USA soak in Seattle’s familiar support en route to making World Cup history

Long a hotbed of American soccer, Seattle showed on Friday why it should no longer be a rare visit for the national team

One does not have to go far in Seattle, Washington, to be reminded that it's a soccer town. Two days before Friday's 2-0 win for the US over Australia, all I had to do was get on the train.

Riding the light rail to lunch on Wednesday and hopping off at Westlake Station, I was a few blocks from Pike Place Market, the city's famous waterfront gathering spot. The train car I'd arrived on had been overflowing with US jerseys and Australia kits. Riding the escalator up into the resplendent afternoon sun, someone tugged at my bag.