# Switching Fields: Inside the Fight to Remake Men's Soccer in the United States - Hardcover

by **George Dohrmann** (Author)

**A Pulitzer Prize-winning sports journalist unravels why the United States has failed to produce elite men's soccer players for so long--and shows why a golden era just might be coming.**

"George Dohrmann is one of our most perceptive chroniclers of youth sports in the United States, and here he brings his keen eye to the history and present of U.S. men's soccer development."--Grant Wahl, CBS Sports analyst and _New York Times_ bestselling author of _Masters of Modern Soccer_

The contrast is striking. As the United States Women's National soccer team has long dominated the sport--winners of four World Cups and four Olympic gold medals--the men's team has floundered. They failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup and three consecutive Olympics, and have long struggled when facing the world's best teams. How could a country so dominant in other men's team sports--and such a global powerhouse in women's soccer--be so far behind the rest of the world in men's soccer?

In _Switching Fields,_ Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist George Dohrmann turns his investigative focus on the system that develops male soccer players in the United States, examining why the country has struggled for decades to produce first-class talent. But rather than just focus on the past, he looks forward, connecting with coaches and players who are changing the way talented prospects are unearthed and developed: an American living in Japan who devised a new way for kids under five to be introduced to the game; a coach in Los Angeles who traveled to Spain and Argentina and returned with coaching methods that he used to school a team of future pros; a startup in San Francisco that has increased access for Latino players; an Arizona real estate developer whose grand experiment changed the way pro teams in the United States nurture talent.

Following these innovators' inspiring journeys, Dohrmann gives ever-hopeful U.S. soccer fans a reason to believe that a movement is underway to smash the developmental status quo--one that has put the United States on the verge of greatness.

### Author Biography

**George Dohrmann** is a senior managing editor at _The Athletic_ and was previously an investigative reporter at _Sports Illustrated_. His first book, _Play Their Hearts Out,_ was named one of the fifty best books of literary journalism of the twenty-first century by _GQ_ and called one of the finest sports books of all time by _Harper's Magazine_ and _The New York Times_. While working at the _St. Paul Pioneer Press,_ he won a Pulitzer Prize for a series of stories that uncovered academic fraud within a college basketball program. Dohrmann lives with his family in Ashland, Oregon, where he coaches soccer and is president of the Ashland Soccer Club.

**Number of Pages:** 208

**Dimensions:** 0.94 x 8.35 x 5.75 IN

**Publication Date:** November 15, 2022

## Details

- **Price:** 28.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 28.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- Switching Fields: Inside the Fight to Remake Men's Soccer in the United States - Hardcover

---

> Source: [Smart supply deals](https://smartsupplydeals.com/products/switching-fields-inside-the-fight-to-remake-mens-soccer-in-the-united-states-hardcover)
> Updated: 2026-07-23