themirror
FOX Sports announcer John Strong drew a fierce wave of backlash online after encouraging viewers to watch more soccer during the dying stages of the USMNTs World Cup run.
On Monday, the USMNT suffered an unceremonious exit from this years World Cup upon suffering a 4-1 defeat to Belgium in the round of 16.
As the gut-wrenching loss which cost the Stars and Stripes nearly $10 million in prize money drew to a close, Strong urged American fans to keep an open mind about soccer.
If youve enjoyed what youre seeing, well, support your local team, he said in the final minutes of the match.
This doesnt have to be the last soccer you watch for the next four years.
Its a beautiful sport.
Fellow analyst Stu Holden expressed a similar sentiment, noting: The future of American soccer is very bright.
Strongs plea didnt sit well with many U.S.
supporters watching from home, as droves of viewers slammed the 41-year-old for his ill-timed remarks.
The announcers begging US viewers to not stop watching the World Cup now that we've lost is the depressing cherry on top, one X user wrote, with another adding: OMG the please keep watching soccer message as the U.S.
is getting waffle-stomped is NOT HELPING ..
A third chimed in, It's OVER.
You try getting Americans to watch soccer in the middle of July after Team USA was eliminated.
Better off trying your luck at Powerball." It appears as though Strong was simply trying to help grow the game of soccer stateside a goal he spoke about during a sit-down interview with The Athletic last month.
I love being able to tell people a story or expose them to something, or be a conduit to them, to something that they didnt know that they were interested in five minutes ago, he said at the time.
Thats the fun thing about a World Cup.
People who dont normally watch the sport are tuning in, and youre getting them emotionally connected to something.
Youre getting them hooked on something they didnt even know they were going to be interested in.
I love that.
As soccer continues to cement its foothold in the United States, USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino insisted that the Europeans favorite pastime would not take away from the viewership of other major U.S.
leagues such as the NBA, NFL and MLB.
I think there's room for everyone, Pochettino argued.
The United States has almost 400 million inhabitants.
And there are 80 million Latinos who have soccer in their blood.
Here, there are many people who want to accelerate the development of soccer.
What's the problem? They want results now.
They want to create infrastructure for children to play, and at the same time, they want a Messi or a Ronaldo to emerge immediately.
That emotional connection with the game takes time to develop.