How disappointing it is to hear that we lost the chance to host the World Cup again. I will be the first to admit that the numbers were compelling for the US. Stadiums are already built. FIFA would make the most money here.
What went wrong?
My good friend and Soccer buddy and I spent the week walking through why the US would not get it. While he was walking through his analysis, I was really trying to put my hands over my ears, screaming, “I can’t hear you! I can’t hear you!”. But alas, he ended up being right and the reasons for not winning could be many.
And, it is not for the reasons that Alexi Lalas declared on ESPN. FIFA is not corrupt, FIFA has a plan to export the game to all corners of the globe.
Let’s walk through a few things. The US should be proud that we changed how World Cups are selected. That’s right, the 1994 World Cup in the United States changed how World Cups were rewarded. Historically, World Cups were rotated between COMNEBOL (South America) and UEFA (Europe) with the exception of Mexico. I am going to say that Mexico is part of COMNEBOL. Their club teams all participate in both Copa Libertadores and Copa Sud Americana.
Before 1994, you could always rely on the games being hosted in those 2 continents. Then, it all changed with USA 1994. UEFA appears to be the only Federation that will host every other World Cup tournament. Here is how it has gone:
- USA 1994 – North America – 1st outside S. America or Europe. (I exclude Mexico because they are indirectly tied to S. America)
- France 1998 – UEFA
- Japan/S. Korea – 2002 – Asia – 1st in Asia
- Germany – 2006 – UEFA
- South Africa 2010 – 1st in Africa
- Brazil 2014 – Brazil CONMEBOL – 1st time in South America since Argentina 1978
- Russia 2018 – UEFA – 1st WC in Eastern Europe and emerging Russia
- Qatar 2022 – Middle East – technically part of Asia, but first in Middle East
Guess – China 2026
Sorry, Alexi Lalas, I don’t think it was FIFA corruption that Qatar won. It was part of a plan to continue exporting the game to all parts of the globe. The power of the game is beyond 22 players on a field.
Could Football be the mechanism that integrates the Middle East into the rest of the world? Would it allow us to lower the barrier of differences to unite us in what globally everyone loves? Football.
If we look at the decision from this perspective, it kind of makes sense. As much as it hurst to think the economics of a US bid also makes sense, I think the bigger purpose of the World Cup should serve to bring people together too.
What’s next for the US Soccer?
We need to keep developing our game here. Football in the rest of the world reaches the poor populations and helps bring the underprivileged out of poverty. Here in the United States, Soccer is a middle class sport that uses a pay to play system.
Could our reliance on pay to play be one of the reasons we were overlooked? Does FIFA know that kids in the inner city are still overlooked as a potential soccer playing population? Dos US Soccer’s mission fit the mission of FIFA?
Do 10 years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan send the wrong message to the rest of the world? Is a country engaged in ongoing wars counter to FIFA’s mission?
I think if we stand back and really look what happened, we may find the reason we did not get selected was looking at us in the mirror.
Paul is the President of Professional Blog Service. PBS works with clients making strategic investments into blogging, social media and search engine optimization. He is also assistant Varsity Soccer Coach at Crispus Attucks High School in Indianapolis.
