The United States Men’s National Team has long been gripped with cultural insecurity. Despite being the biggest power in the world, we are a mid-weight at best in terms of soccer. This manifests in many forms. The constant complaining of MLS and the domestic league’s ties to the national team. Criticism of the team’s counter-attacking tradition, as if other countries haven’t won entire tournaments with far more cynical approaches. Constant culture wars about inane subjects like the comparison of USMNT players to “the best athletes” in other sports or the ever raging argument of “soccer” v. “football”.
USA v. Wales, 2022 FIFA World Cup: What We Learned
