By: Michael Spiers

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

For decades, soccer in the United States was viewed as a niche sport. It was something kids played on Saturday mornings before eventually moving on to football, baseball, basketball, or another traditional American sport.

If you asked most sports fans where soccer was strongest in America, they probably would have pointed to California or the Northeast. Not anymore.

As the 2026 FIFA World Cup unfolds across North America, one thing has become increasingly clear. The Southeast is rapidly becoming the center of soccer growth in the United States.

Just look at the host cities. Atlanta, Miami, and other Southern venues have become major destinations for World Cup matches and fan events.

Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium has established itself as one of the premier soccer venues in the world, regularly drawing crowds that rival those seen in Europe and South America. Miami has become an international soccer hotspot, attracting global attention through both club and international competition.

What’s remarkable is how quickly this transformation has occurred. Twenty years ago, many sports fans across the South viewed soccer as an afterthought. Football ruled Friday nights, Saturdays, and Sundays. Baseball was woven into the fabric of communities across Georgia, Florida, Alabama, and the Carolinas. Soccer simply wasn’t part of the sports conversation.

Today, that’s changing. Youth soccer participation throughout the Southeast continues to grow. Communities like mine here in Camden County have thriving recreational and travel soccer programs.

Weekend tournaments routinely bring hundreds of families together, filling hotels, restaurants, and sports complexes. Young athletes who once may have focused exclusively on football or baseball are now dedicating themselves year-round to soccer.

The growth isn’t limited to youth sports.

Atlanta United helped prove that professional soccer could thrive in the South. Since entering Major League Soccer, the club has drawn some of the largest crowds in the league and created an atmosphere that rivals many traditional American sports franchises.

Nashville SC has experienced similar success, while Charlotte FC has quickly developed a passionate fan base of its own.

The result is that an entire generation of young Southern sports fans is growing up viewing soccer differently than previous generations.

And then there’s the World Cup. The excitement surrounding the tournament has given soccer another significant boost.

Southern cities have embraced the event with enthusiasm, welcoming fans from around the world and showcasing the region on an international stage.

I think for many Americans, this World Cup is the first opportunity to experience the energy, passion, and global significance of soccer up close.

What makes the Southeast uniquely positioned for continued growth is that soccer isn’t replacing traditional sports. It’s joining them.

Football remains king throughout much of the South. College football Saturdays still dominate the sports calendar. High school football remains a cultural institution in communities large and small. But soccer has carved out its own place alongside those traditions.

In many ways, soccer fits perfectly within the Southeast’s sports culture. Fans appreciate passionate competition, community pride, and family-friendly events. Soccer delivers all three.

The sport’s accessibility also makes it attractive. All a child really needs is a ball and a patch of grass to begin developing a love for the game.

The World Cup will eventually leave North America, but its impact is likely to remain. Young players inspired by what they’ve seen this summer will sign up for youth leagues.

Families will continue attending professional matches. Communities will continue investing in soccer facilities and programs.

The Southeast’s sports identity is evolving. Football will always be at the heart of it. But soccer is no longer an outsider looking in.

It has become part of the conversation, part of the culture, and increasingly, part of the future.

The rest of the country may still be catching up, but the evidence is becoming impossible to ignore: when it comes to the growth of soccer in America, the Southeast is leading the way.