FROM THE PAGES OF SI

JUNE 21, 1993

The stated mission of World Cup 1994 is twofold: "To put on the best World Cup ever, and to leave a legacy for soccer in this country." What of that legacy? If a soccer boom is ever to take place in the U.S., there will never be a better detonator than the World Cup. Will a monthlong exhibition of world-class soccer on U.S. soil finally catapult the sport forward? Will the largest possible war chest be in place to fund soccer's future in this country? And what is the status of plans for a first-rank professional league?