Opinion Writing Part 2

1. What was one idea that the writer gave in the Wide Range of Topics section that you can use as you start deciding on a topic?
Be passionate about it.2. What was one idea the writer gave in the Opinions Pieces section that you should remember as you are writing your piece?
Keep it broad and relatable
 3. List three suggestions the writer makes in the Personal Essays and Crafts section that you will use as you write.

• don't use too many facts
• make it relatable
• start specific then broaden out. 

Opinion Piece: Soccer in the U.S. 

          With more children playing soccer in the US that ever before, it is no doubt that this great sport is growing. The most popular sport in the world is finally starting to receive the kind of recognition it deserves in America. 

         Soccer is now the second most popular sport behind basketball with teens ages 12-17. This statistic shows the most growth for the sport ad it the most significant. With more kids playing the great game, more adults are watching and following soccer. This is a big sign for the future in that soccer in the US will grow and possibly reach the relevance that it is in Europe. 

As a 11 year soccer veteran, I have played soccer for nearly my whole life. It has changed a great deal just in my lifetime. When I began playing in the fall of 2006 there was just one club in all of South/Central Austin; The club was AU Capital. The club grew in popularity and was eventually bought by Lonestar Soccer Club, the largest club in Austin now. By the time I had been playing for four years there were over 10 different clubs in the area, showing significant growth. 

With the support of the US Youth Soccer Association, children all over the county have a local team available to play on. Many large European clubs have also set up youth teams across the nation. 

Locally, the Liverpool Football Club has set up a youth team in western austin to develop young talent to potentially go to England and play in the First team.

Also the large growth of the American soccer league, known as Major League Soccer (MLS) has led to increased fan bases and TV viewership. The average attendance at a game across the league is over 24,000 and over 500,000 watch the games at home. 

These clubs also have developmental youth teams, which promotes increased talent and more American players in the future. 

Some say that the MLS will never be as good as other top leagues in Europe. They may say this because the league and is small and there is not a relegation or promotion like in England. However, this is unproven because the top leagues in Europe are over 100 years older than the MLS. In the Past ten years the league has doubled from 10 to 22 teams. 

Although the the league and sport are not as big as their counterparts in other countries, soccer will continue to grow. I believe that soon it will be common for people to be crowding into a giant stadium to watch a game full of Americans playing the game at the highest level. 

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