"Like all children, I wanted to be a soccer player. I played quite well, in fact I was terrific, but only at night when I was asleep. During the day I was the worst wooden leg ever to set foot on the little soccer field of my country. Years have gone by and I’ve finally learned to accept myself for who I am: a beggar for good soccer. I go about the world, hand outstretched, and in the stadiums I plead: “A pretty move, for the love of God.” And when good soccer happens, I give thanks for the miracle and I don’t give a damn which team or country performs it." Taken from Eduardo Galeno's Soccer in Sun and Shadow

For week 7 of the class, our assignments focused on the development of both the men’s and women’s game in the United States.  The game moved from ethnic gatherings to the mainstream in the 20th century and culminated with the hosting of the World Cup and establishment of another domestic league. The women have been at the forefront of women’s soccer, espeically at the international level but have found maintaining a viable league a much harder propsition.  We did not have to comment on the assignment for the class blog.  Instead, one of our final essay questions addressed these topics.

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Week 7 Readings:

Matthew Struttner, Charles Parrish, John Nauright, “Making Soccer ‘Major League’ in the USA and Beyond: Major League Soccer’s First Decade”

Gary Hopkins, “The ‘Business’ of Youth Soccer,” in Star-Spangled Soccer (2010), pp. 218-232

Gwendolyn Oxenham, “Brincadeira: The Fearless Joy of futbol feminino in Brazil,” XI Quarterly1, 2 (2012): 36-49

Sam Borden, “A U.S. Soccer Star’s Declaration of Independence,” New York Times, April 10, 2013

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Here is the Final Question and my answer for this material:

Using course materials, write an essay that discusses three key factors fueling this recent growth in popularity and then identifies the two main challenges to long-term development of soccer in this country.

The Beautiful Game in the United States has come a long way in the last 25 years.  With the qualification for the 1990 World Cup, the hosting of the 1994 World Cup and the establishment of a domestic league, the game seems primed to be a permanent part of the American sporting landscape for the foreseeable future.  Several factors have contributed to the rise of the game, yet soccer in America faces many challenges in the future.

The NASL folded in 1984 and, while this created another vacuum in the professional game, youth and college soccer grew exponentially and moved the game to closer to the mainstream (Alegi video 7).  According to Gary Hopkins, “Participation has leveled off at an impressive 16-17 million players per year” (Hopkins 218), which makes it one of the top three youth participation sports (Hopkins 229).  The growth and development of youth soccer has created a pipeline of players for the college, semi-pro and professional level, and these young players are part of the fan base for the MLS and National Team support.

Speaking of the MLS, the league kicked off their 18^th season in March of 2013 and the word being bandied about was stability.  Learning lessons from the failure of the NASL—over expansion,  poor media coverage, lack of television coverage and a lack of soccer specific stadiums (Alegi video 7)—the league adopted a single entity structure and divided the financial contribution of the owner-investors (Struttner, Parrish, Nauright 3-4).  But not everything has been perfect for the league.  Contraction of teams and a lack of a broad television presence were early concerns.  Expansion efforts since the early 2000’s have been well executed and have expanded the geographic and media scope of the league, with the Pacific Northwest and Canada bringing different elements of the game.  In terms of television “local and regional media outlets increasingly carried matches” and rights were sold to NBC for the 2012 campaign (Struttner, Parrish, Nauright 12).

Other key assets of the league have been a passionate supporter culture and soccer specific stadia.  In grounds around the country, supporters are organizing and showing up to games with a fervor not seen in this country before. Tifos, chants, and flags dominate supporter sections, creating palpable advantages for home teams and establishing an atmosphere that is something to behold.  This has been aided by smaller, compact stadia built over the years.  Starting with the Columbus Crew at the turn of the century, 14 of the 19 MLS teams have a soccer only home (Alegi video 7), and these structures have led to the league overcoming some of the shortcomings of American football stadiums (Struttner, Parrish, Nauright 5).

Finally, soccer is growing in this country because fans have more access to the game.  The US is developing a soccer pyramid that, while not integrated, brings the game to more people.  Smaller semi-pro teams give fans outside major media markets a taste of live futbol.  Visit Cass Tech for a Detroit City Football Club game to experience a true match day, complete with a march to the game, fervent supporters and even hokey halftime contests.  Not only can fans engage the game in person, but, due to rapid developments in internet technology and financial investments in television contracts, matches can be seen from all over the world all weekend long.  Gone are the days of mere highlight packages and brief match reports.  Starting at 7:30am on a Saturday morning, games from South America, especially Brazil and Argentina, and Western Europe are on throughout the day on a variety of TV and internet platforms.  With the advancements of broadcast technology, these matches can be viewed in HD from a plethora of devices.  Want a break from the EPL?  Check out an Eredivisie game on WatchESPN or a La Liga game on beIN Sport or a Brazilian match on GolTV.

Unfortunately this copious amount of access to other leagues is one of the challenges that the game in the United States has to overcome as well.  US soccer must figure out a way to turn the millions of youth participants into long term fans.  In the chapter about the first decade of the MLS, mention was made of teams making a conscious effort to engage young fans (Struttner, Parrish, Nauright 8), and these efforts will need to continue as the American soccer fan can have so much contact with other leagues.  Two points to consider.  If little Johnny gets up for the early morning EPL kick off and then watches the 9:30am Bundesliga offering before heading off to his local soccer game, will he sit back down in front of the TV for the MLS Game of the Week later that night?  Or will his parents let him?  There is also the quality factor.  US soccer fans can watch high level soccer from all over the world.  Some will not settle for mediocre MLS games and that drives down attendance and TV numbers.

Moving the US soccer participant into the US soccer fan leads to the sponsorship issue.  Sponsors must be convinced that their advertising dollars will be worth the investment.  Attendance numbers for the MLS have been very healthy on average but the TV viewership numbers have been anemic at best.  Several networks have shelled out money but there is still much room for growth in this area.  Bigger TV contracts mean higher salary caps, this leads to higher player wages, which means the game is more attractive to the US athlete.

Another major challenge to the US game is attitude.  Whereas the rest of world predominantly draws their talent from poor kids looking for a way out (Hopkins 226), the US talent base is middle class suburban children looking for a college scholarship (Hopkins 226).  This difference is key.  For most Americans soccer is just something to fill the time between another sport (Hopkins 219), and even for the serious player, Hopkins makes the case that they are “over-coached and over-organized” (Hopkins 229).  This is in contrast to the pick-up culture around the world, where kids play and play and play, developing their games.  Gwendolyn Oxenham examines this in her contribution to XI Quarterly, telling of training sessions that last hours in all manner of conditions.  She also brought attention to the brincadeiras, moments of “half-game, half performance” where players “played for joy” (Oxenham 42), and exhibited “a style of life that was part joy, part energy, part fearlessness” (Oxenham 48).

While American soccer lags behind South America and Europe in terms of club and international success, great strides have been made in the last 25 years.  High rates of youth participation generate future players and fans; a developing domestic league is following the path of strong and steady growth; this growth has been illustrated in soccer specific stadia and emerging supporter culture; and due to more domestic teams at all levels, television exposure and internet technology, fans can access an ample amount of games from around the world.  However, there are still hurdles to be overcome, namely turning young fans into supporters of the American game and re-shaping the attitude of the American player from functional component to joyful artist.  The resources in this country—population, finances, and technology—are boundless.  Now for the next step.

For week 6 of the class, our assignments foucsed on the African aspects of World Cup 2010–economic, sporting and political.  The podcast assigned was particuarly interested in terms of the financial and footballing impact of the game in South Africa.

Week 6 Readings:

Alegi and Bolsmann, Africa’s World Cup , pp. 21-30, 42-51, 99-108, 132-147, 159- 167, 189-199, 219-234

AUDIO: Africa Past and Present Podcast, Episode 43, July 2010, “Reflections on Africa’s First World Cup”

Here is my full post for the class blog:

Soccer has a long history in Africa, and the 20^th century saw the game move from a local event to a global presence.  Africans who had been colonized used the game as a way to break free of their oppressors and create their own countries and identities (video lecture).   As the game progressed on the continent, players started to leave their native countries for fame and fortune in Europe.  By the beginning of the 21^st century, South Africa had been awarded the 2010 World Cup, which despite heavy influence from FIFA and other issues was a month glimpse into a new, unified, and economically viable South Africa (podcast).

Many of the chapters discussed how the hosts, visitors and participating countries interacted with each other and with the tournament.  Uruguay based themselves in Kimberly and this location allowed them to build a team spirit which saw La Celeste make the semifinals (Alegi Bolsmann 132-147).  English fans who attended the tournament found a much different event than the one presented in the media and that matches can be much bigger than the 90 minutes (Alegi Bolsmann 159-167).  For the hosts themselves, Roberts and Bass surveyed Durban before and during the World Cup to examine what impact the competition had on the city (Alegi Bolsmann 42-51).

Craig Waite’s chapter on the development of the game in Ghana was particularly interesting.  The country was a leading light in terms of Africanism and using the game to promote political and sporting interests.  The efforts of Nkrumah and Djan (Alegi Bolsmann 101-106) laid the foundations for future success, particularly at the 2010 World Cup.  What the chapter did not mention was the authoritarian aspect of Nkrumah’s government.  The video lecture for this week briefly mentioned this component, which is an area for further investigation as Waite painted a relatively positive image of Nkrumah’ s reign and its efforts to integrate Ghana into Africa and the rest of the world

Another feature of the chapter that interested me was the role and nationality of the national team coach.  As the team moved from amateur to professional, a full time coach was needed, and Ghana opted for a European, English to be specific, in George Ainsley (Alegi Bolsmann 104).  From there the country continued hiring foreign coaches before sending Ghanaians out to learn the game and return with European methods and techniques (Alegi Bolsmann 105).  Reading about this progression, thoughts turned to the recent US coaches.  Bob Gansler took a group of college and amateur players to Italy in 1990. I was always assumed Gansler was American, but he was born in Hungary and came to the US when he was 10. In high school, he joined the Bavarian Soccer Club, which assisted his transition to US culture (information from Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel interview).  He made five appearances for the Men’s National Tem in the 60’s and progressed through the coaching ranks at the high school and college level before taking the Under 20’s in 1987. He became the National team coach in 1989.

Gansler was replaced by Bora Milutinovic in order to produce a worthy host team for 1994. Bora was from Yugoslavia and played in Europe (Yugoslavia and France) before moving to Mexico.  After a several jobs at club and international level, he was hired as the US coach after leading Costa Rica to the 1990 Second Round and led the team until 1995.

From there the US returned to homegrown talent in Sampson, Arena and Bradley before finally getting the man the USSF had been craving—Jurgen Klinsmann.  Time will tell if the former German international can lead this country to success.

Africa has much to provide the world’s game—players, culture, new locations—and has made steps to join other regions at the table.  It will be fascinating to see what the continent can offer over the next hundred years.

For week 5 of the class, our assignments examined how the game progressed from a game to a sport to a global event, with tournaments being used as poltical platforms and marketing events for corporate sponsors.  We also read on the ground reports from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Week 5 Readings:

David Goldblatt, “The FIFA World Cup and its Impact on Global History and Culture,” keynote address, FIFA World Cup conference, Zurich, April 25, 2013

Alegi and Bolsmann, Africa’s World Cup , pp. 1-17, 61-69, 87-95, 119-131, 148-158, 168-175, 210-218

Here is my full post for the class blog:

The readings this week fused the topics of the opening four weeks—the development of the game, the many expressions of fan culture, and the globalization of the sport—using the most recent World Cup as a platform.  The game is no longer a leisure activity or a local club of friends and co-workers but, as our authors show us, has become a worldwide corporate event filled with fans and sponsors and natives of the host countries.  The game is also a source of optimism for everyone involved.

Goldblatt’s draft dives into the progression of the game at the international level while keeping the supporter element close to the surface of the discussion.  Each tournament has its own story and he provides a brief overview from the early twentieth century Olympics to the 2010 World Cup (Goldblatt section II).  Along the way, international competitions became something more than just a sporting event—attempts at national rebranding, political platforms for the ruling governments and evangelistic festivals for the game.  At the same time, fan support is a key component of any tournament, as Goldblatt states at the end of section I, “. . . there is no spectacle without us; without a public that is prepared to invest emotional energy in the playing of a game there is no glamour and no glory.”  From there he makes the case in section III that tournaments always have “smaller, intersecting stories” to tell, and these moments are what give texture, context and ultimately legacy to the competitions.

The selections from the book expand on this theme in interesting, authentic and personal ways. Most of these were on the ground accounts of the tournament, how the venues looked, how the hosts and visitors interacted at the competition, and how South Africa can build a legacy going forward.  Tales of the literal and metaphorical use of the vuvuzela (Doyle 67-68), the FIFAland experience (Hernandez 168-173) and Americans abroad (Guest 148-151) enriched my sense of the tournament beyond the United States losing in the second round and Spain lifting the trophy.

Focusing on Laurent Dubois’ essay, many of the elements found in Fever Pitch resurfaced—the analysis of a fan, the game day interaction, the match itself.   Throughout the selection, he asks why do we follow this game?  Surely not the result, but as Dubois and the rest of the writers shared, the game provides glimpses into communities both together and opposed, moments of glory and disappointment and the match day—the crowds, roars and the interactions experienced before, during and after the game.  These flashes give the fan a taste and this taste continues to draw the fan in match after match.

And the next match is just around the corner.  Brazil are making final preparations to their stadiums and infrastructure, yet the previous hosts are still sorting out their legacy.  South Africa continues to strive to be a growing power, the World Cup giving them a brief boost to build on the momentous events of early 1990’s but there is still much work to be done. Yet a tournament of this magnitude can provide that hope:

I was really worried about 20 years of democracy.  I’m not so worried any more.  I’d always thought that nationhood and non-racialism were evaporating dreams, and in fact I see they can still be made tangible and real. Ferial Haffajee, editor of City Press newspaper in Johannesburg (Guest 155)

For week 4 of the class, our assignments examined elements from the game in South America, including the rise of the Brazilian National Team after failing in 1950; the fusion of politics and football in Argentina via the Barras Bravas; and wonderful stories of the Uruguyan teams in the 30’s and 50’s.

Week 4 Readings:

• Tony Mason, “The Reign of Pelé,” in Passion of the People (1995), 77-95 
• Vic Duke and Liz Crolley, “Fútbol, Politicians and the People: Populism and Politics in Argentina,” International Journal of the History of Sport 18: 3 (2001): 93-116
• Eduardo Galeano, Soccer in Sun and Shadow, pp. 44-57, 85-90 

Hers is my full post for the class blog:

On the topic of South American futbol, there were three very different readings assigned this week.

Tony Mason’s chapter on Pele was unorganized but insightful.  From the outset, Maradona is mentioned with a snippet included from Le Monde (77).  Why? The title of section is The Reign of Pele.  Then in the author’s account of the 1954 World Cup he starts with the semi-final instead of the quarter final (82-83).  After taking readers all the way through the 1958 World Cup, Mason then retraces Pele’s origins (86-88), including his rise to Santos and his many achievements at the club.  The author ends the chapter with a cursory comparison with Maradona (94-95), which surely deserved its own chapter and much more depth.  Despite all that, Mason provides interesting tidbits that usually escape the World Cup summaries I have read to this point.  For instance, at home for the 1950 World Cup, there was a chance that Brazil would not even make it out of its opening group (78), potentially more devastating than losing the Final, but a victory over Yugoslavia put the hosts through.  Mason goes into great detail about the brutal calendar that Pele and Santos had to maintain during their peak, playing over 1200 games in 14 years (87-89), numbers that seem incomprehensible today.  Finally, there were anecdotes about Pele’s reception worldwide as his fame grew (92-93), serving as templates for today’s celebrity creating society covered by 24/7 cable news networks.

In contrast Duke and Crolley covered a lot of ground in a highly organized chapter on the development of futbol in Argentina.  The authors expanded on two main topics—the relationship between futbol and politics and the maturity of sport in the country.  In our week two readings, we learned that clubs in England were formed typically around workplaces, churches or pubs, and there was a sense of local pride. Similarly in Argentina, as the immigrants and natives took over the game from the English who brought it to the region, clubs in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries centered around the barrios or neighborhoods and “played an important role in the social and political life of the barrio where they were based” (97).  Fan culture eventually rose around these clubs, and I was struck by the nature and power of the Barras Bravas.  For years I have heard Tim Vickery talk about these groups on the World Football Phone In, but reading these pages (107-114), I was stunned to discover the depth of their influence.  Whereas last week we read about acts of violence by English hooligans before, during and after matches, violence that seemed to rise from economic and class conditions, the Barras Bravas not only did this but went further, acting as political agents for presidents or officials (108), committing covert activities for the club (109), and impacting player performance of the club that the fans are supporter (111).

Finally, Galeano’s book is simply one of the best soccer books I have ever read.  The pages were not an assignment but rather a treat, as the Uruguayan’s prose entertained, informs and inspires.  Reading the passages it was impossible to take notes because I was drawn into the fantasy and wonder of the moments he describes such as the ringlets, summaries of the 1930 and 1950 World Cups, and the player Obdulio.  There is something almost mystical about his prose—religious, supernatural, unattainable—which puts it into stark contrast today of modern writing, full of stats and greatest ever moments and constant analysis.