Can World Cup romance turn into true soccer love? – Orlando Sentinel

You know U.S. women’s soccer has made it when 71 people wait in line to spend $35 on an Alex Morgan T-shirt.

And they could have been home watching the NFL.

“I didn’t even think of that,” Tyler Gray said.

Not that it would have mattered. Gray was No. 60 in line Sunday and was eager to show her love for the U.S. Women’s National Team. When Gray got inside the Citrus Bowl, she was joined by 32,868 other people.

The announcer said it was “the largest stand-alone friendly match in the state of Florida.”

That means they didn’t have to juice the gate by adding a men’s game, a concert or raffling off tickets to Star Wars VII. Beating Brazil 3-1 in the latest stop on U.S. team’s Victory Tour was enough.

There’s no doubt U.S. women’s soccer has conquered the world, as well as the hearts and minds off millions of Americans. The problem has been when women wear uniforms that don’t have a U, S and A.

Enter the P-R-I-D-E.

That’s the Orlando Pride. In case you missed last week’s announcement, the National Women’s Soccer League is expanding to Orlando next year.

“I’m so excited, I think I’m going to get season passes,” Alice Granda said.

Based on how the MLS has been gangbusters in Orlando, I expect the Pride will be a success. For one thing, the Lions own the Pride.

President Phil Rawlins said the team sold 1,300 season tickets in the first four days. That’s more than the Lions sold in that time span, though nobody expects more than 60,000 people to show up at the Pride’s first game.

Heck, that would be more than most NWSL teams draw in a year. The average attendance in the nine-team league is just more than 5,000, and that’s padded by Portland’s average of 15,639.

Rawlins said the Pride goal is 10,000 a game.

“All the pointers are in the right direction,” he said.

In Orlando, yes. The Pride have already unofficially locked up Morgan to be their version of Kaká.

The big issue is one beyond Orlando’s control. It’s no good being a big fish in a drought-ridden pond.

Somehow the NWSL must tap into The Force that is with the U.S. women’s team. It got boffo TV ratings and a ticker-tape parade in New York City during its World Cup championship run.

Orlando couldn’t match that, but a caravan did drive up Interstate 4 from Auburndale. It carried 52 players, friends and family members of the Auburndale Scream, a 14-and-under girls team. Before the game, parking lots were full of girls kicking soccer balls, wearing face paint and dreaming of Team USA.

“That could be us if we try hard enough,” said Brooklynne Rinaldo of the Scream.

Inside the stadium, fans piled up 10-deep behind the chain-link fence to get a glimpse of the U.S. team leaving the locker room.

Fans jumped and held up cell phones to capture the moment. The results were mixed.

Gretchen Allidi’s video was mostly of a guy’s leg. Her friend, Leighanne Renz, did a little better.

“There’s Abby!” she said, spotting Wambach.

The NWSL says it can turn America’s World Cup flings into a long-term relationship. That’s what the Women’s United Soccer Association and Women’s Professional Soccer said before going kaput.

As the victory tour fades, will the next encore be different?

“I think so,” Granda said.

“I hope so,” Gray said.

If the U.S. team can make women’s pro soccer truly successful in the U.S., it will be its greatest victory of all.

dwhitley@orlandosentinel.com