The World Cup has turned some Americans into soccer fans, with new viewers, new league interest, and packed-out interest in the sport.
The World Cup has sparked fresh American interest in soccer, and for some new fans the change has been immediate. Indiana car salesman Jamie Druley said the World Cup drew him in after he watched supporters from Scotland’s Tartan Army in Boston, and before long he was glued to the matches at home. He told the BBC he wanted to see what drove people to travel long distances and spend serious money to support their teams in a global competition.
Druley, 51, said the games quickly became part of his daily routine. He shouted at the television, got a reminder from his wife to quiet down, and even brought the action into work when things were slow at the showroom. He said the England semifinal against Argentina turned lively enough to spark loud banter with colleagues and ended with a wager between him and his boss on the final. The self-described “NFL-obsessed” father of three is now thinking about season tickets for Fort Wayne FC, which opened a 9,200-seat stadium this year.
He is far from the only American newly sold on the game. Pennsylvania mother Courtney Silbaugh said she watched nearly every match and called herself someone who usually is not a sports spectator at all. She said American football never clicked for her and baseball was hard to follow because of her vision, but soccer did. She said she now understands the game better and is “obsessed” with it, especially after watching the World Cup rather than local recreational play.
Banker and grandmother Heather Earhart, who lives in Indiana, told the BBC she also went from confusion to enthusiasm. She said she had attended games before but never fully understood what was happening. Now she says she has become deeply interested in England, the songs tied to that fan culture, and the basics of how the sport works. Earhart said she starts her mornings checking scores online and has been watching guides on kicking, curving the ball, and learning the rules. She said she may start following a Manchester team and could also keep an eye on Jude Bellingham’s club, Real Madrid.
The interest is showing up beyond living rooms, according to people working in the sport. Nate Roberts, a fitness instructor and soccer coach in Connecticut who originally came from Lincoln, England, said his organization is planning a pickup league in the next few weeks because of the number of calls and messages it has received during the World Cup. He said the group is seeing people who want a first chance to play as well as parents asking about their children getting involved. Druley said what stands out to him most is the spirit he saw among visiting fans. For him, the World Cup has been about more than results. It has been a reminder that Americans can embrace a sport still commonly called soccer here while joining a game loved around the world. That matters because it shows the World Cup can do more than fill stadiums — it can win over everyday Americans, too.
