Who Needs Saviors?

Wednesday, January 06, 2010 | View Comments
WCQ - Barbados v United States


by Keith Hickey

If there's one thing American soccer fans love, it's beating Mexico two-nil. But if we're allowed a second, it's surely got to be our habit of routinely naming some poor kid "The Savior of American Soccer™", the player who will be so successful and popular he vaults our beloved game into the permanent American sporting consciousness, to the point where trucker-hatted Nebraskans talk about weather, corn, and last night's MLS game. Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, DaMarcus Beasley, Eddie Johnson, Jozy Altidore, Freddy Adu and Charlie Davies have all been tagged with the label at various points in the past decade (and it's invariably an attacking player-saviors have to inspire and perform miracles, not hack at ankles, no matter how good they are at it). It was even outsourced to David Beckham for a little while. There are probably some who are ready to slap the label onto youngsters like Charles Renken and Luis Gil.


To me, this phenomenon of would-be phenoms stems from a two-headed inferiority complex. American soccer fans see how popular the sport is in other countries, and being used to the glitz and glamor of American sports, want soccer to have the same treatment. We want the prestige of the Premiership, the star power of La Liga, and the rabidly passionate fans of the Serie A, all wrapped up in the same shiny package as the NFL is delivered to our TV screens in every Sunday. The problem is, American soccer, in league or international form, doesn't have the decades of high-profile coverage that these other leagues do. Ask an NFL fan about the 80s. They'll tell you about Joe Montana, Mike Ditka, and... other important things (I'm neither a child of the 80s nor the biggest NFL fan). Likewise, a fan of the Premiership could talk about Gary Lineker, Liverpudlian domination, and the Heysel and Hillsborough disasters. All soccer fans had were the death throes of the NASL heading a list of an alphabet soup of failed and floundering leagues (ASL, NASL, MISL, NPSL, USL, WSA, LSSA). The truth is, our domestic league is neither as strong as some foreign leagues nor is the sport as a whole as popular as other American sports in the United States. In past years, soccer has been about as cool as Voyager fans at a Star Trek convention. (full Disclosure: I have never been to a Star Trek convention, and I'm sure Voyager fans are lovely, well-rounded people).


But importantly, this is changing. Decades of grassroots popularity and sporadic successes on various higher levels (England in 1950, Pele et. al in the NASL, World Cup 1994) have gained a substantial foothold for soccer, enough that the Dark ages can be confined to the pages of history. Soccer-Specific stadiums are concrete and steel testaments to Soccer's new found permanence. Every four years, the World Cup attracts incredible viewing figures in the United States, rivaling those of other American Sports' championships. New clubs in Seattle, Houston, and Toronto, have been almost unqualified successes for MLS, and forthcoming teams in Philadelphia, Portland and Vancouver look well-equipped to continue that trend. Continued hard work and creativity are what is needed to "grow the sport". Soccer no longer needs to catch lightning in a bottle, and has grown beyond the need for a "savior". That being said, I'm ready to name all of my future children "Landon Donovan" should we win the World Cup in South Africa.
blog comments powered by Disqus
    KKTC Bahis Siteleri, Online Bahis

    Archive

    Legal


    Privacy Policy