Iran8217;s win deflates a new US dream

8220;I came, I saw, I ran8230; I came, I saw, I ran8230;8221; chanted a goodly crowd at a sports bar in downtown Washington, accentuating the American propensity to pronounce Iran as 8220;eye-ran.8221;

But a couple of hours later, they were trooping out into a muggy evening, languorous with excess of beer but spirits drooping, after being beaten 2-1 by 8220;eye-ran.8221;

Forget the much ballyhooed diplomatic significance of this game, the end result which spelled 8220;Death to America8221; in the World Cup was a setback to the development of soccer in the country. Said Guy Francesca, a software salesmanand a former soldier who watched the game with a little more passion than before, 8220;I guess we8217;ll stick to the NBA and NFL for now.8221;

It was a sad exit for a team whose fortunes in soccer was skyrocketing after it first qualified for the World Cup in 1990 and made the round of 16 in 1994 when the US hosted the world8217;s most famous tournament. Since 8217;94, the team was on the curve and the game picked up popularity because the team had some fabulous results a 4-0 creaming of Mexico, a 3-0 win over Argentina in the Copa America, and most famously, a 1-0 win over Brazil without its stars in the Gold Cup in Los Angeles.

Depending on how well they did on this straight, the US was planning to host the event again in 2010. The Iranians without a win in two previous trips to the World Cup deflated it all.

It didn8217;t look like that the way the Americans began.

Even ABC8217;s wooden commentators, who are constantly looking for basketball equivalents to explain the game to their American viewers, were more animatedthan usual as the US stormed the Iranian citadel. But as one tanked-up fan remarked after a final round of bitters, a country which is ready to build anti-ballistic missiles let through two goals and couldn8217;t get through the opposition goal post for all of 87 minutes.

Ties between Washington and Teheran may be emerging from the woodwork, but in the end woodwork was what stood between the US and victory. American strikers thrice struck the goal post. Each raid brought the game a little closer to the Americans, for many of whom the term 8220;football8221; incongruously means a game in which the 8220;ball8221; is far from round and is actually caught with the hand more often than kicked.

Although wildly popular in 150 countries in the world including countries like India which can8217;t field a team for nuts soccer has been slow in catching up in the US despite its qualification. In fact, ABC8217;s commentary of the game is something of a joke among the soccer cognoscenti.

US experts have introduced terms like 8220;red zone8221;and 8220;double-teamed8221; to explain the game in basketball terms. Graphics accompanying the game includes ball possession and number of shots at the goal American commentators informed their viewers that the US outshot Iran 27-15. Many soccer fans prefer to watch the game on the Spanish channel Univision, with its more passionate if unintelligible commentary.

Although with this defeat it is curtains for the US in the World Cup, it8217;s not all gloom. Many hardcore fans believe the country has enough heart and gumption to be a force in soccer in the future. 8220;This team is hardworking and full of desire, but it is still blue-collar. Take pride in the fact that we have qualified for three consecutive World Cup finals. With the blossoming of more players combined with the American traits of confidence and competitiveness, we8217;ll get to the top,8221; one online aficionado called Beareh wrote after the game.

The rest, though, were in muttering retreat, trooping off to pitch ball. The baseball season has just begunand at least the Iranians have not learnt to hit a home run yet.