How to Make Soccer Popular in the United States

I am often asked why soccer is not more popular in America. Soccer is certainly popular as a player's sport. My club has almost 3,000 players in South Austin alone, while the South Texas Youth Soccer Association has over 100,000 players. Those numbers should stand up to any other participatory sport. However, the attention paid to professional futbol pales in comparison to that given to professional football.

The Spanish national team may have found a way to make soccer more popular in this country. The Spanish team was sponsored by beermaker Cruzcampo. The sponsor promised that if the team made it past the quarter-finals, that each player would receive their weight in beer. The promise worked. The team won the European championship, bringing the country's first major title in over 40 years.

The team had a special weigh-in to see how many beer they would receive. Goalkeeper Pepe Reina earned the most beer at 211 pounds, while slight forward Santi Cazorla will receive only 155 pounds of beer. Over all, the team will receive 5,200 bottles of beer. Now there is an example that Americans might notice.