slikmar

If Neflix is smart, they will beg him to reclaim his role in the Witcher

True, but it also may have led to warp drive and matter replication technology.  So there's that....

I will point out that this year's Orange Bowl features Tennessee vs. Clemson.

Gonna be a tough sell.
MLS minimum salary:  $65K
NBA rookie minimum:  $950K
Another issue:  of the top 20 highest paid players in MLS, there's 1 from the US
(https://boardroom.tv/highest-mls-salaries-2022/)
 
College soccer?  209 Div I schools, 9.9 scholarships max per school
College basketball?  353 Div I schools, 13 scholarships max per school
 
I'd also argue that, if you want to develop an international-level player, high school is probably too late.  There are *occasional* basketball players that start late, but I believe they're typically centers...of the "7 foot WHAT?" variety.
 
A big factor in football and basketball is the camps, often but not always run by the shoe brands.  They're pay to attend, mind, but they go down to youth levels...middle school, I believe.  Nike's camps page says they ran 650 camps.  No mention of how many kids attended, but they say over 7000 were on the waitlists and didn't get in.  (In case you wonder where all those 3-star, 4-star, 5-star ratings that you hear about during recruiting are determined?  These camps.)  It's not just Nike, or just the shoe brands;  they're just, I believe, the biggest.  It's a massive industry.  It does look like there's soccer camps too, but they're nowhere near the same level, at least based on a quick check.
 
But, I suspect a big factor is, it's simply not viewed as a US sport.  The top players in the top US league are foreign.  There's no view that the US develops top players, which discourages players who can see any other option, which means...you tend to get players not quite as good.  There's SOME change here;  I believe there's better US representation in UEFA overall in the last few years, but...that doesn't help very much.
 
It's plausible that the increased exposure...IIRC, NBC does Premier League, and I think Fox does Bundesliga, which are both fairly new developments, could help raise awareness and interest.  We shall have to see if that lasts...or whether this was based on it being a World Cup year.

This is one of those world cups gives hope for the future of this USA team. they are the 3rd youngest, so if can stay together and healthy and hopefully pick up a center forward who is a finisher, preferably taller then 5'10". Netherlands strategy was obvious from the beginning, pack 10 guys at top of box to about 25 feet further out and don't chase the USA players around knowing that your 6'+ defenders mean they can't lift ball from wings into the box for potential header goals. watching looks like USA is dominating with the ball control, but by half, down 2-0, with the Dutch strategy working perfectly.
Somehow, USA needs to convince in highschool some of these potential 6'4" pointguards who won't make the NBA to come play soccer.
My brother and I say similar thing regarding rugby. Team usa coach needs to travel to 2nd level colleges and convince some of the linebackers/runningbacks/defensive backs that they won't make nfl, so come try rugby and play on international level.

Gaylord Perry passed away today, age 84.  RIP, Spitball Master.
 
He won his career 300th game while with Seattle.

If that shape is an indicator of how it flies, I really don't want to ride in that capsule.  🤢