Limited U.S. interest in the World Cup

By Marion Hohlfeld

            A De Anza College student skimmed through La Voz Weekly, the school’s student newspaper, finding the latest baseball and basketball news, but no 2014 FIFA World Cup related stories.

            “American football, basketball, and baseball take precedent over soccer,” said 22-year-old anthropology major Mariah Fowler during lunch last Wednesday.

            Fowler would be one of the two-thirds of Americans who do not plan to follow this year’s tournament, according to an ongoing Reuters/Ipsos poll.

            De Anza college students who spoke out on the topic had similar perceptions. More than half of the interviewees said they will not follow the event.

            Andrew Boyce, 26, a marketing major, said he is planning to watch the world cup cheering for the United States and Chile.

            “I think many people think of it (soccer) as un-American and therefore don't play or watch it,” he said Friday.

            Although only a few Americans will tune in when the U.S. men's soccer team lines up in Brazil to play their first game, their Hispanic American counterparts will watch Klinsmann’s guys.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll showed that one-third of Latin-Americans will be following the tournament or some teams closely.

Anthony Abass, 30, former De Anza student and now general manager for McDonald’s, used to play for the school’s men’s soccer team. He would not want to miss any minute of the world cup.

“Growing up with soccer brought families together,” he said. “It has been part all of my life.”

Abass, America born Nigerian, will root for all African teams and thought that Nigeria will win the tournament.

“I believe in the (Nigerian) head coach (Stephen Keshi),” he said.

Although a couple of De Anza students knew a lot about the event that will start Thursday, eighty-six percent of Americans surveyed in the poll knew nothing or only a little bit about the World Cup, according to the study.

Swedish student Emelie Fransson, 25, an athletic injury care major, was aware of Brazil being this year’s host country. She also grew up watching and playing soccer, she said Wednesday afternoon.

Both Fransson and 26-year-old nursing major Xiomara Rosado believe that the host will take home the trophy.

“They (the Brazilian soccer team) are (is) better than any other team,” Rosado said. “And they have home field advantage,” Fransson added.

“That will play a crucial key for a team that has proven themselves over and over again to be the best in the world,” she said.

Not everyone agreed with them. Kinesiology major Isaac Leong, 19, said that Argentina will win for sure because they have Lionel Messi, who is the best player in the world in his opinion.

Leong explained America’s lack of interest in soccer as “just not being mainstream.”

About 1,400 adult Americans had responded from April 7-11 in the still ongoing Reuters/Ipsos online poll.

Fowler said that she was enjoying sports, but soccer was never that popular.

“I don’t actively keep up with a lot of sports,” she said. “But I do love to watch them if they are already on TV.”