By Peter Martin
International Business Times

Jurgen Klinsmann embarked on his first great test as head coach of the American National Soccer team this past week when the squad kicked off World Cup Qualifying against Antigua and Barbuda on Friday and Guatemala Tuesday.

It can be difficult to judge the American team based on their qualifying in CONCACAF thanks largely to the level of skill elsewhere in the conference.

Mexico and team USA are clearly the class of the conference with each team qualifying for every single World Cup dating back to 1994. But the remainder of the group is a group of countries known more for drug kingpins, off-shore accounts and drug kingpins than high level athletic competition.

This means that it is very difficult to judge Klinsmann based on his team's efforts in the CONCACAF stages. Team USA will, barring some unthinkable miracle, advance from this group to the final stage and then qualify from that group for the World Cup.

The question Klinsmann will be judged on by many people is what he does when he arrives in Brazil in 2014, but the games his team is playing now will give fans a keen insight into that next step.

The first thing many fans noticed was the complete culture changes in the way the America team plays.

Team USA has been a boring, fundamental, defensive team for decades. American teams have long had to deal with their lack of talent relative to their European and South American opponents, but that may finally be changing.

Players like Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Tim Howard, and Jozy Altidore are starting to have success in club leagues at the highest levels.

Klinsmann is trying to take advantage of that newfound, high level talent with the introduction of a new and more offensive minded system.

In both of their qualifying games so far Klinsmann has abandoned the traditional 4-4-2, or 4-5-1 in favor of a 4-3-3 look that has paid dividends.

The 4-3-3 allows Klinsmann to push talented wings like Edu, Bradley or Jose Torres forward to join Donovan, Altidore and Altidore at the top of the formation. The design relies on quick passing through the midfield to create opportunity, something that team USA has never done.

The question is can the American players actually carry off that style of play?

Through two games of qualifying, and nine other games under Klinsmann, the answer seems to be sometimes.

Against Antigua, the American's had some wonderful chances and dominant ball possession through the first half thanks to beautiful one-touch passing. The play that led to the second goal, when Donovan left a beautiful ball in front of Donovan was unlike anything anyone has ever seen from an American team.

Team USA's third goal against Antigua also came off pretty passing and a great run.

The problem has been when the style breaks down the whole thing falls apart. They have been very vulnerable to counter-attacking moves that have forced some impressive saves from Howard, as well as led to the only goal scored against them in qualifying so far.

The team is now finished with their qualifying work until September when they face Jamaica on September 7 and 11 in a home-and-home series. With a pair of wins, the Americans could lock up a spot in the next round.

Klinsmann will also get his second chance at Mexico when the Americans travel to Estadio Azteca in August. The jury is still out on Klinsmann and his style, but the picture becomes clearer every time the American's take the field.

-- To report problems or to leave feedback about this article, email Peter Martin

A marginal former NFL player announced last week that he was gay, sparking new interest in the status of homosexuality in sports. Player reaction to the news was largely positive, which represents a sea shift in player attitudes. Athletes at every level seem ready to support their teammates with a different sexual orientation. It wasn't always like this.

For most of the forty years I've represented professional athletes, homosexuality has been a frightening taboo. This is the reason that virtually no team sport athletes have ever "come out" during their careers. At one point in the 90's when I was asked whether I would encourage a gay client to announce his sexual preference publicly, my response was "not on your life."

I made the comment before Perestroika that someone could more easily announce they were a Communist than homosexual. I was protective of my clients and feared the harshness and prejudice of the locker room and the public. Frankly, no client ever admitted to me that they were gay.

I've always felt that there were less gays in professional sports than their percentage of the general population -- with good reason. When boys reach adolescence, they start to define themselves by what it means to be a man. In the past that meant being heterosexual. Teenage boys have traditionally scorned gays. The locker rooms have been filled with cruel remarks towards gays and crude imitations of lisping, effeminate behavior.

It had to be extremely uncomfortable for teens who were gay in that environment. Those gay teens chose to avoid the team sport dynamic in many cases. And those who chose to play those sports hid their sexual orientation well. Athletes in sports like ice skating and diving felt freer to live without prejudice.

The times they are a-changin'. Every poll shows that there is a distinct age diferential in attitudes towards gays. Younger people are dramatically more accepting of alternative lifestyles. This is a civil rights issue that is being raised some fifty years after the movement that freed blacks and other minority groups from official discrimination. Years have passed since certain NBA players threatened to boycott if they were forced to play against HIV sufferer Magic Johnson. His dramatic announcement shattered stereotypes in respect to AIDS.

Team sport athletes seem much less judgmental than in years past. There are large numbers of born-again Christians who may have religious reservations, but they may be able to separate that from respect for a teammate. The NFL operates in many ways like an army without the risk of mortality. They train together, bleed together and watch each other's backs. The real test of acceptance of a teammate is reliability and courage under pressure, that is what earns respect in team sports. If a player gives the team a better chance to win, respect is earned notwithstanding private orientation.

The military has now abolished "don't ask, don't tell," and if soldiers in the same age group as athletes can accept diversity, so will athletes. The courage necessary for protecting our country is a higher standard than athletic performance.

Why is it important for gay athletes to be public about their sexual orientation? First, many athletes choose to keep their private lives private and no one is forcing this kind of revelation. Those of us who are straight give little thought to our orientation. Dating, marriage and other institutions reinforce heterosexual behavior. But to a gay teen who suffers depression and scorn from peers, public disclosure by an athlete gives them a role model and hope.

It would have been unthinkable for a President of the United States to endorse gay marriage until recently. That issue is much more divisive than an athlete admitting he is gay. The fear of the consequences of revealing different sexual orientation is now ready to fall. When the first professional athletes "come out" there will be major focus and publicity. In a few years it will be a non-event. I love sports because it teaches values like self-respect, self-discipline, teamwork and resilience. Adding tolerance to that list only enhances the character building opportunities for athletes.

-- Leigh Steinberg has represented many of the most successful athletes and coaches in football, basketball, baseball, hockey, boxing and golf, including the first overall pick in the NFL draft an unprecedented eight times, among more than 60 first-round selections. His clients have included Hall of Fame quarterbacks Steve Young, Troy Aikman and Warren Moon, and he served as the inspiration for the movie "Jerry Maguire." Follow him on Twitter @SteinbergSports.

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