U.S. Soccer — The Emergence
This is a follow-up article to an April 2019 article heralding the Birth of US Soccer. The first article was a broad, systemic analysis of the phenomenon. This article will focus on the Golden Generation spreading across the European Soccer leagues, primarily the German Bundesliga.
I will also discuss the sociological aspects of the phenomenon and how the Birth of US Soccer will impact US culture.
The Bundesliga has served as a cradle for the upcoming Golden Generation of US Soccer. The Bundesliga is where Christian Pulisic (now at FC Chelsea in England) and Weston McKennie (now at Juventus Turin in Italy) have both started, at Dortmund and Schalke respectively.
Now a younger core of the Golden Generation is concentrating in the Bundesliga.
To start:
Gio Reyna, (19) at Borussia Dortmund, is arguably one of the most talented players in US history. Dubbed by Erling Haaland “The American Dream”, Gio is still very young, learning and has huge upside.
Tyler Adams, (23) at RB Leipzig, is the defensive engine of the USMNT and one of its most important players.
Chris Richards, (21) currently at Hoffenheim, is the most talented, central defender in the USMNT pool.
These three have been in Germany for some time already and have established themselves at their teams.
And now there is a new crop arriving.
Ricardo Pepi, (19) at Augsburg, is one of the most important striker prospects of the USMNT. This is one area that the USMNT still needs more strength and hopefully Pepi can develop and deliver as a striker.
Joe Scally, (19) at Borussia Moenchengladbach, is a talented fullback getting valuable minutes. He can play on both sides and his versatility would be very useful.
Kevin Paredes, (18) at Wolfsburg, has recently arrived in the Bundesliga and is still getting used to it.
Justin Che, (18) at Hoffenheim, is another recent arrival and an interesting defensive player and exciting pairing with Chris Richards.
George Bello, (20) at Arminia Bielefeld, is another recent arrival and a fullback who is slowly getting some minutes in the Bundesliga.
Then there is Caden Clark, (18) who although has transferred to RB Leipzig, is still on loan in the MLS to aid his transition.
Not all these young talents may get their breakthroughs in the Bundesliga, but these are a total of 9, young, exciting, USMNT talents concentrated in the Bundesliga.
Once many of these players develop and become more established at their teams, it will allow for some interesting rivalries and matchups against each other. It will make the Bundesliga much more exciting for US audiences.
This concentration is likely to accelerate the system and make the Bundesliga even more interesting for other young, US players and potential marketers. This concentration is one reason why the Bundesliga will play a crucial role in the Birth of US Soccer.
Spread across the other Top European Leagues are the other key players of the Golden Generation.
Christian Pulisic, (23) at FC Chelsea in England, has adjusted well to the move and although still fighting for significant minutes in a very talented Chelsea team, has had some amazing moments with the Champions League Winners. Captain America is an important face a US Soccer and was a trailblazer for many of these young players moving to Europe.
Weston McKennie, (23) at Juventus Turin in Italy, has become a midfield engine at Juventus and has been at times the most important player of the USMNT.
Interestingly, these two started out at the Bundesliga Revierderby rivals Dortmund and Schalke and have now moved to other leagues.
Tim Weah, (22) at Lille in France, has been an important contributor, who unfortunately has been held back by many injuries. Hopefully he can stay healthy and continue his development.
Serginio Dest, (21) at FC Barcelona in Spain, has had his ups and downs, but can become a great fullback if he develops some consistency.
Brandon Aaronson, (21) at RB Salzburg, has had some impressive moments in the Champions League and will soon make a move to a bigger European club.
Yunus Musah, (19) at FC Valencia in Spain, is gathering valuable minutes and is an exciting versatile midfielder.
Gianluca Busio, (19) at Venezia in Italy, has had an impressive transition to the Seria A and is getting increasing minutes in Italy.
These 7 non-Bundesliga based, European players all have huge upside and will be an important pillar of the Golden Generation.
Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah were the first two US players to face each other in the knockout stage of the Champions League.
In the future there will be many more moments like this, especially if many of the Bundesliga based players also become more established and move to other European top teams.
This will make the Champions League more exciting for US audiences.
The above mentioned 16 players are all 23 and younger. This shows the Golden Generation’s potential that still has much upside in the future.
Something that is also interesting is the sociological and cultural aspect of the phenomenon.
Christian Pulisic will be an important face of the Golden Generation.
He just signed a long-term sponsorship deal with Puma. Puma will use this to regain brand awareness in the US. Also Chipotle has a sponsorship deal with Pulisic and in this case Chipotle will use this to expand brand awareness into Europe. Adding his hometown Hershey’s deal and Gatorade, this will give Pulisic significant exposure and give him some celebrity status in the US and also internationally.
This will make him an ideal role model for the next generation of US soccer players and inspire many kids to play soccer.
Gio Reyna will be another important face of the Golden Generation.
Gio has a sponsorship deal with Adidas and has a fairly marketable personality. He is the son of USMNT legend Claudio Reyna. With all the exposure he will get, he will be an ideal role model for the next generation of US soccer players and inspire many kids to play soccer.
The United States never had Soccer role models at the level of Pulisic and Reyna and the impact of this cannot be underestimated. Their collective exposure and celebrity will impact US culture and kids.
Especially if these two personalities mesh well together, since Reyna is 4 years younger than Pulisic and will only be 23 at the 2026 WC, it will be interesting as Pulisic will be viewed as the trailblazer and Reyna the young prince.
Weston McKennie will be another important face of the Golden Generation
He will likely be sponsored by Adidas and already has a sponsorship with Chipotle. So he will get his own branding exposure and will also be an interesting role model and will inspire many kids.
Tim Weah will be another important face of the Golden Generation
He is the son of AC Milan and PSG legend George Weah and he recently signed with New Balance. Weah is also a representative of New York. He would be very marketable and could inspire many kids.
McKennie and Weah could also play a big role in making soccer more popular in the African American community.
Other potential important faces of the Golden Generation will be Brandon Aaronson, Serginio Dest and Yunus Musah all of whom may not reach the level of Pulisic or Reyna, but bring a certain flare and fun into the game that could change the image of US Soccer.
Ricardo Pepi’s situation is somewhat different, because it is still unclear if he can live up to the expectations. If the USMNT ever had a top striker of Mexican-American descend, that would also be culturally interesting.
Still in progress…
