One of the threads in Soccerblog.com has been the unique nature of American soccer and what needs to happen for this country to compete on the world stage with the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Spain, etc. My hope is to start a thread of topics that touch on areas and ideas I think need to be discussed.
I want to start with an idea that my father first brought to my attention, the immigrant factor. The U.S. is one of the few countries that has a huge number of immigrants from around the world. For whatever reason people want to live here, people from countries that play soccer/futbol/fusbol. A large portion of these immigrants are from Central and South America, immigrants who maintain strong cultural ties to their native homelands while embracing American culture. Part of their strong ties to home are through futbol, they continue to support their native home club and national teams while supporting their new home’s teams. Why then do we see so few immigrant players in MLS and on the National Team?
Part of the problem is that the US soccer system caters to the wealthier societal classes. Soccer in America is seen as a sport of the elite while in other countries futbol is seen more so as a sport of the ghetto. So in the US, players must play in expensive club teams and for top flight colleges, institutions that are monetarily outside the reach of most immigrants. In other countries, club teams have youth programs designed to scout for skilled youth that can be trained into the stars of tomorrow. They care only about skill, social standing doesn’t matter, they’re not trying to cater to anyone but the fan who demands skill, they also seem to like the “up from the ghetto” stories.
All of which align with the “Great American Dream” stories, but that is not how American sports work, we have a defined path of school based training and progression into the professional level. But perhaps we need to break that mold for soccer? Perhaps MLS and the USSF need to look at scouting and developing these players at their own cost. Perhaps an MLS with more “from the ghetto” stories will attract more fans, fans who feel more of a connection to the players while bringing in skilled players able to elevate the level of the game here. Perhaps? No, definitely. We need to open up American soccer to the immigrants, embrace the ideas that make soccer great in other countries and combine that with our expertise in fitness training.
19 comments on “The Future of American Soccer or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Illegal Immigration”
Love the title of your post! It is true,I think the future of soccer lies in the legs of the immigrant population. The US soccer bigwigs need to make it a more inclusive process. The introduction of Chivas into the MLS is a good sign.
I agree that club-based training from an earlier age is the key to developing young talent. In England, clubs can sign 14 year olds, I think. Then I suppose they take classes until they’re 16 before their education ends. The link between “education” (which is a loose one, given the behavior and lack of academic achievement among many NCAA athletes in the money sports), and athletic training is really frustrating in the US. You’re right that it hinders soccer development here. Do you think that immigrant parents might want their kids to get athletic scholarships and attend college even more than native-born Americans, though? The American dream for so many immigrants involves education.
Now that I think of it the education-sports link breaks down with tennis. Top players almost never go to college. They go to tennis academies and turn pro at a young age. The parents recognize that you lose your best years and get no competition in college. And tennis kids come from very upper middle class families. So it is possible to break that education-sports mentality. Maybe it can happen with soccer.
One way to bring young athletes from lower societal classes to soccer stardom would surely be through youth soccer clubs offering scholarships to those from the inner city. Though the astronomical yearly rates for these clubs makes it difficult for some to play high level youth soccer, these high fees give top-notch soccer clubs extra disposable income. Furthermore, the country’s top youth clubs such as Busch, FC Delco and the Greater Boston Bolts receive outside sponsorship. Some of this extra cash ought to be used to finance club fees and tournament trips for talented athletes who are less well off. Playing for these youth clubs will give talented inner city soccer players the coaching they need to develop and national exposure. From there, the directors of the national team program can be assured of seeing more of the soccer talent that America has to offer.
Okay, you guys got me in a lather.
First off, I still think we are being a bit alarmist. Soccer’s popularity in the US is increasing. And as this next generation ages it will accelerate. Is it not increasing fast enough? Is the goal to be more popular than baseball and football?
Second, I will say I resent the implications of the discussion of soccer as the sport of the elites. Soccer is popular in the suburbs because the PARENTS have made it so. It is through the effort of dozens and dozens of organizers, coaches and others who make it happen. It to blunt, parental involvement is not something the “ghetto” is known for.
The head of our league never played organized ball, but his three kids play. We have about 300 kids in our U8 (K-2nd grade) groups and every weekend we run over 50 games on Sunday. The effort to do that requires time and dedication among the parents.
The cost is not monetary; soccer is not the new “polo.”
If you have kids in the system you understand. If not, take some time on a Sunday and run by a suburban soccer complex. Your faith will be restored.
Tilam, I know that the parents are instrumental in organizing suburban leagues and introducing kids to the sport. When my daughter switched to a club, the fees (not including tournaments) were a bit over $1000 per year. Granted, this really isn’t a huge amount of money and it is true that serious competition in any sport these days involves training & club fees. I think what Steve was getting at had to do with getting truly talented players into some sort of training pipeline, at an early age, that did not lead to college-level competition.
Traveling club fees are just one barrier for inner-city kids, along with entrenched preferences for basketball & football. It would be tremendous if we could induce some of those young athletes to switch to soccer.
Tilam,
I’m not (read my previous comments here) sounding the alarm, I’m just trying to start conversation on ways to improve the state of soccer in America. Something we as Americans are prone to do, plan for improvement of our future. I understand change will take time, but when we have the ability to help that process along, improve the process, etc. we should at least discuss it.
Soccer is a sport of the elite in the minds of Americans. I’m not saying this is the reality of the situation. I think its fabulous that the suburbanites have flocked to soccer for their children for whatever reason, it puts a lot of money into soccer here that would otherwise not generate. But to imply that parents in the “ghetto” are lesser than their suburbanite counterparts is an insult. Hispanics have what can be argued as the strongest family structures in the world, and happen to make up a large portion of our immigrant population, many of whom live in the “ghettos”. Lack of income does not define parental involvement.
The cost is monetary for these people, many of whom work 2+ jobs to afford the minimal lifestyle they live, they cannot afford to send their children to expensive colleges, many live life on a high school diploma, as well they cannot afford the costs of the youth club system here. When was the last time one of the top 10 soccer universities offered a scholarship to a “poor, legal, Mexican immigrant with large promise as a soccer player”?
I’m not knocking what those that can afford the luxury do, only that as a section of society looking to improve the state of soccer, we are neglecting a wealth of talent because we refuse to look at what many consider the second class citizens.
As for the quality of play, I know the kids playing now are better than when I was their age. Look at the Joga3 US tournament clips on Google videos, I’m in awe of what some of these kids are doing, but note that (at least amongst the boys), the winners are of Hispanic descent, and may never have a shot at playing in the MLS when they grow older.
Tilam is right. Why does it have to be one or the other? I think soccer has this image problem. Even rugby was considered a sport for the priveleged British classes suitable for the kids in Eton, Harrow, and the top public schools. Now it is a working class sport. It takes time but the good thing is that we have this debate on.
I’m sorry if I implied the idea of it being one or the other, I have no problem with our current system, it works well for the most part in our other sports (ok, so Argentina is better at basketball and the Cubans at baseball). It would be great to bring these kids into the college system, get them a quality education while they advance their soccer career and move into the MLS.
Steve, you said in your post “[p]art of the problem is that the US soccer system caters to the wealthier societal classes.” That is simply BS. There is no “US soccer system” in the same sense as there is in Europe and SA.
In this country, prior to high school, there are community programs united under state youth systems, which fall under a national organization. (See http://www.usyouthsoccer.org) But this “system” does not identify talent, it just encourages play and promotes development. (The AAU is more of a “feeder” system in the European sense, but this gets into a much higher cost. There is also a vibrant “club teams,” but they are pricey as Susan points out.)
I also don’t buy the “colleges are out of reach for the poor” argument. Soccer is not under a different scheme then basketball or football, and there are plenty of underprivileged kids in those programs with full scholarships.
So let’s cut to the chase. How do you get urban blacks and Hispanics into the US soccer main stream? My suggestion would be for the city MLS teams, in conjunction with a corporate sponsor (Nike, Adidas, Puma, etc.), to focus on the middle schoolers. Why, because middle school does not have an entrench sports hierarchy and there is an opportunity to get kids interested.
There is a system, whether purposely organized or not it is a system. That system includes groups like AYSO and US Youth Soccer, but also includes club teams, high school, college, MLS, the USSF Youth National Teams, etc.
The only reason underprivileged kids get into college playing basketball or football is because they’ve been given scholarships to do so. While many of these kids may not have made it into college on grades anyway, some lacked the financial backing as well. I knew many kids in my high school that did well enough in school to place into a state school or even a private school but who did not have the financial ability to pay and were not deemed “good” enough to warrant a scholarship, some went to community college, some dropped out of the education system after getting their H.S. diploma. But soccer does not share this privilege at many schools. I’m not arguing that they should, that’s a matter of economics, I’m arguing that because of this effect, many kids are not able to enter the world that would lead them to play for MLS. Again, this ends up restricting the number of players in the pool of players that MLS looks at.
I do like your idea re: middle school though!
Okay, I think I understand your beef about the college system: you are not arguing that NO ONE will get in (even underprivileged kids), rather that the pool is too small to give the US enough top players. I agree with this.
A further point is that if you are a soccer player from, say, Yale (NCAA Final Poll #25); Brown (#18) or Duke (#8), your post-college options may include some very lucrative employment. This will further drain the talent pool.
There still needs to be a money “pull” in US soccer. And money only comes from paying fans attending games. For that you need talent, for telent you need money attracting them…and we are into the vicious circle.
Exactly!
I mention in a previous comment the way to get more money into the system is for ans to attend more MLS games. This is a subject for one of my next posts on this subject, so I’ll save it.
But we have come to an understanding =)
Until the MLS and USSF figures out how to fund talent development from early teenage through young adult on a broad, market-driven basis, we aren’t going to see any improvment in the talent pool.
Money drives development for all U.S. sports – for football and basketball the path is through the universities because those programs generate huge amounts of money for the top schools – the ones where the pre-pro players go.
Baseball is a bit different, as the professional league is far more involved in development, partially becuase its more of a skill game than Basketball or Football which means you need a larger talent pool (its much harder to determine the winners and losers compared to basketball or football prospects – John Kruk anyone?) which means that colleges can’t shoulder the sheer load of potential talents that need evaluation – and baseball isn’t a moneymaker at colleges – similar to soccer… so the minor leagues continue to be a primary way that talent sourcing and pre-pro development occurs after high school (whether or not you go through college)
Soccer will need a professioanl “minor leagues” or “club system” or “academy system” if it ever hopes to see enough athletic talents to find the best soccer players amongst us – and that has to come from team owners wanting to beat other team owners – and that are willing to spend the green necessary to fund a couple middle school club teams to get an early look at potential pro talents – but until the MLS abandons its pseudo socialist structure (which has worked well for keeping MLS from going under during the critical first phase of existance) – you aren’t going to get the incentive for MLS clubs to spend the money to develop the players (not to mention the screwy anti-incentives to making that investment that the current player allocation system works for MLS).
I guarantee the best U.S. soccer players aged 20-30 did not go to the World Cup… those guys were never found and are probably selling insurance or warming the bench for a AA baseball team…
What I would like to see occur is a relegation/promotion system employed for MLS and the other pro-level soccer clubs in the U.S. – that would provide an incentive for non-MLS teams to develop talent (either to sell to MLS or to use to pursue their promotion) as well as create an incentive for MLS teams to invest in player development in hopes of staying out of relegation….
for starters,its good to hear and read all this stuff.but to so many footballers like me coming from poor backgrounds,its still a dream that we ever get a chance of being spotted out or even get a football tryout.am not talking about getting a sponshorship but only requesting that this organisation gets links with Mls teams.so that us immigrants can cater for our transport costs and come and do tryouts with these teams under the organisation code.its as simple as that.we have the skill but luck links with top teams.thus given the chance to shine and show our skills,no one loses apart from us if we are not good enouge.together,lets make football grow.thanxz
for starters,its good to hear and read all this stuff.but to so many footballers like me coming from poor backgrounds,its still a dream that we ever get a chance of being spotted out or even get a football tryout.am not talking about getting a sponshorship but only requesting that this organisation gets links with Mls teams.so that us immigrants can cater for our transport costs and come and do tryouts with these teams under the organisation code.its as simple as that.we have the skill but luck links with top teams.thus given the chance to shine and show our skills,no one loses apart from us if we are not good enouge.together,lets make football grow.thanxz
for starters,its good to hear and read all this stuff.but to so many footballers like me coming from poor backgrounds,its still a dream that we ever get a chance of being spotted out or even get a football tryout.am not talking about getting a sponshorship but only requesting that this organisation gets links with Mls teams.so that us immigrants can cater for our transport costs and come and do tryouts with these teams under the organisation code.its as simple as that.we have the skill but luck links with top teams.thus given the chance to shine and show our skills,no one loses apart from us if we are not good enouge.together,lets make football grow.thanxz
Hello sir,
I’m requesting for an opportunity to be invited for this coming season free trial opening in your football club.I’m a nigeria 16yrs old my name is Yunana .R. Yohanna. I’m currently playing for Dallatu united football club.Sir i am a very vigorous talented young footballer and i have full enthusiasm for your football team in fact it is my dream to start my professional football career with your fc.Sir i will be anxiously waiting to hear from you soon.Thang you for your acumen.Below is my contact address and my picture.
c/o Rev. Yohanna Adebisi.(RTD) WO.
NO 4 SHAMAKI ROAD
U/GAR ROMI
KADUNA SOUTH
KADUN STATE
NIGERIA.
+234 (0) 803 663 0568.
Hello sir,
I’m requesting for an opportunity to be invited for this coming season free trial opening in your football club.I’m a Pakistani and i m 15 years old and my name is syed faheem uddin.Sir i am a very vigorous talented young footballer and i have full enthusiasm for your football team in fact it is my dream to start my professional football career with your fc.Sir i will be anxiously waiting to hear from you soon.thank you for your acumen.Below is my contact address. B_13, block 13_c,gulshan_e_iqbal Karachi,pakistan.
Hello sir,
I’m requesting for an opportunity to be invited for this coming season free trial opening in your football club.I’m a young talented Cameroonian and i am a very good striker and i m 15 years old and my name is nyamyea joseph temina.Sir i am a very vigorous talented young footballer and i have full enthusiasm for your football team in fact it is my dream to start my professional football career with your fc.Sir i will be anxiously waiting to hear from you soon.thank you for your acumen.Below is my contact address.
postal code:156
tel: 0023774409331
country: Cameroon
Region: south west region
street; Honesty street
Thanks .
Myregards to you F.c