Will You Watch Soccer the Next Four Years?

Today, in front of possibly a billion sports enthusiasts and fans, Spain defeated the Netherlands 1-0.
 

A fitting end to an exciting 2010 World Cup hosted by South Africa, Spain's Andres Iniesta broke through with the game's only goal of the 116th minute of the World Cup.  Iniesta, blasted a shot past the Dutch goal-keeper from 8 yards out to give Spain the lead and the ultimately the country's first ever World Cup title. 

The goal sealed the deal for the Spaniards in a grueling final that saw 14 yellow cards, including 2 for Dutchman John Heitinga in the 109th minute which put the Netherlands down a player which basically was their demise. 

Despite the intense Final and the inspiring run by the American team with their improved play, will Soccer start to gain popularity among American sports fans?  Will anybody watch or care about soccer during the next 4 years, or will we wait until the next World Cup tournament to care about the world's most popular sport? 

I think Soccer will gain some traction, and here is why...

1. The horns are only temporary!

Known as vuvuzelas, these instruments have been the talk of tournament among most casual soccer fans.  And casual soccer fans have every right to be annoyed by deafening noise that these simple instruments produced.  The great thing is that vuvuzelas are primarily are only popular among South Africa Soccer fans. 

Don't worry, you won't turn on a MLS match or a contest between Manchester United and Chelsea of the English Premier League and hear the annoying buzz that sounds like angry mosquito's looking for blood. 

Vuvuzelas will disappear, thankfully.  And new Soccer fans can enjoy the raucous chants and cheers that traditional fans of the sport often sing from the stands.  Much more entertaining. 

2. Americans will continue to improve!

Landon Donovan's progression over the past 8 years from being a young rookie on the pitch to one of the most recognizable faces of the sport gives hope to Americans that yes we will have our own stars in this foreign sport. 

Not only do we have Donovan to lean on as the face of American soccer, but we also have Tim Howard, widely known as a top 5 goaltender in the entire WORLD!

As the American soccer program continues to develop young talent (see Jozy Altidore and Robbie Findley), more and more people will continue to be drawn to the developing American side, that plays with grit and determination, and maybe, just maybe, can have a set of forwards that have "World Class Skill."

3. European Players will Continue to come the MLS

It is well documented and likely that Frenchman Thierry Henry will leave Arsenal of the English Premier League and join the New York Red Bulls of MLS.

Now we all know how terribly David Beckham's stint in MLS playing for the Los Angeles Galaxy went, but the fact that another famous European star is willing to come try his hand at the tail end of his career in MLS provides hope for a league that has its most popular team in Kansas City. 

Henry, one of the top goal scorers over the past 15 years of FIFA competition, has been a signature player for Arsenal, one of the most recognizable English Premier teams.  Bringing his talents, while quickly declining to the United States can only be a good thing for American soccer and its fans.

Yes, the David Beckham experiment was awful, but here is the difference.  Beckham was most famous for what he looked like in underwear and that he could curve a soccer ball from a free-kick.  Henry has won a World Cup title with France in 2006 and is still considered a "world class player."  Henry's stay won't be so Hollywood.  It will go better. 

4. Non-stop ACTION!

Casual baseball fans find baseball boring, especially now since it looks like pitching may dominate the league for the next couple of years.  The same can be said about football, as the game is only really played for 4 seconds at a time.  Only hockey and soccer offer non-stop action from end to end with very little interruptions.  They are sports that are both fluid and for those who truly understand, take an extreme an amount of stamina and athleticism to compete at a high level. 

For those who enjoy zero commercials and a match that they can be certain won't last more than 120 minutes, soccer fits the ticket. 

No, I'm not saying that Soccer will surpass baseball, basketball, football, hockey, women's figure skating, or even track and field in popularity among American fans, but the sport will become more than just "bandwagon." 

Yes, I understand that the referee's are basically brutal and that some players flop on the ground like Lebron James in the playoffs, but people will grow past that as the game continues to grow in the only place that it is not popular. 

Look for the popularity of Soccer in the United States to continue to climb and lets hope that our American soccer program continues in the right direction by growing into a Top 5 club in the World before the end of my life. 

Congrats again to Spain.   You deserve it, even though you only netted 8 goals throughout the entire tournament, you are clearly at the top of the soccer world at this second.  But, hopefully, the Americans will gain ground before the next World Cup!

You think everyone will forget about soccer again?  Let us know why be posting a comment below.