Reply to Yahoo story: Why the world's game is a white game in the U.S.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The best athletes in this country most certainly do not play soccer. Go to most any high school and ask who are the best athletes and see how many of them play soccer. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know it's not just about speed and strength in soccer. There are tactics and game IQ. yada, yada. The same could be said about any other sport. But with enough of a player pool, they all have good game IQ and speed and strength. Basketball and football just have a larger player pool. Not at the younger ages but in high school and older.

At the highest levels, national teams and professional ranks, where all have the dedication and time to learn the tactics and skills, the differences of just a few freakishly superior athletes can make a difference. In Europe the very best freakishly good athletes are playing soccer at the professional level. Consider the top athletes in the US. People like Lebron James or Saquon Barkley or Lamar Jackson. These are athletes with 1 in  10 million physical traits. Not saying they would automatically be good at soccer, but imagine if kids with these physical gifts were playing soccer in greater numbers from a young age.[/quote]

Assuming that you're not being intentionally obtuse, this is worth a listen:
https://www.ted.com/talks/david_epstein_are_athletes_really_getting_faster_better_stronger?language=en

Your argument is badly flawed. Lebron James is good at basketball not only because of his athleticism, but also because of his physical characteristics--which I doubt would translate well to soccer. Why not go with, "If only Michael Phelps had played soccer?" Simone Biles? Justin Gatlin?

Our player pool is big enough--much bigger than Belgium's or Croatia's. So what, then, really is the problem? Some thoughts...

1) Maybe there really is no problem--we go to the World Cup most of the time and we've been to the round of 16 several times. Maybe it's just not as easy to win an actual world championship in a sport that lots of other countries do as it is to win a "World Championship" in a sport that we've created (like basketball and baseball).

2) Our structures are not effective at finding and creating world-class players. I could go on for a while about the differences between US youth soccer structure and Europe, but the bottom line is that the discrimination that exists in US youth soccer isn't just about ability to pay--it's more about ability level. In the US, a U9 who is big, fast, and aggressive will be identified as a top-tier player and have much greater access to quality coaching and facilities. In Europe, they also like big, fast, and aggressive U9s. But the kids who aren't there yet WILL STILL have professional coaches, high-level training, sports psychologists, camps, uniforms, and access to progress in the form of pro-rel league structures. Simply not the case in the US.

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