Does USA Soccer Model Work?

The USA got knocked out of the 2010 World Cup knockout round and the pundits are out like vultures.

ESPN/ABC announcer Jürgen Klinsmann (pictured) had some interesting points on the uniqueness/inferiority of American Sport in producing World Champions.

He blames the American soccer system for much of the USA's failure.

The American focus is to get kids to play sports, get on travel teams and earn a college scholarship. In essence, parents foot the bill to develop kids for college athletics.

The rest of the world? By early ages, kids get identified and sign on with a professional team. They play with the younger kids and matriculate their way up to the top level of that team's program.

Back in 199 MLS started Project 40, which encourages early entry (without college graduation) of American players into MLS and with the hope of producing World Class talent. The program is now called Generation adidas and has had impressive results.

The program has included Tim Howard, Josh Wolff, DaMarcus Beasley, Maurice Edu, Carlos Bocanegra, Clint Dempsey, Jozy Altidore, Ben Olsen, Bobby Convey, Sacha Kljestan, Michael Parkhurst, Danny Califf, Freddy Adu, Brad Guzan and Michael Bradley.

On the bright side, that's eight players on the 2010 World Cup Roster! The others have had a decent amount of pro and international success.

On the other hand, a number of the above mentioned did not go to college. That includes Bradley, the son of Princeton-educated Bob Bradley.

No doubt Michael Bradley will earn enough without a college degree in his pro soccer career. He had a great World Cup and likely improved his standing more than any other American.

College education has always been an important of American society. The United States seems to compete well in just about every sport we play internationally, and that includes soccer.

If you look at the roster of the USA team, most are part of the "rest of the World" sports model. There are only a handful of college-educated players on the American team.

The USA competed in its sixth straight World Cup this year. The 1994 team went as far (second round) and the 2002 club advanced to the quarterfinals of those tournaments. Those teams were made up of players who competed extensively at the collegiate level.

Klinsman brought up another interesting and controversial point. He said that the lower and middle class kids are playing other sports, particularly basketball. The German noted that individuals in this demographic are hungrier and have the required grit needed in soccer.

That's a fair point. Poor kids don't have a lot of money to play on travel teams. However, I've never heard of a youth organization in any sport that would turn away a talented kid who wants to play.

Also, America is a melting pot. Their are a number of immigrants who have soccer in their heritage and they continue to play here (see Edu, Adu, Altidore).

Klinsman also brought up the formidable Hispanic presence in the USA. There are only four players with Spanish surnames on the team. However, expect that number to continue to grow as the population of the USA becomes more Latino. Additionally, US Soccer needs to continue to reach out to Mexican and other leagues that are not as connected to the federation as AYSO, for example.

One would thing the traditional American model the a hybrid of Generation adidas and other talented players can be successful.

The sky is not falling in American soccer. It's intriguing to consider the source of the theories: Jürgen Klinsmann.

He was the top candidate to succeed Bruce Arena after the 2006 World Cup. He didn't want the job at the time.

So, four years later, does he still think we have it backwards in the USA or does he believe he can lead America to the 2014 World Title?