Great post cod.
I am a rarity in that I played high school soccer in the 1970s. Got a lot of grief for it (and still do!) from my football playing buddies at our all boys school. I learned the game and passed it on to my sons. We have enjoyed watching many matches over the years, live and on TV. It is the most popular international sport and we are lucky in the USA to have a successful and entertaining women's national team as well.
The problem, in my opinion, is our development at the youth level. Soccer is still a country club sport in many communities. In most countries it's played by all economic classes. Our best athletes are not playing at a young age.
Just think if some of our best NFL and NBA players had been exposed to the game at a young age and it had the same professional financial rewards. We would be dominant.