 |
Barcelona
fans got to see Brazilian star Neymar score the winner against Manchester
United in what could turn out to be one of his last matches for the Catalan
team if a much-touted move to PSG comes to fruition
|
Having paid nearly US$500
for a ticket to watch his team in a pre-season friendly against Barcelona,
Manchester United fan Vikrom Ahuja could hardly contain his excitement.
AFP
report continues:
"It's
a lifetime opportunity because you're not going to see this kind of opposition
in the US," said Ahuja as he savored the prospect of seeing Jose
Mourinho's side take on the likes of Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez at a stadium
in the suburbs of Washington.
"I
don't support a local team because the way they play, it doesn't excite me, it
doesn't get me out of my seat."
Domestic
soccer has long struggled to draw big crowds in the United States, even though
ticket prices often are significantly cheaper than for sports such as baseball
or American football.
But
huge attendance figures at a series of friendly matches involving the biggest
teams in European football have underlined a decided American interest in the
game -- as long as the quality is top-notch.
Tickets
for Saturday night's match between Real Madrid and Barcelona at the 65,000-seat
Hard Rock stadium have been selling for nearly US$1,000 on the black market.
A
match between Real and Manchester City drew a crowd of more than 90,000 in Los
Angeles earlier in the week, while upwards of 82,000 fans watched Barcelona
take on Italian giants Juventus just outside New York last weekend.
For
years, Europe's top clubs tended to head to Asia in the close season in a bid
to grow their fan base, but the United States appears to be increasingly the
number one choice.
Other
teams to have toured the States this year include Paris Saint-Germain, Roma and
Tottenham -- some them competing in the grandly titled International Champions
Cup.
- Star signings -
The
matches give US-based fans a chance to watch their team's newest stars even
before they make their debuts back home, such as United's new record signing of
Romelu Lukaku.
Barcelona
fans meanwhile got to see Brazilian star Neymar score the winner in what could
turn out to be one of his last matches for the Catalan team if a much-touted
move to PSG comes to fruition.
Eric
Wesner, part of the 82,000-strong crowd at a stadium which is normally home to
the NFL's Washington Redskins, said he had no regrets about paying US$200 for a
seat even if the venue is a good two-hour drive north of the capital.
"I
paid 200 bucks after fees when I usually pay US$30-US$40 for DC United,"
he said in reference to the local MLS franchise which plays in the center of
Washington and which gets average crowds of around 16,000 per match.
"It's
interesting because there are a lot of stars, and the level is much higher than
the MLS."
Back
in the 1970s, US fans did have the chance to watch the game's biggest names on
a regular basis when the likes of Pele and George Best played in the now
defunct North American Soccer League.
The
MLS has managed to attract some big names in the autumn of their career such as
France's Thierry Henry and England's Frank Lampard but struggles to compete
with the likes of China and even India when it comes to wages.
But
Laurent Dubois of North Carolina's Duke University, who has written a book
which demystifies the game for Americans, was not surprised crowds had flocked
to the pre-season friendlies
"Soccer
is of course overshadowed in the media by American football, basketball, and
baseball and yet I think probably more people play soccer in this country than
any other sport," Dubois told AFP.
Dubois
was confident that it is only a matter of time for the MLS to build up its fan
base and for those fans to go to see their hometown heroes, not just save up to
watch foreign stars.
"There
will be a problem for a while that many in the US will feel like the best
soccer is being played elsewhere, and they would rather watch Chelsea or
Barcelona than an MLS team.
"But the fan cultures
for local teams will keep growing I think."
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