Hey y’all.
Let’s do this one more time.
SO … WHAT’S NEXT?
The World Cup was glorious. Underdogs, ultimate champions, unbridled international passion — we saw it all, right here in the ATL.
And now it’s over.
So what do we do now? Where does all this fútbol fanaticism (some newfound, some long-simmering) go? Well …
🤔 There’s always Atlanta United: To be clear, Atlanta’s already a strong soccer town. The Five Stripes won a title in their second-ever season and have built a dedicated fan base of diehards, casuals and families just wondering what it’s all about.
It ain’t 2018 anymore, though.
United put forth an abysmal performance last season and this year ain’t trending any better: three wins in 15 matches. In order to fully capitalize and keep the mojo going, Atlanta United will need to turn things around real quick.
Seems like the Five Stripes are trying, at least.
At a Monday morning news conference introducing recently acquired defenders Paulo Diaz and Junior Alonso, sporting director Chris Henderson made a point of calling them the team’s “first two” signings of the summer.
- “We are in good conversations on multiple positions further up the field,” Henderson told reporters. “Some of those conversations (involve) some outgoing players at the same time as some incoming players. And we’ll see some of those announcements in the next few weeks.”
🤔 The women are coming, too: The FIFA Women’s World Cup arrives next summer in Brazil and the U.S. squad truly ranks among the world’s best.
More locally, the National Women’s Soccer League is top-class — and Atlanta has a squad arriving in 2028.
Not a lot of details just yet, but Arthur Blank is running the show with help from new “president of soccer” Mauricio Culebro.
🤔 And the kids? The kids are all right: My 10-year-old isn’t a huge sports guy (shakes fist at sky). He can name, like, two Braves players and is aware of Bijan Robinson’s existence. LeBron James is a person he met via “Space Jam” (the second, far worse one).
But even before the World Cup, he somehow knew Messi and Ronaldo and Lamine Yamal. I watched Sunday’s final at a friend’s house … and was surprised to find a half dozen other youngsters fully decked out for the occasion. Spain shirts, Messi shirts, their own jerseys, didn’t matter.
Locked in.
Will they stay that way? Who knows.
But they’re already more into it than previous generations. More kids watching means more kids playing … and the dozens of new Georgia soccer fields built in recent years or coming down the pike won’t hurt either.
OTHER NEWSLETTERS YOU MIGHT LIKE
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THE AJC’S FAVORITE MOMENTS AND MEMORIES
You didn’t think we were gonna get out of here without a few guys who lived and breathed the World Cup for weeks sharing their favorite moments, did you?
❤️ Rod Beard, senior sports editor: “The eight World Cup matches in Atlanta featured 11 countries, including two appearances each by Spain, Argentina and England — which coincidentally finished first, second and third, respectively. We witnessed three of the most memorable matches, with Argentina mounting comebacks in the round of 16 against Egypt and in the semifinals against England.
“My lasting memory will be following Spain’s scoreless draw against Cape Verde, when the fans of the Blue Sharks celebrated and rejoiced long after the game. Even in the Backyard outside the stadium and Fan Fest, they danced and cheered … after a draw. It was the first clear indication for me that this World Cup was going to change my understanding of soccer and help to put it in the lens that the world views it.
“Mission accomplished.”
❤️ Ken Sugiura, columnist: “Witnessing Argentina’s wild comeback against Egypt in the round of 16 will stay with me for a while. Egypt coming so close to a historic victory that might have been the greatest in the nation’s sports history only for Leo Messi and Argentina to steal it away in the final minutes was breathtaking.
“After the game, thousands of Argentina supporters remained in the stands — singing, chanting, banging drums — not wanting this incredible moment to end.”
❤️ Gavin Godfrey, senior reporter: “Whatever it is in life, they say you’ll always remember your first. That’s certainly true for Atlanta’s (and my) first World Cup match. I will always remember June 15 as a day I traded looks of bewilderment with AJC columnist Michael Cunningham as we watched Cape Verde’s goalkeeper, Vozinha, turn into Superman and shut out mighty Spain. You don’t walk into those moments thinking you’re going to see World Cup history or the birth of a sports legend, but we witnessed just that. I won’t soon forget it.”
NOW RELIVE IT VISUALLY
Gotta show the photojournalists some love too, right?
The AJC had folks at every match in Atlanta, plus all the watch parties, bars and other events the city threw at us.
So take some time to scroll through our gallery of their best work. You’ll be glad you did.
SPANISH CONQUEST
Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera enjoyed watching his native Spain win the Cup in person (and snapped a photo with world-famous chef and philanthropist Jose Andres, too).
So how did La Roja get it done — and frustrate the Argentine squad to the point of postmatch ugliness?
Let’s go to the charts!
Check out the fine print for a more thorough explanation, but suffice to say that Spain possessed and passed the ball far more effectively than Messi & Co.
Deeper into the attacking half, too.
Visualized another way, by esteemed AJC data guy Rahul Deshpande:
See the way the blue lines thin out as they cross midfield toward the goal at the top? And how plentiful the red ones are?
Complete domination.
Low-scoring final aside, this year’s World Cup produced a record 308 goals, according to ESPN Insights, That’s largely thanks to an expanded field and 40 extra matches, of course. But 2.96 goals per game still marked the highest average since 1970.
THANK YOU, BUT NOT GOODBYE
Thanks, y’all, for joining our soccer-via-newsletter experiment. It’s been a blast.
And remember: You can still keep up with AJ through AM ATL, me through the Win Column … and lots of other delicious AJC content through lots of other avenues.
Don’t be a stranger now, ya hear?
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of Kick It. Questions, comments, ideas? Drop us a line!
Until next time.