be sold out as well.
FCC is also on the break of MLS history, as they’ve started the season with seven points from their first four games against some of the toughest opponents in the league.
Television Viewership
There is an abundance of options to watch soccer from around the world, not just the MLS but international game and leagues as well.
The ability to see your favorite clubs, leagues, and tournaments helps spark interest in the game, fueling the MLS as they’re the easiest games to attend for Americans.
International Players in the MLS
Growing up in the United States, fans would see stars such as Kaka and Bradley Wright-Phillips playing overseas. Looking at the game today, stars such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Wayne Rooney, and Bastian Schweinsteiger playing right here in our backyard.
People can go to an MLS game and see some of their childhood heroes that have played at the top level in the world. These are some of the best talents that have ever played the game. Indeed, the underlying factor is that they’re able to teach some of the younger players on how to improve their game.
United States Players Abroad
There are 36 American players that are playing in the top leagues around the world such as the Premier League, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1. Not only are these the top leagues but also major teams: Paris Saint-Germain, BorussiaDortmund, and Newcastle United F.C.
Most notably, Christian Pulisic has recently been purchased by Chelsea from Borussia Dortmund for $73 million. This transfer fee is more than three times the previous record for a U.S player in 2017 held by John Brooks.
This is a major milestone for United States soccer and a move that will surely keep more people in the United States watching games.
The Atmosphere
Why Soccer Should Be More Popular In America
There is no comparison in the atmosphere that you get from some of the major clubs in the world, from the “Yellow Wall” at Signal Iduna Park to the breathtaking views at Wembley Stadium.
However, there has been a major improvement over the past several years to recreate these atmospheres. Some of the most notable clubs to make a difference are the Seattle Sounders, Portland Timbers, FC Cincinnati, and Atlanta United that feelings as a soccer match should.
What’s Next for the MLS?
The MLS is continuing to make improvements that are essential for growth and popularity. There is a decline in the live business industry for the major sports in the Untied States, although the MLS has seen an attendance increase of over 12% the last three years.
This is a very exciting time for soccer and sports fans alike as we’re watching a league grow and see the United States International teams compete at the highest level.
*Updated 2019
The United States and soccer, the rest of the world’s favorite sport, have always had a complicated relationship. Long seen as a children’s game, professional soccer has never reached the popularity that professional sports like basketball or football enjoy. Renewed efforts have been made to grow American interest in it, most notably David Beckham’s and Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s respective transfers to LA Galaxy in 2007 and 2018. The US women’s national team 2019 World Cup victory may change how Americans as whole view soccer, but the sport still hasn’t caught on in the US as a truly mainstream sport.
The following are arguments for or against soccer’s potential as a big sport in America.
Three reasons why Soccer will get bigger
Growing among children
Soccer has been America’s favorite sport among children for years now. The suburban ‘soccer-mom’ who drives her kids to practice in an SUV has become a staple in American life. In fact, the US has a higher amount of registered under-18 players than any country in the Americas or Europe, according to a FIFA report. This large pool of young talent promises further growth and potential success at the adult level. Plus, a Gallup poll shows that because of Milliennials’ love of the sport, soccer’s popularity has tripled in the last decade and currently ranks fourth among all sports.
Massive investment and big-name players
The US women’s national soccer team has produced inspiring players both on and off the field, some of whom, like team captain Megan Rapinoe, are amassing global fans, young and old, which cultivates attention to the sport, especially for young players. Women’s soccer aside, after Beckham, stars such as Ricardo Kaká, Thierry Henry and Steven Gerrard crossed the Atlantic. Such arrivals, coupled with significant investment in new stadiums, have increased the number of Americans attending games. The MLS (Major League Soccer) broke its average season attendance for three years straight. It ranks sixth in the world for average attendance, above the Italian and French leagues. With the establishment of new clubs in LA, Atlanta, Minnesota and Miami, among other cities, and further investment in big-name players and modern stadiums, soccer’s emergence as one of America’s top sports may simply be a matter of time.
America’s Latino population is growing
The United States has a rapidly growing Latino population, of which there were 52 million in the country as of 2016. Between 2008-2018, 12.6% of the men’s national team were players of Latino origins, reflecting a small but perhaps growing influence that immigrants have on US soccer. Immigrants specifically from Mexico or Brazil tend to bring along their love for the sport, spreading it to their kids. As more of these future Americans play and watch soccer, the quality of the national team is bound to increase while games get more followers. Improving both factors will contribute to the sport’s growth in the US. Just like with cuisine and languages, America is slowly importing Latino soccer culture.
America already has other favorite sports
Diving has tainted its reputation
Already seen as a kid’s sport in most of the country, soccer’s reputation among Americans has been tarnished by the many examples of diving, the act of feigning or exaggerating injury to have an opposing player disqualified. Particularly to fans of a more hands-on sport like American football, the diving and acting sometimes seen in soccer paints a dishonest and underhanded image of the sport. Many Americans have difficulty getting behind a sport that, to them, encourages cheating.
Americans prefer their own more culturally ingrained sports
Sports like basketball and football are deeply intertwined with American culture. It has become a family ritual to watch the baseball World Series in the fall and football on Thanksgiving. The Super Bowl is the biggest sporting and arguably cultural event in the country. Playing fantasy football and following college basketball March Madness unites college fans, families and colleagues all over the country after work. To many, basketball is a great unifier: it is seen as an integral part of inner-city culture just as much as it is of suburban America. Through their presence in US history, these sports have become synonymous with being American. Soccer may never evoke such feelings of history, identity and pride.
Enthusiasm fizzles out after every World Cup
Americans like to get together to see their country win, particularly on the world stage. However, if the US men’s team had not taken part in the 2014 World Cup, viewership statistics would have been much lower. The final of Euro 2016, between France and Portugal, got an average viewership of 5.89 million on ESPN’s English and Spanish channels, far below the 18.22 million that watched USA-Portugal in the 2014 World Cup. People in the US will casually follow a World Cup in droves, only to go back to watching football or basketball during the season. The fact that the US didn’t qualify for the 2018 World Cup made Americans even less interested in the tournament. Not to mention that news of the world champion US women’s national soccer team filing a lawsuit against the national soccer federation over gender discrimination didn’t make the sport any more popular. Plus, given thatthe first chant after the women’s team 2019 World Cup victory was “Equal Pay!” and the fact that the team captain has refused to visit the White House, fans may not appreciate that politics have seemingly entered the sport.
Why Soccer Will Never Be Popular In America Begin
The Bottom Line: While soccer is still relatively new as a mainstream American sport, the excitement generated during World Cups is far from being seen outside of those events. But the fact that so many Millennials play the sport indicates that it will be a bigger part of American culture as it grows with them. Are you a soccer fan? Do you imagine yourself becoming one?