If there were ever a headline that I never thought I would write in my career, this one would be it. At the IFAF World Junior Championships, the United States failed to earn a medal after losing to Japan and Austria.
Yes, America lost to Japan and Austria. In football. American Football. It's right in the name. AMERICAN FOOTBALL!
After destroying Panama, 86-12, the United States advanced to the semifinals at the IFAF U20 Championships to play Japan. But the Japanese absolutely demolished the American side. In FOOTBALL.
That knocked the United States out of contention for the gold medal and sent them into the bronze medal game against Austria. And they lost to Austria. In FOOTBALL.
Austria became the first team from Europe to earn a medal in the history of the tournament.
If you think OutKick's Senior Editor of Content Development, Joe Kinsey, was mad after the Japan loss, I can't even imagine how he must be feeling right now.
Not earning a medal in a FOOTBALL tournament is one of the most un-American things that I've ever heard in my entire life. This is our sport. We invented it. We perfected it.
America IS football.
I'm with Kinsey, the United States government wastes tax dollars on plenty of useless things. Let's take some of that money and invest it in something that everyone in the country cares about – the performance of our international football team.
At the IFAF World Junior Championships, the United States failed to earn a medal after losing to Japan and Austria.
(Getty Images)
By the way, this isn't the first time the United States has failed to win gold. In 2018, the team won bronze. Canada won the gold. CANADA. And they won gold in 2016, too.
And they're playing for gold again this year against Japan. Canada! In American Football!
The tournament was last held in 2018 and then canceled in 2020 because of COVID. Previously, the IFAF U20 Men's World Championship was held every two years, but they switched to every four years with this being the first competition since 2018.
Canada seeks to become the three-time defending champions. Canada! The US won the tournament in 2014 and in 2009.
This is unacceptable. Time to start writing letters to your local politicians and demand they take action on this abomination.
Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to OutKick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named “Brady” because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.
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