After competing against dozens of teams from across the globe, the United States women’s national soccer team defeated the Netherlands 2-0 on Sunday to win the Women’s World Cup. It’s official: These women have won a rare bipartisan, proud moment for the country.
The team earned praise from President Trump, former President Barack Obama, and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton alike. And in the run up to the final game, officials estimated there would be one billion global viewers over the duration of the tournament.
With the hardcore support and excitement the teams brought their respective countries, the World Cup tournament has shown how positive nationalism can be a good and healthy for a country.
Nationalism is defined as “loyalty and devotion to a nation,” but the ideology still gets a bad rap. But it really shouldn’t, as the women’s team’s win shows the unifying power of positive nationalism. Although our country remains divided along political lines in many ways, the women’s soccer team still garnered massive support. Millions of Americans rooted for the team and wanted them to win.
World Cup success is also likely a strong source of American pride, as evidenced by a recent Gallup poll. It found that 73% of the country says America’s sporting achievements make them proud. A World Cup victory would fit perfectly into this category.
As the U.S.’s women’s team exemplified, this positive nationalism is civic, inclusive, and based on ideas and principles. This is a stark contrast to ethno-nationalism, often conflated with nationalism, which is exclusionary and based on the false notion that different countries “belong” to people of certain ethnicities.
But the women’s team was composed of people of different races and sexual orientations, while members hailed from different parts of the country and presumably, don’t all agree politically. Even so, they had a large American fan base as they worked to promote their sport in the country and advance further into the tournament.
As Sen. Marco Rubio pointed out back in November, American nationalism is not racial but rather centers around the “belief that all people are created equal, with God given rights.”
American Nationalism isn’t racial nationalism b/c American isn’t a race.
As Reagan said, unlike other nations, “Anybody from any corner of the world can come to America to live & become an American”
Our identity is belief that all people are created equal,with God given rights
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) November 16, 2018
This type of nationalism is not the same as the white nationalists who chanted Nazi-associated phrases such as “blood and soil” and “Jews will not replace us” at the now famous white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. It’s an important distinction to make, because race-based nationalism of any kind is fundamentally un-American. It is in direct conflict with the principles on which our country stands.
Real nationalism is when Americans love their country, respect others, and want what is best for their countrymen. True nationalists also believe in the principles set forth by the Founding Fathers and the Constitution.
Americans should all want to see the country succeed — just as they want a World Cup team or an Olympic athlete to succeed. Unfortunately, that is not the case across the board, as only 73% of Americans wanted to see President Trump succeed before he was sworn into office. No matter what you think of his politics, that figure is jarring and disturbing.
If more international sports victories could spark more positive nationalism in America, that would be great. However, wanting what is best for the country and standing for its principles should be a year-round occurrence — not just when we win something.
Tom Joyce (@TomJoyceSports) is a freelance sports writer.
