This statistic illustrates the number of soccer players within the last 12 months in the United States from autumn 2009 to spring 2017. In spring 2017, the number of people who played soccer within the last 12 months amounted to 15.86 million in the United States.
The rising popularity of soccer in the United States
The number of people playing soccer in the United States is on the rise. In the spring of 2016, more people played soccer than ever since 2009. This was also the same year that the United States women’s team won their most recent World Cup championship. While the United States men´s national soccer team have had their best World Cup performance back in 1930, the United States women’s team has won three world championships - more than any other country –, one in 1999, one in 2003, and their most recent win over Norway in 2016. These wins also occurred within a much shorter time span as the first women’s cup was held for the first time in 1991. For men’s soccer, Brazil has won more World Cup titles than any other country.
It can also be observed that the number of boys and girls who played soccer in high school in the United States has also been on a slow, but steady increase since 2009. The number of high school girls who play soccer is almost equal to the number of boys. All in all, soccer, which is already highly popular in Europe and South America, now seems to enjoy a growing popularity among Americans as well.
