La Velle E. Neal III: The seeds were planted in 1994 that led to growth of American soccer

La Velle E. Neal III, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Jun 7, 2026

Published in Soccer

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MINNEAPOLIS — There already was plenty for Americans to digest as July 4, 1994, approached.

The nation was still reeling from watching O.J. Simpson’s white Ford Bronco charging down California highways with officers in pursuit.

Tonya Harding was being banned from the U.S. Figure Skating Association for her role in the attack on Nancy Kerrigan a few months earlier.

And Major League Baseball owners, concerned about growing financial disparity among large- and small-market clubs, pushed the players association on a salary cap that would result in a strike.

Meanwhile, the United States was playing host to one of the world’s biggest sporting events, the World Cup. One certainty was that it was going to be the highest-grossing event in FIFA history, because massive NFL stadiums were used as venues and Americans know how to throw a party.

The one uncertainty was how much would soccer in this country thrive after it. There was no professional league in place, although MLS would debut two years later. And we were known for more for having soccer moms than being a soccer hotbed.

My assignment for the Kansas City Star at that time was to travel to Stanford. The USA was facing Brazil in the knockout round after our lads survived the group stage. I didn’t know I was going to be immersed in soccer culture.

The Brazilian team was based in Los Gatos, Calif., about 30 miles from Stanford, and that’s the town their fans took over. They entered liquor stores and began drinking in the aisles as they walked to the cash register. Employees tried to stop them but gave up as there were so many doing it.

Restaurants were overwhelmed with horn-blowing, drum-banging Brazilian fans dancing in their establishments. The streets of downtown Los Gatos were so busy that the police decided to restrict traffic to allow them to walk, and party, freely.

Attend a World Cup no matter where it’s located, then start saving for the next one. That was/is a Brazilian fan’s reason for existence.

The Americans lost to Brazil 1-0 despite playing the second half with a man advantage after Leonardo was sent off for knocking out Tab Ramos, the Yanks’ most creative midfielder, in the head with an elbow late in the first half. I sat in a pressbox in which Brazilian journalists were wearing team jerseys.

After leaving the stadium, the goal was to grab a bite and find a spot to watch fireworks. I landed in a traffic jam that ended with everyone leaving their cars in the street to walk over to a bluff and watch the show. A couple behind me in a BMW — Matthew and Zoie — joined me. I’ve never forgotten their names because of how hard they tried to get me to smoke marijuana with them.

Blown away by the experience, I returned to Kansas City and to praise for my coverage. The payoff came in September, when I was named to the Royals beat. But I was a baseball writer without baseball games to cover. The players had gone on strike Aug. 12 and the rest of the season, including the World Series, would end up being canceled.

I also began following top leagues in Europe and keeping up with many of the players who starred in USA ’94.

Back then, I did not foresee MLS having 30 teams by now, including franchises in Austin, Orlando, Cincinnati and Charlotte. Minnesota United joined in 2017, fulfilling a dream diehard Thunder supporters had for decades. I didn’t imagine players with worldwide appeal, like David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Lionel Messi and even James Rodríguez would play here.

OK, James barely played for the Loons, but he does have worldwide appeal.

It’s 32 years later, and the World Cup begins in North America on Thursday when Mexico faces South Africa. Canada and Mexico will play host to some games, with the majority in the United States.

It will, once again, be the highest-grossing World Cup for a simple reason: The field has been expanded from 32 to 48 teams and a record 104 games are scheduled. And you have to take out a second mortgage to pay for tickets.

The USA has its most talented team, as training and development in this country has continuously improved. Each MLS team now has an academy which, ahem, the Loons were slow to add. The only unfortunate outcome is that the best young players head to Europe for top competition and compensation. But it has been cool to watch Americans on Champions League-caliber teams.

For the next several weeks, you will see fans in their nation’s jerseys filling bars as enormous as Brit’s in downtown Minneapolis to as quaint as the Croatian Hall in South St. Paul to watch games. The sport takes a back seat to nothing else through the July 19 final.

Soccer in this country has come a long way since I watched Brazil fans take over a city in 1994. There is an established 30-team league. You can find a game to watch somewhere on TV nearly every day of the year. And the term “soccer mom” isn’t used as much.

The World Cup is back.

And so is the possibility of another work stoppage in baseball, as owners again push for a salary cap.

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