The World Cup has come and gone, offering fans gripping thrillers, wildly entertaining theatre and riveting finishes.
It was as if there was a buzzer-beater on a daily basis.
Lionel Messi is the Jalen Brunson of soccer, an undersized athlete whose dribbling skills and quickness make him almost unguardable. The big difference — Messi does it with his feet and is the GOAT of his sport.
It’s so impressive how just about every striker can shape the flight of the ball much like a pitcher commanding the strike zone with his arsenal of pitches.
Their athletic feet and feats were amazing.
Miss it? For sure … Will it be a hit in four years? Questionable.
Maybe everything fell into place in this World Cup:
>> The U.S. kept our interest into the knockout stage, with the surge of interest growing exponentially;
>> The sport’s superstars were familiar — Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe, Kane — and even some newcomers like Norway’s 6-foot-4 Erlin Haaland struck an imposing figure with a forehead made for headers.
>> The venues were familiar and mostly on American soil — this was only the second time the event was hosted by the U.S., with the only other time being 1994.
>> The jingoistic fans all wearing their country’s colors or their favorite star’s jerseys and singing in unison made the environment even more spectacular.
>> The announcers — especially the international ones — were so invested, so animated and borderline hilarious. “Please don’t stop this match! … Please tell me this is really happening!” said an announcer during the 85th minute of England’s free-wheeling 6-4 win over France in Miami. “Must we go home after this? Can we just start the tournament over?”
But will its popularity in the U.S. continue to swell, or will it fall flat?
Haven’t we been down this road before? Like when Pele signed with the New York Cosmos in 1975? Or when the U.S. hosted in 1994? It didn’t stick then, so who can guarantee it will this time?
The next time, the USMNT might not be as good and won’t have the home crowd behind it.
The 2030 World Cup will be played on three continents, hosted by six countries — Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Spain, Portugal and Morocco. The 2034 World Cup is scheduled for South Africa in 15 stadiums. Bids for 2038 haven’t gone out yet.
Furthermore, who’s going to be America’s star?
Christian Pulisic, at 5 feet 10, was supposed to be him. But he seemed to be injury prone and unable to hold up physically.
The USMNT’s best player was Folarin Balogun, but he could choose to play for England or Nigeria.
Also, will USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino, a former Argentine player and coach, stick around?
It will be difficult to maintain this momentum and continue to build a soccer culture.
Arsensal manager Arsene Wenger, who serves as FIFA’s chief of Global Football Development, said as much during a media roundtable session on Thursday.
As reported in the New York Times, Wenger said that what Spain and Argentina have that the U.S. doesn’t is a soccer culture that’s ingrained in their countries across many generations.
He also said the U.S. has an ambition to change that. But he also stressed that it “will take time and this will be hard.”
I might not have patience or time left on this earth to wait for that time to come.
It will be extremely difficult for soccer in America to draw the best athletes away from the top three sports: American football, baseball and basketball. You probably can toss in golf as well.
This intense U.S. interest was a once-in-a-generation occurrence. It took 32 years for the World Cup to grace us on American soil. Who knows when it’ll come back?
It’s like the Olympics. The attraction is magnetic, but fleeting.
Once it’s done, it’s on to the next. But unlike the summer Olympics, this World Cup flows right into America’s favorite sport — football.
So thanks for the memories, they were fabulous.
But I gotta go because NFL rookie camps for the Seahawks and 49ers have already started. The Rainbow Warriors open camp next week. And college football’s Week Zero is at the end of August.
Sorry, but it’s time — for football to control the airwaves.
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Reach Curtis Murayama at cmurayama@staradvertiser.com.
