Saturday, September 20, 2003

Today marks the start of the single most overrated sporting event in history, and I don't mind telling you, I'm excited. Probably a lot more excited than I should be.

To truly understand the overrated status of the Women's World Cup, however, we must look back at the glorious events of 1999, when 90,185 packed the Rose Bowl to watch the United States topple China to win the previous Women's World Cup.

Sports Illustrated hailed the event as "the most significant day in the history of women's sports" and named the U.S. team the Sportswomen of the Year. Red-hot Brandi Chastain whipped off her shirt after netting the winning penalty kick in the final.

But as supporters of women's sports celebrated, and as plans were formulated for a women's professional soccer league in the United States, a voice of reason was clear above the din: mine. Yours truly said that the '99 Women's World Cup was an event, not a groundswell, and that the success women's soccer enjoyed that summer would never be duplicated.

As always, I was right. It's a gift from God. I'm grateful.

With the Women's World Cup set to begin today, only half of the tournament's 600,000 tickets have been sold. The U.S. women begin play tomorrow at Washington's RFK Stadium, and only 26,000 of 56,000 tickets have been sold.

The final won't be at the Rose Bowl. It will instead be at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles. Seating capacity: 27,500.

So much for the long-term effect of "the most significant day in the history of women's sports."

The organizers may not have many tickets sold, but they have their excuses lined up. Well, the last tournament was in the summer. Now we have to compete with the NFL, college football and baseball's pennant races. Oh, and NASCAR.

Don't forget about "Playmakers" on ESPN. We're not too far from the cold and flu season, either.

The Women's World Cup wasn't exactly done any PR favors when the Women's United Soccer Association folded Monday. Attendance for the three-year old pro league averaged just 6,667 per game last season, and television ratings were negligible.

When the WUSA went under, the official excuse was "lack of corporate sponsorship." Not lack of ticket sales. Not lack of television ratings. Not total, unequivocal, abject lack of public interest. But "lack of corporate sponsorship." Seems a mere $15 million in sponsorship cash could have saved the league.

"If only we had six or seven CEOs in America that had stepped forward in the past year," WUSA chairman John Hendricks said. "An independent women's professional league can survive -- if it has corporate support." Uh, doesn't the need for "support" render the term "independent" moot?

It's just like the WNBA, another fading women's league that relies on its sugar daddy, the NBA, for sustenance.

The whole idea of a Women's World Cup is kind of a sham, anyway. In the men's World Cup every team is competitive. Heck, some of the world's great soccer nations occasionally fall by the wayside in the qualifying rounds. Holland, for example, didn't make it to the men's World Cup in 2002.

But while the men's World Cup has 32 strong teams, the Women's World Cup has just 16 teams. Only a handful of nations play women's soccer at an elite level. It's a safe bet that the United States and China will meet in the final again. One reason America liked the Women's World Cup so much back in '99 is because the United States won. I wonder how China vs. Sweden would have drawn at the Rose Bowl?

I use the term "elite" in relative terms, of course. Women's soccer, even as played by the best in the world, is plodding. It's more similar to grade-school kickball than Brazil's samba soccer.

In 1999, the Women's World Cup electrified our nation.

But in 2003, nobody wanted it. China was originally scheduled to host it, but that nation's SARS epidemic killed that. No other country wanted the event, so the United States again took it.

Strangely, you don't see the men's World Cup played in the same nation on consecutive occasions. Nations fight to host it. That's because it's the world's biggest sporting event and routinely brings millions of dollars to the host country. A Women's World Cup is about as profitable as the average bake sale.

It's time for the American sporting consciousness to forget about useless garbage like the Women's World Cup. If you want to give female athletes their due, watch women's tennis. It's better than men's tennis. Athletes like Serena Williams deserve your attention and consideration. Or watch women's college sports, an institution with tradition and history.

But forget about the Women's World Cup. Oh, wait -- most of you already have. My bad.

Mark Madden hosts a sports talk show from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays on WEAE-AM (1250).

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