Match Fit USA is a new blog examining issues related to the popularity of soccer in America as a professionally played mainstream sport.

For this, the first ever edition of Match Fit USA, I thought I'd tackle the overriding issue that every fan of the beautiful game in the United States is faced with daily; are we forever doomed to be the sporting minority?

I'm not sure there's any easy way to predict the future of soccer/football/futbol passion in the United States. There are simply too many factors involved for us to have a sense of where the games appeal is headed. A large immigrant population, the relative infancy of our professional top flight league, the cultural impact of televised soccer in greater and greater quantities: these factors and many other will all have a bearing on not only the future of the game in the U.S., but the success of our national team and league on an international stage. We're facing a bit of a chicken-and-egg dilemma; will interest grow and sustain without a major international success, or is international success dependent on a large increase in overall interest?

Things seem to be headed in a positive direction. MLS continues to improve (despite the moaning of some), attendances are (for the most part) holding steady or increasing, the game itself is making inroads with our national media outlets. Other signs are less encouraging. MLS teams continue to struggle against international competition. TV ratings for MLS broadcasts are exceedingly disappointing. Talented young American players are increasingly going abroad to start their professional careers. So what should we do?

Our dilemma is a new one in the history of sports. Never has a group of committed, passionate enthusiasts had to struggle with promoting their game in such a crowded landscape. American sports are both many and varied; our hearts and our dollars are already stretched thin with those passions that run deep due to history and geography. Soccer fans, both here and abroad, like to believe that the passion that comes with the game is deeper than any other. While this may or may not be true, it is being tested here, as those of us who want to see the game grow continue to slam our heads into an unyielding American sports landscape.

It is difficult, as a fan, to sit back and let time do the work. It may be that soccer in America will simply crawl up the ladder by osmosis; the more the non-soccer fan is exposed, the more the game with enter the general consciousness. But we'd rather bang the drum; bemoan the haters and the deniers and crow about the beautiful game in every forum we can find. It's our right to do so, and it may be necessary to the long term future of the game, I don't honestly know. It just seems more often than not to create a flag-waving backlash, legions of "patriots" who think that accepting soccer means denying the good old USA. Those of us who know better get frustrated and scream some more, creating more backlash and more hostility, and the cycle repeats. Are we better off stepping back and letting the greatness of the game do it's work? Again, I'm not sure, I simply posit the possibility.

I, of course, intend to continue to slam away; hence, this blog. Soccer voices need to be loudest to be heard, and I hope to speak up on a regular basis. I have no qualifications other than a modicum of writing ability and a head full of opinions. I hope those of you who have the same (or even just the opinions) will join with me. I don't believe that American soccer and it's fans are doomed to the periphery of the sports landscape. I believe that the revolution may be a slow and painful one, but that by the time my son (who is 7 months old) is old enough to buy a beer at his local bar, he'll be doing so sitting with many American soccer fans.

The future of this blog will include examination of MLS and it's approach to the American sports fan; American talent and it's dissemination throughout the world (or whether we should make sure to keep our best talent at home); my thoughts on the USMNT and the future of American soccer on the international scene. etc., etc., etc.


Feel free to contact me with your thoughts on any of the subjects covered here, or with your general feedback about Match Fit USA.