Extravaganza and US sports always go hand-in-hand. Be it the MLB World Series or the NFL Super Bowl, the entertainment quotient always takes center stage along with the on-field thrillers. For the Europeans, who are purists of the game, however, it all came as a surprise as they visited the US for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Norway star Erling Haaland and Zlatan Ibrahimovic were among them.

“Honestly, it’s been amazing,” Haaland said. “Because the US, it’s different. Make it feel that as well. They don’t care (about playing), they just want (gestures as if to say ‘an entertaining show’).’”

Ibrahimovic also had a lot of praise for the USA’s marketing tactics while also slightly criticizing how they changed things to suit their marketing better than focusing on playing.

“They push it in this country. In other countries it will be like ‘Yeah, whatever.’ They speak more about the fancy things that are actually the tactic; how you play is less important,” he said, as Haaland agreed with him. “If the US had won, it would have been good. Then it’s like a successful World Cup. Instead, now it became like, ‘They didn’t develop. We’re still where we were 20 years ago.”

There’s no doubt that the US marketed soccer better than any other country, leveraging its massive media, sponsorship, and entertainment infrastructure to generate unmatched commercial revenue. While European nations boast deeper histories and better on-field talent, America is now the largest foreign market for the top European leagues and commands the highest broadcasting and tournament rights fees in the world.

However, on the pitch, the US still lags behind traditional powerhouse countries in consistent talent development and overall global competitiveness, as established American sports like the NFL and NBA dominate domestic viewership and top athletic talents. The USMNT’s round of 16 game against Belgium exposed just that.

The USMNT’s backline routinely showed cracks throughout the tournament, which Belgium’s disciplined attack clinically punished. Moreover, the defense collapsed due to poor marking, ball-watching, and costly turnovers that led to uncontested crosses and easy tap-ins. In contrast, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is already recorded as the most attended soccer World Cup in history before the Final is even here.

Thus, as per Haaland and Ibrahimovic, while the US is doing well in terms of marketing soccer in the country, it may not be that focused when it comes to on-field talent development. Former USMNT veteran Landon Donovan already shared how it is difficult for new talent to take up soccer as a primary sport in the US.

“Growing up, there is zero chance I could have played club soccer,” Donovan said. “My mom made $34,000 a year as a single mom raising three kids. She couldn’t pay $4,000 for me to play club soccer—are you kidding? She couldn’t pay $400.”

The US may have made marks in marketing the FIFA World Cup event and soccer, but they still need to travel more for on-field development.