I am a MLS Snob for one reason. I have an emotional attachment. It has nothing to do with not liking Euro soccer. I just don't have a team and didn't watch it till I was 20. Like someone said it is my personal preference to not care one bit about any other soccer league but MLS. My first Bruins game was 1982 when I was 5 First Red Sox game was 1984 when I was 7 First Celtics game was 1985 when I was 8 First Pats game was 1985 when I was 8 First Revs game was 1996 when I was 18. Those teams above I get to go to game regularly. I get to watch every game. I follow them everyday. They are in my DNA.
I watch European Soccer (primarily the English Premiere League) over MLS for one very simple reason. Since we do not have a team in San Diego I experience both through the medium of television and the Premiere League is a far better product on tv. This is not just the actual matches themselves, but the history and the culture behind football in England which adds depth to the story lines taking place every weekend. Now if there was a team here things might be different. HD television is amazing and can help bring clarity to the action, while a pub can help recreate some of the crowd atmosphere and banter nothing replaces being there. But alas being there means driving up to the s#*! h*Le that is Los Angeles and supporting a team from there (something against the DNA of any San Diegoite, as Ron Burgundy calls us) so I am left with watching it only on television and through that medium there is no comparison.
I would suggest you wander down to Tijuana and watch the Xolos then. Very high quality and at least you're not in LA.
Been Been dying to but hard to get tickets online. And for a gringo who doesn't speak Spanish a little intimidating trying to get tickets the day of. But made a promise to myself I would make a match down there this spring. Been cool seeing Tijuana get some positive press for once.
Their home game vs Corinthians (Club World Champions) should be a good one. I believe is March 6th (probably sold out).
The real answer is MLS should already be in San Diego and another 100 markets in the US with pro/rel. MLS is in only 18 different markets and many soccer fans do not have a team to call their own. When these neutrals have a choice between watching MLS or the EPL on TV, most will choose the EPL. MLS is missing out on a lot of fans. Nothing will change because the priority of MLS is to protect the owners at all costs, even if it means slower growth.
Can anyone name a city outside of the US and larger than San Diego that doesn't have a team that has a chance to play in the top division?
Not sure about chance, but here are some large cities (bigger than San Diego) with out a D1 team Delhi Bangalore Hyderabad Ahmedabad Chennai Surat Jaipur I am sure China has a bunch more
I know this is a sore point for MLS fans, and I totally understand why they don't have Rel/Pro. What investor is going to want to pour money into a team that is not guaranteed to be in the top league. Having said that I think that the MLS could make it work. Just 2 divisions, and no trap door at the bottom of the 2nd division. One of the biggest appeals of the Premiere league over MLS is relegation promotion, and I think it could truly change MLS. Now I know it will never happen and it's just a dream but I think if the league really wanted to get fans like me Rel/Pro could do it. (Or move a team to San Diego
How about Pro/Rel American style? Every year cities/owners that want an MLS team make a bid to have an MLS team (Stadium expansion fee, etc.) Then the team that finishes last in the General table is sold to the highest bidder and the team is relocated to that town.
Let me clue you in on something. Very few Americans who tune into Barcelona vs. Who Cares are doing so in the hope that Barca loses. ------RM
There are 9 professional sports leagues in the Canadian and US markets plus an additional 2 professional soccer leagues which do not have the downside of a relegation. If you were an owner with those choices would you invest in a pro/rel league? Would the Sounders pay a $50 million dollar franchise fee when they can just promote themselves? Promotion/Relegation is too unstable an environment to attract new owners.
Exactly! I think some people have forgotten the point of this thread: that MLS is not getting respect from American soccer fans who would rather watch Barca beat up on some mid-table no-hope Spanish squad than watch Seattle and LA battle it out for the top spot in the MLS West. If that behavior doesn't constitute "snobbery", what does? ------RM
When I watch the games and think "wow, those guys are good" instead of "wow, I'm a better athlete than these scrubs."
At risk of sounding like a complete tool... I was an all-league sprinter and I've been able to dunk since I was a junior in high school. Not really the point though. When I watch the NBA or NFL, I am in awe of the level of athleticism. When I watch MLS, I feel like most of the guys just look like average joes. I watch sports to be wowed by incredible feats of athleticism. There have been some great goals in MLS and some great individual players, but by and large the level of play is not that impressive. The difference is especially glaring when you compare it against the NFL and NBA, which are probably the highest level of competition of any sports league in the world. MLS is more like low division 1 college sports. Like watching a non-BCS conference basketball or football team. I don't watch those sports much either because it's a waste of my time. I want to see the best. MLS doesn't provide that.