It’s that time of year again, where we look back at some of the best players and moments in the world game.
We’ve broken it up into two parts, with a special New Year’s wish at the end.
For all of us at Fox Soccer, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank you for following the sport with us this past year. Best wishes for the New Year, and good luck to you, your families and the teams you support!
BEST OF 2010
Support for Charlie Davies: The near-fatal auto accident he was involved in happened in the fall of 2009, but his absence cast a pall over all of American soccer last year. Davies was expected to be World Cup starter; suddenly, he was fighting for his life. Davies’ story is proof of the love and power of this sport.
The U.S. men won one fluke game against Spain in 2009, fooling some fans. Then, the real team showed up in South Africa. They won one game at the World Cup in a very weak group. Average would be okay if the expectations weren’t vast.
But the kick in the teeth came following the Cup. You might recall that USSF promised a full review ... then re-hired Bob Bradley as its head coach, to justifiable howls of disbelief from its fan base. Can the USA not get a true, big-time head coach? Did they even try? Or was too much cash tied up that World Cup bid? Whatever the reason, it was a sad statement on where the men’s game really is.
Americans riding benches abroad: It’s troubling to see men like Ricardo Clark (Frankfurt), DaMarcus Beasley (Hannover), Jozy Altidore (Villarreal), Jonathan Spector (West Ham), Freddy Adu (Aris), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), and Dominic Cervi (Celtic) spending more time watching the matches than playing in them. Ostensibly, these guys went abroad for higher quality competition. They aren’t getting it.
NEW YEAR’S WISHES
For the rest of the world, press your newspapers, radio stations and TV to keep poking about in FIFA’s business. If you really want to see an end to the big-money sleaze that has tainted this game, it’s going to take pressure from the folks the game really depends upon. That would be you, the consumers and the players.
It’s your choice. You can accept the status quo, where a group of unaccountable people trade bribes and favors, or you can shine a light and clear out some of the rats. It will not be a pretty process, and nothing is ever perfect. But right now, the game at every level is devolving into the haves and have-nots and guess what? 90% of the world is going to be in the latter group.
Soccer is your game -- not FIFA’s, not the oligarchs’, not the cheaters’, and not the thieves. Make sure it stays that way before it’s too late.
Jamie Trecker is a senior writer for FoxSoccer.com covering the UEFA Champions League and European football.
