About the Book

Soccer is the most popular game in the world, but does it truly belong in the heart of American sports culture? The answer is a resounding yes—and Mark Franek’s new book, American Soccer Nation, is filled with drama, surprises, reversals, and triumphs that rival a world-class match.

With meticulous research and lifelong passion, Mark Franek delivers a fast-paced, foundational soccer book that also serves as a celebration of American soccer. This book is a must-have for all fans, players, parents, coaches, and professionals across the sport.

In brisk, punchy prose that moves in a confident tiki-taka style, Franek explores elite men’s American soccer through its remarkable 150-year journey:

• The mob football games played by Native Americans long before the arrival of Europeans
• How organized soccer predates gridiron football, started in American colleges, and was carried forward by immigrant communities
• Why soccer has always been more inclusive and immigrant-friendly than other North American professional sports
• The rise and fall of the original American Soccer League (ASL) and the Golden Age of American soccer during the 1920s
• America’s Olympic and World Cup highs and lows dating back to the early 20th century
• The good, the bad, and the ugly regarding the North American Soccer League (NASL)
• Soccer’s growing popularity today, from MLS and USL to elite youth academies
• The accordion-like journey of the United States Men’s National team (USMNT) over the last century, leading to the USA’s co-hosting of the 2026 World Cup
• A roadmap for how the USMNT can go from good to great on the international stage—based on firsthand accounts from professional athletes and experts in the sport

With forewords by Tim Howard and Cavan Sullivan—and glowing endorsements from a score of professional soccer players, retired legends, and historians—American Soccer Nation  is the definitive text affirming that the U.S. really is a soccer nation.