While Mexico sells out some of the largest stadiums in the United States, the U.S. men's team may want to stick with the smaller Major League Soccer venues.

CONCACAF Gold Cup™ Quarterfinal Jamaica v USA, Sunday 6/19 live at 2:30 p.m. ET on FOX Soccer! For a complete match schedule, click here



USA/Mexico Attendance

Game

1

2

3

Total

Avg.

USA

28,209

27,731

20,109

76,049

25,350

Mexico

80,108

46,012

62,000

188,120

62,708



//WASHINGTON - It’s too bad the United States men’s national team is not playing in the Mexico-Guatemala undercard this weekend at the Meadowlands. Maybe an NFL stadium would actually be sold out to watch the Americans during this year's Gold Cup – even if all the fans are decked out in green.The United States, the host nation, had dreadful attendance numbers during its three games in the opening round and has not yet sold out its quarterfinal match against Jamaica at RFK Stadium this Sunday. Mexico, meanwhile, has been packing venues throughout the nation."There are soccer fans in America, but it just depends which team they want to watch," U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard said. "But it is a very interesting dynamic and I don't think that would happen anywhere else in the world. I can't picture it."While Mexico has drawn an average of 62,708 fans to its games, the U.S. has only managed 25,350 per match. El Tri has a slight advantage because it played all three of its games at larger football stadiums while the U.S. played one at a Major League Soccer stadium. But the numbers wouldn’t have increased much for the Americans no matter where they played.In the days leading to the United States’ final group game against Guadeloupe, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park employees in Kansas City were unsure if the game would even sell out just over 19,000 seats. Considering it was only the second soccer game ever played at the brand-new stadium and the first time the U.S. played in the Midwest in two years, there shouldn’t have been any question about whether fans would come.Luckily for the U.S. team and CONCACAF, the fans did show up and provided a great atmosphere that wasn’t seen during its earlier games in Detroit and Tampa. That leaves the question of whether the U.S. team should even attempt to play at NFL stadiums for smaller tournaments in the future. It might be best to stick to MLS venues designed for soccer.“It had a European atmosphere,” U.S. midfielder Clint Dempsey said of LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, the home of Sporting KC of MLS. “The fans were close to things.”Maybe fans should no longer put the United States and Mexico on the same level when it comes to games being played in the regional competition. If Mexico is Manchester United, then the U.S. is Dempsey’s Fulham. The reality is no one is going to care about the U.S. if the team isn’t winning in a tournament that features a team -Guadeloupe - that isn't even recognized by FIFA.



Jozy Altidore walks in front of fans at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park

Follow Goal.com on to get the latest soccer news directly. Check out Goal.com's page; be part of the best soccer fan community in the world!

U.S. midfielder Sacha Kljestan pretty much summed up his team’s expectations of fan turnout in the Gold Cup when asked about playing at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park and responded, “Maybe it will become the new national team stadium.” He was talking about a stadium that holds just over 19,000 people, just to remind you.Die-hard American fans are quick to snap at anyone who says they don't show up to games. But if you look at the matches that draw the most fans, you'll see at least half are there rooting for the other nation or a visiting star player. Look at Spain for example. When David Villa and his top-ranked squad played the U.S. at Gillette Stadium in a friendly earlier this month, you could see just as much red and yellow in the stands as red, white and blue.When Argentina visited New Jersey in March, a majority of the sold-out crowd was there to either see Lionel Messi or to see how the U.S. would handle the best player in the world.Those games deserve to be played at bigger venues. Until the USA is blowing out the Panama's and Guatemala's of the world, MLS stadiums should do just fine.