Key Findings
1

California Leads the Nation

  • California ranks No. 1 overall with a World Cup Soccer Player Score of 77.7, driven by its deep player pool and strong track record across multiple World Cups.
Score: 77.7
2

New Jersey Punches Above Its Weight

  • New Jersey ranks second overall with a score of 63, standing out for producing a high number of World Cup players relative to its population.
Score: 63
3

Washington’s Pipeline Has Staying Power

  • Washington ranks third overall with a final score of 40.9, boosted by a perfect 100 consistency score for producing World Cup players across a long stretch of tournament years.
Consistency: 100
4

D.C. Stands Out for Its Size

  • The District of Columbia records the strongest population-adjusted score in the study, showing how much World Cup talent it has produced despite its smaller size.
Population Edge
5

Texas and New York Are Rising

  • Texas and New York both rank inside the top 10, helped by stronger representation in recent World Cup squads from 2010 to 2022.
Recent World Cup Strength
Methodology: RotoGrinders ranked states using an overall score based on player production, players produced relative to population, long-term World Cup track record and recent World Cup representation. Each category was measured on a 0 to 100 scale.