Major League Soccer has been in the headlines of late and there is not a good clip in the bunch. David Beckham, Barcelona and the CONCACAF Champions League have all drawn blood in the league’s fight for respect.
David Beckham’s petulant, hold-my-breath-til-I-turn-rossoneri tantrum was the first shoe to fall. MLS stepped up with an open hand when Becks was at his lowest, injured and buried on the bench at the Bernabeu.
Considering his marketing value, star power – and oh, yeah – his talent the decision to bring the Spice Boy on board was a smart one. It does not smell as spicy now.
By denigrating the league, his teammates and soccer in the States in general, Beckham made no friends. Sure, he sees a path towards another shot at World Cup redemption and the outside shot of the Three Lions record book. However, if I am Joe Soccer-fan, I am not shelling out hundreds of dollars to see Beckham play, unless it is to boo him.
If the rumors that Beckham would have to pay a hefty fee to get out of his MLS contract at the end of the season, I wish Bruce Arena would be able to set him up comfortably in a nice spot at the end of the bench where he could stay and rot his nine months out.
Anything less and MLS will have proven itself what AC Milan directors say in private. It is a Mickey Mouse league. Sure, in any poker game, you play with the cards in your hand – but MLS has to realize there are other hands to come – and unless they always want to be seeing the world through their legs, MLS needs to stand strong.
They did against Barcelona, and for that, they deserve applause. Sure, the Beckham fiasco has lowered the marketability of the league and that would affect financial plans. Sure, the current worldwide financial mess has changed the economic situation. However, if Barcelona and Claure were really in for the long haul, it is just a speed bump out of the starting gate.
I read a few pundits saying that MLS should lower their $40-million expansion fee because… it’s Barcelona! Why? They just closed their most profitable year ever.
Growing up in South Florida I know the market. Still living and working there, I know that soccer can work here. However, if you had given me a vote and they would have been third on my list, at best. I would have called back the Saputo’s in Montreal before I would have taken the check from Miami.
When was the last 60-thousand crowd for a local team in South Florida like Quebec pulled in last week? Trick question, never. You do not see the fired-up fans marching down Main Street towards the city council meeting as you do in Portland. You do not have an owner who has put his money where his mouth is repeatedly, as you do in Vancouver. Heck, if St. Louis was actually in St. Louis, I think they could draw better crowds than South Florida.
We are a fickle bunch down here. If you get your superstar, with a stellar supporting cast, an exciting style, a great marketing plan, cheap tickets and a lot of wins out of the gate – we might put down our South Beach iced teas and pay attention. Well, until they lost a game or two at least.
I would love to be able to take my kids to see MLS games on a weekly basis, but in an era where the league’s financial and marketing success depends so much on BIS (butts-in-seats) Miami is not in the running.
That could change. That was starting to change with the Fusion, but it took time for the team to get it right and for the fans to realize the team was fun to watch. Then – in the midst of the last economic collapse – the plug was pulled. Fans will tend to be even more hesitant to put their heart on the line the next time.
It will happen, hopefully soon – but if the league truly wants to take it’s product to the next level – sans Beckham – it needs Portland and Vancouver – and arguably a creative way to get Montreal in the mix as well. Montreal, Portland and Vancouver are almost locks to follow in the footsteps of Toronto and Seattle with an energetic fan-base out of the gates.
The Impact have already been more successful than MLS where it counts, on the scoreboard in the CONCACAF Champions League. For all of its money and World Cup players, MLS has choked again when it comes time to put its shingle out for public display.
New England and now Houston have made feeble efforts at defending MLS pride. Montreal and Puerto Rico have been carrying the USL banner proudly – with much smaller budgets and expectations. They’ve done it with pride, effort and skill. MLS could learn a bit from its poorer relations, it seems.
Give credit to both teams for their continued success. Over the years, they have both proved it is not a fluke. A dozen years in and MLS still cannot figure it out that they have to prove themselves to the ready-made audience of the various ethnicities in their market.
What better way than to play well against those foreign teams that they already support. Much has been made of the league’s All-Star success against big-name foreign competition over here on shopping trips pre-season training.
If you play the way Houston played against Atlante, why would any self-respecting Mexican fan want to give you the time of day, let alone a dime? MLS has to give more than lip service to the Champions League.
Sure, the SuperLiga has been a success – but it is a made up tournament. Victory in the Champions League leads to the Club World Cup – and that respect could lead to Mexico-like invites from CONMEBOL’s Copa Libertadores.
That would mean meaningful games against teams like Sao Paulo, River Plate, Colo Colo, LDUQ and the like. Victories against those teams would bring real credibility and respect, not the store-bought type that fades when the honeymoon is over.
March 5th, 2009 at 11:04 am
Amen Phil.
Our blog posts look incredibly similar on these three issues. I have nothing to add that I haven’t said already over at MLS Talk. We are singing from the same script.
I think MLS has had a really really bad month. Add in declining TV ratings (when you used to call MLS games for ESPN twice as many viewers tuned in on average than in non-Beckham games last year)
USL on the other hand needs to exploit the Islanders success. What Colin Clarke’s men have accomplished is nothing short of remarkable. While USL is a second tier league, the MLS Salary Cap and inept scouting by a number of MLS clubs allows some very good players to fall to USL. We’re seeing that with the Islanders, and to a lesser extent with the Impact. (I think Montreal has been more lucky, getting an easy draw to this point, whereas Puerto Rico has arguably had the most murderous run of any of the quarter finalists and yet still made it)
MLS rules make it difficult for European clubs like AC Milan and Barca to ever truly understand how to deal with the league. MLS failures versus USL’s success in CONCACAF make the league look small time. Bad TV ratings and no presence in the southeast give MLS a regional flavor.
Had Ivan Gazidis stayed at MLS HQ, I’d have faith they could pull out of this. But without him, I fear the worst for the league.
March 5th, 2009 at 11:05 am
So I will agree with most of what you say, Beck’s is simply showing his real colors, he never has cared about the game or a team but only about himself and his image.
I can semi agree about FC Miami, but can understand foreign investors not wanting to risk over 100 million on MLS in Miami, with the franchise fee, team costs, and eventually having to build a stadium it is a whole lot of money to invest when the markets and economies of the world are so unsettled. I actually wouldn’t blame MLS and potential owners for waiting until July to make final decisions on expansion.
The Champions Cup is a joke, the deck is stacked against MLS and anyone other than Mexican or Central American teams. It is simply too much to expect teams with a limited salary cap and low (now 24 man rosters) to compete in their preseason against other clubs without most of those restrictions and in their normal season schedule. If they wanted to be fair play the Houston-Atlante matches in December when both teams are out of season, or wait until late March or April when both are in season. It is just typical crap run by CONCACAF, which tries to give advantage to Mexico’s national and club teams any chance they can. I love that PR has got lucky and advanced and I hope that Montreal can as well.
March 5th, 2009 at 11:51 am
Kartik,
re: Montreal – success on the field, but mainly off it. Since 2004 when they averaged just under 10k – they’ve averaged over 11 and on a steady track up that will only climb higher with their newfound success and their new stadium. As part of their financial plan they have invested time, effort and money into the Montreal youth soccer scene. A la AS Roma, imagine the potential talent and fan-base bounce once those 5 year old kids turn 25.
Re: ESPN’s past tv success – yup, all due to me!
f4denz -
re: Miami – I have no problem with foreign investors shying away at a $40M pricetag – but that doesn’t mean MLS has to give them the five-finger discount when there are other bidders (with pre-built fan-bases) that ARE willing to shell out the dough.
Champions League is NOT a joke. MLS can use the scheduling as an excuse if it wants – but that’s all it is and Puerto Rico and Montreal have proved it. If you really want to do well, you have to put in the effort. They have. They’ve won.
MLS teams tend to play as though they are pre-season scrimmages and then shrug their shoulders when they lose. MLS is the party that cheapens the Champions League with its attitude, no one else.
And as far as luck, Puerto Rico and Montreal have MADE their own luck with hard play, determination, team work, opportunism – and much more skill than we saw from those national team players for Houston this week. Geez, even if it is pre-season training, don’t you think they should know how to trap a ball by now?
March 5th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Kartik, I don’t quite see your logic in saying that the Islanders have had an easier run of it than Montreal, I think that they have both had an equally hard road.
March 7th, 2009 at 1:06 am
Hey Phil! Your rant against Becks made me sad, I’ll buy you a milkshake if he doesn’t go to the World Cup next year
March 9th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Phil,
I hope that if Beckham comes back to LA that all prepubescent females and COUGARS are banned from the Home Depot Center so I don’t have to here those screams!!!!!! What a fiasco Beckham has turned out to be. Its simply a case of the star getting what he wants….. and if he says that he didn’t realize that playing in the MLS would hurt his chances of playing for England, he should have looked into that before he came. The same thing happened with Gullit, after being there a couple of months he couldn’t understand why the Galaxy could go out and sign a worldbeater as needed (Ruud every think about looking into working conditions before taking a job). As far as I am concerned those turkeys can go coach or play somewhere else and won’t be missed.
However I really hope Barcelona interest in the MLS can be revived. According to the plan, Mauro Claure was going to put up $40 million and the club would bring players, coaches and training methods. Barcelona would have infused into the league new tactics, a more attractive way of playing and professionalism. That is without mentioning maybe a current Barca star, new Barca prospects and experienced players (along the lines of Baros Schelotto) that would have forced other teams in the league to step up their game. This is the real tragedy in my opinion.
Regards,
Tim
March 24th, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Lucy,
I won’t say no to a milkshake
but I don’t care if he goes to the World Cup. I care if he keeps his word and treats MLS with respect.
Phil