Jock Itch Denver’s World Cup runneth over—maybe

Ask most Americans about the World Cup, and they will likely dismiss it with a jingoistic wave of the hand. The World Cup, for those unfamiliar, is held every four years and gives worldwide bragging rights to the country that wins it—it’s like an international Super Bowl, but with soccer. This summer it’s being held in South Africa, and our boys on the U.S. team have a good shot at going deep in the tournament.

Soccer is largely ignored here, mostly because it’s low scoring and often has a bunch of French guys rolling around on the field. Soccer’s popularity as an extracurricular sport among kids has thawed some Americans’ perception of it, but it’s still a long way from unseating football or baseball. Giving in to prejudice on this one would be dumb: Soccer is great to behold. Forget the inferior MLS, though—the World Cup is where it’s at, and Denver may be where it actually happens. 

Lost in the shuffle of football playoffs, Mark McGwire’s steroid “revelations,” and the never-ending speculation about Brandon Marshall, news came a few weeks ago that Denver was still in the running, among 18 other U.S. cities, to host the Cup. Considering who we beat (Chicago and San Francisco, for example), that’s an honor in itself.

That’s the good news. The bad is that it may not be held until 2018 or 2022. Chances are good that the U.S. will host—the last men’s tournament held here was in 1994—and Denver’s chances after that are just as promising.

If Denver does get a piece of the Cup, Invesco Field at Mile High should host the matches, and Dick’s Sporting Goods Park should be used as a practice field. With Mile High seating 76,000 and Dick’s being a premier American soccer stadium, it does nothing but add to Denver’s cachet as a host city. And because we have a great track record with hosting big events at Mile High—the DNC, World Youth Day, Metallica—our sports facilities should be one of many positives working in our favor.

Denver, though, still has to hang in there with heavyweights like Boston, Los Angeles, and Miami. Still, with unremarkable metropolises like Indianapolis, Tampa, Fla., Kansas City, and Landover, Md., on the docket, it gives us some hope.

So, get excited—even if you’re just lukewarm on soccer—the World Cup might be coming to Denver! And even though you may be dead by the time it actually arrives, your body will at least be front and center for the biggest international incident since the Pope dropped by Mile High in 1993. And if that guy can sell out the stadium without a guitar, a few French guys rolling around with a ball should do all right.