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The United States men’s national team is fighting this World Cup on two fronts.
There’s the immense challenge on the ground in Qatar, where the underdog Americans — after meeting expectations by advancing through the group stage — will take on the Netherlands on Saturday in the Round of 16 in Al Rayyan, seeking their first quarterfinal berth since 2002.
Then there’s the progress occurring in how the U.S. team is recognized on the global soccer stage (much more credibly, thank you very much) and the growing support it is receiving back home. The movement is being catalyzed everywhere kids are strapping on shin guards and fans are raising pints to the boys in red, white and blue.
“The support from the U.S. has been a bit surreal. … It’s really, really cool to see how much a tournament can change the perspective on people supporting soccer,” midfielder and captain Tyler Adams said Friday. “And that was one of our goals coming into the tournament. The further we go, the more support that we gather, and that’s what we want. We want the next generation and generations to come to have that support behind them.
“When we can play an attractive style and fight and represent the country in the right way, you’re going to gather that support.
