In October 2012, it was announced that the Fox Sports and ESPN networks had lost the rights to broadcast matches from the Barclays Premier League. This came as a major blow to the United States soccer community that relied so heavily on these networks to show the games of their favorite teams. These games, however, will now be broadcasted on the NBC Sports networks, giving more Americans than ever a chance to take a look at what they might be missing.

Since 1998, weekend in, weekend out, thousands of residents across the United States would sit glued to their televisions to watch the fast-paced, and intensive nature of the Barclays Premier League. The broadcasting of these matches allowed British expatriates and soccer lovers alike an opportunity to reconnect with the beautiful game at its highest level, which was huge since the U.S. never really acknowledged soccer as a major sport until very recently. However, times have changed with more and more people falling in love with the sport of the world.

Soccer has been a uniting force throughout the world for centuries. It is neutralizing, meaning people of different countries, religion, and ethnicity often set aside differences and come together to simply play a game. The World Cup has been a great example of this as televised viewings of the matches in major cities and towns have literally halted aggressive protests and riots. Popularity of the sport has been increasing around the globe recently, especially in North America where Major League Soccer has greatly diversified in terms of players.

This ‘rise in soccer’ has been particularly evident in the McLean community where soccer has become very popular amongst students. McLean coaches and students alike have seen a drastic increase in participation, be it at friendly kick-arounds at local fields or even at tryouts for the school team.

“It’s no longer lame to play soccer,” sophomore Victor Bonsu said. “It’s a sport that’s fanbase is starting to compete with popular American sports such as football and baseball, especially at the high school level.”