The FIFA World Cup hosted in Brazil became a summer of success for soccer in the United States. By galvanizing the on field success of the men’s national team, the sport itself was able to rally fans to its call. The upcoming Rugby World Cup needs to be utilised as a springboard for rugby’s own drive to achieve greater support across the nation. For a nation with a long and glorious sporting history it is necessary that the USA Eagles begin to make their own mark. Indeed as reigning Olympic Gold Medalists there is sufficient rugby pedigree to capitalise on.
USA Rugby Need to Emulate Their Soccer Counterparts
In a group alongside the traditional powerhouses of South Africa and Scotland, as well as fellow Pacific Nations Cup opponents Japan and Samoa, it will be far from easy for the USA to achieve those elusive test match victories. Only the most ardent supporter of the Eagles could imagine the possibility of a shock win over the Springboks, therefore, that leaves the USA three games to produce the goods. Scotland at Elland Road, Leeds will effectively be a home tie for Tartan Army making it far more difficult for the Eagles to get a result but they are not unbeatable. The recent Pacific Nations Cup has allowed Samoa, Japan and the US to become far better acquainted with each other than with the two tier one nations.
Close games in each of the respective fixtures ended with victory against Japan but a deflating loss to Samoa. Regardless of result USA showed that they are more than capable of competing with both of these sides. The might of Samoa have previously made the knock out stages of a Rugby World Cup on two previous occasions and would be a major scalp if the US is able to maintain the composure to close that losing margin. Japan is the one game that should be nailed on as a must win for the Eagles, with not only the recent victory over them but previous World Cup victories it is imperative the US continues this trend. With Samoa up first on the 20th September, confidence will be a factor leading in to arguably the toughest two games before finishing the group against Japan on the 11th October. In order for the American people to be behind the Eagles come that game it is necessary for performances and personalities to shine.
What made the summer of 2014 sublime for soccer in the States was largely down to the increased exposure in the media. Significantly it was the way in which the heroics of goalkeeper, Tim Howard, kept the much more fancied Belgian national team at bay in the round of 16. His performance went viral, he was saving everything that not only the Belgians could throw at him but everything the internet had to offer. Soccer was mainstream, Major League Soccer attendances swelled, people cared about a sport they barely knew about or were interested in. Rugby needs this to happen! The Men’s national side’s results in that tournament were W-T-L-L. One win and one tie, is that too much to hope for the Eagles this fall.
Ultimately the support generated back home in the US by the Eagles at this Rugby World Cup will not solely come down to results. The use of social media and the traditional press needs to be capitalised upon by USA Rugby. The signs of forward momentum have already begun, Nic White and Nick Cummings of the Australian side have already gone viral being interviewed in Chicago ahead of the game between the two teams on the 5th October at Soldier Field. Large contingents of American players already have plans in place to follow their side across the pond but it is back in the US were difficulties lay. One major factor of the success of 2014 was the time difference. Being on the same time as Brazil spared fans the need for an early morning call, fortunately for rugby the time difference will affect those people are not too sure about the game tuning in. Universal Sport will be live streaming all the Eagles games as well as the semis and final providing another barrier to newcomers.
This fall will undoubtedly see a feast of rugby action for fans across the globe but the growth of the game in the US hinges on their relative success. Sevens flying in terms of viewership with the recent success at Twickenham and the build up to the Rio Olympics and the 15 man code needs to begin to latch onto the hype surrounding it. Rugby supporters from the US need to help generate the buzz around the Eagles through social media and boost the profile of the game as soccer did in 2014.
