It's perhaps a bit easy to get carried away with hyperbole when talking about the opportunity that is being presented to Real Salt Lake when they host Monterrey with a chance to win the CONCACAF Champions League on Wednesday. RSL GM Garth Lagerwey, for instance, likened it to a certain gold-medal winning hockey team:
CONCACAF Champions League, Real Salt Lake Vs. Monterrey: ‘Lake Placid’ Or Not, This Could Be Huge
“(U.S. Soccer) haven’t had that Lake Placid moment like the 1980 U.S. hockey team - but that’s the opportunity I think we have,” he said recently. “I think we have an event of that scale that can put the world on notice that American soccer is taking another step forward.”
While it may be unrealistic for a RSL victory to grab the attention of the American public in anyway similar to the way that Olympic team did when it was facing their biggest Cold War enemy, this is still a historic moment in U.S. soccer history. No MLS team has won CONCACAF Champions League, and the last team to win a continental championship of any kind was back in 2000 when the Los Angeles Galaxy won a tournament played under drastically different rules. No MLS team has ever played in the FIFA Club World Cup, which RSL will do if they can at least pull out a 1-1 tie.
That plucky U.S. hockey team, made up of mostly college kids, beat one of the greatest teams ever assembled. Monterrey, on the verge of missing their domestic league playoffs, is hardly a juggernaut in the same way. RSL, generally recognized as the best team in MLS, is no minnow.
A RSL victory could hardly even be considered a huge upset. Maybe that says even more, though. MLS has not caught the Mexican Primera, far from it. But it does say something that a team in the heavily salary-capped league can now compete on even ground with a well-funded and expertly run club like Monterrey. It says MLS teams can compete with the continental rivals, even if only on occasion. It says smart decisions can overcome a lack of funds. It says good scouting and quality coaching can, at times, be enough.
This RSL team does not have huge international stars, but its roster is as deep as just about any other on the continent. Winning the CCL would not be a “Miracle on Grass,” but it is an important benchmark and one that could herald a new era in our domestic league.
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