Jurgen Klinsmann believes the cultural background of the United States is education and that also drives sports.
Klinsmann believes there's too much instruction and not enough self-determination in the habits of young players.
"The athletes, the players write the story," said Klinsmann. "It’s not the coaches who write the story or the agent or the parent. That has always been the message to them because soccer is so different to baseball, football and basketball. It’s not outside driven. I can have a timeout in basketball, and I can have a different play. I can tell them all the time when there is a commercial break, 'OK, next strategy.' Soccer is an inner-driven sport and this is one of the of the biggest challenges for the American soccer fan and also the athletes."
Klinsmann expanded his thoughts on how a reactive way of thinking doesn't work in soccer and that you must be proactive.
"We still have a culture here where people wait for someone else to solve your problem, and this comes from a reactive culture in other sports, where decisions are driven from the outside. It’s all stop-and-go. Baseball, it’s stop-and-go. They communicate with each other. American football, it’s the next play. Learn your playbook. The first year, you are probably not playing because you are a rookie. That approach, to be reactive—that doesn’t work in soccer.
"You have to become proactive if you want to go to the highest level, if you want to play in World Cups."