When I was writing my first column earlier this semester, I was nervous that its subject, golf's President's Cup, wouldn't appeal to the early-adult masses here at Tufts. Sure, maybe I could garner the interest of a high-handicap professor, but I was worried about the kind of opening statement I was making. Would my writing be shunned because of its allegiance to the not-so-mainstream sports or celebrated for its diversity?
This topic is currently pertinent, as some of you may know, because this Sunday marks the tenth Major League Soccer Championship Game (MLS Cup) between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Boston's home team, the New England Revolution.
(I wonder how many of you knew that; probably slightly more than the amount of people who can name five WNBA teams. By the way, try to name five teams, my roommate and I just did and it was pretty good comedy).
And who can blame you? Unless you watch local Boston news, whose sports coverage, after discussing every other Boston team first, recaps the Revs, or are one of the few soccer diehards, you wouldn't know about the upcoming MLS Cup. Last Sunday, the day that the Revs extinguished the Chicago Fire to make the championship game, there was no trace of a soccer headline on ESPN.com's front page.
Soccer in America has been and continues to be an intriguing phenomenon. We've all heard that soccer is the most popular sport in nearly every other place in the world, but the same cannot be said for the United States.
As an example, a few weeks ago, fellow columnist Dave Pomerantz spoke of the enthusiasm and love for soccer in Prague. He was lucky enough to see a UEFA Champions League match, which is a tournament between the best European club teams.
Clearly, there is some interest in the sport because almost all of us play as children; 22 kids running in a pack, back and forth across a field. Even now, many of us still chase after the ball, playing in Tufts' popular intramural leagues.
In addition, college soccer is big, as evident by the number of Jumbos who witnessed firsthand our women's soccer team, ranked ninth nationally in Div. III, vie for the NESCAC title on Sunday.
So what's the problem? For the creators of the MLS, they saw the void of a competitive professional American league and the lack of American stars as prohibiting soccer from growing here like it does abroad.
Over the past decade, however, the MLS has struggled to remain afloat and gain popularity. The hope that improved quality of play and new, soccer-only stadiums would bring fans has worked only moderately. Last's year's MLS Cup was attended by one thousand fewer fans than the 2003 MLS Cup, even though they were held at the same stadium.
That's not to say the MLS Cups have been disappointing. The 2001 and 2002 games went to overtime, the 2003 Cup featured two goals by one of America's best known stars, Landon Donovan, and, in last year's title, D.C. United survived a man disadvantage for most of the second half to win its fourth championship.
In New England, traditionally a place with a solid fan base, there is definite cause to tune into the Revolution. The Revs have the league's top goal scorer and MVP finalist in Taylor Twellman, last year's Rookie of the Year in Clint Dempsey, this year's Rookie of the Year in Michael Parkhurst, were the Eastern Conference's top seed, and just completed their fourth consecutive trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. Sunday, they hope to take the next step by winning their first ever title.
But not every team in the MLS is so fortunate. League officials were very excited before this season about the arrival of Freddy Adu, the teenage phenom born in Ghana who is supposed to be the savior of American soccer. Also, the MLS introduced two new franchises, one in Salt Lake City and one named Chivas USA in Southern California, hoping to capitalize in the latter location on a soccer-appreciative Latino population.
But after Adu's first games he started sitting on the bench, eventually complaining about playing time, and the two new teams were by far the worst in the league. And, as usual, general interest in the MLS fizzled.
While the MLS still has trouble, there is some hope for American soccer. The last World Cup in 2002 saw the U.S. squad surprisingly advance to the quarterfinals. That match against Germany brought America's highest ever soccer TV ratings, despite a time difference that started the game at 7:30 a.m. on the east coast.
Now, heading into the 2006 World Cup, FIFA currently has the U.S. ranked 7th in the world. There is also a new television deal in place with ABC/ESPN for the event, indicating more coverage.
Hopefully, the MLS and the efforts of the American team in 2006 will one day pay off, bringing soccer out from the U.S. sports shadows. And if not, oh well, at least now you know there's a game this weekend.
Ben Swasey is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. He can be reached at Benjamin.Swasey@tufts.edu.
