Clint Dempsey, former Paladin, made his much anticipated return to Major League Soccer this season after spending the past seven years playing in England. Dempsey is best known for making the jump to the English Premier League, where he scored 57 goals, more than any other American-born player.
Major League Soccer surely hopes that his return to an American team will create a surge of excitement for soccer in the United States, where the sport has struggled to catch on at the professional level.
Despite the continued success of the U.S. women’s team at international events and the growing success of the men’s team, Americans continue to prefer their own version of football, along with many other sports.
The continuous nature of play has been a significant hurdle to overcome. Halves last 45 minutes without a break, leaving little time to run advertisements and reducing the financial incentives for networks to broadcast more games.
But the lack of television coverage for the sport here in America may be coming to an end. NBC recently acquired the rights to broadcast every 2013-2014 English Premier League game, and the network seems committed to popularizing the sport here in the U.S.
Dempsey is continuing his outstanding career with the Seattle Sounders, and his return to American turf presents an exciting prospect for the many Paladin fans who witnessed a young Dempsey hone his skills on Furman’s team before gaining international renown. Across three seasons with the Paladins, Dempsey netted 17 goals and helped the team win two Southern Conference titles.
In 2004, Dempsey moved on to Major League Soccer after the New England Revolution drafted him eighth overall. He would stick with the team for two years, amassing 25 goals in that period and a Rookie of the Year Award in his first season.
In 2006, Dempsey was transferred to Fulham, where he would spend the majority of his career in the English Premier League. Dempsey buried 50 goals in his five years there.
After Fulham, Dempsey signed on with Tottenham, where he would spend just one year and score seven goals.
Dempsey was transferred to the Sounders this past summer but has yet to find the back of the goal in his first three starts.
