INGLEWOOD — You know what's heavy lifting? Expectations. Especially when it comes to the World Cup and American soccer.
This week, after three decades of trying, Team USA opens Group D play against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in a bid to change the narrative. Yeah, because we all remember that magical 1994 run – upset Colombia, pre-tournament favorite, and suddenly everyone thought we were destined for greatness. Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski's book "Soccernomics" even predicted it back then. What happened? Well, they got wrong.
Fast forward to today, and the U.S. national team is still stuck in the quarterfinals rut, with an abysmal 1-19 record against European teams. Germany's recent 2-1 victory in Chicago was just another notch on that dismal record.
But hey, this World Cup is different. This time, it's personal. The Americans are all about making a statement – and not just because of the FIFA Peace Prize, which Trump got from Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, back in December. No, this time it's about proving everyone wrong.
The 14 million participants in organized soccer in the U.S. are the most in the world, double Germany's numbers, yet we haven't been among the top 20 nations who've reached the quarterfinals at the last five World Cups. South Korea made it to the semis back in 2002; Morocco got that far in 2022.
So, what's the answer? Well, some say it's because we haven't produced a world-class field player yet. The U.S. has had three world-class goalkeepers – Kasey Keller, Brad Friedel, and Tim Howard – but no one who can change the game like that Belgian or Portuguese superstar.
Christian Pulisic is our highest-rated American player at 116 on the Guardian's list of the world's top 100 players. Yeah, not exactly a household name among soccer fans. And to make matters worse, Pulisic hasn't been in top form this year – his first goal for the U.S. national team since November 2024 was a friendly against Senegal last month.
But hey, that's what makes it so sweet when we do win. We're not doing it for anyone else; we're doing it for ourselves. As Pulisic said, "We want to do this for ourselves. We want to do this for our own country. We don't need to prove to anyone else."
And if not, at least one American has gotten his hands on the World Cup – Infantino stopped by the Oval Office with a guest – the World Cup trophy. Trump asked if he could keep it; can you blame him?
Written by: Lil' Fats | The Citizen Edition
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