Finding Meaning in a Meaningless All-Star Match

By: Bob | August 7th, 2006

all star trophy.jpg The American soccer fan lives with a permanent chip on his shoulder. Living in a country where the sport often ranks below poker in the television pecking order, there is a constant need to defend the sport to others and to hope that one day soccer will become more than just a game for 10-year-old kids to play.

We understand this all to well, which is why we understand many of the words being written about the Major League Soccer All-Star game this past weekend.

The MLS All-Stars defeated Chelsea 1-0 in game played before 21,000 in Chicago. After the game, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho said in his typical blunt fashion: “For me, this was a training session - no more than that.”

Fair enough. Chelsea does have bigger goals in mind and its American vacation was never anything more than an opportunity to make some money and to build their brand in the United States market.

Just don’t tell that to the Blogosphere, which viewed the MLS victory in different terms. Here are a few samples.

116 Street Soccer
I couldn’t believe my eyes; a mostly American outfit, playing short passes, keeping the ball on the ground, maintaining possession and attacking? Too good to be true! I went into the match expecting Arena-ish long balls, and was pleasantly surprised to find a well-organized, wide-open attack.

On the Pitch
Did the result mean anything significant? Probably not. But someone forgot to tell the MLS All-Stars and Peter Nowak. They played a tough match and put in a gritty performance in front of a decent sized (by US standards) crowd if 21,000+. And while this may not have mattered to Chelsea, they sure played like it did in the last 5 minutes of regulation when they turned up the tempo noticeably

The Far Post
Jose Mourinho was quick to invoke the spirit of Allen Iverson and The Bruce after his team’s 1-0 loss to the DC United MLS Quasi-Stars on Saturday in suburban Chicago. While it is true Chelsea was tired and unfit, the fact is – they lost to a team who’s starting goalkepper has a day job at mortgage company. I’m just sayin’ the Miami Heat wouldn’t lose to CSKA Moscow . . .

Footballs are Round
Let’s not overestimate the importance of this win, but let’s not forget it either. It’s one of the millions of tiny turning points that MLS and American Soccer are going to go through before they end up being seen as equals on the international scene.