By now I am sure that everyone has seen or heard that the United States will be playing England in their World Cup opener on June 12, 2010. I recently came across a really good article at Match Fit USA that describes some of the history lessons we will be getting in the build up to this epic match. If you have a short memory then you may remember in May of 2008, the USA played England at the new Wembley stadium. It wasn’t a particularly memorable match so you would be forgiven if it slipped your mind. In short, John Terry and Steven Gerrard helped England to a 2-0 win.
Flash forward 19 months and we arrive at the World Cup draw that took place on Friday which paired the Americans with the English. This was great news. The news got even better when the rest of the draw revealed Algeria and Slovenia closed out the group. The USA will be reaping the benefits of this game before a single ball is kicked and hopefully long after as well. The MLS will receive a timely boost in exposure as more and more people tune in as we gear up to the start of the tournament. The USA media will have a field day pitting Beckham against Donovan which could have implications for the actual game. This match also foreshadows a potential battle that could take place when both the United States and England look to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.
The 2010 MLS season is slated to kick off on Thursday, March 25, 2010. The opening match will pit the new expansion team the Philadelphia Union against the paradigm of expansion the Seattle Sounders. The MLS will surely be using the World Cup to garner excitement for the new season. It would be foolish not to attempt to try and increase the league brand. Two days after the opening match the L.A. Galaxy will be playing and you can bet their will be a halftime segment on FSC about Beckham vs. Donovan. There will be 77 days between the Galaxy opener and the USA vs. England match and that gives the MLS plenty of time to get more people into the stadiums and more viewers through television. This match gives the new expansion team Philadelphia an easy boost as well as possibly give those teams that are struggling in terms of recognition, such as the New England Revolution, a much needed platform to try and build on their current fan base. This match gives the US soccer scene a boost that can only be accomplished every four years.
The 2010 MLS season is slated to kick off on Thursday, March 25, 2010. The opening match will pit the new expansion team the Philadelphia Union against the paradigm of expansion the Seattle Sounders. The MLS will surely be using the World Cup to garner excitement for the new season. It would be foolish not to attempt to try and increase the league brand. Two days after the opening match the L.A. Galaxy will be playing and you can bet their will be a halftime segment on FSC about Beckham vs. Donovan. There will be 77 days between the Galaxy opener and the USA vs. England match and that gives the MLS plenty of time to get more people into the stadiums and more viewers through television. This match gives the new expansion team Philadelphia an easy boost as well as possibly give those teams that are struggling in terms of recognition, such as the New England Revolution, a much needed platform to try and build on their current fan base. This match gives the US soccer scene a boost that can only be accomplished every four years.
One thing the U.S. and England already have in common is a thirst for tabloid fodder. To be fair I think the U.S. is tame compared to the English tabloids. That doesn’t negate the fact that the media in both countries will be in overdrive. Earlier this year the media had a field day with the short lived Donovan/Beckham feud. I expect this feud to be hyped up again only this time it will probably mostly be fabricated. If the United States can post a win against England than it will be hailed as the greatest victory probably since 1950 by the American media. Even if the match ends in a draw I anticipate the media to be much nicer to us than they were in 2006 with our awful showing. That is the complete opposite of what will be happening across the pond. Anything but a win against the Americans will be deemed a failure. Many of the pundits over there feel that if they can’t beat us then they don’t deserve to win the competition. While I do think they have the better team on paper, all that goes out of the window on match day. Remember this is an England team that, although seeded, failed to qualify for the Euro Cup as recently as last year. As long as the U.S. shows up and plays well, no matter the result of this one game, then I anticipate the American news stories to be favorable. Especially if we progress to the knockout stages anyway. The England team will be crucified at any result short of a ‘W’ no matter the outcome of the rest of their matches. This gives us a great advantage mentally. The U.S. typically does well when labeled the underdog and I can see that trend continuing.
The result, the boost to Major League Soccer, and the overall boost to American soccer could lead to a successful bid for the 2018/2022 World Cups. The United States is thought to be competing against other big nations such as Australia, Portugal and England. To think that this one match could help push the bid from a hopeful plea to a real life dream is probably borderline delusional, however, the after effects of this match and a successful run in the World Cup could prove beneficial. Part of the hopes for the ‘Beckham Experiment’ is to increase the awareness of soccer here in America as well as around the rest of the globe. Well if he is still here in the U.S. for the next few years he may be undermining the English bid. Which is fine by me as I would love to get a chance to enjoy the World Cup here in America again. The England bid is helped by the fact that they already have a plethora of soccer ready stadiums to hold all of the games. This shouldn’t hurt the U.S. bid because of two reasons. We already have held a successful World Cup here once. The other reason is that every summer we have the top teams from Europe come and play their pre-season games here. If necessary we can use football stadiums such as the Georgia Dome or the Dallas Cowboy’s new stadium which both hosted successful matches in terms of attendance this past summer. Another positive for the England bid is the English Premier League. Quite possibly the biggest and most popular sports league in the world. On the flip side we have the MLS. A league that is not exactly known around the world for housing the best soccer. In fact, check out another Match Fit USA article that touches on the attitude towards our own league and our attempts to host the World Cup in 8 years time.
The MLS, American soccer, and our chances of hosting the World Cup could all benefit drastically from a successful run in this 2010 World Cup. The media will play a big role in it. If we have a good run, like in the Confederations Cup or like Melodie Oudin in the U.S. Open tennis tournament this past summer, we could show the great strides that American soccer have made since 1994 when we last hosted the tournament.
The MLS, American soccer, and our chances of hosting the World Cup could all benefit drastically from a successful run in this 2010 World Cup. The media will play a big role in it. If we have a good run, like in the Confederations Cup or like Melodie Oudin in the U.S. Open tennis tournament this past summer, we could show the great strides that American soccer have made since 1994 when we last hosted the tournament.
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