5 reasons USMNT fans should root for Panama against Mexico on Sunday | OneFootball

Losing hurts. Always. And when someone inflicts pain upon you, it's only natural to want them to experience something similar in return.

But in the case of Sunday's Concacaf Nations League final, American fans should try to get over their disappointment of being upset 1-0 by Panama in Thursday's semifinal and get behind Los Canaleros in search of their first Concacaf title in national program history.

Here's 5 reasons why.

A win for Concacaf

The Concacaf talent level outside the the Big Two of the United States and Mexico has grown considerably in the course of a generation. Some of that owes to the maturation of an exceptional generation of Canadian talent. Some of it owes to positive steps elsewhere in Central America and the Caribbean.

But Panama's gradual, consistent progress since the turn of the century has been one of the most impressive but untold stories in the region. This is a nation that once frankly didn't care about soccer -- much in the way the United States didn't -- and devoted most of its athletic resources to baseball. That changed roughly 20 years ago with consistent investment in the local league and the national team program. And the reward has been the developement of arguably Concacaf's most consistent international performer outside the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

Taking the next step of winning a continental title would put the growing strength of the region in a brighter light that could impact how FIFA apportions future World Cup births. And it would also make other nations believe that their neighboring giants could be beaten, which could result in more investment in the professional game in places where it has been lacking in recent years.

A win for MLS

While there aren't as many Panamanians on the current national team who ply their trade in MLS, there's little doubting that the league has helped Panama's national team development by being a level of pro soccer in the region to aspire to beyond the nation's modest domestic league.

Roman Torres, Blas Perez, Cristian Martinez, Jaime Penedo, Michael Murillo and Coco Carrasquilla are among the best Panama national team who had extended MLS stints. Captain Anidbal Godoy and Carlos Harvey are the team's current MLSers.

Deserved revenge

Mexico v Panama: Semifinals - 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup | Mike Zarrilli/GettyImages

Of all the injustices that have transpired in previous Concacaf competitions over the years, there were few more suspicious than that infamous Gold Cup semifinal between Mexico and Panama in 2015, in which former MLS referee Mark Geiger made multiple dubious calls that tilted the match in Mexico's favor.

Even with that robbery, this will now be the fourth Concacaf final Panama has played in between the Nations League and the Gold Cup, the third-most of any Concacaf nation behind the United States and Mexico. This program deserves something to celebrate for their labor over the last 20 years.

Lose to the best

As bad as the loss to Panama feels for American supporters, it might feel more digestible from a competitive standpoint if the U.S. beats Canada in Sunday's 3rd-place match. If that happens, and then Panama beats Mexico, USMNT fans could make the claim they were actually worthy of a second-place finish in the Nations League, even though their official position would be third.

The truth is Panama is clearly a gap behind the other three competiting nations in terms of roster talent. But they are also far more credible of an opponent than they are given credit for by the fans of their North American peers.

They're not Mexico, duh