Now you probably have a general idea of what it was like to watch Ronaldinho weave his way all over the field when AC Milan, one of the most successful club teams in the world, took on Club America from Mexico. While he didn’t score a single goal and his team went on to lose 2-1 in the final minutes, he received the Man of the Match award at the end of the game. Some may argue with this decision and most of them probably were not among the sea of 50,000-plus fans. The crowd noise levels raised tens of decibels when he was passed the ball in anticipation of what everyone knew he could do… and he did not disappoint.

One thing to understand about soccer is that the fans can sometimes be just as excited about their man almost scoring as they get when he actually does score.  Ronaldinho had several opportunities to score on a few tough penalty shots, and was thoroughly praised by the audience when nearly missing each of them. He gave his teammates several would-be assists by performing dance moves with his feet you’ve not seen since watching old Fred Astaire films. His post-game honor was not for what his team could not accomplish but rather his ability to show that he was the still the best player on the field.

Unfortunately for AC Milan, this is very much a team sport and though Filippo Inzaghi was able to break away for Milan’s only goal, Club America reigned victorious by equalizing the game halfway through the 2^nd half and finishing them off in the waning minutes.

Better news for the AC camp… before the game, the team held a press conference officially announcing U.S. defender Oguchi Onyewu (better known as “Gooch”) as a new man on their roster. This news is significant as he is the 1^st American to play for AC Milan and only the 2^nd ever to play in Italy’s elite Serie A; the 1^st being Alexi Lalas. He joins a team with another greatly regarded defender: Alessandro Nesta, who will undoubtedly quickly bring him up to the speed and intensity of Serie A play.

As I mentioned earlier, there were over 50,000 fans in attendance for this game and that spells out good things for soccer fans who want to see more events like this and the Mexico-Venezuela match last month come to Atlanta.

Mexico and Venezuela’s national soccer teams faced off in a friendly match here in Atlanta three weeks ago with a stunning win for the Mexican team 4-0. What many don’t realize is just how much was riding on this friendly match. It had nothing to do with the high-caliber, internationally known players on the field; it was all about the fans.

Soccer may be the most popular sport in the world, but here in America, it sits on the back burner behind football, baseball, basketball, and even sometimes hockey. Overseas, soccer players are celebrities just like our NFL and NBA players. The question wasn’t whether Atlanta has the infrastructure and capacity for games such as the one held late last month. The question was if there was a large enough soccer fan base to come out and support these teams.

For now, the answer seems to be yes. Of the Georgia Dome’s 71,228-plus capacity, over 50,000 fans packed the stadium for last month’s match. Players and staff from both teams expressed how great the environment was and how welcome they felt from the moment they stepped off the plane.

What does this mean for the future of world-class soccer events in Atlanta? Towards the end of this month fans will get another chance to show that they are ready for more big, in-town soccer matches. AC Milan (one of the world’s most prestigious teams) and superstar Ronaldinho (one of the best active players in the world) will take on Club America, a team from Mexico. The match will take place Wednesday July 22 at the Georgia Dome. If you’re not excited about soccer yet, it’s time to catch the fever.

Click here for the link to view this article on Score Atlanta’s website