Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. IFRAME: [1]https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-N8MP7P [2]Skip to main content (Submit) Open main navigation [3]Watch [4]Listen * [5]United States [6]US Politics + [7]Immigration + [8]All About America + [9]Science & Health + [10]Silicon Valley & Technology * World [11]Africa + [12]The Americas + [13]East Asia + [14]Europe + [15]Extremism Watch + [16]Middle East + [17]South & Central Asia + [18]VOA News on Iran * Sections [19]Arts & Culture + [20]Day in Photos + [21]Economy & Business + [22]Press Freedom + [23]Plugged in with Greta Van Susteren + [24]VOA StudentU + [25]VOA Connect * [26]US News * [27]Press Freedom * [28]Silicon Valley & Technology * [29]VOA StudentU [30]Voice of America Logo (Submit) Search Search VOA News ____________________ (Submit) Search (Submit) Eng [31]Watch [32]Listen English [33]English [34]voanews.com [35]Learning English [36]learningenglish.voanews.com Eastern & Central Europe [37]Shqip [38]zeriamerikes.com [39]Bosanski [40]ba.voanews.com [41]Îλληνικά [42]gr.voanews.com [43]ÐакедонÑки [44]mk.voanews.com [45]Srpski [46]glasamerike.net [47]УкÑаÑнÑÑка [48]ukrainian.voanews.com Eurasia [49]ÕÕ¡ÕµÕ¥ÖÕ¥Õ¶ [50]amerikayidzayn.com [51]Azerbaijani [52]amerikaninsesi.org [53]á¥áá áá£áá [54]amerikiskhma.com [55]Ð ÑÑÑкий [56]golos-ameriki.ru Central Asia [57]O'zbek' [58]amerikaovozi.com South Asia [59]বাà¦à¦²à¦¾ [60]voabangla.com [61]Ø¯Ø±Û [62]darivoa.com [63]Ù¾Úت٠[64]pashtovoa.com [65]ÙÛ Ø§Ù Ø§Û ÚÙÙ٠رÙÚÛÙ [66]voadeewanews.com [67]ارد [68]urduvoa.com East & Southeast Asia [69]á»ááá¹áᬠ[70]burmese.voanews.com [71]ç²¤è¯ [72]voacantonese.com [73]ä¸æ [74]voachinese.com [75]Bahasa Indonesia [76]voaindonesia.com [77]ááááá [78]khmer.voanews.com [79]Khmer [80]voacambodia.com [81]íêµì´ [82]voakorea.com [83]ລາວ [84]lao.voanews.com [85]à¹à¸à¸¢ [86]voathai.com [87]à½à½¼à½à¼à½¡à½²à½ [88]voatibetan.com [89]Tiếng Viá»t [90]voatiengviet.com Africa [91]Afaan Oromoo [92]voaafaanoromoo.com [93]á ááá [94]amharic.voanews.com [95]Bambara [96]voabambara.com [97]Français [98]voaafrique.com [99]Hausa [100]voahausa.com [101]Kinyarwanda / Kirundi [102]radiyoyacuvoa.com [103]Ndebele [104]voandebele.com [105]Português [106]voaportugues.com [107]Shona [108]voashona.com [109]Soomaaliga [110]voasomali.com [111]Kiswahili [112]voaswahili.com [113]áµááá [114]tigrigna.voanews.com [115]Zimbabwe [116]voazimbabwe.com Middle East/North Africa [117]ÙØ§Ø±Ø³Û [118]ir.voanews.com [119]ÙÙØ±Ø¯Û [120]dengiamerika.com [121]Kurdi [122]dengeamerika.com [123]Türkçe [124]amerikaninsesi.com Latin America [125]Creole [126]voanouvel.com [127]Español [128]voanoticias.com [129]All About America Why US Men's Soccer Lags While Women Soar By Dora Mekouar July 16, 2019 11:19 AM Share on Facebook Share on Twitter In the 28 years since winning the very first Women's World Cup, the U.S. women's soccer team has dominated the game on the global stage, taking home four Women's World Cups in all, including the 2019 title captured this month in a 2-0 victory over The Netherlands. The U.S. men haven't come close to the women's success. Not only have the men never won a World Cup, they even failed to qualify for the most recent men's World Cup in 2018. To deduce why U.S. women's soccer dominates on the world stage while the men's game continues to falter, you might just have to go back to the beginning, to the time when future world-class players -- female and male -- first start showing athletic promise. "Soccer was never really been part of the national lexicon. It's always been kind of this underground, kind of foreign game," says Eileen Narcotta-Welp, an assistant professor of sport management at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. "Not only has it been a foreign game, but it's been seen as a less masculine state. So if a child has to choose, or their parents have to choose, which sport a child is going to go into, ultimately it's going to be basketball, baseball, [or] football." Mexico forward Rodolfo Pizarro, right, controls the ball against United States forward Paul Arriola during the second half of th Mexico's Rodolfo Pizarro, right, controls the ball against U.S. forward Paul Arriola during the Gold Cup final in Chicago, July 7, 2019. Mexico won 1-0. The world in general views soccer -- or "football" as it is called practically everywhere in the world except the United States -- as an extremely male-oriented, overtly masculine game. However, in the United States, more traditional U.S. sports like baseball, basketball, and American football are more likely to be viewed as "macho" activities. So while little American boys were pursuing other sports, a combination of events laid the foundation for the popularity of girls' soccer in the U.S. One of them was the 1972 passage of the federal law known as [130]Title IX, which prohibits federally funded educational institutions from discriminating on the basis of sex. The law applies to high school and college athletics. Many schools quickly embraced soccer for women because they could field up to 35 players per team, a sizable number that helped close the gender gap in their athletic programs. Additionally, the success of the U.S. women's soccer team has captured the imagination of young female athletes-in-the-making. Over time, they've watched and admired soccer icons of yester-year, like Brandi Chastain, and current superstars like Meghan Rapinoe, and are inspired to emulate them and their success. U.S. player Megan Rapinoe celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the World Cup final match against The Netherlands outside Lyon, France, July 7, 2019. U.S. player Megan Rapinoe celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the World Cup final match against The Netherlands outside Lyon, France, July 7, 2019. Aside from cultural and societal expectations, there are practical financial considerations that help explain why America's best female athletes might choose to pursue soccer while top male athletes look to basketball, baseball or football. "Those are also three sports that you can make a living off of," Narcotta-Welp points out. "If you are a kid that is extremely talented, extremely athletic, and you are a boy...you know that professionally, if you want to play professional sports and succeed, that they're pretty much three areas in which you're gonna be able to succeed." The most talented female athletes have even less choice. Their opportunities to play professionally and make a living out of it basically come down to soccer or basketball. "They're not getting huge exorbitant salaries, but it is kind of the one pathway for young women to play professionally," Narcotta-Welp says. "For men, you have so many other options that are much more lucrative and probably more culturally acceptable in terms of the idea of masculinity that it would make sense for them to be steered in one of those three directions versus soccer." Default Author Profile Written By [131]Dora Mekouar (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) [132]Twitter [133]Instagram [134]Facebook [135]YouTube [136]RSS Search VOA News ____________________ (Submit) Search * [137]United States [138]US Politics + [139]Immigration + [140]All About America + [141]Silicon Valley and Technology * World News [142]Africa + [143]The Americas + [144]East Asia + [145]Europe + [146]Middle East + [147]South & Central Asia * Sections [148]Arts & Culture + [149]Day in Photos + [150]Economy & Business + [151]Extremism Watch + [152]Press Freedom + [153]Science & Health + [154]VOA StudentU + [155]VOA Connect * Voice of America [156]About VOA + [157]Contact VOA + [158]Terms of Use and Privacy Notice + [159]Get Our Mobile App + [160]Usage Requests + [161]VOA Around the World + [162]VOA Pronunciation Guide + [163]Media Relations + [164]Listen on the radio + [165]Satellite Schedule + [166]Subscribe to Our Newsletters References Visible links 1. https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-N8MP7P 2. file://localhost/tmp/lynxXXXXK_acia/L16908322-9062TMP.html#main-content 3. file://localhost/watch 4. file://localhost/listen 5. file://localhost/usa 6. file://localhost/usa/us-politics 7. file://localhost/usa/immigration 8. file://localhost/usa/all-about-america 9. file://localhost/science-health 10. file://localhost/silicon-valley-technology 11. file://localhost/africa 12. file://localhost/americas 13. file://localhost/east-asia 14. file://localhost/europe 15. file://localhost/extremism-watch 16. file://localhost/middle-east 17. file://localhost/south-central-asia 18. file://localhost/middle-east/voa-news-iran 19. file://localhost/arts-culture 20. file://localhost/day-photos 21. file://localhost/economy-business 22. file://localhost/press-freedom 23. file://localhost/plugged-greta-van-susteren 24. file://localhost/student-union 25. file://localhost/voa-connect 26. file://localhost/usa 27. file://localhost/press-freedom 28. file://localhost/silicon-valley-technology 29. file://localhost/student-union 30. file://localhost/ 31. file://localhost/watch 32. file://localhost/listen 33. https://voanews.com/ 34. https://voanews.com/ 35. https://learningenglish.voanews.com/ 36. https://learningenglish.voanews.com/ 37. https://zeriamerikes.com/ 38. https://zeriamerikes.com/ 39. https://ba.voanews.com/ 40. https://ba.voanews.com/ 41. https://gr.voanews.com/ 42. https://gr.voanews.com/ 43. https://mk.voanews.com/ 44. https://mk.voanews.com/ 45. https://glasamerike.net/ 46. https://glasamerike.net/ 47. https://ukrainian.voanews.com/ 48. https://ukrainian.voanews.com/ 49. https://amerikayidzayn.com/ 50. https://amerikayidzayn.com/ 51. https://amerikaninsesi.org/ 52. https://amerikaninsesi.org/ 53. https://amerikiskhma.com/ 54. https://amerikiskhma.com/ 55. https://golos-ameriki.ru/ 56. https://golos-ameriki.ru/ 57. https://amerikaovozi.com/ 58. https://amerikaovozi.com/ 59. https://voabangla.com/ 60. https://voabangla.com/ 61. https://darivoa.com/ 62. https://darivoa.com/ 63. https://pashtovoa.com/ 64. https://pashtovoa.com/ 65. https://voadeewanews.com/ 66. https://voadeewanews.com/ 67. https://urduvoa.com/ 68. https://urduvoa.com/ 69. https://burmese.voanews.com/ 70. https://burmese.voanews.com/ 71. https://voacantonese.com/ 72. https://voacantonese.com/ 73. https://voachinese.com/ 74. https://voachinese.com/ 75. https://voaindonesia.com/ 76. https://voaindonesia.com/ 77. https://khmer.voanews.com/ 78. https://khmer.voanews.com/ 79. https://voacambodia.com/ 80. https://voacambodia.com/ 81. https://voakorea.com/ 82. https://voakorea.com/ 83. https://lao.voanews.com/ 84. https://lao.voanews.com/ 85. https://voathai.com/ 86. https://voathai.com/ 87. https://voatibetan.com/ 88. https://voatibetan.com/ 89. https://voatiengviet.com/ 90. https://voatiengviet.com/ 91. https://voaafaanoromoo.com/ 92. https://voaafaanoromoo.com/ 93. https://amharic.voanews.com/ 94. https://amharic.voanews.com/ 95. https://voabambara.com/ 96. https://voabambara.com/ 97. https://voaafrique.com/ 98. https://voaafrique.com/ 99. https://voahausa.com/ 100. https://voahausa.com/ 101. https://radiyoyacuvoa.com/ 102. https://radiyoyacuvoa.com/ 103. https://voandebele.com/ 104. https://voandebele.com/ 105. https://voaportugues.com/ 106. https://voaportugues.com/ 107. https://voashona.com/ 108. https://voashona.com/ 109. https://voasomali.com/ 110. https://voasomali.com/ 111. https://voaswahili.com/ 112. https://voaswahili.com/ 113. https://tigrigna.voanews.com/ 114. https://tigrigna.voanews.com/ 115. https://voazimbabwe.com/ 116. https://voazimbabwe.com/ 117. https://ir.voanews.com/ 118. https://ir.voanews.com/ 119. https://dengiamerika.com/ 120. https://dengiamerika.com/ 121. https://dengeamerika.com/ 122. https://dengeamerika.com/ 123. https://amerikaninsesi.com/ 124. https://amerikaninsesi.com/ 125. https://voanouvel.com/ 126. https://voanouvel.com/ 127. https://voanoticias.com/ 128. https://voanoticias.com/ 129. file://localhost/usa/all-about-america 130. https://titleix.harvard.edu/what-title-ix 131. file://localhost/author/dora-mekouar 132. https://twitter.com/voanews 133. https://www.instagram.com/voanews/ 134. https://www.facebook.com/voiceofamerica 135. https://www.youtube.com/user/VOAvideo 136. file://localhost/rssfeeds 137. file://localhost/usa 138. file://localhost/usa/us-politics 139. file://localhost/usa/immigration 140. file://localhost/usa/all-about-america 141. file://localhost/silicon-valley-technology 142. file://localhost/africa 143. file://localhost/americas 144. file://localhost/east-asia 145. file://localhost/europe 146. file://localhost/middle-east 147. file://localhost/south-central-asia 148. file://localhost/arts-culture 149. file://localhost/day-photos 150. file://localhost/economy-business 151. file://localhost/extremism-watch 152. file://localhost/press-freedom 153. file://localhost/science-health 154. file://localhost/student-union 155. file://localhost/voa-connect 156. https://www.insidevoa.com/p/5831.html 157. https://www.insidevoa.com/p/5621.html 158. https://www.voanews.com/terms-use-and-privacy-notice 159. file://localhost/voas-free-app-mobile-and-tablet-devices 160. http://www.insidevoa.com/p/5719.html 161. https://www.voanews.com/voa-around-world 162. http://pronounce.voanews.com/ 163. http://www.insidevoa.com/ 164. file://localhost/voa-broadcast-frequency-schedules 165. http://direct.voa24.news/english/portal/broadcast-schedule 166. file://localhost/subscribe Hidden links: 167. https://media.voltron.voanews.com/Drupal/01live-166/styles/sourced/s3/2019-07/AP_19189176504037.jpg?itok=4_C4af01 168. https://media.voltron.voanews.com/Drupal/01live-166/styles/sourced/s3/2019-07/AP_19188592164258.jpg?itok=eX_e-a9- .