Soccer star David Beckham recently decided to leave Spain’s Real Madrid and signed a five-year, $250 million contract with Major League Soccer’s Los Angeles Galaxy.
Internationally, this was a front-page story. The comings and goings of soccer players, especially well-known figures like Beckham, are big news in Europe, Asia and Africa.
But in the U.S., the story made few ripples. It was largely relegated to sports pages and, because of his wife Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham, entertainment sections.
Why? Many Americans just don’t get soccer. They view it as a low-scoring game where people chase a little ball in a huge stadium. They don’t understand the rules, don’t know the teams or players — including their own — and have no sense of the sport’s rich history.
That’s really unfortunate, especially considering the U.S. reached the semi-finals (1930) and quarter-finals (2002) of the World Cup, the most important soccer tournament there is, and hosted the 1994 tournament to boot.
Imagine how well the U.S. might do at soccer if it actually cared about the game. In fact, Americans might even discover that soccer is more than a sport. In many countries, it’s a way of life.
Soccer divides along racial and ethnic lines — and in local communities — with an intensity rarely seen in North America. The sport has also had a significant effect on political and economic institutions.
As author and soccer expert Franklin Foer once said, “With soccer … you have this long history of politicians from Franco to Mussolini to Margaret Thatcher commenting on the game. And when they do, they’re usually making some sort of explicitly political point.”
That’s why some governments have been tied to the success or failure of national soccer teams, while countries like Brazil have linked their economic fortunes directly to their soccer squad’s fortunes.
There is also real passion displayed in soccer matches. It often results in feelings of national pride and unadulterated pleasure over great plays or memorable goals. Soccer has even triggered explosions of violence and hooliganism.
Yes, Americans have witnessed these emotions in baseball, football and basketball. But this passion isn’t nearly as strong as the passion of most soccer fans. Having followed both soccer and North American sports, I can honestly tell you that soccer is a whole different ball game.
Also, soccer is a huge money-making sport. From a purely financial point of view, Americans are completely missing the boat.
Yet Beckham could help turn U.S. soccer into a profitable industry. Revenue could skyrocket from sales of shirts, hats and balls. There could be bidding wars for a lavish TV contract. Bigger and better soccer arenas could be constructed, thereby increasing financial opportunities for investors and builders and create more jobs.
This is what was briefly envisioned when soccer legend Pelé came out of retirement in 1975 and joined the NASL’s New York Cosmos. But the NASL was not in a financial position to heavily promote Pelé, and media outlets were still skeptical about soccer.
My feeling is that times are different, and soccer’s global reach and profitability could soar in the U.S. with Beckham’s arrival. While Pelé was more talented than Beckham, Beckham is a bigger ticket item than Pelé ever was. He and his wife will attract media attention, bring star appeal and potentially get more Americans watching soccer.
If that happens, the U.S. better get ready to “bend it” like Beckham since soccer will have a brand-new home to call its own.
Canadian Michael Taube is a huge supporter of British soccer club Liverpool FC. He can be reached at [email protected].
