Time for Superliga

[BoxOfEpilepsy]

I was surprised not to see any forums about the upcoming superliga matches. I gotta say, i'm glad we drew the group we did. but does anyone think it's even remotely possible that any American side (other than houston) could have a shot at advancing to the semis?

[RayWhitney]

I hope we lose and get out of this competition as soon as possible.

I know it may sound cynical, churlish, and petulant, but I would rather focus (at this stage) exclusively on getting our act together within the league.

JMO YMMV

[Big Roy]

<Dr Evil>One Million Dollars</Dr Evil>

We better do our best to win this thing, that would make for some seriously motivated players. And I would love to see us finally beat a Mexican team, especially since we won't be in pre-season form. And if we beat Chivas twice this year (Superliga & Copa Sudamerica) that would more then make up for not pulling it off back in March.

[fatbastard]

I hope we lose and get out of this competition as soon as possible.
I know it may sound cynical, churlish, and petulant, but I would rather focus (at this stage) exclusively on getting our act together within the league.
JMO YMMVI don't know what churlish means, but I'm down with the rest of it :)
This whole "tournament" reeks of an SUM payday, it seems contrived and fake and I just don't care about it at all. I believe the "M" stands for Marketing - and who came up with the stupid name, Alexi Lalas :rolleyes:
I hope enough of us show up to encourage the team to perform, but not enough for the team (or league) to make a dime, so they never try to do it again :)

My whole feeling on SUM is this: get your shit together actually doing a decent production job on your own product first before you go trying to invent other products you hope to make money on some day.

[revelation]

Don't care about the competition at all, it has all the charm and history of that new underarm stick I bought. I care about the money of course, because a million dollar payday is quite nice. I expect DC United to win every game. If they don't then I'll be bothered.

[SideshowBob]

Well, just to offer a competing view, I love the competition and really hope DCU does well -- and feel they have a good shot to excape the group -- but look forward to entry being earned rather than teams being chosen.

[JeremyEritrea]

I want a pony!

[BBBulldog]

we drew a group?

didn't they just assign Mexican clubs to play in US cities where they'll make most money? :D

[SideshowBob]

we drew a group?

didn't they just assign Mexican clubs to play in US cities where they'll make most money? :D

Actually, I think the biggest thing they did was avoid scheduling the teams in the CCC in the same groups to prevent early rematches. So, Houston and DC were palced seperate from other CCC participants Pachuca and Chivas.

[griffin1108]

I'll be on vacation and miss the Morelia game (will give my tickets to my neighbor). Will be back in time for the Club America game -- don't know if I'll go. This competition means nothing because it is contrived and doesn't offer entry to other "real" tournaments like CONCACAF Champion's Cup or the less "real" Copa Sudamericana.

And if Soehn has Jaime, Namoff or any other dinged player out there gimping around in these meaningless matches, I hope Will and Victor drop him from the top of RFK.

[Section106]

I don't much care for any team but DC United so the prospect of seeing Morelia or America doesn't excite me. That said I think it's a good thing for MLS to try and add a significant tourney that involves teams from a country that is our NT's nemisis and that has a large expatriot population now living here. If we can get the Mexican American population excited and involved in our league then it's a win-win.

[el-choul]

Don't care about the competition at all, it has all the charm and history of that new underarm stick I bought.

Hey!! I like underarm sticks!

If our defense holds up, I think we have a good chance of beating Morelia. America should be interesting, as they'll be going through their usual "getting used to new players" preseason. I'd rather the team wasn't playing the superliga this year, but that's what you get when you're the face of the league.

[Daniel le Rouge]

I don't know what churlish means ...

Take your mental image of me, set it next to a dictionary, and see which one attacks the other. If the mental image of me wins, you're probably on the right track.

[Funkfoot]

I don't know what churlish means, but I'm down with the rest of it
This whole "tournament" reeks of an SUM payday, it seems contrived and fake and I just don't care about it at all. I believe the "M" stands for Marketing - and who came up with the stupid name, Alexi Lalas :rolleyes:
I hope enough of us show up to encourage the team to perform, but not enough for the team (or league) to make a dime, so they never try to do it again

My whole feeling on SUM is this: get your shit together actually doing a decent production job on your own product first before you go trying to invent other products you hope to make money on some day.

Are you kidding? I hope they make money. Putting butts in the seats and getting TV revenue is the purpose of having a team and a league! MLS is still losing money every year, they need all they can get. This is capitalism, not a charity. More money will one day lead to better players in the league, too.

I personally don't give a rat's ass about the teams we are playing because I don't follow the Mexican league. But you season ticket holders should consider whether playing these guys in meaningful matches is better than some of the crappy international friendlies we've been getting lately (except Forest - they rocked! :) ). I think these games will be a lot more fun, the Sunday at 8:00 kickoff notwithstanding.

[Mr.Bill]

I like it because the Mexican competition is good and next year when teams have to play their way in I'll be stoked for it. If SUM makes a lot of money all the better because then I'll probably be able to watch the games in English. Any international competition makes this league better in the long run. Right now the Mexican league is better than MLS. Good. Maybe if nothing else it will get them ready for Copa Sudamerica aka Chivas round 2.

[JJJ3]

It amazes me how people dismiss this competition and then get weepy and nostalgic for the US Open Cup and how DCU disrespected the Cup by sending a second rate team.

Superliga has the potential to become something very big. I take this over any US Open match or any friendly vs. a bored European team. I am looking forward to 25,000 plus crowds for both matches at RFK.

It is a great idea and all credit to Garber for making it a reality.

[Bolivianfuego]

Agreed. The payout is nice, and plus the competiton compared to the US Open cup is better. So taking it seriously is a must.

[Eastern Bear]

It amazes me how people dismiss this competition and then get weepy and nostalgic for the US Open Cup and how DCU disrespected the Cup by sending a second rate team.

Superliga has the potential to become something very big. I take this over any US Open match or any friendly vs. a bored European team. I am looking forward to 25,000 plus crowds for both matches at RFK.

It is a great idea and all credit to Garber for making it a reality.

Agreed. Hopefully this year's competition will be successful enough to warrant a home-home format and the inclusion of Central American and Caribbean clubs.

[SideshowBob]

It amazes me how people dismiss this competition and then get weepy and nostalgic for the US Open Cup and how DCU disrespected the Cup by sending a second rate team.

Superliga has the potential to become something very big. I take this over any US Open match or any friendly vs. a bored European team. I am looking forward to 25,000 plus crowds for both matches at RFK.

It is a great idea and all credit to Garber for making it a reality.

Amen. I understand the annoyance at teams being invited rather than qualifying this year, but beyond that I don't get all the hate. It's a brand new freakin' tournament, so of course it seems "made up" and "fake" -- it is made up. Any new tournament is. But it has to survive and thrive to ever become "something". Heck, Sudamericana -- which people here seem to grant some respect -- has only existed since 2002 and has even more bizarre qualification (4 teams each from Brazil and Argentina in the Round of 16, but only 4 total from the other 8 CONMEBOL countries???).

Anyhow, I'm stoked about playing teams from Mexico in a competative match when we are in-season and in game shape. I think this will provide a nice assessment of where MLS fits compared to the Primera División, which (let's face it) is the top league in North America. A good showing by MLS teams can, I think, have a very positive effect on getting Mexicans (and possibly other Hispanics watching on Telefutura) hooked on MLS as a repsectable league worthy of following and attending.

Also, I think the berths to SuperLiga are huge when it comes to providing incentives to the MLS regular season. Now, it's not just about finishing first (SS/CCC berth) or anywhere in the top 8 (playoffs). It's more of a tier -- 1st (SS/CCC berth, top 4 (SuperLiga), top 8 (playoffs). If they could get one other "reward" for, say, spots 5 & 6 (Sudamericana berth? the long rumoured Pan-Pacific tourney?) then you'd pretty much have competition throughout the standings.

Interesting thought: perhaps the SuperLiga champ and Sudamericana champ could play in a sort of Copa Interamericana series (since that trophy isn't played for anymore). Since they are both sort of "second tier" tournaments for their confederations, it kind of makes sense.

Or how about a 4 team tourney between the CCC, SuperLiga, Libertadores and Sudamericana winners?

[LN - Dougg]

I am one of many who think this is a waste, but seeing as we are 0 for 2 in the year and have been eliminated from two tournaments already, might as well put a good effort for this one.

The two groups:

Group A

Chivas de Guadalajara
L.A. Galaxy
FC Dallas
CF Pachuca

Group B

Club América
D.C. United
Houston Dynamo
Monarcas Morelia

Wasn't Chicago in it??