Amidst a height in popularity, American soccer is in crisis
- Matthew Klimberg
Following inconsistent play after the 2014 World Cup and opening qualifying losses to Mexico and Costa Rica, US Men's National Team manager Jurgen Klinsmann was relieved of his duties in favor of the American coaching legend Bruce Arena. Sunil Gulati, head of the USSF since 2006, thought the man who led the Americans to the 2002 World Cup quarterfinals could lead them back this year. He was wrong, and both need to go.
The lack of a World Cup next summer is a systematic failure at multiple levels of American soccer. The obvious blame falls on the players, apart from superstar Christian Pulisic, who just did not get the job done. However, despite soccer's increased popularity, children across America find it difficult to start playing. That falls on Gulati.
In America, parents of children must pay thousands of dollars each year to send their kids to academies. Soccer in the United States, unlike the rest of the world, is for affluent families only. As a result, top young athletes pick up basketballs instead of soccer balls. That's on Gulati, who has championed this profiteering model.
Over the last six years, the US men's failures have been plenty. Since 2011, the US has missed the U17 World Cup, the U20 World Cup, two Olympics, and now a senior World Cup.
Although Gulati's election for the USSF president is set for next year, Gulati should do the right thing and step down immediately to let someone else with fresh ideas into the fold. However, with the US on the verge of winning the rights to co-host the 2026 World Cup, it's unlikely the powers-that-be will demand change, despite the prevailing opinion among US soccer fans.
After the match, neither Gulati nor Arena seemed particularly interested in making changes. "Gulati:" You do not make wholesale changes on a ball that is two inches wide or two inches in ... We'll look at everything, "Gulati said.
Such a sentiment should disturb American soccer fans. This was not about missing a goal by a matter of inches, this was about a federation unable to perform its most basic charge. The words spoken by Arena after the match are just as, if not more, disturbing. "There's nothing wrong with what we're doing."
Fortunately for American soccer fans, they have the 2019 Women's World Cup to look forward to. Unlike their men, the women rarely, if ever, disappoint.