Soccer in America has come a long way over the last 20 years.
When the San Jose Clash beat DC United in Major League Soccer’s inaugural game in April of 1996, soccer was still considered a fringe sport in the United States. Now, interest in the sport is rapidly growing in America.
MLS set new attendance records in 2015, and numerous cities are now competing to become the league’s next expansion market. Outside of MLS, the U.S. men’s and women’s national teams are drawing more and more fans and have set new TV ratings records during recent World Cups. And international leagues, like the English Premier League and Liga MX, are quickly gaining fan support in America.
The Pacific Northwest is at the center of this growth, with Portland, Seattle and Vancouver forming arguably the best rivalry and biggest fanbases in MLS. Which leads us to the question on everyone’s mind:
Is Portland really Soccer City, USA?
Over the next week, The Oregonian/OregonLive will publish five stories about soccer and its place in the American sports landscape, before revealing our data at the end of the week and unveiling which MLS city has earned the title of Soccer City, USA.
Here is a look at the topics that we will be focusing on:
- The growth of MLS and soccer in the United States and where the sport is headed.
- Watershed moments that changed the sports landscape in the United States and what that means for soccer specifically.
- Whether Christian Pulisic can become the next American soccer star and what his path says about youth development in the U.S.
- The massive support for soccer in Portland and what the Rose City can still do to grow interest in the sport.
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A look at data from significant categories to determine which MLS city is Soccer City, USA.
— Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com
503-853-3761 | @jamiebgoldberg
