How soccer became an entrenched part of American sports

By Martin Rogers
FOX Sports Columnist

Remember when being a soccer-hater was a real thing? Believe me, it was — and not so long ago.

Go back a decade or more, and soccer, to a loud and sizable section of the United States sporting public, was an odd, confusing and decidedly foreign game that didn’t belong in the American way of doing things.

There wasn’t enough scoring, it was a soft game because too many players faked injuries, and in many European leagues, they didn’t even have playoffs. Come on, what’s that all about?

Fast-forward to the present, and a lot has changed. Soccer from other countries, especially the big European leagues and that continent’s flagship competition, the Champions League, has become a staple part of the viewing calendar for millions. The differences in format are mostly celebrated, rather than derided.

As a generation of soccer fans who grew up playing the sport as a rite of passage passed their affinity for it to their own children, antipathy toward the beautiful game largely became a thing of the past.

Soccer haters are still around, but they don’t have strength in numbers anymore. Disliking a game played in every corner of the globe because of its perceived un-Americanness doesn’t really fly these days.

"I remember when I came here, there were so many people who were proud of the fact they didn’t like soccer," British-born Craig Harrington, who has coached extensively in the CONCACAF region since moving from England in 2005, told me. "It has completely flipped. You walked into a bar to watch a soccer game, and it was like you were walking into someone’s country club, and you didn’t fit. They didn’t want you there. Soccer was a massive party, but they didn’t want the party. It’s so different now, and it has been inspiring to see."

This weekend, perhaps the most significant indicator of progress will be on display, as the Champions League final takes place Saturday and will feature two English clubs, Manchester City and Chelsea, with an American lifting the trophy, one way or the other. The game will be on screens in thousands of sports bars around the U.S. — and no one will be asking to change the channel.

Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic is the most credentialed U.S. national team player and will either start for the London club or come off the bench as an impact substitution. Manchester City’s Zack Steffen is a reserve goalkeeper unlikely to play unless starter Ederson suffers an injury.

It will not be the first time an American has earned a Champions League medal. In 1997, Jovan Kirovski was a member of the Borussia Dortmund squad that won the event, but he did not dress for the final.

Back then, having American players perform at the highest level in Europe was a rarity. Now it is anything but that. Pulisic has been Chelsea’s most effective player at times during his tenure. Weston McKennie has shined alongside Cristiano Ronaldo at Juventus, Tyler Adams has made his mark at RB Leipzig, Sergino Dest was snapped up by Barcelona, and Gio Reyna, still just 18, played 32 times for Dortmund in the German Bundesliga this season.

"It used to be a curiosity when an American played in Europe," FOX Sports soccer analyst and former U.S. captain Alexi Lalas said. "American players have full legitimacy now in the way they are scouted and touted.

"It is a different time, and it warms the cockles of my red-headed, American heart to see what is happening. This is coming at a time when we are so confident and optimistic about the depth of talent and the type of talent we have in the U.S. I’m so happy for both [Pulisic and Steffen] and incredibly proud as an elder statesman of American soccer, how far we have come."

Lalas heard all the anti-soccer nonsense, too. Now 50, he grew up at a time when it was virtually impossible to watch European soccer on television in the U.S. and long before Major League Soccer gained a foothold in markets across the country. Viewing figures for major events such as World Cups are astronomical now. Soccer is the world’s game, but it is very much an American sport, too.

"There is an element of attrition," Lalas added. "The dinosaurs become extinct eventually. That’s a good thing from a soccer perspective. A whole generation now looks at soccer as part of its sports palate. Even if they didn’t grow up immersed in it, they are so familiar with it, maybe through FIFA video games or having an MLS or NWSL team in their market. It leaves us in a pretty fun and interesting place."

Pessimism surrounding the national team has also dissipated. Pulisic was in tears on the field when the U.S. missed out on qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, but now there is plenty of hope for the immediate and long-term future — so much so that Steffen, in an interview on the "ExtraTime: Club & Country podcast," spoke about wanting to become one of the best teams in the world.

"Obviously qualify for the next World Cup," Steffen said when asked about his upcoming goals. "But then we want to lift trophies. Win the World Cup, that’s our goal."

In truth, it sounds like a bit of a preposterous suggestion. And yet, a few years ago, thinking that two Americans would be in the Champions League final would have been outlandish. A few years prior to that, suggesting that soccer would be such an entrenched part of American sports – even crazier.

Times change. Where are the haters now?

Martin Rogers is a columnist for FOX Sports and the author of the FOX Sports Insider Newsletter. You can subscribe to the newsletter here.