What do you guys think of the MLS potential going forward?
The opportunity of perhaps looking for a job opportunity there in the future excites me (possibly after doing the MBA Football Industries).
I even sent my CV to a MLS club a few months ago when I was out of a job after working in the World Cup, but did not even receive a reply. My application probably did not receive much attention as I don't have the right to work in the USA
I'm maybe not as optimistic as a lot of other MLS supporters are. I mean, I so wish it to be a big league, but there are still a number of big, big obstacles blocking it from true growth.
The league and players union are currently at a deadlock over a new collective bargaining agreement. MLS players do NOT have free agency at the moment, and a big issue last season was Chicago wanted Jermaine Jones, Jones wanted Chicago, agreed a contract, but New England also wanted him. (Jones, for the record, basically said he had no issues playing anywhere as long as that club paid him more than what Chicago were willing.) So what the league did was hold a "blind draw" and he was allocated to New England. The lack of transparency and overall stupidity of it is MLS, in its current form, in a nutshell.
The league doesn't really want free agency because that will ultimately create a handful of big clubs dominating the league. LA have the most titles in the league with 5 and have the best manager in the league. They're a powerhouse, and the ownership group pays luxury taxes to the league for using chartered planes (teams fly coach 90 percent of the time). You betcha every player, if given a free choice, would love to go there.
There's also the salary cap issue. Sebastian Giovinco is the kind of signing every MLS team needs to start making, but at the same time, he'll make more in 2-3 days than some guys on his team will the entire season. MLS claims it's losing money, but somehow still manages to sign guys like Bradley, Dempsey, Altidore, etc. on inflated fees. Someone like Cubo Torres, however, is worth every penny of his $7.5m fee -- he's 22, just breaking into the Mexican national team, and has a good nose for goal. I hate to use "marketability" to describe a player, but he ticks every box for the changing demographics of the U.S.
But the biggest problem is MLS is a single-entity league, so players don't sign contracts with the team as such as you sign with the league. The league has a number of strange roster rules, an "allocation order" that's more confusing than sensical, "designated players" allowed to break salary cap, plus it still relies very heavily on college soccer, which is problematic because of NCAA rules on substitutions, practice time, etc. Overall, it's kind of a mess. The league is hugely resistant to promotion/relegation as the owners of clubs (more like franchises than clubs, to be honest) would stand to lose a ton of money from the very league they helped build.
Adding more fuel to the fire is actually the US Soccer Federation, who are in charge of the entire pyramid. They're probably more resistant to promotion/relegation than MLS owners are, and they effectively stifle the growth of NASL as a justifiable second-tier. I'm glad someone like Jürgen Klinsmann is around, though. He might not be the best national team manager, but he actually has the balls the challenge the structure, criticize MLS and push for the entire system in the country to be more like the rest of the world.
It's not all bad, though! The league-mandated partnership with USL Pro (our 3rd division, basically), means that a lot of the kids from the academy can go pro instead of going to college. It should be good for developing young players in a much-watered down way Borussia Dortmund II, Barcelona B, etc. are producing players.
This past offseason has been the best influx of talent in league history: Gerrard, Lampard, Villa, Kaka, Diskerud, Giovinco, Altidore (willing to bet he'll put up similar numbers to his AZ days), Maloney, Accam, etc. Ownership is finally starting to put their chips on the table. Finally. After nearly 20 years. Though, to be fair, I suppose the quick collapse of the old NASL made everyone a bit cautious.
The league signed a massive TV deal with ESPN, Fox and Univision, which is a big step toward growth. One of the issues the league has its perception both as a "retirement league" and its viewership. ESPN did a study and found that for kids 12-17, MLS is their second-most watched league after NFL and equal with MLB. That's obviously a good sign. But ultimately, if you look at the history of every sport, the media is hugely responsible for their growth (I can teach a class on it
). Right now, there just aren't enough what I call "soccer people" working in the media.
So, long story short
the potential to be a top league is there for the simple reason that the US is a glutton for money and a glutton for sports. Every year, the league does get better in terms of quality on the pitch. But, MLS isn't quite there yet. But in 10, maybe 15, years it could be big. But only "could be" unless they make some changes.
All this said, I will watch every game, attend every home game of my local club, maybe make a road trip or two. I want it to grow so badly.
