Left back Ian Joy, 24, who was born in San Diego, where his English father, Brian Joy,  played for the San Diego Sockers, has been making headlines in Germany playing for Third Division FC St. Pauli, which upset Werder Bremen in the German Cup to earn a semifinal date with Bayern Munich. Joy has played for U.S. youth national teams at various levels.

Interview by Mike Woitalla

SOCCER AMERICA: Do the Germans consider you an American or British?
IAN JOY: I play under my British passport and they call me an American with a Scottish passport. We moved from San Diego to Scotland, where my mother is from, when I was 5 years old. But my mother always built into me to be proud of where I came from. She'd give me things like American flags and American eagles. When I got a chance to play for the American youth national teams I felt a great sense of pride.

The fact that in Germany they consider me an American is a great benefit, because the Germans rate American players highly.

SA: St. Pauli is in the Third Division but averages 17,000 fans per game. It's located amid the famous Reeperbahn red-light district and its fans have been described as a conglomeration of longshoremen, rockers, punks, hippies, hustlers and the unemployed who never cause problems for the police. What's it like playing at the Millerntor?
IJ: You really have to experience it. It's crazy, absolutely amazing. The atmosphere is always great. Some of the fans use games to demonstrate against racism and fascism. It's known as a place of freedom, where people can be themselves and enjoy. You can even smell a little marijuana from the stands.

The club's following is worldwide. When the club was on the verge of bankruptcy it sold 140,000 "Save St. Pauli" T-shirts worldwide and raised more than a $1 million. Our German Cup run has really helped, also, and we have a good chance of winning promotion to the Second Division.

SA: Do the Germans ask you about the U.S. national team?
IJ: Oh yeah. They ask me why I haven't been selected. But I'm playing in a lower division and there's no way for Bruce Arena to see me week-in and week-out. So I'll just concentrate on my job here and maybe one day I'll get a shot.