United States misses World Cup for first time since 1986

[sandensea]

Source: New York Times

Trinidad and Tobago, whose World Cup dreams ended months ago, stunned the United States, 2-1, on Tuesday night.

The result, combined with just-as-shocking outcomes in two simultaneous games in Honduras and Panama on the final day of qualifying for the Concacaf region, ushered in the unthinkable: The American men, mainstays of the World Cup for more than a generation, are out of next summer’s tournament in Russia.

Instead, Panama, which rallied from a one-goal deficit for a 2-1 win over Costa Rica, will join the Ticos and Mexico in Russia. It will be Panama’s first trip to the World Cup.

The United States’ defeat capped a dramatic final day of qualifying on multiple continents, with France and Portugal locking up World Cup spots from Europe and three South American teams — Uruguay, Colombia and, with a monumental sigh of relief, Lionel Messi and Argentina — doing the same.

“We didn’t qualify for the World Cup,” team captain Bruce Arena said after Tuesday’s loss. “That was my job.”

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/10/sports/soccer/usmnt-trinidad-world-cup.html

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The Trump slump again.

[OKNancy]

1. The men.

Hey, there’s another U.S. Soccer team playing in a year and a half!

The USMNT is trash, but the USWNT is the reigning women’s World Cup champion, so you can get excited about them!

https://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2017/10/11/16457090/uswnt-schedule-2019-fifa-womens-world-cup

[pangaia]

7. +++++++

[BuddhaGirl]

9. +1000

IMO our women are more interesting to watch anyway

I am sorry the men won't be in the World Cup, though. Heartbreaking loss

[USsoccerfan]

34. I disagree with that but will still watch em

The women's game is so much slower and less competitive- there just are only a few countries with serious women's sports programs so it doesn't help the games either.

[HeartachesNhangovers]

14. The US women's team is always a contender to

win the World Cup, but calling the men's team "trash" is pretty trashy.

[awesomerwb1]

27. The US women had a nice headstart over most of the world

because women playing soccer was not as popular and in many parts of the world "not proper". Some countries from the "rest of the world" are catching up, but the US women will always be a powerhouse and top 3 contender.

I'll watch the women's world cup, it's fun. But it does feel like slooow motion sometimes compared to the men's game.

The opposite is true of the men's team. They are playing catch up to the top countries. This is devastating tbh. But they should bounce back for 2022. Outside of Mexico and Costa Rica, the other countries are relatively weak.

[OKNancy]

29. tell sbnation. I'm sure there is a link at the site at the link I posted n/t

[HeartachesNhangovers]

31. sbnation didn't post on DU. sbnation didn't

quote themselves calling the men's team "trash". You did that. Own the trash you post.

[OKNancy]

32. lol - ok, sorry I cut and pasted from sbnation their exact content.

[IronLionZion]

23. I'm disappointed for the men, but excited for the women

yes, America is still a leader for women's soccer and other sports

[harun]

2. Very disappointing

[Still In Wisconsin]

3. That side never figured out who they were going to be in terms of style or strategy...

and even still, all they needed was a point against last-place T&T. If you can't do that, you don't belong. Losing the final match in part because of an own goal seems somehow appropriate.

[Blackjackdavey]

11. Honestly, it is worse than that

and entirely indicative of where we are as a society. Speaking as someone who has a talented young man at home and has been inside the US Soccer development system, what you are referring to above is exactly true -- but it isn't because they couldn't figure it out, it's because US soccer is making a concerted effort to eliminate creativity and problem solving within the system. They are attempting to develop automatons, worker bees that play a free flowing sport with paint by number patterns. When plan A doesn't work the players have no plan b and individual magic was deliberately trained out of them along the way. It is no coincidence that this generation's best player left the US at age 16 for Germany where he was able to develop the technical, creative skills required to compete at an international level.

[Still In Wisconsin]

21. Yeah, I have a Russian friend who is a big football fan. Here's what he says:

For Russia to succeed, they need to get the mafia out of the football league. For the USA to succeed, they need to get the players out of MLS.

I agree.

[ClarendonDem]

15. Arena's tactics last night were a disaster as well

All the US needed was a draw and the way he set the team up there was no control in MF and defense was terribly exposed. Didn't help that Tim Howard pretty much sucked last night.

[Still In Wisconsin]

22. How old is Howard now, sixty? I know GKs can and do play longer but still... n/t

[snooper2]

28. well, kicking in goals for the other team doesn't help much LOL

[AtheistCrusader]

4. Well, we can rely on the USWNT in 2 years.

They deliver a lot more than the men's team does.

[DinahMoeHum]

12. Yep, roosters may crow, but hens deliver the goods. . .

. . .just sayin'. . .




Now y'all know why the USWNT players have been fighting for better equitable pay and perks.

[USsoccerfan]

35. There is a big difference between men's soccer and women's soccer

There is way less competition and the game is slower paced. As an example, the US womens national team routinely loses to 15 year old boys clubs. This happens all over the world commonly as well.

https://www.cbssports.com/soccer/news/a-dallas-fc-under-15-boys-squad-beat-the-u-s-womens-national-team-in-a-scrimmage/

http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/1698/womens-soccer/2016/05/26/23954642/australia-womens-soccer-team-faces-unfair-global-backlash

So that is great that the US women do well but there is little competition. On the men's side, the competition is extreme.

[DinahMoeHum]

37. This has NEVER been about men vs women. NEVER.

Womens sports has ALWAYS been about giving girls and women the opportunity to play sports and play on teams just like men and boys do.

Any "battle of the sexes" has NEVER been part of the equation - men are the ones who
promote this bullshit narrative.

[Loyd]

5. So?

It's soccer.

[yallerdawg]

6. I've been watching football all my life...

and I have never heard of this -- "World Cup."

?

[bdamomma]

40. wow it's a very big thing "world cup"

in other parts of the world almost like the Olympics to us. We in the US call it soccer, out of the US futbol.

sad that we did not qualify.

[pangaia]

8. Maybe its time to start calling it futbol, which is what it is.

American 'football' is not played with the foot.

[OnlinePoker]

16. What do you expect from a country that has to say "ice hockey"

As opposed to the oh-so-popular grass hockey.

[pangaia]

18. Well, there IS box hockey.

[OnlinePoker]

19. I've never heard of that one.

Road/street hockey, maybe, but not box.

[pangaia]

20. When I was a kid, there was a big park nearby, baseball fields, jungle gyms, band shell,

tennis courts, and a box hockey..box.

https://www.google.com/search?q=box+hockey+game&tbm=isch&source=iu&pf=m&ictx=1&fir=tUfBbhh04FKNDM%253A%252C7xMOdq-FqojlaM%252C_&usg=__zW1QZ6of3Jka9rfwv7Xppt9lfuo%3D&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjCr7X5hOnWAhWi7YMKHYa9C9sQ9QEIQDAE#imgrc=tUfBbhh04FKNDM:

[Princess Turandot]

33. Field hockey is an Olympic sport...

for both men and women. The men's competition has taken place in every Olympics since 1928; the women's competition was added in 1980.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_hockey_at_the_Summer_Olympics

[George II]

13. Thanks Obama!

[MurderMittenLiberal]

17. Repost

https://www.democraticunderground.com/12152418

[IronLionZion]

24. Trump should feel comforted that Russia and Iran qualified

and lots of other small countries. It would be funny if Russia, the host country, didn't qualify.

[SwissTony]

25. The host country gains automatic qualification.

Qatar has "qualified" for the 2022 cup. Not a ball has been kicked.

[EarthFirst]

26. Fox paid $400 million to carry the World Cup:

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/international/world-cup-usa-russia-2018-fox-paid-400m-a7994746.html

[brooklynite]

30. Not likely based on US team expectations...

There's a large audience in the US for World Soccer. NBC shows UK Premiere league and lots of foreign language channels carry international contests.

[BHDem53]

36. At least they won't have to

go to the "dump" and meet the dotard.

[dembotoz]

38. To get to the big dance u need to qualify

I do like soccer
I am more likely to watch premier soccer over some over sports...pro American soccer not so much

I am less likely to watch world cup now...combo of no usa team, weird other side of the planet start times, and it being on fox...

Perhaps this wake up call will help

[Blue_Tires]

39. Time to chop off some heads...

[sandensea]

41. They're lucky they don't play for Colombia.

After Andrés Escobar, a defender for the national team, made an accidental own goal during the 1994 World Cup, he was murdered within days of returning to Colombia.

The murderers were tied to right-wing paramilitaries and (of course) the drug rackets. Perhaps the poor guy was better off.

[Blue_Tires]

42. Colombia was a big favorite going into that tournament

and I know some very dangerous people lost a lot of money gambling....