July 22, 2010
By Richard Stevens — Senior Writer/GoLobos.com
The eyes of a planet watched these World Cup games like no soccer games before them. There were records set for total viewers, but the numbers that just might carry over to a few Lobo soccer games came from U.S. soil and U.S. TVs.
An estimated 112 million Americans turned into these worldly games of futbol with a record 24.3 million pairs of eyes tuning in on the finale between Spain and Netherlands. When U.S. played Ghana, about 19.4 million Americans watched.
“There was a lot of good hype for the World Cup,” said Jeremy Fishbein, the Lobo men’s soccer coach. “The media hyped it up at a higher level, but a lot of the interest had to do with national pride. I think it excites fans to see the passion people have for the sport and for their country.”
No doubt, the games were a global smash and if any World Cup fans find themselves hungry for some good soccer this fall all they have to do is visit the UNM Soccer Complex.
Fishbein’s Lobo men are athletic and passionate about playing soccer at a high level. Ditto for Kit Vela’s women.
And guess what? These Lobos do play the game at a high level. They are quick, aggressive and in many ways the game is more fan friendly than what was seen in South Africa.
The college kids like to run a bit more.
“There is more action in the college game,” said Fishbein. “These kids are energetic and athletic and they buzz around a bit more.”
Vela’s Lobos should be one of the more dynamic squads in the Mountain West Conference. They posted a gaudy 13-5-1 mark in the fall of 2009 and return ten starters. It’s still a young UNM team, but the core of this group is not inexperienced and shoulders high expectations for 2010.
Fishbein’s Lobos have long been noisemakers on the national scale and their 2010 home schedule is dotted with NCAA-caliber teams. There will be some brutal futbol at the UNM complex.
Fishbein thinks there is a good shot the enthusiasm from the World Cup will trickle down to Lobo men’s soccer. He just isn’t sure of the weight of the flow. Vela doesn’t think her Lobo women will reap the same rewards in the stands.
“Top to bottom, the World Cup was good for soccer,” said Vela. “Anytime people are watching soccer, it’s good for soccer. The more soccer gets on TV, the more people get excited about it.
“But I don’t think it’s going to help us like it might help the men’s team. Typically, young female soccer players don’t watch men’s soccer. If our U.S. women’s team did well, that might help us more.”
If Vela is right, and the average Albuquerque World Cup fan is male and interested in men’s soccer, then that fan has a great opportunity to continue to watch high-level men’s soccer. Fish’s Lobos are good. They play as a team. They play with honest effort.
“I think the World Cup excitement will carry over for us to some degree,” said Fishbein. “It will be interesting to see how much. A lot of people are excited about the game right now and intrigued with the game.
“This is an opportunity for us to come out and play with passion, athleticism and excitement and gain some new fans. We play at a high level, but we still face the challenge of creating an exciting soccer environment.
“We want electricity in the stands. It’s the fans who make a soccer game an event.”
The men’s team opens at home Aug. 27 vs. Fort Lewis. The women open Aug. 20 vs. Montana. Maybe the Lobos should hand out some of those World Cup horns.
Editor’s Note: Richard Stevens is a former Sports Editor and Sports Columnist for The Albuquerque Tribune. You can reach him at rstevens50@comcast.net.