Photo by Lyndsay Radnedge, www.centerlinesoccer.com

“Why the San Jose Earthquakes?” A question that gets brought up in conversations quite a bit for me. For those that don’t know, I started covering the team for my website as a junior in high school, a unique opportunity that I have learned a lot from and have been very thankful for. While intriguing to many, I’m often told (by non Quakes supporters) that a Warriors themed site, a European football site, or something “higher profile” would amount to something more. I would imagine that others invested in American club soccer have been told similar things. Nonetheless, we continue to pour our time into the sport.

An employee of a soccer club invests out of appreciation for the sport and for the club. Members of the soccer industry in this country are a talented, under appreciated, and hard working bunch that make sacrifices to pursue their shared passion.

I’ve learned that many journalists that cover American soccer clubs make little to no money doing so. They invest their limited personal time into helping spread and share stories through their words, podcasts, photographs, and videos.

A supporter of an American soccer club spends hundreds, even thousands, of dollars each year on season tickets and on travel to away matches. I’m sure that at some point, each one of these investors has been told to keep their money in their pockets and instead wake up at 7:30 on a Saturday morning to watch “the real football” overseas.

Given all this, why do we invest American soccer? What makes soccer special? Soccer clubs receive different forms of investments than NBA, NFL, MLB, or NHL franchises may, and they provide different forms of returns. What differentiates soccer from all these sports is the unique relationship between the club and the investor. The investor feels directly tied to and involved with the success or the failure of the club. We give our time and our hearts to the club and in return we get to share intimate experiences and moments.

San Jose Ultras Tifo. Photo by Lyndsay Radnedge, www.centerlinesoccer.com

How is this different from other sports? After all, fans of baseball, hockey, football, and basketball fans each feel connected in some way to their franchise. The answer can be found with a glance at the largest demographic of investors — the supporters. A fan of any of the “big 4” sports show up to a match for a beer, perhaps a hot dog, and to cheer occasionally and appreciate the greatness of the athletes. A soccer supporter shows up to come together with others and live through their club — to beat a drum, to wave a flag, to clap along, and to chant for 90 minutes. A supporter invests by putting on a show in the stands with tifo, a chant, or another display of dedication. In return, players prove they are worthy of the investment by putting on a show on the pitch. Supporters only ask for loyalty and dedication from the players, regardless of the result. This is not a knock on the other four sports, all of which I love and cherish, it is simply an observation of how soccer differs from the norm.

I simply cannot put a dollar value on high-fiving Joe Cannon after he defeated David Beckham’s Los Angeles Galaxy at the Oakland Coliseum as a boy, or how awe-inspiring it was to cheer on the 10-men San Jose Earthquakes as they scored twice in stoppage time to win alongside 50,000 fans and supporters. If you closely support an American soccer club, I am certain that a few similarly exceptional moments popped up in your head while reading this.

Beyond special moments like these, it gives us a constant sense of community — the same you may have felt as a member of a childhood sports team.

I invest in the San Jose Earthquakes because I want to expand the community and be a part of creating special moments for others, like the ones left such an impact on me as a kid. Of the unimportant things in life, soccer is by far the most important.