Joe Gaetjens secured his place in US Soccer history on the 29th of June 1950. The goal secured a shock win over England, then the self-proclaimed kings of soccer. On Sunday 11th July 2010, just over sixty years to the day since Gaetjens famous striker, is it possible that another US soccer player could write his name into the history books by scoring the goal that puts the USA on top of the soccer world?
Whilst qualification for next summers tournament is not yet guaranteed, heading the group entering the last two rounds of matches and a trip to Honduras following a 2-1 win in Chicago may, if other results go their way, render the visit of Costa Rica in the final match immaterial. A 3-1 reverse in San Jose put a dent in the US’ hopes but the 4-0 thrashing handed out to their last opponents by their next opponents in August gave Bob Bradley’s boys renewed belief that securing their place for South Africa 2010 is in their own hands.
A number of teams have already been confirmed for the live World Cup finals to be hosted in South Africa and include some familiar faces and some more surprising. Brazil carry on their record of never missing a tournament and are also joined by Paraguay from the CONCACAF rounds. Argentina a previous winner of the World Cup is yet to fire on all cylinders under Diego Maradonna and qualification is far from secure. The World Cup has never been won by a country outside of South America and Europe with the latter bound to produce contenders for next years title. So far, they include1966 winners England, reigning European Champions Spain, and the Netherlands who are former European Champions and widely considered to be the best side never to have won the World Cup.
2002 joint hosts Japan and South Korea have both qualified as have Australia. North Korea take to the world stage for the first time since 1966 when they beat Italy. Ghana are the first African representatives to successfully come through qualifying, although South Africa are already there as hosts.
The USA men’s national team currently sit 11th in FIFA’s coefficient ranking list which is lower 3 of the above countries. Yet form going into a World Cup is in no way a guide to the identity of the hands who will ultimately lift the trophy.
The US competed in the first two tournaments in the 1930’s and then again in Brazil in 1950. However, without a successful professional domestic league, coupled with soccer being somewhat of a minority sport overshadowed by the giants of the NFL, NBA and NHL, participation in what the majority of the world considers the biggest sporting event next to the Olympic Games has been far from the central consciousness of the general population. That changed in 1990 when qualification for the finals, on the back of FIFA awarding the 1994 tournament to the US in return for a promise to establish what is now the MLS, when despite losing all three group games the US raised their head above the parapet in the soccer world. Expectations for the success of the national side have been risen further after 3 subsequent qualifications for the tournaments in France, Korea/Japan and the 2006 World Cup in Germany. In the 1998 World Cup hosted in France the United States made it all the way to the quarter final stage before losing out to finalists Germany by a single goal.
The current batch of players to enter the national team come from leagues and competitions home and overseas. While record breaker Landon Donavan now plies his trade alongside England international and former Manchester United and Real Madrid megastar David Beckham at LA Galaxy, many of his international team-mates are sampling what the wider world can offer.
Some of the higher profile players of the squad include DaMarcus Beasley of Rangers, Eddie Johnson and Clint Dempsey currently playing for Fulham and ex Man U keeper Tim Howard currently plying his trade with Everton. However, the list of US internationals on the rosters of foreign clubs continues to grow with representatives of the national squad also in Portugal, Denmark, Norway and Mexico to name but a further four.
The 2010 tournament will take place in South Africa’s winter which will suit many US players who ply their trade in Europe. Other than blips in 1994 and the 2002 Japan/S. Korea tournament the trend in recent years seems to be for countries from the host continent to win the main tournament. The Brazil side have always been the anomaly to this trend after wins in 1994 and 2002 but the 2010 World Cup in South Africa raises the interesting question of who will be able to acclimatise best to the climate and enjoy success?
The US Women’s National Team have World Cup and Olympic successes in their history. As the MLS increases the popularity of the game known to the rest of the globe as ‘football’, the ability of the men to step up to the plate and produce their own piece of history will only grow as more and more players register opening up soccer as a game to those athletes who would previously have been lost to track and field, basketball, baseball, hockey, football….the list goes on.
England’s national game for over a century has produced a single set of World Champions. Brazil’s poor but huge population has seen five separate triumphs. The enthusiasm for sport in the US coupled with the available population and economic prowess make them almost unique on the world stage. And if all these pros come to bear one day, a new order may well have started in World Cup soccer.
