Betting on Youth: What Soccer Tells Us About Politics

I’ve never had the best memory, but I remember the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup like it was yesterday. The final was particularly memorable, because the United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) steamrolled Japan 5-2. An amateur 10-year-old soccer player myself, I was a big fan of Carli Lloyd and had rolls of the Alex Morgan signature pink pre-wrap in my soccer duffel. My family and I watched the final from a Los Angeles hotel room, screaming when Lloyd scored a hat trick in the first fifteen minutes of the match. There was something euphoric about the team of iconic female footballers. 

Despite a brief blip in the 2016 Olympic Games, the team continued to dominate on the field, even securing another World Cup trophy in 2019. Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the USWNT made it to the semi-finals of the 2020 Olympic Games but came up short. Even more shocking, the USWNT made its earliest-ever exit from a World Cup in 2023, crashing out of the Quarterfinal round after barely surviving the group stage. Experts and longtime fans of the USWNT began to doubt this new era of US women’s soccer. Was the “golden age” over? 

In May 2024, English football manager Emma Hayes began her tenure as the head coach of the USWNT. Hayes was tasked with getting the team Olympic-ready in just about three months, and in June of 2024, the 2024 Olympic roster was released. Absent was veteran Alex Morgan, whose presence on the team was practically a given since 2010. Only eight of Hayes’ 18-woman roster were repeat Olympians, and the team has an average age of 26.8, the fourth youngest in history. 

Fans questioned Hayes and her team of youngsters, but the team was quick to answer. The USWNT flew through the early stages with the help of two Olympic debutants, Sophia Smith (24) and Trinity Rodman (22). Smith scored three goals and made two assists, Rodman followed with three goals and one assist. And on August 10, 2024, the USWNT capped off an undefeated Olympic run with a gold medal win against Brazil, 1-0. The medal-winning goal was scored by 26-year-old Mallory Swanson, who led the goal count with four goals and two assists. 

Skeptics of the new USWNT regime turned to fanatics. Hayes’ decision not to include long-time players like Alex Morgan was somewhat of a gamble, but it paid off. The USWNT success represents a possible turning point in American culture– the decision to bet on younger generations.   

There has always been a distinct culture surrounding young adults in politics. In the late 20th century, the youth were seen as an apathetic, self-absorbed mass who couldn’t make their own decisions. Getting out the youth vote seemed to be a near impossibility, with organizations like Rock the Vote catering specifically to youth voters. But as we’ve entered into the 21st century, the rise of social media and the internet has changed youth attitudes toward political issues. Tufts University found that youth voter turnout increased 11 points from 2016 to 2020. And in November of 2022, Florida native Maxwell Frost became the first Gen-Z person elected to Congress. The youth are engaged, and the 2024 election has seen this trend persist. 

After a truly horrible debate performance from President Joe Biden in June of 2024, both the public and senior Democratic officials began to voice concerns regarding Biden’s age, and his ability to lead the party to victory in November. And on July 21, 2024, (just four days before the USWNT would play their first Olympic match), President Biden dropped out of the 2024 Election and gave his support to his Vice President, Kamala Harris. 

The Kamala Harris campaign broke fundraising records in the 24 hours following Biden’s historic decision. Harris, 59, is younger than both Republican candidate Donald Trump (78) and President Biden (81), and the president’s decision to step aside should be attributed to far more than just age concerns. It’s a passing of the torch, the first step in a new era of politics. It’s putting trust in the youth, and having hope for the future. 

Kamala Harris, while younger than her opposition, is still a middle-aged woman and may have some opinions that misalign with those of young adults. But she’s largely gained the support of the youth bloc through her progressive positioning, and her willingness to engage with popular culture, specifically the phenomenon of “Brat summer.” 

Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, and Emma Hayes are leaders in very different landscapes, and their decisions to bet on youth will forever change their legacies. Older generations have begun to see the power that young people can and will have over the future.

And such, it’s important that we, the effervescent youth, seize this power ourselves and get out the vote this November. 

• 2024 election
• brat summer
• kamala harris
• olympics
• politics
• soccer