Summer of the Season: Soccer

Minnesota United has branded this season "Summer of Soccer." It works as a slogan cause that's the current season, the sport they play, and, most importantly for them, it's an alliteration. The alliteration makes it catchy.

While some may read that and let out a yawn, or even roll their eyes (show some decency), it's a pretty accurate statement for the club. After winning the spring season of NASL, the club sponsored World Cup viewing parties across the metro, including Brit's and Nomad which had record huuuuuuge crowds. Before the start of the fall season the team played a friendly against the Mexico U-21 team in front of a sell out crowd.

Not to be outdone, United somehow managed to sell even more tickets for their friendly against EPL club Swansea City last Saturday. (I'm not exactly sure how they did, but it might have something to do with moving their fan club, the Dark Clouds, to the area behind the southern goal, and selling pitchside seats for the small fee of $125 - and yes, people did sit there).

No matter which way you cut it, it's been a successful summer for United, and that's not even including the game results. The team has started the fall season with two wins, and then beat Swansea 2-0 after only 1 day of rest. Not a bad result for a second tier American soccer team.

The cynic in me would say that Swansea themselves were playing on 2 days rest, and their best players were either recovering from the World Cup or back home waiting to get loaned or sold to bigger clubs. And any English team touring in America during the preseason cares more about making money and increasing their fan base than winning. United, on the other hand, sat deep in their own half for about 99% of the game and scored on two of their only shots of the game.

But if Swansea was in Minnesota mostly to gain more fans, that went double for United on the night. People were out in force at the game. Some 9,000 people drove out to the suburbs to watch some exhibition soccer. And if just a handful of those English soccer fans come back to watch their hometown NASL team, then United will have succeeded in their mission to win summer and claim it as their own more fans.

The guy in the Ronaldo jersey on the left is giving me the stink eye like he knows my panorama is crooked.
How did he know?

One last thought on the atmosphere. It seemed to leave quite the impression on the Welsh side who are no strangers to raucous soccer crowds:

“There was probably a better atmosphere here tonight than there was the other day back in Milwaukee, even though there were 40,000,” [Swansea's Neil] Taylor said. “So that tells you everything about the fans tonight and how loud they were. If they’re like that every home game, then that’s great.”

Everybody has loved throwing that quote around in the days since the match. In fact, just about everybody visiting the states this week has had great things to say about soccer in America, including Bayern manager Pep Guardiola. And why wouldn't they? It's much easier for Americans to support a European team and buy their jerseys when they have nice things to say about their country. Then again, maybe they mean what they say.

"America you are so great at soccer. Buy my jerseys. And T-Mobile."