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CNN Sunday Morning

Americans Still Not Tuning in to World Cup

Aired June 02, 2002 - 07:25   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, millions of fans around the world are glued to the month-long tournament. Here, in the U.S. though, we still haven't gotten got up in that World Cup fever.

Pedro Pinto explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Major sporting event this summer? World Series.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't have the slightest idea.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Baseball.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've heard of the World Cup. That's about all. I think it includes maybe some jogging or something of that nature.

PEDRO PINTO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The fact most Americans don't know about the World Cup isn't that surprising. Baseball is still considered to be the national pastime and football, basketball, hockey, tennis, golf and NASCAR draw more attention and television ratings than the game, which is an uncontested number one everywhere else. So what can be done to change all of this? The American team has to win.

CLINT MATHIS, U.S. MIDFIELDER STRIKER: Our job here is to try to get more and more people to get more involved in the U.S. here. And it's tough when you don't win one game, you know, in a World Cup. So you know, we know challenges lie ahead and you know. And I guess the bright thing is you can't do any worse than last time.

PINTO: Last time, in the '98 World Cup, the U.S. lost all of their games and finished dead last. Now, soccer did threaten to take off stateside in '94 when the country hosted the World Cup and in '99 as well when the women's national team won their World Cup by beating China in California. But those events did little to change the overall American enthusiasm for the sport.

Major League Soccer, the nation's main domestic competition, has struggled to grab the masses' attention. As a matter of fact, two franchises were forced to fold in the past off-season. The league has served the purpose, helping the states nurture some of their rising stars. And although no one is expecting that Americans to come back from the Far East with the cup, the team should do better than it did four years ago.

JEFF AGOOS, U.S. DEFENDER: I think you learn a lot more from your failures than you do from your successes. And we certainly had plenty of the failures in '98 and we have learned from those. And we're putting those behind us and correcting them and moving on.

MATHIS: Go there and leave it all out there, you know. If the fans can't appreciate that and understand it, you know, forget about them, you know.

PINTO: The team is hoping that most Americans haven't forgotten about them already.

I'm Pedro Pinto.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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