Attention American soccer lovers: The arrival of David Beckham to the United States is a great thing. It is the steal of one of Europe’s greatest stars to America’s most star studded city. It doesn’t get any bigger for the MLS. It marks the first time other than the World Cup that I can recall major sports websites and television stations having soccer as the number one story. Beckham has it all; the good looks, athletic prowess, and pop star wife. He is as can’t miss as it gets.
His arrival to the states though does not matter.
Basketball, baseball, and football are the backbone of American athletics.
Despite this monumental day in United States soccer, do not expect to see the world’s most popular game take center stage in America. American sports fans are creatures of habit and routine. We are what we’re taught. And just as our dads grew up watching baseball, so did their dads. Soccer in America has merely been a slow heartbeat for a few years. Some would say it started when Pele arrived in New York to play a few seasons with the Cosmos in the mid 70’s, or perhaps when the U.S. hosted the World Cup in 1994 and the Americans advanced to the second round. Kids in Washington D.C. grow up with the Redskins, not D.C. United, just as kids in Denver grow up with the Broncos, not the Rapids. The fact remains simple. Kids will follow the team passed down to them. Unfortunately for the MLS, the arrival of Beck’s – although celebrated – is not enough to spark nationwide interest and support for soccer. Until the day comes where American sports fans are willing to conform and accept the world’s game as one of its own, its fate will remain the same.
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