Let's face it. These are difficult times to be a women's soccer fan in this country. The team has virtually disappeared from national sports coverage. So, I pose the following questions. What has to be done to recapture the magic that made 1999 so enthralling? Has the impact of 1999 utterly dissipated?
Interestingly enough, I had this conversation with a fellow soccer fan this morning. It is difficult with the current mindset of playing alot around major events and then disappearing to maintain consistent coverage. It's tough to cover a team when they're not playing meaningful games. What I mean to say is - what is there to cover? Unfortunately, not much. The coverage was decent around the Olympics as you would expect but the team disappeared after the FCT as they are prone to do. As much as I get frustrated with the media, you can't really blame them for not covering the team right now because there isn't anything going on for them to cover.
That was a unique time in women's soccer history that I don't know can be repeated. However, women's soccer can still get back to the fan popularity it had a few years ago with new personalities. Although there are probably more better players now in the women's game than there were a few years ago, there is no Mia to take up tv commercial spots like before. I see great players in the future but no future potential high profile figure that can capture the imagination of a broad section of our country like Mia did. and it's not going to be Abby Wambach, she doesn't have it to appeal to a cross section of fans.
I'm curious to hear why you are of the view that Wambach doesn't have it to appeal to a cross-section of fans. By all indications, she's more outgoing and apt to smile publicly than Hamm, is as good (if not a better) player and has produced in championship games (which Hamm was often knocked for not doing). Is Wambach too tall? Too muscular? Too something else? Enlighten us.
Mia was a perfect symbol of US soccer. I remember the commmercials where they would talk about the world's greatest football player while she was lacing up her cleats and then they would show her face and have her run through a tunnel on to the field. that was perfect. She had a sort of appeal, cuteness, cudliness and yet athletic. I don't know how to put it in words. I like Abby as a player but I don't know if she has what it takes to be a commercial figure. I'm not saying I'm right, It's just my opinions from a male soccer fans point of view. I'm not saying all men will agree with me, it's just my opinion.
What about Akers? did't she generate a lot of appeal. She was voted the player of the century last decade. she is tall. maybe you have the Hollywood mentality in mind when it come to accessing someone appeal. here is where Mia Hamm come in. it so sad to judge Beauty by looks and stature.
Those are two of the last words I would use to describe Hamm. It's really her distinct lack of those traits that made her a great and compelling athlete. Back to the main question - don't expect 1999 to happen again. I can only remember one other occasion in my lifetime where a team or group of athletes went from relative obsucrity to toast of the mainstream in such a short period of time (1980 Olympic hockey team). Everything came together, including the novelness of the events. The USWNT is not a novelty to the mainstream anymore, been there done that - the 2003 WC had far less buzz than 1999, even if it had far more than anything women's soccer had in the US before 1999. The players involved blew the golden opportunity by throwing their support behind a poorly run and overly-cocky league that failed in the end instead of building on the momentum. So - how do they start going back up? Like every other sport in history - from the ground up. This doesn't start with the USWNT (though a few more games couldn't hurt), but a professional league. I would like to see an MLS women's division (existing entity, new stadia, help draw in MLS fans that wouldn't support WUSA) - others may argue for a return of WUSA or development of W-League or something altogether different - but it starts with a successful pro league that gets the product out there week in and week out in a number of locations. There's no magic fix, it must be ground out over time.
You can't really compare the '99 and '03 World Cups. The '03 WC was thrown together in 4 months. The fact that they pulled it together at all is pretty amazing and the #'s were more than respectable when you keep that in mind.
It might be sad, but it's simply a fact. Akers might have been voted POC but not by any marketing people but FIFA. I can't remember too many screaming girls. I have to agree with MRAD12 on the appeal issue. Wambach (or Prinz or Akers as well) is imo too big or can often rely on physical strength that it's difficult to see her marketed as successfull to the "family-friendly-group" as Mia Hamm. The general public still has too many stereotypes about female athletes/soccer players that it seems to be an aim of the industry to present a certain opposite to that as an commercial figure. Mia Hamm seemed to be marketed as very determined and talented, yet also shy that somehow did appeal to many girls and their parents.
That just why Women's Soccer don't appeal to the general majoriy of men's soccer Fans. marketing for little Girls and they parents aren't bring in the money. we have got to get the Men Fans interesting. that the only way to solve the problem. We have got to find a way to influence the Male fans to come to terms that Women's is worth a try.
I think DCU nailed it with the use of the word "novelty". What's that term...."lighting in a bottle"....that is how many would describe what happened that summer. I'd say that a good number of PTH...both young and old...have more or less moved on with their lives. Some of us are still hanging on. Some of us can't even recite half of the 1999 starters if a gun was held to our head. 1999 generated alot of new fans of varying degrees and in a small way you saw that reflected on this message board as well as some other ones. BS (and others) was extremely active back then and as we transitioned from the 2000 Olys to the 2003 WWC to the 2004 Olys....you could really see interest wane with regards to the USWNT.
Actually though I wouldn't have chosen the second word there's something in the general point; like Michael Jordan Mia has a reassuring attractiveness which makes the white hot competitive aspect less disturbing. She has a lovely face, great eyes and a decent voice, and the camera didn't really show the bad skin... and she was willing to take on the role the media required of someone, however unnatural it was to her. In the long run I wonder if her greatest impact on the culture might be in making the "soccer body" an acceptable part of "attractive". One of those tacky websites which maintains a ranking of the "hottest women in the world" had her in the top ten for a while... Like Janis Joplin she may have injected a certain respect for depth over surface into our national tastes... But on the topic, I'd like to try a loose analogy to the infant US; In its youth the US needed and had the compelling figure of George Washington to define what it was and symbolize it to the rest of the world. After the run of founding fathers the nation had a period of great competence in Madison and Monroe and arguably JQ Adams-- and then started looking for Generals again, with mixed results; Jackson, Harrison, Taylor. It didn't need the Centerpiece figure; there was momentum to spare. But there was a kind of inertial sense that porportion required a Hero figure, so we kept creating them... less and less successfully, as they were Generals and not Heroes... Women's soccer doesn't need a next Mia Hamm; it just needs to go about its business. There are a variety of compelling figures who will appeal to a variety of markets, and most folks in the US are members of several demographics and will see several of them... the major events will be televised and growth will be steady, just not explosive. In the long run the development of "Abby fans" and "Heather fans" (of two types) and "Cat fans" and "Shannon fans" and "Hope fans" will do more good than having a "Designated Goddess." Top down, marketing-stimulated growth has limited staying power. You can sell a record with payola, but you cannot build an artist's career... A certain post Mia evaporation was inevitable, but will not be catastrophic. If you love the game not the hoopla, you will get plenty of richness out of the next decade; and when you next notice the hoopla it will have roots...
The summer of 99 was unique. The women of 99 caught everyones attention, accross the board. Men, women, kids, etc. Mia was on TV regularly with big commercials. I remember the excitement at Soldier Field, before, during and after the World Cup game between US and Nigeria that summer. Men were talking about the team in the parking lots while moms were putting on red, white, and blue paint on their kids faces, both boys and girls. And when the team walked out of the tunnel on to the field led by Michele Akers, I heard loudest roar ever at Chicago's Soldier Field. Packed stadium, over 70,000 strong. Not an empty seat in the house. There was something that caught our imagination about that team that summer, both long time soccer player/followers like many of us and folks who have never been to a game in their life, but wanted to be a part of this wonderful sports experience.
Summer of 99, Everything was in their favor a: Lack of a crowded sports schedule (doomed ratings for the hastily put together 03) B: Mia was on top of the world, Letterman was boosting the games every night C Slow in the News Dept, giving ample time for the coverage d: Cute soccer chicks captured the Men's attention i think that Heather O. and lindsay have the potential to generate the interests of the common public, once heather is out of school and can be marketed... (No Offence to anyone but Abby does not have that sweet all american image, if you want me to explain it will have to wait)
It's like trying to explain why was Chrissy Everett more popular than Martina Navratilova or Billy Jean King even though both were probably better players.
I think what people are afraid to say is that she's not perceived to be feminine enough. That can be a double edged sword. There is backlash against Mitts because she's too feminine or people suspect that she's only a pretty face. Mia and the 99 team in general were a great balance. Attractive but not just attractive - competitive and tough. Women could relate to them but weren't threatened. Men thought they were attractive and enjoyed watching them compete. The 99 WC was a culmination of a massive marketing and pr effort by the organizing commitee. And as previously stated, it was strategically placed during a down time for sporting events. The 2003 WC was thrown together in 4 months. The didn't have time to get the machine rolling like they did in 99 and the games were played in a time frame where the sports landscape was much more crowded. The attendance was remarkable if you keep that in mind.
I don't think she was more popular than Martina, other than among single males in the immediate vicinity. Judging by the conversation of people on the street and in the bars, I think Martina was the more popular...
Attractiveness was not what i was i thinking. There is a way that Heather and Lindsay talk to Media and Abby often times comes off as brash (Not a knock on her, just a general perception I have gotten from some of my friends) I understand that she is a confident person, but it comes across too strong and that is one reason she is not as in demand as she could be.
I don't know how relevant this is, but I coach a youth soccer team, and the buzz is already growing for Heather O'Reilly. When they talk about the WNT, they mention her, not Wambach.
Don't know if you've noticed, but big girls who are confident are often percieved as brash... big girls are supposed to have poor body esteem in our culture, unless they look like Daryl Hannah...
I'm trying to think of when the next time would be for the USWNT to perhaps try to recapture even a 1/10th of what happened in 1999 and sadly I think it will be a while. 1) There is no domestic league with a nationwide appeal to showcase these players. Nada for 2006. 2007....ehhh. Errr 2008? Uhhh.... 2) The 2007 WWC is in China. The 2008 Olys is in China. The 2011 WWC I'm guessing will be held somewhere in Europe (I'd LOVE for it to be in the US again, but for Europe to get the shaft would be a travesty). The 2012 Olys has not been picked yet right? Or did London get picked? The point I'm trying to make here is that a major women's soccer tourney will not be held on US soil for what maybe another 10 years or so? The media coverage will be minimal with those overseas tournaments.
What is the time difference between here and China? I think what I meant was that there was not going to be much US media buzz about those tourneys. I think they will get coverage...but nothing replicating 99 or even 2003. Bits and pieces here and there, but no front page story such as "2003 WWC moved from China to US because of SARS". The Olys will be different of course, but the focus won't solely be on the USWNT. Just because an event is held on ESPN doesn't necessarily make it newsworthy among the non-hardcores.
With regards to Wambach's appeal, I took two friends to a Freedom game in 2003, and they were amazed with Wambach. The reason they came was because of Mia-but after we left all they could talk about was how good Abby was and how they wanted her jersey more than Mia's. I think she has the appeal but she needs more games to showcase her talent so the federation needs to get to business if they want a successful following in 2007.
I've posted this elsewhere but when I took my 9 year old to one of the FCT games we met several of the players during the day including Hamm, Wambach, Foudy, and some others. They were all very nice but Abby and Brandi probably made the biggest impression on my daughter. Was very personable. Then we went to the game and she scored 5 goals. My daughter went to that game in a Hamm jersey and left with a Wambach jersey.