Soccer has had a difficult time gaining an audience in the United States.

But I am going say this once: Start paying attention to soccer now, because with the World Cup coming in June, it is the perfect time to hop on the bandwagon.

The World Cup will bring soccer to the forefront of people’s minds starting June 11. We find out on July 11 which country is the best in the world, and soccer will take its place as the fourth sport in America.

Let’s look ahead to the future of American sports. In 2011, we could be facing a year without the NFL or NBA due to potential work stoppages over financial compensation.

Because of the potential stoppages, soccer will become one a dominant sport in America. The NFL work stoppage is not nearly as likely as the NBA work stoppage due to the poor economic climate. Also, the NFL is the most profitable sports league in the world.

If there are stoppages, it will be the first time for the NFL since 1987; the NBA had a work stoppage in 1998.

ESPN purchased the broadcast rights to the English Premier League, the top soccer league in the United Kingdom. The deal was for the 2009-10 season and, along with ratings for the Fox Soccer Channel, the ratings for the games in the last year have grown 1 percent, or roughly 220,000 people.

On Aug. 22, ESPN2 set the record for most-watched EPL game in U.S. history, according to Nielsen ratings. The match between Wigan Athletic and Manchester United was watched by 374,799 people in the states. However, that lasted two days before being surpassed by the Liverpool-Aston Villa match on Aug. 24, with an audience of 398,391. The jump to nearly 400,000 is astounding, especially since the season before, the average viewership for the EPL was just 90,000.

During the 2011-12 sports calendar, ESPN could be in a position to broadcast a lot of soccer due to these work stoppages, and if the growth in viewership and interest in soccer continues at the same pace, it would allow them to get away with putting soccer on their network in a greater volume.

ESPN also has the broadcast rights for the 2010 World Cup, and if the recent Winter Olympics taught us anything, it is that Americans enjoy watching a national team, even if it is for a sport people don’t necessarily watch on a regular basis. Hockey benefited greatly from the interest garnered during the Olympics. However, the NHL has failed to keep that interest because international hockey is different than the NHL.

The only difference in soccer between the nations is their styles of plays.

This summer, Americans will have the chance to give support to another national team, this time during the World Cup in South Africa. And this U.S. National Team has a chance to make some noise.

Players on the U.S. team have been playing in top European leagues and have garnered name recognition because of the success they have had playing against a higher talent pool.

The first chance to hop on the bandwagon may not be until May, but once the World Cup comes in June, soccer will be well on its way to being taken seriously in this country.

Ross Coleman can be reached at [email protected]