On Tuesday night, ESPN Films premiered the first of six episodes in its series entitled, “Inside: US Soccer’s March to Brazil.” The series provides an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the United States Men’s National Team as it prepares for the World Cup in Brazil. The first episode, directed by Men in Blazers’ Roger Bennett and narrated by 30 Rock’s Judah Friedlander, began with a brief, yet informative, look at the history of the USMNT’s previous performances in the World Cup. Specifically, the episode showed how after the U.S.’s historic upset victory over England in 1950, the U.S. team did not qualify for another World Cup for forty years, which seems impossible in retrospect. Since shocking the world and qualifying for the 1990 World Cup, the U.S. has qualified for every World Cup since. The highlights include the 1994 team’s incredible stone-washed jerseys (are these available for purchase on eBay?) and its surprising run to the quarterfinals in 2002.
After a brief (and in some ways depressing) look at the history of the U.S. team, the series picks up with manager Jürgen Klinsmann in Frankfurt, Germany as the U.S. team trained for its friendly against Ukraine (a 2-0 loss) in early March. In a format similar to the incredibly popular 24/7 series from HBO and Being Liverpool from Fox Sports, the cameras follow the players and manager around, giving viewers access to training sessions and the locker room. From there, the series provides excellent insight into the players that make up the national squad with interviews and biographies of stars such as Jozy Altidore, Clint Dempsey, and Michael Bradley.
More interestingly, the episode also focused on the players that hold dual citizenship that Klinsmann has recruited since becoming manager, including Jermaine Jones and John Brooks. The newest dual citizen recruit for Klinsmann was 18-year-old winger Julian Green, who currently trains in the Bayern Munich Academy. Green recently chose the United States over Germany and seems likely to make the 23-man roster that heads to Brazil in June. Epitomizing the dichotomy is Brooks, who has a tattoo of Berlin on his left elbow (with his exact birthplace marked) and one of Illinois (his father’s hometown) on his right.
John Brooks shows off his nationalist tattoos (Photo: Men In Blazers | Tumblr)
While the stories are incredibly interesting, it was surprising to hear these players talk about how excited they are to represent the United States at the World Cup…while speaking in German.
The United States recently announced its preliminary 30-man roster, all of whom reported to camp in Palo Alto on May 14th. There are a lot of interesting storylines facing the U.S. team as it breaks camp (including where or even if American legend Landon Donovan will play in Brazil) that the series likely will cover.
Based on the first episode, this series appeals to both the hardcore fan who follows every move the team makes and also the novice that knows nothing. It provides tremendous insight and access to the players that will carry the nation’s hopes and dreams on their shoulders into the opening match against Ghana on June 16th.
The six-part series airs on ESPN and premiere dates for each episode can be found here.
