Posted on 06/08/2026 8:33:28 AM PDT by MinorityRepublican
It’s time again for the quadrennial question: Can this be the World Cup that finally converts U.S. sports fans to soccer fanatics?
In 2026, the answer might be yes, or at least closer than ever. For the first time since 1994, the FIFA World Cup is being played on (North) American soil, and polling suggests an attitude shift. According to Numerator research, nearly a third of U.S. adults now plan to watch the 2026 tournament, up from 26% in January. YouGov data shows that 43% of U.S. sports fans cite hosting the tournament as a key reason they plan to tune in, which is the single biggest driver of viewership intent. And Nielsen reported in October that 37% of the general population expects their interest in soccer to grow over the next 18 months.
But pretournament enthusiasm and sustained fandom are different things. Before speculating on how this year will be different, it’s important to unpack why the world’s most popular sport has failed to capture and hold American audiences.
Why Soccer Never Became America’s Favorite Sport
NFL football is and has been the dominant U.S. television draw since the late 20th century. Even in our era of media fragmentation and atomized taste, American football consistently dominates the ratings, surviving along with election nights as one of our last durable media events. The Super Bowl remains the apotheosis of American ritualized mass viewing. In February 2025, 127.7 million viewers tuned in to watch the Philadelphia Eagles crush the Kansas City Chiefs, making it the most-watched single telecast in American history. Super Bowl LX, played this past February, hit a 15-minute peak of 137.8 million viewers during the second quarter.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
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Give Mr. Steiner his red card (and let the people in the stands at the soccer stadium go back to sleep).
I think not and I certainly hope not. Soccer is BOOOOOOORING!
Tha game has changed so much since I first started watching. Now you can substitute players more frequently. Now there’s VAR. Now there are hydration breaks during the game. Really those are for advertisers as much as anything. Seeing a banner with your company name on it doesn’t do much for your bottom line as an actual ad does.
No.
Just in the immigrant communities where they were already fans.
Importing the third world might make America a soccer nation
But not the World Cup
FOE THE 100TH TIME, HELL NO!
Short answer: NO!
A lot of the ‘New Americans’ will like it. They are the target demographic by most Ad Sponsors.
Adidas, Coke, Visa, Qatar Airways, Aramco and Lenovo.
No.
I think I saw the same headline in 1994.
Not even with all of the ‘fans’ they have managed to import….
Not even with all of the ‘fans’ they have managed to import….
Read Ann Coulters article on Soccer
Nope!
I guess I am not supposed to say anything, because I really don’t care.
Probably not, but if there is one country that has the potential and the resources to get better at the game on the international level it would be us. That said, professional sports in America is becoming unwatchable. I watched the NCAA Lacrosse championships last month. I honestly had never watched the game before, but now I’m definitely a fan.
“...and polling suggests an attitude shift.”
I wonder if their poll contained a question on whether the fans will stay around to watch the tournament if the US is eliminated. That may be the reason people are committing. It’s called home field advantage.
wy69
Only the American fairy-pansies.
Hard to say, but I do know if I hear one more moron announcer howling “GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL” at the top of his lungs like some pimpled adolescent having his first orgasm I’m gonna have to pass.
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