A week prior to the start of the World Cup, I may have been able to name three players on the U.S. men’s national soccer team. And one of them would have definitely been Landon Donovan (oops).
Nevertheless, my lack of soccer knowledge didn’t stop me from cheering on the Red, White and Blue on Tuesday amid a throng of drunken spectators in The Rowdy Reptile.
I celebrated each of Tim Howard’s 16 saves. I groaned at Chris Wondolowski’s blunder in the 93rd minute. I screamed, “I believe that we will win,” along with my intoxicated brothers and I meant every word.
OK, so maybe I still can’t recite the Yanks’ starting lineup. Maybe I still call it a field instead of a pitch. Maybe I still call it soccer and not futbol. So what?
For the most part, soccer fan groups like the American Outlaws have been welcoming new followers of the game ever since the World Cup kicked off in June.
However, there is still a pretentious few calling out the bandwagon fútbol aficionados. What are you guys complaining about?
Landon Donovan, who was left off the U.S. roster for the World Cup, put his bitterness aside and encouraged the American public (the entire American public) to skip work and support its country by tuning in.
That’s what I did and, as a result, I learned to appreciate the sport and its players a lot more than I have in the past.
As frustrating as it might be for lifelong fans to see hoards of bandwagoners talk out of their asses about something they don’t really know much about, the result may soon be worth it.
Four years from now when the U.S. competes in Russia during the 2018 World Cup, many of today’s bandwagon fans may be veteran members of the American Outlaws.
The sport needs to grow somewhere and it’s up to the lifers to help integrate the newer followers into the fanbase to ensure the future popularity of the game.
Those who have been following the U.S. men’s national team before it was popular have the opportunity to lay the groundwork for soccer’s reputation in the upcoming years.
Many across the world got a glimpse of the crowds at Soldier Field in Chicago , the Power & Light District in Kansas City, Mo., and the Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C. And they liked what they saw, which was a youthful, rowdy mob of individuals banding together to cheer for their country.
So we might not live on soccer like other nations do, but when the time comes we know how to throw a party and support the Red, White and Blue. That sentiment will only grow as the years go by.
But even as an admitted bandwagon fan, I get upset when I see self-proclaimed zealots of U.S. soccer preach about aspects of the sport they really know nothing about (watch Jimmy Kimmel call out ignorant “fans” by asking them about Landon Donovan’s performance during this year’s World Cup).
If you just started watching soccer, admit it. You’re not impressing anyone by faking your way through a conversation. Every fan has got to start somewhere so admit you know nothing and work on it.
Do your research. Watch some matches. Jump on the bandwagon and get comfortable.
I’m in this for the long haul. How about you?
United States’ goalkeeper Tim Howard leaps over Omar Gonzalez to tip the ball away during the U.S.’ 2-1 loss to Belgium on Tuesday.
