Is yet another "summer of soccer" moving the needle?

Since 2009 we've had several summers branded as the "summer of soccer," yet it feels much of soccer in the USA remains stuck in the mud

The first time I heard the term “summer of soccer” used in marketing was from MLS-owned Soccer United Marketing in 2009. That season the Seattle Sounders had moved from USL to MLS and brought with them a massive fanbase- the likes MLS had never seen (but that we had seen in the 1970’s behind clubs such as the New York Cosmos, Tampa Bay Rowdies and Minnesota Kicks). But what that “summer of soccer” left us with was nothing even though far away in South Africa, the USMNT had almost won the FIFA Confederations Cup. Domestically, however the summer of soccer friendlies left us with zero to hang our hat on.

We then had “summers of soccer” in 2010 (FIFA World Cup followed by friendlies), 2013 (inaugural ICC and CONCACAF Gold Cup), 2014 (FIFA World Cup followed by the ICC) and on and on until today, where a new competition the FIFA Club World Cup has headlined the “Summer of Soccer.” That in theory should put this summer over-the-top.

Growing the footprint, health and welfare of the domestic game, be it at the largest MLS club or the grassroots level should be the motivation for summer tournaments. But since 2009, we’ve seen temporary bumps only for those to recede weeks later as the American public moves on with summer vacations, the beginning of school and other more US-centric sporting competitions.

At this point their is no question that the FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) has been successful in hooking fans in some large cities to go to matches involving foreign teams. But that is the same thing that happened every year from 2013 to 2019 with the International Champions Cup (ICC) and from what I can see, beyond having three MLS teams in the competition, the FIFA CWC hasn’t moved the needle on domestic competition.

However, it has made important, helpful strides elsewhere which we will discuss.

The ICC was a competition focused on attracting Europhiles to stadiums. The event left no tangible mark in the cities that hosted matches after the competition each summer concluded. Domestic clubs didn’t benefit from the ICC being in their towns and I can speak to personally, the drain in interest that occurred (or even the need to shift or cancel matches outright) due to competition from what was a foreign import rolling into town like the circus or some concert tour.

FIFA, while appealing almost entirely to Europhiles or ethnic minorities in the United States with its marketing of the Club World Cup (and now having watched a few matches, outside of the games in Miami, the competition feels exactly like the ICC- glorified friendlies in facilities that are too large; perhaps this changes in the knockout stage) is doing some other interesting things to try and make a long-term impact. That alone makes the FIFA CWC far more useful than the ICC or the even more useless Premier League Summer Series.

Perhaps due to slow ticket sales, FIFA has been more engaged with the actual grassroots soccer community in many of the cities hosting FIFA CWC matches than the ICC was. Some of this has to do with the hiring of local soccer front office talent to work the tournament. Those individuals who tend to know the MLS, USL, NWSL and college scene in local areas have plugged FIFA in with the grassroots. It also is reflected by FIFA’s efforts to partner with local colleges and universities, both as training sites for clubs (this happened with the ICC also) and as incubators for staffing facilities.

Typically, when European clubs come to the US, their goal is to turn casual American sports fans into fans not of American soccer, but of European football and their specific club. The Premier League (Prem) in particular has had this attitude and we’ve seen since the Prem became a mainstream property in the US, a certain condescension develop toward local and grassroots soccer- or in some cases toward ANYTHING American.

The Premier League Summer Series is designed to get US-based fans to spend money on an English product that rolls into town for a day or two. The hook is then made to convert those paying customers into evangelicals for the league who watch NBC each Saturday morning but don’t pay any attention to the soccer being played down the street from them.

Attitudes fostered by the Premier League and advanced by US-based fans of the league often features a paternalistic view of sport and the neocolonial attitude. This attitude holds that if it isn’t British, it is not proper. Unfortunately this view has spread throughout certain chattering classes in the country.

That’s not to exempt other Europhiles (less numerous than the Prem evangelicals, but equally if not even more condescending and annoying) who have promoted a view that to be truly sophisticated in terms of football knowledge you must be glued into Spanish or Italian football. I have been told three times in the last 18 months by Americans that if I am not watching Serie A closely, I cannot analyze what is “good football.” In fact, I just had a shouting match with someone on this topic last week (the same person in this conversation also tried to tell me Italians are more cultured and sophisticated than Americans so of course they understand football better- this is despite being an American himself).

So what previous summers of soccer have done it seems is create increased tribalism and splits within the audience in this country, rather than actually growing the tangibly appreciated product domestically. That’s great for the bank accounts of match promoters and European clubs, but not for local soccer.

Thus far, this FIFA Club World Cup might be a humbling experience for both the Anglomaniacs and Europhiles, with Argentine and Brazilian clubs more than proving their worth at this level. And perhaps it will serve as a entre for more interest in the domestic game as we’re seeing good football can be played outside of Europe!

People can have their personal preferences, and I do understand many in the United States, particularly in large metros psychologically live in heavily European or British world. In fact, much of my footballing teeth were cut in the English game, and culturally as an Anglophile myself, it remains close to my heart. But that does not mean everything has to be British, or German or Italian flavored or whatever.

It is perfectly fine to express personal preferences and shut out the domestic scene entirely- but it does not do anything to grow a sustainable soccer culture or infrastructure in the United States. And if fans don’t attend local matches or get involved with their local soccer entities, instead saving money each year to follow European clubs in overpriced venues each summer, the game can never really grow here in my opinion.

Supporting a European club is perfectly okay and probably a great gateway to understand and appreciate the unique culture that makes football or soccer if you prefer the world’s game. So much of what distinguishes this sport from all others is the supporters culture and fan experiences. But if you are American and love the game, channeling some of your energy and yes finance toward a local product is how we grow the game.

My views expressed in this piece aren’t meant to be overly pedantic. It’s that since 2009, I’ve seen summer friendlies do little to help the domestic game grow. In fact, I’ve spoken to many individuals who say they’d rather “save money” so they can travel to the Juventus or Manchester United friendly of their choice the following summer rather than buy tickets for the local MLS or USL team which they view as an “inferior” product.

While I have my own criticisms of FIFA and am not involved in this competition in any way (particularly given the timing, coinciding with the USL, NPSL and TLFC seasons) I do appreciate the basics of trying to create infrastructure and community connections is on display. Because that’s how a “summer of soccer” actually moves the needle. And therefore, this might be the first one that actually moves the needle forward.