The U.S. team's World Cup journey may be over, but it sure was fun while it lasted. If the 1994 World Cup was a game changer for futbol in the United States, so was 2014. Twenty years ago, the U.S. was just looking for a seat at the table. After this World Cup, simply being at the table isn't enough. This team is serious contenders and expects to be treated as such. Their rallying cry, after all, is "I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN."
One of the things Juergen Klinsmann said after the loss to Belgium was that the U.S. is indeed capable of winning the World Cup. This, of course, is the complete opposite of what he said prior to the tournament, for which he was publicly chastised. Well, guess what? He was right.
And it wasn't like Klinsmann lacked confidence in his team (which is what I think a lot of people thought at first). Rather, he didn't want expectations to get overly high. Who can blame him? The U.S. was in a very difficult group. Qualifying for the second round wasn't guaranteed. Well, they got out of the group and nearly won their Round of 16 game. These are rightfully viewed as achievements on which the U.S. can build.
Klinsmann made a complete 180 in his press conference after the Belgium game. He now believes that the U.S. is capable of winning the World Cup. And so does the rest of the world. The Americans aren't crashing the party anymore. They're invited guests. As he said about the draw for Group G, "They call it the 'Group of Death' because we're in it too." I agree. It's probably safe to say that none of the top teams want to see "United States" come up in their draw.
If there's one group that needs convincing that the U.S. is one of the big boys (or at least on the verge of becoming one), it might be the players themselves. Klinsmann's assessment of the team's play in the tournament was spot-on. Against Ghana they scored 30 seconds into the game, then sat back and defended for almost the entire game until Ghana tied the score, at which point they got aggressive again and ultimately won. Against Portugal, they didn't get aggressive until they were behind. Same thing against Germany. And they were lucky to get out of that Belgium game 0-0 after regulation, because if not for Tim Howard, that's a 3-0 loss. It was only after the Belgians scored twice in the first period of extra time that the Americans went on the offensive.
Each of the three European teams were allowed to dictate the pace. That's why Germany and Belgium ultimately won, and probably why Portugal was able to score in the final seconds to earn a tie. The Ghana game was the only one where the U.S. went in thinking it was the better team. Even though they were probably right, that mentality needs to change. Klinsmann said that they maybe gave their opponents too much respect. Once again, he was right.
For the U.S. to win the World Cup, whether it be in Russia or Qatar or some other time in the future, they can't do that. You're playing Germany? So what! You're playing Brazil? Bring it on! That's the approach they had in the 2009 Confederations Cup, when they beat No. 1-ranked Spain in the semifinals. If you want to be considered one of the best, you first have to consider yourself one of the best. I'm not sure the Americans did that in Brazil. In 2018, I guarantee they will.
This World Cup also represented a change for American soccer fans. The convenient time zone of Brazil certainly may be a factor, but ratings were off the charts for the four U.S. games. And what country had the greatest number of visitors travel to Brazil for the World Cup? That would also be the United States. Again, the fact that it's Brazil and it's convenient/easy to get there were probably big factors (I don't think they'll be lining up to go to Russia in four years, or as many people will be gathering in bars at 6 a.m. to watch games), but the enthusiasm this country showed for this team and this World Cup wasn't fake.
When FIFA granted the U.S. the World Cup 20 years ago, one of their hopes was that this country would turn into a soccer nation. Well, we're on the verge of that coming true. Soccer's never going to be as popular as the other football, but it's not just some passing curiosity either. Even if people were watching the games for no reason other than national pride, they were still watching the games. (Ratings for the World Cup have been higher than they were for the NBA Finals.) And they were still getting into them. Landon Donovan not making the team was a national story. Because people know who Landon Donovan is.
Of course, ESPN was hoping the ride would last a little longer. The World Cup has been a ratings bonanza, mainly because of Team USA. Now that the U.S. is out, will people keep watching? Some critics say "No." They think that people only cared about the World Cup because the Americans were doing well. I disagree. My optimistic guess is "Yes, people will keep watching." Because this World Cup has been Exhibit A as to why soccer is called the "beautiful game."
Most of all, I want to thank Team USA for the ride they took us on over the past two and a half weeks. This country feels a great amount of pride in their performance, and they deserve to hold their heads high. Without question, there were some casual "fans" who simply jumped on the bandwagon and are now going to jump off just as quickly. But not everyone. And those who get it (of whom there are plenty) couldn't be more satisfied with the showing. The only disappointment we feel is that it's over. We wanted more. We wanted Argentina.
I can't wait until 2018. Because if this is the start of a soccer renaissance, losing in the round of 16 at the next World Cup will be a disappointment. And that's a good thing. USA Soccer is here to stay. I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN! I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN! I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN!
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