<Ul> <Li> Men's: 77,691 (New York Cosmos 8 - 3 Fort Lauderdale Strikers) at Giants Stadium, 1977) Women's: 34,148 (Washington Freedom 1--0 Bay Area CyberRays at RFK Stadium, 2003) </Li> </Ul> <Li> Men's: 77,691 (New York Cosmos 8 - 3 Fort Lauderdale Strikers) at Giants Stadium, 1977) Women's: 34,148 (Washington Freedom 1--0 Bay Area CyberRays at RFK Stadium, 2003) </Li> <P> Soccer in the United States is governed by the United States Soccer Federation . The organization governs most levels of soccer in the country, including the national teams, professional leagues, and the amateur game with the exception of colleges and high schools . As of May 2015, over 24.4 million people play soccer in the United States . In 2017, Gallup reported that soccer was the third-most played team sport in the U.S., behind only basketball and American football . The popularity of the sport in the U.S. has been growing since the 1960s and 1970s, and received a significant boost when the United States hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup and 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup . It is the fourth most popular sport in the United States behind American football, baseball and basketball, and is the second fastest growing sport in America, surpassed only by lacrosse . </P> <P> The highest - level men's professional soccer league in the U.S. is Major League Soccer . MLS began play in 1996 with 10 teams and has grown to 23 teams (20 in the United States and 3 in Canada), with further expansion planned . The MLS season runs from March to December, with the regular - season winner awarded the Supporters' Shield and the post-season winner awarded the MLS Cup . With an average attendance of over 20,000 per game, MLS has the third highest average attendance of any sports league in the U.S. after the National Football League (NFL) and Major League Baseball (MLB), and is the seventh highest attended professional soccer league worldwide . </P>

When did soccer become popular in the united states