In this day and age it's quite easy to see that there is an expansive possibility for anything that has some form of hardcore support from the keyboard wielding denizens of the Internet. In sports there is hardly a more vocal group of supporters that have littered the ether with their ramblings than soccer. Websites like a-league.com, usldiscussions.com, mlsnet.com, soccernova.com, socceramerica.com, soccertimes.com, and a plethora of others show just how many outlets there are for the game that is an obsession for so many. Sites like those listed above are entirely aimed at the American soccer audience as well so one can only imagine how many more are on the ether of other countries.
The advent of the Internet to advertise the game of soccer in the United States has become a boom that no one could have foreseen. As the Internet developed more and more users came online and brought their particular likes and dislikes with them. The niche for previously marginilized sports in the United States became suddenly larger as the "Net" provided nearly endless opportunities for people to post their own thoughts on the games they follow. To this end the Internet has become a place for one-stop shopping, so to speak, for the soccer addict's news fix on a daily basis. Columnists like Michael Lewis and Jeff Bradley on larger websites such as CNNSI.com and ESPN.go.com have covered soccer for many years and now have found themselves settled in at the head of the pack of 'Net journalists. Other sites that offer rather comprehensive coverage of soccer throughout the world include soccer365.com, internetsoccer.com, and soccernet.com. Soccernet.com has aligned itself with ESPN yet still remains an invaluable site for information on the English game. For other items such as rumors, gossip, and discussions sites such as teamtalk.com, bigsoccer.com, and usldiscussions.com (not to mention the threads and boards that are available on the previously mentioned CNNSI and ESPN sites) are valuable resources which let fans communicate from all over the world. This kind of Internet community which has sprang up has helped unify soccer interests throughout the United States which in turn has strengthened the ties that people have with their clubs.
The site that my articles appear on, a-league.com, and its sister site, usldiscussions.com, have become such a resource for the fans of soccer below the MLS level that the USL recently came onboard while their own official web presence is being revamped by the people at UMBRO.com. Umbro will become a strong presence within the USL in the upcoming season but while their official site is being worked on officials from the league have released updates and interacted directly with fans through the usldiscussions.com site. The clubs in the A-League have had a great working relationship with a-league.com for well over the past year as they have recognized the advertising vehicle that the Internet has become for their clubs. A-League management, players, and fans have all used these two sites as places to congregate and get to know one another as well as put in a little free advertising. The guru of both sites, Dan Barnes, also runs the website for the Minnesota Thunder and has put in many hours making all three sites the best they can possibly be. All of his work is slowly but surely paying off as the work becomes legitimized by the folks who frequent his pages. There have been rumored attempts at deals that might make the site pay off in more ways than one but the main focus of the site is to remain free for all of the fans who have made these sites so successful.
The one constant with the stories for all of these sites is the fact that it shows that there is a plethora of solid services and places where news concerning soccer can be and is found on the web. The media people who have involved themselves with the Internet have found out just how strong the possible market is for cultivating soccer awareness there. Fans who want to be a larger part of what goes on in their local soccer scene as a way to encourage its growth have found their way onto the Internet. Youth organizations, high school teams, players, fans, parents, you name it. You can find information throughout the electronic medium to varying degrees on everything soccer. From stock prices on Manchester United to where the New Brunswick Brigade will be playing next season you can find it on this expanse of ether so many of us are now calling home. For soccer fans this couldn't be a better time. We are able to communicate with people all across the world and interact with fans we may have never met in our town. You see, for a lot of soccer craving lunatics, outwardly exhibiting a love for this game in a country where American football, baseball, and basketball is sometimes a bit intimidating. The Internet has provided soccer fans with a safe haven away from the dominance of those other sports and has helped people find like-minded folks in Their Town, USA so that the gospel of the people's game can be spread even further.
With the many avenues that have opened up to the fans of the game here in the United States one thing that cannot be ignored is the amount of work that has been done with the help of the Internet. At the same time, though, fans can't sit back in their cozy chairs while they're on the net thinking that they are involved. We've all got to go out and support our local soccer events whenever we catch wind of them. Then when we get home we can go back online and tell everyone how much fun the game was and recruit more to make trips out of their homes. If that can work then soccer can become as popular as the hardcore fans know it should be. In closing, support your local soccer and continue to be the main asset to all of the online sources that act as pipelines of information to feed our soccer habits. That's the view from here and I'll be back again next week.
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