This is the fifth straight Olympics in which the United States has competed in the men’s soccer competition ù more than any other team in this year’s tournament ù and the only thing more surprising than the stunning display of attacking soccer by Clive Charles’ team has been NBC’s commitment to provide full coverage of the U.S. men’s and women’s teams.
I’m frankly surprised at the many negative comments I’ve seen on various online chat rooms ù soccer relegated to MSNBC, taped coverage, commercial breaks, Andres Cantor in English ù because it has been the best coverage Olympic soccer has ever gotten on American television.
Folks, we’ve gotten spoiled.
I could see NBC riding the U.S. women’s bandwagon after the criticism it took for scant coverage of the ’96 finals in Athens, Ga., and the spectacular ratings of last year’s Women’s World Cup.
But the men?
The only time I’ve seen as much of the U.S. men on television was in 1988 when we convinced the owner of a neighborhood bar to let us stay after hours, sit in the back of the bar and watch the live Mexican feed on satellite from South Korea.
I can still remember how startled we were at the performance of the U.S. men against Argentina in their opener, a 1-1 tie.
Lothar Osiander’s team was unable to duplicate the great performance in its subsequent two games ù several players came down with food poisoning after eating pizza! ù and went home early.
The confidence of Charles’ players, on the other hand, has grown from game to game. Was there really any doubt that they’d bury Kuwait?
Their success also proves once and for all that preparation isn’t everything.
For all the coaches who complain about the lack of preparation, it should be noted that Charles’ team had only one international match in the four months before the tournament ù and just seven all year.