When the United States U-17 World Cup roster was released, there was a graphic innocently posted with the roster.
This graphic sparked an outrage because almost all of the players were east of the Mississippi. This U-17 roster ignored major soccer hotbeds like California, Minnesota, and Washington. Teams like the Seattle Sounders and the LA Galaxy have shown commitment to youth and signing homegrown players. For instance, Seattle have signed nine homegrown players in their history, while the Galaxy currently have 20 academy players across their MLS and USL teams.