50 Years Ago Today: Soccer in the US, Top or Flop?

Like any other year in the US, 1968 was an eventful year for sports: the Green Bay Packers took the Lombardi trophy home in the second Super Bowl, the Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in a final that would reinforce the long time rivalry and, perhaps less importantly for most Americans, 1968 was also the year that saw the game of soccer, the Beautiful Game, finally land in the United States. The North American Soccer League was set up in 1968 with 17 teams after a surprising 1 million Americans tuned in for the 1966 World Cup final and some Americans wished to exploit an untapped soccer market in North America.  For so many years it had seemed like America was living under a rock, immunized of the soccer fever which had taken over the entire world. Soccer is the most watched and prominent sport in the world by a mile and a half. Every four years, billions of people tune in from everywhere on the globe to cheer on their country in the World Cup.  Since the first attempt to bring the sport into the resilient United States was made in 1968, 50 years later seems like a good time to assess the success of the attempt. Soccer in the US, flop or top? First of all, it must be mentioned that all the elements were aligned to guarantee the success of soccer in the U.S. While setting up the league, the owners largely “Americanized” the sport, introducing halftime shows, cheerleading, quarters and special penalties. At first, the league grew surely but steadily with rising attendances and increasing media coverage. The sport was overnight taken by storm when The King, Pele, arguably the greatest player to have ever played the beautiful game (who himself coined this name for soccer), announced his departure to New York City to play for the New York Cosmos. The NASL received international attention for the first time as the attempt to spread soccer to North America became evident. To any soccer fan around the world, The New York Cosmos became legendary as it featured some of the best players to have ever played with Pele in his prime and Beckenbauer. These additions propelled the league into even faster expansion with new teams being set up in Los Angeles, Minnesota, Washington and new star players such as the legendary Cruyff and Best joining the American movement. Star-studded teams became the new fashion in the NASL, and, unfortunately, the league could not keep up with the expenditures. As the owners were struggling to include American players, the highly-paid stars, who were unknown to the public, were no longer appealing to the supporters. Due to financial problems, the league closed down in 1984, leaving the legendary New York Cosmos in history forever. Looking at the sport of soccer in today’s United States, it is easy to call it a success; it is the fastest-growing sport in the country with over 24 million of kids and adults playing. It has also become normal for kids to play a couple of years AYSO. Also, the term “soccer mom” originated from the US. Furthermore, the sport has done much to the feminist cause, as it has put female athletes such as Mia Hamm and Alex Morgan to the forefront of American famedom.  However, America is still very far from the rest of the football community. At its peak, the NASL averaged 14,000 spectators, an abysmal number for teams with Peles and Beckenbauers in highly populated cities such as New York or LA. Today the MLS, which has continued NASL’s mission by attracting stars like Beckham or Henry, averages 20,000 per game, a good number but still very low compared to its potential. Although viewership and participation are rapidly growing, the United States remains extremely distant from the international scene; out of the rare supporters who do pick a favorite club to cheer on, their emotional connection mostly remains very superficial.  In many countries around the world, the emotional connection to a club or an international team, to the Beautiful Game, can actually be felt. In the United States, even after international games, there is a total apathy and insensitiveness. That, as of yet, is the main reason why soccer has flopped in the United States. To call it a “flop” would probably be inaccurate, but unfortunately, calling it a “top” would be as (if not more) inaccurate. For now, the soccer fan will remain relatively lonely in the US, and this may last even longer as investors are now turning East to Asia to tap in an extremely fruitful market. For the moment I think the term “floppish” does the attempt justice.