1-2-1 With... Jeremiah Johnson (US Football Writer)

America, the motherland of baseball, basketball and that the annoying sport that shares its name with our beautiful game. But today we've put those sports aside for the fastest growing sport in the US, Football. To find out more about Major League Soccer (MLS) I went to Jeremiah Johnson. Jeremiah writes for his site goalkeepergrades and is an expert on goalkeepers but today he took some time out from his day job to reflect on US football as a whole.

Full Name: Jeremiah Johnson

Website: www.goalkeepergrades.com

Football Team Supported (MLS and Foreign):

Unfortunately my hometown doesn't align me with any top flight club geographically. There is a USL (2nd division) team in Minneapolis called the NSC Stars (formerly the Minnesota Thunder)... but I don't feel like the club has historically done a great job of marketing their product which makes them hard to follow through the local media.

In the MLS, I tend to vacillate between several teams I pull for.  In the early days, it was DC United because I enjoyed their consistency and the style of play. Recently I've found myself aligning with the LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake (for the same reasons I liked DC United).  I've also become a fan of the Seattle Sounders and I wear my Seattle Sounders warm-up all the time. The club's fan following is infectious.

Globally I follow all the big clubs... Man U, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, Inter, Real Madrid, Barcelona.   Otherwise I tend to gravitate towards clubs spotted with guys from the US. Wolverhampton, Aston Villa, and Everton showcase some US goalkeeping talent and Fulham just seems like a really cool small club in a big city (Clint Dempsey).

What is the top football club in the US and how do they compare to their counterparts in Europe? And also when compared to other North and South American teams?

Landon Donovan playing in the CONCACAF Champions League defeat to Puerta Rican outfit PR Islanders

The MLS features a playoff system to determine the league champion which makes the end of the season very dramatic, but doesn't always end up featuring the best squad. The 3 clubs that standout as today's best are the LA Galaxy, Real Salt Lake, and the New York Red Bulls.

None of these clubs would hold up in the European Champions League, but could potentially avoid relegation from some of the top leagues around the globe. In friendly matches, MLS teams have been gaining ground. The Red Bulls completely outplayed Juventus and Sporting Kansas City (Wizards) defeated Manchester United in their summer friendly matches of 2010.

Historically, the CONCACAF Champions League hasn't been a priority for MLS clubs but the new format, which started in 2009, mimics that of the UEFA Champions League and seems to be gaining popularity. Real Salt Lake has made it an organizational priority to succeed in this competition, which has been dominated by Mexican clubs, and intends to do well in order to advance to the FIFA Club World Cup.

Who would you say are the top 3 top young players playing in the MLS? And why? (please state their positions also)

Fredy Montero, 23, F, Seattle Sounders, Columbia

Andy Najar, 17, M, DC United, Honduras

Tim Ream, 23, D, New York Red Bulls, USA

Could these three players play in Europe and do you see them moving in the future?

Yes. I think that they are best served getting a few more seasons under their belt in the MLS before testing European soil.

Who do you consider to be the greatest US footballer ever? And why?

Aston Villa man Friedel greatest US player of all time?

Brad Friedel, GK

No US player can claim to have more of a long-term impact in top-flight club football than Friedel. He currently  holds the Premier League record for consecutive appearances (250 as of 1.17.2011) and still has a tight grip on the starting position with Aston Villa at nearly 40 years old.

Since winning a collegiate championship with UCLA, he has gone on to play professionally in Turkey, the US (Columbus Crew), and England (Liverpool, Blackburn, Aston Villa).  

Internationally he has played in the Olympics, started for the US in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups before retiring from international play in 2005. It is my opinion that Friedel would have been the starting GK for the 2006 World Cup had he not retired and currently ranks as the #2 US goalkeeper only behind Tim Howard (Everton).

Which foreign players would you say have had the biggest influence on the MLS?

From a marketing perspective, David Beckham. Unfortunately he has been more focused on impressing England National Team Managers than winning MLS titles.  His impact on the field has been marginal.

Other players have brought excitement to the MLS with their notoriety. Carlos Valderrama (Columbia), Preki (Yugoslavia), Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria), Thierry Henry (France), Lothar Matthäus (Germany), Walter Zenga (Italy), Piotr Nowak (Poland), Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Mexico), Rafael Márquez (Mexico) and Hugo Sánchez (Mexico).

Marco Etcheverry (left) beats Landon Donovan (right) during an MLS All Star Match

The foreign player who made the biggest impact on the field is, by far, Marco Etcheverry (Bolivia). Etcheverry played eight seasons with DC United and led them to 3 MLS Cups, a CONCACAF Champions Cup, and a Copa Interamericana title.  He was also named an MLS MVP,  MLS Cup MVP, MLS All-Star Game MVP, and to the MLS All-Time Best XI. 

Which foreign coach has had the biggest impact on domestic football in US?

Milutinovic has now been mentioned twice in 1-2-1 With... During an interview about Chinese football and now America ironically

Bora Milutinovic (Serbia) - led the US National team into the second round of the 1994 World Cup

Which foreign team has had the biggest impact on domestic football in America?

Manchester United. It's probably due most to the fact that the Premier League is a highly visible league on television in the US... and they are perennial contenders in the EPL and Champions League.  Manchester United is one of the wealthiest and most widely supported football teams in the world... and just happens to be owned by an American (not that he's well liked).  People in the US who don't know soccer (football) know Manchester United. It's kind of like going to other parts of the world and talking to people who don't know baseball but they know the New York Yankees.

Has the popularity of football increased in recent years in America or do you still see American Football, Basketball and Baseball dominating American sport in the foreseeable future?

The game is growing but still sits behind (American) football, basketball, and baseball when it comes to exposure to the masses. A large part of the problem is inconsistent media coverage. Until the MLS can get a high-visibility television deal, people can't pay attention. We live in a ESPN SportCenter world where most of the time we can only keep up with the highlights rather than full matches.

Attendance at MLS games is growing, especially with these clubs moving out of major NFL stadiums and building soccer-specific stadiums. The atmosphere is much better at a full 30,000 seat stadium than at a less than half-full 75,000 seat NFL stadium.  

For the 2010 season , the average MLS attendance was 16,675. These numbers fall behind the NFL (67,508) and MLB (30,129) but are on par with the NBA (17,110) and NHL (17,004). The club with the highest average attendance numbers for 2010 was Seattle Sounders FC with 36,173.  

If the Sounders were in the MLB they would rank 10th in average attendance. If the Sounders were in the NHL or NBA they would rank 1st in average attendance. If the Sounders were in the Premier League they would rank 9th behind Aston Villa and ahead of Tottenham Hotspur in average attendance. The MLS needs more clubs like the Sounders. 

Which European player is the most popular in America, other than David Beckham of course? 

Thierry Henry (France) 

That do you think of the decision to allow Russia to host World Cup 2018 instead of England?

Russia was an acceptable choice. I would have rather seen it go to England, but FIFA has no ability to grow the game further in England. FIFA will benefit from giving more visibility to the game throughout Russia.

However, I am interested to see how they work out teams potentially playing across 9 time zones. 

And how to you feel about the decision made to give the World Cup to Qatar instead of the US?

Horrible decision. 120 degree heat! Are they really going to build air-conditioned outdoor stadiums with technology that doesn't exist? Are they really going to build 9 stadiums to be used for 1 month? Qatar has never made it to the World Cup finals. Congrats on your automatic bid.

There is so much opportunity to grow the game in the U.S... it just needs that additional boost of visibility that another World Cup could provide.

Finally where do you think the MLS and the international team will be in ten years time?

MLS

The MLS needs to continue to build tradition and history. Remember, this league as only been in existence for 14 years. The league needs to continue to build relationships with their surrounding communities, just as the NFL has done since the 1920's and English football since the 1880's.

In my opinion, the best thing the MLS can do is move to a true pyramid structure with promotion and relegation as soon as feasibly possible. It's the one thing that would make professional (soccer) unique in comparison to any other American professional sport. 

US National Team

Our player development approach has been moving towards the utilization of regional  academy structures aligned with MLS clubs rather than the fragmented US Olympic Development Program that has traditionally served as the feeding mechanism for the national squads.  This will be a significant factor in the improvement of our senior national teams.

I would expect that the US would secure a berth in the World Cup quarterfinals either in Brazil 2014 or Russia 2018. Anything less than that is a failure. Anything more than that will be a bonus.

(END)

I hope you enjoyed that informative chat about the current condition of football in the US. After that I'm hoping that we get to see the next generation of Brad Friedels, Landon Donovans and Clint Dempseys playing in Europe in the future...