Post by Taxigirl on Jan 10, 2004 11:09:51 GMT
The United States are bidding for victory at the 2010 World Cup, and believe it is a realistic aim.
Ivan Gazidis, chief of Major League Soccer - the USA's equivalent of the Premiership - believes the team's display in the 2002 event was merely a precursor to greater success.
And he warned more established teams would struggle to keep up with the USA's progress in the next seven years.
"We have an ambitious goal of winning the World Cup in 2010," Gazidis told BBC Sport.
"Everything we are doing is geared towards that goal. And the players likely to be involved - between 14 and 20 now - will definitely be good enough to do the job.
"Our Under-17 and Under-20 teams have proved they are good enough."
The USA's lofty ambitions are likely to be scoffed at by leading sides in Europe and south America.
But Gazidis is undeterred.
He said: "I love it when people consistently underestimate us. It allows us to continue to surprise people."
The USA surprised many at the 2002 World Cup in Japan and Korea by reaching the quarter-finals before losing to Germany.
MLS acted as the major feed for the national side at the tournament - with American-based players scoring six of the teams seven goals.
And Gazidis believes that influence will be felt even more strongly in both 2006 and 2010.
He said: "We already have 20 million registered participants in football in the US and that's an amazing resource to be able to pick from.
"The key question is how we develop them. And I'm confident we have development programs in MLS so they can take on the world's best."
Gazidis believes perceptions of MLS are increasingly changing, due in part to the USA's World Cup display and also because of MLS-trained players making their mark in Europe.
Arguably the most noticeable case this season has been Manchester United goalkeeper Tim Howard, who has been prolific in the Premiership since his move from New York New Jersey Metro Stars.
"The fact is there are a lot of other players as good as Tim Howard in the US," said Gazidis.
"On one hand, we want the world to know about them so people understand the high standard of MLS.
"On the other hand, the more people that know about them the harder it'll be to hold onto our players.
"But whatever the result, MLS and the national team are going places."