I think it has been raised a bit and it was great to see more people watching the games, big cities setting up huge screens, etc. But for many it was an excuse to not work and have a few beers and some fun. I'm not sure too many new fans will begin to follow it seriously until 2018.

Perfect storm this year. Great WC overall with plenty of goals, great time slots to watch the games (which we wont have in 2018), US games were all close and exciting, and no games 6 or 7's in NBA and NHL playoffs

That is the reason many people follow soccer in the rest of the world too.

It has been awesome to go into sports bars and see big groups of people watching intensely and cheering loudly for World Cup games. I've only seen football, basketball and hockey get this kind of fan support in the past here in the US. I'd say these games are absolutely causing a rise in popularity of soccer here.

Question is will it translate into more games being watched during non-cup season? I'm not so sure even though I wish it would. Without a consistent fan base channels won't show games - it's all about the big $ of the many other popular US sports. Any soccer-focused cable channels are hidden in our channel listings between obscure channels you'd never even knew existed. It is changing for the better and will eventually get there, but one world cup won't do it.

and it's been great to see everyone rooting for one team - team USA - not individual rivalry teams. Only other time you get that is the Olympics

Everything depends on where the US program and MLS go from here. Generally, the average American sports fan wants to follow the regional team and/or they want to follow the best. I doubt this world cup will cause a lot of the bandwagon fans to get up early and watch the EPL or other euro leagues unless there were a ton of Americans starring in those leagues - which isn't likely to be the case in the near term. If the MLS product continues to improve, more people will follow it, but it is a long way from being a top league from a quality/media attention standpoint. Copa America in 2016 should be a good tournament, and 2016 will also have the Euros and the Olympics (yes, the men's Olympic tournament is U23, but Americans follow the Olympics so if we can qualify, we should see some interest there). As someone else pointed out, the 2018 World Cup will get attention but it won't have ideal viewing time slots like this one did. And the women's world cups in the intervening years will at least put the sport on display.

My opinion of the best case scenario is this - a slow and steady march of progress for soccer supported by increased American participation in top men's Euro leagues, improvement in MLS, and bumps for tournaments like Copa America/Olympics/2018 World Cup/women's world cups, all building to a World Cup on American soil in 2022 (after they remove it from Qatar) or 2026 (which I believe will be given to us if they don't take 2022 away from Qatar - but I think FIFA will ultimately have to take the World Cup from Qatar given circumstances such as the heat in the summer, the pushback they'll get from Euro leagues if they try to hold it in the winter, the evidence of corruption in the bidding process, human rights issues around slave labor, pressure from sponsors, etc.)

The key is for fans to transform from the MNT players they see in the World Cup to the MLS. Unfortunately, most of the stars for the US team do not play in the MLS, and if the fans watch the MLS, they will not see the same level of play.

Nothing changes until the theatrics are gone. Until then it largely looks like a 'sissy' sport that Americans will not get behind. (I know it's far from a 'sissy' sport, but I also know what it looks to objective viewers). Instant yellow for any embellishment would go a long way to solve the problem.

Highly unlikely that it will happen anytime soon as it appears to actually be a tactic of most teams. Ruins a great sport.

Has the US put a bid for in the 2026 World Cup and/or will they? Seems likely though since in 2026 neither a European nor Asian country can host, making the US an ideal option.

The constant flopping all over the field is bad enough. But remaining down on the pitch like so many drama queens do is pathetic.

One time out of 50, someone will really be hurt, and you won't be able to tell. Exhibit A: Neymar.

The brilliant Neymar was done in by the kind of aggressive, dangerous play (hello, Ghana) that for some reason hardly gets a card at this World Cup. Apparently it's OK when going after a header to launch yourself in the air five yards from the ball and crash into the back of the waiting, defenseless opponent. As Juan Camilo Zuniga of Colombia did. Zuniga's knee to Neymar's back was just a nice extra touch. Sorry for ruining your World Cup, Neymar!

Truly pathetic was the Spanish referee, Carballo, who let the game, and players like Zuniga, get out of hand. Throughout the second half the ESPN announcers were openly deriding his reluctance to give anybody a yellow card. Scolari criticized him after the game.

Chippy games and crappy refs are two more reasons why soccer will have a hard time catching on here.

Another reason, for me at least, is the automatic whistling of the fans anytime the opposing team kicks the ball back to the keeper. Who wants to sit with a pack of simpletons? It's like booing an intentional walk in baseball, except kicking the ball back to the keeper - who is a field player at the top level, after all - happens about, oh, 8,000 times a game (I exaggerate).

Add whistling as another reason. We boo in this country.

As for Belgium: why did it take them the entire game to figure out that they were a lot taller than Argentina? Headers was the way to go.

One quibble: This WC did not have ideal viewing time slots (for the US). Only one game started later than 6 pm ET/3 pm PT, and none of the knockout round games started later than 4pm/1pm. This schedule was made for European TV, as will the schedule for 2018, so the game times won't be significantly different.

Actually, I think it was made for Brazil which is three hours ahead of the US.

One hour, not 3, Einstein