Thierry Henry, Clint Dempsey and Charlie Davies discussing perception of American players in Europe
Read that a few years ago. Now, I’ve only been following football since '07 which is around the time time Dempsey made his move to Fulham. He was a thrill to watch and I’d reckon he def helped change some opinions around US players at the time with the likes of Pulisic or McKennie continuing to this day.
But just curious for a discussion, how prevalent are the stereotypes of US players today? Is it simply just banter or are there still managers who just don’t rate US players all that much.
Football has always had a limited fanbase in the US because of competition with baseball, basketball, hockey, and American football. As far as high school sports are concerned, it’s on par with volleyball and tennis and lacrosse and field hockey.
There will always be a perceived gap between European football and American (soccer). We don’t have professional sponsorship of youth clubs or academies dedicated to training players. We don’t have a nationally organized youth program. We are not set up on the top level to be capable of promotion/relegation. American born players don’t necessarily get worldwide exposure because our culture doesn’t promote the game as much as it could.
Now, don’t misunderstand me. Fans of soccer in the US are passionate. Rivalries are intense. But the general opinion of the American game is that we do it wrong. That stigma sometimes makes it difficult for a player with dual citizenship to choose the USMNT.