The growth of soccer has come unexpectedly and has created a wave of the growth of culture in Atlanta. The rise of the culture of soccer came about as early as 2014 with the World Cup, the rise of social media, and, lastly, that remarkable growth of Atlanta United.
In the words of an Atlanta United player, “It was a beautiful thing to see. Coming to play in a city that’s not known for its soccer culture and seeing it blow up these last few years, it’s something special.”
The 2014 World Cup was one for record books. The number of records that were broken, such as joint-most goals, attendance records, and flight records, according to theguardian.com summed up the craziest World Cup we have ever seen. This World Cup brought a sense of nationalism to people around the world for sports that no one has seen before. People that weren’t soccer fans still dressed in the colors of their national flags and went to the streets to celebrate and support.
There’s a phrase people like to say after World Cups: “World Cup Hangover.” This “hangover” happens after every World Cup because people still have that adrenaline of nationalism. The Atlanta United front office took advantage of this energy and announced the future MLS Champions, creating more hype in the process.
The 2014 World Cup was going on as social media was gaining in popularity such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. According to statista.com, Twitter was in the middle of large-scale growth in 2014. This growth made it easier for people to come out, connect online, and share their nationalism. Not only did people spread their support and nationalism, but it was an easier way to connect with fan groups.
Footie Mob, a hip-hop support group for Atlanta United, also used social media to connect with soccer fans that also love hip hop, creating the famous fan group according footiemob.com.From these groups, hundreds of thousands of events of soccer have taken place, all being announced and promoted through social media.
footiemob tailgating before an Atlanta United Game, Dirty South Soccer
It’s not surprising that social media caused this growth connecting to thousands of people, but let us not forget the significant reason for the growth, Atlanta United.
Atlanta United in the span of their three years in the MLS has transformed the way soccer is looked at in America and worldwide. According to usatoday.com, Atlanta United average attendance of 52,000. How did it get like that? The most obvious answer is success. Success for an Atlanta sports team is rare nowadays. The Braves, Falcons, and Hawks have all been close but not good enough to win their respective competitions, but Atlanta United has. The Five Stripes have won a total of four trophies in three years. How did such a new team start winning so fast? The Atlanta United front office wanted to spend money on good players, instead of beginning the building process as some teams would. Signing Miguel Almiron, Josef Martinez, and Leonardo Gonzalez-Pirez for a lot of money made it possible for Atlanta United to find success early.
One Atlanta player said, “When I found out that an MLS team was interested in me, I’m not going to lie, it was a little strange, but the more I looked into Atlanta and the growing futbol culture. I had to be a part of it. When I first came here no one would play futbol! I would see a couple of fields with kids playing, but nothing like I have seen now. When I drive through the city and state three years later, I see every kid with a soccer ball on their feet wearing an Atlanta United Jersey.”
Atlanta United’s front office is also an essential part of their success. The people that were hired and brought on to help were the best and most experienced for the job. They were not afraid to jump over obstacles and do whatever was needed to make sure the team would succeed. Having front office members like President Daren Eales and Technical Director Carlos Boca Negra, you have success and experience on hand. “I love the front office staff,” said the player. “They’re honest and hard working. If it wasn’t for them then none of this could be possible. We have to recognize the hard work being done by them always.”
Soccer continues to grow here in Atlanta and sooner than later with the right mentality ,consistent performances, and good club management, can world’s great soccer cities like Barcelona, Madrid, London, Manchester, and Milan.