OT: We may win the World Cup in 2026

[NickRU714]

Depends on the position. Prime Shaq in goal? Allen Iverson as a forward having a ball on his feel his whole life? Football players train for football. If they trained for soccer, their bodies would be soccer bodies. Take some of those fleet footed wr's. Give them a soccer ball when they are 4 instead of a football and we'd have produced a number of Messi's. JJ Watt as a defenseman in soccer? Dude would be insane. Randy Moss? Saquan Barkley as a forward? So many examples. For numerous reasons the American athlete is just much better than those others in the world. America has over 3,000 Olympic medals. No other country comes close which is proof of that. We churn out athletes like crazy.

Put America's best athletes in soccer or even our second or third best, and we'd have won world cups by now. We are competing with arguably our fourth best athlete type. It's not even close to the potential of what our tier 1 athletes could do.

Is it even 4th tier?
Forget Shaq, AI or Watt.

College athletics is the problem.
So many players with no professional future who could easily excel in soccer if steered that way early on.

(I've long held the idea that college basketball is problem. How many elite PGs that are too short for the NBA could have been elite WR/CB if they focused there instead?
Professional basketball has a height minimum unfortunately. Professional football and soccer is much smaller.)

Haaland is "huge". A "monster" for headers.
He's basically the same size as Kaden Powers.

Jude Bellingham is the same size as JaMicheal Davis.

Agree that players need to grow up with a ball.
It's not just all athletism.
But it wouldn't hurt to start with even our 4th best level of athlete.

 

[NBKnight]

It’s a nod to the founders of the game. Natives didn’t have lines. You just ran and got the ball. Obviously the game has changed a tremendous amount since then.

The game on the Olympics will be much like baseball. If that’s what you are looking for you’d like it.

And it is only on shots not passes.

 

[RUChet]

Many analaysts says we gad an athletic and fast team. That wasn’t our problem. It was skill, first touch, nose for the goal, tactics, movement off the ball…these things are more important than better athletes.

McKennie, Freeman, Bologun, Pulisic, Richards, Jedi, Weah - these guys are all really fast and athletic.

if I had to rank it it’s

1-better youth development (ball skill, tactics, mentality)
2- better national team program like USA hockey which does it right
3-better athletes

 

[tico brown]

Many analaysts says we gad an athletic and fast team. That wasn’t our problem. It was skill, first touch, nose for the goal, tactics, movement off the ball…these things are more important than better athletes.

McKennie, Freeman, Bologun, Pulisic, Richards, Jedi, Weah - these guys are all really fast and athletic.

if I had to rank it it’s

1-better youth development (ball skill, tactics, mentality)
2- better national team program like USA hockey which does it right
3-better athletes

How would you improve youth ball to be able to compete vs Europe/ South America/ African teams?

 

[RUChet]

How would you improve youth ball to be able to compete vs Europe/ South America/ African teams?

We can compete with most African teams - not Morocco though and we can compete with mid-bottom South America

We struggle vs any decent Euro team

How do we fix? Extremely complicated and difficult as it’s a cultural, process and system problem

Youth development in Hickey excels and our national team program is the envy of the world including Canada

We stink though in basketball and soccer - similar problems. Only reason basketball isn’t as bad is our massive head start - but our lead has been slipping for where and now we don’t even have 1 guy in arguably the top 5-6 nba players and 6-10 and up we are downright 2nd tier.

In basketball and soccer we have to:
- move away from pay to play
- more academies from pro clubs and not just mls but with more access
- get middle to lower income kids involved
- emphasize skill development not games until at least middle school: passing, movement, dribbling,
- get rid of “travel ball” for kids under 14 to reduce cost burden and have kids spent more time becoming obsessed with the ball/dribbling/juggling
- improve coaching
- better ID and development of talent from more places and not just the “top clubs”
- mimic USA hockey development program which has been fantastically successful

And to those that say “but look at our USWNT”…do people realize Title IX gave us a massive head start and now the world has caught up. We are no longer dominant but we do have a huge population so we are still top-bottom the best. But in most recent ESPN rankings we didn’t have 1 player in top 10. So you really can’t compare USMNT to USWNT history.’

 

[RUChet]

Meanwhile US U-20 men rolling through Concacaf and now in the final vs Mexico 7pm today. Think it’s on FS2

we’ve already qualified for the U-20 WC

Poch needs to look at kids in this and the ‘28 Olympics to see who can step up to the MNT but some if our best young guys probably won’t play on either due to club obligations so he’s got to look at them too

 

[tico brown]

This is why American Soccer will never have a team in the World Cup Semis or Finals.

 

[RUChet]

This is why American Soccer will never have a team in the World Cup Semis or Finals.

Def part of the problem but not the only one

 

[Erial_Lion]

Agree that $$$ is a barrier in the US for soccer players (and their families) that it isn't elsewhere...however I disagree with the comment that "The amount of money it costs to play club soccer in America is insane compared to other youth sports"...the same thing happens in baseball, lacrosse, volleyball, cheerleading (I know this one first hand), etc. Once you get into your teens (or are approaching them) and are playing a travel sport in the US, you're in for a big $$$ commitment.

 

[tico brown]

Agree that $$$ is a barrier in the US for soccer players (and their families) that it isn't elsewhere...however I disagree with the comment that "The amount of money it costs to play club soccer in America is insane compared to other youth sports"...the same thing happens in baseball, lacrosse, volleyball, cheerleading (I know this one first hand), etc. Once you get into your teens (or are approaching them) and are playing a travel sport in the US, you're in for a big $$$ commitment.

Agreed. And I am glad that I paid for my daughter’s cheerleading back in the 2000s and not today. I’m helping out with my granddaughters youth softball and that’s a PIA.

 

[Fat Koko]

Agree that $$$ is a barrier in the US for soccer players (and their families) that it isn't elsewhere...however I disagree with the comment that "The amount of money it costs to play club soccer in America is insane compared to other youth sports"...the same thing happens in baseball, lacrosse, volleyball, cheerleading (I know this one first hand), etc. Once you get into your teens (or are approaching them) and are playing a travel sport in the US, you're in for a big $$$ commitment.

How about gymnastics. Competitions in Florida starting around age 8, always in winter. Really just a long weekend at the beach for the moms. This is not affordable to most Americans.

The irony is the best gymnast of all time Simone Biles grew up in foster care before relatives adopted her and signed her up at a gym where her coach happened to be one of the best (head coach of Rio Olympic team).

Similar thing with Clint Dempsey. Grew up in trailer park in rural Texas. Top US national team goal scorer (tied with Landon) and top US scorer in top European leagues.

The talent in the US has a way of finding its way to the top in most sports including soccer. I don’t believe the notion that Americans with world class soccer potential are unwittingly point guards on college basketball teams.

Is there a young American out there who has Olympic gymnastics potential who never gets a chance? Probably.

 

[tico brown]

How about gymnastics. Competitions in Florida starting around age 8, always in winter. Really just a long weekend at the beach for the moms. This is not affordable to most Americans.

The irony is the best gymnast of all time Simone Biles grew up in foster care before relatives adopted her and signed her up at a gym where her coach happened to be one of the best (head coach of Rio Olympic team).

Similar thing with Clint Dempsey. Grew up in trailer park in rural Texas. Top US national team goal scorer (tied with Landon) and top US scorer in top European leagues.

The talent in the US has a way of finding its way to the top in most sports including soccer. I don’t believe the notion that Americans with world class soccer potential are unwittingly point guards on college basketball teams.

Is there a young American out there who has Olympic gymnastics potential who never gets a chance? Probably.

Those one in a million chances are great stories and those world class, Hall of Fame Level Legends deserves everything they earned. But there’s plenty of athletes in all sports doesn’t get to play youth ball because it’s too much.

There’s some that if they got lucky and hooked up with some idiot youth program KIT KAT ZOO BOMBERS 13U squad, they will be there mostly for the coaches aura farming and getting as many big trophies off of 13 YOs as possible. How would Messi would’ve done in middle school in Miami or Ronaldo out of Ironbound?

BTW, Haaland would be an All American TE at Michigan.
Lukaku would be a LB at Alabama.
Mbappe would be a DB at Miami.
Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal would be WRs at Rutgers or Pitt.

 

[Fat Koko]

Those one in a million chances are great stories and those world class, Hall of Fame Level Legends deserves everything they earned. But there’s plenty of athletes in all sports doesn’t get to play youth ball because it’s too much.

There’s some that if they got lucky and hooked up with some idiot youth program KIT KAT ZOO BOMBERS 13U squad, they will be there mostly for the coaches aura farming and getting as many big trophies off of 13 YOs as possible. How would Messi would’ve done in middle school in Miami or Ronaldo out of Ironbound?

BTW, Haaland would be an All American TE at Michigan.
Lukaku would be a LB at Alabama.
Mbappe would be a DB at Miami.
Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal would be WRs at Rutgers or Pitt.

Interesting debate.

If Messi was from Miami or Ronaldo was from Ironbound, the outcome might have been the same - sign with top European clubs as early teenager.

Case in point - Timothy Weah. Played youth soccer in south Florida and Queens, trial with Chelsea at 13, signed with PSG at 14, pro contract with PSG at 17.

I'm not sure if those European soccer players would translate to American football. Many of them, especially in France and England, would have a chance to play rugby growing up and chose soccer because it is less physical, when other athletes who look like soccer players choose rugby and succeed at it. France's rugby captain Antoine Dupont is 5'8" and is one of best rugby players of all time. Olympic gold medalist too. Antoine had plenty of chances to play soccer.

That being said, I posted last year that Rutgers should recruit football linemen from Germany where American football is popular and lots of young people play.

 

[RUChet]

Interesting debate.

If Messi was from Miami or Ronaldo was from Ironbound, the outcome might have been the same - sign with top European clubs as early teenager.

Case in point - Timothy Weah. Played youth soccer in south Florida and Queens, trial with Chelsea at 13, signed with PSG at 14, pro contract with PSG at 17.

I'm not sure if those European soccer players would translate to American football. Many of them, especially in France and England, would have a chance to play rugby growing up and chose soccer because it is less physical, when other athletes who look like soccer players choose rugby and succeed at it. France's rugby captain Antoine Dupont is 5'8" and is one of best rugby players of all time. Olympic gold medalist too. Antoine had plenty of chances to play soccer.

That being said, I posted last year that Rutgers should recruit football linemen from Germany where American football is popular and lots of young people play.

Not so sure about a couple of your points soocce is by far bigger than rugby so you can’t assume those guys chose soccer because it’s less physical. Maybe, maybe not. It’s like choosing to be and NFL or NBA star here vs. soccer. Soccer here is like rugby there basically.

The German Football League is not that good. For years D3 teams have played top
GFL teams and win more than they don’t and those GFL teams often have American QBs and skill positions guys keeping the games close.

There is not a large group of P4 capable OLmen in Germany- a few yes, but not a ton.

 

[tico brown]

Maybe both Rutgers Soccer programs should start looking at the pro academies overseas for new players. Definitely better than those from the U18 Ironbound Popcorn Eaters squads.

 

[RUChet]

Maybe both Rutgers Soccer programs should start looking at the pro academies overseas for new players. Definitely better than those from the U18 Ironbound Popcorn Eaters squads.

oh great, let's just litter soccer programs with non-US players like field hockey, volleyball, tennis, etc - let's just award state money from NJ taxpayers in scholarships, free this and that to more and more foreigners. No please!!!!!!!!!

And also a slap in the face of Title IX goals - supposed to help american girls get an equal oppty at sports not a bunch of foreign girls.

Same with hoops - NO to all these former pro euros playing over here. They have to put an end to it.

 

[Caliknight]

Yes please. Winning is all that matters. Nearly every school has programs that don’t have a lot of state rep. Just win baby.

 

[Fat Koko]

oh great, let's just litter soccer programs with non-US players like field hockey, volleyball, tennis, etc - let's just award state money from NJ taxpayers in scholarships, free this and that to more and more foreigners. No please!!!!!!!!!

And also a slap in the face of Title IX goals - supposed to help american girls get an equal oppty at sports not a bunch of foreign girls.

Same with hoops - NO to all these former pro euros playing over here. They have to put an end to it.

Vermont, a state with little soccer talent, won the NCAA men’s soccer championship with a roster filled with international players.

US players don’t want play soccer at Vermont. Terrible weather and facilities.

OT: Vermont wins men’s soccer natty - Forums

Won despite huge weather challenges on campus forcing lots of indoor training and outdoor artificial turf field which soccer players hate. Tiny state with little in state talent. Players from Germany and Hungary scored the goals in the final. Two players selected in first round of MLS draft a...

www.on3.com

 

[RUChet]

Vermont, a state with little soccer talent, won the NCAA men’s soccer championship with a roster filled with international players.

US players don’t want play soccer at Vermont. Terrible weather and facilities.

OT: Vermont wins men’s soccer natty - Forums

Won despite huge weather challenges on campus forcing lots of indoor training and outdoor artificial turf field which soccer players hate. Tiny state with little in state talent. Players from Germany and Hungary scored the goals in the final. Two players selected in first round of MLS draft a...

www.on3.com

It’s stupid. Vermont taxpayers paying a full ride to a bunch of int’l players so they can feel good for a fairly lightly cared about sport? I lived near Uof VT for 2 years - it’s ALL about hockey hockey hockey

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

It’s stupid. Vermont taxpayers paying a full ride to a bunch of int’l players so they can feel good for a fairly lightly cared about sport? I lived near Uof VT for 2 years - it’s ALL about hockey hockey hockey

How come you've never said this when Greg gives scholarships to Canadian recruits or recruited Cliff, Oscar, etc.?

 

[Fat Koko]

It’s stupid. Vermont taxpayers paying a full ride to a bunch of int’l players so they can feel good for a fairly lightly cared about sport? I lived near Uof VT for 2 years - it’s ALL about hockey hockey hockey

Vermont taxpayers and Vermont students attending the University of Vermont send next to nothing to the University of Vermont. The largest funding source for the university is tuition paid by out-of-state students.

Here is a snap shot from the university's 2026 budget.

https://www.uvm.edu/d10-files/documents/2025-10/Buddoc_FY-2026.pdf

 

[RUChet]

Vermont taxpayers and Vermont students attending the University of Vermont send next to nothing to the University of Vermont. The largest funding source for the university is tuition paid by out-of-state students.

Here is a snap shot from the university's 2026 budget.

View attachment 1404564

https://www.uvm.edu/d10-files/documents/2025-10/Buddoc_FY-2026.pdf

I see $98M from state and state residents. That’s a lot of money. I am steadfast against having all these foreign athletes at public schools

 

[-RUFAN4LIFE-]

I see $98M from state and state residents. That’s a lot of money. I am steadfast against having all these foreign athletes at public schools

Their annual budget is $938 million, that's 10.4%, which is literally peanuts.

And again, I ask, how come you have no issue when Greg brings in a Canadian recruit or Pike brings in non-US recruits like Cliff, Oscar, etc.?

Seems odd you're pushing this narrative for UVM but not Rutgers.

 

[tico brown]

I guess no Dominican or Puerto Rican baseball players for Rutgers, eh?

 

[Kbe4]

I guess no Dominican or Puerto Rican baseball players for Rutgers, eh?

Last time I checked Puerto Ricans were American citizens....not foreigners.