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In the next week we should get a barrage of Olympic previews. I have mixed feelings about the international ritual but the cynicism goes on the back burner for soccer, which holds my attention even through the smog marketing mayhem. I’ll watch some of the television coverage of other sports thanks in large part to a lack of summer competition, and I’m always up for some environmental and geopolitical intrigue, but like many Chinese men, national team soccer is all I really care about. And that has nothing to do with it being the Olympics.

An Abby Wambach-less US MNT

We start with the ladies because there is no doubt we are seeing the best players the world has to offer. The guys can’t say that. The ladies will, however, be missing arguably the world’s best player. Since Abby Wambach went down with a broken leg there has been widespread discussion about what it means for the team. Looking to put the Hope Solo debacle behind them once and for all this tournament, more attention has been placed on removing Abby’s personality than her skills. Perhaps the last queen bee in a line that stretches to the Hall of Fame, Wambach’s absence some say could allow the team to finally move on with their new coach and look to a future where possession soccer reigns over the constant push to find the feet of the stalwart striker. Not that anyone is saying the team won’t welcome her back. But our ladies will be showcasing young faces in China, moving into the domain of the men’s tournament. How well the Natasha Kais and Lindsey Tarpleys perform and how far they advance is less certain this year than most can remember. What is finally certain is that Hope Solo will be the goal keeper, right?

Meanwhile, an even younger, soon-coming professional league drools intently while brushing off any sort of profit dependence. Sorority politics and tickets sales aside, Wambach will return and the WPS will commence even without a U.S. win. With a new league needing to fill its ranks, the biggest question for American soccer is not necessarily whether the US WNT can get back to winning, but whether the international stars that rise from this tournament will contribute to our game next year. The globalization of their sport is not just something to think about for basketball fans this Olympics.

and what to do about the men’s team?

One shot on goal and two wholly different offensive line-ups coming from the first of two friendlies for the now China-based team might not scream confidence, but the backline played 90 minutes, didn’t allow many shots (4) or a goal (Guzan had one point-blank save) from the quality Ivory Coast side in a game that seemed all about getting players their first polluted minutes. There are more ulterior issues/problems than usual when dealing with a national team that is not the full men’s team, and the Olympics is no different. It might be worse. So what are we expecting out of this tournament? Amid the controversy between club, country, and FIFA over which players must be allowed to represent their country in the games, a lot of people want to blow it off. Even as FIFA states its case, in an Olympic context ripe with tradition apathy has become men’s soccer’s opening ceremony.

In my utopia, the U.S. would prioritize the Olympics more than any other country and go about winning a Gold Medal, something that can not be so easily said about the World Cup. The Olympics can be had by an organized, well-coached team. Essentially an U23 tournament–covered on the youth national team blog–the stars dwindle pretty quick down the bench. And so goes attention. We are left with a youth tournament to grade national team futures… and of course national anthems.

The USSF got the players they wanted given the rules. Which brings us to Brian McBride. Right or wrong his selection is a fan favorite move you can’t look past, one that hints at a federation that wants to win and one that cuts the homecoming heartstrings. Of course it might also hint at overconfidence in aging American stars. What impact McBride can have and what that may say about his MLS offerings are but two of many questions adding intrigue to a tournament most want to ignore.

Can Benny Feilhaber pull out of his yearlong funk? Can Altidore make an impression on his new club coaches with the breakout performance fans think he is holding? Can Kljestan begin a rise to national team mainstay? Can Freddy Adu string together his moments of brilliance? Is that Stuart Holden knocking on the door? Will a defender prove worthy enough for a backline spot in World Cup qualifiers? Will Brad Guzan be the only U.S. player to win “man of the match” honors?

Many American soccer fans might be more concerned about their teams battling down the MLS stretch and can’t be bothered to set DVRs for the early morning action, but for those who have nothing but the national team to call their own, the Olympics mean something. It means rounding a corner and rubbing shoulders. How the players come out of the unusual Olympic curve will be telling down the homestretch to 2010 for a program that has anything but an obvious starting eleven. The World Cup calender is counting down.

The first games for each team can be seen live on MSNBC:

08/06/2008 7:45 AM ET U.S. Women vs. Norway Women in Quinhuangdao Olympic Sports Center Stadium

08/07/2008 5:00 AM ET U.S. Men vs. Japan in Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium

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