Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So American universities are recruiting soccer players from Europe to play on their college teams?

And people wonder why the USA woefully underperforms in soccer — both in its subpar MLS league and on the international stage.

300M+ people in the USA and yet “our” universities are importing soccer players from other countries.

Sad.

I think you're mixing cause and effect. This is a symptom, not a cause, of underperformance.

I think you're downplaying a serious problem with one of the primary "feeder" systems into the USMNT. As in every other sport, NCAA collegiate athletics is an important step in the development of professional-quality sportsmen. Sure, there is a path to professional soccer that does not run through college (as is the case for baseball and other sports) but NCAA athletics is still a major pathway.

Stuffing "American" universities full of European soccer players for short-term gains eliminates those advanced development opportunities for American 18 year-olds and reduces the chances of the USA strengthening its own talent. It's not a "symptom" of anything but shortsightedness and selfishness on behalf of these "American" universities.

NCAA athletics has not been a major path to the USMNT for years and years. Now it’s not even a minor path. There are a few guys who will make it to MLS or similar level leagues from college each year, but virtually none of them will end up on the national team (though a few may end up on the national team of a country that’s not remotely competitive internationally). I’m a fan of college athletics for a lot of reasons, but don’t see how anyone thinks it’s a viable path for developing high-level male pros anymore.