COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — On the three-hour drive home from soccer practice when he was younger, Clint Dempsey and his father would routinely purchase a lottery ticket. They spent the rest of the trip discussing their plans for the jackpot.
The tickets never paid off. Dempsey’s talent certainly did.
The 34-year-old forward has 56 international goals, one from tying Landon Donovan’s U.S. record. Dempsey is far more concerned with something bigger — getting this team back to another World Cup, where he could join Pele, Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose as the only players to score in four editions of soccer’s showcase tournament.